Sweat Lodge Continued (Day 2)

The AC in Olive is a bad mama-jama.  It was an icebox, in stark contrast to the blast of heat I felt at 7am when I went outside.  Before we left, I hit the video poker for some Deuces Wild.  For those of you I haven’t bored before with my fascination with video poker, it’s a total numbers game, but you can come out on top if you play statistically correct.  The last few trips I hadn’t hit any major prizes, but on this morning, all my grinding paid off shortly after getting off the phone with Lynda “lucky” Jean, when I hit four deuces (one in 5000 hands) which fetched me $230… whose the big winner? This guy (thumbs pointing to me)! Could this be the Karma coming back around?

After a Costco run to gas up, we made our way North to Bryce Canyon.  We took a nice break at Quail Creek State Park for a dip.  This was quite a find by Mike and definitely helped us cool down and recharge the batteries. 

We hit the gas station after and saw a young couple carrying these drink containers that were HUUUUGE (Tiny Elvis Voice).  Mike fell in love so we hit the Maverick’s gas station for the one hundred ounce trough.  To my disappoint and his, he succumbed to societal pressures and bought the junior version (50 ounce container) fearing the ridicule of sporting a massive mug with Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, and other racers in public.

We decided to take the scenic route to Bryce from Cedar City after some killer Mexican at Lupita’s. 

We passed this lighthouse… yes, a lighthouse… still scratching my head.

This ride was something else!  Like many of these mountain roads, there was a gentle river that flowed downhill.  As we started to climb in this zig-zagging slot canyon, we came around the bend to a towering, pastel colored limestone\sandstone face layered like lasagna.  We reached the summit, at a surprising elevation of 9,800 feet.  From that height, we had an outstanding view of distant of mountains, rolling hills, and valleys.  I SHOULD HAVE STOPPED FOR A PHOTO.  From there, we slowly descended through a giant lava rock field (pretty cool!).  Next, we were on the brakes quite a bit to avoid striking the local elks feeding near the roadside.  Finally, we made it to the valley and journeyed into the Dixie Forest, passing Red Canyon, which is total teaser for Bryce Canyon.  Tomorrow… we shall hike!