Highway 12 and the Colby Family Reunion

Every year we go to the Colby Family Reunion with Garry's family. It is usually held at Fish Lake, but this year we had the opportunity to go to a cousin's place in Grover, UT. Par for the course, we took the long way to get there. We started a few days early and met Garry's parents in Panguitch. They were still on the same journey when we met them for a visit to Lehman's Caves. We had made plans to ride up Casto Canyon and then go down on the Pansaguant Plateau on Monday. Sunday night we checked how to ride out of town to Casto Canyon and hatched our plan. Too bad Roxie didn't really cooperate with the agenda. Still on pavement she jumped out of the Rhino after some horses and mules on the side of the road. I will never forget hearing Garry say, "Where is the dog?" I looked back and there she was hanging off the side of the Rhino. Luckily she had only bruised herself up really good and some nasty cuts on her back foot that required stitches. Turns out they don't have a vet in Panguitch, the closest one is in Beaver, thanks Dr. Evan Yardley D.V.M. for fixing the dog up. She wasn't in much shape for anything but laying around after that.

We left Panguitch on Monday night and headed to Escalante. Arthur knew of some BLM camping outside of town for us to stay on. The next morning we went out to Hole in the Wall. I am certain that my faith is not the faith that would have gone there. I wonder if any of them thought that President Young had lost his marbles, because I sure would have. Here is a link to some information from the Church website (I realize now that the link is not working, you will have to cut and paste it if you want to read more about it): http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=7725226fecfdb010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&vgnextoid=f318118dd536c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD

Garry and Orson walked a ways down the hole and Garry commented on how in the world did they get a horse to go down that trail. We stopped and had lunch at Dance Hall Rock, it is a pretty impressive natural amphitheater. I could imagine the early saints dancing there. And then dreading what lay ahead, honestly I don't know how they did it.

You have to pretend that this next photo really says Day Four, a bit of a brain cramp here. I have wanted to go to Hell's Backbone Bridge for many years and so when we were planning this trip I threw it out as a place I wanted to go while we were in the area. The last time I remember being there was so many years ago it seems like the dark ages, I am guessing from the pictures probably 1972. You can tell by the pictures how happy I was to be there. And check out my brother's fancy outfit: the fastest, shirtless, knife slingin' cowboy in the state. Possibly the skinniest too. I remember being scared half out of my wits as a kid, it was a valid fear. The bridge is amazing and it is very steep when you look off of it. They have replaced the wood bridge with a very modern cement and barricade bridge.


The tree hasn't changed much. On the way to the bridge we passed this funny sign: Upper Death Access, we wondered how it differed from Lower Death Access and where that was. After the bridge we went to find this ATV trail, we found part of it. Found out why they call it Boulder Mountain. There are sections of trail that are just huge boulders. We came across this lake, found out later it is McGath Lake. On the way down the bear signs were out, as was an attempt at humor with a "destroyed" camp.
After playing around on Highway 12 we wandered to the family reunion in Grover. It was great fun to see the cousins and rest of the Colby family. Orson has several little boy cousins his age that are kids and grandkids of Garry's first cousins. They played, wandered off to see the cows, played, fished, played, got in the mud, and played. Did I mention they played? Orson took to wearing his Howdy hat one day, he wouldn't take it off. I had to take pictures because with him you never know when that is going to happen again.

Doin' the Howdy Dance.

It starts with a little water and a bucket.

Now we are getting serious, the pants and then the shoes come off.

All business.

Showing off their muscles.