Roughing It Gently - Our Travel Adventures in our 2015 Discovery 40E: July 26, 2019 - Visit to Red Canyon and the Visitor Center where Big Horn Sheep reside.

After settling in we opted to go back to visit Red Canyon. We went here two years ago (2017) while also staying at Lucerne Campground and loved this place, so we had to go see it again. Red Canyon in the southern Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area (in Dutch John, northeastern Utah, 84046). At the Visitor Center one can witness breathtaking views of the Green River, 1400 feet below, and brilliant red walls of sandstone cliffs from behind wall-sized windows in air-conditioning, or take a more open approach by following the walkway trail (fenced to keep people like Bill from going to the edge, for all the good it does) that winds its way to the campground. Nearby is the Red Canyon Lodge, where we always stop for lunch (this time with Ms. Roxy). They have a lake next to it that is very popular for people to canoe and kayak or swim in. And the restaurant is known for its hummingbird feeders just outside the windows to give diners a delightful view and photo opportunity. Driving in or out (or walking in any of the trails) one is sure to see some of the resident Bighorn Sheep (rams have the big, curved horns and the ewes have smaller and less curved horns). They are generally non-aggressive to humans, but why chance it... be sure to always give wild animals their space, especially if they have young. Bears, Elk, Moose and Bison... give them their space times 10.

Flaming Gorge Reservoir is formed by the Flaming Gorge Dam, which we saw last trip (2017), but did not go to it this time. During our exploration we came upon the Moose Ponds, which are lovely and a wonderful spot for a picnic, however, we did not see any moose. Mary may need to rent a moose outfit and give Bill a show, so he can see moose. Here are some of the photos we took:

Scenes driving from the campground to Red Canyon.

Who says dogs can't eat at a restaurant?

The hummingbirds just outside the windows...

Lakeside at the Red Canyon Lodge

Bill jumped a smaller crevasse when here last (two years ago, 60 pounds heavier and with a bad knee) so now that he has a brand new knee (Dec 2018) he had to jump a larger crevasse, just to show he's still up to it.

Whew! He made it. Guess Mary won't need to cash in his life insurance after all.

Pretty wildflowers.

A view of the Red Canyon Visitor Center from the

wrong side (outside the "Stay on the Trail" markers).

Bill says he likes living on the edge, so he steps right up to it

with a 1400 ft drop down to the water level at the bottom of the canyon.

Female Bighorn Sheep on a trail...

...and Big Rams (not Dodge).

You can see that they are not put off by our prescence.

From 'outside' the fence, but that's where the best view is.

From inside the Visitor Center you can get a similar view, in air-conditioning

and the safety of 'behind glass' but nowhere near as exciting as from the edge.

Mary and Roxy, watching from a safe distance and photographing Bill

(in case he should fall, to prove they were nowhere near him).

Mary loves to talk to other single men. Here she is giving this guy the High Five.

She's probably preparing in case Bill falls off one of these precipises.

Mary says this dead branch looks like Sasquach climbing up a tree.

We found this nice little lake that is the perfect location to find moose in, but found no moose at that time. We may come back for a picnic to see if any show up.

Down the road we found this big yellow "X" with a number next to it. All we can figure is that it is some kind of aerial survey marker. Makes sense, right?

Later, we found this hidden stream down a dirt road identified by someone who tied a bag on a post at its entrance. The water seems to come down from the mountains on these tubes and perhaps from subterranean springs.