Kanab, Utah's Little Hollywood

The town of Kanab prides itself on being the epicenter of Utah's once-formidable Western film and TV industry. Beginning with Tom Mix in 1924 and then the big studios a few years later, Kanab saw a parade of some of the greatest stars and film-makers for half a century. Not a small part of all this was the entrepreneurship of the Parry brothers, who promoted the landscape and lore and who provided the lodge that would be production headquarters for countless movies and TV shows. Parry's Lodge is still there, and there is a free Museum of Little Hollywood (and Trading Post), but the main interest to us were the many plaques lining the main drag. For those of our vintage (and with an interest in both western and cinema history), it was a fun stroll, full of memories and a few discoveries.

It all started with this guy, but the big studios
were not far behind

Another of the Immortals

Did you know that the Rat Pack originally was
founded by Bogey and that the name was
bestowed by Lauren Bacall? Extra credit: name
a western in which Bogey played a supporting
character

OK, this would have been a Western in the 18th
century

Just a flesh wound; OK, so where is Cleavon
Little (of Blazing Saddles fame)?

North, east, south, or west, this guy was funny

Just passed away...into a Technicolor Heaven,
hopefully

Never played the bad guy...except in real life

Never played the bad guy...

Also a snake whisperer

Everyman's Everyman

She and Roy and Trigger were going through a
rough patch...

#1 TV Western

#1 movie cowboy; also never played a bad guy...

Outside the Little Hollywood Museum

Among the many sets at the Museum, this from The Outlaw
Josey Wales; made of styrofoam or somesuch, of course

Presumed origin of the Blazing Saddles
character; bonus question: who was the referent
of Mel Brooks' character, Governor William J.
Lepetomane?

Entrance to Parry's Lodge

Grand Canyon, North Rim

We first visited the Grand Canyon in 1970, on our first-ever cross-country road-trip. We took Rachel and Rebecca on spring break in 1992 and did the hike down to Phantom Ranch and back up. And Vicki took a group of high school students on the Phantom Ranch hike again a year or two later. But all this was from the south rim. We'd always wanted to see the north rim, but it was always an extra day or two's drive and not that high a priority on limited vacation time. Things are different now in our Golden Years, but winter was closing in, and we were fearful the next storm might be the one that closed down the road, Arizona 67, for the season. So we made straight away from Bryce toward the north rim...

Spending the night in a dispersed camping area in Kaibob
National Forest

Everything is closed, of course; well, oddly, the gift shoppe
was open, but not doing much business

But we were there

The closed visitor center

Vicki takes it all in from the lodge balcony

Side canyon

Now walking out to Bright Angel Point

Panning around, toward the Canyon

Thus

Us, there

Looking toward Phantom Ranch (middle, down, well out of
view)

More panning around

Ditto; the light was actually not all that great, looking down
into the depths, so we said good-bye, crossing another one off
our extensive bucket list; we did see one young couple
departing for the rim-to-rim hike; that may still be on our
list, particularly if Vicki's knees continue to hold up...but not
in the cold season

Descending the Kaibob Plateau toward Fredonia* and Kanab:
my own photo of the vermillion, chocolate, white, grey, and
pink cliffs, aka the Grand Staircase

*not Freedonia (look it up)

Bryce Canyon National Park

We'd been to Bryce in the early 90s with our daughters. It was the summer-time, and I remember thinking "wouldn't this be interesting to see with some snow on it?" Be careful what you wish for. This time we got to Bryce in between storms, and my 25 year-old wish was granted. There also was snow and ice on the trails and pathways out to the overlooks. Bryce is mostly about 7,500-8,100 feet in elevation. Another storm was on the way, and we wanted to get to the north rim of the Grand Canyon before that next storm closed the road for the season. So, we spent but a few hours in Bryce. Fortunately, it is one of the nation's smallest national parks, and its main road--everything of interest is east of the road--is less than 20 miles long. But what a glorious 20 miles!

An arch, and not a small one, too

We arrived a bit past lunch-time, and I was concerned about
light for the pix; but there was plenty, and the objects of interest
were east and down and far away

Panorama

Regarding the geology here, refer to the color-coded depiction
of the Grand Staircase (vermillion, chocolate, white, gray, and
pink sandstone cliffs...) at the end of the preceding post; the
amphitheaters, fins, spires, arches, hoodoos, etc., of Bryce are
all from the top-most pink cliffs of the Grand Staircase; 8,000
feet up there

Us, there

"Nevermore!"

A forest of spires

Pretty incredible place

Grand Staircase/Escalante/Route 12

Southern Utah has five of the nation's great national parks, not a few national monuments, and, of course, the north rim of the Grand Canyon, just over the border. And scores of state and other parks, too. Our current travels have been a reconnaissance in force, and apart from the Arches NP area, we have been breezing through, seeing what seemed of interest or obligatory and taking lots of notes for a future extended visit. Cold weather has been chasing and inhibiting us. The Bigfoot is good down to sub-zero temperatures, we know, but it's just not all that much fun hiking in 30 degree temperatures, with occasional snow and ice on the ground. Among the notes taken, in any case, is the impressiveness of the Grand Staircase/Escalante National Monument. A few of its 1.9 million acres (!) can be seen from Utah's route 12 "All-American Road" and from US 89. On some maps it will be just a blank spot between Canyonlands NP and Bryce Canyon NP. If you enter this blank spot, be sure to have the National Monument's map and brochure as well as the Route Guide to Scenic Byway 12. The scenery rivals what you can see in the national parks and there seem to be camping and recreational opportunities around every bend. We discovered all this at the end of the trail and not the beginning, and so our visit was a bit less disciplined than it might have been. Nonetheless, we were struck by the scenery, among other things, and took a few pix.... Oh yes, to be designated an "All-American Road," a federal designation, a road has to be "a destination unto itself," in addition to meeting a variety of other requirements.