This evening Kyle was the grill master and prepared some of the best chicken I have ever tasted. His progress was somewhat hampered by this frog which seemed to have an unnatural attraction to the igniter switch on the grill. We surmised that it might have to do with the similar coloration. I have never seen such a frog before and will have to study our field guide to see if we can identify it.
Today Maya and Jeanine decided they would make a peach pie from scratch and I was fortunate to get a single sliver before the rest was devoured.
As soon as the sun is up, Jeanine’s top priority after being away from home for almost a month is to check on her garden. She returns with a big smile and a handful of string beans.
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Today as we return home to Boston I am electing to reflect on our family vacation rather than post and comment on another photo. It has been a dream of mine to visit the national parks with my family for as long as I can remember. Jeanine and I thought carefully about the timing and realized that this summer was the optimal, if not only window in which to take this adventure. Maya is old enough to handle the hiking and to appreciate and remember what she has seen. Kyle is young enough that his priorities have not yet shifted to working over the entire summer vacation. This may well be our last extended duration family vacation and I must say that it more than met my expectations. I was concerned that the kids would get cabin fever and be at each others thoats. I cannot remember a single fight. I was concerned that they might not appreciate the natural beauty they were exposed to. They were just as awe struck as their parents and some of my favorite moments were spent in total quiet. I was concerned they would grow bored. Instead they filled down time with reading, playing chess, bananagrams and a variety of card games. What I did not expect, and moved me the most, was how the kids helped each other and their parents. Kyle carrying his sister across deep water and up mountains on his back along with most of the water for the rest of us. Nico holding on to Maya so she would not fall off during tubing. Everyone encouraging Jeanine to traverse the gross water so she could enjoy the inside of a slot canyon. Maya and Nicolai helping Kyle and I to overcome our fear of heights. It is safe to say that I will remember this vacation/adventure fondly for as long as I live and hope my children will do so long after that. I will close by wishing Kyle happy birthday on this his 17th.
Of particular interest to the kids were the living sculptures. I can not imagine a job where you are paid to stand perfectly still. Despite their significant interest in this possible future career, I can state categorically that our children are unqualified for this job. Being still is not a trait that runs strong in the Calabria family. Over the course of this vacation we covered 6000 miles in the air, 1800 miles in the RV, 150 miles on the water and nearly 50 miles on foot.
While wandering around inside of the Venetian, it is easy to forget that you are entirely indoors.
Maya was positively captivated by a pair of artists who were creating the masks shown here. They used tiny glue applicators to make patterns and then sprinkled glitter over the glue. Note to self: such a mask would make a nice gift for Maya someday.
Our last day is spent back where we started in Las Vegas. This time we are staying at the Luxor, although we spend almost as much time visiting and dining at the Venetian.
Jeanine’s explorations result in another exceptional macro photograph. Many of this adventure’s best photos have come from Jeanine, and I could not be more pleased. Click on the photo which can only be fully appreciated at a higher resolution.
Jeanine is more adventurous than the kids, who have now learned that hiking through deep sand is extremely hard work.
Our final stop on the park circuit is Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park. The name says it all and we are treated to this most unlikely scene in the midst of an otherwise rocky landscape.
Yesterday we attended a ranger program about the California Condor which looks nearly identical to what we believe is this turkey vulture which we spotted on our drive out. The condor is much larger with a 7 foot wingspan. The only paved road to our next destination was closed for several hours while fire crews battled the forest fire we saw on the way in. Once the flames on both sides of the road were extinguished we were escorted by a fire fighter through the affected area, smoke still billowing from the felled tree trunks.
The tiniest of ponds is fenced off, presumably to keep the bison (a herd of which we spotted yesterday) from reducing it to nothing.
As we depart the Grand Canyon National Park, we stop to enjoy the lush vegetation that has been so uncharacteristic of our various destinations. There is but a single flower in this entire field, and Jeanine must photograph it.
Although her project was successful there was very little left to paint black when she was done. This evening we enjoyed a wonderful campfire, s’mores, crude attempts at singing (not a strength of anyone in my bloodline), and Jeanine and Maya opted to sleep in the tent rather than the RV.
Back at camp, Maya decides to create her own black paint by grinding down charcol into a fine powder and mixing with water.
Jeanine discovers a great vista located a short walk from our campground, where I take advantage of the setting sun.
Inside the sun room is a sculpture of Brighty the mule, which was the subject of an early children’s story and subsequent movie about the Grand Canyon. Since then, this non indigenous species has been relocated to their natural habitats, but the memory of this beloved mule lives on. Pictured here with our beloved mule.
The lodge was built in 1927 and burned down 5 years later. It was rebuilt on the original stone foundation on the precipice of Bright Angel Point with steeper roof lines and more of the old-world rustic charm that is evident today.
The Grand Canyon is certainly something everyone should see in their lifetime, but I am of the opinion that the only way to truly appreciate it is from the air. Having done so on several occasions, I believe it is the best way to appreciate the full magnitude of this wonder of the world.
Our first stop is at the Grand Canyon Lodge, which offers a spectacular vantage point from which to view the canyon.
As we enter the Grand Canyon National Park we learn that lightning has triggered several forest fires around the park.
This morning, we will depart for the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We stop briefly at Lee’s Ferry, where Nicolai requests that we stage a set of photos for later compositing. Click on the image for a better look at the antics, and note the number of costume changes.
We enjoy a nice sunset before the kids elect to turn in early. Nothing like a day on the water to facilitate a good night’s sleep.
We spent part of the day navigating to the end of Navajo Canyon and put ashore on a nice beach where we enjoy lunch. Lake Powell has something like 98 canyons which feed into it and there are some who believe it was a huge mistake to flood them for the benefit of the lake. I can see good arguements on both sides of this debate.
Each child rides solo and in tandem with a sibling and also takes a turn at driving the boat. Maya, due to her small size and light weight, invariably produced the most spectacular rides bouncing high off the tube and hanging off the edges. The kids could have kept tubing all night but I decided that about half a dozen major crashes was about the right number to preclude any major brain damage. Jeanine wisely chose to spend much of the day on the shore enjoying a book, time by herself, and adding to her journal.
Tubing is the main attraction and I am schooled in the art of accelerating through turns to get the tube outside the wake. Apparently it is more fun to be violently thrown from the tube at 30 mph than to enjoy a nice ride behind the boat while basking in the sun.
For a big change of pace we rent a 19 foot power boat and set out on Lake Powell which features a shoreline that is longer than the entire west coast of the USA.