Up and out early – thank heavens – because our room was on the ground floor right next to the stairs and boy – was it noisy in the morning! Huge tour – well – probably a couple of them – and the luggage was being wheeled out the door by our room, the people were shouting – I kid you not – shouting “good morning” to each other. Mind you it’s not even 7:00am yet! It’s even crazier in the breakfast room. Ay yi yi! We manage to forage for something edible and make it outside to a lovely little table by the pool – all alone and out of the hubbub inside. Ack – as Tony Bourdain says “don’t get on that bus!”
Well, we’re not – and we’re outta there! Another fairly long drive today, but we’re pit stopping in Capital Reef. Not on our original itinerary, but it’s right on the way to Moab – and looks pretty cool. There is an orchard there where you can pick whatever fruit is in season – for free. As long as you eat it on the property. You have to pay a nominal fee if you pick anything and take it out of park. Sounds great!
We meander our way through the vast nothingness of Southern Utah. Nothing but tumbleweeds and the occasional trailer. It’s just astonishing the sheer magnitude of land mass out here – without a single thing around. We make Capital Reef a little before noon. Stop for a stretch at Chimney rock then off to the visitor’s center for our stamp and to find the picnic area. We picnic in Fruita – where the orchard is – but don’t pick any fruit. It’s early in the season anyway, so we don’t know what’s available – and the visitor’s center was too much of a zoo to ask (the people! Argh – the summer season has begun!).
Capital Reef is named for a rock formation that resembles the Capital in DC. It was formed by a “waterpocket fold”, which is a buckled stretch of rock (over 100 miles lone) that was created by water that forced it’s way up through the earth’s crust. The Reef name is because a lot of the buckling left rocks that looks like the reef you’d find off shore.
After stretching our legs a bit and trying to decipher the map, we decide to jettison the rest of the scenic drive and the Capital Reef rock to head straight for the trail head at the Great Wash. We can hike into the slot canyon from the road to Moab and get a sense of just how a slot canyon looks and feels as the walls start to get closer and closer together. Grand Wash is one of two deep and twisting water-carved canyons, with sheer walls of white rock on either side. It’s really, really, really hot – so we use our cool neckbands for the first time and make our way into the canyon.
Wild! Walking through the canyon, knowing that water carved this massive “wash” and if it rains, flash floods will fill the canyon again. Fortunately, even though Ed keeps talking about rain, there isn’t really a threat of any wet stuff, so we’re safe for the moment. All told, we hike for about an hour marveling at the size and sheer height of the canyon walls. Check out the pix here, they don’t really do it much justice, but you can sort of grasp the perspective when we are in the photos.
Back in the car – ahhhh A/C! On the road again – and heading to Moab. This will be our stop for 2 nights – so we can do Canyonlands and Arches. We pull in around 3ish, and check into the Red Stone Inn. What a great hotel! Little rooms that look like the inside of a log cabin, complete with kitchenettes. It’s too fun. We organize then hit the City Market (Kroger by another name! Yay!). Stock up the picnic and snack supplies (great trail mix, fruit and deli stuff), then meander back to get ready for dinner.
Tonight we are going to the Moab Brewery. It’s right up the street, we’re walking, even though it’s about 100 degrees. It’s packed when we get there, so we sit at the bar for a drink – and – how bizarre is this? You can only get beer at the bar! They have wine and I guess mixed drinks, but you can’t get it at the bar, only at the tables! What’s up with that? So, I drink water, Ed has beer and we hang until our table is ready.
Food is great – Sweet and Hot Thai Calamari (in a brew pub in Moab, go figure!); Mixed Sausage Grill for Ed (way big portion, we brought it home!) and smoked BBQ tri-trip for me. It was too good. We roll back to the hotel for an early night and Canyonlands in the morning!
Monday, June 21, 2010
Bryce Canyon
We’re up and out early – as usual. Today is a relatively short drive, only about 3 hours. So the sooner we’re out, the earlier we’ll be at Bryce. We head back out through the park, it’s way too early on a Saturday for traffic, so no problems in the tunnel. We take our time on our way out, stopping at all the overlooks to take some pix. It’s a stunning drive, twisting and turning around the huge outcroppings of rocks. Once we’re out of the park, it’s a straight shot down to Route 89, then about another hour to the park.
Bryce is also a very small park, but where Zion requires the shuttle, Bryce only “suggests” it. We hit the visitor’s center, get all the appropriate papers, flyers and of course our stamp, then take a chance and head out the scenic drive. There are 2 parts to the scenic drive – the drive around Bryce Amphitheater, where the shuttle runs, and then a longer stretch of road that goes South to the end of the park and Rainbow Point. We want to hike down the to bottom of the Amphitheater, so we drive out to Sunset Point and luckily get a parking space.
We’ve been amazed and impressed with all the sights we’ve seen so far, but Bryce Canyon blew us away. It is so amazingly different – all the red rock – this is the home of the Hoodoos. Hoodoos are huge pinnacles and odd-shaped rocks that have been carved out by erosion. Technically, Bryce isn’t a canyon because canyons are carved out by flowing water, like a stream or river. Bryce has been formed by acidic rainwater and freezing and thawing of the water during the seasons. Regardless – it is an astonishing sight to see these Hoodoos, all lined up, all in different shapes and sizes. It was truly just, well, incredible!
Our first panoramic view comes at Sunset Point where we reveled in the rock formations. Then we headed down the Navajo loop trail to get to the bottom of the canyon. We’ve read a lot about the park, and everything says to go down Navajo and up Queens Garden – and boy are we glad we did our research. It’s hot – and Navajo is steep. Going down it was hard enough – we’re glad we didn’t have to go back up! We hiked down the path, past Thor’s Hammer, and down to the two bridges (the Wall Street trail where the canyon walls are so close it reminds people of the skyscrapers on Wall Street, was closed due to falling rocks), then finally to the floor of the canyon at Queen’s Garden.
It’s hotter at the bottom (always in the Canyons – you can gain 10 to 20 degrees from the top to the bottom), but the trail is flatter and winds through some great flora and fauna. We pass by a little area where people have built tons of small cairns, then we wind our way around the base of some Hoodoos and start our ascent up to Sunrise point. It’s easier going this way, but it’s still no cake walk, that’s for sure! The great thing is that while we’re stopping to rest and catch our breath, we can look out over the amphitheater and enjoy the incredible views.
So, up we go, finally reaching the top and the rim trail back to Sunset Point in about 1 ½ hours. We picnic at the benches by our car, then stow our cooler and head off on the rim trail to Inspiration Point. It’s about 1 mile to the point – and it’s almost all uphill. But again, the views are worth it, and of course, coming back down was easy as pie! Stunning –that’s all we can say about the whole experience – stunning!
Check out the pictures here – they don’t do it justice – but at least you can get the feel.
After Inspiration Point, we hit the car and drive the rest of the way out the Scenic drive. It’s beautiful and at Rainbow there are some great panoramic shots. The main attraction through is certainly the Amphitheater – which is so worth the effort!
Back on the road out of the park, we’re at the hotel in Bryce Canyon city way early. It’s a Ruby Best Western (The Ruby’s own EVERYTHING outside the canyon there – hotels, gas, grocery, restaurant – what a smart enterprise they have there!), the new one, and it looks gorgeous. Since we can’t get in our room just yet, we go ahead and start our laundry. Change into bathing suits in the bathroom and throw everything in. It will be so nice to have clean clothes! They have internet in the lobby, so we check in on email (still no phone service though) and catch up on what’s happened the past week. We ask about our room, and they say it’s still not ready. Finally, after we watch a bunch of people check in and get rooms, we ask again about possibly getting another room, since there are obviously some available, and the girls say “Oh, we thought you wanted that particular room.” No, not really, any room will do!
That little snafu handled, we arrange ourselves in the room and finish the laundry. It’s still early, so we rest and read a little bit. We’re going to the Bryce Canyon Pines Motel restaurant. It’s right up the road, and it gets good reviews on TripAdvisor. There isn’t a lot to choose from out here in the middle of nowhere. There are the Ruby restaurants, the Bryce Canyon Pines and then another home-style restaurant further down the highway. The place looks like a dump – in the dirt lot behind Subway – but inside, it’s adorable. All light pine, log cabin looking, cowboy décor. The food is basic, but really good. Service was slow – but there were only 2 servers and a huge group of 12 was there, which slowed down the kitchen. A good mix of Mexican and American with huge burgers and steaks. The only issue was that there was no alcohol. They have a huge bar in the next room, but apparently the restaurant was under new ownership, and at the time we were there, they didn’t have their liquor license. Oh well, check was a lot lighter than if we had beer/wine!
We had specifically gone to dinner early so we could go back in the park to see sunset. And even though the service was slow, we were still really early. We wasted some time at the hotel, then headed out to the Paria view point, which is the only point that faces the right direction for sunset. Unfortunately, we wasted a little too much time at the hotel, and the light had pretty much already gone by the time we got there. But, hey, it was a nice drive through the park in the evening at least!
So – another great day – another early night and early morning – coz we’re on to Moab!
Bryce is also a very small park, but where Zion requires the shuttle, Bryce only “suggests” it. We hit the visitor’s center, get all the appropriate papers, flyers and of course our stamp, then take a chance and head out the scenic drive. There are 2 parts to the scenic drive – the drive around Bryce Amphitheater, where the shuttle runs, and then a longer stretch of road that goes South to the end of the park and Rainbow Point. We want to hike down the to bottom of the Amphitheater, so we drive out to Sunset Point and luckily get a parking space.
We’ve been amazed and impressed with all the sights we’ve seen so far, but Bryce Canyon blew us away. It is so amazingly different – all the red rock – this is the home of the Hoodoos. Hoodoos are huge pinnacles and odd-shaped rocks that have been carved out by erosion. Technically, Bryce isn’t a canyon because canyons are carved out by flowing water, like a stream or river. Bryce has been formed by acidic rainwater and freezing and thawing of the water during the seasons. Regardless – it is an astonishing sight to see these Hoodoos, all lined up, all in different shapes and sizes. It was truly just, well, incredible!
Our first panoramic view comes at Sunset Point where we reveled in the rock formations. Then we headed down the Navajo loop trail to get to the bottom of the canyon. We’ve read a lot about the park, and everything says to go down Navajo and up Queens Garden – and boy are we glad we did our research. It’s hot – and Navajo is steep. Going down it was hard enough – we’re glad we didn’t have to go back up! We hiked down the path, past Thor’s Hammer, and down to the two bridges (the Wall Street trail where the canyon walls are so close it reminds people of the skyscrapers on Wall Street, was closed due to falling rocks), then finally to the floor of the canyon at Queen’s Garden.
It’s hotter at the bottom (always in the Canyons – you can gain 10 to 20 degrees from the top to the bottom), but the trail is flatter and winds through some great flora and fauna. We pass by a little area where people have built tons of small cairns, then we wind our way around the base of some Hoodoos and start our ascent up to Sunrise point. It’s easier going this way, but it’s still no cake walk, that’s for sure! The great thing is that while we’re stopping to rest and catch our breath, we can look out over the amphitheater and enjoy the incredible views.
So, up we go, finally reaching the top and the rim trail back to Sunset Point in about 1 ½ hours. We picnic at the benches by our car, then stow our cooler and head off on the rim trail to Inspiration Point. It’s about 1 mile to the point – and it’s almost all uphill. But again, the views are worth it, and of course, coming back down was easy as pie! Stunning –that’s all we can say about the whole experience – stunning!
Check out the pictures here – they don’t do it justice – but at least you can get the feel.
After Inspiration Point, we hit the car and drive the rest of the way out the Scenic drive. It’s beautiful and at Rainbow there are some great panoramic shots. The main attraction through is certainly the Amphitheater – which is so worth the effort!
Back on the road out of the park, we’re at the hotel in Bryce Canyon city way early. It’s a Ruby Best Western (The Ruby’s own EVERYTHING outside the canyon there – hotels, gas, grocery, restaurant – what a smart enterprise they have there!), the new one, and it looks gorgeous. Since we can’t get in our room just yet, we go ahead and start our laundry. Change into bathing suits in the bathroom and throw everything in. It will be so nice to have clean clothes! They have internet in the lobby, so we check in on email (still no phone service though) and catch up on what’s happened the past week. We ask about our room, and they say it’s still not ready. Finally, after we watch a bunch of people check in and get rooms, we ask again about possibly getting another room, since there are obviously some available, and the girls say “Oh, we thought you wanted that particular room.” No, not really, any room will do!
That little snafu handled, we arrange ourselves in the room and finish the laundry. It’s still early, so we rest and read a little bit. We’re going to the Bryce Canyon Pines Motel restaurant. It’s right up the road, and it gets good reviews on TripAdvisor. There isn’t a lot to choose from out here in the middle of nowhere. There are the Ruby restaurants, the Bryce Canyon Pines and then another home-style restaurant further down the highway. The place looks like a dump – in the dirt lot behind Subway – but inside, it’s adorable. All light pine, log cabin looking, cowboy décor. The food is basic, but really good. Service was slow – but there were only 2 servers and a huge group of 12 was there, which slowed down the kitchen. A good mix of Mexican and American with huge burgers and steaks. The only issue was that there was no alcohol. They have a huge bar in the next room, but apparently the restaurant was under new ownership, and at the time we were there, they didn’t have their liquor license. Oh well, check was a lot lighter than if we had beer/wine!
We had specifically gone to dinner early so we could go back in the park to see sunset. And even though the service was slow, we were still really early. We wasted some time at the hotel, then headed out to the Paria view point, which is the only point that faces the right direction for sunset. Unfortunately, we wasted a little too much time at the hotel, and the light had pretty much already gone by the time we got there. But, hey, it was a nice drive through the park in the evening at least!
So – another great day – another early night and early morning – coz we’re on to Moab!
Zion
Up and out early – what a surprise – today we are headed to Zion….and Utah! We’ve stocked up with beer and wine so we don’t have to worry about their bizarre alcohol laws – but as it turns out – they’ve changed the “club” law so most bars and restaurants can serve beer/wine/liquor without charging you a membership fee. Anyway – we’re on the road, and Alice of course, is telling us to go a different way than Google Maps – and it looks like her way is out of the way. So we soldier on with Google and the more direct route.
We go through Kanab where Marti and Jim stayed when they were doing the park circuit, then head up Route 89 toward the park. Oh, ok, so now I see why Alice took us the other way – Route 89 is a State Route, but it actually runs right though the park. We have our annual park pass, so we get in “free”, but otherwise you’d have to pay $25 to drive through the road – and on top of that – there’s “the tunnel”. The park road winds through spectacular scenery, but at one point it goes through an old tunnel, drilled years ago before the invention of huge trucks and RVs. So any large vehicle needs an escort, is charged and extra fee, and for us plebian car drivers, shuts down the tunnel in one direction, because the trucks/RVs/Trailers are too large to allow two way traffic. Oy!
There are horror stories of the tunnel causing traffic of up to 3 hours. Yikes! We are totally lucky – either because of the time of day, the time of year, whatever, as we approach the tunnel, our direction of traffic is let through. Phew! Catastrophe avoided! We whip right through the potential bottle neck, and navigate down twists and turns and S curves into the canyon floor and straight to the visitor’s center. Zion is a small little park, with a mandatory shuttle system. We are lucky to find a parking space – the lot was pretty full even though we are fairly early.
We hopped on the shuttle, and rode all the way through the park to the last stop – the Temple of Sinawava and the Riverwalk. Even though it was starting to warm up, the canyon walls blocked the sun, so it was actually pretty chilly walking along the Virgin River to the bottom of the narrows. We had hoped to walk the Narrows as well, where the canyon walls come so close together you can almost touch them – but the river was running really high and strong, so the narrows trail was closed. Just as well – we would have ruined our only hiking shoes walking through the water and the sand in the narrows.
The Riverwalk is really wild though – there are tons of hanging gardens all over the canyon walls. Really amazing the flowers and greenery growing right out of the rocks. We walk down along the river and make our way back to the shuttle. We hit the Weeping Rock trail and climb up to see the springs rushing down the rock. It’s nice and cool up there – with a nice little spray of water. Since it’s warming up now, the water and coolness is a relief! Next stop is the Grotto trailhead. We take a break here to munch on our trail mix and drink our water for lunch. We nix the longer, moderate trail going to the Emerald Pools, and settle on the flat Grotto trail that leads to the Lodge. After some consternation and wandering around, we finally find the trail head – not marked at all – so if you’re going look for a little dirt path behind the service building to the right of the picnic area.
It’s a quick walk to the Lodge, where we cross over to the Pool trail. There are 3 pools, each one requiring more strenuous hiking. We get to the Lower Pool, and you know, that’s good enough! It’s hot, there are a lot of people, and it’s getting on into the afternoon – we’re just as happy going to the hotel and scoping out the town of Zion.
Pictures are here.
Easy on the shuttle, back to the visitor’s center, get our stamp – and two of those little neck bandanas you can soak to stay cool ($4 here, as opposed to $9 at the Grand Canyon). Easy out of the park – and within a minute or two, we’re in downtown Springdale and at our hotel. Great place with a view of the cliffs right out our window, a nice pool (but it’s too darn hot to use it!) and amenities. We hit the grocery store to stock up on our picnic supplies, and the gas station, then go back to refresh and cool off in the room.
This is the beginning of a highly unusual heat wave that is hitting the country. Beginning in Santa Fe even, everyone is complaining about the heat and how it’s just too hot too soon. We’re feeling it – even though there’s no humidity! It just wears you down. But, fortunately, when the sun goes down, it does cool off nicely, so that sometimes I even need a sweater. That’s the difference in the dryness out here.
Dinner tonight is right across the street at the Bit and Spur Saloon. Great location (yeah! Walking!) with views of the cliffs, and an outdoor patio with a fountain and lanterns. We sit outside and just bask in the warmth and the great view. Food is fantastic too! Ed had the best ribeye we’ve ever tasted – I was really sorry I didn’t order one even though my Steak Asada and butternut squash salad was awesome! That steak though…wow! So we hung out and ate and drank, then went into the bar and hung out some more. The bartender was talkative and friendly, as were the locals at the bar. Met the guy who invented Chums for sunglasses, and who is working on a new invention right now. Fun!
Wandered back across the street to our hotel, and had our nightcap out on the little deck on the 2nd floor. Rocking chairs, a porch and a view of the mountains. Yeah, this is the way to end a great day!
We go through Kanab where Marti and Jim stayed when they were doing the park circuit, then head up Route 89 toward the park. Oh, ok, so now I see why Alice took us the other way – Route 89 is a State Route, but it actually runs right though the park. We have our annual park pass, so we get in “free”, but otherwise you’d have to pay $25 to drive through the road – and on top of that – there’s “the tunnel”. The park road winds through spectacular scenery, but at one point it goes through an old tunnel, drilled years ago before the invention of huge trucks and RVs. So any large vehicle needs an escort, is charged and extra fee, and for us plebian car drivers, shuts down the tunnel in one direction, because the trucks/RVs/Trailers are too large to allow two way traffic. Oy!
There are horror stories of the tunnel causing traffic of up to 3 hours. Yikes! We are totally lucky – either because of the time of day, the time of year, whatever, as we approach the tunnel, our direction of traffic is let through. Phew! Catastrophe avoided! We whip right through the potential bottle neck, and navigate down twists and turns and S curves into the canyon floor and straight to the visitor’s center. Zion is a small little park, with a mandatory shuttle system. We are lucky to find a parking space – the lot was pretty full even though we are fairly early.
We hopped on the shuttle, and rode all the way through the park to the last stop – the Temple of Sinawava and the Riverwalk. Even though it was starting to warm up, the canyon walls blocked the sun, so it was actually pretty chilly walking along the Virgin River to the bottom of the narrows. We had hoped to walk the Narrows as well, where the canyon walls come so close together you can almost touch them – but the river was running really high and strong, so the narrows trail was closed. Just as well – we would have ruined our only hiking shoes walking through the water and the sand in the narrows.
The Riverwalk is really wild though – there are tons of hanging gardens all over the canyon walls. Really amazing the flowers and greenery growing right out of the rocks. We walk down along the river and make our way back to the shuttle. We hit the Weeping Rock trail and climb up to see the springs rushing down the rock. It’s nice and cool up there – with a nice little spray of water. Since it’s warming up now, the water and coolness is a relief! Next stop is the Grotto trailhead. We take a break here to munch on our trail mix and drink our water for lunch. We nix the longer, moderate trail going to the Emerald Pools, and settle on the flat Grotto trail that leads to the Lodge. After some consternation and wandering around, we finally find the trail head – not marked at all – so if you’re going look for a little dirt path behind the service building to the right of the picnic area.
It’s a quick walk to the Lodge, where we cross over to the Pool trail. There are 3 pools, each one requiring more strenuous hiking. We get to the Lower Pool, and you know, that’s good enough! It’s hot, there are a lot of people, and it’s getting on into the afternoon – we’re just as happy going to the hotel and scoping out the town of Zion.
Pictures are here.
Easy on the shuttle, back to the visitor’s center, get our stamp – and two of those little neck bandanas you can soak to stay cool ($4 here, as opposed to $9 at the Grand Canyon). Easy out of the park – and within a minute or two, we’re in downtown Springdale and at our hotel. Great place with a view of the cliffs right out our window, a nice pool (but it’s too darn hot to use it!) and amenities. We hit the grocery store to stock up on our picnic supplies, and the gas station, then go back to refresh and cool off in the room.
This is the beginning of a highly unusual heat wave that is hitting the country. Beginning in Santa Fe even, everyone is complaining about the heat and how it’s just too hot too soon. We’re feeling it – even though there’s no humidity! It just wears you down. But, fortunately, when the sun goes down, it does cool off nicely, so that sometimes I even need a sweater. That’s the difference in the dryness out here.
Dinner tonight is right across the street at the Bit and Spur Saloon. Great location (yeah! Walking!) with views of the cliffs, and an outdoor patio with a fountain and lanterns. We sit outside and just bask in the warmth and the great view. Food is fantastic too! Ed had the best ribeye we’ve ever tasted – I was really sorry I didn’t order one even though my Steak Asada and butternut squash salad was awesome! That steak though…wow! So we hung out and ate and drank, then went into the bar and hung out some more. The bartender was talkative and friendly, as were the locals at the bar. Met the guy who invented Chums for sunglasses, and who is working on a new invention right now. Fun!
Wandered back across the street to our hotel, and had our nightcap out on the little deck on the 2nd floor. Rocking chairs, a porch and a view of the mountains. Yeah, this is the way to end a great day!
North Rim Grand Canyon
We’re up and out by 7:00. Our sleeping patterns keep us moving in the morning – which is actually a good thing for the driving and the heat and – well – everything! So we are on the road fast, heading down Desert View drive (same way we headed last night for the sunset) only this time in the glaring sun. The viewpoints on this side of the canyon are magnificent as well. The Lipan point viewpoint is easily the best view on this side of the canyon looking all the way back down the cliffs, along the Colorado River. It’s just spectacular.
We are so early, however, that nothing is open yet at the Desert View East Entrance. So, we unfortunately miss our last South Rim passport stamp, but it’s not worth the 15 or 20 minutes we would have to wait for the stores to open. So off we head – out of the park and up highway 64 to skirt around the end of the canyon and head back down the other side.
It’s a long drive, but amazing in that the scenery changes almost every hour. From the Canyon views, to scraggy pines and boulders to immense mesas with nothing but tumbleweeds for miles, to the Vermillion Cliffs and the Navajo Bridge over the Colorado River near Lees Ferry. It’s just incredible. We saw a bald Eagle at the bridge too – pretty close. Oh – and deer too – but that was at night near the donkey barn on the South Rim. Wildlife everywhere – we guess Pietro is happy with all his 4 legged buddies….sigh.
So – back to the trip – we made a pit stop at the river, then headed up through the cliffs into the high country and the North Rim. Again, the scenery changed from rocky barren cliffs to pine and aspen forests. Of course, as we are making our way through the mesa, Alice, who has been totally quiet for miles, now pipes up and directs us to turn left off the highway onto some road called Marble Canyon ranch or something like that. No way – do you see a sign that says Grand Canyon? No, we are NOT turning, I don’t care what that witch has to say. As we pass the turn off, we look, and it’s a DIRT ROAD. Oh yeah, we’re going 4-wheeling through the mesa and canyons! Ha. Ok – so Alice needs some fine tuning – and it’s obvious, you really need to know where you are going and not have blind faith in the GPS.
So, we stay on the paved road and the higher we drove, the more the forest closed in around us. We arrived at the North Rim entrance a little before 11:00 and headed straight to Point Imperial, East of the main canyon area. We picnicked at the benches by the trails, then walked a little ways through the trail there that led through the area where the 1000 Outlet fire burned. 10 years ago, and there still isn’t all that much re-growth, it’s pretty interesting how the fire just rages and then jumps complete areas. It was started as a controlled burn, but then got out of hand and roared through the park.
Back in the car, we head down to Cape Royal, the furthest part of the scenic drive. There we wander through the paved walkways looking out over the canyon and through the Angels Window. It’s spectacular here and very different than the South Rim. Much more rustic and undisturbed, and a lot less people. Since the Rim is only open a few months out of the year (it’s only been open a few weeks when we were there) it gets a lot less traffic and retains a much more wild feel to it.
We backtrack back up the drive stopping at all the viewpoints, then head into the main area of the North Rim to the Lodge. We have the cutest little cabin for our room tonight – log cabin with our own front porch – and a gas fireplace! How fun! Once again, no internet, so we walk the North Rim trail – and sit on a bench to try to access the web through the phone (not much phone service around here either btw!).
Click here for all the pictures.
Back at the cabin, we clean up, sit on our porch for an aperitif, then walk over to the rim for Sunset. It’s neat how the sun changes the light on the canyon, we take our photos, drink our coffee (that Ed so thoughtfully made!) then head over to the Lodge for our 8 pm dinner reservations. Once you’re there at the North Rim, you’re there! You either eat at the Pizza/Deli, the Sports bar, or the Lodge. It was a very nice dinner, good food, and not too exorbitantly priced. The view was spectacular through the floor to ceiling windows facing the canyon. How can you complain?
After dinner we wander back to our log cabin and collapse after a very long, but totally fun day.
We are so early, however, that nothing is open yet at the Desert View East Entrance. So, we unfortunately miss our last South Rim passport stamp, but it’s not worth the 15 or 20 minutes we would have to wait for the stores to open. So off we head – out of the park and up highway 64 to skirt around the end of the canyon and head back down the other side.
It’s a long drive, but amazing in that the scenery changes almost every hour. From the Canyon views, to scraggy pines and boulders to immense mesas with nothing but tumbleweeds for miles, to the Vermillion Cliffs and the Navajo Bridge over the Colorado River near Lees Ferry. It’s just incredible. We saw a bald Eagle at the bridge too – pretty close. Oh – and deer too – but that was at night near the donkey barn on the South Rim. Wildlife everywhere – we guess Pietro is happy with all his 4 legged buddies….sigh.
So – back to the trip – we made a pit stop at the river, then headed up through the cliffs into the high country and the North Rim. Again, the scenery changed from rocky barren cliffs to pine and aspen forests. Of course, as we are making our way through the mesa, Alice, who has been totally quiet for miles, now pipes up and directs us to turn left off the highway onto some road called Marble Canyon ranch or something like that. No way – do you see a sign that says Grand Canyon? No, we are NOT turning, I don’t care what that witch has to say. As we pass the turn off, we look, and it’s a DIRT ROAD. Oh yeah, we’re going 4-wheeling through the mesa and canyons! Ha. Ok – so Alice needs some fine tuning – and it’s obvious, you really need to know where you are going and not have blind faith in the GPS.
So, we stay on the paved road and the higher we drove, the more the forest closed in around us. We arrived at the North Rim entrance a little before 11:00 and headed straight to Point Imperial, East of the main canyon area. We picnicked at the benches by the trails, then walked a little ways through the trail there that led through the area where the 1000 Outlet fire burned. 10 years ago, and there still isn’t all that much re-growth, it’s pretty interesting how the fire just rages and then jumps complete areas. It was started as a controlled burn, but then got out of hand and roared through the park.
Back in the car, we head down to Cape Royal, the furthest part of the scenic drive. There we wander through the paved walkways looking out over the canyon and through the Angels Window. It’s spectacular here and very different than the South Rim. Much more rustic and undisturbed, and a lot less people. Since the Rim is only open a few months out of the year (it’s only been open a few weeks when we were there) it gets a lot less traffic and retains a much more wild feel to it.
We backtrack back up the drive stopping at all the viewpoints, then head into the main area of the North Rim to the Lodge. We have the cutest little cabin for our room tonight – log cabin with our own front porch – and a gas fireplace! How fun! Once again, no internet, so we walk the North Rim trail – and sit on a bench to try to access the web through the phone (not much phone service around here either btw!).
Click here for all the pictures.
Back at the cabin, we clean up, sit on our porch for an aperitif, then walk over to the rim for Sunset. It’s neat how the sun changes the light on the canyon, we take our photos, drink our coffee (that Ed so thoughtfully made!) then head over to the Lodge for our 8 pm dinner reservations. Once you’re there at the North Rim, you’re there! You either eat at the Pizza/Deli, the Sports bar, or the Lodge. It was a very nice dinner, good food, and not too exorbitantly priced. The view was spectacular through the floor to ceiling windows facing the canyon. How can you complain?
After dinner we wander back to our log cabin and collapse after a very long, but totally fun day.
South Rim, Grand Canyon
Well, today at least is a relatively easy drive. We’re up at the crack of dawn – and on the road by 7:00. We make the Canyon before 9:00. Head straight for the visitor’s center and the bike rentals. We’re so early, the Bright Angel Bike guys aren’t even there yet. But that’s ok, because once they arrive, they give us the scoop (it’s the first nice day they’ve had – where you can’t see your breath or have to bundle up to ride! It snowed here the week before we arrived!), we get the first bikes and we’re on our way around 9:00. The bikes – the best decision we’ve made. It’s great riding through the Village on the greenway trail, nice and cool, not a person in sight. We swing by our hotel, the Maswick Inn, looks pretty cool! From there it’s an easy pedal (or walk) right to the turn off to Hermit’s Rest –where everyone else is riding that packed shuttle to the viewpoints, but we’re cruising on our bikes. Totally worth it!
The first view of the canyon – wow!!! It is more spectacular than you can imagine – which is what everyone has told us. We’ll let the pictures tell the story. Click here to go to the picture site.
So – we cycle. The first hill from the transfer point to the Trailview overlook is the killer – but it’s so worth it. We avoid the packed bus (which is packed with a HUGE group of Japanese tourists – so we are thanking our lucky stars at every outlook!), we get fresh air (the breeze is so cool and refreshing) and exercise. And the bike helmets don’t even look that dorky! Ha ha. So we take our time and meander up and around the main look out points, each one better/different than the last. It’s really just an amazing sight – hard to comprehend that water has done all this, made this vast and incredible landscape.
So we press on- there are many points where we don’t see another human being for 5, 10 even 20 minutes – just alone, riding our bikes through the rim trail stopping anywhere and everywhere for more picture opportunities. We make it all the way to Hermit’s Rest with tons of extra time. Bright Angel bikes aren’t coming to pick us up until 1, so we have over an hour to explore the “end” of the pedestrian trail and Hermit’s Rest.
I was a bit disappointed in the actual structure – I had over glorified from everything I read, so after about 10 minutes of wandering around the 1914 Mary Colter built rest area (originally built as a rest stop for Fred Harvey coach travelers who were ultimately headed to Hermit’s Camp), we decided to brave out a little bit of the Hermit’s Trail – which is marked expert on the maps.
Obviously we weren’t going down to the canyon floor which was a 5-7 hour trip, we just wanted to head done a little ways under the rim. It was a spectacular hike – even if we only did ½ hour. We met a few folks coming up from the floor – one couple had camped down there overnight. Pretty wild. The little trail was treacherous in some areas, and we finally turned around after snapping a ton of pix! Our big under the rim experience!
Back up top, the bike van finally came and deposited us back at our car around 1:30. We grabbed our picnic lunch (we’d stocked up in Santa Fe and had lunch for a couple of days), hit a bench near the visitor center and ate our ham, roast beef and cheese while enjoying the people watching. Next up – we head to the hotel. They let us check in (thank you!!!) and we dump our stuff, get organized, cooled off and decide to go walk the other side of the Rim trail from the Canyon Village to Yavapai point.
It’s an easy walk, paved all the way, with TONS’O people. While we may have been all alone on the Hermit’s Rest route – we’re not here. It’s amazing the number of people. We brave the crowds and just wander along, taking more and more pictures. There is a great “walk of ages” that the park is installing with all different types of rocks from different ages (it wasn’t complete – so there were lots of marble bases waiting for their rocks!) and lots to see – of course – it’s the Canyon! At one particular point near the Yavapai museum, we walked out near the edge and saw these 2 people WAY out on a huge boulder overlooking the canyon. Scary as all – and the girl had on FLIP FLOPS! No way, I couldn’t even watch! Ed snapped pix – which you can see here – we couldn’t believe that they could be so courageous – or dumb!
As we were heading back to the shuttle bus – we had a devastating experience. Pietro was missing! We were crushed! He had been riding in my pocket, loving the scenery, wishing he could go further into the canyon – when suddenly we looked down –and he was gone! We searched, and searched, and called his name. We asked everyone if they had seen him, but to no avail, he was gone. We knew he loved the canyon – but we had no idea he’d want to stay – without us. We were crushed. Here’s the last known picture of our little pal.
The first view of the canyon – wow!!! It is more spectacular than you can imagine – which is what everyone has told us. We’ll let the pictures tell the story. Click here to go to the picture site.
So – we cycle. The first hill from the transfer point to the Trailview overlook is the killer – but it’s so worth it. We avoid the packed bus (which is packed with a HUGE group of Japanese tourists – so we are thanking our lucky stars at every outlook!), we get fresh air (the breeze is so cool and refreshing) and exercise. And the bike helmets don’t even look that dorky! Ha ha. So we take our time and meander up and around the main look out points, each one better/different than the last. It’s really just an amazing sight – hard to comprehend that water has done all this, made this vast and incredible landscape.
So we press on- there are many points where we don’t see another human being for 5, 10 even 20 minutes – just alone, riding our bikes through the rim trail stopping anywhere and everywhere for more picture opportunities. We make it all the way to Hermit’s Rest with tons of extra time. Bright Angel bikes aren’t coming to pick us up until 1, so we have over an hour to explore the “end” of the pedestrian trail and Hermit’s Rest.
I was a bit disappointed in the actual structure – I had over glorified from everything I read, so after about 10 minutes of wandering around the 1914 Mary Colter built rest area (originally built as a rest stop for Fred Harvey coach travelers who were ultimately headed to Hermit’s Camp), we decided to brave out a little bit of the Hermit’s Trail – which is marked expert on the maps.
Obviously we weren’t going down to the canyon floor which was a 5-7 hour trip, we just wanted to head done a little ways under the rim. It was a spectacular hike – even if we only did ½ hour. We met a few folks coming up from the floor – one couple had camped down there overnight. Pretty wild. The little trail was treacherous in some areas, and we finally turned around after snapping a ton of pix! Our big under the rim experience!
Back up top, the bike van finally came and deposited us back at our car around 1:30. We grabbed our picnic lunch (we’d stocked up in Santa Fe and had lunch for a couple of days), hit a bench near the visitor center and ate our ham, roast beef and cheese while enjoying the people watching. Next up – we head to the hotel. They let us check in (thank you!!!) and we dump our stuff, get organized, cooled off and decide to go walk the other side of the Rim trail from the Canyon Village to Yavapai point.
It’s an easy walk, paved all the way, with TONS’O people. While we may have been all alone on the Hermit’s Rest route – we’re not here. It’s amazing the number of people. We brave the crowds and just wander along, taking more and more pictures. There is a great “walk of ages” that the park is installing with all different types of rocks from different ages (it wasn’t complete – so there were lots of marble bases waiting for their rocks!) and lots to see – of course – it’s the Canyon! At one particular point near the Yavapai museum, we walked out near the edge and saw these 2 people WAY out on a huge boulder overlooking the canyon. Scary as all – and the girl had on FLIP FLOPS! No way, I couldn’t even watch! Ed snapped pix – which you can see here – we couldn’t believe that they could be so courageous – or dumb!
As we were heading back to the shuttle bus – we had a devastating experience. Pietro was missing! We were crushed! He had been riding in my pocket, loving the scenery, wishing he could go further into the canyon – when suddenly we looked down –and he was gone! We searched, and searched, and called his name. We asked everyone if they had seen him, but to no avail, he was gone. We knew he loved the canyon – but we had no idea he’d want to stay – without us. We were crushed. Here’s the last known picture of our little pal.
Dejectedly we got back on the shuttle to the hotel. We cleaned up, tried to access the internet (ha – that’s a joke), then headed out to watch the sunset at Lipan point, supposedly the best place for a sunset view. Before we hit the road though, we stopped at the general store to just nose around and see what was there – and lo and behold – we found HooDoo. He was a poor lonely Bison sitting in the bin with the little foxes. All alone. No other Bison – or other animal his size – anywhere in the store. It was destiny. So, off we went with HooDoo safely in our backpack – no more pockets for mascots, that’s for sure.The drive to Lipan took about ½ an hour and probably would have been worth it if the clouds hadn’t have rolled in obscuring the sunset. Bummer. We stayed a couple minutes, the wind picked up, the temperature dropped, and we headed back to the hotel for dinner. Had a great hamburger (surprisingly inexpensive) and a couple of drinks at the “sports” bar, then headed back for an early night and big drive to the North Rim in the morning.
Check out all the pix here.
Flagstaff – we’re off to the parks
We’re on the road….headed to the Grand Canyon – but first a couple of pitt stops in the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest. Out of New Mexico we go – into Arizona – for the beginning of our Parks tour. The Petrified Forest is a quick hour from the border of New Mexico – and a really beautiful Park. The colors of the hills and canyons in the Painted Desert are just incredible – the pictures just don’t do it justice.
We detour off of Route 40 and into the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest. Check out the pix – they describe everything! After visiting the Painted Desert Inn (a historical inn, and an original Fred Harvey House), we headed out toward the Petrified Forest, crossing the original Route 66 route, marked by an old car grill. The landscape is incredible – all different hues of pinks and reds. Once into the Petrified Forest, the landscape becomes even more arresting – looking like a pink and white glowing moonscape – with an asphalt road running through it!
We hiked one of the trails into the Blue Mesa – walking along the floor of the canyon with all the petrified wood – looks just like real wood logs, cut by chain saws. Amazing! We’re still getting used to the altitude though – climbing back up from the mesa – that was an adventure. But, there’s a cool breeze (or we should say gale force wind!) that at least dries us off as we walk. After our hike, we continued through the scenic road, and walk a quick little loop through the largest concentration of petrified wood and then stop at the visitors center for a rest stop and our park stamp.
Pictures are here for the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest.
Cool! Now the drive through Arizona – even through “Winslow, Arizona”!!! Singing the Eagles song all the way – until we arrive in Flagstaff and the Alpine hotel. This is the coolest hotel/motel! It’s an old roadside motel converted into a boutique little place. King size beds, luxe bedding and pillows, redone baths. The room they originally give us is great except there’s no room for desk or a chair – so we asked for another if possible –and they upgraded us to a 2 room Jacuzzi suite. Yes! That Jacuzzi was just what the doctor ordered for our tired and aching muscles! Plus they have a complementary happy hour with beer and wine every night – can’t beat that. We soaked and drank – then headed out to an Indian/Nepalese restaurant. Yes, we are in Flagstaff Arizona! Great food, wonderful evening – we’re ready to hit the road early to The Canyon!
We detour off of Route 40 and into the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest. Check out the pix – they describe everything! After visiting the Painted Desert Inn (a historical inn, and an original Fred Harvey House), we headed out toward the Petrified Forest, crossing the original Route 66 route, marked by an old car grill. The landscape is incredible – all different hues of pinks and reds. Once into the Petrified Forest, the landscape becomes even more arresting – looking like a pink and white glowing moonscape – with an asphalt road running through it!
We hiked one of the trails into the Blue Mesa – walking along the floor of the canyon with all the petrified wood – looks just like real wood logs, cut by chain saws. Amazing! We’re still getting used to the altitude though – climbing back up from the mesa – that was an adventure. But, there’s a cool breeze (or we should say gale force wind!) that at least dries us off as we walk. After our hike, we continued through the scenic road, and walk a quick little loop through the largest concentration of petrified wood and then stop at the visitors center for a rest stop and our park stamp.
Pictures are here for the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest.
Cool! Now the drive through Arizona – even through “Winslow, Arizona”!!! Singing the Eagles song all the way – until we arrive in Flagstaff and the Alpine hotel. This is the coolest hotel/motel! It’s an old roadside motel converted into a boutique little place. King size beds, luxe bedding and pillows, redone baths. The room they originally give us is great except there’s no room for desk or a chair – so we asked for another if possible –and they upgraded us to a 2 room Jacuzzi suite. Yes! That Jacuzzi was just what the doctor ordered for our tired and aching muscles! Plus they have a complementary happy hour with beer and wine every night – can’t beat that. We soaked and drank – then headed out to an Indian/Nepalese restaurant. Yes, we are in Flagstaff Arizona! Great food, wonderful evening – we’re ready to hit the road early to The Canyon!
3 Days in Santa Fe
The first leg of our trip – easy flights on Saturday to Santa Fe, where we’ll get acclimated to the altitude then head on west for more oxygen deprived sight-seeing. Flew in to Albuquerque, grabbed the car and made it to Santa Fe by 7 (of course that’s 9pm our body time – so we’re not exactly chipper and fresh!). Hit the grocery store – stocked up on the essentials (yep – beer and wine! Remember – we’re going to Utah – and while they’ve recently changed the laws – we’re still not convinced we’ll be able to drink or buy anything beyond 3.2 beer there – so we’re not taking any chances!!!).
Hit the hotel, the shower then made our way old town to the Inn at Loretta. It’s adobe, it’s right off the plaza, and they have this great lobby bar called the “living room” where on Saturday nights they have tapas specials and an acoustic guitarist singing pop/rock hits. Great way to start our trip! Lamb sliders, Buffalo sliders, wine, beer. Too fun! But too late! We’re exhausted, so it’s off to bed we go on a Saturday night.
On the way home, we plug the hotel address into Alice (Al-ee-chey in Italian – our pet name for the GPS) – and the darn thing took us to the highway to get home? What? We didn’t follow it, and ended up going through speed bump alley to get home – but there is definitely a more direct route from the Old Town to our hotel. (every day though, FYI, “she” sent us to the highway from Old Town – there is a serious glitch here!!!).
Sunday dawns bright and early – because of course, we’re still on EST! Ed goes to the gym, Cathy to go run on the trail that follows the railroad. Uh, yeah, duh! Altitude!!! So, that’s why it feels like Cathy’s having a heart attack and can’t run more than 100 yards at a time. Dope! But , the run – now a walk – is still fun –following an arroyo under the road and to the RR tracks, then walking the paths. Will be even better when we have our “lungs” in shape.
We’re taking it easy today – after coffee, we head to old town to wander through the Memorial Day craft show on the plaza near the cathedral. We meander through the streets ending up at Cowgirls for their Sunday Gospel brunch – which is just too fun. Ordered too much food – as usual – but enjoyed sitting in the shade listening to the music and passing the time. Explored the Railyard complex (the old sightseeing train leaves from there, and there is a redevelopment going on – 2nd Street Brewery has a location and there are 1 BR lofts on the market as well) Hit a local craft market, then headed back to the main Plaza to grab the car and head back to hotel.
Dinner tonight is a low key affair at one of the fun bars in town. Wings and Burgers at Del Charro. The “Saloon” at the Inn of the Governors. It’s a great little hang out joint with good food, flat screen TV’s and a great local crowd. Nice way to spend a Sunday night! After dinner we head back to the hotel (on the highway – thanks Alice!) and take our drinks out to the little arroyo at the back of the parking lot so we can sit outside with our night caps. Gorgeous night, great town. How fun!
Monday – Ed’s big Birthday!!! We’re up and out and hiking in the early morning. Hit the Dale Ball trails – a huge complex of trails all over the Sangre de Cristo mountains. After the Dale Ball trails, we head up into the mountains a little further to hike the Chamisa trail that eventually leads to a pond/lake across the ridge of the mountains. We didn’t quite make it that far, but we did make it all the way to the ridge.
On the way down, we were passed by two mountain bikers! How in the world do they stay on those little trails? No way Jose! We also rounded a corner to be confronted by this huge black curly haired thing – which Cathy immediately asked “that big black thing is a dog, right?” I mean, come on! We are in the wilderness, there is a big black animal on the path and there is no other human in sight! Of course Ed thought that was funny – and yes – it was a dog – the human owner showed up shortly – but still…..
Hiking didn’t take us as long as we anticipated, so we head off to find the Pecos National Historical Park, about 25 minutes away. Here, there is an easy trail that winds through the ruins of an old Pueblo and church from the Spanish missions. There are over 20 Kivas here- ceremonial pits, where the Puebloan people communed with spirits. They’ve reconstructed 2 Kiva, so you can climb down into them. Pretty cool, actually! All in all, it’s a fabulous site – and our first National Park! We bought a little “Passport book”, so now we can get stamps at every National Park to record our visits.
Back to cool off and shower, then on to Ed’s Birthday dinner! He had picked a great tapas restaurant we had read about, and is rated really highly - La Boca. Sitting one long block off of the Plaza in Old Town, this little restaurant is packed – with lines forming outside to get in. Great food, atmosphere and service. So glad we made reservations though – we would have been doomed to walk the sidewalks waiting for a table without them. After dinner – we hung out on the 2nd floor open air balcony of the Marble Brewery for beer and coffee and watched the happenings on the Old Town Plaza below. Fun night, great times, happy birthday to Ed!
Click here for all 3 days worth of pictures.
Hit the hotel, the shower then made our way old town to the Inn at Loretta. It’s adobe, it’s right off the plaza, and they have this great lobby bar called the “living room” where on Saturday nights they have tapas specials and an acoustic guitarist singing pop/rock hits. Great way to start our trip! Lamb sliders, Buffalo sliders, wine, beer. Too fun! But too late! We’re exhausted, so it’s off to bed we go on a Saturday night.
On the way home, we plug the hotel address into Alice (Al-ee-chey in Italian – our pet name for the GPS) – and the darn thing took us to the highway to get home? What? We didn’t follow it, and ended up going through speed bump alley to get home – but there is definitely a more direct route from the Old Town to our hotel. (every day though, FYI, “she” sent us to the highway from Old Town – there is a serious glitch here!!!).
Sunday dawns bright and early – because of course, we’re still on EST! Ed goes to the gym, Cathy to go run on the trail that follows the railroad. Uh, yeah, duh! Altitude!!! So, that’s why it feels like Cathy’s having a heart attack and can’t run more than 100 yards at a time. Dope! But , the run – now a walk – is still fun –following an arroyo under the road and to the RR tracks, then walking the paths. Will be even better when we have our “lungs” in shape.
We’re taking it easy today – after coffee, we head to old town to wander through the Memorial Day craft show on the plaza near the cathedral. We meander through the streets ending up at Cowgirls for their Sunday Gospel brunch – which is just too fun. Ordered too much food – as usual – but enjoyed sitting in the shade listening to the music and passing the time. Explored the Railyard complex (the old sightseeing train leaves from there, and there is a redevelopment going on – 2nd Street Brewery has a location and there are 1 BR lofts on the market as well) Hit a local craft market, then headed back to the main Plaza to grab the car and head back to hotel.
Dinner tonight is a low key affair at one of the fun bars in town. Wings and Burgers at Del Charro. The “Saloon” at the Inn of the Governors. It’s a great little hang out joint with good food, flat screen TV’s and a great local crowd. Nice way to spend a Sunday night! After dinner we head back to the hotel (on the highway – thanks Alice!) and take our drinks out to the little arroyo at the back of the parking lot so we can sit outside with our night caps. Gorgeous night, great town. How fun!
Monday – Ed’s big Birthday!!! We’re up and out and hiking in the early morning. Hit the Dale Ball trails – a huge complex of trails all over the Sangre de Cristo mountains. After the Dale Ball trails, we head up into the mountains a little further to hike the Chamisa trail that eventually leads to a pond/lake across the ridge of the mountains. We didn’t quite make it that far, but we did make it all the way to the ridge.
On the way down, we were passed by two mountain bikers! How in the world do they stay on those little trails? No way Jose! We also rounded a corner to be confronted by this huge black curly haired thing – which Cathy immediately asked “that big black thing is a dog, right?” I mean, come on! We are in the wilderness, there is a big black animal on the path and there is no other human in sight! Of course Ed thought that was funny – and yes – it was a dog – the human owner showed up shortly – but still…..
Hiking didn’t take us as long as we anticipated, so we head off to find the Pecos National Historical Park, about 25 minutes away. Here, there is an easy trail that winds through the ruins of an old Pueblo and church from the Spanish missions. There are over 20 Kivas here- ceremonial pits, where the Puebloan people communed with spirits. They’ve reconstructed 2 Kiva, so you can climb down into them. Pretty cool, actually! All in all, it’s a fabulous site – and our first National Park! We bought a little “Passport book”, so now we can get stamps at every National Park to record our visits.
Back to cool off and shower, then on to Ed’s Birthday dinner! He had picked a great tapas restaurant we had read about, and is rated really highly - La Boca. Sitting one long block off of the Plaza in Old Town, this little restaurant is packed – with lines forming outside to get in. Great food, atmosphere and service. So glad we made reservations though – we would have been doomed to walk the sidewalks waiting for a table without them. After dinner – we hung out on the 2nd floor open air balcony of the Marble Brewery for beer and coffee and watched the happenings on the Old Town Plaza below. Fun night, great times, happy birthday to Ed!
Click here for all 3 days worth of pictures.
National Parks 4-Corners Tour of the Southwest
Two weeks. 2850 miles. 12 National Parks. 4 States. That kind of says it all, doesn’t it?
Well, we suppose you need a little more detail than that, so the following is our mini-blog. It’s got the details, the funnies, the travesties, and all the travel stories plus a few pictures along the way. We’ll also post the majority of the pix on our Shutterfly site so you all can see the grandeur and the majesty of the Canyons and parks in more detail.
For now, here, we’ll just give you an overview of our 2 week odyssey – without making you gag on the myriad of adjectives that one could try to use to describe the amazing and breathtaking sights we took in across the Southwest!
So – here we go…..
Well, we suppose you need a little more detail than that, so the following is our mini-blog. It’s got the details, the funnies, the travesties, and all the travel stories plus a few pictures along the way. We’ll also post the majority of the pix on our Shutterfly site so you all can see the grandeur and the majesty of the Canyons and parks in more detail.
For now, here, we’ll just give you an overview of our 2 week odyssey – without making you gag on the myriad of adjectives that one could try to use to describe the amazing and breathtaking sights we took in across the Southwest!
So – here we go…..
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