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Show CKrttett4 ... A jear ago at Easter time, ffhen all available camping ;pace in Canyonlands was aken, Dick Smith at Canyon--ands Resort graciously tuck-lid tuck-lid our camping party into a deluded alcove behind his operation, providing one of i he nicest . impromptu camps re have ever used. Shortly j ifter that, my wife made him i i gift of her special hot pepper 'jelly, and it began an entire year of trying to get even on "do you a favor" circuit. But this weekend took the )rize. Dick needed to fly one if his weekend pilots home to ?age, Arizona, and asked us ill to come along for the "ide. In the process, we got ietailed looks at a lot of country and a lot of features fe'd heard about, but nevei ;een. Flying westward from Can-ronlands, Can-ronlands, we traveled down Cataract Canyon to Lake 'owell; saw Bullfrog Basin nd Halls Crossing and then Jrned a little north for a mk at Waterpocket Fold and Jole in the Rock. From there, 'e detoured for a circle lose to the ground of the luch publicized Escalante iver drainage before flying n down the Kaiparowits, Trough Padre Bay i to Glen 'anyon Dam and Page. The Hum trip was south of the ake and just as spectacular, t included, of course, a circle -V Rainbow Bridge; a tour round the base of Navajo fountain, and then on to the 3n Juan River draining area I id up archaeologically-rich rand Gulch to the Bears ars and Elk Ridge. We land-1 land-1 back at the Resort just at ''ark, hardly able to believe the country we had seen. Being naturally opinionated, opinionat-ed, we drew some instant conclusions on much, of what we saw. Whether or not you agree with them, here are a few: 1. We're pretty sure that much of what is most enjoyed in Lake Powell would be lost if the level were allowed to raise much higher. Numerous islands, sand-bars, beaches and sloping hillsides would be lest as the lake more fully stretched from ciff to cliff. As for Rainbow Bridge, no photography can do it justice. jus-tice. To endanger that feature in any way would be criminal. We know all the arguments about lest power generation, and river allotment loss, and they don't- balance out the above-mentioned losses in our minds. 2. . We're still not convinced that a road couldn't be built across the lower part of the Escalante River drainage if some common sense and good design were put into it,' but much of that canyon system particularly Coyote Gulch and the Escalante canyon above its junction with Coyote should be preserved in th strongest sense of the term. Words cannot describe, and photography leaves much to be desired when talking about the E-calante. Never have we seen such awe-inspiring canyons. The urge to go there on foot is almost overpowering. over-powering. 3. Although most of the haze we saw in the air Sunday Sun-day was a result of nature's wind and the availability of plenty of sandduncs, it convinced con-vinced us once again that the clear blue skies and open visibility of Southern Utah are important commodities which shouldn't be jeopordiz-ed. jeopordiz-ed. Effective controls must be required and enforced cn any fossil-fuel power plants being constructed or contemplated contem-plated there. 4. We can't for the life of us understand why the government gov-ernment won't allow home-steading home-steading and developing of tte Cedar Mesa section of southern south-ern San Juan County. It would not alter the appearance any more than juniper chaining, and wculd provide needed economic base for a county starved for private land on its tax rolls. Enough for opinions. Nfcv the problem is what to do to try to get even with 'the bearded giant from Carfyon-lands Carfyon-lands Resort. Sam Taylor |