On the road again

Zion national park has a no car policy for its inner sanctum. So we booked a room at the lodge in that sanctum. Our privilege was, that we could drive into the parking lot of the Lodge with a special red tag on our front window, along with the other privileged people staying at the lodge. The common folk had to use buses to get where we were going. Unfortunately to go deeper into the canyon past the lodge required us to join those commoners. Sight walking to dinner A view driving to the lodge This was our first encounter with high red sandstone cliffs all around. Dining al fresco staring up a thousand feet or more wherever you look, while on the lawn beneath your deck, mule deer and their offspring graze in the dusk that gradually envelops you into full darkness, requiring a flash light to walk back to your room. The turkeys at dawn Mother and hungry fawn On our balcony we have perfect night sky views allowing us to find configurations, but that requires us to buy anothe...

With Hansie showing proudly his amber engine light we traversed from east to west on "America's Loneliest Road". On certain portions the daily count of vehicles is 500 or so. Life Magazine unkindly coined the phrase in a 1980's article but the state of Nevada made it a tourist slogan. It seemed to have worked, because we encountered many a vehicle on this otherwise desolate stretch of two lane desert road. We detoured in the wrong direction to the city of Ely for 15 miles to get gas and it was good we did so because otherwise we would have run out of gas on this famous road. Although the next city, Austin, just over a high summit was in "gas range", the owner had permanently closed the station and left the premises. They show ruins of pony change station This is the road where the short lived pony express trail can be found frequently crossing our highway. History tells that the company, employing young unmarried men with preferably no family, on...

When leaving Groveland on our way to Reno Nevada on the 4th of July we found ourselves on really scenic, very winding roads through the mountains where once again we could not find words between us to describe the views. This is a very narrow CA state road Sandee loves these hairpins A mountain lake higher than Lake Tahoe Volunteer Fire brigade When we reached South Tahoe Lake the road was in both sides filled with parked cars and people walking miles from their parked cars to go to the beach. We decided to have lunch and ended up in an Irish Pub sitting in the shade outside sharing one of the better shepherd pies I can remember eating. Talking about eating, being on the road and loosing weight, becomes a real problem, and I already started this trip heavier than I should be. I promise not to tell what I weigh when I come home, only if I have lost weight, will I announce this proudly. Another shot at the lake The drive alongside Lake Tahoe was even better than ...