Blog Mission

Barbara and I are traveling out west to California this year visiting many of our nations great national parks and state parks all along the way. During our journey it is my goal to share our adventures with you so that you can aspire to do the same one day. I enjoy feed back so please feel free to comment from time to time as I love to hear from you. For your information links are highlighted in yellow and the maps are interactive revealing our route from stop to stop.

Doug Peterson

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Homolovi State Park, Winslow, Arizona



Homolovi State Park is located just outside Winslow on the high grasslands of northern Arizona next to The Little Colorado River. Homolovi is home to the 14 century ancestral Hope tribe and is full of artifacts from that time period. Pottery, artifacts and remnants of their homes are throughout the park as well as replicas of their ancestral homes. The visitor center is a museum featuring their culture spanning centuries with many great exhibits. We found the campgrounds to be quite nice with full hookups, clean restrooms and a view of high plains which seem be to limitless. 

Visitor Center




 
Replica of a 14th Century Hopi Home

Hopi Clay Pottery Artifacts

Bank of The Little Colorado River

Hopi artifacts display at the Visitors Center

 We also visited Winslow, AZ which is famous for the highway which goes through the center of town, old route 66. Winslow is also famous for the second verse written by Glen Fry and Jackson Brown for the song Take it Easy by the Eagles. The verse is " Well I'm standing on the corner in Winslow, AZA statue of Don Henley is in the middle of town honoring the 1972 bill board 100 hit and is a most place to take a portrait.






Homolovi State Park


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Saturday, September 7, 2013

Grand Canyon National Park, North Rim & Best Friends Animal Sancturary, Kanab, Utah


We left Zion National Park and stopped by Best Friends in Kanab, Utah on our way to the Grand Canyon north rim. We toured Best Friends and saw some great kittens to adopt but alas we felt as if we had no capability to do so as our camper and car were full of our camping gear providing little space to accommodate such a task. On the way in to The Grand Canyon north rim we experienced rain which let up a bit for our set up at the north rim camp ground. The monsoon season is in full swing here making it difficult to experience the many views the park has to offer. We did our best between rain showers to explore Bright Angel point near the North Rim Lodge.  We have two days here and hopefully the weather will break and provide up with more exploring opportunities. North Rim Lodge is comfortable and a camp store near us provides us with a place to hang out, shower and do laundry. 



Best Friends Visitor Center


Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, Kanab, Utah 






Campsite near North Rim


Barbara hiking near Bright Angel Lodge


Bright Angel Point Trail


View of the Grand Canyon from Bright Angel Point



View Point overlooking The Grand Canyon from Bright Angle Lodge



View Point overlooking The Grand Canyon from Bright Angel Lodge


Barbara and Doug at the same view point as the image above



On our second day at the North Rim of The Grand Canyon we rode out to Imperial Point but with little views as the weather was poor only giving us brief breaks to see limited views. Such is the timing of our experience as mother nature determines the conditions at any given moment making it natures choice.







Sun peaking out at Point Imperial



View into the Grand Canyon from the Bright Angel Trail



Lunch at North Rim Lodge


North Rim Lodge




After leaving at the North Rim of The Grand Canyon we traveled past the Vermilion Cliffs, to Marble Canyon where the Navajo Bridge crosses the Colorado River over Marble Canyon. We stopped at a Rock House before Marble Canyon where the Navajo Indians had a stand set up to sell native American jewelry. 


Vermilion Cliffs







Colorado River Gorge



Navajo Bridge over the Colorado River


Worker inspecting the Navajo Bridge far above the Colorado River


Not for the faint of heart


Rock House near Marble Canyon


Navajo Indians native art for sale


Grand Canyon National Park, North Rim
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Thursday, September 5, 2013

Zion National Park

Barbara and I are having a wonderful time at Zion National Park. Zion is one of our favorite national parks  with amazing scenery and convenient transportation to all the highlights of the park. We have electric which is a treat after almost three weeks dry camping. The sandstone formations created by the waters of the Virgin River are master pieces of mother nature. We walked the narrows marveling at the sheer canyon walls above us. From Zion we journey to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon for three nights and two days where we will meet up with our dear friend Ron from Page, AZ.


Zion National Park


The Three Patriots


Beautiful and Majestic Zion National Park


The Virgin River



Barbara on the bank of the Virgin River Narrows




Hiking down the Narrows


Weeping Wall



The Great White Throne



Zion Visitor Center



The Great Arch



Weeping Wall




View of the Virgin River from the Emerald Pool Trail



Buck Deer near Angels Landing



Flower by the Narrows Trail



Emerald Pool Hike




Checkerboard Mesa




Zion mile long Tunnel leading to the Zion Valley




Canyon View Trail




Cool rest place on Canyon View Trail




Zion Valley from Canyon View Trail View Point







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