I figured if I said the hike was 4 miles each way you, and others, would not realize it was an 8 mile hike. Obviously you, and others, excelled in math. And yet still others who/whom I relied upon said. “Wow! That’s longer than a football field, I think? But then I’m not into football.”
Yes, it was a long eight mile hike, mostly up and down. The down parts are what messed up my big toe, cramming it into the toe of my shoe. The worst thing about the down parts is I knew I had to come back up.
The general consensus seems to be asking, “Why did I do it?”
I’ll tell you why.
I’ve been coming to Zion Park for about 40 years as a tour guide/bus driver. One of the things I always tried to point out from the canyon floor was Cable Mountain.
Early pioneers had nothing but cottonwood trees, which were useless for building cabins. They found big Ponderosa Pines and other good trees way up in the high country. The only way to get them down was by wagon, and that was a long trip.
In 1901 a guy built a structure on the rim and lowered logs down with a cable. He also had a steam saw mill up there to finish the logs. It worked splendidly for almost 20 years until it caught fire after being struck by lightning. It was rebuilt and struck again and rebuilt again after which the logs for the first lodge and cabins were lowered.
The structure is still there, able to be seen from the canyon floor with the naked eye. I know when I pointed it out and asked if they saw it and they said, “Yes,” They didn’t see it. It’s really hard to see.
There is a trail going up there from Weeping Rock. I always wanted to take it but they say it is an all-day hike, and the toughest in the park. Angel’s Landing has always been tough enough for me.
Last year My Brother, Wayne did a personal tour of the west. He sent me photos. One of them was the structure on Cable Mountain. I asked how he got it?
“I went in the back way!” he said.
“The back way?”
He said he drove into an area at the top only four miles from the site, with no steep climbs.
He told me last week, I went next week! Which by now is last week! Unless you read this next week?
It was FANTASTIC! A ZION Dream Come True! The structure was there, and I was there! I had quit smoking but took along a “victory cigar,” for this monumental occasion.
The views were SPECTACULAR! You look DOWN on Angel’s Landing.
These guys had GUTS! I looked over the edge straight down and thought they must have been crazy. I’d have gone to Home Depot.
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