Well, obviously I’m well behind in posting. It seems that we’ve been running from dawn to dark just about every day since leaving Angel Fire, NM after Debbie and Ashley got their hot air balloon ride on June 15. I’ll hit some of the highlights, then try to step it up and keep on track for the rest of our trip until we arrive home on July 6.
Carlsbad, NM (Carlsbad Caverns National Park)
After leaving Angel Fire on Sunday morning, we drove down to Carlsbad, NM. On Monday morning, we drove out to Carlsbad Caverns National Park and took the entire, self-guided walking tour that began at the natural cave entrance. Just like the last time we visited the caverns back in the late-80’s, we were well impressed with the caverns. We drove back out to the park in the late afternoon in an attempt to see the bats leave the caverns at sunset. Unfortunately, it appeared that a bad thunderstorm was moving in and, with all the lightening in the area, the bats delayed their exit and the rangers made us leave, for our own safety, of course.
Alamogordo, NM (White Sands National Monument)
On Wednesday, we left Carlsbad and decided to take the shorter route over the mountains through Cloudcroft, NM. It is a very steep and twisty drive, but Debbie and I drove it in the opposite direction last month, so I wasn’t too worried. As it turns out, that one specific day the road from Cloudcroft to Alamogordo was closed for road repairs. So, we were diverted north from Cloudcroft and it made the drive just as long as going through El Paso and took even longer.
Once we arrived at Oliver Lee Memorial State Park (which is quite pretty), we got set up and then headed down to White Sands National Monument. There, Ashley purchased a sled disc and we gave sand sledding a try. It was actually very fun, although tiring climbing back up the dunes after each ride. We then took a guided sunset hike with a very informative park ranger.
St. Johns, AZ (stop-over point to Flagstaff, AZ)
On Thursday, we had no real plans. Our goal was to reach Lyman Lake State Park near St. Johns, AZ and the only real item of interest along the way was another stop at the Very Large Array at the National Radio Telescope Observatory. Debbie and I saw it last month, but thought it was a good spot for lunch and for Ashley to see it. We then moved on to St. Johns.
Flagstaff, AZ (Petrified Forest National Park, Sodona, AZ and Grand Canyon National Park)
Driving northwest from St. Johns on Friday, we took a detour though the Petrified Forest National Park and the Painted Desert. It’s a very beautiful area and we spent more time than anticipated at all of the stops throughout the park. After reaching the north end, we continued west on Interstate 40 towards Flagstaff. Unfortunately, as we approached Flagstaff, we got caught in a hunge traffic jam that was caused by two semis, one of which caught on fire. We also heard that there was a fatality involved.
That delay put us into Wood Mountain Campground just outside Flagstaff later than we expected, but we still had time to drive the VERY twisty route along 89A, south to Sodona for a nice dinner on the balcony of a restaurant called Sound Bites that Debbie and I found on our last trip. The views of the rocks were amazing as we ate dinner while the sun set. We drove back to the campground in the dark, which was a bit scary.
Friday was our one day trip to the south rim of Grand Canyon National Park. We visited several overlooks and did some hiking along the rim, before finishing up by watching sunset from Mohavi Point. It was beautiful and we took many pictures. Then a drive back to the campground, including a stop for some very good pizza in Tusayan, AZ.
Hatch, AZ (Horsehoe Bend AZ, Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks, Grand Staircase – Escalante National Monument)
Saturday (22nd) morning started out with a trip to the Flagstaff Airport to pick up my sister, and Ashley’s mom, Julie Warwick. From there, we headed north to Horseshoe Bend, near Page, AZ. It turns out that they’ve now build a parking lot and are in the process of building a visitor center. Of course, that means that they now charge admission. After we got in, we realized that we probably could have used our National Park pass to get in for free. There were a TON of people there. We then continued on through the southern portion of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. The scenery is amazing through there. By afternoon, we reached our campground at Riverside Ranch RV Resort, just north of Hatch. This was to be our home base for a few days as we visited the parks in the area.
Sunday (23rd), we drove into Zion National Park. We took a walk from the Visitor Center to the History Museum, then took the park shuttle to two different hiking trails; one to the Lower Emerald Pools, with its tiny trickle of a waterfall, and the other to Weeping Rock, where there was actually more water falling than at the falls of the Lower Emerald Pools.
On Monday (24th), we visited the less crowded, and evidently less visited, northern section of Zion National Park, called Kolob Canyon. There, we hiked the Timber Creek Overlook Trail. It’s a very nice, but small section of Zion, that doesn’t get much traffic. There was hike there up into a canyon that I definitely would like to do some day, but we just didn’t have the time on this day. From there, we drove through Red Canyon (National Forest Service) with its red hoodoos, then on down to Bryce National Park. After going to several of the overlooks at Bryce, Debbie, Ashley, and I hiked down into the canyon. It was pretty deep and strenuous, but we managed to do it and the view from down there really highlighted just how incredible and huge the formations really are. On Tuesday, (25th) on our way to Grand Staircase – Escalante National Monument, we stopped at a roadside area that was part of Bryce Canyon and hiked a short canyon trail to Mossy Cave and a waterfall.
After we visited the Grand Staircase – Escalante Visitor Center, we took a 27 drive down a bumpy, graded, dirt road. Along the way, we stopped at an interesting area of rock formations called Devil’s Garden. At the end of our very bumpy, dusty ride, we hiked down into a very steep and hot canyon to explore Peek-a-Boo and Dry Fork slot canyons. Those were AMAZING. Peek-a-Boo reminded me somewhat of Antelope Canyon in northern Arizona. Dry Fork was much wider and deeper that Peek-a-Boo. After hiking back out, we took the 27 mile return trip on the same bumpy and dusty road.
Early Wednesday (26th), we returned to Zion where Ashley and I took on the daunting Angel’s Landing trail. If you aren’t familiar, please YouTube it. It’s a harrowing climb up a series of steep switchbacks to a point where you then hike a VERY narrow, steep and rocky climb to a most amazing view. Honestly, our pictures do not do this trail justice, so check it out YouTube. You’re basically waling along a narrow ledge with a 1,000 foot drop on one side and an 800 foot drop on the other. Debbie and Julie did some other hikes during the four hours that it took Ashley and I to complete the 2.6 mile long (each way), 1,488 foot climb to the top of Angels Landing. After eating lunch in the park, the four of us took the Riverside Trail up to an area called The Narrows, where Debbie and Julie hiked a ways up the famed slot canyon trail in the 46 degree water of the Virgin River. (Again, YouTube can be your friend in understanding this hike.)
Our trip is now scheduled to move on to Moab, UT on Thursday for a few days at Arches and Canyonlands National Parks and probably a visit to Dead Horse Point State Park.
LyndDebTravel 