Our last summer adventure

Mirror Lake in High Unitas

Our annual August trip to Utah was delightful, educational and productive. We left on a Friday morning and took the Las Vegas route so that Glen could meet with a client in Kingman. Since we were going that way, we hoped for a refreshing break watching the water show and viewing the flower display at the Bellagio as we passed through Vegas. Big mistake! Clogged, ever under construction freeways and our Friday afternoon arrival time made for snail paced travel. We actually made it to the NW corner of the Bellagio before we decided we were done and traveled west until we could find a somewhat major quiet street to take us north and back to the interstate. We did stop in Washington and have a short visit with Phil and Lynette. We arrived in Provo way after dark and in the midst of a lightening laced thunder storm. It was refreshing! We fell asleep with open windows and the sound of rain.

Next morning the cool air and misty clouds enticed us to head for Thanksgiving Point for a good long walk. It was lovely as the cloudy sky brought out all the texture of the many different plants not always noticeable on a bright sunny day. As the clouds parted, we also saw that the storm had left snow capped mountains.

On the way back we stopped and cruised the Provo Farmers Market at Pioneer Park. After showers, we went shopping for groceries for the week and supplies to fix a few things at the townhouse. We also treated ourselves to a meal at the Brick Oven. YUM!

We were early to bed after watching the Nie ascent to the "Y". We had decided on early morning church followed by a Sunday drive to the High Unitas and Mirror Lake for a picnic. It was a beautiful drive with awe inspiring views. We also found ourselves in mid-forty temperatures at 11,500 feet, so our picnic was pretty short lived what with burning fingertips and all. It's amazing what high altitude can do to one's body! We decided to continue on to Evanston, Wyoming and take the freeway back rather than follow the camping trailers back down the mountain. Thank goodness it was Sunday so that Glen could not in good conscience buy any fireworks!

These are the falls on the upper Provo River. The Unitas birth five rivers in all including the Bear and Weber.

On the way home, we took the back road into Midway and I found my dream house! It sits about a mile NW as a bird flies from my old dream house and just a bit north of Memorial Hill. Love it, love it! I made Glen turn around and go back so that I could take a picture. Now that is what a "grandpa/grandma" house should look like!

We loved Education Week. This is the best description I have read of why I enjoy it so much. We walk and walk and sit and sit and listen and listen and can't stop because we don't want to miss anything! It's a bit hard on the body but oh, so good for the mind, soul, and heart! I wish C Jane would put Brent L. Top's description on her Provo web site instead of a rant about how we all inconvenience her so.

Mid-week, Nate and Nichelle finished their drive across the country from Philadelphia pulling their new/old 1974 Shasta camping trailer. Pretty smart, those two! Why use U-Haul when you can buy a trailer which you can sleep in AND use to haul all your stuff. They spent Thursday collecting all their things left behind in the townhouse, visiting with friends, and preparing for their departure on Friday morning.

Believe it or not, they were so excited to be back to hot dry desert air! Aunt Lynette spoiled them silly on the night they stayed with her in Leavenworth, Kansas. She gave them the use of her bed AND made them hedgehogs!


We followed them home a day later after topping off a perfect week on Friday night with Glen's brother, Grant, as the Cowardly Lion. The Draper Historical Theatre was presenting "The Wizard of Oz." Wylene and ALL of her family joined us for a night of dining at Neil's and then laughing ourselves silly at Grant's masterful portrayal. The whole show was so entertaining and professional, even if Toto kept running off after knocking over the props! If you ever get a chance to see Grant (known as Ray in Draper) perform, don't miss it. The Wizard of OZ lasts one more week.

We had an easy ride home. We stopped at the Red Barn for peaches and treats before making our way to Kanab and Trail's End for lunch without one stop. Glen was very proud of me! I finally ordered their house speciality, chicken fried steak with country gravy. It was pretty darn delicious. But we were good and split the apple pie a la mode.

We had a whole new experience coming down from Jacob's Lake. There was a rolling dust storm, just like we sometimes see here in the valley, out across the Paria Plateau heading west in front of the Vermillion Cliffs. It was pinkish in color. After we crossed the Colorado River, we could tell that the cold air was just racing down the cliffs you climb going to Page and picking up all that dust. The wind was so strong that the RVers were having a hard time. We soon had rain across the Navajo Reservation instead.

Thanks to Dave for keeping the watering going at the home place. We had a fantastic week. In fact, we have enjoyed a summer full of wonderful weeks and weekends. Now it's time to get back into our regular routine!