This past weekend we had a lot of fun putting on the Teen Lit. conference and racing bikes. I will write about those events soon. I thought it might be nice to finish writing about the Utah road trip before beginning a new subject.Back to Utah Road Trip 2008
The next morning we got up, had breakfast and hit the road. We had intended to find a camping spot at Whistling Wind camp grounds but were advised that it would be a bit cold there so we headed up to Moab a day earlier than expected. The advise came from the folks at the Monticello Visitor's Center. I think they are the very model of an excellent visitor's center. It was informative and inviting. They had movies about local attractions that you could enjoy while sitting on a couch with a warm drink in your hand. They had lots of different kinds of maps you could access with ease, a computer where you could check your email and the best staff. The folks there were knowledgeable but not pushy. The man was great about listening to what you want to do and advising you. So often you only get to hear the ideas they have and not interject your own. It was he who advised us that going to Big Bend on the north end of Moab would be best. And he was right! After our nice rest stop at the visitor's center we were on the road again. We stopped first at this large mound, George's Rock. I did not feel like braving the cold to see it. It seemed to have an opening on the side, so Ethan and Larr felt compelled to check it out. It
is funny how one parked car will attract others. By the time we were leaving there were four more groups stopped to check out the mound. Ethan was a bit disappointed to find that the opening only went in about 10 feet.Next up was Newspaper Rock. On the map it seemed like a long way to go to look at it, but I am thankful that we did. I really liked it. It is a rock face that has a lot of petroglyphs on it. What is nice about this one is that you can get up close and see it better than you can see the others. I think it had some of the most fun art work we have seen so far. None of the sites that we have been to explain how the artwork is created. Ethan thinks that the artist took a small rock and tapped it, thus knocking off the top layer of the rock. The top layer in this photo is most likely a very dark brown due to a
mineral that is leached out of the rock when it is wet. The lighter minerals was away and this one dries, becoming a different chemical compound. The visitor center in Monticello had a poster of a segment of this wall. It was lovely. My husband's work is worthy of making into a poster, too, I think. Ethan says he wants to have paintings like this on his wall in his room at home. Ellie was a bit quiet on this leg of the trip.
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