Day 12 we head to Natural Bridges, outside Blanding, UT. Once again a great part of the trip is getting there. We drove through a monumental cut in a giant red sand stone mountain that opened on to an open plain. You just can’t make this stuff up!!!
Then to the Natural Bridges. The ranger told us natural bridges are quite rare—formed when a winding river decides to take a short cut and wears through both sides of a rock formation. And here we have three!
Our first stop was the “mature” formation, Sipapu. We heard that name before with a hole placed in the floor of each cliff dwelling’s kiva. This is a Hopi word meaning "place of emergence"—they believe the Sipapus (C-pa-poo) is how their ancestors entered this world.
Next we saw the Kachina Bridge, in the youth stage. Here the stream is still working its magic to make a large archway. From the overlook, it appeared to be a cave. It was named for the rock art symbols on the bridge, resembling those used on Kachina dolls.
Finally we came to Owachomo Bridge, in the old age stage. This was named for the rock mound at the east abutment. We took time to explore under the bridge and capture sky with the most amazing blue color—this was not edited!
Tomorrow, Friday the 13th, we’re off to Moab, UT where we'll settle in for a few days….Dead Horse Point, Arches National Park and the north side of Canyonland. I'm amazed how I've enjoyed the ease of RV life--we're getting quite good at breaking down camp then setting up in a new location. And a big plus, unlike our travels overseas, when we need something, we can just stop and buy it!
This is truly the Scenic Bi-Way.
See you in Moab!
Alberta
