April 26, continued.  Good heavens.  I know that by now that you think I am nothing but hyperbole, but today’s stint from Lake Powell to Zion was well worth confirming that impression.  To set the stage, yesterday at Lake Powell was just like being at Seaside FLA without the cute houses, sidewalks and trendy boutiques.  That is to say, it was pleasantly sunny, warm and made you feel kind of stylish, regardless of your age and reality.   By nightfall, we were ready for the air conditioner (a very noisy affair in the Airstream).

This morning, we were surprised to see a touch of rain and temperatures in the mid-60s.  Since we had a drive of only 116 miles, we were not in a terrific hurry to get underway.  We left at about 10 am and headed north on the 67 mile drive to Kanab UT.  We were astounded that the terrain changed as soon as we left Page, and continued to change around every bend in the road.  First, we came upon what is referred to as the Grand Staircase, a dramatic geologic phenomenon that looks just like it sounds.  Then we noticed a change in the predominant color of the rocks to a sort of light green, which Brad says is due to the copper content in the soil (I wonder whether he knows these things or if he is just making it up as he goes).  Next, a completely different kind of rock formation called toadstools!  Around the next curve, we came upon dinosaur fields and museums devoted to that sort of thing.  Then the windows fogged up and it started SNOWING!  Remarkably, it still looked as if the temperature outside the car was in the high 90s, except that the snow began to accumulate and covered the ground in nothing flat.  It was very disorienting, so as soon as we got to Kanab, and even though it was just 11:30, we threw up our hands, pulled into McDonalds and had Quarter Pounders with fries — just to regain touch with the real world.

A half-hour or so later, the world underwent another total transformation.  Just a few miles past Kanab, we entered Zion National Park.  The ranger checking our credentials at the gate was quite friendly, especially to Doris — which put us at ease, given all we have heard about how dogs are not permitted to exist in Zion except within unreasonably tight confines.  He told us (as we already knew) that we would be going though a one-way mile-long tunnel and that we would have to wait for a while for the traffic to get going in our direction.  The 13 or so mile drive before the tunnel was so intoxicatingly beautiful and more dramatic that ANYTHING we have seen thus far, that we kept pulling off the road at every opportunity to gawp and take pictures.  (We have vowed to come back this way on the way out.)  The tunnel was cool, but not as scary as I had anticipated, and when we emerged, we found ourselves on a series of switch-back curves that made a mockery of curvy roads in, say, North Carolina or a Nascar racetrack.  We arrived at our campground about five minutes after Richard and Polly, who had scoped out three campsites for us that are all together (as much as possible).   They brought drinks and goodies over to our Airstream and we watched the Braves game until Vickie & Rufus and Mara & Bill arrived.   We watched them set up camp and then all convened at Towed Haul for a Champaign toast to Richard’s birthday and our good fortune of being together at this wonderful place.  Given the rain and cold, we decided to eat dinner at a local restaurant and save our campfire culinary feats for other nights.  Looking forward to more good times ahead!

entering Zion National Park