Day 4 Richfield, UT

We had an unexpected stop in Richfield, UT today. We are about 3/4 of the way to Zion National park. I ran over something on I-70 and it blew out the left rear tire.  We will be getting it fixed in the morning. Meanwhile I am doing laundry and blogging while Tracy is with the kids downstairs as they get a chance to swim in the hotel pool.

We woke up in Moab, ate another crazy breakfast at the hotel and then headed for Canyonlands National Park. 

Utah is one of the most amazing states I have ever visited. The landscape changes constantly with every turn of the road. The terrain, colors, sky, weather change constantly and vary greatly.

A photo of the "Monitor" and the "Merrimack" my Civil War tie for the trip.

We hiked a one mile rim hike at Grand View Point. It was a nice morning hike which ended with us all having a snack at the end of the rim overlooking a panoramic canyon viewpoint from 8000 feet above. One heck of a family picnic.

We stayed on the Island in the Sky portion of the park which with a few side trips in the car is about 40 miles of driving. We hiked 6.25 miles today, with some uphill and semi challenging terrain to navigate. 

Oh the views! From the hiking trails to the pull off areas the views were spectacular. It was almost surreal being so high up and looking so far into the canyons below.

All in all between Arches and Canyonlands we have hiked about 18 miles. Total car miles from Illinois is sitting at around 1,700. As mentioned above Utah is an amazing state and the drive from Canyonlands to Richfield has been everything from mountains to valleys, forests to dry desert and every hue and color imaginable in the rocky landscape. I can't wait to see Zion tomorrow!

Day 1 Salina, Kansas.

We started our summer vacation journey on July 3rd, leaving home and traveling 580 miles for our first overnight in Salina, Kansas. After about 12 hours total time on the road (with gas and food stops) we are calling it quits on our journey west.

We stopped for a bit in Hannibal. Missouri to see a few of the Mark Twain sights. Unfortunately the town was packed for an annual festival weekend. We walked around town and vowed to return on a weekend this fall when it isn't so busy and crowded.

We walked to the Mark Twain Memorial Lighthouse. It is 54 feet tall, 200 feet above the Mississipi River and 244 steps to visit. There are names carved and written on the side of the light house.

Downtown Hannibal is quaint mixed with tourist stores and shops. When it isn't wall to wall people it will be a fun place to explore.

Missouri is lush and hilly with corn and bean fields mixed with livestock and fence rows. Kansas starts out the same but transforms into vast rolling hills of grass and sparse trees. Heards of cattle look like dots on the hillside as they freely roam the hills and valleys. The sun was setting and the shadows excentuated the shapes and lush green colors of the horizon filled landscape.

We are roughly 6 hours or so from Denver. I look forward to rolling hills of grass giving way to the Rockies! We will be traveling through Colorado tomorrow. Wondering what our 4th of July adventure will be like this year? We shall see tomorrow.