Okay. The two questions I know you want answered: No, I did not get sick (two Dramamine morning), and, No, I did not fall out of the boat since it was a smooth water rafting trip. We arrived in Page about two hours ahead of time and had time to visit a couple of thrift shops before our “cruise”. Paul bought a couple of hedge trimmers (He had me try one out to make sure it fit my hands! lol), and I found some really neat books for my classroom. You might think, “Why is she thinking about school while on vacation?” I love my job and my kids, so it isn’t a chore to look for things for my classroom, it’s a pleasure!
We were bussed down to Powell Dam on Lake Powell in Page, Arizona. We got to wear pretty blue hard hats down the catwalk down to the boats since we were under a bridge and beside the canyon walls where big rocks could fall on our heads. Paul commented, “What good would hard hats do if one of THOSE rocks fell on us”. Our boat guide told us later that a while back rocks had fallen and taken out a huge section of the catwalk we were on. Ummmm…I noticed he waited until we were off the catwalk to tell us that!
Powell Dam is not as big as Hoover Dam, but it was still very impressive since we were at the bottom of it looking up. Our guide was very knowledgeable about the Colorado Rive and Glen Canyon where we were rafting. He pointed out many points of interest, the rock formations and what they were named, wildlife and plant life, We started off at 700 feet below the rim and gradually ascended to 1300 feet by the end of the 15 mile trip. We saw a bald eagle’s nest way up on one of the walls that looked like the size of a peanut, but it was actually the size of our pontoon boat. We saw baby Blue Herons big enough to begin their “flight training” but had not ventured out of the nest yet. About half way through we got to stop and get out of the boat to go look at some petroglyphs left by the Native American Indians and go to the “solar bathroom”.
Have you have ever seen pictures of Horseshoe Bend where the Colorado makes a complete u-turn? Well, that’s where we were. But pictures only let you know what it looks like. It’s entirely different when you get to experience it for yourself. It’s so amazing to look at, but even more humbling and inspiring to think we serve a God Who created all this.
We had 18 other passengers with us. It always amazes us when we’re in a group that there is at least one person that knows more than the guide. Yea, we had one of those. He was a “little” annoying, but maybe I needed to practice my patience. There were several kids along, some younger ones that were excited to be there and some that looked like they wished they were somewhere else. Of course, these later ones were teenagers whose parents treated them like preschoolers. I don’t know who I felt sorrier for, the parents or the teenagers.
We arrived at the end of our 15 mile trek at Lee’s Ferry. Real bathrooms! Yea! We boarded our buses for the 45 minutes ride back to page. Paul was able to get a short nap. I was too busy looking out the window.
We got back to Page about 6:30 and had a great supper at one of the local restaurants. Then we began our long three hour trip back to Sedona. The sun setting on the red mountains gave them an entirely different look. We saw a coyote in the sagebrush before the sun went completely down. I “rested my eyes” for a little while, but I was brought back to full attention when Paul breathed a big sigh of relief. We missed hitting a deer bounding across the road by mere inches.
I don’t know if Paul or I was more relieved to see Los Abrigados. I would think it would be Paul since he did all the driving.
Next stop: the Grand Canyon! Stay tuned for exciting updates!
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