A few years ago I discovered Kanab when I went to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary to volunteer for a few days. I’d wanted to go to the Sanctuary for years and working with the animals—dogs in particular—was everything I’d hoped. The real surprise of the trip was the town of Kanab, a place that hasn’t changed much since the fifties.
In the heyday of Westerns, this place was the filming location for Daniel Boone, Gunsmoke, El Dorado, The Outlaw Josey Wales, The Lone Ranger, and Stagecoach. When the good guys said, “Head ‘em off at the pass!” that pass is a rough-cut road in a hillside at Best Friends. The wild, stark canyons and red hills, the rock formations and stunning sunsets haven’t changed a bit since the days John Wayne and Olivia de Havilland inhabited the guest cottages at Parry’s Lodge in the heart of town.
Parry’s is still there as it always has been, the cottages ,too. You can walk across the street to the café for a breakfast of biscuits and gravy or finish off dinner with a piece of homemade banana cream pie. Or a few steps away find anything western at Denny’s Wigwam. You might not have cell service and I wouldn’t count on wifi, but it you’re thinking it might be nice to drop out of the 21st century for a few days in the 1950’s, it would be tough to find a nicer western town to do just that.
2 comments:
Lark,
I learn something new about you every week. What was it like working with dogs at the shelter?
It was lots of fun! Most of the dogs live in groups of 4 to 6 in indoor/outdoor areas with all kinds of toys and beds and fun things to play with. I watered and fed the dogs in about fifteen enclosures, then took them out for walks around the sanctuary two at a time. Some were better walkers than others, but all were happy to go. I took one dog, Nike, back to the motel for a sleepover. The people at the sanctuary like to know how the dogs respond to life outside the sanctuary. He was a sweetheart. We explored Kanab together and had a marvelous time. When I took him back, I was sad to see him go back into the compound until I saw how happy he was to see his dog-buddies. Still wish I could have adopted him and brought him home with me.
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