We just spent the last four nights in a black hole.
Kodachrome Basin State Park was the first time we've stayed anywhere with ZERO signal in our year and a half on the road...and it was quite pleasant, peaceful and beautiful!
The State Park has 31 camp sites, about 10 of those have full hookups. Amenities include restrooms/showers, dump station, a few cabins and a tiny store. The park is located nine miles out a paved road from the tiny town of Cannonville, and is nestled in a basin surrounded by colorful rock walls. There are 12 miles of trails in the park. Even though there is no cell or internet connectivity, we had good satellite reception.
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| Site 31 is very deep, it could hold any size RV. Great separation from our only neighbor. |
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| A view of the campground nestled in the Basin. |
During our four night stay we managed to hike all the trails in the park, drive the excellent dirt road to Cottonwood Canyon for more hiking, plus one day spent almost entirely in the RV due to cold winds and threat of rain. We really enjoyed the park and the campground and the surrounding countryside. I'll let the pictures tell the story...
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| I kept seeing teeth and toes and noses in the rocks! |
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| The fine grit of this particular sandstone creates drip castles under the bulges! |
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The sandstone layer here was more fragile than we have seen other places.
If you rub your hand on it you remove fine particles. |
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| There are 67 sedimentary spires in the Park. This graceful one is called Ballerina. |
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| Cool Cave wasn't really a cave, but it was pretty cool! |
We even managed two meet ups with our friends the
Nealys. One afternoon we drove to their campsite in Bryce Canyon, and another day they stopped by our site. Turns out they had the same site immediately following our stay, we even passed each other as we left and they arrived at Kodachrome!
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| Deas, Jen, Hans and Lisa at the Nealys' site in Bryce Canyon. |
The day we drove out Cottonwood Road was cold but beautiful. It was about 11 miles on this excellent dirt road to Grosvenor Arch from the campground.
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Looking towards Kodachrome Basin area, with the pink cliffs of Bryce Canyon
and the snowy peaks of Brian Head in the distance. |
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| Grosvenor Arch |
On our Utah state map we noticed that Cottonwood Canyon was just a couple miles further on Cottonwood Road. What a pleasant surprise it was when we came upon the Cottonwood Narrows North trail head.
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| We parked at the North Narrows trail head and walked about 1.5 miles down the canyon. |
After about 1.5 miles in Cottonwood Canyon we popped out on the road at the South Narrows trail head. We decided to walk the road back to the truck, which turned out to be an excellent choice...the colors and textures of the surrounding countryside were amazing!
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| Walking back up the road to the truck. |
Back at Kodachrome Basin State Park, we hiked the Sentinel trail.
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| Along the Sentinel trail. |
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| We were being watched... |
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| Hans is but a tiny speck on the slickrock. |
We really enjoyed this little sojourn in a black hole, but it's nice to be back in the land of connectivity. In fact, we were surprised to discover that the internet at our new location,
Canyons of Escalante RV Park and Cabins, has better internet than we are able to get on our own!
You are in one of our favorite areas of the country. We were blown away by Cottonwood Canyon Rd. Love the Cockscomb monocline!
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing country...making UT one of our very favorite states!
DeleteI just said to John that we needed to return to this area and hike around Kodachrome some more. Your photos are so cool. Many features we never saw. The day we drove down from Bryce was rather overcast and at times drizzly. We did get to do a shorter hike to one of the arches. We drove around to view many of the spires which I found fascinating.
ReplyDeleteI so wanted to see the Grosvenor Arch and we really gave it a try. That "nice" dirt road is a nightmare of clay when wet. It was very wet the day we tried. After maybe a mile we knew we were doomed as the mud totally coated the tires and slapped at the underside. Needless to say we turned around:( Your photo is beautiful.
Glad you had a great time and got to meet up with the Nealy's!!
We were fortunate that this winter was not so cold and long lasting as last winter. We've had very few poor weather days this year. Hopefully next winter will be a good one for you too!
DeleteI'm looking forward to your review of the campground in Escalante. We stayed there in 2010 and it was pretty grim. There was no internet, the cabins were sad and there were problems with the sewer system. However, I read that they're under new ownership and things are looking up. We first discovered chicken in a can (a whole chicken, in a can) in the Escalante grocery store. It's such a beautiful part of the country, I'd like to go back.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like they are spiffing up the place. The cabins look fresh from the outside and the laundry room is good. We really expected to get 3G here and were surprised to find only 1X...we are very happy to have decent campground internet! I can't wait to start hiking the area!
DeleteThat "being watched" photo reminds me of Richard Nixon. haha!! Beautiful photos of yet another place I didn't know about, but has now been added to the wish list!
ReplyDeleteNot only beautiful but with decent solitude! But, of course there is the issue of no connectivity...you have to be ready for a little vacation if you visit!
DeleteYou guys are doing a serious red rock tour this year! First Sedona and now this amazing place! I love every single photo and have just put this place on my "must visit" list.
ReplyDeleteI do believe UT is at the top of the list of my favorite states thanks to the incredible landscapes!
DeleteFunny how the lack of connectivity can sometimes be a gift :-) - at least for a little while. Love the Cool Cave photo, it is so majestic. Glad the wind isn't hampering your hiking (more than the one day it made you take a break). Be safe.
ReplyDeleteThe wind can sure be cold when the temps are hovering around 50 degrees! We got a warm up coming though, so we'll be happy to get into some shady slot canyons!
DeleteWhat a beautiful park off the beaten path. The rocks and sandstone formations remind me of the Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument on the Cochiti Pueblo jwest of I-40 between Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Same formations and slot canyons, day use only here, but there is developed camping at Cochiti Lake.
ReplyDeleteWe'll have to check that one out, thanks for the tip!
DeleteWe didn't remember any of the sites having hookups at Kodachrome. Whenever we stay in places that beautiful we can do without internet for a few days!
ReplyDeleteWe're enjoying all the green in northern CA but looking at your red rock photos makes me want to go back to Utah!
This is one of my favorite campgrounds. The pictures are great..
ReplyDeleteI probably would not mind no connectivity if i am surrounded by all the stunning scenery which you are! Just beautiful, can't wait to get our chances there.
ReplyDeleteLooks wonderful here. I love the formations, they are so interesting. I am looking forward to our time here next month. Thanks for showing us what there is to see here.
ReplyDeletewww.travelwithkevinandruth.com