A Cross-Country Driving Trip in Our Morgan

Journal Pages
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Preparation

The Caboose Run

Boise and Park City

Bryce and Zion

Antelope Canyon

Grand Canyon

Cumbres & Toltek R'way

Getting to Nachez

Nachez Trace

Franklin & Athens

Blue Ridge Parkway

Concours

Autocross

Virginia

Annapolis

Finger Lakes

Niagara Falls

Iowa

The Home Stretch

Bryce and Zion National Parks

Wednesday, June 7 - The drive to Cedar City

We got on the road at 9:00 AM and had Moggie's Bimini top up to protect us from the sun.

Leaving Park City, we drove to Cedar City - I took driving duties part of the way, to give Tom a break.  My duties weren't bad, but Tom got stuck with high winds and a hellish drive.  However, along the way, we got some interesting photos, which we hope will make up for the drive - these were all taken along I-70 in Utah.

    Moggie is ready to protect us from the high-altitude sun

    The long road ahead of Moggie.  We often forget how immense this country is. 

       We took these photos as we whizzed along I-70 in Utah.  Shades of things to come in Bryce Canyon.

    We were fortunate in that this rain squall didn't hit us - but we were close enough that the air smelled like a fresh Washington rain.

        More photos along the road on I-70 - what an incredible terrain!

Thursday, June 8 - Bryce and Zion Canyons

For as long as we have been married (33 years) Tom has talked about the trip he made with his parents when he was 16 - that trip included stops at Bryce and Zion Canyon National Parks.  He has assured me that they were incredible, awesome, amazing, fantastic...you supply the adjective.  He spoke truly!

We drove to Bryce early - it was actually a bit damp and cold.  On the way we passed through the Dixie National Forest.  Sadly, disease has wiped out significant stands of trees - I think pines.

Rather than take the free shuttle through Bryce, we decided to drive.  The shuttle only stops at the first several overlooks, missing our on the southern-most part of the park.

Below are photos we took from various viewpoints in the park (we didn't hike down to the canyon floor - I'm not sure our bodies could handle the combination of the thin mountain air and the very steep climb).

It was interesting to me that the views are so awe inspiring that for the most part, people spoke in whispers - almost like they were in some grand cathedral in Europe (there were exceptions, of course, including the mother with the little girl about age 10 - mom insisted that daughter take her picture with the backdrop of the canyon - and stepped over the barriers to ensure a dramatic background - would have been pretty dramatic if she had fallen the 2000 feet!).

I had not realized that Bryce, Zion and the Grand Canyons are all part of the same geological phenomenon - at one time this entire region was undersea.  Various events caused it to drain, leaving sandstone behind.  From there, floods and winds have carved the canyons.

The spires in Bryce are called Hoodoos - to cast a spell.  And they do that!  Below are the photos we saved (we took over 100 and spent a lot of time culling them out, but even so, there are a lot of them).

    Red Canyon

        Rainbow Point and nearby Yovimpa Point and Mollie's Nipple

        Black Birch Canyon and the Natural Bridge (actually a natural arch)

    A panorama shot at Bryce Point

                        Views at Bryce Point

    A panorama shot at Inspiration Point

    And a single shot at Inspiration Point

            Views at Sunset Point

After Bryce, we drove to Zion.  It wasn't a particularly pleasant drive - there must be a law that if you are going north on a bicycle or in a Morgan, you are going into a headwind, but a few hours later you can be going south on the same road and it is also a headwind.  It was rainy and windy and cold.  But. we are tough - we survived.

Zion is so different than Bryce - unfortunately, we had spent so much time in Bryce we didn't have adequate time to devote to Zion.  We took a few photos and headed back to Cedar City for the night.

            Several images captured at Zion

'We had a lovely meal at a little restaurant on the street behind our hotel in Cedar City.  This street has several B & B's and one restaurant, the Garden House.  The cream of asparagus soup was absolutely wonderful!  I had fresh salmon with a hollandaise and dill sauce and fresh asparagus and Tom had one of his favorites, swordfish ('pesce spada' in Italian) with a raspberry and chipotle sauce.  No room for dessert!