Dave and Jan have enjoyed several visits during their five years in Cedar City from one of their former neighbors in Brea, California – Pattie Shew. Pattie, who lived two doors north of the Balsleys on Redwood Avenue in Brea, has taken a liking to Cedar City, and has shown some fascination for the Heritage Festival which occurs near the end of October – including the sheep parade, an annual feature of the Heritage Festival parade. Here is a picture of the sheep parade from an earlier time in 2021.

One of the outings we enjoyed this year was a short hike to a rocky formation known as “Lion’s Mouth.”

Jan and Pattie posed for a picture in a cave-like structure which features some Indian Petroglyphs.

Views from Lions Mouth include the route to Pinto to the south and Juniper covered hills to the east.

The next day Kathleen of Cedar City joined us for a hike and picnic in the Yankee Meadows area.

The mountains above Yankee Meadows were featuring a powdering of late October fresh snow.

Some fall colors were reflected in the waters of the small lake which was the destination for our hike.

Dave and Jan are grateful for the good neighbors the Lord has brought into their lives in California and Utah, and the good times they can enjoy as they share common interests exploring the Lord’s handiwork.

Dave and Jan have gone cross country skiing at Deer Hollow, a hilly area which volunteers keep groomed for skiers during the winter months. So they decided to try dry camping at a large meadow area just west of Deer Hollow, thinking that it would be nice to see the trails in fall colors. They were not disappointed!

“Dry camping,” in case the term is not familiar, is camping (free of charge) in U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management territories, within 150 feet of an existing road (paved or unpaved), where there are no amenities (e.g. water or electricity or rest room facilities). The view from the campsite Dave and Jan chose was already a beautiful view looking across the meadow.

On Friday morning, following a refreshing rain storm the previous evening, Dave and Jan decided to explore a side road near their campsite. The fact that it was a numbered road suggested that it would probably go for some distance through a forest filled with fall colors – and it did!

One of the many numbered side roads from the one Dave and Jan were hiking provided a nice view of Navajo Lake in the valley below, and it served well as a picnic spot at lunch time.

Utah’s fall Aspen forests provide a nice variety of colors from stop to stop along the path.

Dave enjoyed an evening walk on one of the roads which connect with the Deer Hollow ski area.

The time has come to winterize the camping trailer for another season, but Dave and Jan hope to continue to explore the beauty of Southwest Utah when winter snows have melted – though there are some great hikes to be enjoyed even during the late fall and winter months ahead. As the Lord promised Noah, following the great Flood of his time, “While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, And cold and heat, And summer and winter, And day and night Shall not cease.” Genesis 8:22 (NASB).

After an unusual summer season because of Jan’s broken toe, when camping and hiking were not in order, it was nice to return to normal summer activities in early September. Dave and Jan planned to camp at a favorite campground at Navajo Lake on the Markagunt Plateau twenty five miles east along Highway 14. The internet indicated that all campgrounds were open, but most were closed after Labor Day, so Plan B was to camp at Duck Creek Campground – the only forest service camp still open in the area.

The campsite chosen was ideally located on a nice meadow where some deer were immediately seen grazing (not pictures) and the surrounding forest provided a very attractive setting.

On Friday morning Dave and Jan drove a few miles to take a hike on a portion of the 31 mile long Virgin River Rim Trail which they had not hiked before. It was a good trail for a test of Jan’s foot – where the broken bone has healed, but there is still some swelling, which the doctor says is normal.

The trail climbed steadily for most of a mile before leveling out as many parts of the Rim Trail do.

As the trail sign promised, there were nice views in the direction of Zion National Park along the path.

There were some very interesting examples of complex root systems and some twisted Aspen tree configurations to be seen at various places along the trail.

As the trail sign also predicted, there were some nice displays of the red rocks which are characteristic of the area and frequently visible along the Virgin River Rim Trail.

At noon a fallen Pine tree log provided suitable seating in a pleasant meadow to enjoy a picnic lunch.

Jan’s foot managed the hike of around five or six miles very well. It was very pleasant to get back to camping and hiking, something Dave and Jan have enjoyed doing each summer for much of the time they have lived in the high desert and mountain country of Southwest Utah. Their hikes often bring to mind the words of a familiar chorus which quotes the Psalmist David in Psalm 8:1 and 9: “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth!”

Dave and Jan decided it was time to pay a visit to South Dakota – camping along the way and back in their camping trailer. It was a busy time for the Crandall family, with Alissa nearing the end of her studies to become an accredited mid-wife, and the four Crandall boys about to return to classes, but Andrew and family graciously accommodated the visit.

The first stop on the trip was at Wasatch Mountain State Park in Midway, Utah – a town with a decidedly Swiss flavor to it, because early settlers thought the nearby mountains reminded them of Switzerland.

Alissa made camping arrangements for her parents at a campground in a city park on the James River. It was a very pleasant stay, with many park amenities nearby (grassy fields, walking/biking trails, regular and disk golf courses, etc., and the James River just over a levee behind the campground.

On a day when Alissa was working on her studies, Andrew led Dave and Jan, with the boys, to an interesting recreation area on Osceola Lake not too far from Huron. Because the state decided not to maintain the area, the local Mennonite community took on the responsibility and made it a very nice place to spend a part of the day.

Back in Huron the boys assembled a model airplane, while Andrew and Alissa worked at assembling a long list of school supplies which teachers at James Valley Christian School were requesting for their classes.

Andrew and the boys enjoyed doing some fishing on the James River where Silas got the catch of the day.

Levi and Elijah are both competing with their school’s track teams, and Dave and Jan caught a picture of Levi completing a practice cross country run as he returned to the James Valley Christian campus.

It was a busy time for the Crandall family, but Dave and Jan enjoyed the chance to attend worship (where Andrew is pastor at First Presbyterian) and spend time in and around Huron, South Dakota with (L to R) Levi, Andrew, Silas, Elijah, Alissa and Ephraim.

Dave and Jan are very grateful to the Lord for the blessing of their two children and their families!

Dave and Jan were blessed with a visit from some special friends from their time in California and their association with The Church at Green Hills in LaHabra. One of their guests was Caroleen Suzuki, who lived with the Balsleys for six years while she was establishing residence as a student from Japan in anticipation of her schooling at Fullerton College and California State University in Fullerton. The other two guests were Bruce and Judy Riggins who took Caroleen into their home when Dave and Jan moved to Utah. Bruce and Judy are long time members at Green Hills, where they sang in the choir with the Balsleys and Caroleen and were active in leadership roles in the church.

Arriving on Sunday evening, August 3, and staying only until Tuesday morning, there wasn’t much time to take in the scenery and explore the community in the Cedar City area. But there are good things to enjoy nearby, so Tuesday began with a visit to nearby Cedar Breaks – located around 30 miles up Cedar Mountain east of Cedar City at an elevation of just above 10,000 feet. Spring flowers were still displaying their beauty at the visitor center, and the beautiful red-rock geology of the breaks was on full display.

A drive down the mountain through the Brian Head Ski Resort area took the group to a picnic area along the scenic road to Yankee Meadows with its beautiful red-rock geology.

Following lunch the tour headed us south on I-15 for a visit to Kolob Canyons. The canyons are a western part of Zion National Park, with access to the main part of Zion only by hiking a 14-mile trail.

Back in Cedar City we drove to Thunderbird Gardens where interesting rock formations exist and access to several trailheads are found. We took a few photos amid the colorful rocks where Caroleen displayed her enthusiasm for the beauty of the area.

The evening included a visit to the Shakespeare Festival area to enjoy the Green Show, a free dramatic presentation which many visitors and locals enjoy evenings during the summer season. And Tuesday morning included a short venture into beautiful Rainbow Canyon, just around the ridge from home.

Dave and Jan always enjoy sharing their love of the Cedar City area with guests from out of town, and it was great to host Caroleen and the Riggins who have been a significant part of their experience while they were living in California and attending the Church at Green Hills in La Habra.

Eager to return to camping and hiking – the normal routine Dave and Jan have enjoyed during summer months since moving to Cedar City – their two night stay at Cathedral Gorge in Eastern Nevada in April was followed two weeks later by a two night stay at the Baker Dam Recreation area near Pine Valley (which is Jan’s favorite camping location – recently seriously damaged by the Forsyth Canyon fire which burned 15,600 acres and destroyed 17 homes in Pine Valley). Jan’s broken bone in her right foot has prevented any camping and hiking since their Baker Dam stay through the end of the month of July.

The campground at Baker Dam is quite primitive, with no water or electricity and some poorly maintained restrooms, but a quiet, pleasant place to stay nevertheless (and very inexpensive).

The reservoir which is backed up by the dam is a good-sized body of water in a scenic setting.

The rugged mountains between Baker Dam and Pine Valley rise to some impressive heights.

Hiking near the campground and up a dirt road toward the mountains revealed many spring flowers.

The gorge below the dam flowed with water of the Santa Clara River coming out of Pine Valley.

Though the spring and summer months have included fewer camping and hiking outings than Dave and Jan would normally like to experience, there have been some very enjoyable opportunities to take in a little bit of the abundant variety and beauty which are revelations of the Lord’s creative genius!

Dave and Jan were planning to enjoy another “camping trip” the week of May 18, but Jan began to experience foot pain early in the week so a camping trip and the hiking normally enjoyed seemed unrealistic. By Sunday, May 25th, a trip to Insta-Care revealed that Jan had broken a bone in her right foot associated with the toe next to her big toe. Exactly how the toe was broken is not clear, though a fall Jan experienced on a hike in the mountains close to home around two weeks earlier may have been the cause. At the time of the fall a scraped knee and a sore arm were the initial injuries. So Dave suggested a long drive to rest the foot through the Uinta Mountain Range in northern Utah, something he had been looking forward to doing for some time. The Uintas are the highest mountains in the state, and the only mountain range positioned west and east rather than north and south like the other mountain ranges in Utah.

Driving Highway 150 out of Kamas, under cloudy skies, there were numerous forest service camp grounds for campers to enjoy, but Provo River Falls was the first significant scenic pullout. It was well worth seeing.

The falls consist of several drops as the stream makes its way down a steep descent on the mountainside.

Highway 150 crosses the Uinta Range at an elevation of 10,759 feet, passing between several mountain peaks of just under 12,000 feet. King’s Peak, topping out at 13,528 feet in elevation, is the highest peak in the Uinta range, but it is located toward the east end of the range, and Highway 150 is at the west end. After the summit, Highway 150 descends into Evansville, Wyoming, where Dave and Jan enjoyed a great meal and spent the night before returning to Utah through the Uintas the next day.

Friday morning was sunny and clear – making for a beautiful drive back over the mountains toward home.

Toward the end of May the roads were open but the mountains were still covered in winter’s snow.

Highway 150 passes many mountain lakes, the most famous of which provides the name for the Mirror Lake Scenic Highway, but the lakes were still covered with snow, so the reflections of Mirror Lake will have to be enjoyed on some future adventure in the Uintas.

It was an enjoyable trip – providing some respite for Jan’s ailing foot. The podiatrist said that the foot appears to be healing normally, but it will apparently still be another month until Jan is able to take to the trails she enjoys walking. Until then, she is benefiting from the aid of a borrowed knee scooter which keeps her from making too much use of her injured foot. A recent drive from Cedar City to beautiful Cedar Breaks, up highway 14 from Cedar City. provided a brief get-away from home confinement.

The Apostle Paul used the human body to illustrate the importance of every member of the “body of Christ” (the church). He wrote, in I Corinthians 12:27, “if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.” Who would have thought that one broken toe bone could be so disruptive to family plans? But this has been a good reminder to us that every member of our bodies (our physical bodies, and our church bodies) is very important. So we wait eagerly for Jan’s foot to heal – hoping that we can soon be back to normal activities which we enjoy so much!

Dave and Jan enjoyed a great visit in Cedar City several years back with friends they met during seminary years in Portland, Oregon – Carl and Nancy Laney. Carl Laney returned to Western Seminary after earning his doctorate, where he served for forty years as Western’s Professor of Biblical Literature. As Carl and Nancy were leaving Utah for their home in Portland following their visit in Cedar City, they chose to drive west on Highway 56 to Panaca, Nevada, then north on Highway 93. They wrote back to the Balsleys to tell them of an interesting state park they had passed – Cathedral Gorge State Park. Because mid-April weather this year was somewhat “iffy,” Dave and Jan chose to return for another visit to Cathedral Gorge State Park for their first camping trip of the season.

Cathedral Gorge State Park is located in a large valley, surrounded by fascinating sandstone cliffs. On Thursday evening Dave and Jan hiked the Hawks Ridge loop trail along the south perimeter of the park (with no pictures to share – though the ridge is beyond the trailer in the first photo). On Friday they hiked the Juniper Draw four mile loop trail around the valley to enjoy many of the sandstone formations which can be seen all around the trail.

The park includes examples of cryptobiotic soil (“desert glue”) which takes decades or longer to form, but which can be destroyed if it is walked on, so visitors are encouraged to watch their step where it exists.

Sandstone formations come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes all around the canyon – which includes many more miles than the four miles which the loop trail travels.

Cathedral Gorge includes many “slot canyons” which can be entered by visitors – some of them going as far as one or two hundred feet into the sandstone walls, creating a cathedral-like feeling for visitors.

Cathedral Gorge turned out to be a suitable destination for the season’s first camping outing because, back in Cedar City, snow which had been predicted as a possibility actually materialized, and the news made it to Nevada before Dave and Jan even headed for home (as reported by one of the park rangers they spoke with before leaving the area). The Lord has provided lots of variety in terms of scenery and weather conditions, and Dave and Jan enjoy the variety in the southwest region where they live.

With the winter and spring months unusually free of moisture – either rain or snow – there have been plenty of opportunities for hikes on trails – where hiking is normally discouraged between December 1 and April 30 to prevent damage to wet trails. So Dave and Jan have taken advantage of dry trails in and around Cedar City. Along the East Bench paved trail which borders several miles of the eastern boundary of the city there are some interesting places to hike up into the eastern foothills. One of them is an unnamed fire road which Dave and Jan have hiked or (in Dave’s case) ridden several times. For bike riders it makes for a tough ride (mixed with walks) because it is very steep.

The trail leads to some nice views of the colorful terrain below – and some city views as well.

The dirt road continues along some colorful red rock scenery which is typical of “color country.”

After several miles the smoother dirt road terminates at a turn-around, though it continues under a much rougher form which only a rugged rock climbing vehicle would be able to traverse, but the scenery at the turn-around opens out to the east into an impressive canyon with steep multi-colored walls

A rocky outcropping just west of the turn-around provided some views of the canyon lands below.

Not surprisingly, Dave’s trip back down to the East Bench Trail was much quicker than the trip up!

“Praise the LORD from the earth . . . Mountains and all hills, Fruit trees and all cedars” – and junipers too! Psalm 148:7a,9

The fall and winter season in Cedar City, Utah has been a very dry season in 2024/2025. There was an early snow in the fall which took a toll on trees, breaking down branches all around town because it was a wet and heavy snowfall (around 6 inches). But there has been very little rain or snow since then. There have been some very cool temperatures though, which have made everyone aware that fall and winter have not passed us by. The waterfalls in Cedar City have made that clear! Here is a photo of the first fall on Coal Creek in beautiful Cedar Canyon.

The next water fall, around a quarter of a mile downstream. has also been heavily coated with ice.

Last summer (2024) our grandsons from Huron, South Dakota worked at damming up the water of Coal Creek not far from Dave and Jan’s house

They probably wouldn’t be interested in trying to dam up the creek as it has been in recent weeks!

Farther down the creek, near the Cedar City Visitors’ Center there is a third waterfall which has been icy.

And a fourth waterfall on Coal Creek has displayed lots of ice as well closer to Interstate 15 to the west.

One more small frozen waterfall can be found along the East Bench Bike Trail which Dave often enjoys riding. Some local boys decided that they would explore it up close and personal one recent cool day.

Many of the citizens of Cedar City are praying that the dry winter weather will soon produce some healthy rain and snow. Our recent studies in the book of Genesis have provided reason for encouragement in the Lord’s promise to Noah and his family as recorded at the end of the worldwide Noahic flood (Genesis 8:22): “While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, And cold and heat, and summer and winter, And day and night Shall not cease.” It is encouraging that, even in the current dry spell, Coal Creek is still flowing through town because of the Lord’s ingenuity in creating the “plumbing system” on earth!