Ranchito Feliz

In the middle of the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument; adjacent to Bryce Canyon National Park; within walking distance of Kodachrome Basin State Park; and an easy drive to Zion and Capital Reef National Parks, as well as Lake Powell National Recreational Area, this unique site is an opportunity not to miss. This is MST so adjust your clocks if needed. The pet/horse friendly property (approximately 9 acres/3 ha/64 sq. m) and is welcoming to all folks/types of families, and boasts five private designated single tent sites, one group tent site, two car camping sites. The equestrians will find a two-acre pasture, three paddocks, a round pen, as well as beautiful places to ride from the ranch.

Please note: No arrivals after sunset (check MST and MDT times for the large variations in those sunset timings {NO EXCEPTIONS}). This is a meet and greet campground and I place you in a site that best fits.

**Due to the strange world we now live in…talking about only the virus, I am asking all campers to avoid each other at the "Poo Place" and the dish washing station. As much as I would like to, I will not shake your hand when I meet you and we will do our social distancing. Sorry.This is a meet and greet campground. Sites will be selected for you.

All children count (sorry, all about the poops) as campers, and must be added as additional guests.

There are no specific site numbers; all sites are tent sites but larger RVs/trailers can be accommodated on a limited basis (-RV max. lengths: Trailer- 20ft./7m, 5th Wheel- 25ft./8m, Standard RV- 24ft./7.3m) Check in with Host (on foot) prior to RV arrival for your site assignment! Leave rig at the gate.

***There is only one location for an RV and one location for a trailer, the rest are sites designed for folks who drive or walk in and have a tent.

You must arrive one hour before sundown Utah time for check in!

This secluded location has a small town of about 75 (Cannonville) three miles/5 k distant where there is a small store with gas, and a Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Visitor Center. And, bonus, this campground has a shower (cold camp shower), fire rings, potable water, a place to wash dishes or clean fish, and cell phone service is getting better. The ranch is an off the grid, passive/active solar voltaic, so no electricity. Firewood can be purchased at the ranch or in Tropic.

The views are spectacular from any site where the xeriscaped landscape uses indigenous material and plants to complement the quintessential Pinyon/Juniper ecosystem the campground sits in. On three sides you are surrounded by red cliffs in the Carmel Formation which can give shelter from wind and sun, but campers can also look out over the Paria River (you can hear the river from camp as well as its amphibians) which runs south in front of the property and eventually meets the Colorado River at Lee’s Ferry where most put-in to raft the Grand Canyon. Looking north, one sees the meaning of the term “Grand Staircase” by viewing The Entrada, Tropic Shale, Straight Cliffs, Wahweap, Kaiparowits, and Pink Limestone Formations capped by late Tertiary Volcanism; or, the “steps” of Promise Rock, Sand Point, Powell Point, and the Aquarius Plateau (highest forested mesa in North America at over eleven thousand feet.).

The biological diversity here is also astounding, the (*) might indicate alarming:

Birds: 125 species and counting including the tiny Costa’s Humming Bird all the way up to the enormous California Condor.

Plants: 2 species of Sagebrush, 4 species of trees, numerous grass species, and a plethora of beautiful wildflowers and cacti.

*Reptiles: Many species of snakes and lizards. Unfortunately, this includes the occasional rattlesnake. It is advised that you have your pets vaccinated.

Amphibians: Toads and Salamanders

Mammals: Predators-Lions, Coyotes, Bobcats, & Badgers. Ungulates-Elk, Deer & Pronghorn. Rodents-Lots of those!

*Insects: There are very few mosquitoes. There are a few biting Deer Flies, and worse yet, those damn gnats. These “no-see-ums” are temperature dependent so are not a bother in the cool shade, early mornings, late evenings and at night. It is recommended that you bring some kick ass insect repellent and a “bee hat” if you are out and about in the sun during the day between May and July.

Fossils: Bivalves, snails, petrified wood (many types) and various other corals, insects and plant fossils abound and are often incorporated into the ranch infrastructure. The nearby area is considered the hottest paleontological spot on the planet.

Astronomy: The area is widely considered to be under the darkest skies in the lower 49. The Milky Way and Persieds are common sights without the unsightly annoyance of any neighbor’s lights.

The climate is varied and interesting. All four seasons are here and occasionally all in one day. Winter snows melt quickly though temperatures can dip into the sub-zeros. The 5,900 ft./1800 m. elevation keeps the summer temps reasonable and always gives a chilly summer evening to cool things off. If you want climatic extremes, you can, within an hour or so, be at Lake Powell and its 100+ F/38+ C heat or on the Aquarius Plateau at 65 degrees F/18 C in midday June.

Recreation on many levels is all within proximity. From canyoneering (many close and amazing slot canyons, both technical and casual) , “free” climbing (both trad and sport) on an established nearby crag composed of a welded tuff capping the Aquarius Plateau (see Mountain Project for "The Jungle on the Aquarius Plateau") and many aid lines on Entrada/Navaho Formation towers within walking distance (see Mountain Project for "The Grand Staircase" ), water sports of Lake Powell and the Colorado River as well as fishing in the cool temps of Pine Lake 35 minutes distant. Then of course, there is the Monument, National Park and the State Park only a short drive away.

Seclusion, security, water, and views all within minutes to spectacular destinations, makes this worth the stop.