Las Vegas, Nevada

We spent two nights in Nevada to contrast the natural beauty and serenity of Utah's National Parks. VEGAS! It proved a good stop to get some parts for the Winnebago, catch up on laundry and see the sights.

We found some old friends.

Yes, it's a giant M&M.

Is Peter on the 7th grade NHS field trip after all?

Of Course Elvis was in Vegas.

Zion National Park, Utah

We arrived at Zion through the East entrance along the Zion- Mount Carmel Highway. The roadway was dwarfed by the huge domes and mesas of Navajo sandstone. We were required to have our View measured at the ranger station and they closed the historic mile long tunnel of oncoming traffic so we could drive through safely.

The campground was a bustling contrast to the campground at Bryce. The Visitor Center was crowded and the shuttle buses were running up and down the Scenic Drive. Fortunately, we had made reservations for our two nights ahead of time.

The Virgin River cuts through the valley and was swollen from the snow melt at higher elevations. We took the Watchman hike for our first adventure. The next day we spent exploring the valley via shuttle bus and hiking to the different sights! The Narrows, Temple of Sinawava, The Weeping Rock, The Grotto and Emerald Pools.

Zion- Mt. Carmel Tunnel waiting to enter.

The afternoon we arrived on the 2.7 mi. Watchman Trail.

The flowers and trees were beginning to bloom.

The West Temple

Sunset on theWatchman above the campground.

The waterfall at the Temple of Sinawava.

Under the "Weeping Rock" that became a waterfall!

The girls on the Grotto Trail to the Emerald Pools.

Junior Rangers of Zion Canyon.

Bryce Canyon- 100 Day Celebration! Utah

The night after our visit to Capital Reef National Park we traveled down Route 12 along the "Hell's Backbone" to the Escalante Petrified Forest State Park. This quiet park along the Wide Hollow Reservoir was home to a fabulous one mile hiking trail up through a petrified forest. These huge trees were remnants of a tropical forest that existed in prehistoric times...such a contrast to the arid climate that we see today.

Huge chunk of petrified tree.

The colors in the "wood" were incredible.

We arrived at Bryce Canyon on April 1 to find snow covering the 8,000 ft. elevations!! The park was just coming out of it's sleepy winter quiet and the day was a stunning 70+ degrees! The shuttle buses were not running yet, but we could easily navigate the park in the View.

After our stop at the Visitor Center we went to Sunset Point where we enjoyed a Ranger Talk on the geology of Bryce Canyon. He pointed out the fact that Bryce is not a true canyon, but that the differential erosion of the many layers of sandstone caused by snow melt, rain fall, and wind results in the Hoodoo formations and the canyon-like maze around them. Ancient peoples described the formations as a tribe that had been frozen in rock statues!

We took a hike down the Queen's Garden Loop and onto the Navajo Loop trail where we had to turn around before the end because snow/ice closed the trail. It was a perfect way to view the Hoodoos up close. We had a great close up encounter with the Queen Victoria formation.

The Bryce Canyon sign dotted with snow and Wanderluffs.

View from Sunset Point.

Hiking down the Queen's Garden Trail.

Hoodoo rock formations.

We named him the turtle from Kung Fu Panda.

The Silent City.

At the Bryce Canyon Lodge to celebrate our 100 days on the road!!

Our spectacular day in Bryce ended at the Lodge with a celebratory dinner for surviving 100 days together on the road!! We had covered 20 states, numerous islands, 8,000 long road miles,150 boat miles, and a couple of flights, at the halfway point in our trip! The dinner was fantastic.

Capital Reef National Park, Utah

We traveled across Utah and it seemed natural to visit Capital Reef National Park. This park is a unique aspect of the Colorado plateau. It features huge domes of the buff colored Navajo limestone cut in a canyon by the Fremont River. This area was home to native Fremont peoples and later Mormon settlers throughout history. The Mormon community of Fruita was founded in the valley where apples, peaches, and other fruit were grown.

Perfect example of a tumbleweed!!!

Hiking on the Hickman Bridge Trail.

The Capitol Dome!

Canyonlands National Park, Utah

Canyonlands National Park is another amazing part of the Colorado plateau. It is also where the confluence of the Colorado and Green Rivers are. We visited the "Island in the Sky" District and took in the 1 mi. Rim Trail- which was exactly as it sounds along the rim of the incredible cliffs. The other two districts "The Needles", and "the Maze" require 4WD vehicles and more adventuresome spirit than we possess!

Along the rim.

The view of the snow covered La Sal Mtns.

Arches National Park, Utah "The best playground ever."

We stayed for a night at a campground at the base of Mesa Verde in Colorado. Our trek took us northwest and into Moab, Utah to meet up with my childhood friend Mary, her son Nick, sister Cindy, and friend Kyle. We camped at the Dead Horse State Park on a fantastic plateau 6,000ft above sea level.

Views from Dead Horse Plateau

Caroline, Will, Peter, and Nick

View of the Colorado River from Dead Horse

Mary regales the kids with stories of her work with bighorn sheep.

Arches National Park was formed when Entrada salmon colored limestone was forced upward during the formation of the Colorado Plateau. The salt that was under the compressed rock formed the fins in the rock and further upheaval by the 2,000 Moab fault made the earth more unstable. Over time rock began to fall from the bottoms of the lifted fins, forming the striking arches that we see today.

Part of the window arches.

Pals from long ago.

Delicate Arch.

Nick rides the sheep at the Visitor Center.

Caroline and the big horn sheep.

The RED dunes- we're still trying to get out the sand.

Visit to Four Corners!!

We had long promised the kids that we would visit the famed "Four Corners"- place where reputedly Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico all meet. Somehow they never forgot and we found ourselves leaving the Grand Canyon and heading East to the "spot". Of course when we arrived and paid the entrance fee we read a plaque that this has been a long disputed boundary line! Oh well- They enjoyed meeting Devon and Dylan and standing in all four states at once!

The spot or not?

Peter encompassing all the states!!