Leg #: 20 (Day 110-113) FINAL LEG

Location: Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, St. George, UT, Snow Canyon State Park and Home to Southern Arizona

Mileage Driven leg/FINAL total: 771 / 10,958

Road Conditions: No issues.

Weather: Lovely Fall weather. Highs in the 60s/70s and lows in high 40s.

Tofu Status:

• All systems still working.

• Upon returning home, we did a routine oil change, tire rotation and also a van battery change as it was nearing its end of life. We emptied the van completely of everything that wasn’t literally bolted down and gave the inside a solid deep cleaning and good wash on the outside. Tony repaired the loose burner and tightened the bolts holding the refrigerator into its cabinet. Tofu is clean and in tip-top condition and safely back in their bougie valet indoor temperature-controlled secured storage facility awaiting our next trip.

• Overall, Tofu rocks! Not fancy, but safe, reliable and takes us everywhere we want to go.

Highlights:

• Wildlife Sightings: does a tarantula count? How about dinosaur tracks?

• We were gone 113 days (every night sleeping in the van!), 8 states (AZ, CO, UT, NV, WA, ID, OR, AK), 2 Canadian Provinces (British Columbia and Alberta), 1 Canadian Territory (Yukon), almost 11,000 miles of driving, 4 ferries, 8 border crossings and a lifetime of memories. What a trip! No windshield cracks!

• This area of the country in Southern Utah is one of our favorites and we have been here many times before but keep coming back for more. Red rocks, yellow flowers, Fall leaf color changes all set against the clear blue skies in just stunning. The red rocks in this area are so interesting and prominent. Sheer cliff walls of red, red canyons, red narrows, red everywhere. So beautiful and peaceful, almost feels sacred.

• Hiking was our main activity in this area and we did lots of shorter hikes. Our favorite hike in Red Cliffs was the Red Reef trail which we have hiked on a previous visit. It took us through a canyon to a “narrows” area that was breathtaking and included waterfalls. In Snow Canyon, we had 2 favorites: 1) the lava tube hike which was a mixture of red rock with black lava “charring” on the top which surrounded deep lava tubes which people can climb down into if they are adventurous (we weren’t as it was quite a steep drop); 2) the Petrified Dune Hike which on paper is marked easy but in reality was anything but as it requires climbing up a steep 20% grade of sandstone but was fun and worth the effort. Many, many hiking options in the area.

• We had 2 amazing campsites: the small no-frills 11 site Red Cliffs Campground where we were able to literally hike 2 days right from our campsite and the more traditional Snow Canyon SP campsite where we were surrounded by the sheer red cliff walls.

• While we were in Snow Canyon we saw the Broadway production of Tarzan at the nearby outdoor Tuacahn Amphitheater. What an incredible venue built into the red rocks. It was similar to the Red Rocks Amphitheater near Denver where we saw Josh Groban last year. Wonderful acoustics and a gorgeous location.

• We started our trip in Mesa Verde National Park where we took a tour of the Cliff Dwellings of the Ancestral Puebloan peoples. We ended our trip hiking out to an archeological site also of the Ancestral Puebloan peoples near Red Cliffs. It was an unexpected full circle moment.

• We found a great vegan café called Gaia Garden Café in downtown St. George and we had a might tasty lunch. Yummy bowls .

• Tony was able to get in daily bike rides in during this leg with his favorite being around the Quail Creek Reservoir.

• Our drive home was an unexpected highlight. We took the back roads to savor the last few hours of this amazing trip and in doing so we found a gorgeous route driving through canyons, forests and finally back through the Sonoran Desert that we never knew existed. What a wonderful end to this trip.

Lowlights:

• I did not schedule enough time in this area and we easily could have spent another 2-3 days here. This leg felt too rushed and we had more things we wanted to do then we had time for.

• Our Summer Alaska Trip is over and now the post travel doldrums commence as we integrate back into our normal life and normal routine.

• We have many days of unpacking, washing, cleaning and organizing ahead of us. So much laundry..

Tiger (Provan) Sightings: Tony = 3, Tracey = 0

Next: TBD based on when our European campervan is ready for pick-up, but we have some winter trips in Tofu in mind including possibly a Mexico adventure to the Baja???