SOFT SHOULDER
By Teri Orr
Photography: VisitUtah.com
There are no guardrails. The drop is steep. Red/pink/coral formations roll over each other, decidedly feminine in form.
The rocks vibrate with intensity on Highway 12 where the two-lane road sensuously curves along Hell’s Backbone spine. I feel most fully alive there.
Wind has formed masculine spires and hoodoos — they serve as sentries to the canyon walls.
There’s a risk the car will not make a turn and instead will choose to sail with the eagles and ospreys and hawks who fly here. A less intentional Thelma and Louise glide ...
When the red dust, as talisman, is no longer a whisper in the floorboards of my car, it’s a signal I have stayed away from the alchemy of the desert too long.
Teri Orr has been writing The Park Record’s “Sunday in the Park” column since 1979 and is thought to be the state’s longest continuously publishing weekly newspaper columnist. She was editor of the paper for five years, then helped launch the George and Dolores Doré Eccles Center for the Performing Arts, serving as executive director for 25 years. In 2007, she was invited to be part of the TED Community and was awarded one the first 100 TED licenses globally. She has won numerous journalism awards, as well as recognition from the Peace House Women’s Shelter and the Park City Chamber of Commerce. In 2012, she was lauded for her leadership in the arts by Utah Gov. Gary R. Herbert.