Back up to Bryce

We are at an ATV trail head near Hwy 12 into Bryce Canyon. Michael is processing oil and I have been out exploring through the crunchy snow patches and muddy desert just up to the first line of junipers. There were mountain bluebirds, prairie dogs and the songs of meadow larks.
I was thinking of what might be interesting to you since I’ve left so much out (due to a lack of wifi in this part of Utah.)
First would have to be the accident. An 18 wheeler carrying a full load of hay bales went over on its side on a too fast curve and we stopped to check for injuries. Michael did the initial assessment then left me with the driver while he and some other samaritans shoveled dirt onto fluid spilling from the cab. The driver told me he wished he was dead and I felt he meant it. I held the pain of what he was going through while we waited for the ambulance and found no helpful voice even though I knew that having his life was what mattered…
Then there were the starving cows. Three dead cows had been noted in the trail log by Wolverine Petrified Forest trailhead and the cows we saw there were lethargic and just skeletons and hide. There was nothing for them to eat out there. We went on to the next trailhead at Little Death Hallow and the cows were skinny but not emaciated although we did see one dead along the trail. As soon as we got out of the backcountry we went to the BLM and reported what we’d seen. It’s not that the employee didn’t care but when I was able to pull out magic (glib) words, “If this was happening somewhere else that guy would be behind bars for animal cruelty,” I felt like I’d gotten his attention and he said he’d go out and contact the owner. (I was glad I’d seen Animal Planet a few times and knew the standard of care for animals. ---I just wish sometimes it was as stringent for humans to receive mandatory assistance.)
Bryce Canyon hoodoo country, that we just popped in and out of yesterday, is amazing and it’s also amazing to see how many people are already visiting, despite the snow that impedes a lot of the area. (It’s 8000+ feet.) They come in by the busload from all over the world. It felt like being at Niagara Falls. What stings the mind is watching all these gas and diesel powered vehicles zip by us out there on the highway from St. George or Las Vegas or however far they have come. What sustainable way is there for people to see the great and dispersed wonders of the natural world? The age of travel is soon to be ending for all but the most wealthy and that certainly will shrink some part of who we have become.



(My last name is Nelson...)