After 14 days, 4 states and some 2800 miles it is nice to be back home. What a fabulous trip we had to Utah. If I had to describe in in one word, it would be "Rock". I have never seen so much magnificent rock in my life. I'm still not a desert person - I'll take tropical rainforest, rain, vines and fragrant flowers any day, but I have to admit this was amazing. It was great to have 14 days with the biggest decision to make being what to do and where to go. Lots of hikes and bike rides in-between driving through some of the most spectacular scenery I have ever seen in my life. The trip was bookended with family visits at both ends; my sister Linda at the start, at her home in Grantsville, Utah, and my Uncle Doug's 70th Birthday party in Folsom on the last day.
It'll take awhile to go through all our pictures and edit them down for a photo album, but in the meantime, here are a few of my favorite images from the trip.
This has to be one of my favorite photos. My little birdie on her nest. Taken in-between Capitol Reef and Escalante on beautiful Hwy 12. Elevation here about 9500'. Click to zoom in.
Pine Tree Arch in Arches National Park. To get a sense of the size, the following picture shows the same Arch with Amelia sitting in it.
It's irresistable - you can't *not* throw a rock off Dead Horse Point!
Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park. There's something really serene about peering through an arch...
Just another gigantic Rock wall - from our campsite in Capitol Reef National Park.
From our campground at Red Canyon, outside Bryce. I did not alter the color!
Dave got some good Mountain Bike riding in - at Moab, he did the Slick Rock trail, and here at Red Canyon, he did the Thunder Mountain trail.
I'm convinced Disneyland's "Thunder Mountain Railroad" was modeled after this place.
Bryce Canyon. Technically not a canyon, as we learned from our Geologist Ranger friend. Pictures of Bryce don't even come close to the grandness of standing there viewing it in person. It's almost hard to believe you are standing on planet earth. I specifically included people in the picture to try to give it some scale. They're way down there at the bottom of the picture.
We three at Zion's Weeping Walls.
The guy who's afraid of heights sure likes to push his comfort level.
Stumbled upon this State Park in Nevada - North of Vegas; not even on the map. It's called "Valley of Fire". We did a hike which included prehistoric petroglyphs. Lots of them.
Merced River in Yosemite. Best I could do without a tripod.
I'm going to try something new - selling at a Farmers Market. I go to farmers markets all the time - it's one of my favorite things to do whether here locally or while traveling. Nothing gives a sense of place better than being amidst fresh flowers, fruit and veggies that came out of the ground mere hours before. Not to mention locally made cheese, tea, chocolate, eggs, fish and more. Then there's the people-watching. Occidental has the best. It's not just the Occidental Farmers Market, it's the Occidental Bohemian Farmers Market. Yeah, that's right.
