Day 7 - Bryce Canyon

Page and Roman requested a light final hiking day so we planned a 2.5 mile hike into the hoodoos of Bryce Canyon. We arrived midday, had a light lunch, checked in to the lodge and then went out on our light hike.

At Zion you stay at the valley and hike up the canyon but on Bryce you stay the the top of the canyon and hike down into the valley. We hiked down winding switchbacks into Bryce about 500 feet in elevation down and then at the bottom decided to add on "about 30 minutes" to the original hike to the Peekaboo trail. Peekaboo is so named because it weaves in and out of the hoodoos to reveal sweeping views in every direction-- making for a sensational trail. See video example:

http://youtu.be/gRbU8cKe-vg

Halfway through Peekaboo we decided to take a one mile trail up out of the canyon. This trail ended up climbing 500 feet through a snowy narrow trail but we all made it out and decided to celebrate at the top. Pic 2 and 3. The trail back from our ending location was closed so we ended up walking three miles along the road. Twenty cars passed us before a nice couple from Chicago stopped and let us hitchhike back.

We went to a local hotel to watch the ncaa basketball tournament and then arose for a sunrise at inspiration point this morning. Pic 4. With the four hour drive to Las Vegas behind us now, we have completed four days of 12, 8, 10 and 7 mile hikes and are relaxing at the luxurious Delano hotel before our sushi dinner and Cirque de Soleil O show at 10. Life is good.

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Days 89 and 90 - Waterton

I started my journey north to Canada today. My plan was to head to Waterton Lakes, just north of Glacier, then to Calgary, then the Canadian Rockies parks of Banff, Jasper, Yoho, Glacier and a few others, then to Vancouver and finally to Seattle, all over the next several weeks. But first I needed the Internet! I drove south out of Many Glacier to a place I remembered having cell reception. I did some emailing and calling back home, did some research for my Canada trip and watched the final three episodes of Game of Thrones--wow, the final two episodes were sensational. This rainy, dreary day was perfect for such activities. I then drove into Canada late in the evening and to a campground set in the cloudy mountains at Waterton. The weather cleared a bit the next day and I was able to do some hiking around this scenic alpine lakes district. Waterton Lakes district from a high hill called Bear's Hump: The chipmunks at Bear's Bump were very interested in the conten...

Day 106 - Seattle

My July 4th started with a drive from Vancover to Seattle, arriving at the Museum of Flight by 11. The museum tour began with a display of the 27 U.S. Flags, made interesting by announcing the history of the states entry into the union. This B-17 is similar to the bomber my grandfather flew in WW2. A former Air Force One plane that Kennedy road on was another highlight. I stayed all day at the museum enjoying the history of aviation exhibits and finally space! I drove into downtown Seattle to checkout the city parks reserved for fireworks watching. These neighborhoods were crawling with people and would make horrible stealth street camping sites. I called several hostels and all were full... but then I found one with one bed left. I reserved the spot and drove to the hostel to find it in walking distance to the fireworks. I joined a group waking down to see the fireworks. We were joined by a few others. Two skydivers with fire flaming behind their path were followed by...

Day 93 - Calgary to Banff

After a very pleasant morning at Dave's house spent photocopying trail and scramble guide routes, enjoying a great breakfast and coffee, meeting some of Dave's extremely kind family members and chatting more about adventures, I set out for downtown Calgary. I thought a walk around a museum would be a nice change of pace, so I toured the Glenbow Museum. Two highlights were a Blackfoot Indian describing the meaning of their Tipi decorations and the Gun Scupture. The history of Alberta section was also quite interesting: fur trappers then cowboys then railroad builders then oil drillers. I then walked down to a nearby waterfront park, along a pedestrian only shopping street where a Christian pride rally was taking place, and then down quiet side streets to the park. Seeing people out jogging and playing on this Sunday afternoon reminded me of the real life I must one day return to. But not yet! Hungry and ready for mountains, I walked back to my van and left Calgary heading wes...

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