Today we put the rig together and head north. Saint George has been great, but it’s getting hot. There are some climbing crags in the mountains outside of Cedar City, 48 miles north, but when we reach the access road a sign says the road is closed at Cedar Breaks. Thoughts of alpine meadows and snowy approaches fade, and we head west instead. About 20 miles outside of town we reach The Cone, a mound of welded tuff that resembles a dunce cap.

Despite the comic appearance, we enjoy the three bolted routes on metal-hard rock with nice pockets. Temperatures are still warm but not searing, and we decide to look for camping nearby. Unfortunately the place is trashed – old furniture and appliances thrown around the only decent campsite we find. Scouting campsites is laborious with the trailer – we have to investigate dirt roads on foot to make sure we can turn around. After a little consulting we toss our plans to the wind and drive west, headed for the first state park on our map – Cathedral Gorge in Nevada.