A Canyon to Remember

Our first Utah campsite was at the mouth of a canyon at the eastern edge of the San Rafael Swell. We arrived as the sun was setting and the moon was already high in the sky. Our LabMobile camping van is in the lower right of the photo.

The moon looked particularly gorgeous above the red cliffs that loomed over our campsite.

After arriving, we took a sunset hike on a vast expanse of slick rock with the canyon far below us. The sandstone surface made for easy hiking and the the rock formations lining the sides of the slick rock glowed in the setting sun.

I looked at the deep red rock in the photo above more closely. It was a work of art with colorful lichens flourishing on its rusty surface.

After our hike, the sun rapidly set, and I had a brief moment to take a photo of the stars rotating around the North Star before the moon shined too brightly on the northern sky.

The next morning after a long sleep, Shyla and I headed out for a mountain bike ride to explore the canyon. It was deserted - we had the entire beautiful place to ourselves (except for the two R's who were running up on the slick rock). That's what I love about the West - if you leave the beaten path, there are still places that offer complete solitude.

I looked straight up after we entered the depths of the canyon. The wall to the right holds a gallery of pictographs, drawn thousands of years ago. The artists chose a glorious place to display their talent.

Shyla and I had an incredible ride, through the cool shade of the canyon and then up into the sunlight at the top. It seemed ironic to see her panting after porpoising through the snow at home so recently.

She was fascinated with the sights and scents, striking dramatic poses as she surveyed the novel world.

As we descended back into the canyon during our return to camp, Shyla explored a low wall made of red honeycomb-like sandstone.

Shyla decided that it was the perfect place to bow down in thanks for the beauty of our world. The desert always reminds me that we are small specks within the endless universe.

We had a wonderful time in that canyon. However, like several places that we visited on this trip, it reminded me of K. Last spring, knowing that her time was running short, we visited this canyon with her. Seeing the canyon again brought back intense memories of K and moments of deep sorrow. It was so bittersweet being in such a glorious place with her and knowing that it was the last time that she'd be there. And, as I foresaw last year, K was not with us on our return to this canyon, except in spirit.

The juxtaposition of rejoicing in the bond that I'm building with Shyla while I'm still grieving for K overwhelms me sometimes. My heart tells me that I'll probably never stop grieving for K - my bond with her was like no other. However, Shyla's sweet sensitivity and loving spirit are helping me more than I ever thought was possible.

Life marches on but the pawprints of angels remain in my heart.