Now we know why it's called Death Valley

So today our plan was to drive through Death Valley and camp in the Sequoia National Forest. We started off well and made it through Vegas in good time. Then we entered Death Valley.We drove down to about 200 feet below sea level and the temp was 117. Right that is f- n hot. Needless to say driving through it appeared to have taken its toll on our rear wheel bearing. We are really happy we made it out of the Valley and to a really friendly gas station in Caso Junction Ca where we called in AAA to tow
us. So now we are in Ridgecrest Ca Econolodge with our car parked in the auto repair shop next door. We will be here till Monday when we hope to have the bearing replaced. meanwhile a hot shower and a chance to do some laundry is ok by me. Enjoy the pics it really was quite breathtaking to see and don't drive through Death Valley in July :)

Zion

We arrived in Zion on Thursday. We had a spectacular drive through the upper plateau and then through two tunnels blasted through the canyon. fortunately we were able to camp in the park with fantastic views. We did a hike on Thurs and Friday -each was unique and also quite hot. After our hikes it was such a pleasure to cool ourselves by dunking and wading in the Virgin River.

Grand Canyon

We left Flagstaff an headed for the south rim of the Grand Canyon on Tues. It was breathtaking and then some. No pictures can do it justice but I'll post some anyway. We drove on and camped about 45 miles away from the North Rim which we visited on Weds. The North Rim was much less traveled.We loved the scenery at both sides but the feel on the North Rim was much nicer and more low key. Today we are off to Zion-we wanted to go to Bryce but wild fires shut down the road.

Petrified Forest National Park and Flagstaff

Yesterday we noticed our rear tires were almost bald. they seemed fine when we left but driving over 3000 miles in 90+ heat and midday sun appears to have sped up the wear cycle. So we stopped for tires along the way and drove on to Petrified Forest State Park .This park had the most dramatic desert landscape we have seen so far. It also had chunks of petrified trees and petroglyphs . It was fascinating check out the pics below! After that we continued on to flagstaff. We stopped to check out the town and decided we would spend the night. We thought the town seemed interesting so we splurged the $80 for a night at the historic Monte Vista Hotel. The Rt 66 vibe was everywhere in this town. We really enjoyed checking out this place.
We both felt it was a town we would enjoy living in- lots of great food and really laid back and casual. Now we are off to the Grand Canyon.

Oklahoma,Texas and New Mexico

Yesterday we drove West on 40 through fields of cattle, buttes and mesas. The colors were rich shades of ochre, sienna and Naples yellow. Landscape here seems iridescent. We camped among cactuses and lizards as well as many biting insects according to the bug bites on my legs. The wind in New Mexico is wild and we saw dust and tumbleweeds along our drive. Ian posting some images below of a storm we came upon.

Wide Open Spaces and Roaring Cicadas

Yesterday was a day of many miles. We traveled through Iowa, Kansas and ended up in Oklahoma. Iowa was lush and green. Kansas was 104 degrees at 2pm with wide open prairie. More of a golden green. When we arrived at our campsite in El Redo Oklahoma I couldn't believe how loud the cicadas were. I didn't think I would be able to sleep with all the noise. Surprisingly we both slept really well. Today we head to New Mexico on rt 40 through Texas.

Miles

We drove 600 miles yesterday and ended up in Geneseo Il right on the border of Iowa. Saw some spectacular lightening storms along the way. Today we head toward Oklahoma. Sad to say we are bypassing Colorado. We decided it wouldn't be much fun due to all the huge fires.