Sep 29: Some Road South of Bryce and East of Kanab

The morning was very nice. The night before was very cold, so we kept layers on and started walking. We filled water at Iron Spring, which tasted so metallic I could feel it in my dental fillings. Then we finished the Under the Rim Trail and enjoyed the views from Rainbow Point. We saved a mile going around Yovimpa Pass instead of around Promontory Pass, there was also good water at the pump house/well at the pass. Maybe they used to pump water from there up to Rainbow Point?

Anyway, we were done with the park, and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We walked on a road for a while, and then left it for a wash. It was nice, but messy from cows. The water source there was essentially dry and far too cowy to do anything with. The wash had nice fall colors, the first time we've seen red maple leaves in a canyon, I think.

Unfortunately, this wash ended in Park Wash which was an awful sandy mess. It was really hot, so we were glad to come across a full stock tank with a functioning gas engine-powered well pump and a full plastic gas can. We're both suburban idiots, so we couldn't really get the engine to stay running (choke: you turn it one way to make it easy to start but then the other way once it's running?) but there was plenty of reasonably fresh water already in the tank if we were willing to share with the cows.

We got a little pissy at each other at the end of the day, since we disagree on whether we should stay the night in Kanab, but all's well.

Nice night watching the big dipper circle the north star and listening to the coyotes.