Exploring the Southwest's Grand Circle, by Mark A. Schlenz, Tom Bean and Susan Lamb covers a lot of the places I visited when in southern Utah. I effectively did the "Grand Circle" when plotting my route in a clockwise direction.
Richly illustrated with color photography, this interpretive guide follows the spectacular "Grand Circle" route through the Southwest's plateau lands encompassing America's highest concentration of scenic national parks and monuments. From the Grand Canyon to Zion and Bryce to the exquisite rock formations in Canyonlands, Arches, and the Navajo Tribal Park, visitors to this region meander through a fascinating world of geologic wonders and Ancient Puebloan culture. The revised edition features all new photos and has been updated to include recent parklands and visitor centers.
Frommer's Complete Guides* America's #1 bestselling travel series* More full-color guides than ever before* Foldout maps in annual guides* Outspoken opinions, exact prices, and insider tips
Table of Contents List of Maps vii 1 THE BEST OF UTAH 1 2 UTAH IN DEPTH 12 3 SUGGESTED UTAH ITINERARIES 26 4 THE ACTIVE VACATION PLANNER 36 5 SALT LAKE CITY 45 6 THE NORTHERN WASATCH FRONT: UTAH'S OLD WEST 77 7 THE SOUTHERN WASATCH FRONT: WORLD-CLASS SKIING & MORE 106 8 DINOSAURS & NATURAL WONDERS IN UTAH'S NORTHEAST CORNER 150 9 UTAH'S DIXIE & THE COLORFUL SOUTHWEST CORNER 166 10 ZION NATIONAL PARK 192 11 BRYCE CANYON NATIONAL PARK 211 12 CAPITOL REEF NATIONAL PARK 237 13 LAKE POWELL & GLEN CANYON NATIONAL RECREATION AREA 250 14 FROM MOAB TO ARCHES & CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARKS 260 15 THE FOUR CORNERS AREA 292 16 PLANNING YOUR TRIP TO UTAH 306 Index 323
About the Author A Denver-based writer, Eric Peterson has authored numerous Frommer's guides covering the American West, including Frommer's Montana & Wyoming and Frommer's Colorado, as well as Ramble: A Field Guide to the U.S.A. and other Ramble titles for Fulcrum Publishing (www.fulcrum-books.com). Peterson's byline has also appeared in numerous newspapers and magazines, including the New York Daily News, Denver Post, and Delta Sky, and on winter-sports columns for Frommers.com. In his free time, he's an avid camper, skier, and hiker; a lifelong Broncos fan; and a part-time rock star (at least in the eyes of his niece Olivia and nephews Mitch and Sam).
Canyon Country created into jigsaw puzzles is just perfect. Utilising photos of some of the spectacular landscapes of southern Utah, these jigsaws are a delight to put together.
In this CD there are 5 different photos which have been converted to jigsaws of 12, 24, 40, 104 and 260 pieces each, making a total of 25 jigsaw puzzles.
This range of puzzles can be used by children of different ages and skill levels, promoting hand and eye coordination. Not only are the jigsaws great for stimulating learning and the imagination, they’re full of colour and loads of fun. You can never lose the pieces.
Jigsaw puzzles are easy to do with the click of a mouse button and can be played over and over. Suitable for adults as well! Each CD costs $25.00. That works out to $1 per jigsaw puzzle - great value!
Puzzles are not printable, they're designed to be used on a computer or laptop or even on a large screen via a data projector, and internet access isn’t required.
They're great to take away on holidays and play in the car while travelling or in the tent, RV or caravan on rainy days.
In the Canyon Country CD there are 5 photos which have been turned into jigsaw puzzles: Bryce Canyon, Red Canyon (near Bryce Canyon), Kolob Canyons in Zion National Park, Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park and Dead Horse Point State Park.
The Bryce Canyon photo was taken in the afternoon when the rainy weather had cleared. Blue sky with wisps of cloud above the orange and rusty tones of the canyon. Overnight it poured again so I headed for Cedar Breaks travelling through the Red Canyon (very aptly named too). Rainy weather seemed to follow me so after cloudy skies in Zion National Park I decided to head over to the Kolob Canyons section of the park in the northwest corner. I preferred this because the vistas were in the distance. In Zion Canyon I felt boxed in and had to keep looking up at the canyon walls. At Bryce Canyon you look down into the canyon from the rim and see a beautiful panorama of canyon landforms with mountains in the distance.
Canyonlands National Park is quite vast and it was very hot when I visited. It had several striking formations, like Mesa Arch. My favourite place though is Dead Horse Point State Park with the Colorado River snaking its way around the bottom of high canyon walls. Camping on the spot gives opportunities for sunset and sunrise photos as well as the photo which I've made into a jigsaw. The place must be quite magical when it's covered in snow.
Here's a bit more about the jigsaws which are also available for sale from my other websites - click here!
Here are a couple of samples (a lion and a bus) so you can see how to do the puzzles -
Utah's Canyon Country is coming soon as 25 interactive Jigsaw Puzzles on CD. The spectacular rock formations present photographers with such a wealth of material that it's hard to resist capturing them on film or digital flash card. The response to my photos has been so overwhelming that I've decided to make 5 of the photos into interactive jigsaws: Bryce Canyon, Zion National Park's Kolob Canyons, Red Canyon, Canyonlands National Park and Dead Horse Point State Park.
Rainbow Bridge To Monument Valley: Making The Modern Old West, by Thomas J. Harvey looks to be an interesting read if you can get past the cover. Stunning photo of one of the Mittens in Monument Valley.
The Colorado River Plateau is home to two of the best-known landscapes in the world: Rainbow Bridge in southern Utah and Monument Valley on the Utah-Arizona border. Twentieth-century popular culture made these places icons of the American West, and advertising continues to exploit their significance today. In "Rainbow Bridge to Monument Valley," Thomas J. Harvey artfully tells how Navajos and Anglo-Americans created fabrics of meaning out of this stunning desert landscape, space that western novelist Zane Grey called "the storehouse of unlived years," where a rugged, more authentic life beckoned.
Reviews "Thomas J. Harvey's work on the Utah-Arizona border region . . . will stake out new intellectual terrain for scholars seeking to explore the relationship between geography, cultural nationalism, and Occidentalism in twentieth-century America. . . . Harvey shows quite clearly how layers of meaning continue to be attached to the region and how modern mythmaking is perpetuated."Carter Jones Meyer co-author of "Selling the Indian: Commercializing and Appropriating American Indian Cultures".
I came across this Super Cyclone License Plate Purse - Utah, by Littlearth, and it looks quite a fun accessory. One of my hobbies is to also photograph license plates and Utah has a particularly nice one with "Delicate Arch" as the graphic, so it might be worthwhile checking out.
Description Photography provided by Littlearth for the express use of eBags.
Features
Twice the size of the Cyclone
Features 6" chrome hubcap ends
2 license plates are used to create the bag
Recycled rubber 8 " top handle
Chrome feet to allow bag to sit on hard surface
Purse also features a plush felt lining and an elastic lipstick holder
Littlearth finds used and recycled license plates from all around the country.
Nicks, cracks and rust spots are common and enhance the authenticity of the product
Bottle cap closure
Included is a signed and numbered Certificate of Authenticity
(CAUTION: These are real recycled plates! Every plate is different! We can't guarantee a specific style within a requested state. For example, the Arizona plate may have a desert scene at the bottom, or be red with white letters. But they all look cool!)
Specifications
Comments: Littlearth License Plate bags are made one at a time for our customers. Please allow 1-2 weeks for your specially made purse.
Material: Aluminum
Warranty: 30 days against manufacturer's defects
Colour: Utah
Natural Bridges National Monument, in southeastern Utah, is another fine example of nature's architectural design. The entrance to the park is at the end of Highway 275, approximately 35 miles west of Blanding, Utah, on Highway 95. Driving time from Blanding is roughly 45 minutes.
The entrance sign to the park really accentuates the natural bridge theme.
The next place to stop of course is the Visitor Centre to view the interesting displays and pick up a brochure highlighting the park's features. The Visitor Center is up at about 6,500 feet (about 2,000 metres) but it's still set in desert country and on a sunny day it's hot, hot, hot!
A day or two need to be set aside for this park but as usual for me it was just a quick trip by car around the one way circuit. The lookouts are well marked but parking on a busy day can be a problem. You can see the highlights of the park from the lookouts but this is a park that you need to spend time walking around. The bridges definitely need to be viewed from beneath as well as from above. The different perspective can only be obtained by walking on the trails not just glimpsing from the lookout. Remember to wear a big hat (like my trusty Akubra), put on the sunscreen and take plenty of water. This is very thirsty country.
There are three famous bridges, Sipapu, Kachina and Owachomo (pictured) but I just loved the desert country (maybe because I'm Australian). As well as the natural architecture, the vegetation is worth investigating too. Not just the trees but also the flowers. Reminds me a bit of Australia.
highlighting some of the most beautiful national parks, state parks and national monuments of southern Utah.
You can expect short stories, photos, desktop wallpapers, screen savers, and DVDs (some are free, others are not) and links to other interesting sites. Remember to click on the photos to enlarge.
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