Cedar Mesa • If you arrive at the South Fork Mule Canyon trailhead early enough on an April morning that a light frost is still visible on the soil, you’d hardly know it’s one of the most popular hikes in Bears Ears National Monument.
Despite long-discussed plans to develop the area, there still are no designated parking spaces at the start of the short trail to a 1,000-year-old ancestral Puebloan structure. There is a metal tube where you pay cash ($5 per person, per day), a few aging signs and parking along the shoulder of a dirt road...