IDAHO FALLS, (Day 2) April 30, 2009

We are still in Idaho Falls and the weather has turned a little nasty as we got rain and hail earlier today. The sun is shining now but it is still cold. We had planned to go the river pathway and walk around the falls but with the weather we decided just to have lunch downtown where I got a couple of pictures. We then headed out to the Army Surplus store to look around and we ended up getting some mesh netting and bug spray that the military used in Vietnam, hope it still works. Upon completion of our shopping we headed back to the camper where Kathy made a lemon meringue pie which was actually the christening of the camper oven. HMMMM it may just be supper.

The pictures of the Falls are quite dark and do not really show them off as I took them when it was raining and didn't want to walk down to where I would get the good shots. If we are still here tomorrow ( we didn't get mail today ) then I will get some better shots.

IDAHO FALLS, UT April 29, 2009

We arrived here last night and set up but it was fairly late when we got here. The office was closed but we had arranged for a late arrival and everything was done prior to us getting here and we knew which spot to move into.

As a result we had a pretty lazy day, staying close to home and playing a lot of scrabble. Did take the camper off the truck so we could do some exploring tomorrow but that was about it. We had dinner which we picked up from a local restaurant, watched a movie and then hit the hay. I am sure tomorrow will be more active but the rest was nice.

ANTELOPE ISLAND, UTAH April 28 2009

We left Murray, UT which is really just a subdivision of Salt Lake City and headed for Idaho Falls. On the way we stopped at Antelope Island State Park which is actually an island in the middle of Great Salt Lake. The island is 15 miles long and 4.5 miles wide at its widest point.

Even though it is called Antelope we saw more Buffalo that we did antelope. They introduced 12 animals into the park in 1893 and now have a herd of 500 - 700 bison. An annual bison roundup is held each year to assess the health of the herd and to sell the extra animals.

The island also host bobcats, coyote, rabbits and dozens of different species of birds.

We left the island about 4 o'clock and headed for Idaho Falls, Idaho.

This shot was taken with my 650 -1300mm

lense. You could not see the animal with the
human eye.

A couple of views of the island from Buffalo Point.

KAYSVILLE, UT April 27, 2009

We left Bryce Canyon last night and stopped in Fillmore for the night. Today we headed out on a leisurely run with stops at a Lance Dealer and a Walmart to pick up my prescription. We had lunch then did a little grocery shopping and then headed up the road to Kaysville where we have stopped for the night. I am spending the evening trying to catch up my blog.

Tomorrow we are heading down the road but I am not sure where we are going at this point. We will make that decision in the morning.

BRYCE CANYON April 2009

We headed out for Bryce Canyon on Sunday morning and it started out a pleasant day as the temperature was in the middle 40's.. When we arrived in the park we decided to go straight to the top of The Scenic Drive and work our way down the mountain stopping at the various viewpoints. On our way to the top we saw a small sampling of the wildlife that is supposedly living in the park.

After stopping and taking a few pictures we headed to the top and arrived at Rainbow Point and Youimpa Point. Rainbow Point is on one side of the plateau and Youimpa Point on one the other side. After getting out of the car decided that we would not be doing much hiking as the wind had picked up and the temperature had dropped. Additional layers had to be added as we did see snow during parts of the day. Rainbow Point is the highest point in that is accessible in Bryce and the elevation is 9115 feet. It is also the highest plateau in Utah. All of the spots we stopped on the way down was absolutely spectacular, breath taking and just all get out beautiful. I took pictures at all the places we stopped and I will post them below but trust me the pictures can not do true justice to the beauty or the natural architecture that surrounded us today.

You are just going to have to see for yourselves.

You can double click on the pictures and they will enlarge which you a much more graphic view.

Rainbow Point - Elevation 9115

Youimpa Point - Elevation 9115 feet

Black Birch Canyon - Elevation 8759 feet

Ponderosa Point - Elevation 8904 feet

AGUA CANYON ELEVATION 8800 Feet

NATURAL BRIDGE ELEVATION 8627 Feet

FARVIEW POINT ELEVATION 8819 Feet

SWAMP CANYON ELEVATION 7799 Feet

PARIAVIEW ELEVATION 8176 Feet

BRYCE POINT ELEVATION 8300 Feet

SUNSET POINT ELEVATION 7900 Feet

THE HAPPY CAMPERS

It was a cold but exilarating day and we are tired. We did not stop at all the Viewpoints but we did do most of them. We can catch them on the next go around. It was a rewarding day and we both enjoyed it.

Going to head down the road awhile, not sure where we will stop, I guess when we get tired.

RED CANYON AND THE ROAD TO BRYCE

After the strenuous day we had yesterday we did not get any early start but we did make it to the entrance to Bryce Canyon where we have settled in for the night.

We left Zion this morning heading through the park by following the switch backs up the mountain to the tunnel. It is quite an experience going through the tunnel which was built in the early 1900's and is too narrow to have a car and a RV pass each other going in the opposite directions. We had to pay extra so that we could go through by driving down the middle of the road. Once through the tunnel we enjoyed the drive until we came out of the mountains and then just cruised along until we got to "Red Canyon".

One interesting site on the way was the world famous " HOME OF THE HO MADE PIES" We weren't sure we wanted to go in but it certainly was worth stopping and getting a picture.

Red Canyon is in the Dixie National Forest and is only 4 miles long but it is pretty amazing. Red sandstone columns rise out of the ground in all shapes and sizes. We didn't spend a lot of time here as the weather has definitely changed as we climbed higher and the cold front came in. As Kathy says we went from Sunburns to Seat Warmers. It is calling for snow tonight. However we did get some pictures and both of us would like to come back here and spent some time hiking.

Once we left Red Canyon we headed right for Bryce Canyon and settled in for the night. We are planning to spend most of the tomorrow in Bryce before heading on.