Morgan and her little shadow, Catherine. Catherine wanted to do everything Morgan did and Morgan was very sweet to her. She sure is a cutie!
We are making our way toward the Grand Canyon, but today was really just a driving day. If we're going to be driving, we might as well make it a scenic one! I found an alternate route that would take us through a small portion of Zion National Park in Utah instead of just driving the interstate. It was basically the same amount of time so we went for it. There is a town just outside the National Park that was very picturesque (and touristy). Beautiful mountains were the backdrop everywhere you looked.
This park has a rule that when all the parking spaces are full, the park is closed to traffic. It is still possible to walk into the park or take the shuttle that leaves from the town just mentioned, but we needed to pass all the way through so we needed to be able to drive our car. I had read that the heaviest traffic was between 10am and 3pm and we expected to arrive after 3:00, thanks to the time zone change back to mountain time. We arrived at the gate and got right in. Whew! If we wouldn't have been able to get in in a reasonable time, we would have had to backtrack quite a ways to go the alternate route. "No risk, no reward" is what Rodney said.
We stopped at the Visitor Center to check into the Junior Ranger program, but we were told that the kids wouldn't be able to complete it during our short drive through the park. Maybe next time, kids.
There was a deer outside the Visitor Center. It wasn't bothered in the least by all the people walking around. Speaking of which, the Visitor Center was crawling with people who were prepared to enjoy the outdoors. Everyone had hiking gear and hats and boots and all the right stuff. They looked like they were really going to enjoy this park. I wish we could have seen more of it ourselves, but we were happy to be able to fit it into our plans without going much out of our way.
The drive was beautiful. Notice Rodney and the kids standing in front of this mountain.
We drove through a tunnel going through a mountain. It is 1.1 miles long. We had to wait a few minutes before going into the tunnel because tall vehicles were being escorted through the other direction. The tunnel is a two-way street, but any vehicle over a certain height is too tall to drive on the side and must be escorted through the tunnel down the middle of the lanes.
There were windows in the side of the tunnel that let in some light, which was nice since the tunnel wasn't lighted.
The kids and I in front of Checkerboard Mesa.
On the other side of Zion National Park, we passed near the Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park. We didn't stop at another sand dune park, but Morgan did like the idea of pink sand.
Our destination today was a town called Kanab, Utah. We had originally booked a hotel in Page, AZ for tonight because that is where we will leave for our rafting trip in the morning. However, a brand new Hampton Inn just opened in Kanab so we decided to stay there instead. Rodney typically stays at Hilton hotels for work so we are able to earn and use points with them. I also liked the idea of a little shorter driving day today and staying in Utah because this will be our only chance to stay in this state during this trip.
We liked this town from the moment we entered. Their sign is a good indication of the fun to be had.
We found our hotel and took a swim before dinner. I had researched where to eat before we left home and found lots of recommendations for the Rocking V Café. It did not disappoint.
I was worried when we walked in and they asked if we had a reservation. The answer was no, but they said they'd see if they could find something. As we were waiting, another party of 4 walked in and was told that they would have to sit outside (it was hot) and they should wait about 15 minutes for the sun to go down. We were able to snag the last table for 4 in the upstairs art gallery. Score!
This place was great. Great atmosphere, great food, great service. The owner came over to talk with us several times during our meal. Turns out his mother Harriet lives in Dallas so he was very familiar with our area.
Rodney ordered the specialty of the house - bison tenderloin. It was good! The kids don't like good food so they ate corn dogs and bags of chips.
I had the pork chop and it was amazing.
We all enjoyed looking at the art on the walls and the kids were amused by the prices of the art.
We went all our and got dessert as well. The kids were shoveling it in like it was a 99 cent cone from Sonic. We encouraged them to savor it a little more - Mommy and Daddy were paying a lot for this cake and ice cream.
After dinner, we walked outside and the weather was perfect. We decided to take a stroll down the main road at twilight. The kids really enjoyed this.
Apparently, Kanab was the filming location for quite a few movies once upon a time.
There were a lot of really neat shops that I would liked to check out, but most were closed on a Sunday night. Kanab Drug was one of them. They have a soda fountain, but I liked the sign that appears to offer drive-thru immunizations. I'd like to see that in action. ;-)
We really enjoyed our evening in Kanab. We all wished we could stay longer. If you're ever in southern Utah, you must stop in to Kanab for a day or two. Or the rest of your life. Whatever. You won't regret it.
They do have expensive gas, though. So maybe it's not completely perfect.
This looks like a fantastic day! Glad you guys still have some energy left for the drive home. Glad you enjoyed Zion, and you're right about Kanab. I'm ready to go check that place out! Love following along on this trip!
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