April 27, 2016

Zion National Park

The last time we were in Zion National Park was in July 2007. It was so hot that we didn't get to hike any of the long trails. We now have been back here for nearly a week. This time the weather was cold and raining on and off. But, we had a few nice days in which we were able to take in some of the trails. We both hiked the River Side Walk to the the Narrows, and Jerry also did a 4-hour hike up a mountain trail to Angel's Landing. Enjoy the following photos.


It took 40 minutes to ride the shuttle from the base to the last tram stop in the Park.

















We leave tomorrow for Moab, Utah, where we expect to explore the Arches.

April 24, 2016

First Stops on our 2016 Trip

For the last couple of years, we took numerous short trips in California and Oregon with no blog postings. This year, we are on the road again for a longer trip. Thus, we are waking up our blogsite and will be posting once again.

We started this current trip on March 25, 2016, and traveled from Pismo Beach (our new home base) to Playa del Rey, where we previously lived for 25 years. Now that we travel in a smaller motorhome (32' Allegro Breeze), we are able to park at Dockweiler State Beach. We stayed there for 10 days while we visited with family and long-time friends.





From the beach, we moved on to Temecula, California, the LA inland empire. We love Temecula and have traveled there many times, often staying for months at a time. We switch from staying at Pechunga to staying at Lake Skinner. Each has its advantages. This time we stayed at Lake Skinner for two weeks. What we love about that place is quietness, except for the coyotes who howl and cry in packs at night, but we love hearing them, too. It's nature.


Hot air balloons are common in the area. The above picture was taken from the front of our motorhome.

It rained a few times when we were there. Here is a picture of one of the on-coming storms we experienced.


Our friend, Marijean, lives in Temecula. Her husband, John, passed away in March. John was Jerry's long-time friend since they were in the Navy together some 50 years ago. Marijean took us, together with Bruce (Jerry's friend from grade school) and his wife, Dee, out to dinner one night at the South Coast Winery. Temecula is loaded with wineries.



From Temecula, we traveled to Las Vegas where we stayed for four days at Sam's Town.


While there, we took some time to run out to the Hoover Dam again. We especially wanted to walk across the new bridge, which we did. We drove past the bridge in 2009 when it was under construction and took the following picture.


Here are the pictures we took this time.
 

 








On April 22, 2016, we traveled to a campsite 1/4 mile from the entrance to Zion National Park. Our goal this week is to visit the Park and hike the many trails. Will post pictures next time.