Nine Years Ago

 

It is nine years ago today, to the day, since I last visited Zion National Park.  How I love that place (been there twice and would love to go again).  

I love the towering rocks and the whole vibe that the place has – when visiting before the crowds arrive, that is!  We were among the first visitors for the day, before we had even had breakfast.

The Virgin River is so pretty, although it can also be lethal when it floods.  On this day it was in a placid mood and hubby and I enjoyed a short paddle in its clear waters.

We used to try and paddle in as many different waterways as we could, taking a photo each time to prove that we had been there, done that.

On this particular day, we travelled from Zion across to Bryce National Park before camping at Kodachrome Basin for the night.

I find Bryce Canyon a fascinating place, with its various hoodoos and other rock formations.  It was sweltering hot this visit (on my previous visit it was the beginning of winter) and so we just admired the view from the rim.

There were some hardy (or fool-hardy) souls down walking among the rocks, much too hot for us.

I’m so glad we got the opportunity to visit these wonderful places when we did.  They are memories that I shall treasure for the rest of my life.

Have a great day 😊

Margaret.

 

Memorable Highlights

 

As it is ten years since I first visited my daughter and son-in-law in America, I thought it would be nice to post some highlights of some of the places I was privileged to visit.

This is me at the Hoover Dam.  The Dam marks the border between Nevada and Arizona and this was taken on the Arizona side.

Being based at Flagstaff, it went without saying that we had to visit the Grand Canyon.  I found the place breath-takingly spectacular and loved it, especially when we were able to get away from the usual tourist spots.

We visited the Arizona Snowbowl (ski resort) and wandered amongst the bare trunks of aspen trees.  At 9200 feet in early winter, and being accustomed to seaside conditions, I found it rather cold!

We spent one day visiting Sunset Crater, with all its volcanic associations, as well as taking a fascinating walk around the Wupatki Ruins.  It is believed about 100 Pueblo Indians used to live here until around 1200AD.  It is one of several ruins in the area but is the main site open to visitors.

Walking through the Upper Antelope slot canyon with our Navajo guide was a magical experience. 

This view was taken looking up towards the narrow aperture at the top of the canyon.  Hard to believe that water bubbles up out of there during flood times.

Zion National Park was perhaps my favourite destination, and we spent a pleasant night in a pretty campground there.   

I think I could rave on forever about the beauty of Zion, especially the massive rock faces that we saw there.

Bryce Canyon was another remarkable place we visited, and I found the upright hoodoos an amazing sight.

This photo was taken from Paria View, further up the canyon.

I wrote about our visit to the Sonoran Desert in this post here 

I also got to visit other places and experience many new things.  It was an extremely busy and very happy three weeks of my life.

Having wonderful memories adds to the enjoyment of living 😊

Margaret.

The Sonoran Desert

 

It is ten years today since I was fortunate enough to visit this area of the Sonoran Desert in south-western Arizona with my daughter and son-in-law.

I found that the desert had a beauty all of its own.

Sometimes I was very glad we were exploring in a 4WD vehicle!

This area is full of cacti, perhaps the best known being the saguaro cactus trees (although not all will grow ‘arms’).  It is the largest cactus to grow in the United States.

Saguaro have a shallow root system that spreads out around it as far as it is tall.  They are also extremely slow growing but can live for up for to 200 years.

The Agua Fria river was looking deceptively calm on the day we visited, but evidence of flood waters could be seen high up on trees growing beside it.

On our way home to Flagstaff we could see these clouds ahead of us.  It snowed overnight.

This was my first visit to Arizona and I loved my time there. 

Margaret 😊

LINKING UP WITH YOGI AT Skywatch Friday

Capitol Reef NP, Utah

Today is my 200^th post (I am still a Baby Blogger!) and to celebrate I thought I would do a photo essay.  

My daughter took my husband and I to visit Capitol Reef National Park in Utah, USA,  in July 2014, and we loved it. 

 We visited one afternoon between thunder storms, and there were very few people around.  It was a magical and enchanting experience, with changing atmospheric light and the beautiful colours in the landscape. 

I recall it as being one of my favourite places that I have visited J 

Margaret.

A Matter Of Perspective

I recently came across this piece (I don’t think it could be correctly classified as poetry, but it is sort of), written by Abdullah Shoaib, and it got me thinking how things can appear to be so different depending to how we perceive them.

I’m very ugly

So don’t try to convince me that

I am a very beautiful person

Because at the end of the day

I hate myself in every single way

And I’m not going to lie to myself by saying

There is beauty inside of me that matters

So rest assured I will remind myself

That I am a worthless, terrible person

And nothing you say will make me believe

I still deserve love

Because no matter what

I am not good enough to be loved

And I am in no position to believe that

Beauty does exist within me

Because whenever I look in the mirror I always think

Am I as ugly as people say?

(Now read it again, beginning with the bottom line and moving up)

Capitol Reef National Park, Utah (2014)

Around the world there are many places that have awe-inspiring landscape.  The photo above was taken early one evening at Capitol Reef National Park in Utah in 2014.   There were no other people around and you can get a sense of the scale of the place by looking at the trees in the foreground. 

Standing there before such grandeur, in the intense quiet and isolation, it was easy to see how one could feel very small and alone and even a little frightened, but one could just as easily feel a sense of wonder and of being at peace with nature, marveling at the beauty of it all.  It all depends on how you view it, because the scene does not change – only we do.

It is said that there are always two sides to every story, and there is usually at least two opposing ways we can view anything that happens in our lives.  It is our choice which we choose.

Margaret.