The Trip Home

We woke up in time to get to the breakfast Buffet at the hotel. It was good in that there was something for everyone.

We then loaded up the car and checked out. The kids wanted to shop a bit and do one more touristy thing. Vince, Dana, Emma, and Amanda rode the roller coaster outside of New York, New York. We then stopped for a snack and candy for the flight home.

Finding the return for the car was interesting. I am glad we started early. We had problems at the gas station filling the van. The pumps would only do a few gallons then stop. Had to change pumps to top off the van or pay the outrageous prices at the rental place.

Everyone helped carry our luggage to the check-in. We wandered through security and way, way down to our gate. Kids snacked, a few read, and Vince closed out the blog.

It was a wonderful vacation. Our time at the parks was too short. Everyone had a good time and besides a few moments of heat related stress there wasn't a real bad time. The accommodations worked well. Theresa's plans worked great. Kudos to her for putting together this vacation.

We are now hanging at the airport recharging everything we can for the flight home. This will be the last post too...

Zion and Vegas

The day started like others, breakfast and a road trip. This time we were packing up to leave. The van was packed and everyone relatively clean.

The trip to Zion was mere minutes. The park was just 1 mile from the ranch. The checkerboard mountians were really neat. It wasn't until the last, long tunnel that we realized we hand't had the camera out the window!

We parked the car at the vistor center and took a park shuttle to the Narrows. The cliffs and shear walls were just incredible. The weather cooperated and our first hike was relatively easy. It was a mere 1/2 mile to the end of the narrows. We could not hike into the river due to the flow rate. We were slightly bummed but not upset about packing wet clothing to come home with. The kids still managed to play in the river and keep mostly dry. It was warm enough that we weren't too concerned about how long it might take to dry off.

The walls were filled with plants and flowers. In fact, we usually picked on the camera holder since they would stop to take a photo of a flower.

We decided to take the shuttle back to the lodge to eat but not before one stop. It was Weeping Wall. Vince took the hike by himself.

After lunch we hit the trail for Emerald Pools. There were 3 trails and everyone could take one or more of them as they all interlocked. The trails lead up to some pools and waterfalls. There was a lot of wildlife in and around the pools. The lower pool was being fed by a waterfall that you could stand under. Vince was the only one who went up the the top pool. He managed to injure his shin right at the pool edge - not on the rocky/sandy hike up or down.

Our last stop was the Human History Museum. Dana, Emma, Kasey, and Theresa went in to watch a short film while Amanda and Vince rested on the benches.

We then left for Vegas. We stayed at the Excalibur Hotel. The major downside of any Vegas vacation is the cigarette smoke. It came down to walking through air conditioning with smoke or heat.

In Vegas, after a quick unpack, we took off to see a few sites. Our goal was the fountians at the Belligio. One our way we say Elvis, Darth Vader, a storm trooper, Avatar characters, and more. The kids were a bit overwhelmed by the lights and sights on Vegas at night. It also didn't help that it was nearly midnight.

On our way back we got involved with a street magician. He was interesting. The kids were ready to head back after Emma and Amanda had thier midnight ice cream. Once we got back we decided to let the kids sleep in.

One more day...

Grand Canyon

Today was going to be a short day. We ate, packed, and hit the road. It was a 2 hour drive to the Grand Canyon.

Once inside the park we stopped for a picnic lunch. From there we hit the visitor center and then the Bright Angel Point trail. Just a short 1/2 mile to some nice scenic overlooks. We stopped for a few pictures to try to capture the size of the canyon. No one was up to a hike down into the Canyon since it would require going up hill on the return.

From there we hit the Campground Grocery to pick up stuff for dinner. We also did another short rim trail that went past the campground.

It was another 2 hour drive back. Amanda and Emma hit the pool while Kasey and Dana went and bought hoodies. We relaxed the rest of the evening talking about what to do for our limited time in Zion.

The Longest Day

What a full day yesterday. Yes, yesterday. We didn't get a chance to update the same day since we didn't get back to the cabin until after midnight.

After breakfast and a quick serving of indecision the kids decided to start the day wall climbing and doing a zip line. All four girls attempted 2 or more climbs. Emma and Kasey were the only ones who managed to beep the horn at the top of the second climb. Everyone had great effort and tried really hard. It was tougher than it looked and fingers, wrists, and arms quickly grew tired.

Then on to the zip line. Theresa and Vince decided to join the kids on this activity. All you had to do was walk off a roof of a three story building and you were off on probably a 50 yard line (probably longer). It went over the parking lot and mini ATV track all the way to the ladder at the end. We each got to do it twice. There are videos of everyone going down at least once including one were Vince tried to record the experience from the point of view of being on the line.



We then ate lunch at the cabin and packed up for the last hike at Bryce. We did the most popular of the trails in the park - Queens Loop. It was a 3 mile hike. From where we started you went down into the canyon about 500 ft. We walked amoungst the Hoodoos, then walked up 900+ feet back to the observation point. Though the scenery was, again, incredible I think everyone will recall the walk back up.

From there we took a quick drive through the rest of the park. At Rainbow Point, the southern most point of the drive, we got out one last time to take in the view and have a quick snowball fight. There were still drifts of snow around the parking lot. The kids made a tiny snowman which, after the photo with it, tossed him over the edge. They didn't even give him a chance to melt.

We were all hungry and decided to try the logde for dinner. Since the Laurent's didn't recently win the lottery we passed and went pack to Ruby's diner. It was OK food - everyone was very hungry. It was nice to sit and eat after a long hike. We then bought a few groceries for the next day, packed them, and went to a Ranger led talk.

The talk was very interesting to most. It was about losing the dark. They had awesome examples of why people should try to preserve the dark at night instead of flooding everything with light. From losing the ability to see the heavens to affecting animals and plants. The Ranger was very entertaining without being preachy and everyone seemed to get something out of it. We left there and went back to the visitor center. Oh, did I mention it is about 10PM right now? The park is DARK. Behind the visitor center they had telescopes set up. We check out Mars and Saturn. Saturn was being shown in 2 12+ inch scopes. You could see the rings, the shadow of the rings on the planet, and even one of its moons.

Theresa then drove us back to the cabin. Everyone just called it a night and hit the sack. Funny that when everyone is exhausted how quick everyone goes to sleep.

Riding in a car and on a horse

Today, in hindsight, was a little rougher than others. We had to get up early, eat a quick breakfast and hit the road. It was nearly 4 hour drive to Bryce canyon. We stopped and tanked up and ate a Subway sandwich on the road.

On the way to Bryce Canyon we had to drive through Red Canyon. The scenery looked out of this world. We didn't have any camera ready on the way in - something we were going to make sure didn't happen on our way out.

Once there, we hit the visitor center, watched a short video about the park, and asked the Rangers for advice on trails. Oh, and Theresa managed to get our ride time moved up too! Since we had moved the time up we didn't have much time before our ride to hit any trails.

We met our wranglers, Amber and Lindsey, and got a quick verbal instruction as how to ride the horses. Theresa was paired up with Ute, I was on Alice, Emma on 7Up, Amanda on Keyston, Dana on Jessie, and Kasey on Peek-A-Boo. Kasey's horse had another horse, Rocket, that was really attached to it and wanted to go along on the ride even though it didn't have a rider. In fact, oncewe headed out Rocket escaped from the corral and ran over to Peek-A-Boo. The wranglers managed to get Rocket back and off we went.

The ride wasn't through the Canyon but in the woods and along the rim. We spotted a few Antelopes who were keen on keeping the wranglers dog away from its fawn.

After the ride we all walked a bit funny for a bit. We streched our lages out by walking the touristy old western buildings they had set up. Once comfortable with walking we took the rangers suggestion and headed up to Bryce Point. The view was incredible. I am finding I am using that word far too much. Everyone was now getting short of patience. We figured it was due to not enough water, a sore hindside, an early morning start, and a not-the-best lunch.

We decided then to hit the road to Zion Ponderosa Ranch. It was another 90 min away. We stopped for groceries. Theresa had split up the list so each pair of kids could shop. They were in a better mood by then and looking forward to jumping in the pool at the ranch.

Once at the ranch, Theresa and I unpacked while the kids got in suits and headed to the pool. We then made dinner, called the kids to eat, showered, and called it a day. We have decided to let the kids sleep in this morning since we are not really in a time crunch to get anywhere.

We woke up a bit later this am since we didn't have to be ready for our shuttle till 10:30am. The kids had a HUGE breakfast since this was the first morning they didn't have to cook or make anything.

10:30am the shuttle arrived and took us to the Adventure Center. We checked in, got our life vests and loaded the bus. It was about 30 minutes away we put into the river.

Our guide was Sam. He was great. He knew a lot about the river. The first part of the trip was a little slow but it gave us a slight taste. We stopped for lunch and a short break.

The second part of the float trip was a lot more exciting. Sam gave the all clear for anyone brave enough to dive in if they wanted too. Emma was overboard in a blink of an eye! The water was cold! Soon after that dive we had a few splash fights with other boats. Everyone was getting drenched. We also went through a few other rapids and the folks in the front (ie ME) got more wet than others. Eventually we got to a calm anough area that anyone who wanted to go overboard could. This time all 4 girls went in. Theresa and I kept our wits about us and stayed mostly dry.

We hit shore and dried off before boarding the bus back to the hotel. Everyone was in good spirits. When we got back to the hotel the kids went into the pool while Theresa and I relaxed. I managed to get the laundry done so we didn't have to have a room with wet clothing in it.

After dinner we headed out to view some Indian Pictographs. There were two locations nearby so we figured we could do both and still get some touristy stuff in. Besides all the cool wall art we saw a set for 'John Carter of Mars'. A movie that was being filmed out here.

We finished the evening by walking main street of Moab and buying a few trinkets. We tanked up, ate some ice cream, headed back to the hotel, and packed for tomorrow. Not too many folks looking forward to a 4 hour drive but these places aren't that close.

What a great day. The kids got up, showered , ate breakfast, and helped load the van. We had to pack everything since we will be changing hotels tonight. So about 9am we headed into Canyonlands National Park.

We stopped at the visitor center to talk to a ranger and pick up a few post cards. The ranger gave us some ideas for hikes before and after lunch. Only later would we realize her insight and experience as we took her advice.


Our first stop was Mesa Arch. The hike was pretty uneventful but it turned out to be the only arch we could actually walk out on. From there we went to Whale Rock. This is like Elephant Rock but MUCH larger. We hiked all over the whale and an adjacent fin. The views from the back of the whale were spectacular.



From there we went to Upheavel Dome. We decided to stop for a lunch of cheese, crackers, sausage, apples, and more water. Can't drink enough water out here. After we headed out to the Dome. The hike, again, was great - not too strenuous but far from boring. The view of the Dome was great. We hiked from one vantage point to another. Our photos won't do justice to the trail or the view.


The last stop was Aztec Butte Trail. It was a hike up a tall 1400' butte. The indians used to store corn up around the rim. We headed up to check it out.

From there we headed back to Moab to our hotel. Right now everyone is heading to the pool to give their feet and legs a rest. Tacos tonight.

A side note: we have better Internet access at this hotel so I will try to load up
a lions share of photos to flickr.