Gum Valley Patchwork

Zion National Park

Although I am back in home in Australia, I still have the rest of my holiday snaps to show you........that's if you are not sick to death of them yet!

Our next stop after the beautiful Bryce Canyon was the equally lovely Zion National Park with some very interesting geologically features.

 We traveled through a long tunnel carved though the mountain........complete with 'windows' cut into it. You can see one of them in the photo below.

 Hannah and decided to do the Riverside walk during our 2 hour stop in the centre of the Park.   

 Along the walk I admired lots of the Spring flowers in bloom. I think that this one is a little penstemon, growing in a crack in the rock.

 

 And the native Columbines doing the same.

 

 We didn't expect to see Maiden Hair Fern growing in the area but the water running from the rocks provided the right climate for these delicate little ferns to thrive.

 

 And of course there were Squirrels.

 The views were quite spectacular.

 Just as we climbed back on the bus the black clouds rolled in and the rain started to fall......we certainly were lucky with our timing for our visit.

The colours of the landscape as we left the park were stunning.......the photos really don't show the beauty of Zion.

Linda  :)   (back in Cooriemungle.....and my own bed!)

 

Salt Lake and beyond

 Although we are back in Salt Lake City for Spring Quilt Market, my holiday blogging is picking up at last Saturday when we arrived in Salt Lake City. Our first stop was Temple Square.  

It was a warm day and inside the square was beautiful and cool with the green grass and shady trees. 

The fountain even put on a show for us. 

The gardens were absolutely beautiful. 

All of the spring flowers were in full bloom......including my favourite all time flower Iceland Poppies. 

 The Bearded Iris were almost finished, but the Bellis Daisies were lovely.  

Saturday was a busy day in Temple Square with not just the many tour groups but also with lots of weddings being held. We saw about 4 in the short time we were there. After a dinner in the Mormon run 'The Pantry' eatery, and staying just one night we left Sunday morning to travel to the stunning Bryce Canyon.

I have to admit that Bryce Canyon was my favourite place on the whole trip.  

The geology of area combined with the erosion over the millions of years created stunning rock formations.  

This natural bridge reminded me of London Bridge along our Great Ocean Road. It too one day will probably collapse as the erosion continues.  

Hannah and I decided to take a hike down into the valley. Several others from the tour also made the hike down. It was easy going down but the hike back up was a little tougher due to the high altitude.  

One of the older men from our tour had a hard time making the trek back up.......we took our time and walked back up with him.....thankfully he made it up okay......tired and puffed but okay.  

 

 

The view from the bottom was beautiful. 

 

It is really difficult to show the true beauty of the canyon in my photos. Although I took the opportunity to take quite a few photos......sometimes it was just nice to stand and take in the views.

 

 Linda  :)  (back in Salt Lake City, Utah)

Hotter than a pepper sprout

 Jackson, Wyoming was our next destination on our tour and it was great to have another 2 nights staying in the same place. A we made our way we stopped for a photo opportunity at this snow covered mountain top. It was going to be our last up close and personal encounter with snow for our tour as headed south on our journey.  

I couldn't resist this snap either......no it's not of the roller on the back of the truck or the cars.......but it was the Osprey nest at the top of the pole.....complete with Mrs Osprey herself.

We arrived in Jackson right on lunch time.......it was a scatter lunch.......the bus is parked and we all go in different directions for lunch. On our way to a Bar & Grill, we walked through the Town Square which has 4 of these magnificent Elk Antler Arches......they are on each corner. 

Every year approximately 8,000 Elk spend the Winter months just outside Jackson at what is now the National Elk Refuge. It must truly be an amazing sight to see. Each Spring the local Boy Scouts go out to the Refuge and collect the antlers that the Bull Elk have shed. The antlers are then auctioned in May, with the proceeds being split between local charities and the Boy Scouts. Left over antlers are used to keep the arches maintained.

 

Our afternoon was spent in the Grand Teton National Park. Stunning views everywhere we looked. 

We visited Jenny Lake.......formed by glaciers about 12,000 years ago.  

Hannah and I managed to climb down to the edge of the lake.........I made Hannah go first just in case there were bears around....lol! 

We stopped by the Visitors Centre for a look around.......interesting sign........ 

And managed to see another Moose that happened to be grazing just out from the Visitors Centre.......very handy indeed! 

Our next stop was when someone yelled out Elk! We took a detour up a side road to get a closer look......interrupting this cyclist who had decided to tap a dip in the dam and sunbake on the bank. He was surprised when 47 tourists marched through the paddock to get a closer look at the herd of 80 odd Elk. He was up and gone in no time! 

That evening some of our group attended a Camp Cook Out. We travelled up the mountain in covered wagons drawn by large draught horses.  

I am not a horsey person but these gentle giants were quite wonderful. 

After our wonderful meal we were entertained by the Bar T 5 band, and some good old entertainment. Buck Skin the Mountain Man who had earlier in the evening scared the living daylights out of us as we travelled in the covered wagons, decided that he needed a new wife on the count that his current wife had left him.......and guess who he picked......Hannah! Yes Hannah was once again selected from the audience. They got wedded that night, but 'unfortunately' we haven't seen him since........lol! 

It was a great fun night.....lots of laughs and some excellent fiddle playing too!

We spent Friday morning rafting down Snake River spotting wildlife. Hannah and Buddy took front seats in the raft.

 

We saw lots of Bald Eagles along the river.......we even saw 2 having an aerial fight with a Red Tailed Hawk (no photos....sorry) 

Hannah spent the afternoon white water rafting, while I did some walking and shopping and then some laundry! We both loved Jackson and could have spent more time there. But we had to pack our bags and turn off our lamps s our next stop was Salt Lake City.

 

Linda    :)

(currently in Bryce Canyon, Utah) 

 

 

 

Yellowstone.......here we come!

 We left Cody and headed for Yellowstone National Park for what would be 2 days of nature at it's best. I guess that it's everyone's dream to see a Grizzly and / or Black Bear in the wild and everyone had their fingers crossed. Mary, our Tour Director even had her lucky Bear hat on!

Mary had told us in that there was a Bison that had died of unknown causes a couple of days earlier. It's carcass was not far from the North-East entrance to Park......the entrance that we were using. It was bad news for the poor Bison, but good news for us as dead animals usually means bears or wolves could be around making the most of the free feed. As we travelled along the road, we spotted a large herd of Bison grazing on the grassy plain.......then the cry came out.....Wolf at 11 o'clock! In fact here were 2 wolves running towards something.........and that something was the Bison carcass. 

 As we followed along, they took no notice of the crowd gathered up ahead with long lenses on their cameras. We couldn't get off the bus but were mesmerised by the two wolves as they tugged and tugged at the carcass. Mary told us that they would be the Alpha male and female of the pack, as they always get to eat first at any kill site or carcass find. After 5 minutes, one of the wolves (we think the female) kept running off and stopping and looking, and then returning to the meal. She did this several times and we were told that she would have been calling for the rest of the pack to join in the feast. Unfortunately we weren't able to stay and find out if pack managed to make it for lunch. (Apologies for the fuzzy photo.....zooming in close through a bus window does not make for clear photos!)

 We left the wolves to their meal and continued on our hunt for the elusive bear.

We did happen upon a small herd of Bighorn Sheep, grazing near the side of the road. These sheep are quite elusive and Mary was extremely excited when we saw them. 

And then around a few more corners and half way up an embankment there was another group of them, this time with their lovely big horns. 

 We also managed to spot a Coyote out for a bit of a stroll. 

 We continued winding our way along the road to Mammoth Hot Springs, near the Northern entrance to the Park. Formed through the continuing activity of the Mammoth Hot Springs, the terraces were an amazing sight.....smelly but amazing.

The different colours in the terraces are attributed to the bacteria in the water. 

 Roaring Mountain looked eerie with the steam rising up through the almost barren landscape.

A comfort stop (aka toilets and food) was made and the snow in the car park made for a good photo opportunity. We had some light snow which was nice......not too much that it was a pain.......it was still cold but not unbearably so.

It was time to head off to West Yellowstone to check in to our own little log cabin accommodation for the evening. This meant exiting the Park through the West entrance and just slipping into Montana. The next day we were back on the bus and back into the Park. We backtracked a little before heading south to the stunning Firhole Falls.  

We were even lucky enough to have a Ranger give us a Geology lesson about the formation of the Yellowstone National Park. 

Next stop was the Lower Geyser Basin. This dead trees are named The Bobby Socks trees for the white bits at their bases. 

The blue pools looked inviting but looks can be deceiving as the temperatures were at boiling point.

 The bubbling mud pools were very active and very pretty. 

 The Leather Pool used to be a brilliant clear blue until people started throwing things into it......now it's a green colour. 

Back on the bus.....again.....and it was off to see Old Faithful. We had time to fill in before the next scheduled blow so Hannah and I decided to walk off some of our lunch and head to see the Grand Geyser. It was expected to blow at 2pm......give or take an hour. Our bus was due to leave at about 2.45pm so we thought that we had a good chance of seeing the world's tallest most reliable Geyser. Like the Grizzly Bear, this eluded us as well. The 20 minute cycles came and went and at 2.30 we had to make the decision to head back.  

 We made it back in time to see Old Faithful and it was time to head back into West Yellowstone. 

On the way out of the Park, we snapped some Elk lazing by the river. 

 Our plan for the following day was to re-enter the Park and then exit through the South entrance, but unfortunately due to snow the road wasn't open and we had to say goodbye to Yellowstone. On getting back to West Yellowstone, we decided that our best chance of seeing a Grizzly Bear was to visit the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Centre. The animals kept in this facility were rescued animals, or animals that were unable to live in the Park near humans. Some had been relocated (in the wild) without success so came back to live at the Centre. Just before we got to the Centre the keeper had been out hiding some fruit, vegetables and bones  under rocks for the bears to sniff out and eat. They certainly knew where to look, but they had to work quickly to beat the crows from getting to it first.  

And that's where our adventure in Yellowstone ended. No bears but we had managed to see nearly every other animal on our list. We did find out the day after we left Yellowstone that 30 minutes before we arrived at the Bison carcass a Grizzly Bear had been there having a good feed on it......if we had been 30 minutes earlier we would have seen a bear......but then again we would have missed the wolves. I liked the wolves!

Linda    :)

(currently in Salt Lake City, Utah) 

 

And away we go.......again.

Part two of our USA 2016 adventure......or #hnlworlddominationtour as we like to refer to it, started on Saturday morning as we climbed on board the bus for our Cosmos National Parks and Canyons Tour. The weather had started to turn in Denver and as we made our long way north towards Keystone we travelled through mist, fog and rain. We had been so lucky with the weather for the previous fortnight that we knew that our luck would run out sooner or later.

Our main stop on this long trek was the Crazy Horse Memorial. This amazing carving into the Black Hills of South Dakota was incredible to say the least. It has been a work in progress since 1948 and is many decades from being completed. I will never see it completed and I doubt that Hannah or even Georgia will see the completed Crazy Horse Sculpture. No Government money has or will be used to complete any stage of the project.

 

 This is the model that was made by Sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski, and it is being used for the Crazy Horse Memorial. To give you an idea of how large the finished piece will be : 195 m wide x 172 m high. The head alone is 27 m high....the Presidents heads at Mt Rushmore are 18 m high!  

We left Crazy Horse behind and travelled to our over night stop in Keystone.

The next morning Hannah and I joined an optional four hour tour of the beautiful Custer State Park. It was a chilly day even thought the sun was shining. Our first stop was a stunning postcard photo opportunity. Obviously we weren't the only ones who thought this as there had been a wedding at the lake edge the day before.

As we wove our way though the State Park, we admired the beautiful views and the tiny tunnels that the mini bus passed through.....apparently some coaches have tried to squeeze through some of the tunnels and haven't quite made it! 

 

We kept our eyes peeled for local wildlife sightings.......these Yellow-Bellied Marmots were quite cute. 

We also came across a herd of Bison. It is Spring and they are in the middle of calving so it was exciting to see them all.  The young Bison calves look very similar to the little Highland x Jersey calves that I used to rear when I was on the farm.

 The young ones were happy running around and playing.......just like the calves at home used to, and this one was having a feed.

The Bull Bison using don't stay with the cows and calves, they wander off and usually hang around with the other bulls in small groups. The Bison in Custer State Park are yarded once a year for health checks and branding. Excess animals are sold to Ranchers for breeding stock and some for meat. 

 

We also saw quite a few Pronghorn Antelope in the Park. They were quite happy grazing along the sides of the road and on the grass plains. 

 After our Tour it was time to visit another landmark........Mount Rushmore. Although just a fraction of the size of Crazy Horse, it really is an amazing piece of artwork.

The walk way past the Presidents revealed close up views. 

 

 You can almost see up their noses!

 

After lunching with 'the Boys', we travelled to Tatanka, to view the Story of the Bison. Between 30 to 60 million Bison once roamed the great plains of North America. By the end of the 19th century, it was estimated that less than 1,000 Bison survived. Tatanka is their story. Kevin Costner built Tatanka and of it he says, "I believe today that this place is bigger than the dream I had for it. What is means to anyone that will come here will be up to them. Tatanka was not designed as the white man's version of the Native American. Rather it stands as a centrepiece for the two cultures, one who's very lives depended on the buffalo and one who saw it as a means to an end. It recognises and accepts that this is our mutual history. It can also represent the chance to move forward" Very wise words!

The Tatanka Interpretive Centre also has an incredible larger than life bronze sculpture featuring 14 bison pursued by 3 Native American Horseback Riders. 

 It shows the way the Native Americans would hunt the Bison, only killing enough to feed their people. They would use every part of the animal with no waste.  

Every Bison took the artist 8 months to make, an incredible project indeed.

 Our day ended with a tour of Deadwood.......another wild west old style town.

Monday morning we left Deadwood and headed for Cody. Along the way travelling through more scenic park areas.  Although we didn't have any snow in Deadwood, the higher into the mountains we went the more snow that we saw. It was pretty but cold!

We were of course on the lookout for any wildlife we could spot.......and with 47 on the bus there were plenty of eyes to do the job. It was exciting to see Moose grazing the newly uncovered grasses by the creek.  

 We also saw a few more Bison, Mule Deer and Pronghorn Antelope along our way, but it was hard to know what to look at as there were so many beautiful things to look at. 

Our day ended in Cody, but the whole group were super excited about tomorrow as we were heading into Yellowstone for the first of what would be 2 amazing days.......but more of that soon!

Linda   :)

(currently in West Yellowstone, Montana)

 

 

On to Denver and......Elenor Jean!

 
We arrived in Denver on Wednesday afternoon and settled in to our Hotel. After staying near the Airport in Phoenix, it was nice to be right in downtown Denver......close to shopping and restaurants......and so very close to possibly the best bar ever......The Yard House. Hannah and I decided to have dinner there and it was great. The food was yummy and with over 120 beers and ciders on tap it was the place to be! This was the view from our window......snow capped mountain peaks in the distance didn't reflect the warm to hot weather that we experienced in Denver over our 2 day stay. 

 Thursday was our sight seeing day. A stroll up to the Capitol Building with it gold doom shining in the sun. 

The row of yellow school buses all lined up near the park.....I just couldn't resist a photo!

We stumbled upon the largest gathering of food trucks in metro Denver. There were at least 30 selling all different food types. Although 11.15am was just a little early for lunch for us it didn't seem to worry the huge crowd that was taking advantage of the wide selection available.

We also found the Mint building and although we missed joining in on the tour, we managed to make a few purchases from the gift shop. Hannah is a little bit of a coin collector so she really enjoyed the opportunity to add to her collection.

After lunch we took a bus and then walked to the Aquarium. While not as good as the Melbourne Aquarium, we did enjoy our time looking at the exhibits.

 Friday was going to be my day. It was day that I was going to visit the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum and see ElenorJean and all of the other beautiful Australian Quilts on display in the special 'Australia Uncovered' Exhibition. This time we decided to catch a bus to Golden instead of an Uber. At $5.20 for a return ticket it was a lot cheaper than the possible $60 + for the Uber.  Plus I quite enjoy traveling on buses.......the locals usually start talking to you as they love our accents!

Golden is a lovely place. Lots of shopping and eateries, and of course the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum. As Hannah and I entered this small but very lovely building, I said to the lady that we would like to buy 2 tickets to see the exhibition as I had a quilt in it. She knew exactly who I was and ushered Hannah and I through at no charge......which was a pleasant surprise. It felt so surreal to see my quilt in this special exhibition amongst so many famous Australian Quiltmakers.

There was a diverse range of quilts on display which showcased Quilt making in Australia.

Beautiful quilts made by lovely people.

 

 And then there in the corner was Elenor Jean......in the company of superstars. I posed for a photo while it was quiet. There were 2 other ladies (from Germany I think) looking at the exhibition while Hannah and I were there. When they found out that I had made the quilt, I had my hand shaken and photos taken.....lol!

We left the Museum only to return about an hour later for the official opening of the Exhibition.

Janet O'Dell was the curator of the exhibition and had put a tremendous amount of planning and work into getting it off the ground. Janet and Denise Reynolds (who had been in Golden for about a week) and myself were made feel so welcome. I am so honoured to have had my quilt selected and so very happy to have been able to see the exhibition in person. It's a moment I will never forget.  

It was so nice that people were so interested in Elenor Jean......the gentleman in the photo below told me it was his favourite quilt in the whole exhibition!

 

The 2 hours went so quickly.......I wish that I could've stayed longer but we had a bus to catch and we didn't want to be too late and miss it! I felt a bit like Cinderella (minus the good looks and fancy dress) running down the street to the waiting bus. I did still have my lovely corsage that they presented each of the Aussies with.  

I don't get many flowers so I wasn't leaving it behind......so on Saturday morning it came on the bus with me as we started our Cosmos National Parks and Canyons Tours. I did get some strange looks from the others on the bus but I didn't care.....for just one night I felt important and I didn't want that moment to pass.

Linda    :)

(now in Cody,  Wyoming)

Back to Phoenix

I am still playing catch up with my blogging for our US trip and today I pick up our adventure from Phoenix, Arizona. We arrived back in Phoenix after our tour of Mexico and it was great to back in a country where you could drink the water from a tap and flush the toilet paper in the toilet! On the Monday morning Hannah and I decided on a little retail therapy. It was a hot day so we went out to the Paradise Valley Mall......catching our very first Uber in the States.....an interesting experience as hands free obviously isn't law. I was a tad nervous as the driver held her phone in one hand looking at the GPS while driving. The return trip was much better and the guy was friendly and chatty. We had a great time and did come back with just a 'couple' of things.

I even got to try out my new bathers that afternoon.......not sure that they will make another appearance during the rest of our trip.

Tuesday was Zoo day. Hannah is a zoo tragic so we decided to slap on the sunscreen and our hats and head out for the day. First stop though was a rock formation called 'The Hole in the Rock'.......

We climbed up to the hole for some photos before the weather warmed up too much. The view was great......looking over the area surrounding the Zoo.

On our walk back down we spotted these litter critters.......Antelope Ground Squirrels. I think that these were young ones as their tails were thin and they weren't coloured up very well.

The Zoo was next.

 

The Value Admittance ticket seemed like fun as it included a 'train' ride around the Zoo, patting the Stingrays and also a 4D Movie experience complete with water spray, bubbles, air blowing into the backs of our necks and being poked in the back! We also decided to pay $5 each to feed the Giraffes and get up close to them. I love Giraffes so Hannah didn't really have to ask me twice if I wanted to do it!

We had to stand behind the yellow line.......no patting......or fast movements.

After 5 hours at the zoo we decided that it was time to get out of the sun and head back to the Motel.

Two years ago when we were in Phoenix on our Cosmos tour we went out to dinner at Rustlers Rooste. Hannah was super keen for us to have dinner there again so after a little detour to a Quilt Shop (3 Dudes Quilting) we caught another Uber and headed out to RR.

The meal was great..........we were full and happy........a great end to our short stay in Phoenix.

Wednesday morning we packed our bags once again.......squeezing in our purchases and headed to the airport for our flight to Denver, Colorado.

It is getting late but hopefully I can make it back tomorrow night (wifi permitting) to blog about our few days in Denver.

Linda   :)

(currently in Deadwood, South Dakota)

 

Adios Mexico

 Leaving Posada Barrancas, we were headed towards Neuvo Casas Grandes for our last night in Mexico. Leaving Copper Canyon meant that we still had some winding roads to conquer but the scenery made it all worth while. At the midmorning stretch your legs pit stop I snapped a photo of some of the local ladies and their daughters. Their colourful dresses were beautiful.  

 

 Once out of the Canyons we drove through farming land......massive areas of apple orchards. Mexico is a huge producer of apples.......a fact that I had never considered. They are also a major grower of Pecan nuts. It was really difficult to take a photo of the apple orchards from our speeding bus....this next photo was the best of a blurry bunch.

Every meal on our Trafalgar tour was included.......Buffet breakfasts, 3 course lunches and dinners......Ernie had a saying......'we are like babies....they keep feeding us every 4 hours!' The food has been great and wow the service.......polite, neat and clean with quick service and even quicker clearing of plates. The family owned restaurant in Guerrero where our lunch would be served was incredible. Instead of the usual 20 waiters to look after us we had one......but wow was he great! Manuel had told us that our waiter was nicknamed Speedy Gonzales and he wasn't wrong. Lunch was Chips and Salsa; Guacamole and Chips; Stuffed Chilli, Beef kebabs & Spinach; and quite possibly the best Apple Pie that I have ever eaten!.......yes it was even better than my homemade Apple Pie. We smiled sweetly at Speedy and he popped an extra dessert between Hannah and I......and yes we ate it! The owner recited some poetry which was quite different to say the least......she certainly was very passionate in her readings.

We arrived in Cases Grandes.........staying in a hotel that looked like we had stepped back into the 70's......lol! Prior to dinner that evening we witnessed some of the hand made Mata Ortiz pots being fired. Here is one of the pots prior to being fired......they were stunning. 

  

The firing process took about 45minutes, and after dinner the 3 pots were auctioned. I would've loved to have purchased one but I just don't have the room in my luggage at the moment.  

The next morning we headed out to the Paquime archaeological zone. 

 
It was an amazing site......incredibly interesting. 

 

We headed on our way once again for our long.....long....bus trip back to Phoenix. We reached the Mexican border......yes there is already a fence between part of Mexico and the US.

 

 I wasn't able to take any photos of the actual area where we went through US Customs.......well I could've but I wouldn't be lying back in bed in the Sheraton in Downtown Denver as I am now......I would probably be held up in a jail somewhere near the border! Once back in the US we still had a very long trip ahead of us.....reaching our Hotel at just after 7pm.

We had an incredible time in Mexico. The people were friendly, the food was great and the sights incredible. We didn't eat street food or drink the water and didn't get sick! There are certainly problem areas in Mexico but there are certainly a lot more areas that are safe and great to visit.

Linda   :)

(from Downtown Denver, Colorado)

Copper Canyon

We said goodbye to El Fuerte and the Hummingbirds, and boarded the bus for our short trip to the Railway Station where we waited to board the train to Posada Barrancas. One of the most scenic railroads in the world, the 420 mile trip goes through 86 tunnels and over 32 trestles. We weren't traveling the full trip, which takes 14 hours......however our 214kms provided us with exceptional scenery, and the chicken tacos for lunch were delicious.

We were staying 2 nights at the Hotel Mirador.......and the views over Copper Canyon were breathtakingly beautiful. The photos really don't do it justice. This was the view from our balcony.  

 

 And this was a view of our Hotel that we took when Hannah, Marcia and I went for a walk that afternoon. Marcia and her husband Ernie were also on our trip. Unfortunately Ernie got extremely ill and wasn't able to come along. A few of the group got altitude sickness, but fortunately Hannah and I were relatively unaffected.....apart from a little light headiness on the first day.

 I love this photo that I took of Hannah and Marcia sitting out on a rocky outcrop taking their photos. 

 Hannah and I decided to get up early the next day and see the sun rise over Copper Canyon. After pressing snooze a couple of times and peeking out the window to see if the sun was coming up, we finally got out at about 6am to see it. It was so cold that we rugged up with several layers (and a blanket....me).......but so worth it.

 

 After breakfast our tour director Manuel had invited the local Tarahumara Indian children to come along and join in some games. Manuel had brought along a piñata and the children all took turns, as well as some of our group to wack the donkey. The children have the last Friday of each month off school (teachers day) so we were fortunate that they were able to come along. 

And when the piñata finally broke there were children everywhere.....scrambling to fill their pockets with the candy that fell on the ground. 

 I am just going to back peddle a little. Remember how we all stopped off at Walmart to purchase some supplies? Well we also purchased gifts for the children. It is something extra that Manuel does for the Tarahumara Indian children who don't have a lot. It wasn't compulsory, but we all did it. There were pencils, notepads, balls, back packs, colouring books, crayons, school supplies, toys.........not huge purchases but with 44 on the tour there was plenty for the children and no one missed out. They were so happy to receive anything at all........I think the smiles on our faces were just as big as the ones on the children.

 It was then time to take a cable car trip across part of the Canyon. Hannah was keen to do the Zip Rider, which is the longest Zip Rider in the world. She was unable to convince me to go with her, but Marcia was keen so the 2 of them signed their waiver forms and headed off. It was quite funny as while we were waiting for the cable car to arrive, Hannah and Marcia took off........and we could all hear Hannah screaming (with delight) as she sped up to the 125km.

 Reaching the other side, Hannah and Marcia had a bit of a hike to reach the top where the cable car was going to take us all back over to the starting point. We had a walk around taking every opportunity to admire the stunning views. 

After lunch and a little 'Hannah' nap, we joined Manuel for a 90 minute hike through a nearby Tarahumara village, and around the edge of the Canyon near our accommodation. It wasn't a hard hike, but some of the older members of our group were advised against coming along due the altitude.

Prior to dinner, Manuel gave us an informative talk about the culture and history of the Tarahumara Indian people. After listening to their courtship rituals I have decided that I am going to give Hannah a bag of pebbles for her next birthday! When a girl likes a boy she throws a pebble at him........if he likes her he throws it back........and that's it! 

 The next morning we were once again putting our suitcases out and climbing back on the bus.....leaving behind this beautiful hidden treasure that not a lot of people know about. Hannah and I are so glad that we picked this tour and got to see just a little part of this natural wonder, which is deeper and bigger than the Grand Canyon.

Linda   :)

(now in Denver, Colorado)

PS. You can read more about the Copper Canyon here.

 

 

Hola Amigos

I have been trying to write this blog post for over a week now. I start and get interrupted......I start and lose wifi connection.....I start and get distracted......I start and lose interest. But tonight is the night.......a catch up blog for the first part of our trip.

On Saturday 23rd April Hannah and I left Australia for our amazing trip to Mexico and the US. After 3 'good' flights.....mainly thanks to our new noise cancelling headphones (oh my goodness.....they are fantastic!), we arrived in Phoenix, Arizona just a few hours after we left Australia....thanks to the time difference. Sunday morning we picked up our tour to Mexico with 42 other travellers........mainly US citizens with a few Aussies, a Canadian, and an English couple thrown in. Our first day was a long bus trip, passing through check points and customs as we made our way into Mexico and to our first motel in San Carlos. The view from our balcony certainly made up for the 10 hours spent on the bus.

A morning boat trip on the bay in the Sea of Cortes was fun.......with me being just a little bit silly......

Just when we thought that we weren't going to see the dolphins they appeared and put on a fabulous show....swimming in front of the boat and then falling back to swim and jump through the waves at the back of the boat. The louder we cheered the more they jumped......we even had mothers with babies!

A visit to the Pearl farm was extremely interesting but we left empty handed but with bank balance in tact!

After 2 nights in San Carlos we left to head to Alamos. On the way we stopped at a newly finished synthetic bronze statue. It consists of a 17m concrete base underground, 7m concrete above the ground and then the 33m high statue of the Yaqui Deer Dancer.

It is the largest standing sculpture in Latin America and cost $10 million Pesos to erect.....and according to our Mexican tour director, Manuel Jurado, an amount of money that would have done a lot to help the Yaqui people.  

A visit to Walmart to purchase supplies revealed that alcohol is a lot cheaper in Mexico than in Australia......like a lot cheaper. When you can purchase a stubby of Apple Cider for less than a can of energy drink, you know that something is not right!......1.75 litres of vodka for AU $8.52! But then the wages are not great either.......we tipped the guy bagging our purchases about AU$1.50 and he couldn't keep his eyes off Hannah.....lol!

Being the only person under 45, and with majority of the 44 people on the tour being over 65, Hannah was a popular choice when it came to being picked for audience participation.....I'm sure this young man was quite pleased when he saw Hannah in the group as he made a quick bee line for her during this fantastic performance by students and teachers raising money for their education.

From Alamos we travelled to El Fuerte, learning many interesting facts and history from Manuel. We stayed in the beautiful Hotel Torres del Fuerte, a restored 19th centuary mansion where every room was different, but the insects were bitey bitey.......which Hannah found out the hard way. Another evening performance, the first a Yaqui Deer Dancer, followed by Mexican dancers. The girls looks beautiful as they swirled around......

and the men in their boots, pants and white shirts.

And of course Hannah was once again picked out of the group for a dance!

 So I think I will call it a night and say Adios. I will be back soon with Part 2 of Mexico with some stunning photos of our trip to the Copper Canyon.

Linda  :)

(in Phoenix, Arizona, USA)