The squiggle on the map looks interesting-a road that, judging by the tightly packed contour lines, loops off Utah's Route 12 into some of the wilder parts of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. But it's the name of the road that caught my attention. How can we not take a road called Hell's Backbone? Mrs. MacKenzie, bless her, shrugs and says okay. I bring the Porsche Cayenne's ride-height setting back up to normal, switch the air suspension to comfort mode, and head off along the gravel
This 38-mile road was built in the 1930s, and at the time was the only connection between the town of Boulder and Escalante to the southwest. It climbs to more than 9000 feet, skirting the northern edge of the vividly named Box-Death Hollow Wilderness. The highlight is Hell's Backbone Bridge, a 109-foot-long, 14-foot-wide structure-with only vestigial guardrails-that spans 1500-foot drops on either side. Mrs. MacKenzie, who doesn't like heights, is very quiet as we drive across. The bridge is 8822 feet up in the still, silent mountains, and the blood roars in my ears as I grab a few photos.