Our good friends Carl and Sharon invited us to their home away from home in Arizona so we gladly planned our visit which would include a road trip through four states: Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico. It was a hot day when we arrived in Phoenix, even hotter when scrambling to grab our suitcases from the plane and make it to our rental car. Our flight had been delayed because of a faulty seat which they could not repair but strapped shut so that the plane could finally take off after an hour delay. We landed late in Phoenix and the car rental was closing at midnight so we had to move fast to ensure we had a car to get to our hotel. We were able to beat the odds and make it to our hotel by 1am in the morning. Fortunately, we could sleep in and breakfast was included. We were meeting our friends that afternoon so in the meantime, we explored a trail in a nearby park. It had been raining for several weeks prior to our arrival, but once we arrived it stopped. Our remaining visit would be beautiful skies and hot temperatures.
In our two weeks, we spent five days with our friends in Phoenix, Arizona, hiking, relaxing and myself swimming in their frosty cold pool which was great for the joints! Then we travelled north, passing through beautiful Sedona, heading to Page to spend a couple of days first visiting Horseshoe Bend on the Colorado River, then Glen Canyon and its Dam, ending with our walk through the Lower Antelope Canyon. We then drove a short distance to Antelope Point along Lake Powell where we watched kayakers and boats come in and out of the canyon. The day we left Page was the day of the eclipse. It did not go dark but greyish and the temperature dropped significantly, and we could feel the cold but after a few hours the temperature rose and the sun came out. During that drive we stopped to capture some pictures along Monument Valley. We were headed to Moab where we would spend three days enjoying Canyonlands and Arches National Parks. We rented a little cabin in a trailer park stationed between both parks. It was just the right size for two people, complete with bedding, shower, mini kitchen and TV. We bought the annual pass that enabled us to enter all the National Parks so by the time we headed back to Phoenix, we had visited six national parks: Glen Canyon, Antelope Point, Canyonlands, Arches, Mesa Verde, and Petrified Forest. Our last stop was in Winslow, Arizona, to take a photo of the infamous corner in that song “Take it Easy” by the Eagles and to see Route 66, which for me given my age, brought to mind Nat King Cole’s song “Route 66”. The highway back to Phoenix was the Beeline, a most scenic and mountainous highway that left Cathy a little winded at times, but she did excellent in driving all the way. We were able to see our friends again before we left for home as we had arranged to return their cord which we accidentally picked up among all the other cords we had for cell phones and computers. We all laughed about it and were happy to see each other again. There is always more to see but we made the most of what we did see, and it was wonderful.
