![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/IMG_2343.jpg?resize=480%2C360&ssl=1\" "\\"IMG_2343\\"")
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Day 3: Cedar Mesa<\/p>\n
Highlights: Unforgettable canyon hike, hanging garden, camping on Cedar Mesa<\/p>\n
I’d been lucky to find a cheap vintage motor court, the Sunset Inn, in Blanding the night before, and in the morning I left town with plenty of food and firewood for camping.<\/p>\n
I headed west, and at the turnoff for Cedar Canyon, I studied my maps and decided to try Fish Creek Canyon. I’m so glad I did.<\/p>\n
I got lost immediately in a maze of shallow arroyos crossing the thick juniper forest of the mesa top, backtracked, and finally reached the edge of the canyon. The trail rapidly drops about 800′ over a series of steep ledges; the very top of the trail was a 12′ cliff that required descending a vertical crack. I was alone, far beyond cell range, and nobody knew where I was, so I was super careful.<\/p>\n
A late start left me with too little time to explore much of the canyon. I was pretty much running down and back, stunned by the cliffs, the water, the fall colors. That night, I found a campsite along the road back and had a wonderful night’s sleep under the wheeling and shooting stars.<\/p>\n
![\"IMG_2298\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/IMG_2298.jpg?ssl=1\" "\\"IMG_2298\\"")
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