July 18, 2014

July 18, 2014

This morning we make our way northwest rolling downhill from the Kaibab Plateau into the valley below. In the town of Kanab, UT we stop at the BLM office for the Grand Staircase National Monument. There we enter the lottery for “The Wave”. Two years ago we also tried unsuccessfully. I cross my fingers, but unfortunately my lucky charm fails me again. Out of the 32 people present, only ten receive hiking permits. They again all go to foreigners who pay no taxes for the upkeep of this park. At the very least the BLM ought to raise the price of these highly prized permits to raise revenue and offset my taxes.

Feeling very disappointed we walked around the small town of Kanab doing a little window-shopping. Kanab calls itself “Little Hollywood” because many B-rated westerns and TV shows were filmed here. The main street is lined with dozens of placards remembering every star who came through town. One of our stops is a film museum that has collected some of the movie sets that were used in the area. We especially like the adobe building constructed for Clint Eastwood’s “The Outlaw Josey Wales”. This evening at a local theatre, we watch one of the better movies filmed here, “Westward the Women”. It is about the struggles of a group of pioneer women making the trek west along the California Trail.