It was a wonderful return to the Coyote Buttes region of southern Utah and northern Arizona today. It’s amazing how many more people have “discovered” the area’s sublime beauty.

When I visited this place in early 2017, there were perhaps 15 people total; today I passed 15 families while exploring Buckskin Gulch. And there’s good reason—this remote area of the American Southwest features some of the most beautifully rugged desert terrain on the planet.

It’s been a hard year especially for the rural parts of our country, but today served as a reminder that many of them are the gateway to some of the prettiest places on the continent. Welcome to Kanab, Utah and Page, Arizona.