Sabbatical Roadtrip Day 29-30

An early morning drive got us into Las Vegas around 11am. We checked out Dave & Buster's for lunch and some game time. The boys were instantly on sensory overload! They were in the star wars simulator for at least an hour before we had to drag them out for lunch. We, by the way, had a nice peaceful lunch by ourselves! After quickly scarfing their food the boys were back at the games for another 3 hours. This was like chuck E cheese on steroids and we had the place almost all to ourselves! Finally we decided to check into our hotel and check out the pool. At 106 degree temps outside it was definitely needed! After a quick dinner we went to a show the Blue Man Group. It was really entertaining and the kids loved it. They handed out glow n the dark streamers and there was lots of confetti! Afterwards, we took the monorail back to our hotel and stopped for Haagen Daaz ice cream before calling it a day. In the morning we woke up and headed out for a good breakfast spot. We didn't really find what we were looking for so we opted for a donut shop and headed back to the hotel to swim. They had a little water slide which the boys were having fun on until the lifeguard let a large adult on the slide before the boys finished their slide. There was a collision and a small cut on Logan's nose. The hotel did there best to make it right by offering a bucket of snacks and talking to their staff about their safe waterslide practices. Logan eventually recovered and we finished swimming and then went for a late lunch. The heat was really too much for us. We visited the M&M world and then took the tram to Circus Circus to ride the roller coasters but our 3 blocks walk in 107 temps left us all drained. In the end we grabbed some ice cream and took an Uber back to our hotel. Another busy day!

Sabbatical Roadtrip Day 28

We woke up in Page AZ and ran out the door to see Horseshoe Bend before it got too hot! Logan and Nate both enjoyed running down hill to the viewing area. The .5 mile hike coming back was hot even at 8am! Nate kept our thoughts occupied by talking about Ninjago episodes he's watched and we were back at the car in no time. After a fantastic breakfast at the hotel we began the drive to the Northern Rim of the Grand Canyon. We drove through a little storm and even saw lightning! We were not sure what to expect from the North Rim, but our first view from the lodge left us a little disappointed. The South Rim has such a great view and you can really see the depth. However, we did hike a few short trails and really felt the grandeur when we drove all the way out to Cape Royal. We also saw lots of deer (some were near misses!) It was a great day, really exhausting too!

Sabbatical Roadtrip Day 27

Nate and I woke up early and went for a sunrise hike at Red Canyon. Ok, so it wasn't a big hike. The trail we took started at one end of the parking lot and ended at the other! It was time well spent though, just the two of us. We had a little snack watched the sun come up and then back to the hotel to pack up before heading to Zion National Park. Getting to the park was amazing. The east entrance had some amazing rock formations. We kept thinking, "and we are not even to the canyon yet!" The tunnel was super long, it took at least 4 minutes to drive through. In the canyon we realized you cannot take your car and have to ride a shuttle. It was starting to get pretty hot out so we mostly stayed on the shuttle (The hikes were all at least a mile long if not 2 or 3 and I was not up for dragging the boys up and back). We did one of the shorter hikes to weeping rock though and it was nice. We will have to return when everyone is mobile and up for hiking :-)

Sabbatical Roadtrip Day 26

Bryce Canyon was stunningly beautiful. If I ever have a chance to come back I would definitely put Bryce on my list! We stopped at the Visitor Center for our Jr. Ranger Badge Booklets and then headed out to explore. The road into the park is only 18 miles long. So we made it to the far end first and then worked our way to the beginning in hopes of avoiding congestion. There were some fabulous views, and we took a few short hikes. Logan and I hiked part way into the Sunset Trail but it was late in the day. I would love to go back with 2 hours and hike the paths winding between the "hoodoo" rock formations. Wow! We went back to the hotel to rest and grab something to eat. Somehow we got a second wind and decided to drive back out to Bryce for a sunset view. We were able to catch a short ranger presentation at a campground and see the stars without all the city lights.

Sabbatical Roadtrip Day 25

On to Canyonlands National Park! The park was about 45 minutes away from our hotel. Even at 9am we could feel the temps rising quickly. The first turnout at Mesa Arch looked like a pretty easy .5 mile hike. The hike started out with stairs and so Nate and I just went in our flip flops. We also didn't take any water with us! The hike turned into going through a sandy path with slippery boulders underneath. When we got to the arch (which was amazing!) we were thirsty! We learned our lesson and were more prepared after that little hike! There were many stops throughout the park. Each had a unique viewpoint. We are glad we visited but it got too hot to stay, on to Southern Utah!