Several More days

Day 11


Well, we had a nice stay in Moab overnight and got our email up to date and touched bases with Lisa. We awoke to a beautiful morning despite the foreboding weather forecasts. We skipped breakfast so that we could get to Arches NP early and get a hike or two in before it rained. Warren is all “canyoned” out as we have seen quite a number but they are all so different and Arches was no exception. We ventured out on one primitive path which actually required me climbing up some rocks by hand but I did it. Took about 100 more pictures today. I wanted to take more of the flowers but by late morning, the wind was gusting to 40 mph and the sand from one area was blowing strongly. The flowers just refused to stay still.
We got back on the road early afternoon and stopped to get some food for brunch rather late. I started to not feel so great about here and Warren was forced to stop at EVERY rest stop until we decided we had to stay in a motel rather than go further. I ended up in the emergency room of the local hospital with a king sized urinary tract infection – something I have never had before and don’t want to have again. They gave me some nice pills and I feel better already. Onward to Bryce tomorrow.

Day 12


Feeling a lot better today as the pills have really taken affect. The weather was supposed to be bad and it has certainly turned out that way. Bryce is at 8000 feet and it is lightly snowing when we get there. Nothing is sticking though. The campsites are wonderful and we have a view off the trail which is about 300 feet from our site. We actually have flush toilets and sinks here!! There are showers at the camp store as well –yahoo. The national parks are really nice and soooo cheap if you are a senior– entry fees are 0 and camping fees are half priced so we usually only have to spend 3-5 dollars a night. However, it is cold at Bryce. We walked a bit along the rim trail but it was too cool to do much.

Day 13

It was FREEZING last night – in the 20s and there was snow on the windshield and campsite when we got up in the morning!! Noticeable snow but it quickly dissipated although it remained in the 20’s with 40 mph gusts of wind. It was not a good day for hiking but we did drive through the park and get out at all the overlooks. This is a park where you see the canyons from above. I did have the presence of mind first thing in the morning to take pictures of the snow on the canyon!!! I guess the temps are 30 degrees below normal for this time of year here!! I am basically sleeping in everything I own with a sleeping bag and a quilt. We didn’t even put up the tent but have been sleeping in the car. The wind was too high to put up even the screen tent. The park is beautiful but it definitely would have been nicer to walk more. Lots of stellar jays and the antelope squirrels bustling around the campsite. We also saw three deer walk through the campsite right across from us which was pretty cool. We have renamed Bryce Canyon to be Ice Canyon though.

Day 14


We got up bright and early and headed for the showers which were wonderful and just the thing before we hit the road. We headed for Lake Mead via Zion Canyon National Park. Zion is a stunningly beautiful park. You see the canyons here from below rather than from above as in Bryce. It is amazing that all these parks feature canyons and they are all so terribly different. The geology of this part of the country is fascinating and so different from the east. At Zion, you have to go by shuttle bus which was a very nice way to see the park. Warren is getting very tired though. The driving has been a mite stressful as we are going up and down and round and round. The weather at Zion was much better than at Bryce and we were at a lower elevation as well. We headed from there to Lake Mead National Recreation Area which is very close to Las Vegas but you would never know it!!!!!!! The drive there from Zion was extremely different yet again!! As we were on a major interstate I thought we would have opportunity to eat etc. Wrong…. We went through the Mojave Desert which is again very different scenery but desolate, desolate. The drive to this park felt like going to the moon – everything is drab brown with patches of sage brush and angry rocky intrusions. Of course, then there is Lake Mead right in the middle of this – all bright blue. The campsite where we are supposed to be for five days now is surrounded by oleander bushes in many shades of red, fuchsia, light pink and white – beautiful. It is cool in the evening and hot during the day. We have gone from 20 degrees to 90 degrees!! I confess to liking dry 90 better than the cold windy 20. It is definitely desert here though.

Day 15

I lazed around all day while Warren tried and almost succeeded in getting lost on his first kayak trip at Lake Mead. He is tired but happy though. We had to drive 25 miles to the nearest small down for groceries!! We will have to drive 20 miles for showers as well.
He did see a bobcat on the drive back from the store though which I missed. He said it was moving fast. I intended to do some quilting today but ended up just reading and being totally lazy after a lovely breakfast in the cool morning. It was remarkably windy today and that kept it feeling rather comfortable despite the increasing heat – it is the desert after all. I can’t believe that Las Vegas is only about 40 miles away as it doesn’t seem possible that any life could survive in this area. One of these days I will get to upload all of this. We are thinking of heading to Vegas for a couple of days before we head west again. We haven’t quite decided on that route. The GPS has been a godsend and I highly recommend it for anyone that drives a lot.