A week or so ago, I was talking to the clerk at the bookstore in Moab, UT. We were talking about sights in the area and how few of them are seen. The majority of tourists come through and see the same viewpoints that everyone else sees. Take the same pictures. Visit the same landmarks. He told me an axiom that he had heard and I’ve thought about it a lot this trip. He said that 98 percent of people see 2 percent of the land. It’s always been a goal of mine to be one of the 2 percent; to see some of the things that the other 98 percent will never see.

This past Thursday we had a good example of that. We went to Bryce Canyon National Park and did a loop trail below Rainbow Point at the south end of the park. It was called the Riggs Spring Loop Trail and it descended some 1500 feet through the Ponderosa pines before reemerging on the opposite side of the Point 8.5 miles later. On the descent from Yovimpa Pass a mountain spring criss-crossed our path as we made our way towards Riggs Spring. There we headed toward Mutton Hollow and began our ascent back to Rainbow Point. It was a peaceful hike full of meaningful conversation with my family. We were each able to take our turn following or leading the group at a distance and enjoy some solitude.

The scenery was spectacular and the aroma of the pines was refreshing. The best part, in the entire four-hour hike we saw a grand total of seven people. Despite the thousands of visitors in the park that day we had that trail almost entirely to ourselves.

Oh, and Justin found a Short-Horned Lizard (Horny Toad).

We also saw the Prairie Dog display in the Welcome Center!

Anyway, just a short post to let you know just a little of what we’ve been up to.

Keep calm and hike on!

Mike