Day 26: Tuesday 20-Jul-1999

From: Kanab, Utah

To: Duck Creek, Utah

Distance : 50 mi (80 km)

Time: 1h

We got up modestly early to prepare for our trip up to Duck Creek. We woke up the kids and moved them out into the truck so that they could continue to sleep there while we cleaned up in the trailer. By about 6:50 we left the campground in Kanab and headed for Duck Creek. The drive up there is a bit tough for the truck, as the campground is at 8800ft (2640m). Per had to shift down into first gear in a few places to make the climb. Even engine had no problems overheating, but the transmission climbed up to 245F in a few places. It cooled back down quickly, though, as it is even cooler up at this elevation. We arrived at the campground, which is located in Dixie National Forest, ahead of time. We drove around and saw the campground was almost full. But to our pleasant surprise, the spot we wanted (22) was free. And it only costs $10/night. Not bad. We parked and made breakfast. We had pancakes with bacon. Some regular pancakes, some with apple and cinnamon and some with banana slices. Add to that some real maple syrup and coffee and you have a real camping breakfast! Yum.

	Our campsite at Duck Creek. Very different from the other ones we've been to so far. Lillemor is making breakfast.

We unloaded the bikes for the first time since Dayton. The kids were excited to use them. They biked around. It was a bit chilly, but not too bad. Occasional white clouds passed over, but it was mostly blue sky. It was quite warm as long as we were in the sun. We could feel our burns from the visit to Lake Powell yesterday. Per chanced over to long sleeve. There are a few bugs up here that look almost like your typical house fly, except that they bite. Unlike the house flies, they are incredibly stupid (or must be on a blood sucking rush) for they are easy to smack dead. Smacking them only gave a short lived pleasure as more came to fill the spots left by their smacked friends.

We talked to the camp host and learned about a few hikes we could make in this area. It is very nice up here and quite different from down in the desert. Per decided to walk down with Isabella to the little lake near the campground. Isabella wanted to try her luck with her net. On our way down she slipped on the road and hurt her knee, but she did not cry. We walked down to the water which was very clear and mostly shallow. There were a few deeper spots and they were emerald colored. We could see fish in the lake. There were ducks on it too, as the name of this place suggested. We walked around a bit. There was no chance to reach anything with the net. Isabella found a short line with a hook and what could have been a plastic eel at one time. There were about 10-15 people at one side of the lake, using real fishing equipment. It did not look like they had caught a lot. We decided to move over to a place where there were no others and where we had seen dish. Isabella tried throwing the line out, but it would not reach very far. We went up into the forest and found a stick to which we attached the line and tried again. This time we could reach further, but still not to where the fish was.

	Isabella by the lake where Duck Creek stops for a moment

	Trying to catch some fish in the emerald water. We could see them, but they did not want to bite!

Per left Isabella for a moment and walked to the National Forest Visitor Center that is located on the other side of the road from the campground to collect some information about this area. They had plenty of information about local hikes. Per got a map with a few interesting hikes marked up. He picked up Isabella and then went back to the trailer. We then got ready to try a few of the hikes. Lillemor got a chance to call he mom back in Sweden as Per got ready back at the trailer.

	Karl talking to Grandma back in Sweden, with Lillemor interpreting.

She got picked up as we drove up to the so called Ice Cave, which is a hole in the ground containing show and ice even in the summer. Really odd. As we walked down into the snow cave we could feel the temperature drop significantly. Almost like putting your hand into the frige. The snow was mostly covered with dirt, but it was there. To reach this place and our next hike you're best off with a 4x4 (or rental car). Our Suburban did just fine.

	Kicking some snow in the ice cold Ice Cave. It was cold down here. We had steam coming out of our mouths!

Our next stop was the so called Cascade Falls. This was a 1/2 mile hike to a water fall. The water fall comes right out of the mountain. Above us, a few miles up the road is Navajo Lake. It has no outlets, which is rather unusual. Instead it has several "sinkholes". One of them end up in this water fall. This was a very nice hike. It starts at 9200ft (2760m). The views are spectacular. You can see all the way down into the valley, towards Zion. The hike goes along a path in the forest that then opens up into beige formations. Has to be seen. We're talking about an infinite supply of sand for building beige houses on the French Riviera. Definitely worth a detour.

	Posing along a lookout on our way to Cascade Fall above 9000ft.

	In some parts of the trail you could not even walk straight up

	Looking back at parts of the Cascade trail.

	Enjoying a view of the waterfall that comes right out of the mountain

	Erik making his way back on the trail which had disintegrated a little bit

After the water fall we returned back to the trailer to have a late lunch. We then hung around the campground. Lillemor took a nap, while Per played with the kids and the laptop. There was a comfortable breeze. We could see the spots fill up around us and were happy that we moved as early in the morning as we did. Our kids found new friends with neighbors that just moved in during the day. They also wanted to setup the tent so that they could sleep outside tonight. Lillemor prepared home made lasagna. It got a bit cooler in the afternoon as the sun was setting in the campground. Our spot was well chosen, as we had evening sun at our doorstep. As the evening wore on, it got quite a bit colder. Basically, it was warm as long as the sun was up here at 8800ft. We ate outside. The lasagna was very good. We took a hot shower before we went to bed.

	Nothing beats ice cream on a nice summer day. Never mind the ice cream barely melted!

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