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 Back on the Burr Trail I left Calf Creek Falls early in the afternoon and headed east following two of my favorite routes in America: Utah Highway 12 and the Burr Trail. Words can't describe either road (especially my words) but I'll try.
Highway 12 is both fantastic and bizarre with its undulating white sandstone landscapes. You really feel like you're driving on Mars or the moon. But if Highway 12 is bizarre, the Burr Trail is spectacular. This "trail" is actually a road, though the last 20 miles are unpaved. The dirt stretch is a little bumpy, but it's graded and my two-wheel drive Toyota pickup didn't have any trouble. Few people know about the Burr Trail but it's an amazing drive, and I've spent many evenings in rainy Portland during the past few years wishing I was back on the dusty Burr Trail again.
As the sun started to lower on the horizon, I pulled off the empty road just south of Capitol Reef National Park, drove a hundred yards down a dirt track, and stopped my truck at the edge of spectacular Clay Canyon, one of my favorite camping spots in the U.S., with its thousand-foot sheer dropoff to the flat canyon bed far below. Time for more Nacho Doritos, salsa and Diet Pepsi!
I relaxed on my folding chaise lounge, then I looked around and figured that I was probably the only person that evening within 100 square miles. I can't imagine a better place to eat chips and salsa than at the edge of desolate yet oh-so-beautiful Clay Canyon.
Above left: Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument was created in 1996 by President Clinton. Above right: The most incredible part of the Burr Trail is at the top of a mile-long stretch of switchbacks that descend into Capitol Reef National Park. It's like driving down a corkscrew. The Burr Trail is a dirt road, but even two-wheel drive vehicles like my truck can make it easily.
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