3/29/07 - Moab, UT

We drove to the northern entrance of Canyonlands National Park. The weather was mostly cold, overcast, and snowy. After a full day of hiking and picture taking we left the park and drove back to Moab to have dinner at the Moab Brewery. The food was good but the beers were pretty insipid since they could be no more than 3.2% alcohol. The IPA tasted like Miller Lite with hops.

3/30/07 - Moab, UT

In the morning we drove to Arches National Park. We went on several hikes to see the major arches. The weather was much better – clear skies and temperatures in the 50’s. On the way back to the trailer we stopped off at Eddie McStiff’s which was once a brewpub. Their beers are now contract brewed and were typically Utah-weak since they were 3.2% alcohol.

3/31/07 - Bryce Canyon, UT

Saturday morning we hooked up the trailer and left Moab bound for Bryce Canyon National Park. We made a stop at Goblin Valley State Park which has a lot of curious sandstone formations called “goblins”. Then we continued on and drove through Capitol Reef National Park and and Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. We arrived at Bryce Canyon and set up camp at the North Campground inside the park. We didn’t have electricity, water, or sewer connection but the price was right - $5.00 a night.

4/1/07 - Bryce Canyon, UT

We got up early and drove up to Bryce Point, the highest overlook in the park, to watch the sunrise. We spent the rest of the day exploring the park and taking lots of pictures. The weather was perfect.

4/2/07 - Springdale, UT

We packed up and left Bryce Canyon bound for Zion National Park. We drove through Red Canyon which has some beautiful red rock formations. When we arrived at Zion National Park the place was packed with people. It was spring break (so there were lots of families with kids). The campground did not open until the next day so we stayed at Zion Canyon Campground RV Resort in Springdale, right outside the park boundary. A resort it wasn’t – dirty, cramped, overpopulated, and generally grungy. We got on the shuttle bus which is the only way to see the canyon. The weather was mostly overcast so we did’t get many good pictures. Then we returned to Springdale and had a couple of draft beers made at the local brewery, Zion Canyon Brewery. Carolyn cooked green chile chicken enchiladas for dinner.

4/3/07 - Las Vegas, NV

We got in the car and drove back to the other side of Zion National Park. This time the weather was better for pictures. We hitched up and drove to the northern entrance to the park and took more pictures. Then we stopped off at a Nissan dealer in St. George, Utah to have the Pathfinder's oil changed. We pulled into the Hitchin' Post RV Park in Las Vegas late in the afternoon. We went to a nearby brewpub (Big Dog's Brewing) to sample their beers (much better than the beer in Utah since it is full strength). Then we drove downtown to the strip and walked around. We checked out the beers at Ellis Island (cheap - $1.00) and Gordon Biersch. I put a dollar bill in a slot machine and after a couple of spins I won $12.40 and cashed out. This town is gigantic. The blocks must be a half mile long, and the streets are as wide as freeways. They are still building casinos, each one trying to outdo the others.

4/4/07 - Las Vegas, NV

In the morning I caught up on the blog (since we had been several days without internet access). We drove around and visited more brewpubs, and had lunch in the Triple 7 Brewpub. We came back and washed and dried our dirty clothes and took a dip in the pool. The bathroom and laundry room were beautiful – all cedar paneling and granite countertops. The pool was also beautiful. I managed to lose the bathroom key which had a $25 deposit.