Nevada and Utah

Russell and I are currently sitting in the “Canyon Café” after having gone down the canyon this morning and climbed back out this afternoon. Can you believe that they have Wifi at the Grand Canyon?!

So a quick update on our road trip through Nevada and Utah, before we drove through to Arizona to explore this wonder.

Nevada: Beautiful country. Feels almost like Namibia! Lots of desert and Salt Bush. We couch surfed with very nice people in Reno before we drove through to a one horse town called Elko. Here we stayed with the loveliest man called Doug. His house was outside the town in a place called Spings Creek. We had a spectacular view of the Ruby Mountains and at night, Doug pulled out his telescope and we got to watch Saturn dip below the horizon!

In the morning Russell and I drove through to Lamoille Canyon close by and did a little walk. So very beautiful. Sometimes the beauty here makes my eyes tear. I am very loyal to Namibia and still convinced that it is the most beautiful country in the world, but goodness! There are some awe-inspiring places here in the states. And such diversity!

[Russell: I’d like to modify my opinion about what is seductive about America; it’s not only the dream, the excess and the promise of freedom, it’s the land too, perhaps it is the original seduction, which inspired the rest. Doug introduced us to some cowboy poetry, songs and writings about the American West and it definitely captures the experience of being seduced by the rugged beauty and potency of this land. One piece of writing struck me in particular and I’ve had its imagery and sincerity stay with me since we left Springs Creek and I’ve been carrying it with me through our road trip, watching the land breathlessly.]

After Elko we drove through farmlands and crossed the state border into Utah. Here we made our way to Salt Lake City. We both agreed that this was the most beautiful city we’ve encountered thus far.  We stayed with the most wonderful people; Cheryl and David in their beautiful home just outside the city.  They are great travellers, avid hikers and have the most awesome stories to share!

Russell and I went to an Atmosphere concert on the second night…Russ’s childhood dream!! The best part was that he managed to meet and shake hands with the main rapper, Slug, before the show began. There were many many young people and it was interesting literally rubbing shoulders with the American youth, so see and hear what they’re about, particularly in the hip-hop scene. It was really really loud; not really my cup of tea but very exciting! We had a ball.

The next morning, Cheryl and David took us to a beauteous place in the mountains. We had a spectacular walk and even saw a moose!

We then drove to our next camping spot Cedar Canyon. During our time there we went to an AWESOME place called Zion National Park, with lots of red rock. It was averaging 40 degrees when we got there, so we went for a walk in the “narrows” the path for which is basically a river. It was very refreshing and we had loads of fun! Lots of tourists though. We even bumped into a South African from Jo’burg.

 

Me and Sluggo, Sluggo and me...

Blueprint

Evidence

Atmosphere

Us with our awesome hosts, David & Cheryl