Arizona and Utah - Kramer paper No. 65

Here is a new issue of the Kramer Paper! Links to articles included in this issue can be found below the front page image. Please read, and I hope that you like it! Any comments are welcome!

I hope you enjoy!

                    -Steven Kramer, 

                                                   Chief Editor, Kramer Paper Online

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Rainbow Bridge National Monument

Pueblos and Volcanos in Flagstaff

Grand Canyon National Park

Roost of the Condors

Zion National Park

It’s An Experiment (Bryce Canyon)

Dining: Fat Olives Pizza

Rainbow Bridge National Monument

Rainbow Bridge National Monument is perhaps one of the most remote national monuments in the lower forty-eight. It is located on a side canyon of Glen Canyon, flooded in 1963 to form Lake Powell. The arch is about fifty miles upstream from Lake Powell Resort. There are only two ways to reach this legendary arch: a two hour boat ride, or a two day hiking trip through Navajo Country. While the boat ride was pricey, my mother has a passion for national parks and as an employee, I got a discount on boat rides offered by the resort. It seemed the perfect gift.

Brief glimpses of Rainbow bridge can be seen from the boat dock, such as this here. Navajo Mountain rises in the background. Though not required, in order to fully appreciate the bridge, the half-mile walk to rainbow bridge is recommended. -Staff Photographer

The boat to Rainbow Bridge costs over $200, but for those wanting to see this remarkable location it is worth it. The route to the bridge is beautiful as well, displaying what remains of Glen Canyon above water: towers of red rock, pink sand beaches, and crystal blue skies. The boat trip is accompanied by an audio track composed of information about the area and a repeating Native American drum track. Upon arrival at the bridge, it’s a half mile walk to see the bridge itself. While you aren’t allowed to actually touch the bridge, there are trails so you can view and photograph the bridge from both sides. Rainbow Bridge is so called since the arch was formed by moving water, making it a bridge. While not as famous perhaps as Arches National Park, Rainbow bridge is the largest visible rock span in the United States. Allegedly a larger one remains under the water of Lake Powell: Gregory Arch. There was only an hour and a half at Rainbow Bridge, but that is plenty of time for pictures, marveling at creation, and even a picnic lunch if you desire, though food must be brought on with you.

Rainbow Bridge, viewed from the south. One of the plaques commemorating the first known white man to view the bridge in the early 1900s can be seen in in the far right. -Steven Kramer, photo

Rainbow Bridge was long unknown to white settlers until, according to the audio on the tour, Hopis visiting a trading post mentioned it, and an expedition set out to locate it. They succeeded, and their journey is commemorated by two plaques near the border of the National Monument with the Navajo Nation. Exploring the bridge before the formation of Lake Powell was apparently much different. A number of nostalgic web sites make mention of Rainbow Bridge, and one tells the story of a disillusioned former river rafter who felt confined by how rigidly the tour was planned. I will concur: the tour was very structured, and freedom to explore was practically nonexistent. However the days when Glen Canyon was a wilderness are gone, and such rules make perfect sense. I don’t hold it against them.

Glen Canyon and Lake Powell as seen from the Boat returning from Rainbow Bridge. This trip differs from the strips offered by the resort in that it allows a traveller to see far more of the lake - Staff Photographer

While this is the only way to see the bridge be advised. Only private boats and the tour boat go there, and both take almost three hours to reach the bridge from the town of Page. The boat tickets are expensive, and the tour is a bit long for some. However, the bridge is legendary and many are willing  to overlook all this for the sake of seeing it. -KP

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Pueblos and Volcanos in Flagstaff

The Ancestral Puebloans are best known for their large cliff dwellings such as those found in Mesa Verde, but like most cultures they settled a rather large area. Also known as the Anasazi, from the Navajo word for ‘Ancient Ones,’ they, and similar cultures such as the Sinagua inhabited the greater four corners area, including places that are now surrounded by cities. 

The ancient pueblo people built settlements to farm the washes around what is today Flagstaff, in the shadow of the then-active Sunset Crater volcano. Today these villages are protected by the National Park Service as Wupatki National Monument. The ruins are in various states of repair and are scattered across the semi-arid landscape. The structures date back to the 1100s, yet many remain in good condition and trails lead straight to the ruins. Many were stabilized, making them strong enough to respectfully explore. The ruins started after only a few miles of driving into the park, but the most impressive ruins were Wupatki Pueblo near the visitors center and Wukoki Pueblo, which resembled the more stereotypical pueblos which might be seen at Mesa Verde.

Mom standing near Lomaki Pueblo, an ancient agricultural village in Wupatki National Monument. These ruins date back to the 1100s AD according to the National Park Service  -Steven Kramer, Photo

The other collection of Pueblos is in a park surrounding a remote side canyon outside of town called Walnut Canyon National Monument. The ruins in the park are built into the side of the cliff, and arranged in groups. The park is day use only and the gates lock at four, so our arrival in the late afternoon was risky. The ruins are visible from a round trip that  circles a bend in the creek called the island, from which ruins can be seen, and the trail passes by the doors of several more. The trail is lined with a combination of interpretive signs about what the houses were used for and the ever present question of why they left, as well as  signs about early looting and multiple warnings about the steep trail and the dangers of dehydration. For those worried about dehydration, there are exhibits on the canyon rim as well. These are both fabulous parks for those interested in the history of the pueblo cultures, but this appreciation is essential to enjoy the parks.

For those with more interest in the natural side of things, Walnut canyon has discussions on uses of plants in the area, and appreciation for the geology. However geology can also be demonstrated by an unexpected feature of the four corners area: volcanism. Surrounding the Flagstaff area are a series of volcanoes. One of these, Sunset Crater volcano, is preserved by a national monument of the same name. The monument is largely inaccessible to explores. Climbing was closed to the public in the 1970a following severe damage to the fragile cinder cone volcano. Trails still go along the base of the mountain, and many viewpoints are also available for photography. While it is disappointing that the volcano is inaccessible, their reasons make sense, and before and after shots of the mountain suggest that this decision was wise. -KP

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Grand Canyon National Park

Grand Canyon National Park is well known world wide for its beauty, size, and color all of which make it impressive, a word that doesn’t do it justice. There are two main areas of the park that are easily visited by car: North Rim and South Rim. Access to the North Rim was closed by the time of our journey, so we travelled to the South Rim, staying at a resort with an odd computerized cafeteria for a restaurant, and a general store to rival markets found in many small towns. The computerized restaurant--where we had dinner twice--had orders and payments rung up by a computer with the food prepared when the order is put in. A fascinating concept i suppose, but if felt a bit impersonal. The lodge we stayed at is fed by a shuttle that takes you to the Grand Canyon Village, a small town really, made up of museums, shops, and resorts, big enough to warrant its own substation. We arrived in time for an exhibit on art work about the grand canyon. There were also a number of gift shops disguised as museums, and interpretive sites, many remnants of the formerly privatized tourism of days past.

From the South Rim looking across The mile-wide chasm of the Grand Canyon  toward the North Rim. The network of canyons is formed by smaller creeks that flow to the Colorado River-Mark Kramer, Photo

One of the reasons I was impressed by the Grand Canyon, among other reason, was its scale. Visiting the canyon is an experiment in perspective. In the foreground it’s easy to take in details: flecks of color on rocks, lichen and shrubs growing atop boulders, and the shrubs and trees which are fifteen feet high. Across the way, are trees barely visible, but you know that the same intricate details you see before you are present there as well. Using this view of the canyon, you realize walking along the rim, that each mesa, monument, and ravine is as intricately detailed as the next, and the canyon is so massive, that a single traveller could never hope to explore every nook and cranny, nor take in every detail: it’s impossible. According to a ranger program we attended one evening, this matter of scale tricked Spanish explorers who severely underestimated the size of the canyon and its features. Rocks they believed to be the size of a man were tower-sized monoliths. Many early travelers were discouraged by this fact, but today I imagine that that is part of what draws people to the grand canyon.

The Desert View Tower overlooking the Grand Canyon near the entrance to the park.

-Mark Kramer, Photo

As with any national park, large groups are impossible to avoid altogether. Tour busses carrying people from all over the world crowd certain overlooks, and the twenty-first century invention known as the selfie stick makes it next to impossible to stay out of your neighbor’s frame. However, the busses run very tight schedules, and the grand canyon is massive, much of it remote. One line of the park’s shuttle system provides service to parts of the park not accessible by car (and out of reach of big tour busses), including hermit’s rest store, where a weary traveller can stop for a lunch and break from exploring, just like in days past. Along the way are a variety of overlooks which allow you to bask in the majesty of the canyon, as well as learn about the brief commercial use of the canyon for mining and lodging, including a toll path leading to the Colorado River which is now run by the park service. Toward the North End of the park is the Desert View Tower. This is a modern structure inspired by Anasazi construction. The inside is painted by Hopi artists (a tribe that claims the Anasazi as their ancestors) and a number of viewpoints including a memorial to the air disaster in the 1950s over the Grand Canyon that led to the creation of the FAA to enforce safety. Overall, the Grand Canyon is something that must be seen to be truly appreciated, a place large and diverse enough to be its own country in many ways, and as crowded as a small city during peak season. However, solitude can still be found in many places when its needed. The Grand Canyon is a work in progress; no two visits will be the same. -KP

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Roost of the Condor

Many people are familiar with the near-extinction of the California Condors. However in the years since, the Condor is beginning to make a recovery. In the wilds of Vermillion Cliffs National Monument, a condor breeding program is taking place, and while the site itself is only open to authorized personal, it is easy to see-- if you know where to look. In Arizona's House Rock Valley, about forty miles down US 89A after it passes the end of the Vermillion Cliffs, there is a small dirt road running off into the wilderness. This road--House Rock Road--runs almost forty miles to join US 89 near Paria, UT. However, if you only travel a few miles down this road, there is a covered area with binoculars, and benches to observe the large birds circling over the cliffs about a mile away. It is here where the California Condors were released. With the condor population beginning to rebound, the area is now also used to lure birds in for checkups and to test their blood for lead from ammunition, found in the carrion the birds eat. The enclosure where the breeding program occurred is on top of the cliff, hard to spot without binoculars, but the circling condors are not. They spend much of their time traveling abroad n the Southwest as they did for eons, but in the Autumn they visit the Vermillion Cliffs and the researchers lay out cattle carcasses to lure the birds in. The circling birds make an incredible sight themselves, their nine foot wingspans dwarfing the ravens that fly with them. Recovery is going well, and it is incredible to see them, even if they are a mile away. -KP

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Zion National Park

We had intended to stay in the Zion Lodge, but when it was found to be full, someone recommended a buffalo ranch that rented out cabins right outside the park. Being my chronically nervous self I had envisioned this as a place to shanghai guests into tending buffalo herds, or a lone creepy cabin in a dark forest. Instead the resort was located on a turnout guarded by a large statue and a check-in desk in a pleasant building surrounded by a flock of finches and free range chickens. Bison were mysteriously absent. Dinner was supposed to be at the lodge but again, the lodge was unavailable. Shuttle service is the only way to the lodge, even as late as November, and the shuttle stopped early. Instead we travelled past derelict windmills  and herds of antelope and into the park itself.

Even with my previous visit to the park in April, I was still taken aback by its beauty. As with the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park is impressive because of its scale―vertical in this case―and its array of colored rock, ranging from clay-like tans to orange and rusty reds. Cliffs glow in the evening sunlight, making even these humble tans look impressive.  The shapes of the rock itself are as alien as those in Glen Canyon, but unlike the rocks of Glen Canyon which are bare and smooth, the rocks of Zion are cracked and sculpted, covered by small pines and shrubbery which settle wherever they can, making rocky shelves into natural gardens. One of the more impressive elements of the park is the Tunnel, a passage blasted through the rocks of the mountain itself. The tunnel is lined with portals which are good for photos, but sneak up on you. If you manage to catch a glimpse out from the tunnels, these momentary views are―and I don’t use this word lightly―breathtaking. Beyond the tunnel, the road descends to the valley floor along a series of switchbacks, allowing many opportunities to enjoy the majesty of the canyon. At night these switchbacks are lit up by headlights of travelers on the light, splashing the canyon with light and illuminating details missed by day. herds of bighorn sheep can be seen as well.

The Virgin River and Zion Valley as seen from the trail to the Emerald Pools -Mark Kramer, Photo

Exploring the park itself is difficult by car. Much of it is wilderness―inaccessible by road. The main canyon of the Virgin River is accessible, but can only be travelled by shuttle bus. At the end of the shuttle route into the canyon is a trail leading to the narrows, the narrow slot canyon of the Virgin River. The trail ends at a walled in platform, lined with Cairns in April, all of which had been destroyed over the course of the summer. Continuing past this overlook, the trail meets the river itself, and continues a mile or more along the river bed. Wet feet are a must―the river is too deep to hop rocks―and so one must come prepared, though rentals are available at the lodge. Another point of interest is the trail to the Emerald Pools. The lower two trails are relatively uninteresting, about the size of a hot tub, and only about half a foot deep. The trail up from the middle pool is challenging, carved into the hillside itself, following the canyon of the stream that feeds the pools from snowmelt atop the cliffs. The canyon is dry, and split down the middle: firs and broadleaf trees on one side, and a thicket of live oaks on the other through which the trail is cut. The trail is long, and impatient travelers may begin to question if the trip is worth it. Up and over the final hill, the trail passes through a thicket of broadleaf trees, and onto a beach with the larger Upper Emerald Pool at the end. Hikers gather here and exchange words, while those who look up are treated to the full scene hinted at by the partial views of the cliff seen from the trail. From the Upper Emerald Pools, the cliffs rise and curve slightly over the pool, forming a massive alcove. Moisture from the pool gives rise to small gardens of grasses moss and liverworts.

The park was originally named “Mukuntuweap” a Southern Paiute word meaning “straight up place” or something along those lines. The park was designated a national monument in 1909, and became a park ten years later. -KP

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“It’s An Experiment: Bryce Canyon National Park

Bryce Canyon is known for surreal towers of stone called hoodoos, pillars of easily eroded rock protected by more sturdy layers located on top. They are not restricted to the park however; hoodoos become visible on the hillsides in the surrounding territory, and a small area called Red Canyon on the road into Bryce, while not part of the park, has similar rock formations. After leaving Red Canyon however, the terrain becomes much like it was before, and as with many parks, the actual feature of the park itself isn’t immediately visible.

Checking into the hotel was an adventure in itself. The front desk was a converted guest room, and could be found by following hastily created folding signs. We were informed that the winter hours were an “experiment” and the rustic appearance of the hotel and amenities closed for the winter brought out a number of horror movie jokes. The restaurant had closed for the winter, but thankfully food could be found in town, and in the general store: also closed. Without TV, we made an evening of playing. National Park Monopoly (Yes, that is a thing.)

The Sun rises over the Hoodoos near the Aptly named Sunrise Point. -Mark Kramer, photo

Sun The following morning we set to explore as much of the park as time permitted. It was partially cloudy, with fog banks lining the horizon hanging over the surrounding cliffs. The hoodoos are alien, but beautiful, rising from piles of crumbled rubble like skyscrapers from an alien city that even a science fiction author couldn’t dream up. The size of Bryce Canyon takes you by surprise: trails that appear to lead to the end of the hoodoos reveal that they stretch for another mile, after rounding a single bend. It being November, the air got noticeably colder as we descended the switchbacks, held in place by masonry of sandstone resembling part of an ancient pueblo. By the time the trail reaches the valley floor, hikers gain an appreciation of just how large the hoodoos are, something that is impossible to understand when looking at them from above. The wasteland only lasts for a few yards. The trail soon emerges into an open ravine where we were greeted by the familiar bark of a Douglas fir tree, rising hundreds of feet to its canopy above the hoodoos. Chipmunks scamper among the rocks and the chatter of hikers hundreds of feet behind you can be heard echoing through the rocks.

Rows of Hoodoos in nearly perfect rows seen from Inspiration Point, in Bryce Canyon national Park. One of the hiking trails in the park can be seen in the center of the photo -Mark Kramer, Photo

Further into the park, several overlooks allow unique looks at the hoodoos down below and their surroundings. In some places the orange of the hoodoos is supplemented by white minerals so out of place, they appear to be airbrushed on. In other places, the forest of the valley floor comes right up to the cliff’s edge and a handful of hoodoos rise from behind clusters of pines and fir. The highest point in the park is Rainbow Point, at 9,115 feet.  This marks the edge of the park: looking back the hoodoos from an orange ring around an otherwise unimpressive valley of tan soil, pines and underbrush. Bristlecones, some as old as 1600 years cling to life on the top of the cliff using a variety of survival techniques including killing parts of the plant all together.

Natural Window, an  arch carved from the same stone as the hoodoos elsewhere in the park. -Mark Kramer, Photo

While the park was quiet in November, it was cold, and the wind chill was merciless. In a place as surreal as Bryce Canyon, seeing it at any time is remarkable. That leaves a traveller two choices: brave the crowds, or brave the cold. -KP

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Dining: Fat Olives Pizza

Steven Kramer

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Most Americans have had Pizza, but I think it is fair to say that no one has ever had Pizza like that made by Fat Olives. A small family owned restaurant located in Flagstaff, Fat Olives follows a philosophy known as Neopolitan pizza. This philosophy requires the use of specific types of ingredients, including genuine Italian Mozerrella Cheese, and a specific type of flour. Fat Olives cooks their pizzas in a stone oven made by hand in Italy. This Oven is kept so hot that Pizza’s are cooked to perfection in less than five minutes. Their website explains the importance of all the ingredients they use, including Cheese, tomatoes, and even a specific type of flour. Employees are friendly, and more than happy to discuss their philosophy if asked. Because of their philosophy, the crust is far thinner than normal crust, making the Pizza softer, requiring utensils to eat it. Desserts are also a must: there is a dessert Calzone that is very delicious. It’s difficult to wrap your mind around the concept of a dessert calzone, but fairly easy to get your mouth around. Perhaps a bit too easy.... If ever in Flagstaff, a visit Fat Olives for pizza is a must. The price is reasonable, and the dining experience is unique; one that you will not regret.-KP

Pricing: $15-30   -   Service: Very Good    -     Formality: ★★☆☆  -   Rating: A

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