A New Day Begins at Dinosaur National Monument

The Harper's Corner of Dinosaur National Monument is on the Utah/Colorado border.  This area was added to the original Dinosaur NM to keep the confluence of the Green and Yampa Rivers from being destroyed by a dam.  Cindy lived in this area, so I got up early with a plan to arrive at the original part of the monument, the site of the quarry,  some 40 miles away, before sunrise.

I crossed the Green River then drove beside it as the sky lightened. Soon I saw the kiosk that marks the boundary of the monument.  I stopped there, just as the sky started turning pink and yellow, grabbed my camera, and started walking down and along the river.  A light wind blew delicate clouds across the sky and the river murmured to the few logs it ran into, across, or around. 

Soon I was hearing one of my favorite sounds - sandhill cranes feeding.  I was able to enjoy them almost out of camera range as the day brightened and new photo opportunities appeared as the light changed colors and clouds moved about.

Finally I dragged myself away from this one spot and drove on along the river bend to the official check-in site. I had to make a few more stops along the way so the several hundred yards-long trip took another quarter of an hour.

Finally I was able to get to the beginning of the Cub Creek Road Auto Tour which starts just past the official entrance the Monument.  But you'll have to wait until my next blog to see that.