Prairie Dogs! (and Bryce to Kanab)

Bryce to Kanab

We had planned to drive through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument via Cottonwood Canyon on a dirt road, and then to Kanab. However, there was a warning posted at Bryce about the road so we talked to a ranger who said the road is in very bad condition and probably impassable.  Instead, we went back to Bryce in search of prairie dogs.  The Utah prairie dog is the rarest prairie dog in the United States.  They live in burrows under meadows and hibernate for the winter.  We drove to a meadow where they are known to live, and were fortunate to see four of them.  We watched them nibble on grass, sit up like you see in photos, and just be their cute little selves. 

We backtracked on Highway 89 south to Mt. Carmel Junction, then southeast on 89 to Kanab.  We were driving through the little village of Glendale and saw a sign for an apple festival.  It was at a park on the main road and there were seven booths with locals selling their wares.  We got some great apple tarts, fritters, homemade wheat and honey bread, banana bread, cookies, and some fresh apples.  We sat in the park and ate tarts and fritters, a very late breakfast.  It was a sweet interlude to be with the local people.  As we got closer to Kanab, we were again surrounded by red cliffs.  We made a quick detour into Best Friends Animal Sanctuary to get our bearings, as we will be volunteering there the next three days.

We're staying in a Craftsman cottage in Kanab.  It's quite roomy, with three bedrooms, living, dining, kitchen, and bath downstairs.  There's a washer and dryer in the basement.  Upstairs is a large area with bedroom, sitting room, office, and bath.  That's where we settled in with Tuna and she quickly made herself at home.  We'll be able to shut the door at the bottom of the stairs when we leave the house and not have to worry about her.

The founders of Best Friends are all vegetarian and the town caters to them and to the volunteers who come here to work.  We had dinner at Rocking V and I could eat there for nights on fabulous vegetarian fare without repeating a meal.  When we walked in, the man asked if we were vegetarian and when replying that I was, he handed us a menu of daily vegetarian specials.  This is in addition to a full page of options in the regular menu.  Nirvana!