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Show Wednesday, December 24, 2008 Vernal Express Falling snow on dinosaurs, and other tales of intrigue C8 By Baby Lee Parks Express Writer The mountains had been painted white for a few weeks, but the basin was still relatively bare: brown and drab after the death of summer. It was cold and the air was thin and dry. Split Mountain tore the skyline apart, a gaping wound that seemed to be sucking me in, drawing me ever nearer. I sat on the cold leather of the passenger seat in my brother's four-wheel-drive as we rattled along the pavement from Jensen to Dinosaur National Monument. Our destination was uncertain, but our lust for adventure was not. We knew what we sought, but didn't know where, or how, we would find it. I was chatty. I talked nonstop, probably getting on a nerve or two along the way. My brother exuded the beginnings of regret for having invited such an excitable prattler along for the day, and, as is my way, I was excruciatingly slow to pick up on his cues. When I finally caught on I gave silence an honest try, but just couldn't seem to make it stick. What was my problem? Just give him a break, I told myself. Then I broke into some eulogy of a recently acquired passion or other, forgetting my vow of silence. I was annoying even myself. We passed the green long-neck that guards the entrance and moved onto the better pavement of the monument road, the one apparent improvement the National Park Service seems to have made in a decade or more, then headed east along the river's edge. Geese lolled in the shallow water near the undercut mud of the far bank, and I watched them as we sped along. At the pavement's end we came to a fork in the road and chose right, dropping into a deep cut in the valley floor, then slowly climbing the far blue ridge. Red-stone battlements broke the skyline sky-line above a forest of scrub pine and juniper, as a thick fog moved spottily through the valley. A thin layer of snow covered the road as we climbed, and a few flakes from the sky began adding to it. As we rose above the valley floor the thin snowfall began falling fall-ing in earnest, dropping giant flakes that coated the windshield and slickened the clay surface of the road, eventually turning us back as the tires gave up their hold. It was not enough. So we took the left-hand fork we'd previously bypassed and traveled toward Josie Basset's cabin and the petroglyphs. Passing the Sound of Silence trail we impulsively stopped at a turnout marking petroglyphs along the cliffs to the north and slipped out of the vehicle into the white world. The silence was thick in the muffled afternoon as we began to climb a narrow trail through a jumble of sandstone boulders. A few small green plants clung tenaciously to life despite the obvious onset of winter, and red mud, rutted by infrequent rains, draped its way down the hillside. Finally quiet, in my head and my mouth, I moved along the base of the cliff and began inspecting the petroglyphs pecked from the sandstone walls hundreds of years ago by unknown authors. There are hundreds of them, their meaning elusive but their insistence concrete. I found a desert varnish-stained wall covered in petroglyph lizards, and I stopped to wonder, noticing glyphs so high up that the artist must have been an expert rock climber to have made them. Or perhaps he just built a ladder. The lizards captured my imagination either way, and I photographed them, losing my brother as he moved on ahead. Eventually I continued up the thinning trail, overwhelmed by the sheer volume of rock art about me. Rising above the boulders and scrub brush the view to the east opened up revealing reveal-ing the small valley where Josie Bassett kept her cattle and her home. Two long gashes on the distant mountain marked the box canyons she used as holding pens. Twisting clouds swirled about the mountains lending an air of mystery to the scene, and I stood marveling at its beauty. When I moved on up the trail, my brother was far ahead. The path began climbing sharply and I followed it toward the crest of a ridge high above. I was hoping for a view to the west along Split Mountain and the ridges and stone monoliths in its shadow. As I approached, my brother let out a whoop. I could see him standing atop a stone pillar above me, staring into the distance with a wonder that told me my hopes would be realized. I clambered over the stones in my way, and up a crevice, and finally pulled atop the ridge and gaped at the scene ahead. I stood at the edge of a long row of cliffs that dropped sharply into a long, narrow valley running westward toward the bowels of Split Mountain. Clouds and fog wafted about the towering pillars pil-lars dotting the mountainside, obscuring the peaks and softening the edges of the scene. I hopped from stone to stone until I reached the highest point, then stood at the cliffs edge in wonder and awe. Though minutes from the road, I believed this was the top of the world and the edge of beyond - the beginning and the end of the adventure I'd come seeking. The snow began falling in earnest again, but it only fed the fire. We moved on looking for more and more. gparkervernal. com ", '' -'- 1 . f . . -' , " L . - The author stands atop a cliff ridge high above a narrow hidden valley near Split Mountain in Dinosaur National Monument. (Allen ParkerSubmitted Photo) The Road From Vernal, take highway 40 east to Jensen. Turn north on South 9500 East and follow the road to the entrance to Dinosaur National Monument, where it becomes Quarry Entrance Road as it curves to the east around a long bend in the Green River. Continue on this road until the pavement pave-ment ends. Here the road forks and you have two options. For the climb up Blue Mountain, take the right hand fork and ' 1 t it ; . .J v Y- r . ,- i tit r-v If' r 1 - J Sf 1 f ' if v f. Petroglyph like this, left by Native Americans hundreds of years ago, dot the cliff-side along the trail in Dinosaur National Monument. (Gary ParkerVernal Express) continue on this road through a beautiful valley and up the mountainside. For the hike to the petroglyphs and beyond, take the left hand fork and travel approximately 1 mile to a pullout that marks the trail-head. trail-head. Cross the road and follow the trail to the petroglyphs, then continue on until the trail climbs and fades. Continue to the top of the ridge, climbing up some easy rock crevices for an incredible view of Split Mountain and the monuments at its base. The Details This is desert country. Be aware of the seasonal changes that occur in this type of country. Winters and nights can be extremely cold, and summers are dry and hot. Wear appropriate clothing and bring extra clothing when applicable. Rattlesnakes live throughout the National Monument, so use caution in your travels. Never put feet or hands into crevices or hand-holds that you cannot see into, and watch where you place your feet along the trail. Carry sunscreen and extra water, wa-ter, even in winter months, and carry insect repellent during the spring, summer and fall. Do not touch the petroglyphs, as the oils on human skin can damage them, causing them to slowly deteriorate. And bring your camera. The views are incredible! 1 " T b - , v. -- , . , . V- J I - , , . Vernal resident Allen Parker walks along a red-rock ridge in Dinosaur Di-nosaur National Monument as the snows resume falling heavily on Dec. 14. (Gary ParkerVernal Express) r ENERGY SERVICES INC. INTEGRATED. INTEGRAL. uiuw j...,' . 2075 SoutA 1500 Scat Vvwd, Uzd $407$ SAPt WINTER XRViKic; TipS Derk Price 435-790-7948 0ff!c3 435-789-9777 V'. 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