The Singin’ Tourist in the SW USA (Afterthoughts)
It’s hard to believe that it has been a month since I finally made this trip that has been on my wish list for a decade. And what a difference a decade makes! I still don’t feel like I’ve fully recovered from the trip. Yet, I’m already contemplating one more venture while I’m still in Iowa. This time, I want to visit Glacier National Park in northwestern Montana. I was close to visiting it in the summer of 2018, but from Missoula I had to decide to go 250 miles due north to Glacier or continue on my originally planned route towards Seattle. Time and budget–and just finishing an incredible visit to Yellowstone NP–were the deciding factors. Now, though, I’ve got the option of taking Amtrak there or driving the Silver Bullet. It will be hard to leave the car and the freedom to change plans, but I admit that…
The Singin’ Tourist in the SW USA (Days 6 and 7)
Before I went to sleep Friday night, I noticed that my edema was pretty bad. Despite my hope, when I awakened, it was much worse. I had no choice but to decide to cut out visiting any of the three Colorado national parks and making a direct route home. Unfortunately, the WiFi access for my GPS was extremely spotty, nor could I get a Mapquest map routing using my smartphone. Below are two maps. The first shows two routes. Route one (the darker blue line) indicates a 24-minute shorter route than number two (lighter blue). However, if I had been able to see both options at the time, I would have taken the second route because it would have placed me on Interstate 25, which would have allowed me to set the Silver Bullet’s cruise control and saved my right leg a lot of painful wear and tear. Instead, I…
The Singin’ Tourist in the SW USA (Day 5)
Another beautiful day! This map displays all four national parks I visited during the trip: Bryce Canyon (I), Capitol Reef (J), Canyonlands (K), and Arches (L). I entered the Canyonlands National Park on Friday morning. It seemed like every time I pulled out of one turnoff after taking pictures, I would pull off the road yet again at the next one to take more pictures of the different scenes. I was also very fortunate that I could take advantage of the accessible parking that regularly placed me close enough to sites to either get great pictures or to get out and have a fairly short walk to those views. I’m not going to try to describe what I saw with words. Rather, I’m going to let the pictures express their thousand words. Oh, one more thing, as usual, clicking on any of the pictures in the galleries should give you…
The Singin’ Tourist in the SW USA (Day 4)
Utah has five national parks. I’ve previously visited Zion National Park, so my game plan was to try to visit the remaining four parks during this trip. However, one thing had to be taken into account. Utah is a big state in area, and the roads between the parks were not exactly direct or were they going to be interstate highways. My best hope was to reach two per day with the goal of heading to Four Corners Monument by late Friday. My luck with weather continued to hold. That’s an understatement. Even the days that started chilly enough to need a jacket warmed enough as the day progressed to allow me to shed the jacket.That morning, though, I needed to start the day wearing both my scarf and wool cap for additional protection. As I often do, I chose a scenic route through Bryce Canyon National Park so I…
The Singin’ Tourist in the SW USA (Day 3)
I was finally in the position to strike the Grand Canyon Skywalk off my list. My mother and I had visited the : //singin1.wordpress.com/tag/grand-canyon/">Grand Canyon in 2012. Although the Grand Canyon is a national park, the Skywalk is not part of the park system. Therefore, my senior pass doesn't cover the fee to visit the site.
I arrived very early, nearly an hour before the entry opened. Once I got in, the gentleman at the checkout told me that I was eligible for a senior discount, which was great, then that my walker and other personal items would have to be stored before I was permitted onto the Skywalk. They would provide a walker for my use, but this also meant that I would not have my phone and its camera. As you can imagine, I objected to turning over my camera since I use it to take pictures of the sites I visit. I have not idea why this policy was in place, but I decided not to continue on. With great reluctance and disappointment, I turned back and left.I did get a few pictures of the surrounding area to share:
[gallery size="full" ids="2064,2065,2066,2067,2068,2069,2070,2071,2072"]: //singin1.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/map3a.gif" alt="" width="338" height="333" />The eco-tourist in me tried not to think about all of the driving--or, more specifically, the gas I burned--and the physical wear-and-tear to reach this area without completing my goal. This is the chance I take, however, with a trip like this. At least it's all beautiful scenery, and the weather continued to be glorious.
My next destination was the first of four national parks in Utah. I based the order on the shortest route between each according to Mapquest. Based on that, my first stop would be Bryce Canyon National Park. The route, as would often happen between one park and the next, was not direct. I actually crossed back into Nevada and drove through Las Vegas a second time--this time giving me a daytime view of the city. Again, I was not tempted to stop and avail myself of its gambling facilities. As you can see from the map, I re-entered Arizona very briefly before actually entering Utah. Fortunately, about half of the route was on the interstate, so it took far less time than I expected. Yet I arrived late enough that I decided to get a few shots outside the park and settle for the night, saving my visit until the next morning. [gallery size="full" type="slideshow" ids="2078,2079,2080,2081,2082,2083,2084"]: //singin1.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/loudmusic.webp" alt="" width="331" height="314" />Gas prices continue to run in the $6.00 per gallon range, making me yearn for the lower prices I've been used to paying.
From a music standpoint, I was giving myself a steady dose of D'lair's Replays. I really like the songs on the list, and the music kept me in a pretty good mood despite the way the morning had gone.