Vacation 05
We left Newton on Thursday, August 25th around 8:00pm. Bill and I took turns driving while the mothers tried to sleep in the back seat of the mini van. We drove across the state of Colorado on I-70 and arrived in Moab, Utah early Friday morning.
The first place we went after breakfast was to Arches National Park; then on to Dead Horse Canyon and Canyonland. All three parks were beautiful, but I think we all agreed that Dead Horse was the most spectacular.
By then it was getting close to dinnertime and we were all getting tired from our all night commute. We got a couple of rooms at the Adventure Inn in Moab, ordered pizza and went to bed.
The next morning we each commented on how much better we felt after a few hours of sleep and a shower. After breakfast at the Pancake Haus we headed down Hwy 191 to Hwy 95. Southern Utah is beautiful country. We saw Wilson Arch and drove along White Canyon and across the northern tip of Glenn Canyon, stopping to take many pictures. Our next stop was Capital Reef, where we ran into a brief thunderstorm.
Thunderstorms in this rocky country are known to cause flash floods as there is nowhere for the water to go. Parts of the park were closed for this reason. What we were able to drive through was simply beautiful.
Leaving there we next drove through the Dixie National Forrest, reaching altitudes of 9000 ft and higher. From there we drove through Escalante Canyon. We had deep canyons on both sides of the winding, twisting road.
By the time we reached Tropic, Bill had had enough of driving in the canyons. We stopped for the night at the Bryce Inn, getting the cutest little cabins to stay in.
The next morning, Sunday, we had breakfast at the Hungry Coyote and made the short drive to Bryce Canyon National Park.
I thought Bryce Canyon was amazing, although the rest of my party liked Zion better.
We left Bryce shortly before noon and headed over to Zion. Along the way we drove through Red Canyon, stopping for more pictures, of course.
Zion National Park had the most unique rock formation and the longest tunnel for us to drive through.
We left there late afternoon and headed to Arizona.
We drove through the Kaibab National Forrest (pronounced Kybab) on our way to the north rim of the Grand Canyon.
Seeing the Grand Canyon had always been a dream of mine. I'm not sure why, but I have wanted to see it since I was a little girl. It was everything I had expected and more. My only regret was that we couldn't spend more time there. Bill and I will have to go back some day and spend our entire vacation there.
We stayed at the Kaibab Inn just a couple of miles from the Canyon. From our porch we watched the deer come down from the forest to graze.
Monday morning we drove across northern Arizona, back toward Colorado. We drove through the Vermillion Cliffs and stopped for breakfast at the Cliff Dwellers Café. Then over the Colorado River and on to Page, Arizona where we saw Glenn Damn.
Finally arriving in Colorado that afternoon and up to Mesa Verda Cliff Dwellings.
By the time we left there it was getting dark, and we were getting tired. We stopped at Pagosa Springs and stayed at the Holiday Inn.
Tuesday morning we loaded up the van and headed home, driving through Wolf Creek Pass and the Rio Grande Forrest on the way.
We arrived home late Tuesday night exhausted. We packed so much in those five days. Next year... One place, one relaxing place.
