For many years, my family visited the Utah Shakespeare Festival every summer. It was our annual vacation. As an adult, I have returned to this event more than a few times but never as a primary destination with the bulk of my family along. That all changed as life briefly became almost ordinary last summer, and a large portion of my relatives traveled to Cedar City to appreciate drama, some neighboring attractions, and each other. Now that I have set the stage for this excursion, let us dive into the plot.
Panning for fool’s gold entertained the kids much longer than the wise expected.
Jason and I attended three performances during this trip. Comedy of Errors, Shakespeare’s shortest work, was our first. This lighthearted romp makes a good introduction to Shakespeare. Two of the younger members of our group, and Jason, welcomed that. The next afternoon, we saw the heart wrenching but hopeful musical Ragtime. On our final day, we watched Pirates of Penzance, which is always a crowd favorite with its catchy tunes and silly banter. The Utah Shakespeare Festival does a tremendous job with their quality productions, and these were no different.
The Concord coach was designed to carry up to 12 people with each allocated a whopping 15 inches of space.
In addition to our bardly devotions, we spent a morning at Frontier Homestead State Park. Frontier Homestead is dedicated to Cedar City’s early days as a mining town. It contains antique buildings, historic artifacts like stagecoaches, hands-on activities, and replicas such as a blast furnace. We lingered until our sweat slicks were charted waterways.
There are many photo opportunities at Frontier Homestead for those so inclined.
Another day, after stuffing our faces with as many types of pizza as possible, a group of us went on a hike up the Timber Creek Overlook Trail in the Kolob Canyons portion of Zion National Park. The Kolob Canyons don’t get the traffic the main section of Zion does, and the views from the Timber Creek Overlook Trail, which extend all the way to the Grand Canyon, are more than worth the mild one-mile effort.
Frontier Homestead’s collection includes Cedar City’s oldest surviving brick home, a working sawmill, and several train cars.
Being at the Utah Shakespeare Festival took me back to my teenage days. The nostalgia was potent though a lot had changed. It was strange to see the old Greenshow area and the Adams Theater, a replica of the Globe Theatre, shadowy and quiet, but my family’s presence made their silent shapes seem less like ghosts. Those relatives continued to make up for the months of separation by chatting in the hotel’s firelit courtyard until midnight or 12:30 every evening.
The Kolob Canyons are finger canyons hedged by brilliant 2,000-foot cliffs.
Although Cedar City was uncomfortably hot throughout our stay, we relished this wistful and entertaining return to a familiar tradition and familiar people.
Once a year, you get a day older but receive credit for a whole year of maturity. It’s not quite right, but the discrepancy comes with some perks. The festivities for my birthday this year took me from my backyard to the top of a mountain and from speeds above 35 MPH to under one. Yes, birthdays can be a beautiful blend of diverse delights… and endurance training.
In 2002, the ski jumping, bobsled, luge, and skeleton competitions were all held at the Utah Olympic Park. It still serves as a main training site.
My birthday occurs during a busy time of the summer. Therefore, it often gets forgotten amidst travel and holiday plans. Those who make it a priority gain elite status in my heart. My sister is one of those. In the days leading up to my birthday, she took me and some of the other family females out to brunch. Then, her clan came over for a backyard meal around a cozy fire.
Kessler Peak is situated between Mineral Fork and Cardiff Fork.
Jason is the ultimate birthday spoiler, though perhaps not the ultimate cook. He bravely attempted to make some sort of cinnamon bun from scratch for my birthday breakfast without any of my help. The recipe was labeled easy online but will never receive that designation from him. They turned out more puck than bun. He consulted his friendly household food scientist afterward, and the problem was quickly deciphered. He had substituted volumetric measurements for weight measurements. I appreciated his thoughtful gesture even if I didn’t consume too much of the outcome.
God’s Lawnmower, a ribbon that runs the length of the entire north side of the mountain, is a notorious avalanche area that regularly claims lives.
Dense buns weren’t Jason’s only birthday plan. He took me to the Utah Olympic Park for a tour of the facility and a zip line tour. I loved learning about the history and operations of this venue, which was built for the 2002 Winter Olympics. Isn’t all new knowledge fascinating?
Mining in the Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons occurred between 1867 and 1976 with silver and lead being the primary minerals of interest. This miner’s shelter is a remnant of those days.
The zip lines at the Utah Olympic Park make use of the gully the park is situated in, zooming seven times across its gap. The first line is the longest at about 1,500 feet and moves fast enough to make your eyes water. Other lines range between 550 and 800 feet in length. My birthday was a busy day for the park. Even though we had a reservation, we had to wait about 45 minutes to get on the first line. After that, the zipping zipped. The zip line system at Utah Olympic Park isn’t as sophisticated as some of the others we’ve been on. You have to grab a rope on the adjacent line as you come in. If you miss it, let’s just say you will feel rather silly about the amount of effort required for the line operator to heave you in. Maybe not high-tech but still high fun.
You pass two mine shafts heading up Kessler, the second of which is a direct drop.
The next day, Jason correctly guessed I’d appreciate a magnificent challenge as part of my annual reminder of our ever-aging state. For what better way to feel like a babe than ascending a 30-million-year-old rock? In Kessler Peak, we thought we had a short trek. Kessler Peak is one of the most prominent mountains in Big Cottonwood Canyon at 10,403 feet, but the trail to its apex is only 2.3 miles each way. An online guide we read said this journey takes 5-7 hours to complete. We got a good laugh out of that. Seven hours to hike 4.6 miles? What a joke! It took us six hours and 55 minutes. I guess the joke is on us. Fortunately, since we started at 2:45 PM, we only had to use headlamps to light the last 10 minutes of our expedition.
The top of Kessler Peak supplies ample views of the Uintas, Hidden Peak, Mount Raymond, and Clayton Peak.
Why the dawdling pace of less than a mile an hour? This path climbs over 2,900 feet. With a grade of 79% for long stretches, it takes more time to go down in some places than up. The last 1.5 miles are particularly sheer and unforgiving.
If you can conquer a peak on your birthday, you aren’t older than dirt yet.
What did we think of the hike? The view from the summit is remarkable and our favorite of the peaks we’ve climbed in Big Cottonwood Canyon. However, although the trail is easy to follow, there are no signs indicating you are on the right path. I’d not recommend this hike without a downloaded map that includes GPS as some offshoots are more worn than the main route. A branch 1.8 miles from the trailhead, which leads nowhere, baffled us. Without the help of a map, we might have been wandering the hillsides clueless for quite a while.
Kessler Peak was by no means the most daunting mountain we’ve summited, but we still had a few nervous moments on its exposed edges.
My birthday this year held memorable activities, people, settings, and workouts. Many thanks to my considerate and adventurous husband and thoughtful family members for the assorted commemorations of another obligatory trip around the sun.
With vaccinations lifting restrictions last spring, my family was eager to spend some closer-than-six-feet time together. Therefore, my sister suggested we all assemble somewhere in southeastern Utah. After some research and a bit of random selection, we ended up in Bluff for this last-minute excursion. Though you probably haven’t heard of this Utah speck, maybe my post will convince you too to do a little bluffing.
In 1908, Natural Bridges was designated a national monument making it Utah’s first contribution to the national park system.
Although Bluff is a small town with only about two hundred residents, it is situated amidst grandeur and opportunities for adventure. While busier than its size might suggest, it is far from being a hub of tourism, which we appreciated.
All three bridges at Natural Bridges formed from an entrenched meander system.Horse Collar Ruin is well-preserved and unique.
We went to Natural Bridges National Monument our first day in the area. Due to its remote location, Natural Bridges gets fewer guests than its magnificence deserves, which makes for an even pleasanter visiting experience for those willing to wander way out. Jason and I have been to Natural Bridges before, and the trail we took was mostly a repeat, but we noticed more archeological sites, pictographs, and petroglyphs in White Canyon this time. From granaries high on the canyon walls to those accessible in hidden places, we were shocked by how much we had missed on our first visit. We had planned on hiking the full loop between Sipapu and Owachomo Bridges, but my dad fell and pulled his hamstring not long after we stopped at Horse Collar Ruin, about two or so miles into our trek. He was in horrible pain and struggling to walk, so most of our group took the trail to the top of the canyon after Kachina Bridge to aid him. Jason and I continued with a couple of the bolder kids through Armstrong Canyon to Owachomo Bridge. A vehicle awaited us at Owachomo, cutting our trek down to 6.6 miles. Thanks for a three-mile minivan shortcut Sis!
Natural Bridges contains many undamaged and practically whole prehistoric structures, most of which remain undetected by hikers.Kachina Bridge is more mass than grace and is still being worn by flood waters.
With an injured father, we decided the best activity option for the next day was checking out Valley of the Gods. Valley of the Gods is a basin full of odd shapes and towering buttes created out of Cedar Mesa sandstone over the span of 250 million years. As it is basically a drive with about a dozen or so stops, it is a perfect place to take a stubborn father with a leg injury so he can enjoy the outdoors without straining himself further. Thanks Mother Nature for your kind consideration of wounded pops!
Owachomo Bridge is in the late stages of its life and is no longer being eroded by flowing water.Valley of the Gods is a smaller, and much less popular, version of Monument Valley.This photo can only be explained by the nearness of Setting Hen Butte and the exhilaration of long-overdue family nearness.
Since we were just a few minutes from Gooseneck State Park, we dropped by after exploring Valley of the Gods. Gooseneck State Park gives an excellent view of the San Juan River as it flows over six miles while only moving 1.5 miles west. This is one of the best examples of an entrenched meander anywhere in North America. If you don’t understand what an entrenched meander is, I’d recommend watching the 2 Minute Geology clip on the subject via YouTube.
At Gooseneck State Park, 1000 feet of rock is revealed. Those 16 layers date back 300 million years.Alhambra Rock, a relic of ancient volcanism, can be seen from Gooseneck State Park.
Before heading home the next day, we stopped at Edge of the Cedars State Park. This place features the largest collection of Ancestral Puebloan pottery in the region, a restored kiva you can enter, and a partially excavated village. While not as impressive as nearby Hovenweep National Monument, the museum at Edge of the Cedars contains plenty of information and noteworthy artifacts to merit a visit.
This interesting sculpture at Edge of the Cedars transforms on the winter solstice.
The landscapes and historical relics were captivating near Bluff but hanging out with my family was more so. After we’d spent over a year meeting at parks and chatting from a distance, we got to cram uncomfortably into vehicles and sit at tables together! Our joy at the normalcy of our outing was almost overwhelming. We occupied our evenings sitting around fires chatting and giggling. My family is amazing because we readily laugh and joke around, yet we are still fully willing to have meaningful, serious conversations. More than the majestic bridges and buttes, I will remember the exquisite reconnection.
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