Old Homesteads Have Everlasting Charm.

Today is the first day, after about six continuous days of snowfall, that I have not shoveled or laid down ice melt.  So, I have decided to go back in time, to July 2016, and relate a tale of old homesteads.  I happen to enjoy taking photos of old cabins, barns, houses; stonework, wood, or combination thereof; they have history behind them, and charm.

Sunset was around 8pm, so after dinner we decided to go on a short gallivant; check out some of those county roads north of Highway 491.  5.1 miles - CR 308 (Hallers); South on Hwy 491; directly across and North on Hwy. 491 is CR 362; 1/2 mile north on CR 362, turn east onto CR 335 (North Old Highway). 

Here's a map to help follow our little drive.

There are alternative county roads to access CR 335 from Hwy. 491:

Eastland Tower in far background.

CR 335 is one of those pretty, scenic roads where you don't mind taking your time as you drive along; definitely a good way to relieve any stress tension and get into relaxation mode.

Except if you're me; my excitement comes when I find old homesteads, cabins, barns, even windmills.  They tell stories of when the pioneers and ranchers first began to settle the Old West.  I do get disappointed when I can't find the owners around, and ask if I can explore and take photos; sometimes they even give me a verbal history about the buildings.

Old Planks.

Before we knew it, we'd reached CR 370 (Ucolo); we went only about a mile north and found this old tree house in a field.  There was an old foundation too, but really nothing else left of whatever building(s) had once been. Up ahead we saw modern day homes, barns, farm machinery; and they just weren't that interesting; so we turned around and decided to take the southern end back to Highway 491.


















Jackpot!  More old homesteads, plank fencing, pieces of farm equipment; a photographer's paradise.

Homestead #1

Farm Equipment Lying About.

 Homestead #2

Fencing made from Planks.

Almost to Hwy 491, we were graced with a raven in flight.

Before going directly home though, we visited Shake Shack; Roy's favorite is pineapple, and I love the mint; perfect ending to a perfect gallivant.

Oh, one side note: we also found out that Utah Highway Patrolman, Sanford Randall, was able to find our friend's camera that had gotten lost at the Blanding 4th of July Parade.  Ivy Kropf happens to be Amy Watkins Kensley's sister; and since the Watkins family adopted Roy and myself, well they're our sisters too.  Anyway, all's well that ends well.

Mary Cokenour

Mary Cokenour

Dodge Point; Named After a City, Not a Pioneer.

On our quest to explore the canyons and roads between Monticello and Blanding, there is also the quest of finding information, especially on the background of the designated names. In a book I recently purchased about names in Utah, Dodge Point was so named before the pioneers first settled in Bluff, or continued the trek up to Monticello.

There was a reference to a Hole in the Rock pioneer, James Harvey Dunton, whose second wife was Mary Anne Dodge; sorry Mary Anne, you can't take credit for the naming. The southeastern section of Utah was already being used for cattle ranching since the 1860's; the Texas ranchers being associated with the Carlisle Cattle Company based in Colorado and Kansas...Dodge City, Kansas to be more precise.

Dodge Road (CR 188) is only a half mile past (traveling south on Route 191) the Verdure historical site; a short road of only 6.3 miles of alternating graded dirt or gravel, before it dead ends at a few old farm buildings.  There are many, and I mean many, warning signs on the fence indicating "private property", "no trespassing", "violators will be prosecuted", "violators will be shot on sight".  Alright, I'm only kidding about the last sign, but then again, I wouldn't take the chance.  The road goes primarily through farmland; many with the designation of being "cooperative wildlife management areas", and it parallels Dodge Point.

In my researching of the area, I came across the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization (BFRO) which had an eyewitness reported sighting of a Bigfoot in February 2012.  They also stated that Dodge Point had Bigfoot sightings dating back to when the pioneers began settling the area back in the 1880s.  Cryptozoology is not one of my interests, so I cannot give you much else on this area regarding that "science".

One mile south of Dodge Road is an unnamed county road, CR 189; it is privately owned (how do you privately own a county road?), gated closed; it parallels Dodge Canyon, but you won't be seeing that canyon from this road.

...and that folks, is that.  There was so little information about this area, including in personal stories written by the pioneers; they didn't even rename the area once they kicked the ranchers out and took the land over.

However, if you happen to see a  Bigfoot; take a photo and send it to BFRO with all the pertinent information.

Mary Cokenour