Colorado / Utah Road Trip Day 5: Around Vernal
Starting the day relatively early, we followed in the 250 year-old footsteps of Silvestre Vélez de Escalante. Along with his superior Francisco Domínguez, he sought a route to Monterey in California from Santa Fe, New Mexico.
This expedition only sought to uncover the secrets of ancient geology and ecosystems of part of that journey at Dinosaur National Monument. Those secrets and many more were revealed right along side "those meddling kids."
The sites proved much greater than time had been allotted for, but dazzled and amazed our exploration of the site. The adventure began at the Quarry Visitor Center, meandered along the Fossil Discovery Trail, the full length of the Tour of Tilted Rocks, across Green River, and out to Box Canyon. Nestled there at the base of that canyon, the final home of Josie Bassett Morris. She established her ranch in this fantastical world back in 1913, remaining until her death in 1964. Hers is an inspirational story of the last of grit and determination.
Much of the same would be required to make way to an undiscovered destination from exploits of the prior day out. Stopping at the Utah Welcome Center in Jensen, obtaining more accurate maps, a conversation with one of the attendants promoted a more popular heading. She explained that a more direct route to Fantasy Canyon could be found by traversing Red Wash Road, going on to say that she had hear it was closed. It was not currently marked as closed, so it must be open again. Traveling along new asphalt, things looked promising, until the road quickly faded to gravel, then turned to nothing more than dirt and a herd of heavy equipment rebuilding said road.
Ultimately, perseverance paid off on this return to the center of the Uinta Basin though. The "Road Closed" sign was discovered at the intersection of 45 Highway. The asphalt improved travel time to the next encounter with dirt. Shortly thereafter, Fantasy Canyon appeared as nothing more than a solitary parking sign and matching trail marker. An incredible array of strange and wonderful, naturally weathered, sandstone emerges from clay beds here, taking on various intriguing forms.
Rain looked to roll in on the afternoon. Sticking to the blacktop of 45 highway, the drive back to Vernal proved relatively uneventful, unless you count being stuck out on the road at a dead stop for half an hour. Road repairs were underway along this route too, though not quite as serious as those along Red Wash Road. The delay was mostly harmless and enabled capturing a few picturesque moments and good conversation with the individual moderating traffic on this relatively empty stretch of highway. Eventually, a few more vehicles came along and out of nowhere it stacked up suddenly, and then we were all on our way again.
Famished upon our return to Vernal, we met briefly with their resident pet pink dinosaur, then immediately made progress towards The Quarry Steakhouse & Brew Pub. It commanded an excellent position to review the events of the day, serving food and refreshment to sate the appetite.
Still, quite a bit remained in the day, so our party went on walkabout through the immediate vicinity to see all the town had to offer. Dinosaurs, helicopters, the Uintah Public Library and plenty of green space welcomed our adventuring, topping off what had been a fantastic day of exploration.
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Further Reading
Britannica.com
US National Park Service
Dinosaur National Monument - National Park Service
US Department of Interior - Bureau of Land Management
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