Saturday 3 May - Grand Canyon

We are staying here in Flagstaff this evening and with an 0900 departure this morning was pretty relaxed. Breakfast was excellent with a great selection including plates cooked to order - I had a breakfast burrito. We had an interesting chat with Stanislava and Larry, the couple who originally came from the Czech Republic. They explained how it was possible for Czechoslovakia to break up peacefully - people did not want to fight. Quite a contrast to present day Ukraine.

Montana is a good guide who has studied the history and the wildlife of the area. He has a wealth of stories and jokes.  "There is a town in Arizona where it is illegal to walk your turkey along main street on a Sunday."

John Wesley Powell was the first white man to sail the Colorado river through the Grand Canyon. His account of the expedition can be downloaded for free from www.gutenberg.org.

The canyon lived up to expectations. The weather was wonderful with a cloudless sky although there was a heat haze. The different colours of the rock strata made some wonderful views. I had a rush of emotion when I first saw the scene I had last witnessed in August 1963.

 

 

Our first stop was at Grand Canyon Village and after a quick lunch we went to the Visitor Center. The contrasting colors of the rocks made for interesting pictures but I started to look for some foreground subjects, dead trees etc. to provide some additional interest.

The third stop, the Desert View Visitor Center was probably the best with wide panoramas and many fewer visitors. The Colorado river could be seen at the bottom of the canyon - it was hidden at the other two locations. For a couple of minutes Mary and I had the Grand Canyon to ourselves.

Colorado River

On the way back we saw the impressive Little Colorado river which runs through a sheer sided canyon. Almost as impressive as the Grand Canyon.

Dinner this evening was at Black Barts Saloon Steak House Musical Revue. The servers not only work the tables but also go on stage and sing numbers from musicals. The general noise level was pretty high but they were enjoying themselves, one girl even sang part of the Queen of the Night's aria from Mozart's The Magic Flute. Our waitress took my order for a margarita then rushed on to the stage to sing. Part way through she rushed back, delivered my drink then returned to the stage singing all the while. The food - steak/ribs was pretty good too.

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Friday 2 May - Monument Valley

We left in good time and went past the Navajo generating plant. This uses coal from a mine 78 miles away on the Black Mesa and Lake Powell Railroad, the first to be electrified at 50,000 volts AC.

This is scrub country with cattle ranching. We were lucky to have good weather as it has been windy and unpleasant recently.

We went around Monument Valley on a converted four wheel drive pick up truck. It was driven by a Navajo who was born in the valley. The rock formations are magnificent and, once again, the pictures will give a better idea than my words. The ride was pretty rough but we saw some great sights. There were several stops for pictures and in a couple of places for jewelry.

The guide took us to an amphitheater and gave a short demonstration of the double flute.

Petroglyphs

Demonstration of a double flute

Lunch was at a restaurant with a wide panoramic view of the mesa scenery we have just visited. I had a burger made with Navajo fried bread while Mary had country fried steak with white gravy.

The ride to Flagstaff took three hours through fairly uninteresting country. We entered Flagstaff on Route 66.The Embassy hotel is the best yet with very comfortable rooms, friendly staff, free internet and a free happy hour with snacks.

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Thursday 1 May - Bryce and Antelope canyons

Today is another one where the pictures will give a much better idea than my words could.  We set out from Springdale through Zion National Park. This third pass through was good because the lighting was completely different and once again very impressive. It was a long run to Bryce Canyon gradually climbing through varying country.  We ran for some time through a wide flat valley which contained a wildly meandering creek. The meadows were green  but the hills were dry. Rabbits were playing in the meadow. There was a field of longhorn cattle as well as some ostriches.

Bryce Canyon is a series of amphitheaters with wild rock shapes called hoodoos. The colors of the rocks varied considerably to make a very impressive show.

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Lunch was close by with the usual enormous helpings. The elk burger was nothing to write home about.

The run to Page took two and a half hours through mainly open country with the occasional rock outcrops, some of them highly colored. We stopped at the Glen Canyon dam visitor centre to see the dam and the road bridge over the canyon. We were taken into the Antelope Canyon in a four wheel drive van driven by a  Navajo lady who lived in Page with her husband and three children.  Once off the road we ran along a dry sandy river bed to the entrance of the  canyon entrance. She adjusted my  camera and then took us into the canyon. It is a very narrow slot which has been eroded through time into fantastic shapes. The sun shining through produces some amazing lighting effects and my pictures are surreal.

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Wednesday 30 April - Zion National Park

I think everyone in the group felt that one day in Las Vegas was enough - nobody seems to have gambled and several made the trip out of town yesterday to see the Hoover Dam.  We were all happy to meet our local guide, Montana, and our driver, Susan. Perhaps the best part of the Flamingo is the Habitat which is a mini bird sanctuary. The main draw is the flamingos but there were several types of duck, goose and swan, all in well manicured areas. We enjoyed watching a hummingbird which was trying ti get us away from its territory.

We quickly left the main part of Las Vegas but it took a long time to get out of the grotty outskirts.  We eventually found desert and made our way to Springdale. We checked in and had lunch at La Quinta hotel. The afternoon was spent in Zion National Park which is a  canyon with many amazing and  beautiful rock formations. The colors changed with the light and the  viewing position. We stopped several times on our run through to the other side of the park. At one point there is a tunnel in the sandstone which  contains several window openings in the sandstone. The bus had to be sent through specially because of its width. We turned around at the  checkerboard rock and returned to the hotel.  Words don't do it justice so enjoy the pictures.

We had a group dinner this evening.

 

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Tuesday 29 April - Las Vegas Strip

We returned to Ballys on the monorail and tried to walk through to Paris. These places are all built like rabbit warrens and once inside management doesn't make it easy to get out.

We finally found our way into Paris which has a lot of stores based on Parisien themes, boulangeries, bistrots etc., even the streets were cobbled.  However, the casino area was modelled around the bottom portion of the Eiffel Tower and the vast sky was lit like an approaching storm. We both felt highly claustrophobic and needed to get out in a hurry.

These mango jalapeno margaritas were very strong indeed

We found a bar with with a view over the street, Cabo Wabo Cantina. The mango jalapeno margaritas were very good (and very strong) and we also ate there.  On the street there was a constant flow of people trying to sell something or get people to visit a casino etc. One man was dressed like a roman gladiator with a mask. He was well  muscled and quickly stripped down to a small thong. He went up to all the women and flashed a fan which read "for tips". There were several batchelorette groups of girls who liked this and many pictures were taken of them stuffing money down his thong. There were many other people roaming around dressed up - Darth Vader, Spiderman, Ironman etc. The street was crowded with flatbed advertising trucks just going up and down, They advertised shows and escort services.

  

 Bellagio was very well done with pleasant flower gardens, a butterfly house and some ornate glass flowers on the ceiling of the lobby. 

A painting of plants at the Bellagio which was relatively tasteful

Later on we looked at Caesars Palace and the volcano at Mirage. 

 Most impressive was the Grand Canal which contained a miniature St. Marks Square and  a canal with gondoliers. This was inside an overall roof which was well lit to produce a sky effect even when it is night outside.  Very different to Paris.

A bright scene even though it was dark outide

Las Vegas is over the top. Everywhere you go your senses are assaulted with loud music, bright lights and different scents and people trying you to spend money. There was open drinking on the street and the police must have many problems at night.

Our hotel lobby

Time to leave - one day is enough.

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Tuesday 29 April - Las Vegas Monorail

The monorail looked to be a good way to see Las Vegas as it is on a guideway set above ground level. A day ticket cost $12 but this is good value beakng in mind one ride costs $5. We went to the end of the line north then returned to the other end. The views are nothing special as the line runs a little way south of the strip and although it advertises access to the main casinos and attractions this is by the back way and may be used more by the staff. The frequent trains are comfortable but the cabins feel a little confined and there is no view forward or back even though the trains are driverless. The ride was quiet but the concrete guideway gave a rough feel.

This seems to be the only train which is not overall white.

At the south end terminus

The stations are unattractive and boring

Tuesday 29 April - Helicopter to the Grand Canyon.

We left the hotel at 0500 looking for breakfast near the limousine pick up point. There was a 24 hour convenience store close by which provided sandwiches, fruit and coffee. The limousine was a little late and we had begun to be anxious. Check in at Sundance Helicopters was quick and informative and there was a good video safety briefing. 

We were on helicopter 62 and met our pilot, Steve, from Minneapolis, and the four others who were from Ohio. Mary and I were in the front on the way out.  There was a good view forward and the audio commentary through the headphones was well paced. The pilot also added some interesting information.

We took off and flew a couple of feet over the ground to the taxi way, hovering to let a plane past which was taxiing for take off. The view over the airport was great and we went across Las Vegas before heading out to the Hoover Dam which we circled so that everyone had a good view. Lake Mead was next and then we flew over broken ground gradually climbing.

Hoover Dam

We came over a high mesa then through a valley and into the Grand Canyon. The walls are mostly vertical interspersed with sloped sections where the rock is softer.

First view of the Grand Canyon

Flying through the Grand Canyon

We landed on a bluff over the Colorado river and had half an hour to explore. The ground was rough and uneven with much grey flat loose rocks. There were scrub bushes and several barrel cacti. Steve prepared a pick nick of grapes and baked goods washed down with California champagne and orange juice.

Barrel cactus

The Colorado River from the landing site

Take off on the return to Las Vegas

All too soon it was time to buckle up and return. This time we went alongside the canyon wall and up a side valley. The sun was behind us on the way back and we even saw some snow capped mountains. We flew in along the Las Vegas Strip and landed at the airport. Altogether we flew 180 miles there and back.

An excellent ride. There was a limousine waiting for us which we shared with several others. Among these were four from England, three from Lincoln and one from Market Rasen. They were astounded that we knew Market Rasen and more so when we mentioned that we stayed at the Advocate hotel - the lad's father owns the Advocate. We asked him to compliment his father for the duck on the menu and mentioned the gourmet chip butty they served us. Quite a coincidence.

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