Shorter day today - - only about 430 miles. Stopped in Hammond, LA about 4:30 - - partly because Bob was afraid that if we went any further, we'd decide to just go the rest of the way (about another 310 miles). We are in what used to be a KOA Kampground, now an independent. It is nice, with lots of trees, grass, and a pond with free fishing. Can you believe that we don't have a single fishing pole with us? We must be getting old! The rain finally caught up with us - - drove for almost 4 hours in the rain this AM - - no really heavy down pours, just steady light rain. You could tell that east Texas has had a lot of rain as all the creeks are full, there ... read more

Lots of miles today - - about 440. Started day by driving from Willcox, AZ south to Chiricahua National Monument. The drive down is through a very dry desert devoid of trees. The road into the park from AZ 186 is only about a mile long. As soon as we entered the canyon, there were lots of trees, including a few pines. The rock formations were pretty spectacular with quite a few "balancing" rocks that look ready to topple over. There was a 29' vehicle length restriction and I was too lazy to unhook, so we didn't get to do the entire loop - - maybe next time. Drove back to I-10 and headed east. Ate lunch at the NM welcome center. Went through El Paso about 2:30 which was too early to stop, so drove ... read more

It has been awhile since we were last able to blog - - so this one is going to cover a lot of ground! Left Pahrump before 8 AM in order to beat the heat in Death Valley (it was forcasted to be 107). We were able to stand at 282' below sealevel and see snow capped mountains over 12000' high. It is only ~130 miles from the lowest point to the highest point in the continental US. We stopped at a big pullout on the way down into the Panamint Valley to cool our brakes and had lunch. That hill dropped something around 4500' in about 11 miles of curvy road. After climbing out of Panamint Valley, we stopped at Father Crowley View Point to take pictures of the road we had just driven down ... read more

Went to Bryce Canyon NP today. This is a really beautiful park! Very different from anything else we've seen. They had snow day before yesterday and a lot of it was left on the ground. The moisture seems to enhance the color of the rocks. We took lots of photos and video. The weather was clear, breezy, and occasionally a little chilly. Visibility from the pull-offs and view points was well over 80 miles. Charlie wasn't feeling well by the time we headed back to the camp ground and didn't have dinner with us. We had left a crock pot with chicken breasts, unions, and mild salsa simmering while we were gone. Boy was that good! In addition to Bryce Canyon NP we also went through Red Canyon NM. ... read more

Woke up in Grand Canyon NP to 17 degree weather, but sunny. We ate breakfast, closed up the trailer and went to all the view points between Grand Canyon Village and the East end of the park. Met up with Charlie and Kerry at about 11 AM at the east end. The panoramas were incredible!!! Even got to watch a boat run the rapids. The rapid was much rougher than it looked !!! See photos attached for an idea of what the scenery looked like. We left the park and drove north on hwy 89 to Page, AZ. After checking into a campground, we went to see the Glenn Canyon Dam and Lake Powell. Truly magnificent. Plan to go Zion NP tomorrow and then Bryce NP the day after.... read more