Joan and I return to a particular stretch of canyon country every spring and fall.
We call it “Root Beer Float Season,” a nod to the little tradition that unfolds in this remarkable landscape, where canyons continue to reveal new corners and mesas invite us to wander, no matter how many times we return.
We never tire of the canyons, the expansive views, the quiet, and the deep history and culture found within the walls of red rock.
After the hikes, backpacks, and camps?
We head to a nearby town, order root beer floats, and savor the simple joy of vanilla ice cream with cold root beer, perhaps with a side of salty fries, after days of wandering.
Our structured rambles take us to places we’ve never seen, and where we certainly aren’t the first to visit.
One day, a structure on a lonely butte beckoned, but a sketchy log “bridge” across the canyon made us pause.
We decided to “let the mystery be.”
Farther along the rim, an old tower base stood sentinel, its ancient walls still hinting at the grandeur they held 800 years ago.
We walked back to our campsite, located off a quiet dirt road, and made camp. We enjoyed dinner and had a cider or beer, waiting for the night sky to appear over the Colorado Plateau.
A rainstorm moved in just as dinner finished, and we had packed up, anticipating the rains to come that evening.
Snug in our sleeping bags, the sound of rain on our tent accompanied the evening.
We went down into the canyon the following day and encountered a visitor who seemed unwilling to consider the consequences of her choices. But that’s another story for another time…
We enjoyed a calm, clear night, perfect for sipping hot drinks as we waited for the stars and the Milky Way to stretch across the desert sky.
Morning brought more quiet beauty: coffee for me, chai for Joan, and a slow savoring of the landscape.
Later, we wandered across another set of mesas, never quite sure what the day would hold.
Of course, we found more evidence of people walking this way before, and we saw yet more places to wander about in the future..
We walked back to our campsite, enjoyed a tailgate lunch, and drove to town.
And, yes, we end the trip with root beer floats.
Let the season begin.