August 1

Great, desolate drive on world's best road (Benton, CA toward Lee Vining, CA), stopping at world's best campsite in the middle of nowhere. Can't wait for Yosemite.

July 31

July 31st

Zion National Park. Wow. Up early and into the park. Bountiful pancakes in the parking lot! Shuttle bus out to our hike for the day -- Hidden Canyon. It was amazing. Elevation gain of 850 feet, with several spots that had chains to hold on to as you crossed rather wiggy open cliff. But, the payoff... the views and a chance to explore the Hidden Canyon. We found two Mexican Spotted Owls (only 2400 in the world) asleep in a tree and hiked back into the canyon checking out the cool rock formations. What an accomplishment for all of us.

Drove on to Las Vegas (thanks to Nate for finding us the room since we had no internet access at Zion). A quick dip in the pool and sleep - off to Yosemite tomorrow.

July 30

July 30th.

Drove from Grand Canyon to Page, AZ (more amazing storms! never a boring moment west of the Rockies!) to tour Antelope Canyon. Antelope Canyon is on Navajo land and the tours are run by Navajo companies. We took a cool

jeep-kind of big wheeled vehicle for about a 20 minute ride -- 10 on highway and then 10 on dirt, backroads that were dusty and bumpy. Very fun ride. AC is a slot

canyon, so you enter from one side and walk along the sandy bottom of the canyon until it opens to sunlight at the other end. Sun streams down from the top if you catch it at the right time and gives the rock colors vibrancy. As we arrived, it was a bit overcast, but on the way back out we saw some of the sun streaming and the colors Some of the rock formations looked like Abraham Lincoln, a bear, an eagle and Crested Butte at sunset.

Lunch at Pizza Hut (birthday feast for Dad). Hot tip from our chef about where the locals swim in Lake Powell ("The Chains"), so we were off for a dip. Amazing water, deep, blue, cool -- very welcome in the high-90's heat of the afternoon. We were just above Glen Canyon Dam, though, so it was easy to look downriver at what this place used to be like. A wonderful recreation area, no question, but a spectacular piece of America submerged to make it so!

Drove on through more amazing storms up to Zion. Came in through less-used east side (brilliant!) on 25 m.p.h. curving road. No question you're in a different world through here. So glad to have traveled through the amazing mile-long tunnel dug in the '30s right through the sandstone mountains. Just amazing. Saw big-horned sheep, noted cool climbing places, then were sad to find campgrounds full in the park. How lucky to follow a hot tip to milepost 24, 8 miles outside of town, where National Forest meant free camping for those willing to do without facilities. Had late-night smores and sang HB to Dan!

July 29

July 29th

Fine day getting to know Grand Canyon, and getting to realize that you just can't fit it all in. We'll have to come back. Woke up early today to join a Jr. Ranger Adventure Hike below the rim at Hermit's Rest. Very much worth it. Kids loved Ranger Graciella. Much learning about fossils, native American culture and beliefs, and, of course, animal scat. Ranger G. didn't fool Henry and Elizabeth when she took analysis to a new level and actually tasted the sample she had found in the trail to see if she could identify it. They knew she'd brought along an imposter!

Clare loved Kolb Photography studio, the house that the Kolb brothers built hanging over the canyon's rim in 1905. What an incredible house, and what vision! Dan stole away for a few hours on Angel Point trail just below the studios to try to collect some Colorado River water for our rapidly-filling bottle of significant waters. Too bad to be turned back by the realities of the long hike down. He turned back just above Indian Gardens, a little more than halfway down.

Beautiful sunset at overlook. Wish we had more time in this place!

July 28

July 28th.

Mesa Verde to Grand Canyon today. Slept in, did laundry, took showers. Dan used the laundry time to scramble up what looked like a gentle hill but which turned out to end in a sheer drop-off of hundreds of feet on the other side. How deceptive! Here's Bob on top:

Drove on through incredible storms toward Grand Canyon, uncertain of where we'd spend the night. A long pause at the decision point: should we go to the North Rim or the South Rim? Picked the South, as most do, and felt lucky to find a great site (with tree climbing!) in the Desert View campsite a half hour outside of GC Village. Lucky. Climbed the Watchtower and saw a great sunset to mark our arrival. Kind of rainy night, but everyone happy.

July 27

July 27th

Mesa Verde all day today. Incredible spot indeed! Toured Spruce Tree House on our own, the Balcony House in the afternoon with a ranger.

So great to challenge oneself to imagine life here many hundreds of years ago. I wonder what they would have thought of this national park. Flabbergasting, I bet.

July 26

Crazy, occasionally scary, dramatic ride on 285 to Mesa Verde. OMGoodness, how does anyone do this without their stomach doing flip flops? Cliff drop offs, winding roads, elevation gains....the stuff of thrills and chills. We stop in Silverton for a break and discover a tour deep into a gold mine that operated through 1992. We drive the backcountry, dirt road ride in time to take the last tour. And, how cool it was! Riding this mine car down into the mine - 1500 feet in. The tour led by a miner who worked at the mine through its closing and we learn about mining techniques past to present. I thought about how 'real' this was...definitely not Disney. We were in a real mine, water flowing through, tunnels and shafts actually used -- not just an amusement park ride.

Afterward, we 'pan' for silver outside of their shop. They close up and go home, leaving us to pan away to our hearts' content. We each find a little piece of silver -- should have shouted "Eureka" but we didn't. :-)

Dan played "Hard Rock Miner" (Cowboy Junkies) on the CD player as we leave Silverton and push on towards Mesa Verde. Get there as things were shutting down but find a campsite without any problem. Meet our camp hosts, Jeannie and Ken with dog Ginger :-) Great tent site under Juniper pines. Can't wait to see Mesa Verde.