Road Trip Campin’ III: Red Canyon and Bryce

July 16-18, 2019–Part 3 of 4 of a nine-day camping trip through south-central Utah. We covered about 600 miles, camped in four different places, and were joined by friends at various points along the way.

Our third camp of the trip was above Lightning Draw, just east of Red Canyon and northwest of Bryce Canyon National Park. I’d previously driven Highway 12 as far as Escalante, but everything after that was new to me. Traci and I stopped in Upper Valley just west of Escalante to take the dogs for a walk and spotted some granaries and pictographs just above the road. We stopped again at Ruby’s Inn to use the RV dump and refill our water, then moved on toward camp.

Starting down the Hogback on UT-12
Starting down the Hogback on UT-12

Truck and trailer on UT-12
Truck and trailer on UT-12

Prehistoric structures and pictographs in Upper Valley
Prehistoric structures and pictographs in Upper Valley

I went for a motorcycle ride in the afternoon, riding up Berry Spring Creek and then down Corral Hollow. Ken joined us that evening and we enjoyed the full moon from around the camp fire.

Above Cabin Hollow
Above Cabin Hollow

Corral Hollow
Corral Hollow

Waiting for traffic to go my direction on UT-12
Waiting for traffic to go my direction on UT-12

Full moon
Full moon

Camp above Lightning Draw
Camp above Lightning Draw

On Wednesday morning Ken and I did some hiking in and around Red Canyon. First we hiked the Cassidy Trail and Rich Trail to Ledge Point. It was only about four miles total but it was already quite warm when we finished the hike. Next we cooled off while checking out the Red Canyon Visitor Center and then did a shorter hike on the Pink Ledges Trail, then returned to camp for a late lunch.

Cassidy trailhead
Cassidy trailhead

Indian paintbrush along the trail
Indian paintbrush along the trail

Wrnglers 1978
Wrnglers 1978

Cassidy Trail and Rich Trail junction
Cassidy Trail and Rich Trail junction

Climbing the Rich Trail
Climbing the Rich Trail

Ledge Point Trail junction
Ledge Point Trail junction

Approaching Ledge Point
Approaching Ledge Point

Panorama from Ledge Point
Panorama from Ledge Point

Ledge Point view
Ledge Point view

Blazed tree along the trail
Blazed tree along the trail

Arch in Red Canyon
Arch in Red Canyon

Pink Ledges Trail
Pink Ledges Trail

Hoodoos along the Pink Ledges Trail
Hoodoos along the Pink Ledges Trail

Georgia arrived that afternoon and we all drove into Bryce Canyon National Park. It was my first time in the park and we just stopped at a couple of overlooks and completed the short hike along the Bristlecone Loop Trail. Then it was back to camp for another night around the fire before moving along to another camp spot the next day.

View from Sunset Point
View from Sunset Point

Powell Point viewed from Sunset Point
Powell Point viewed from Sunset Point

No Man’s Mesa
No Man's Mesa

Wildlife
Wildlife

Panorama from Bryce Point
Panorama from Bryce Point

Hoodoos
Hoodoos


Photo Gallery: Road Trip Campin’ III: Red Canyon and Bryce
GPS Track: [Google Earth KMZ]

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