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Southwest 2015 – Zion, Images of a Winter Dreamland
Monday, December 14th, 2015 Julia and I awoke on what would be our very last day in the town of Springdale. For the last few days, we waited patiently for a snow storm to hit that we had been hearing about all week long, but it never came, that is until we looked out the window this morning. It was snowing and the mountains were covered in it! This seriously could not have been better timed. Rather than pack up, check out, and go home, we stayed for the day and spent our last hours here exploring through a new snow covered Zion. With our camera gear mounted up and…
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Southwest 2015 – Lazy Sunday at the Virgin River
Sunday, December 13th, 2015 Julia and I woke up super late today. We were very sore from all the resistance hiking through The Narrows yesterday so today was definitely going to be a lazy Sunday for us. Our knees were aching, but our attitudes remained positive as we slowly made our way out of the hotel and on to another small venture for the day. We didn’t want anything too crazy, so we settled on a casual walk along the Virgin River just south of the main entrance to the park. It was practically lunch, so we grabbed a quick bite at Cafe Soleil since it would be our last…
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Southwest 2015 – Journey Into the Narrows of Zion
Saturday, December 12th, 2015 When the alarm went off this morning, we wasted no time in getting breakfast, showering up, and gathering all our camera gear for today’s adventure. This was not the typical day of hiking or photo venturing, it was an epic voyage into the Narrows of Zion. Julia was excited and so was I. Once we had all our stuff together, we drove to the Zion Adventure Company to get a crash course on the Narrows including navigation and what to do in case the water level rises suddenly due to a flash flood. After watching the short video brief, we got all our rental gear and suited…
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Southwest 2015 – Riverside Walk and Journey to the Overlook
Thursday, December 10th, 2015 After the long drive from Page via U.S. Route 89A, Julia and I were exhausted so we crashed pretty hard last night and woke up a bit on the tired side, but that didn’t stop us from heading downstairs at 6:30 a.m. to get our mittens on some of the Holiday Inn Express’ complimentary breakfast which I have to say was not that bad at all compared to some of the more awful complimentary breakfast options I’ve experienced at other places I’ve lodged at. We didn’t have much in mind for today, so Julia and I talked about what we should do. She had mentioned the…
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Southwest 2015 – The Titanic Cliffs of Horseshoe Bend
Tuesday, December 8th, 2015 Today will be our last full day of wandering the Great Navajo Nation and northeast regions of Arizona. There were many places near Page, AZ and we were going to hit up a few of them including the famous Horseshoe Bend just south of town. Because were going to be local for the day, Julia and I had slept in a bit after spending a long day out at Monument Valley and what felt like a super long drive home in the pitch black of night with nothing more than the stars above to guide the way. Breakfast was the usual quick Greek Yogurt, then we…
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Southwest 2015 – The Grand Canyon Railway
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2015 Julia and I got up very early to get ourselves some breakfast and prepare for a ride on the rail to the south rim of the Grand Canyon. We were so close to the train station that we could walk there. When we arrived, I picked up our prepaid tickets and we made our way to a small arena where we could catch a quick gun show before we boarded the train. It was a comedic gun slinging performance between the infamous Cataract Creek Gang and the Sheriff. They even got someone from the audience participate as they cheat on him in a game of poker.…
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Southwest 2015 – Chapels and Cathedrals
Tuesday, December 1st, 2015 Julia and I woke up in some very cold weather that morning. We spent our first night at the Roadway Inn & Suites in Williams, Arizona and the night was a very balmy 16ºF (-8.8ºC). Fortunately for us, the heater in our room was blasting heat out like summer’s day. Our room was literally on Old Route 66 and everything in town was a quick walk away, so we got ourselves up and ready. Our breakfast was actually more of a snack as we decided to just hit the road for Sedona that morning and figure out what to eat for an actual meal when we…
