USATourist Community

Mike Leco

People are still in love with the old legend of route 66, "the mother road". They read about the old days and remember the TV series and the song. They fall in love with a myth that no longer exists. It has not existed in many decades. If you go seeking route 66, you will find only small segments of the old route, a few mementos of the old attractions. Mostly, you will find abandoned sections or roadway, or reconstructed roads that simulate old route 66. You will find some dilapidated and decaying remnants of old gas stations or diners or you will find reconstructed tourist traps that call themselves "authentic route 66 attractions".

There are plenty of great old roads in the USA that are still fabulous attractions. They offer spectacular scenery and glimpses of life in the USA untouched by modern tourist commercialization.

One of my favorite roads is highway 12 in Utah. This road is less than 150 miles long. It passes through some of the most spectacular scenery in the entire USA. It also passes through some small towns offering quaint old-fashion tourist attractions. It is largely untouched by the commercialization that one finds in the big cities or along the big interstate highways.

Highway 12 starts in southwesten Utah about 50 miles north of the eastern end of Zion National Park. It passes near the entrance to Bryce Canyon National Park with its fantastic array of weathered stone hoodoos. Here you find Ruby's combination Inn, motel, campground, restaurant, convenience store and rodeo attraction. This is one of those old-time tourist stops that might have been found on old route 66 during its days of splendor.

Heading east, the road passes through some spectacular scenery. It is like driving through the Grand Canyon, Sedona, Monument Valley, Death Valley and the Rocky Mountains all in the same day. Between Escalante and Torrey, the road crosses the slick rock country, the land of the red rock canyons, the land of the white rock canyons, the land of spectacular gorges and the alpine meadows of high mountains.

Just east of Escalante, the road clings to "the Hogback" ridge of a mountain spine. The knife-edge ridge is barely 40 feet wide with cliffs plunging 500 to 1,000 feet into deep canyons and gorges on both sides. Highway 12 snakes along the top without even a guard rail to protect you from a plunge into either abyss. Ther are signs along the road saying, "Do not pull off side of road except in designated areas". No kidding!!

The road passes through Escalante National Monument with hundreds of square miles of wilderness country. This is the area for hiking in deserts, in mountains in isolated canyons. You can get lost in this country and not be found for weeks or months. It was near here that a lone hiker became trapped in an isolated canyon, and after 6 days cut off his own arm to free himself. then hiked six miles across the desert back to his car.

In the small town of Escalante it is not uncommon to see pickup trucks towing trailers with saddled horse parked at the gas pumps of the service station. It is quite common to see cowboys wearing work boots and spurs buying cigarettes at the local convenience store. You can get home-cooked meals at the local cafe and sit with local ranchers and wilderness hikers as well as a few off-the-beaten-path tourists.

Highway 12 ends in the small town of Torrey, Utah. This is located at the northern entry to Capitol Reef National Park and its equally spectacular scenery. A drive down the water pocket fold takes you through some awesome geological formations with mile after mile of grand cliffs, buttes and mesas in a wide variety of rock colors. It reminds you of the red rock formations of Sedona or the colorful canyons and mesas in the Grand Canyon, but with very few tourists. You can experience some unbelievably grand scenery in peaceful quiet and near solitude.

You can keep your infatuation with memories of the long-gone route 66. I prefer the present-day splendor of route 12 in Utah.

USATourist Community

Forget about route 66! Give me highway 12!

06-08-2007 5:03 PM

Forget about route 66! Give me highway 12!