Day 9 - Breathtaking Moments

This morning we woke up, and sprinted out of that dang hotel room with no A/C. We dropped by the lodge for a quick bite before we went to catch the shuttle bus. Half of the South Rim is closed to private vehicles, so the bus is the only way we could tour that end. We only got in trouble by the bus driver one time, and I think that speaks well of our behavior ;) The only thing I can really say is....you have to see it to believe it!! So here are the pictures....

Don't worry guys....No Hunting ;) It's a National Park!

After we finished the tour of the Grand Canyon, we headed East across Arizona. We went through the Hopi Indian Reservation, and I could not believe what I saw. I'm not sure what these people choose for themselves or how important materialistic things are to them, but what I do know is that this place looks like a third world country. There were little shanty houses built with tarps and plywood. No nice vehicles....if there was a vehicle at all! There were no pretty yards with landscaping, no swimming pools, no swingsets, nothing!! We went for miles and miles before we saw a store, and it was a tiny gas station. It is the poorest place I have ever seen in the United States, and i've seen a lot.

Today was full of breathtaking moments...for completely opposite reasons. Funny how things happen...I will remember this day, and these people forever.

Day 8 - Wild Flames & Grand Canyons

We left BJ's house around 10:00. The plan was to head back up to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, and then East to New Mexico. First we got held up in a 2 hour traffic jam because of a back wreck, and then we were detoured 3 times because of a WILDFIRE! I mean seriously....a wildfire on our exit? What are the chances? We finally managed to get around that mess, only to find that another traffic jam was waiting on us...this time because someone can't keep their watermelon truck on the road. State troopers, truck drivers, Firemen, everyone was picking up watermelons. Shortly after the watermelon catastrophe we arrived in Sedona. I LOVE that town. We stopped to do some shopping and grab a bite to eat. A restaurant named Open Range (http://www.openrangesedona.com/) was our choice for lunch, and it was AMAZING. Beka & I shared fried zucchini & a beef brisket sandwich...delicious! We left Sedona & finally made it to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, but the sun was setting so we started looking for a place to camp. Just so you know...there is NOWHERE reasonable to stay near the Grand Canyon, and when I say near...I mean within 60 miles or so. RIDICULOUS!! We end up staying in a "less expensive" ($100) room in the park. So when we get to our room we realize that "less expensive" translates to "No Air Conditioning!!!". Yeah, believe it!. They gave the daughter of an A/C man a room with no A/C. "GAHHHHHH" is an understatement. I would've traded the TV & mini fridge for a window unit any day! Here's to tomorrow....may it out-do today by a long shot!

Day 7 - Love Muffin...& i'm not talking about Brad ;)

It was time to leave Moab. It was bittersweet...I was ready to start heading back east, but I was so sad to leave those red rocks. On the way out we wanted to grab some breakfast & had some shopping to do. We wandered into a little place called the Love Muffin Cafe. What....a discovery! They are organic & have everything from omelets to muffins. So good. I vote we get one in Live Oak....Immediately :) After breakfast & shopping we moved on to our next destination...Four Corners!! Here we come!!

Ok not so much...I mean we did drive all the way out to Four Corners, but look what we found when we got all the way out there.

Then it was back on the road headed south to BJ's house. She lives right outside of Phoenix, Arizona in the prettiest subdivision. Her house is beautiful and we so appreciated her hospitality. We went to the best Italian place for dinner, and finally got to do some laundry! YAY!!! Then off to bed....because tomorrow holds LOTS of surprises!!!

Day 6 - Trust me, we know where we are!

I have been getting up sooo early...Utah time is hard getting used to. So once again I was up at the crack of dawn. When everyone got up and around we went to breakfast at the jailhouse cafe. If there's one thing I realized about these western folks it's that they may not have sweet tea, but they can dang sure cook some bacon. Oh my gosh...It was sooo good! After breakfast we headed up to Arches National Park. I hadn't been up to Delicate Arch in several years so I was looking forward the the hike. The hike climbs 480ft in a mile & a half, but it's so worth it! Delicate Arch is one of the most amazing things i've seen.

After the hike we grabbed some lunch, and headed back out in the jeep

Our second day of jeeping wasn't quite as eventful as the first...It was way more hilarious. We did some fun trails & eventually came across a group of bikers. They were sooo lost..we had a map of the trails, so they looked at it and figured out what they needed to do. We were talking back and forth with them...just casual conversation when some guy on a four wheeler pulls up and starts shouting...."Everyone know where their at?"
ummm yes psycho we're holding a map....

"Ok is everyone ok? Is anyone lost?"

No crazy...as previously stated we ALL know where we are!

"Ok just checking to see if everyone knows where they are"

YES!! We know where we are, and we know we want to be away from you...go away! GOSH!

It was so funny...I was like did he seriously just ask us 20 times if we were lost?? Whatever....So we continue...We take a few more trails, and then we decided to stop at a tunnel through the rocks. We go through the tunnel, and who is standing there?...None other than Mr. "Does everyone know where their at?".

OMG do we seriously have to find ourselves AGAIN??? Leave us alone. We know where we are!! He goes on to tell Daddy that he's a tour guide, and blah blah blah...It was so bad & Daddy was literally standing there patronizing him. Tour guide had NO idea he was being made fun of. It was ridiculous. Here are some tunnel pictures. It was sooo cool as we were walking through...literally cool...like it was air conditioned. A good break from the heat :)

After jeeping we went and ate at Sunset Grill. Their food is always so good! They bring in different chefs from all over the world, and they never disappoint.

When we finished eating Daddy drove us up to a lake in the La Sal Mountains. It's beautiful up there. Thick woods & gorgeous white trees. It's like an enchanted forest. The only thing is that people camp all in the woods, and it's weird. Not the camping, but the people. We would drive by, and it was like they were all scared they were gonna get caught. A bunch of creeper hippies if you ask me. I certainly wouldn't wanna be left alone up there no matter how pretty it is. Here are some pictures. The sunset was gorgeous.

Daddy carved Beka's name in this tree years ago...We found it!

Day 5 - Playin' it safe is so overrated ;)

I woke up, finally in Utah, & ready to get out in the jeep. We grabbed a quick bite from Mickey D's, stocked up on water and food, and went to meet Momma & Daddy. We spent the WHOLE day out jeepin' in the canyonlands. Not many places I would rather be :)

So i'm not sure how many of you grasp the whole jeeping concept. It's not like your driving down a dirt road...You're in the middle of nowhere, red rock cliffs surrounding you, and you hope your on the road....because if not, good luck finding your way out. Sometimes the climbs are so steep you can't see the other side where you're supposed to come down....Normal procedure would be to get out, and go check the other side of the climb to actually make sure there's more road. Let's face it though...when has anyone with the last name of Touchton ever been normal? So here we are climbing, climbing, climbing....ok top of the climb...headed down. Front right tire touching rock? check....Back left tire touching rock? check....Other two tires touching anything?...ummmm no & NO!!!!! OH MY GOSH....teetering!! Literally teetering back and forth with a good 10 foot drop on the left side....Have I mentioned I WAS SITTING ON THE LEFT SIDE???!!!! I was having a breakdown on the inside...breathe in, panic, breathe out, tears, panic....but on the outside I was being very very very still. I trust my daddy completely....until he says "HMMM".....Ok, that is SO not what I want to hear at a time like this.

I courageously offer my idea..."SHOULD WE GET OUT?!"

How we were gonna get out? I don't know.

Why that would be a good idea? Not sure I have an answer to that either.

However....If my Daddy was worried....I wanted OUT!

All of a sudden he throws it into reverse, gives it some gas, & thank you Jesus!!!...It backed out & Daddy says "Man, I really didn't think it was gonna back out of that one."...Good to know Daddy. Thanks for saving that bit of encouragement until after that little near death experience.

I know the pictures don't do our adventures justice, but here's a little taste...

After Jeepin' we went to Zax pizza & then headed home to rest up for Utah day 2!

...and now we'll take a moment to recognize our sponsors

The Wild Wild West Tour is brought to you by John Wayne. He loves me! I mean look at his expression...It's love i'm sure ;)

Day 4 - Goodbye bitter cold, Hello red rock!!!

We pulled out of Ouray bright and early. Dad had so very kindly warned us about the road out of Ouray....apparently it's one of the top 10 most dangerous roads! We were really itchin' to get out there and try our luck ;) Ok so i'm kidding...I wanted to leave early so maybe it would be traffic free with no pressure...I mean hives aren't really on my list of favorites. The road was super curvy and very narrow, but oh my goodness was it beautiful?!! That's the dangerous part...You wanna look out the window so bad that controlling your vehicle gets put on the back burner. There was snow, and evergreen trees, and huge rock walls....It was amazing.

We stopped in Silverton to grab some breakfast & gas. While I was pumping our $3.09/gallon fuel, (GASP!!) I sent Beka in the store to ask about a good place to eat...We were a little hesitant to trust their judgement when Beka said the lady in the store said she needed to...and I quote..."breakdown and get one of those big computer type phones with internet". Ok I almost died laughing...she totally acted like she was gonna have to carry around a desktop computer in her pocket to make a phone call!! We finally decided to scope out the "Brown Bear Cafe" and it was delicious. So the lady clearly didn't know much about cell phones, but she definitely has her restaurants figured out. We had a yummy breakfast and were on the road again. We eased out of the Rocky Mountain scenery and arrived at our next stop Mesa Verde. Mesa Verde is truly amazing. The Pueblo Indians built their homes in the sides of the cliffs. It doesn't sound like much, but take time to look at the pictures. I think you'll be amazed at what these people accomplished with the little they had. Innovators.

The best preserved cliff dwelling

When we left Mesa Verde we were on our way to our Utah home of Moab! I could barely contain myself as we got closer and closer to Moab. We started to see red rock & it sounds crazy, but it really did feel like coming home....We had finally arrived & we were starved. We immeditaly met up with Momma & Daddy, and made dinner plans. Red Cliff Ranch was of course our choice for dinner...There are only pictures to describe this place because I have no words :) ...except that their ranch dressing i'm pretty sure is delivered by God himself....It's heavenly...On to the pictures...

MY 2nd HOME!

Red Cliff

Dinner on the terrace :)

....with this view!