Thought about poaching a closed trail out of Kodachrome that was a shorter route north to Henrieville. It was apparently closed due to rockslides. You could see it leading steeply up the side of a mountain I pedaled up to it but I was pretty tired and decided to take the paved route around out of the park. Kodachrome is a really nice park, by the way.
I passed through a bucolic valley along the Paria River, with sporadic ranches along the small waterway. At the intersection of Hwy 12 there was a small lodge where I bought an Odwalla smoothie that had carrot and orange juices -- the first fruit I've had in awhile.
The rest of the ride to Escalante was very scenic but uphill with headwinds. I was pretty tired and hungry and passed the state park on the outskirts of town in favor of a motel room. It required less effort and was near a little grocery. I bought all the food I could carry and went back to my room and feasted.
The next day, after much-needed good sleep, I pedaled along Hwy 12 to a little campground at Calf Creek. The road passed through some crazy canyon country that was barely navigable if there wasn't a road. Those Mormon pioneers really must have been tough to eke put an existence down here.
The Calf Creek campground isn't as nice as Kodachrome since it's near a popular trailhead and tons of people are steaming by my campsite. But it has water and a bench and a nice flat tent spot. There's not much between here and Torrey which is another 60 miles or so. It's 170 miles to Green River, where I hope to catch the Amtrak back to Glenwood or Denver.
After setting up camp at the last spot available, a cold wind and a drizzle picked up. I retreated into my tent for a bit to listen to the news on my Sirius pocket radio. As the rain pattered on my tent I felt the first pangs of homesickness. Shockingly, I am beginning to miss work. It's probably just the rain and the mediocre campsite. My tent is right next to the camp drive and everyone is walking/driving by and staring at me. Should have pushed on to Boulder and gotten a room. Or dry camped somewhere. It's hard to know what's good until you get there. On a bicycle, it's not like you can cruise around up and down huge hills all afternoon to find a nice campsite.
I stocked up on lots of food in Escalante, so now I'll have a hearty dinner. Nothing fresh, though. I am looking forward to the next salad instead of dehydrated envelope food.
