During days of high gas prices Dave and Jan are very grateful that there are so many beautiful places to enjoy as camping options without driving any great distance. It is really nice to be able to drive just sixteen miles up Highway 14 out of Cedar City for a pleasant camping experience at Deer Haven Campground at an 8,500 foot elevation which is considerably cooler than town – and a short distance from the Markagunt Plateau with its elevations of 10,000 to 11,000 feet.

The view from the back of their quiet camp spot was very scenic, and their first camping outing at Deer Haven they were the only people in the campground except for the camp hosts during their first day.

Just outside the entrance to the Deer Haven Campground is the beginning of the Virgin River Rim trail which continues for over 30 miles to Strawberry Point. An afternoon walk on the trail provided some nice scenes of the red cliffs common at the Markagunt Plateau.

The next day it was time to take on the next section of the Virgin River Rim Trail for around 5 miles.

The trail included nice views of Zion National Park in the distance, and nice floral displays on the forest floor.

Three weeks later Dave and Jan returned to Deer Haven for another enjoyable visit. An evening walk after dinner took them to Alpine Pond – a part of beautiful Cedar Breaks National Monument.

Also in the area of Cedar Breaks is a fascinating display of Bristlecone Pine trees – among the oldest living things on earth. Some of the trees at Twisted Forest date back over 2,000 years. They grow in a landscape which looks quite inhospitable – where they are among the few plants suited to the soil.

An evening walk the last night of their stay provided Dave with a nice look at one of the beautiful specimens for which Deer Haven is named – one of several bucks Dave and Jan saw during their stay.

Dave and Jan hope they will never tire of the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful environment which surrounds Cedar City. As the psalmist expresses it: “O LORD, how many are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; The earth is full of Your possessions.” Psalm 104:24 (NASB)