Winter Desert Wonderland - Pipe Springs NM

On day 2 we drove on to Kanab, Utah. We took the route through Arizona, which took us to the Pipe Spring National Monument along the way. On the drive from Mesquite one slowly moves up the Colorado plateau and gets some amazing views on sandstone cliffs. Here we had the first snow and stopped for some pics and a little snowball fight. 

In the heart of the Kaibab Indian Reservation is the Pipe Spring NM, which tells about the story of the Mormon settlers and the Paiutes. The struggles of survival in the desert and the power of water. 

The National Monument is worth a short visit. The Mormon settlers of Utah built a house and farm around the spring and used to hide their wives here to escape imprisonment or punishment, when polygamy was still performed in the Mormon Church but illicit under US law. We learned much about American history, how the plateau and cliffs where formed and native plants and what they can be used for. 

Views along the way.

Snowball fight.

Cliffs of Pipe Spring NM.

K on the Cliff.

Kids listening to explanation on how the cliffs were formed.

Way along the cliffs.

View into reservation.