April 22nd: A Trifecta of Dates...

Yesterday, it was Earth Day, the first day of Passover and Sid Sambur's birthday. He would have turned 97. May he RIP with Clara. 

So as I strolled around the Hoodoos of Bryce Canyon National Park, I gave thought to two out of three of those days.

I'm not a practicing Jew. Even as a youth while fidgeting in the Young Israel of Ester Gardens Temple I didn't get it. The Rabbis droning their Rabbi-speak, the Congregation murmuring back their reply. The sermons that made no impressions on me and the uncomfortable wool suits I had to don. It wasn't me. 

That being said, I'm very Jewish in a cultural manner. I'm proud to be a member of a this very determined and hardheaded Tribe.

What do you get when you put ten Jews in a room? Eleven opinions! We challenge, we question and we can be a real pain in the tuchas. We are lovers of animated conservations, and the characters who express them. We can be passionate in our beliefs.

We are the underdogs who somehow managed to survive a Pharaoh,  the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition, the Pogroms and worst of all-the Holocaust. It was the last episode that brought Sid and Clara together on a blind date in the safety of the Bronx. The US granted them entry and escape from Hitler's Final Solution. For this, I will be forever thankful for. 

So Happy Passover to Jews and non-Jews alike. It's a celebration of Freedom and who doesn't love being free? 

Back to Bryce: While being exfoliated by the wind, I also thought about my father. I often wonder what Sid would think about my present living situation. 

He probably would have used his classic query to no one in particular. "How can a man have three sons and each one be so different?" 

I'm sure he would think I'm strange, meshuggah (crazy) but figure I'm not bothering anyone. I'm staying out of trouble, and I'm paying my bills and taxes. In other words, he'd be OK with it. 

Jews love our Freedoms in whatever form it comes in, including being homeless by choice.

http://jeffsambur.blogspot.com/2016/03/three-years-of-homelessness.html

In the last photo, that's really a matzoh PB&J. I spilled my Nalgene bottle of water on the cardboard carbohydrate and it swelled up to look just like bread! Like I said, I'm not a practicing Jew. 

Happy Passover to all and Happy Birthday to you Sid. 

L'chiam (To Life!)

Jeff 

There's more on Bryce from last year's post.

http://jeffsambur.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-land-of-giddy.html

Zion Finale...

It seemed fitting to finish off the Zion portion of this roll with a two night camp out at La Verkin Creek. This waterway lies in a separate unit of Zion NP named Kolob Canyons. It's about as cast off from the main part of Zion as a crushed beer can along a busy highway. It's stand alone beauty could make it a separate National Park on its own merits.

I chose campsite #12 to be my temporary home. My nearest neighbor was over a half a mile away. That's about right for backpacking. 

The Season of Death (Winter) was beginning to yield to Spring. Brush oaks, Box Elders and Cottonwoods were leafing out. In the meadows, lush grass was tall enough for a horse or cow  to notice. Flowers were blooming everywhere. I could almost hear the exponential green growth, and I'm sort of deaf. 

Campsite #12 lies in a thin part of La Verkin Canyon. I lost the sun early in the evening and gained it back late in the morning. In those hours, the sandstone radiated a warm red glow. It felt cozy. The creek made gurgling sounds 24/7. The down canyon winds  shook my tent and woke me from my dreams. I went back to sleep in a New York nano-second. It was all wonderful.

I hiked, I looked around and I read. I managed to consume 300 pages of "Theodore Rex" into my BUSY schedule. The book is over 700 pages. I'm glad I brought it along. Teddy Roosevelt would have said "Bully!" (TR's word) to know I shlepped a two pound book in and out for eight miles. 

Today, I'm off to Bryce NP. I'm about to enter a "Food Desert" where fresh fruits and veggies are about as rare as Wandering, Wondering Jews are in Utah. As always I'm prepared. I provisioned up in Cedar City, Utah. Barley the Van is stocked full of a colorful harvest. Scurvy shouldn't be an issue. My IPA and coffee supply are holding up too.

This trip has been a lot of fun so far. I hope it continues.

Cheers,

Jeff

Utah State Parks Got it Right...

This time.

I spent a very pleasant day and night in Snow Canyon State Park. No, it's not named for the White Death stuff. The Snow Brothers scored the honorable mention. They were prominent Mormon pioneers. The canyon was discovered by those Tea-Totaling White Folks when they were pursuing lost cattle in the 1850s. Nearby Saint George is where Brigham Young and his many wives overwintered.

Back to the Park: there's 38 miles of trails meandering past petrified sand dunes, lava tubes and red and white rock scenery. Quite lovely. The flowers were making a show too.

There were no ATV'ers! Yay!

http://jeffsambur.blogspot.com/2016/04/atv-and-hikers-mix-about-as.html

It's a sanctuary to the rare desert tortoise too. A chance encounter with these cute sloths is a beautiful moment. I've only seen two in my life. I wanted to cuddle them, but held off. 

Anyway, I'm heading into La Verkin Creek in Zion NP for two nights of backpacking. I brought a big book with me. I'll have plenty of time in my BUSY schedule for reading.

Speaking of reading. Thanks to the anonymous donor who bought a Kindle edition of "Destroying Demons". That's enough gas $ to get us to the trailhead and back. 

It's starting to warm up, time to hike.

Cheers,

Jeff