10 days near Kanab, Utah…
Why we came…
We wanted to hike “The Wave” and “Coyote Buttes” areas and we wanted to play in the unique Coral Pink Sand Dunes. More than anything, we wanted to play with animals! Plus, October weather can be nearly perfect in southern Utah’s spectacular desert region…it’s a great time to visit.
Campgrounds…
We spent the first seven days at “The Best Friends Animal Society” which is 5 miles north of Kanab in “Angel Canyon”. There are only two, full hook-up RV sites. The two sites are popular and difficult to get…reservations are already being taken for 2015! The sites have a 20-30 foot buffer between them of shade-providing junipers and desert shrubs. The RV cement pads are level and roughly 15 feet wide and 40 feet long…perfect. The junipers are tall enough to provide shade, but low enough to allow good satellite TV reception…perfect. The utility hook-ups are tiered down making dumping the tanks easy…perfect. There was no wi-fi, but cell phone was a fairly reliable 3G signal. The sites are about a tenth of a mile off the main road which makes them very quiet and peaceful. There are no nearby lights so nightly stargazing is outstanding. The animal sanctuary Welcome Center is a mile up the road, but most of the animals were about 6 miles away. Kanab, population 4,400 and elevation 5,000 feet, is a nice little town walled by pretty red cliffs along its northern half. It has two nice grocery stores and plenty of options to find other necessary supplies. It’s touristy without being overly so…we liked it quite a bit!
We spent the last three days at the Mount Carmel Motel and RV park, 18 miles north of Kanab. The campground has 9 full hook-up sites tucked under mature trees. The trees make satellite reception nearly impossible from all but 2 or 3 sites, but would provide welcomed shade during the hot summer. The wi-fi was good and the cell phone signal was 3-4 bar extended non-data. Highway noise was annoying during the day, but quiet at night. It was comfortable for a short stay. Quick supply runs were to Orderville, 4 miles north. Kanab would work for large supply runs. The campground is close to Zion National Park’s east entrance.
Coral Pink Sand Dunes…
From the state park web page:
The geology of the sand dunes is an intriguing subject. The sand comes from Navajo sandstone from the geologic period call Middle Jurassic. The same iron oxides and minerals that give us spectacular red rock country are responsible for this landscape of coral pink sand.
Sand dunes are created by three factors: Sand, high winds,and a unique influence upon the wind. The notch between the Moquith and Moccasin mountains causes this unique influence. The wind is funneled through the notch, thereby increasing wind velocity to a point where it can carry sand grains from the eroding Navajo sandstone.
This phenomenon is known as the Venturi Affect. Once the wind passes through the notch and into the open valley, the wind velocity decreases, causing the sand to be deposited. These dunes are estimated at 10,000 to 15,000 years old.
The sand dunes were pretty and we enjoyed hiking to the two highest ones. However, numerous loudly roaring, fast moving ATVs and motorcycles had us on edge most of the time. This is not a place to enjoy peace and quiet!
“Star Dune”…the highest one / A geocache with Star Dune in the background
Coyote Buttes and “The Wave”…
“The Wave” has been featured in National Geographic and many other types of media. People come from all over the world to see the very unique, very photogenic geologic feature. In order to prevent it from getting “loved to death”, there is a strict permit system to control the number of visitors. Only 20 permits are given out each day. 10 are given out 6 months in advance and 10 are given out the day prior to hiking. Like many, many other folks, we applied 6 months ago and got rejected. During our stay in Kanab, we had planned to try everyday to get one of the other permits…well poop on that! The stinking government shutdown closed the whole thing. Our Coyote Buttes area foray consisted of posing next to the “closed” sign and finding three geocaches nearby. “The Wave” and further exploration of Coyote Buttes are adventures that will have to wait for another visit.
“Closed due to government shutdown…”
Other Hikes and Geocaching…
We couldn’t do the hikes we wanted so we spent an entire day geocaching. First we grabbed three in the Coyote Buttes area, then found an interesting one about 15 miles east of Kanab. Finally we hiked up the “Squaw Trail” on the north edge of Kanab and found three more. All told, we found seven geocaches that day and walked about 11 miles.
Geocache named “Archie” / Shortcut to “Archie”
Walking the wash along Highway 89 near “Archie”
Geocache called “Skunked” / A key was supposed to be here / The key unlocks this geocache
Hiking route up the Squaw Trail just north of Kanab / Going up the Squaw Trail
Overlooking Kanab, Utah
The animal sanctuary…
Best Friends Animal Society is a no-kill shelter that houses nearly 2,000 animals. The 3,700 acre facility was started in 1984. In addition to hundreds of cats and dogs, horses, pigs, birds, and bunnies reside there getting top-notch attention in great environments.
We started with a 90 minute orientation tour that is given four times a day. During the spring and fall peak times, tours fill in advance so it’s wise to make reservations. It’s also wise to schedule volunteer shifts well ahead of time. So many people volunteer that some are turned away. That’s great for the animals, but not so great for the folks that have traveled from afar only to be rejected! Click here to get the necessary info about volunteering.
Day 1 volunteering…When the alarm went off on our first morning at 6:00am, we almost felt like we were going to work, but we were excited! We had to show up at 7:30am for the volunteer orientation that’s required for all first-time volunteers. We spent the rest of that morning working at one of the ten cat houses. We were impressed that this house had about 80 cats and there was hardly an odor. Everything is kept very clean. Right away, they introduced us to Amy, a cat fairly new to the sanctuary that wouldn’t move much. Now Amy is supposed to get 4 walks a day that consist of 5 laps around the building. We put her on the ground, and she took off running…I could barely keep up with her! Then we spent about 90 minutes cleaning litter boxes, sweeping, mopping, and folding towels. Of course, we took many, many breaks to play with the cats and scratch behind their ears. For a bit, 6 or 7 wild turkeys hung out near the cat house. A few of the cats really wanted to “play” with the big birds. Right before our shift ended, Arleen did 5 more laps with Amy. I swear they were both smiling as they ran around the building! I’m a dog guy, but some of those cats won me over.
Amy, the cat, getting her “walk” / I wonder who would win, the turkeys or the cats?
Cleaning the cat house / Taking breaks with the kitties
Arleen’s new friends
Day 2…
First we attended puppy school! 5 or 6 puppies worked with a group of us and socialized with each other. Not only was it cute and fun, but everyone learned!
We spent the second half of our morning taking multiple dogs to a large fenced run. Four of us, each with a dog, walked to the pen. Once securely inside the pen, the dogs were released where they roamed freely for 20-30 minutes. A couple of the dogs were very, very skittish with people, but comfortable when on the loose in the pen.
After lunch, we did our first “dog outing”. Volunteers can take dogs out of the sanctuary for a morning, an afternoon, or both. We requested an outing with a high-energy dog that needed a 2-4 mile hike. They teamed us up with Oso, a brindle colored, hundred pound plus, mutt mixed with who-knows-what. Oso was a big, strong goof that was constantly on the lookout for lizards and grasshoppers. We were warned to give a wide birth to other dogs and be careful around other people. Sure enough, the loveable oaf, used his big boy warning bark when he saw a couple of other people…he was already protective of us! We reported this to his handlers who took note and thanked us repeatedly for taking him out. It was a good experience for Oso and us!
Puppy class
At the dog run
A dog outing with Oso
Day 3…
We reported the morning on day 3 and said, “put us where you need us”. They sent us to “Old Friends”. Our job was to walk as many senior dogs as possible. The weather was icky, with the temperature in the mid-30s and a mix of steady rain and snow. That didn’t stop us as we walked 8-10 kind old guys and gals. Some of them wanted to walk and some of them didn’t, but we all had fun.
Walking “old friends” in the rain and snow
Day 4…
We started the day with another “dog outing”. Again we requested a high-energy dog that would enjoy a 2-4 mile hike. They teamed us up with 2-year old Mazzy. We liked Mazzy a lot…it was hard to take her back! The poor girl was just “dumped” on the sanctuary grounds where it took a team of people to capture her. She was distrusting and didn’t want anything to do with anyone. That was hard to believe as we interacted with her and she showed us all kinds of affection and gave us appreciative doggie kisses! Now she is in a good place that will make sure that she gets a good home…her next family will be blessed to have her!
We reported for our afternoon volunteer shift and again said, “put us where you need us”. Now that we had some experience working with the dogs, they assigned us to work with some of the troubled ones. The dogs are given one of three ratings: green collar for minimal issues; purple collar for some issues; and red collar for significant issues. The issues could be things like being a flight risk or aggression towards dogs or people. We spent the afternoon walking purple-collared dogs. With each dog, the primary handler gave us specific guidance on how to handle the dog. I walked a 10 year old 90lb’ish German Sheppard female mix and was told that if I try to touch her I might get bit…yikes! It was hard walking such a beautiful animal and not being able to give it a little love, but she probably appreciated the walk. The highlight of the afternoon was taking care of an old momma pit bull with one eye: Sookie. She was a loveable goof adorned with a black “cone of shame”. After a slow lap around the nearby trail, Arleen had to hand feed her dinner! The slimy, dripping, stinky food was slurped out of Arleen’s hand a little bit at a time. I laughed, Sookie smiled, and Arleen squirmed…it was a good time!
An outing with Mazzy
Sookie, the one-eyed momma pit bull
Day 5…
On our final volunteer day, we again said, “put us where you need us”. We worked with the purple-collared dogs again. We walked the trail with a few dogs and accompanied a few others in the 2 acre dog run. A couple of the dogs wanted nothing to do with us, but walked steadily along the trail while on their leash. One dog, in the third picture below, was very skittish and very selective. His handler said he tends to latch onto one person in a group. Sure enough, Arleen and I sat on a bench while he paced backed and forth, slowly creeping closer and closer to us. Any quick movement by us caused him to quickly retreat a couple of steps, but after a minute or two, he would hesitantly continue. And then he stopped in front of me and put his paw out…he chose me as his friend! We enjoyed a fairly slow walk along the trail as he was usually on edge, but showed a few brief moments of confidence. His handlers and future volunteers will continue to work with him, and hopefully sooner rather than later, he will be a happy dog in a good home!
After lunch, we had our final “dog outing”. Again we said, “give us a high-energy dog that would like a 2-4 mile hike”. They teamed us up with Leroy Brown, a 2 year old bluetick coonhound. Like most hounds, he followed his nose. He zipped back and forth on the leash, enjoying all the strange smells. We hiked 3.5 miles and he showed no signs of tiring, but did show much appreciation!
Two happy dogs and one very selective, very shy dog
An outing with Leroy Brown
Final random thoughts and observations about the animal sanctuary…
- Visiting a county animal shelter and a no-kill animal sanctuary are very different experiences. Looking pound cats and dogs in the eye and wondering if they will be killed soon is depressing. Looking sanctuary animals in the eye was usually uplifting. Some of their backgrounds are heartbreaking, but now they live in a decent place and get top-notch treatment. Most importantly, with a better than 80% adoption rate, it was comforting to imagine every animal finding a good home. It made it easier for us to say goodbye to great dogs like Mazzy.
- On days that we worked a morning or afternoon volunteer shift and filled the other part of the day by doing a dog outing, we usually walked 4-6 miles. That’s great for us and the dogs!
- Best Friends is very well organized. They also want you to have a good experience and will accommodate your desires and limitations as much as possible. A few examples…If you have trouble walking, they will find you something that requires minimal walking. If you want to work only with senior dogs, they will try to fit you in. If you are hesitant to work with big dogs, they will set you up with the little ones.
- Make reservations for accommodations and volunteer shifts during spring and fall well in advance. We also wanted to work with pigs and horses, but were rejected because there were already enough volunteers.
- They have a small cafeteria that provides a good lunch with a great view for only $5!
- We never picked up dog poop! We were certainly willing, but were never asked. That fun chore might happen on certain days or during certain shifts…we don’t know…we never did it! And there wasn’t much around so somebody was picking it up.
WHERE WE GOT OUR MAIL
Kanab, Utah
Next…
We are in Virgin, Utah, where will we play for a month. We have already done a few great hikes in spectacular Zion National Park and have a bunch more planned. We are also within a day’s adventure of 3 or 4 Utah state parks, and on the outskirts of a good-sized town: St George. The weather is about perfect and life is great…stay tuned!
Parting Shots…
(37,590)
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