Third Leg...

We got up Thursday, packed up our campsite and "got on the road." We drove from the middle of the Grand Canyon National Park to the east end and stopped to have breakfast at the little cafe near the Watchtower before we drove into the wilds of the south west. It is amazing how long the Grand Canyon is... even after leaving the park you drive for miles before you can turn north.

And turn north we did. We got to Page, AZ (where Lake Powell and a whole bunch of other stuff is) about 1pm. I desperately wanted to take a shower and lay down for just a little bit, but alas our hotel wouldn't let us check in until the designated 3pm check-in time. So... we drove over to the strip mall where the visitor's center is located, ate a quick lunch and got information about several things to do. The coolest looking thing to do (Antelope Canyon... they are amazing, well photographed slot canyons in a nearby mesa) cost over thirty dollars a person because they are on Navajo land and you have to be escorted by a guide... yeah, we weren't digging paying that much this far along in our trip.

So, we chose to drive back south just a few miles from town to go the Horseshoe Bend look-out. It's a place in the Colorado River that literally does a horseshoe bend on itself... over 1000 feet below you. And there are no rails or fences to keep you from seeing the horseshoe bend up close and personal. I snuck as far out as I dared, took one picture and then went and sat in what little shade I could find. Reid wandered around it a little bit, took some more pictures and then proved that being thirty is not too old to be a "little boy" at heart....

Isn't the bend amazing? It certainly made my palms sweat a little standing that close to the edge though...

A raven who was also hot...

Me in the tiny bit of shade I could find... the Grand Canyon had worn me out!

Reid... standing on the shady spot. And yes, of course, it was the highest point around.

The gorge of the Colorado River behind us.

By the time we got done at the look-out it was 3pm. We picked up our room key. I showered and then enjoyed laying around watching tv for a few hours. As we don't have any television reception at our house, even just watching mindless tv can seem like a vacation!

We finished the evening off at a restaurant called the "Blue Buddha," a Japanese sushi restaurant in the middle of the desert! It had a nice trendy but friendly vibe and we had a delicious meal.

The next day we got up late (yey for 11am check outs!) and drove slowly (at one point very slowly as the traffic had been closed to one lane and we sat in stopped traffic for almost an hour) to Cortez, CO. We checked into our hotel, lounged around for awhile and then had dinner at Koko's, a sports bar/grill right across from our hotel. Next stop before our return home... Mesa Verde!