Since being with family for the holidays was out of the question for us this year because of Covid, we decided to go south in early November to at least be somewhere where outdoor activities are possible. And it would be nice to not to have to shovel snow and deal with ice. In going south we took a little different route and went down highways 3 and 95 along the Salmon and Snake rivers. We hadn't gone that way before and it was fun to try a new route. Once we hit Interstate 84 we made a beeline for the Grand Staircase National Monument in southern Utah.
A favorite campsite for us is across the highway from The Toadstools hike. It is such an amazing area in the monument that we can't resist visiting it when we are in the area. When there we discovered that some friends of ours, Jim and Vicki, were camped down the road at the Lone Rock Campground on Lake Powell near Page Arizona. They came over one evening and we shared a great outdoor visit. Since Lone Rock is another favorite of ours we decided to go there an have some fun with Jim and Vicki who like doing many of the things we enjoy like hiking, kayaking and bicycling.
What to do for Thanksgiving? How about a turkey diner on the beach on Lake Powell, provided by the Safeway in Page! That is something we all will remember. As you can tell, it was a little chilly. But the sun was out and the company was awesome!
Antelope Canyon is a famous slot canyon near Page. Since it is on Native American land the Navajo control the access into the canyon. You can take a native guided tour with a large group of tourist for a rather expensive price. Jim and Vicki suggested that we kayak to the end on the canyon on Lake Powell, where you don't need to be part of a tour and there is no charge. The kayak trip was just incredible, one of the best, if not THE best we've had.
And the kayak trip was made even more memorable because you can then hike up into the slot canyon. We didn't go very far because it was getting late. We can hardly wait to try it again, getting further into the more narrow sections of the canyon.
From Lone Rock we went to another favorite camping spot of ours outside of Lake Havasu City where we kayaked and hiked. Jim and Vicki joined us there later. They have a ritual of morning yoga. Mona joined in most mornings.
After Lake Havasu we went to this great RV resort in Yuma where we have stayed before. We really like this resort since it is fairly small but has lots of amenities, mainly pickleball for us. Yuma is nice because it is mainly sunny there but it doesn't have much more to offer. If it wasn't for Covid we would not have been able to stay there for only a month. This resort if really popular with Canadians and would have been booked solid with folks willing to stay 3 to 6 months. That is not for us, at least not yet.
We thought we would be spending Christmas by ourselves when Max and Diana, Mona's son and daughter-in-law decided to meet up and share it with us. They had rented an AirB&B in Borrego Springs, CA, which had a pool and an area on the street next to the house where we could park the trailer. We spent Christmas with them by the pool and enjoyed a great hike in the mountains nearby. Max introduced us to night time Bocce Ball with glowing balls. It was a hoot playing in the desert behind the house! I told them they saved Christmas for us.
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