Friday, February 16
Walk to T station. Lady in front fumbling with coins, so I miss the entering train. I almost glare at her, but realize, “it’s ok”. Arrive at Government Center Station at 9:10am. Lynne arrives in five or ten minutes. Take Blue line to Airport, Massport bus to Terminal C. Get ATM money. Walk to Gate 43. It’s actually in Terminal B! Issue of only one carry-on allowed, so Lynne consolidates her two bags into one, and carries my Grid as a shoulder bag. It works.
Easily exchange seats so we can be together in 9D and 9E. 9F is a young women working for DataSources. She HAS heard of CodeGen. Uneventful flight. Lynne has chicken, while I circular lasagna. Pilot does wheelies over Lake Powell and the Grand Canyon so we can see.
Land on time, but sit for 10 or 15 minutes waiting for a gate. Crowded LAX terminal. Load our stuff in a locker (after trying several places to get change for a $20) near Gate 77. Walk outside. Take a right, and see some actual blooming flowers (Birds of Paradise?). Smell the soil, etc. It’s not the same as 65 degrees in Boston in February (if that ever happens).
Call Eileen, with both of us talking to her (not at the same time, however). Up to top of parking garage to see what we can see (not too much). Then back to terminal. Get muffin, milk, candy, newspaper. Go to Gate 81, and then to 82B. A zoo. Enormous person Lynne sees. Black man selling wife’s poetry for $13.00. Ugly‑American executive jerk that I see trying to get to Portland non‑stop, verbally abusing UA gate person.
Ninety minutes late, we board our plane. Very short flight to Las Vegas. Start to descend as soon as we reach our cruising altitude. At Las Vegas airport, immediately see slot machines everywhere in the terminal. Ride a little shuttle train like Atlanta and Tampa. Go directly to Hertz bus. Find car (H.Mensch on the electronic sign).
Drive with a few almost false turns up I‑15 to “The Strip”. Park in Free Parking. Walk into the Tropicana. Look around briefly. Check out the food. Too pricey. Leave, go back to car (always looking for a familiar face), and go to a Hamburger joint (InAndOut Hamburgers?) at intersection of Tropicana and I‑15. Excellent hamburgers.
Call Eileen again (no answer), and Lynne makes a call, talking for a while, with me finally anci‑izing, but Lynne graciously not getting upset. I also call ahead and make reservations at a motel in Springdale, UT, just south of the entrance to Zion National Park. Man says he will leave key to Room 8 in key box, and goes to great pains to give directions.
We drive northeast out of Las Vegas on I‑15, climbing all the way. Speed limit 75 in Nevada portion. When we cross briefly into the northwest corner of Arizona, we pass through the Virgin River Gorge. Too bad it’s dark. The problem with February travel is lack of daylight.
Then cross border into Utah. Immediately see State Police several times (speed limit, Dick!). Get off I‑15 at Rt. 9 and head east. Stop at a supermarket in Hurricane. Get more film, snacks (including Apricot‑Peach no‑fat Cobbler), and Apple Beer.
Drive on into Springdale. Near our destination at 11:00pm we encounter a line of tied‑together bed sheets completely across the road. I screech to a halt. We don’t know what to do. Turn around and start to drive back slowly. Another car comes, and we turn around and follow him. He blasts through the barrier, never even hitting his brakes! We get to motel, find the key, and retire for the night.
Saturday, February 17
Wake up around 9:00am EST. Outside, these wondrous stone mountains. Lynne notices the sign on the Motel Office: “back at 9:00am”, but it’s MST! So, I write a note, leave my business card and the key in the key box, and we pack and leave. (I haven’t signed the VISA statement).
We enter immediately into Zion. It is simply wonderful! We take the left turn, and head up the canyon. Lynne admonishes that we take our time, and not be consumed by trying to “do everything”. So I adopt this new and foreign (to me) world‑view. We stop at the Weeping Rock. Climb around a bit. Lynne fords the stream. Before leaving, Lynne fills out a form found in the “Animal Sightings” box, stating that she had encountered a mule deer wearing hiking boots and a Hawaiian shirt.
We then head further up the canyon, stopping often for pictures. Lynne needs to run out her black and white film, because the color here is too wonderful not to record. Get to the very end of the road. See a group (pack? pride? family?) of mule deer. No hiking boots or Hawaiian shirt, however. Attempt closeup pictures. On way back out of the canyon, shots of cacti. Then make the left turn onto Rt. 9, and head up the switch‑backs to climb out of the canyon. Amazing views. Zion is a wonderful place!
Get up to the tunnel. Stop in the middle (very illegal!) so Lynne can take some pictures through the tunnel windows. Much adrenaline. Then go back through so I can take a picture through the tunnel window. Then back through again because we really are heading east. Stop several times for pictures along the many switch backs after the tunnel while leaving Zion. At the gate, after WC, Lynne takes off across the dry stream bed for an extended walk. She comes back and offers to take the pictures of a couple with a child who stopped to take a picture of the entrance sign.
Get out to Mt. Carmel Junction, and head north toward Bryce on US89. Suddenly Lynne remembers she left he necklace on the door knob of our motel back in Springdale. Stop to call, but the line is busy. Drive another 20 minutes. Call again. This time the proprietor answers. He walks over with his cellular phone and finds the necklace. He agrees to send it to us in the mail.
Back onto US89 up to Rt. 12. Take right, and head up the road to Bryce. Pass through Red Rock Canyon. Arrive at Rt. 63. Take right. Stop at Ruby’s Inn. Shop. Eat. Shop. Buy some more food. Check about horse rides. Lynne really wants to ride the horses, but I drag my feet. So off we go into Bryce (in our car).
Stop at Sunset Point. Unbelievable, interesting beauty. Lynne decides to take a hike down into the canyon. I stay on top. Many pictures. Once Lynne returns, we go to other lookouts. At one, there are a couple of Ravens. Lynne takes a bunch of closeups. Feed some Apricot‑Peach (non‑fat) Cobbler. Raven takes the longest time swallowing it!
We drive down as far as the Natural Bridge viewpoint. Stop at a few more on the way back. At the last lookout, while Lynne writes some post cards, I talk with a German (born in 1943) tourist. We have a long conversation, some in German, and some in English. A wonderful moment.
On the way out, we stop at the Visitor Center, buy some more postcards, and leave the Park. Stop again at Ruby’s Inn for gas and more shopping. Then on our way. Stop at the Red Rock Canyon for pictures. Lynne climbs up a good way for a closeup view. Then back onto US89 for the trip south to Kanab. Decide to go only as far as Page today.
Gorgeous scenery everywhere. At Kanab, find a Mexican restaurant. Eat. Walk to a grocery store for film and cookies (fat free!). Now dark. Drive on to Page, occasionally seeing large stone formations in the headlights along the road side. Arrive at Glen Canyon Dam at about 9:00pm. Look around for a few minutes. Then up to Page. Drive around town. All the motels in one place. All the churches next to one another! Incredible. Finally locate “the cheapest motel in town”.
The guy at the desk is quite talkative. He tells us about Page (founded 1957), and Lake Powell. He urges us to visit the Antelope Canyon, a “slot” canyon. Just pay the Indian $5 to drive us in on 4‑wheel, he says.
Sunday, February 18
Up at 8:00am. Drive over to Glen Canyon Dam. Ride elevator down to first level, and take some pictures. The young women at the Visitor’s Center gives us directions to the Indian at Antelope Canyon. Go south on US89 out of town. Take the left after Haul Road. Go to milepost 299. So we go. Nobody there. They will be there from 10:00am to 2:00pm, the sign says.
Go back to a Navajo store. Talkative woman (originally from Connecticut) tells us that a group is going in to Antelope at 9:30am (photographers). So we head back. Pick up two hitchhiking Indian woman, but they want to go 36 miles. So we drop them at the Antelope Canyon gate. Find out it is $15, not $5. Negotiate with Byron, a young, articulate Navajo.
Ride in with one group of three photographers, and another woman with a tripod. Bounce our way over the wash about three or four miles in Byron’s 4WD to the Canyon entrance. Byron says he’ll wait for us. Go through. Amazing place! Narrow. Various shades of orange and brown, and light and darkness. Step around the professional photographers to get to the end.
Byron comes through and we strike up a conversation. Talk all the way back through the canyon to our car. Very interesting person. Tells about his experiences in the Navy, in various places in Southeast Asia. Tells about the floods in Antelope Canyon (upper, lower). Got to be careful, even when there is no rain overhead. He gives us advice about buying Indian jewelry.
Get back on US89, and head south towards Cameron. Wonderful vistas. Stop at several Indian roadside stands. At Cameron, buy food from General Store. Go into another store to purchase gifts. Then on up Rt. 64 west towards the Grand Canyon. Stop at a couple more roadside stands. Finally, Lynne DOES buy a bracelet, disregarding Byron’s advice! Then, on to Grand Canyon.
At the first lookout (Desert Point) we are both somewhat tired. Stop at many of the lookouts along the way, taking pictures and trying to actually look. The juxtaposition of immensity and silence at this place can only be experienced, not described. Quite a few German tourists everywhere. Lynne walks a way down the trailhead at Kaibab trail.
Get to Bright Angel Lodge. Walk down trail to tunnel. Then stop at Kolb Studio. Woman just closing, but allows us in and explains about the place. Then we go up to the lodge and buy postcards.
Go to final lookout just beyond Bright Angel. Watch the sunset reflections on the canyon. The various shadows and lightness is wondrous to behold. Then, we sit in car and write postcards. Mail at Bright Angel Lodge, calling Wendel for Brad’s address.
Leave Park. Stop at commercial area just outside Park. Buy food instead of eating at a restaurant. Drive down Rt. 64 towards Williams. See car breakdown at milepost 208. Get gas at Williams. Onto I‑40 west. Speed limit 75. At one point, passed by truck when I’m going 85 uphill!
Get off I‑40 at Kingman. Drive around a little bit. Much changed in 10 years since I was last there. The up Rt. 93 towards Las Vegas. Much of the road is now four lanes. Stop at Boulder Dam. Get out (illegally park) and look around. Don’t see any mountain goats. Get back on the road toward Las Vegas. At crest of hill in Henderson, we suddenly see the lights of the entire valley. It is surreal.
Then on into Las Vegas. Look for motel. Every room in town taken, we are told. Go into Tropicana to look for a phone. Still no familiar face! Go to several other places ‑‑ no room. Finally try at Howard Johnson’s, near airport. No room, but try Days Inn. YES! At 1:30am PST, we get a room. Lynne WANTS to jump in pool, but “nooo”, says I.
Monday, February 19
Up at 6:20am. Check out. See Las Vegas in daylight for first time. Wonderful mountain views amidst the glitter of this strange city. Return rental car. Drag our stuff to Gate C9. I do work on this journal.
Fly to San Francisco. Overcast. We have two hours, so attempt to walk out of airport, after checking stuff in locker. Can’t get out ‑‑ “no pedestrians beyond here” sign. Get picked up by Avis woman. Get off at Hilton. But this isn’t REALLY out of the airport, so it doesn’t count. Take shuttle back and wait for Hyatt shuttle, because the Hyatt is really off‑airport. Take shuttle to Hyatt. Lynne makes phone call, and then we go back to our gate.
Uneventful flight. At Logan, Eileen there to meet us. Ride Massport, Blue Line and Green Line to Park Street. Part with Lynne on center platform. When we get to T station, Brendan is there as if waiting for us! Family reunion. (He was waiting for a ride to his band rehearsal). At home, Jupie (the cat) demands Eileen’s attention.
Flight arrangements:
Fri, 02/16 BOS – LAX UA162
1020 1337
LAX – LAS UA2162
1610 1708
Mon, 02/19 LAS – SFO UA2310
0755 0912
SFO – BOS UA32
1130 1958
UA (800) 241-6522
Driving Distances
Las Vegas to St. George 110mi
St. George to Zion 43mi
Zion to Mt. Carmel Jct. 24mi
Mt. Carmel Jct. to Bryce 57mi
Bryce to Mt. Carmel Jct. 57mi
Mt. Carmel Jct. to Kanab 17mi
Kanab to Page 85mi
Page to Cameron 84mi
Cameron to Grand Canyon Vil 57mi
Grand Canyon Vil to Williams 54mi
Williams to Kingman 114mi
Kingman to Bolder City 83mi
Bolder City to Las Vegas 19mi