It's About the (RV) Journey....: Bluff............

Enjoying our backyard in Bluff, UT, we treated ourselves to a wonderful breakfast at Comb Ridge Coffee right down the street. What a treat! I normally don't even like pancakes, but the blue corn pancakes were the specialty and wow! Delish! Tom had the "wolfman"..eggs, potato cake, tomato and spice relish,bacon....prepared by a gourmet! He said it was wonderful! The bistro/coffee shop displays the work of local artists, which was fun to see. The jewelry was really nice as well!

Comb Ridge Coffee

breakfast and dinner - cool place

After our delicious breakfast, we went to the Bluff Fort Historic Site, and learned about the pioneer Mormons who settled in this area. Their trip took 6 months, with horses and covered wagons. They had to build "roads" to be able to get over some of this hostile terrain, and they did that with a pick and shovel.

I can't imaging going over that terrain on those wheels

does that say crafts?

a replica of a Navajo Hogan

the weaving is awesome

oh boy! all of our belongings AND supplies would fit in here?

an overview of the fort - cabins all around the perimeter of this "town center"

The documentary movie in the Visitor Center was really interesting. It was actually in two parts, and we viewed the movies in two different rooms, which were decorated with period stuff. It told the story of the Mormons selected to travel and settle in southeast Utah, and the trials they had to get here. They traveled 10 miles per day, over grueling conditions. This is red rock country! Once they finally got to Bluff, they built the "fort". I don't know how long it took to build all the cabins, but they seem pretty comfy. Ha! (These are replicas). Just loved all the quilts!

not sure why the sewing machine is in the fireplace

baby corner

this quilt looks really old

lots of quilts

and lots of pictures!

I always love to see how the earlier people lived. Being from the east coast, I have seen many recreated villages of the pilgrims and the early colonists. I've never really seen how the pioneers in the west lived. The time period was the later 1800's - when they settled in Bluff. You can see that the log cabins are nicely appointed! (Love the quilts)!

Hey Tom...I kinda like these log cabins!

the schoolhouse....(Look Jess...trumpet lessons even for the pioneer schoolkids)!

so many "homey" details

see what I mean...lots of quilts

another shot

this quilt is over 100 years old!

lots of log cabins here in this settlement

handiwork everywhere

i like that one

the cabins have "audio" in several different languages....Tom chose German for this cabin

looks like this quilt was quilted by machine

the cabins are protecting us from the wind! well, the sand that the wind blows in our face!

blacksmith shed

fun morning exploring here

they had a nice backyard view!

oh, I like that log cabin feature...a bench!

lots and lots of quilts

looks comfy

another cabin

so many quilts in this one

close up

this is an original....all the others were replicas

original room

someone knows what a special treat handknit socks are!

This was a settlement of Mormons, so religion played a large role in their lives. They were able to manage this grueling trip with numerous obstacles through the Hole in the Rock to get here due to their belief that they were chosen to fulfill this mission. They really thought they would not make it...that they would all perish in the attempt. What an interesting place-so glad we stopped by. One of the docents was a direct descendant of the original group that came to Bluff. His great grandfather was part of the group, and he was very proud of that!

Luckily, our campground was not far at all, because it got super windy! So windy that we put the slides of our camper "in" so the awnings over the slides would not get damaged in the high wind gusts. I think the gusts were 50+ mph. So, we spent the afternoon and evening in our own "fort"! Another adventure :)