First Camping trip of 2013 and Easter fun

We finally got to go on our first camp out for this year.  We have planned several, but then things came up and they didn't happen.  This one almost didn't happen.  Friday afternoon we went out looking for a cool place but kind of misinterpreted the directions and ended up stuck in some deep red sand.  Almost got out after a couple of tries, but then decided since we had phone reception we would just call Moss to bring the big truck and pull us out.  He did and it pulled us out just like that.  It was about 6 pm by then so we just threw everything in the truck and grabbed some food and got set up just as it got dark. We went out to the old quarry just above Cottonwood Canyon. It was a perfect night with a full moon. We ate dinner on the tailgate of the truck by lantern light and then watched a movie and snuggled down for a perfect cool night.  In the morning we checked out the scenery and ate breakfast.  Then we found we had a flat tire.  The valve stem got loose when we were letting out some air trying to get out of the sand.  Paul changed the tire while I cleaned up camp and then we headed home.  It was a good start and I hope its the first of many more camp outs to come, a little less rushed.

Not to be deterred we decided to take the big truck out to try and finish up the trip to that cool place...ended up not making a sharp turn quite sharp enough and fell through a cattle guard bottoming the truck out, flattening a tire suspended about 18 inches above the hole below the cattle guard.  It was a very interesting process, but inches at a time we got the truck lifted up enough to change the tire and fill the hole with rocks, back out and get home in time for the family BBQ and Easter egg hunting. Thank goodness for Paul's ingenuity and  answers to prayers. We are not sure if we should try to go to this cool place or not!

Thought we had it high enough to get the flat off, but not yet.  Had to go a little higher.  

 The BBQ was tasty and the egg hunting fun.  For dessert we toasted meringue dipped strawberries and bananas.  Very yummy!

Spring Break here and there

After my little day trip to Zion we took a couple of days to do a combined business/pleasure trip to check out some stone and then visited Sedona and enjoyed Jacob's Lake en route. We had planned to camp down at lower elevations, but didn't really find anyplace and ended up moteling it in Flagstaff.  It was a relaxing and enjoyable trip.   Sedona was pretty crazy with lots of people in town for something, but we did visit several galleries and saw some beautiful art work and scenery.  (Sedona scenery)

Friday we went back out to the Yant Flat area.  I had checked out a side road on Google Earth that looked like it would take us to the area across the canyon from the arch we happened upon last week.  We had a good time just taking every side road along the way there and checking things out and seeing some cool stuff.  We did find the road I looked up and did see the arch from that vantage point along with a beautiful slick rock area.  That evening we enjoyed a visit from Brenden, his folks and his "MissElizer".  We got bargain cupcakes at 25 Main and walked over to the Town Square to enjoy them and the beautiful evening.  I asked Brenden about his other Grandma's puppies and he told me she is going to sell them...and then added that they are NOT going to sell their "MissElizer."

On Saturday we convinced the Borrowman gang to go out to see the arch with us from both sides.  Someone we saw out there said the arch was named Dolphin Arch.  I can see how it could be called that, but can't find it anywhere on the internet.  We ate lunch at the arch and then checked out the old quarry site. After that Ryan treated us to home made Oreo shakes. 

It has been a good break with unbelievably beautiful weather to make it even better.  Back to school next week!

Zion afternoon

Wanted to find the arch in Hidden Canyon that I somehow missed last summer.  Today was not the day.  Got to the trail that takes off to go to Hidden Canyon (about a mile up Observation Point Trail), but just barely.  Every place there was shade was iced over and oh so slick.  Then the Hidden Canyon Trail was iced over too.  Not a smart trail to be on in that condition.  So I picked my way carefully down again and just went over and walked the Riverwalk Trail. It was a nice walk and a beautiful place to spend an afternoon.

Quilts - re-imagined

Friday evening was the Art Walk.  Since it was rainy, we only hit the Art Museum exhibit.  It was spectacular.  It was a combination of photos/landscape quilts.  The quilts were amazing.  I have never seen anything so intricately and beautifully done.  Can't take pictures of course, so I just got some off of their sites.   The quilters made quilts of the photos and some that didn't have photos to match.  This exhibit runs through May 11th.  Take a bit of time and check it out.  You will be amazed.

Mud and a nameless arch

Tried to head back out to Yant Flat today, but the mud was just impossible - at one point we were going sideways down the road - so we had to turn around before we got there.  Not to be robbed of some time outdoors, we pulled out at another side road and walked up it and were rewarded at the end by finding an arch.  We looked it up on Google Earth and couldn't find a name there.  We also stopped here and there to see other cool stuff. Too bad the camera ran out of batteries at the end and I missed a few good shots. It was beautiful with snow melting all around.  

The arch was a little hard to see.  It just kind of blended in to the background.  

More grand scenery.

Weed & Ferf B-days + Family Feast

Sunday we gathered at Ferf and Ryan's for the monthly family feast and celebrated Weed and Ferf's birthdays too.  The dinner was great and it was good to wish the girls a happy birthday. They have both grown up to be such wonderful and beautiful ladies.  It was such a nice day that the kids could eat out on the lawn picnic style.  After dinner we opened presents and then had a short concert by Brynnli and Tavin who are really getting proficient on their violins.  It was fun to spend time together.  We don't get to as often as we would like to with all the busyness of life.   We forgot to put candles on the pies, so we didn't get the regular birthday blow out pictures...doggone it!  Happy Birthday girls.  We love you!  Thanks to the Borrowmans for a great time and and really good food everyone!

Yant Flat...found at last!

I have been talking with Lynne for quite some time about Yant Flat.  I have looked at it on Google Earth several times.  Finally, yesterday afternoon we took to the road and after a little confusion (was that road 903 or road 309?) we found it.  Just needed more time to enjoy it.  We will be going out there again I'm sure.  Besides the beautiful rock formations, we found it to be a great place to harvest yucca poles for walking sticks.  And to our surprise, we found a horse just wandering around on our way out.  I wanted to get a picture of him and he was very cooperative and came right over to be petted and even followed us down the trail a little bit.  It looked like he had been in the area for quite some time.  He didn't seem to have shoes and had a warm, shaggy coat like he had spent some cold weather time there.  A friend told us that people are in the habit of "dropping horses off" now days if they get too expensive to keep, kind of like people who drop off their cats and dogs when they become inconvenient.  He looked healthy to my untrained eye and seemed to be fine with a little company dropping in on him in his wild pasture.  Interesting and enjoyable day all around.  

Area just south east of Yant Flat.

Random pictures - we found one entrance to Yankee Doodle Canyon, Zion view from the road, Manzanita colorful bark, Paul along the trail and a glove left in a tree wishing us peace along the trail.  

Our neigh-borly horse friend moseying over to say hello.