Day 19 - Salt Lake City

We left Bryce Canyon this morning around 9:00 and arrived in Salt Lake City mid-afternoon. We met my friend Bartly at the new Mormon temple for a tour. A rare opportunity to see the inside of a Mormon temple. It will be dedicated in August and the public will no longer be able to see the inside.

After checking into the hotel and refreshing a bit, Bartly and a friend picked us up and we went downtown Salt Lake City. Such a knowledgeable young man about the history of Salt Lake City and the Mormons. We first went to the State Capital building ... beautiful. We then had dinner overlooking temple square. Afterward we toured the Mormon tabernacle and the Conference Center.

It was so good seeing Bartly again. He was a student in the Planning Program at UVA and one of the nicest young men I know.

I haven't had much computer access recently and have lots of picture to post. I'll have to save that for another time or even after I get home. We need to get an early start tomorrow morning for Yellowstone. It's a long drive.

Okay ... a few from the past few days .... at the top of the page.

Days 16, 17 and 18 - Las Vegas - Bryce Canyon

Saturday, June 27
Wow! The Donny and Marie show was spectacular. Such energy. These now 50 year old performers can put on a show. We had great seats. As Linda said, we were so close you could see individual beads of sweat drip from Donny's forehead. They were funny and obviously enjoy working together. GREAT entertainers.
The Flamingo Hotel is really nice as well. A 15-acre area with palm trees and four pools. Pink flamingos are in the pool area (an island with three waterfalls) and all kinds of other critters.
We drove across Hoover Dam driving to Vegas. The weather from the Grand Canyon was good - light traffic until we reached the dam and Vegas.
I phoned Paul and April (my first cousin once removed) to let them know we had arrived in Vegas. Tomorrow, we'll go with them to the Hoover Dam, then to their house for dinner (ahhhh, a home cooked meal!), then down to the strip to see the lights and sounds of Las Vegas at night.
GREAT SHOW!

Sunday, June 28
111! 117! 108 in the shade! NEVER will I complain about the heat in Virginia, even when it reaches 100! I've heard so often that the dry heat in AZ, NV, etc. is not as bad as in Virginia (due to the lower humidity). BUT, I have to disagree. It has been HOT! Oh my goodness. 108 in the shade is HOT.
Today was very nice. This morning Linda took the monorail around Vegas while I walked over to
Caesar's Palace and walked around. Getting into Caesar's Palace was easy; finding an exit out was not. Paul said they planned it that way. The exits are set back so you can hardly seem them from most angles. Guess they want you to play the slots or spend money in the seemingly hundreds of shops. I thought I'd never find an exit. In fact I asked a sales clerk; she in turn asked another.
We met back at the Flamingo at noon and had a quick dinner at Margaritaville's. Paul and April picked us up a little after 1:00 and we headed out to Hoover Dam. It took just a little under an hour, until 4 miles from the Dam, then it took another hour to drive those last four miles. There is security for all cars crossing the dam sine 9-11.
Paul, April and Linda took the tour into the dam to see the generators. I chose to walk around the observation tower and the information center as well as the gift shop. The dam was amazing. I'm not particulary fond of elevators and the thought of taking an elevator down inside the dam wasn't appealing. I didn't mind hanging out on the top side though. I got a slushy after walking around it tasted mighty good.
Paul's truck was parked iin the garage and when we got in it the temperature read 108 (in the shade!!)
Paul stopped at an overlook for Lake Mead on the way out; it was amazing how low the water level is. If the water level continues to fall the situation is going to be dire. Even though Vegas uses a small percentage of water from Lake Mead, much of it is piped to California. Too bad they can't take some from Glen Canyon's Lake Powell, as their water level is rising.
We had dinner at Paul and April's then took a drive down "The Strip," starting where it begins on the north, all the way to where it ends on the south. We drove by the Pallagio at the right time -- the water show as going on; quite a site ... Just like Vegas, Quiet a sight!
A very enjoyable day.

Monday, June 29
Leaving Las Vegas. We got on the road at a decent hour. The trip should have been about 3 1/2 hours but it took about an hour longer as we stopped frequently in Zion National Park and as we drove to Bryce Canyon. The scenery was breathtaking.
The Grand Canyon was beautiful but Zion and Bryce are equally as beautiful, perhaps even more so in a different way. Zion was lots of red rocks and beautiful shapes, with lots of places to pull over and see. Bryce is different with "hoodoos" (rock formations that have formed "windows" but later the tops fall leaving tall columns.
We are staying at the Bryce Canyon Lodge, no air conditioning -- BUT -- unlike Vegas we are almost 900 feet up in altitude and the air is much cooler AND thinner. cough cough. We wlaked to Sunrise Point and Sunset Point today. Along the walk I read that 200 days of the year Bryce Canyon's temperature is below freezing. Don't think it was near that tonight but a far cry from the high temperatures in Vegas.
Paths meander through tall ponderosa pines. On the way back to the lodge from the rim tonight we were taking one of the paths and probably 8 to 9 feet from us a deer was grazing. I purposely coughed; he looked up and I think I got a pretty good picture.
Tomorrow is Salt Lake City and the afternoon and dinner with a former Planning student, Bartly. He's taking us on a tour of a new Mormon temple that has not opened yet, so it'll be a rare occasion. We'll actually get to see inside a Mormom temple.

Day Fifteen - Grand Canyon and Friends

This morning started off with Linda and I driving up to the Canyon and meeting Bruce and Joan (my best friends), Joey and Brenda (Joanie's brother) and Phyllis and Doug (friends) for breakfast. Having been on the road two weeks now it was SO nice having a piece of home ... . They were in Vegas yesterday and late in the day took a train to the Canyon. They headed back to Vegas this afternoon and we might even have a chance to catch up with each other again tomorrow night when Linda and I get to Vegas. This long on the road one gets a little homesick ... miss my family and my dogs!!! :)

I go to the beach almost every summer with Bruce and Joan and we get to view sunrises together. We didn't get to share one today but we did get to share some of the beauty of God's creation together!!

Linda hasn't been able to do much walking due to a hip/leg problem so I walked down a path into the Canyon a bit with Bruce and Joanie ... not far mind you, but far enough to say I was on the trail! Going down was so easy. I wanted to go further then decided to turn around. Oh my goodness!!! I thought I was in better shape. Didn't walk too fast or too far without stopping. Here, wherever one goes, a water bottle goes too. The water guide yesterday told us that the air is so dry, sweat evaporates before you know you're sweating so good hydration is important.

Today was probably the prettiest day we've had ... the smoke from the controlled burns was contained a bit due to an overnight rain and several times during the day heavy rains and t-storms blew in, and out, of the Canyon quickly. Beautiful beautiful day.

Hey! I saw two condors soaring today. Got some pictures AND a short video which I'll try and post. Once I get a faster connection I will do so IF I can't get them uploaded now.

It was a good day today. Tomorrow ... Vegas and Donny and Marie!!

Day Fourteen - Colorado River Float Trip

Whew! A long but rewarding day. Up at 5:00 to meet the bus at 6:00 to take us to the base of Glenn Canyon Dam for our smooth water raft trip down the Colorado River. The trip was a little over four hours long and went pretty near the north rim of the Canyon. We saw parts of the Grand Canyon we had not seen yet; it also went through Navajo country, pretty desolate land.

The day on the river was hot - around 104. We had to go through quite a few security checks when we reached the Glenn Canyon dam (because of 9-11) and down through a two mile long tunnel through the mountain rocks to the base of the dam. Along the river trip we made two stops ... one to see cliff writings, another for lunch. Both were welcomed breaks. The river water is a constant 47 degrees but dipping bandanas or towels in it then placing them around your neck was so refreshing. I even got my feet wet in the water of the Colorado River.

We saw quite a few elk on the trip this morning (and again this afternoon). The BIG one this morning was just feeding along the side of the road and took its time, just looking up right at us. By the time I grabbed my camera, the bus was pulling away ... nice shot of his back side though. His antlers looked like velvet!!

The raft trip itself was actually in the Glen Canyon part of the Grand Canyon. The trip ended at Lee's Ferry, where the Grand Canyon begins. The cliffs and walls of the canyon were magnificent. There is so much I thought about on the trip that I wanted to write. Now that I'm back at the hotel my mind isn't thinking of them all.

We got back to the hotel around 6:00 and went to a nice restaurant at the hotel. And for dinner, we ordered elk! Not bad really. Very tender.

Tomorrow morning we're heading back up to the Canyon. Bruce and Joanie are at one of the lodges there so we're meeting them for breakfast. One more full day here then we're off to Vegas early Saturday morning ... and the Donny and Marie show!! :)

I was finally able to upload some pictures.

Day Thirteen - Grand Canyon continued

Another nice day at the Canyon. Took more pictures but will have to post some later. We're heading to bed early as we have to catch a bus in the morning at 6:00 that will take us to our river trip destination. They say the entire adventure will take 11-12 hours. Bruce and Joan will be here at the Canyon tomorrow. Sure hope I can catch up with them. We've shared many a sunrise and sunset at the beach together; it would be nice to share one here at the Grand Canyon.

I hope also to post a picture here soon of a California condor. Linda took a picture with her camera and if I can get it to my computer I'll post it. Hopefully tomorrow we'll see lots of birds to post.

Day Twelve - GRAND CANYON

We are here!! Day 12 on the road and we have reached the Grand Canyon!!! It is all and more than I imagined. It's all I can do to take it in. I think I took about 300 pictures this afternoon alone. God's creation is awesome!!!

The National Park Service is doing a controlled burn to get rid of underbrush and it was quite hazy .... my eyes burned because of the smoke. Late afternoon a nice breeze came along and helped a bit. We stopped at several different vantage points and although some offer the same scenery it is different from one angle to another.

We're at a hotel just two miles from the south entrance and the drive into the park takes about 15 minutes. There are shuttle buses we plan to use tomorrow though. They run every 15 minutes and sure will save the hassle of finding parking places.

We rode down to the hotels on the rim and had dinner at one of them - the Bright Angel - I think it was. Our table was at the window overlooking the rim right at sunset. I went outside while the food was being prepared and took some pictures as the sun started going down. The scenery and color seemed to change every few seconds.

Even saw some wildlife. At one of the points a family was excitedly pointing to an object below ... naturally I walked over to see what it was and it was a ram far below. Got a picture of it too ... thank goodness for digital zoom. Coming out of the park a deer or elk (it was dark) was at the side of the road, about four feet from the car. That thing was as tall as the car and it's rack was bigger than any I've seen on a Virginia deer.

It's been a busy day and an emotional one to behold all the beauty of God's creation, the Grand Canyon. Thank goodness I have internet access so I can post each day. Thursday we'll be taking a smooth water raft trip. Tomorrow we're hoping to catch some of the programs offered by the park service. Condors are in the park now ... perhaps we'll have the good fortune to see one, or even an eagle or two.

Tomorrow is a new day. I look forward to new adventures at the Canyon.

Day 11 - Flagstaff, AZ

We left Santa Fe, NM around 9:00 this morning. The trip was nice. Beautiful weather. Linda's been saying she needed to get an oil change, probably in Flagstaff, but at our lunch stop she saw a guy with a Ford shirt and asked him if there was a Ford dealership nearby. There was. They graciously did an oil change AND washed the car. We were in and out in less than an hour. As we neared Flagstaff we finally started seeing trees again!!! The terrain has been flat and barren for days it seemed ... started in Texas Saturday, continued into Omaha, and even flatter in New Mexico and much of Arizona, so, yeah, days!! :)

Tonight went to the Lowell Observatory, one of the oldest observatories in the U.S. We arrived early and stayed late. It was still daylight when we arrived but they were showing Saturn through a 16 inch telescope. As day turned to dusk we again looked through the telescope and could see it more clearly, even seeing the rings around it as well as one of its moon. Very interesting. We also looked through a 24 in telescope -- HUGE -- and saw a cluster of stars called M-5, 26-billion light years away. Those telescopes were operated by computers and the telescopes would move along with the night sky. There was yet one more telescope, another 26-inch, but had to be moved by hand to track the star or object being followed and that one was showing one of the brightest stars, Arcturus. Hey, I didn't know any of this stuff, just learned it tonight. We were approximately 300 feet above Flagstaff at an elevation of 7,246 Feet!! The sky was beautiful and filled with God's creation. Despite all the talk and information heard last night about how the universe was formed, I know above all, it was God who created it and put each star and element in its place.

From our vantage point at the Observatory, we could see the San Francisco Peaks to our north. They are the tallest mountains in Arizon, with an altitude of 12,660 feet. We could see three of its prominent peaks. They looked pretty close.

An amazing part of the night at the Observatory, was while standing in line to see Arcturus, there was a man behind me and a very young fellow behind him. As often happens while standing in lines, conversations picked up. The young fellow was naming stars and constellations, etc etc. The man and I looked at each other in amazement. After a bit I asked the young fellow what grade he was in. He responded, "I just finished 4th and will be in 5th grade next year." Well now, that does go to show I am NOT smarter than a Fifth grader.

There were beautiful plants and flowers at the observatory as well.


Tomorrow -- THE GRAND CANYON!!!! Our main destination of the trip.