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The
Rudine TeamUTAH’S
SCENIC BYWAY 12 State
Road 12 between Torrey and Bryce Canyonby
Ken & Yvonne Rudine |
| We
became aware of the Escalante when we saw it at a distance from Bryce Canyon
a few years ago. Also known as The Grand Staircase, it is a geological formation
of colored cliffs, plateaus, mesas, buttes, pinnacles and canyons. I used a street
atlas program to help select our route. My chosen via points are the reasons we
came to use State Road 12 between Torrey and Bryce Canyon. |
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Utah’s
Scenic Byway 12 has been voted one of America’s ten most scenic highways. Our
trip starts at Torrey on Hwy 24 in Utah’s northern high land of the Dixie
National Forest. That means we travel on the tilted terraces stepping down
forming great cliffs. The map says first we ascend to 9600 feet elevation on this
road. As we travel south we can see Boulder Mountain looming to our southwest.
This is a 112-mile journey terminating at Red Canyon, just past
Bryce Canyon. Stopping first for a “$5 FOOT LONG” sandwich, which cost SEVEN DOLLARS,
we begin our trip through the Dixie Forest. At first we didn’t notice, but it
became clear there was virtually no traffic on this most scenic highway. |
30
miles S of Torrey Aspens are changing color
Photo courtesy The
Rudine Team |
Cattle
graze in the foothills of Boulder Mountain
Photo courtesy The
Rudine Team |
| Just after passing
signs to an Anasazi Museum we enter the town of Boulder. On the south side
of town is Burr Grill that marks where Burr Trail from Capitol Reef joins our
highway from about 60 miles to the east. |
A
red barn half way between Boulder and Hogback road
Photo courtesy
The Rudine
Team |
| Next
comes the main feature of Scenic Byway 12. A stretch of road known as HOGBACK
and it is a challenge for most people’s nerves. This is a ridge road with severe
drop-offs on each side without guardrails. When we arrived here it was 37F at
6300-foot altitude. This narrow serpentine road without guardrails is not tolerant
of driving errors. After crossing Hogback a highway sign says Steep Grade Next
4 Miles downhill at 14% incline. It doesn’t mention the 100% incline on both sides.
Reaching the Escalante River Bridge means you have completed this rapid
downhill run, but the town is 14 more miles. |
A
rare highway sign warning of a steep downhill road
Photo courtesy The
Rudine Team |
Calf
Creek cutting through the rock on the right side of Hogback
Photo
courtesy The
Rudine Team |
| There is an alternate
even more excitingly dangerous road. The riskier older road is called HELL’S
BACKBONE ROAD. We did not take that “road less traveled”. We ARE NOT among
those folks who think a worthwhile drive is a sometimes one-lane road with unprotected
2000-foot drop-offs on each side. Measuring 39 miles on its trip from Boulder
to Escalante it adds about 2 hours to this otherwise 24-mile trip. |
Adjacent
to the camping area is a box canyon
Photo courtesy The
Rudine Team |
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In
Escalante we found the city park where we could eat our sandwiches and
use restrooms. A carload of travelers also came in for relief while we were there.
From Old Hickory, TN they had taken the HELL’S BACKBONE ROAD. The driver told
me it was not such a scary drive. I noticed his three passengers were silent but
their body language spoke volumes. It was obvious the view from behind the steering
wheel looks different than from the passenger seats. They were headed to Vegas
next (to continue gambling, I surmised).
The name Escalante comes from
Francisco Silvestre Velez de Escalante who explored the area in the 1770’s. (All
these years I thought Escalante somehow must be the root word of escalator.
I should have known better.)
Book
Hotels
Down the road the next town is Henrieville, then
Cannonville where there was a Visitor Information Center. Later we found
out that Kodachrome Basin State Park was only 8 miles SE of Cannonville,
just a 15-minute drive. Manned by only one person and the waiting crowd, we left
without asking our questions. |
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Pink
cliffs just 3 miles from the Gray cliff near Tropic
Photo courtesy The
Rudine Team |
Tropic is a
small town filled with attractive motels and cafes. It was the final town before
Bryce Canyon and probably a choice place to stay.
Book
Hotels |
At
the eastern boundary of Bryce Canyon with salmon coloring
Photo courtesy
The Rudine
Team |
Now nearing Bryce
Canyon I notice how the pink-orange color of these cliffs remind me of Circus
Peanuts (a marshmallow candy.) On Bryce Canyon road is Ruby’s Inn. This is a monstrous
motel, shopping center, and post office. When we passed, it was alive with people.
Entrance to Bryce and all national parks is now $25. That makes the Golden
Age Passport I bought many years ago for $10 a real bargain since we get in
free.
In Bryce at Ponderosa Point I noticed a couple of large black
birds posing, one on the sign and the other sat nearby. I quickly shot a photo.
Beggars they are - I’ve seen it at parks before. Almost immediately an old man
tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Those crows have asked me to collect a dollar
for each photo made of them”. I laughed and said those Ravens are just joking
with you, they’re not crows. Foiled he laughed and returned to his car. |
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| As the name implies
– Bryce is a canyon. It has unique colors and formations, and offers many different
locations as points of view. Once inside the park you can see it in any fashion
you like, but we think it is best to drive the main road 19 miles to the south
end. Then stop at your chosen points (now conveniently all on the right-hand side)
as you leave northbound. |
It was here at 9100
feet altitude a fellow Texan noticed my San Marcos windbreaker and greeted me.
We quickly decided it was too cold to do much else but shake hands and say HOWDY.
Back at SR12 exit Bryce by turning west immediately entering Red Canyon,
a small but beautiful natural wonder. |
Red
Canyon looking east from junction of Hwy 89 and 12
Photo courtesy The
Rudine Team |
| The highway crosses
the Sevier River and then ends at a junction with Highway 89. |
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