Notes from Westwater

The beautiful wonders of the Lehman Caves Lake Room. Ted Palmer photo

The wonders of the Lehman Caves

When I first read Pigeon Feathers by John Updike, I thought it was lame. A lover of birds, I didn’t like the boy slaughtering pigeons in a barn where they couldn’t escape. Fourteen-year-old David moves with his mom, dad, and demented grandmother to a Pennsylvania farm. While orienting himself to...

Spanish and pioneer signatures at Parowan Gap, now on the National Register of Historic Places. Ted Palmer photo

Beginning a journey

We are travelers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share. – Paulo Coelho Ted, Kenidee (our mini schnauzer), and I began our journey at Brianhead, UT....

The metamorphosis of the white-lined sphinx moth from its initial state of a vibrant green caterpillar can serve as a metaphor for our own sometimes painful transformation from self-focus to our full-winged mature potential. Merry Palmer photo

Hummingbird Moths

Vivid green in color with a horn on its tail, the caterpillar crawled nonchalantly across the La Quinta parking lot. I’d never seen one so big or bright with orange circles and yellow throughlines decorating its back. I tossed my suitcase into the 4-Runner and hurried back to scoop it up. After I...

Ted Palmer and Ferd Johnson at the mouth of the mysterious coal mine in Recapture Canyon south of Blanding. According to Johnson, the coal was of poor quality and left a lot of ash, but the mine was in operation for a short time, probably stopping in the ‘30s. Merry Palmer photo

The mysterious coal mine of San Juan County

“Would you like to see the only coal mine in San Juan County?” Ferd Johnson asked us one beautiful Sunday morning. “Sure.” We didn’t hesitate because Ferd has a great memory, wide-ranging experiences, and extensive knowledge about San Juan County. So, anytime he wanted to show us something, we were...

The tomestone of Riley Riley Menlo Grover in the Shumway Pioneer Cemetery near Shumway. Ted Palmer photo

Greer, graves, and time machines

“This is the strangest cemetery I’ve ever seen,” I told my hubby as we climbed out of our 4Runner. The Shumway Pioneer Cemetery was set among junipers with wild grasses plastered down by recent snows. Random graves dotted the stony hillside. Plastic flowers, small toys, and ceramic angels had faded...

Photo of Liz and Gregg Robison after she recovered from breast cancer. Courtesy photo

Praying for Elizabeth

As I sit down to write this column, my niece has just been wheeled into surgery to remove a brain tumor. The operation is supposed to last four hours. For three weeks, Liz had been suffering from excruciating headaches. Two days ago, her husband finally convinced her to go to the doctor where the...

From an ashram in Austin, TX to a small town in southeastern Utah the living earth is decked out in vibrant colors, on display here in the mountains of San Juan County. Merry Palmer photo

Peacocks and Wildflowers

Starvation Reservoir shimmered, reflecting billowing clouds overhead. On a distant hill, two horses lifted their heads and pricked their ears as we walked along the road, photographing wildflowers. Sweet peas, purple lupine, white-and yellow-popcorn flowers, lavender penstemons, yellow mule’s ears...

Recapture, Rattlesnakes, and Rock Writing

“I’m going down there,” my hubby said, pointing at a deep, rock-strewn hole beside the river bluffs. “You can stay here if you want.” I had no desire to investigate the hole. “Something smells bad,” I observed. We’d already wandered by several rank cow carcasses. However, this scent was different,...

A piece of petrified wood in the Bisti Wilderness. Merry Palmer photo

Uncle George’s Legacy

We walked down a well-marked path toward a sandy wash in the Bisti/ De-Na-Zin Wilderness, but I couldn’t get the previous day’s images out of my mind. We had stood in large, open-air building in the National Cemetery for Uncle George’s graveside services. Family members huddled close to keep warm....

A group of Evening Grosbeak made San Juan County home during the remarkable winter of 2023. Ted Palmer photo

Miracles and Evening Grosbeaks

Miracle: A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency—Webster’s Dictionary My family has always found great joy in feeding birds. It started with my grandmother on the Bradbury farm in Kansas. Since...