A Week of Winter

Before heading to the California coast, we drove north from Surprise, Arizona, to Flagstaff and the Arizona Snowbowl. It was cool, in just an hour, to drive from cactus and desert to ice and snow drifts. We skied for two days and had fun on this smaller hill, 10,000 feet above sea level. Our ski hills in Vermont might have more runs, but the highest mountain is just over 4,000 feet. 

It had been ten months since any of us had skis on, but we quickly found the runs we liked the most and had fun in the Arizona sunshine. Our hodgepodge of winter wear was just enough to stay warm. 

Next, we went to the Grand Canyon. Turns out, it is huge and very deep. Trev tested it by throwing a snowball (or four) in. We didn't hear it land. 

We had lunch in one of the canyon's original lodges. We watched a movie on the efforts by the Park to explore the area and encourage young people to appreciate the natural beauty of this unique landscape. Some in our family wanted to hike to the bottom of the canyon. Luckily, the majority still rules. Also, we didn't have our snowshoes.  

After a beautiful drive through the Painted Desert, we explored southern Utah. One of our serendipitous finds was these cool sand caves just north of Kanab, Utah. Definitely worth the scramble up the side of the mountain.

After a quick lunch, we headed to Bryce. This was a new park for all of us and quiet and beautiful. Unfortunately, pictures can't capture the uniqueness of the Hoodoos, which look like an impressive mixture of sand castles and gingerbread houses. Cool fact: the Paiute people who first lived in the area believed the structures were evil spirits turned into rock by the trickster god, Coyote, in punishment for their deeds, calling it the canyon of red faces and mostly avoiding the area -- which they called "oo'doo," meaning fear.  

After soaking up the views, we skated on a rink just outside the Park, and while Jo struggled with the rental figure skates (toepick!), Liz and Margaret had fun.  

Zion was one of the most beautiful parks we visited. We managed not to fall off the overlook and basked in the sun. 

We cruised along the relatively empty valley floor and hiked along the river to the slot canyon, the Narrows.

This was an incredible part of the world and one we would love to spend more time in. But just as some of us were experiencing "natural beauty overload," we headed to Las Vegas...