Photo of the Week!

F 8; 1/250; 116mm.

Shot near Moab alongside Utah State Route 313.

Happy February! As the write up attached to last week’s photo explained, The Higher Flyer recently covered a few important political issues because — even though this is a travel blog — some topics are unavoidable. It’s hard to write about maximizing purchasing power and hustling frequent flyer miles when the United States democracy is in shambles, but fortunately that’s behind us and February is shaping up to be more stable. To reflect that as well as the improving, less stressful state of affairs, please enjoy this portrait of a cow.

For the first time in a while there’s no subtext nor commentary in this entry; the cow isn’t a metaphor for something more pointed. It’s simply a popular farm animal meandering through a snow-filled open range on the Utah side of the Colorado Plateau. If you’re driving to Canyonlands National Park and/or Deadhorse State Park from Moab, you might come across a whole herd hanging out near the single road (State Route 313) leading from the town to the parks. The cattle are free to move as they see fit, so they might block the way forward and come say hi and pose for pictures while you wait to pass — as this one did for me — but that’s their prerogative. In a time crunch it’s frustrating, but it’s part of an adventure’s charm. And besides, “don’t have a cow, man!“

Unrelated, but happy “Super” weekend to the football fans out there too. As a Pats fan, behold the most conflicted endorsement you’ll ever read: Go Bucs! …I guess.

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