June 2022 – The wonderful slogan on every license plate in Utah is: “Life Elevated.” This refers, of course, to the extraordinary red rock hoodoos, spires and bridges that abound in southern Utah and to the towering mountains that dominate the northern part of the state and also to the overall gorgeousness and good feelings Utah exudes. Our lives are definitely elevated every time we visit the state.
We have been moving in a northerly direction as the June temps heat up and, as is usual for us, we’ve been staying off the interstates and traveling on country highways and byways instead.
We find these roads are not only more interesting, but are often in better shape than the interstates, and we’ve found we’re much more likely to bump into special places we’ve never heard of before.
Such was the case when we saw a blue sign saying “Rest Area ahead” and decided to turn off to stretch our legs. As we turned into the rest area, we thought we’d stay for 10 minutes at most. A few hours later, we finally pulled out again! It was a beautiful and unusual little spot.
Right next to where we’d parked the rig was a sign, “Please, no overnight camping.” We’ve never seen “Please” on a sign like this before. How unusual!
Our trail scout, Buddy, noticed a trail we didn’t even see, and he led us down to a pretty tree-lined stream.
And then he took us up another short trail that went high up on a bluff where we had views of jagged peaks in all directions. What a spectacular place!
We noticed two spires framing two teepees in the distance. What was that?! We had to go down and find out more!
We scrambled down and followed a dirt road that went towards the spires. We hunted around but never did get a very good view of the teepees. However, as we walked along the dirt road, a guy we’d seen unloading his mountain bike from his Lance camper back in the parking area suddenly rode past us. Hmmm….where was he headed?
A few paces further on, we found another towering rock spire that had an old western town of store fronts at its base!
A babbling brook tumbled over rocks and boulders, making a lovely composition with the western town in the background. Our cameras were going full speed and we were loving it!
The old western town appeared to be on private property, but we still got a good look at it from the road. There was a hotel, a saloon, a mercantile store and a jail — everything you need!
Buddy was having as much fun as we were. He ran all around excitedly, so full of life!
As he zoomed this way and that, we snapped pics of this unique place. A tree was in full bloom with beautiful pink flowers.
A little further down the road we came across a collection of boulders and stone spires that had a swinging bridge between them.
One towering rock had metal hand-holds affixed to it so you could climb the rock face without rock climbing gear!
The road crossed a little bridge, and when we got to the other side we heard a side-by-side coming up behind us. The guy sped by and then another side-by-side crossed the bridge behind him.
I was snapping photos of the second UTV crossing the bridge when the driver slowed down and stopped next to me. I looked in the door and his passenger was holding a video camera. “We’re YouTubers!” the driver said excitedly.
“Cool! We’re bloggers!” I said. “So, you were filming me as I was taking photos of you!”
He laughed and handed me his card for their channel, Our SxS Adventures with Curt and Charlene. “We’re just getting started with it.”
Curt went on to explain that this trail was part of the huge Paiute ATV Trail system and the guy ahead of them was a local guide who was going to show them the best spots. He suggested we grab our RZR and come along with them!
But we’re kinda Slow Road / Picture Taking UTV riders, and we weren’t sure we could keep up. We aren’t adventure side-by-siders at all. We stop all the time on our RZR and we get out every mile or so to take photos. What’s worse, in UTV terms, is that we turn around when the going gets any tougher than pretty flat ground! So, we wouldn’t have been good company for them!
We thanked them for the invitation and followed them up the trail a little ways as they drove off. The view around that bend was stunning!
Curt was right. We just had to go back to the trailer and grab the RZR and do one of our slow-poke rides. Thanks for the inspiration, Curt!
This was only our second time unloading the RZR from the back of the toy hauler, so we were really pleased that, unlike the first time, it went smoothly and didn’t take any longer than unloading it from our old flat bed utility bed trailer that we’d towed behind our fifth wheel. Yay!
We’d first heard of the Paiute ATV Trail system at the Quartzsite RV Show back in January. A fellow from Piute County came to the show to let folks know about the wonderful ATV/UTV riding all around the county, and I ended up chatting with him for while. We had hoped to ride some of the trail system on this trip but hadn’t figured out exactly where, when or how. This little impromptu intro was perfect!
The theme of dramatic cliffs framing both sides of the trail that we’d glimpsed when we were on foot continued for the first few miles of the ride. It was gorgeous!
After a few twists and turns between these fabulous canyon walls, we just had to stop and get out and sniff around (Buddy) and take some photos (us).
We were very happy campers!
We continued on with Buddy leading the way on four paws. He’d run ahead and then wait for us or come back to see what was holding up the slow poke grown-ups.
Other folks were out enjoying this beautiful trail too.
A stream ran alongside us and then crossed over the trail in front of us. A water crossing!
It was just a few inches deep and the RZR handled it fine. Again, our cameras urged us to stop the RZR and get out. Further down the trail, we caught sight of a fantastic waterfall. Out we went again!
That’s how we roll in the RZR…ride a little and walk around a bunch!
Next to the waterfall was the carcass of a 1950s era car on its side. It was half buried in the dirt and had lost everything but its rusted metal frame long ago. We suspected that kids might have deliberately rolled it over the edge as a lark decades ago. At least, we hoped it was that and not a car crash!
Mark and I were having a ball taking photos in this particular spot where the water splashed vigorously over the rocks. But Buddy isn’t as into photography as we are. He sniffed everything that was sniffable in the area and then laid down for a little rest.
After a while, the trail narrowed and became quite rocky, and the views of exotic rock formations were replaced with thick vegetation on each side. We weren’t sure how much further we’d have to ride before the views returned, and the going was getting rough. So, we decided to turn around, get lunch in the toy hauler and continue down the country highway we’d been on (US-89 south of Sevier).
Right before we got back to the beginning of the trail, we noticed a small building with a paddle wheel deep in the woods. We got out one last time to explore and we spun the wheel for a fun pic. The structure was too new to have been an original paddle wheel from way back when, but it was a neat find.
Before leaving the rest area, we visited the restrooms and were impressed at how clean they were. For a lonely spot in the middle of nowhere, I was surprised to see a woman cleaning them. But she disappeared before I could ask her who managed this very interesting place.
We hopped back in the truck and hit the road again all full of smiles. Unexpectedly, our “boring” day of driving had turned into an exciting day of exploring. This little gem will go down in our memories as a sweet mystery deep in Utah’s hinterlands!
It is unanticipated moments of pleasure like this that are our favorite aspect of this lifestyle. We wake up with one agenda in mind (if any), and within a few hours we’re doing something completely different that’s even better!
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