South-West Utah (Day 6)

Utah wouldn't be Utah without a Book of Mormon. Seen in the Silver Bear Gem Store.

Hello from Utah!

Who knew it got so bloody hot in America during their autumn? It reached 103 degrees Fahrenheit today (39 degrees Celsius). That's pretty hot, right? It feels absolutely oppressive. 

Kolob Canyon

We start out our day by heading south to explore the Zion National Park area. The first stop is Kolob Canyon, a quiet wilderness of bright orange mountain peaks spotted with the lushest greenery I've seen in this part of America so far. Signs warn of Mountain Lion activity; apparently they've been skulking about a bit more than usual lately. Nicole finds this strangely motivating and wants to head off into the forest, hoping to see a Mountain Lion. As much as I'd also like to see one, I'm not sure I want it to be on the animal's terms. Besides, once we get to the top of the canyon we decide it's too hot to go traipsing off around the clifftops.

Zion National Park

Next stop is Zion National Park, which is another hour away. It turns out that this park is even more popular than Bryce Canyon... after travelling through the busy tourist village of Springdale we reach a queue of cars outside of the park. A rockfall on the road between Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon two days ago has caused a few issues, and means that we can't take our car any closer. Doing the park on foot or by shuttle bus will eat up the rest of our day so we decide to give it a miss. Despite the road blockage the place is still packed. This is the most people I've seen anywhere since San Francisco, which also puts me off a bit. 

So we visit Springdale. I have Chili Nachos Verde for lunch, which is the closest I've been able to get to Mexican food since I got to America. I am seriously jonesing to eat some serious Mexican. This needs to seriously happen soon. 

The restaurant 'Wildcat Willies' in Springdale, with a helpful side of Americana

Silver Bear Gem Store, Springdale, Utah

Nicole then pulls in to the Silver Bear Gem Store, which has all these huge piles of minerals out the front. I'm not particularly into gems so I start talking to the nice lady behind the counter after she picks up on our Australian accents. Her name is Mary-Anne and she's super-nice. She tells me about her previous career as a naturalist, and her work as a teacher's aide. She also used to be a librarian. Nicole buys a few things and Mary-Anne insists that we try some of her home-made beef jerky, which she finished making just the night before. I am a huge fan of jerky, so I really enjoy it. She gladly poses for a photo before bidding us farewell.

Piles of gems!

Mary-Anne, a gem in the desert!

Home-made beef jerky

Shortly before consumption

Americans have a bad wrap in Australia, but (this being my second visit to the U.S., and Nicole's third) we've found them to be nothing short of amazing in terms of their friendliness. Another shop clerk, Betsy, has a nice long chat with us about animals and prickly pears. She's shocked to hear that prickly pear is considered a pest in Australia... in America it's used as a food source, and is quite delicious. She tells me about the times that her dogs met up with porcupines, and the proper way to remove porcupine spines from a dog (you have to snip them short before pulling them out).

Prickly Pear fruit

'Utah Werewolf', seen in Virgin Trading Post

We also have some fun visiting Walmart near the city of St. George (Nicole needs to seek out some advice on her swollen feet). One of the pharmacists is an Aussie ex-pat and seems really happy to meet us. She's lived in America for 23 years and comes from Canberra. A sight that is less appealing but no less engaging is a young mother also standing in the pharmacy section... she's dressed in a tank top and shorts but for some reason is wearing a one-piece swimsuit underneath with the sides cut out. It's a strangely amusing sight, though she doesn't seem all that amused.

Dinosaur Discovery Museum

Rah!

Actual impressions of dinosaur skin.

Inside the Museum

Our last stop for the day is a Dinosaur Museum on Johnson's Farm. Nicole doesn't really like it much because she can't help but compare it to the dinosaur archaeological site we saw in the Navajo Reservation on our previous visit to America, but I think it's fantastic. The museum is actually a huge warehouse built over the top of a real excavation site. A fun fact that I learned (and Nicole wasn't really interested by) is that this site is one of only 5 places in the world where tracks have indicated a carnivorous dinosaur sitting in a resting position. I found this really cool because I have trouble visualising dinosaurs as real animals, and imagining one crouched on the ground with its hands resting in front of it just makes it feel to me more like a living, breathing creature.

Resting Dinosaur impression

By this point in the day it's the dreaded 103 degrees. It's not like an Australian heat where there's a bit of moisture in the air. This is a dry, heavy heat that presses down on you from every direction. We quickly slip into the car and head off out of Utah to our next port of call, Arizona. Around 8:30 pm we cross the state line into the northernmost city, Page.