On the Road Again...

ROF 4 Tracks of the StoneBear 4 Corners

May 2008

Grand Canyon, Arizona east end South rim

All Along the Watchtower

From Zion NP headed south out of Utah on Hwy 89. Zion was a hike through another dimension. Spent a lifetime there,... crammed into a couple days.

My mind drifts back for moments, then as fast snatched away at the stark beauty of the Vermillion Cliffs on the northeast / left side. The desert is beautiful. There's nobody out here.

Kaneb is just north of the Utah state line. About 40 miles going into Arizona is Navajo Bridge crossing the Colorado River. This is the 1st bridge between the UT / AZ built in 1929. That's how isolated and rugged the terrain is here. (Page, AZ / Glenn Canyon dam is about 10 miles NE.) Before 1929 they used Lee's Ferry about 5 miles up river. Let's go see.

Lee's Ferry was an early Mormon family river crossing. The landing is still used today as a staging / launching point for rafters goin down river through the Grand Canyon. Magnificent red rock and strata; blue green Colorado river.

Then it's onto the Grand Canyon. Hwy 89south to Cameron, AZ,... hand a right onto Hwy 64 onto East Canyon rim drive. Into Navajo nation.

The land... High arid plain is absolutley breathtaking, and we're not even to the Grand Canyon. I'm excited.

And get to the East rim.... and there's the canyon.... and the watchtower. Just blown away at the serene setting. What a building. Sublime. Can't really describe this. Powerful. Beyond beauty. It's looking into the abyss of time... of eternity.

January 22, 1974... listening to Dylans "All along the Watchtower" was amazing. The Dylan and the Dead version in 1988 was in my mind while viewing here. Sureal! Listen to that version while looking at these pics.




























ROF 4

May 4, 2008 Tracks of the StoneBear 4 Corners

Grand Canyon, Arizona east end South rim

All Along the Watchtower

From Zion NP headed south out of Utah on Hwy 89. Zion was a hike through another dimension. Spent a lifetime there,... crammed into a couple days.

My mind drifts back for moments, then as fast snatched away at the stark beauty of the Vermillion Cliffs on the northeast / left side. The desert is beautiful. There's nobody out here.

Kaneb is just north of the Utah state line. About 40 miles going into Arizona is Navajo Bridge crossing the Colorado River. This is the 1st bridge between the UT / AZ built in 1929. That's how isolated and rugged the terrain is here. (Page, AZ / Glenn Canyon dam is about 10 miles NE.) Before 1929 they used Lee's Ferry about 5 miles up river. Let's go see.

Lee's Ferry was an early Mormon family river crossing. The landing is still used today as a staging / launching point for rafters goin down river through the Grand Canyon. Magnificent red rock and strata; blue green Colorado river.

Then it's onto the Grand Canyon. Hwy 89south to Cameron, AZ,... hand a right onto Hwy 64 onto East Canyon rim drive. Into Navajo nation.

The land... High arid plain is absolutley breathtaking, and we're not even to the Grand Canyon. I'm excited.

And get to the East rim.... and there's the canyon.... and the watchtower. Just blown away at the serene setting. What a building. Sublime. Can't really describe this. Powerful. Beyond beauty. It's looking into the abyss of time... of eternity.

January 22, 1974... listening to Dylans "All along the Watchtower" was amazing. The Dylan and the Dead version in 1988 was in my mind while viewing here. Sureal! Listen to that version while looking at these pics.

*****************
C- Bob Dylan

All Along The Watchtower

“There must be some way out of here,” said the joker to the thief
“There’s too much confusion, I can’t get no relief
Businessmen, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth
None of them along the line know what any of it is worth”

“No reason to get excited,” the thief, he kindly spoke
“There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke
But you and I, we’ve been through that, and this is not our fate
So let us not talk falsely now, the hour is getting late”

All along the watchtower, princes kept the view
While all the women came and went, barefoot servants, too

Outside in the distance a wildcat did growl
Two riders were approaching, the wind began to howl

Copyright © 1968 by Dwarf Music; renewed 1996 by Dwarf Music

Just passing through The Station

This is my present station; just passin' through


Tracks of the StoneBear



This will be the last post for a while. I won't be around here much longer, maybe just a few more walks around the sun before I get out of here. Heading back out to points unknown. That's the real gift. ... taking the days as they come and enjoying them.

The rationale for the StoneBeartracks website was to journal a few observations sent back home during a lifetime of searching and exploration.

Really, it's 'cause I've used up about 8 of my 9 lives; there have been several close calls and shouldn't even be here. ...And after a lifetime of burning the candle at both ends am pretty well worn out.

The greedy part of me wants to ask the Lord... I'm gonna need another lifetime to see all the great things here on earth. There are still so many things I want to see and learn about. The reality is I am thankful for this brief moment between the eternities. Over 40 years ago made the promise that I would serve, and not waste my time / life here,... and pretty well kept my word on that.

So I made the choice to leave the rat race to the rats and take a different path. Being thankful for the blessings to take this odyessy I enjoyed it enough to jot down some notes while traveling through. The question was asked about the ITW / MARNE and many previous journeys... "?What did you learn?"

Simple answer; I learn something new every day. The journeys are just learning in different places than the usual stomping grounds. ...can't answer the overall question in simple terms/ sentence.

This odyessy took the roads less travelled, and am most thankful for that priviledge. This brief walk between the eternities has allowed some pretty good views in some really neat places over the years.

In the places traveled, learned what it was that made that place ... what it was; from crossroads / staging areas for the pioneers forming up wagon trains to head west across the prarie... to the remote ghost towns. .... to vikings crossing the North Sea. Each had their own unique histories full of answers from the ?who , ?what, ?why, ?when... ect...

I learned new things... and often learned that my earlier studying / reading/ investigating/ searching/ .... often.... confirmed earlier conclusions. Every place is interesting.

Each day offered up the opportunity to to delve into the cities, towns, regions explored. Every place was interesting in it's own way; but what made it unique in its life is that what sustained its evolution to now.

The geography, their history, its historical evolution, the archaeology, anthropology, biology, quantum physics, geology, botany, astronomy, sociology, its business / capital formation, their religion, their ancestral heritage and values, ... and what made it evolve and survive to its present state? .... and at times died there At every place, I wanted to know.


... Often reminded that it was a gift for something as simple as eating a ham samich while sitting on the docks of a fishing village in Newfoundland, or on the bank of the Deschutes river, listening and watching the clear mountain stream water flow by-- on it's journey.

Like the river on it's journey... flows to where it's supposed to be; I'll wind up where I'm supposed to be also. ... I'm just passing through here.

?What did you learn? you just have to click on the archive links .... see what each days journal / place was like. This is the best way to explain these places.

?You want to see petroglyphs?.... or Medicine Wheel in Wyoming?... or Rocky Harbor, Newfoundland,.... click around here to see.


Thank you for all your prayers for safe travel. I'll post when I can from the road. 'til then... will be dancing for my tribe. StoneBeartracks

Boulder Dam

Boulder Dam

Williams, AZ Grand Canyon Railroad

Tracks of the StoneBear 4 Corners Grand Canyon

April 08

Williams, Arizona

Grand Canyon Railroad = GCRR

Williams, AZ is one of the last looks to see Route 66. The old Route 66... it's all gone now.... except for a few sparse miles.

The historical society at Williams, AZ has done good... they bought / captured the bancrupt rail line up to the Grand Canyon, 60 miles north,... and run a daily Railroad excursion to the Canyon each day. We didn't go on it... the RR,... we drove.... but the railroad trip looks like a great day trip to the grand Canyon.

We saw the GCRR train yesterday afternoon at the canyon station terminus... had a quick look inside of some of the passenger cars of the 40s when they were grand style traveling... a pic with "Wolf" one of the cowboys of the railroad.

We met cowboy "Buck" late afternoon when the train came back into Williams. Buck was an ex- Marine that is part of the western cowboy troop that interacts for some of the show riding the railroad. Each morning before leaving Williams... while waiting for all the passengers to form up, they do a western cowboy shootout -- with robbers and the sheriff,... in a small frontage town to get the crowd / passengers ready for the railroad ride up to the Grand Canyon. In the afternoon... these cowboys ride horses up ,... stop the train and do a show robbery... it looks like a really fun trip on a great day to see the Grand Canyon. I reccommend it !

Williams, AZ has some Route 66 resturaunts and motels in their historic district.... this is a good stop!























GCRR

Tracks of the StoneBear 4 Corners Grand Canyon

April 08

Williams, Arizona

Grand Canyon Railroad = GCRR

Williams, AZ is one of the last looks to see Route 66. The old Route 66... it's all gone now.... except for a few sparse miles.

The historical society at Williams, AZ has done good... they bought / captured the bancrupt rail line up to the Grand Canyon, 60 miles north,... and run a daily Railroad excursion to the Canyon each day. We didn't go on it... the RR,... we drove.... but the railroad trip looks like a great day trip to the grand Canyon.

We saw the GCRR train yesterday afternoon at the canyon station terminus... had a quick look inside of some of the passenger cars of the 40s when they were grand style traveling... a pic with "Wolf" one of the cowboys of the railroad.

We met cowboy "Buck" late afternoon when the train came back into Williams. Buck was an ex- Marine that is part of the western cowboy troop that interacts for some of the show riding the railroad. Each morning before leaving Williams... while waiting for all the passengers to form up, they do a western cowboy shootout -- with robbers and the sheriff,... in a small frontage town to get the crowd / passengers ready for the railroad ride up to the Grand Canyon. In the afternoon... these cowboys ride horses up ,... stop the train and do a show robbery... it looks like a really fun trip on a great day to see the Grand Canyon. I reccommend it !

Williams, AZ has some Route 66 resturaunts and motels in their historic district.... this is a good stop!