Utah Places: Virgin River

The Virgin River cuts across southern Utah like a meandering giant knife. It leaves deep scars across the land from its passage as it carries the burden of silt and rock ever southward. Some of the scars of passage have left behind the most fascinating chronicle of passage. Twisting and tortuous, the Virgin River Gorge guides the north/south avenue of Interstate 15, which many travellers pass over, never stopping to consider how the passage was crafted. One grain at a time, the river has worn away at the rock an eaten the river bed down. The wind and rain have worked their part. Every bright sunbeam in the merciless heat, all the long nights of frost and freezing, even geological disturbances like fault shifting and earthquakes have done their work on this twisted, alien moonscape, producing such a blasted hades of rock and sand that even desert-adapted struggle for a bare foothold in the most inhospitible barren spots. Not even hardy lichen venture onto these rocks in the savage, baking heat of the full sun.

The easiest way to see the marvel of desolation is from the comfort of your air-conditioned car. For the hardy and boot-leather restless, try the Virgin River Recreation Area campground as a base of operations. Hosted by the BLM, it is virtually empty all year round, and give convenient access to explore the marvelous desert surroundings.

While you are there, take note of the fact that you are within the region now known as the ¨Arizona Strip¨, so notorious among those who battle against the raging wildfires that spring up in the area so frequently.

Utah Places: Temple Mountain

The upper San Rafael Swell is every bit as bit as beautiful to me as say, Zion Canyon. But in different way. Temple Mountain is good example. Home to ancient desert dwellers from ages past, now somewhat trashed by uranium mining, and continued erosion by jeeping and 4wheeler, ATV and mountain bikes and motocross bikes rip the place. But haunting beauty still looms through the dust. And many lovely canyon hikes of everlasting splendor are within a stones throw.

Temple Mountain

 

Pictographs near Temple Mountain

Death in the Desert

Gasping his last agonizing desperate breath,
He faltered and fell headlong in the burning sand,
Powerless arms outstretched
to reach the impossible goal.
Defeat his dying thought, as the last echo of life
faded from his mind.

A bright new awareness gradually flooded in,
Filling his whole being with pure white light.
Stumbling to his feet, finding himself encircled
By those he strove ceaselessly to serve in mortality,
Now joined forever by unbreakable bonds
Of eternal love and joy.

I'm never absolutely sure I can tell the difference between imaginative impressions and real people.

I spent some time during March and April wandering around the hot sands of the San Rafael desert in central Utah. Probably hallucinating some of the time. One of my recurring visions there was of a ghostly train of pioneers coming upon the San Rafael River after crossing 200 miles of waterless, trackless wasteland from Grand Junction. They came to the edge of the river canyon and gazed forlornly down at the sparkling blue trace of water meandering at the bottom, a thousand feet down sheer sandstone, with no safe way to descend. No water for the faltering stock, or for the crying children. Nothing to wet your mouth after enduring days of aching thirst.

Collapse and death in the burning sand must have been a very real threat.