Roxy and I went exploring today with the intent of seeing what ll the fuss was about regarding "Hell's Backbone Road." This road was the old route between the towns of Escalante and Boulder which was supposed to be a hair-raising ride. I can say unequivocally that I have traveled far scarier routes in the Sierra Nevada. In fact, the scariest part of this one was the washboarding; thankfully I still have all of my fillings. For the most part it was a drive through the forest with some spectacular views about halfway through. This photo is from Pine Creek Road on the way back toward the town of Escalante and is a fold in the Earth's crust that is a few hundred feet higher than the road, forced upward by an unseen fault. This exposed section of the Escalante Monocline is Jurassic age Navajo Sandstone and the fold is some 20 miles long.

Since we weren't too far away I decided it would be a good opportunity to see what Devil's Garden would be like in the afternoon. Truth be told, I knew that Metate Arch was "unshootable" in morning light, so I guess we could say that I had a goal in mind.

(One of these days, though, I need to get out and do some serious birding . . .)