We Live In A Beautiful Country

We left Flagstaff, AZ under the most amazing blue sky.


Every inch of this journey was like a living post card. Rocky did 90% of the driving, which gave me a great deal of time to simply stare out the window and soak up the view. And take photos. I snapped 3682 photos on this trip. A great, great many of the photos taken were shot from the passenger window. I loved it and I'm going to miss it.

This is the last photo taken out of the window of our truck. It's was a strom in the Mojave Desert.


Our journey is over, but I've only begun to post some of my favorite photos. Stay tuned.

Going To California...

With an aching in my heart. The last day of driving is always bittersweet. We love our home and friends in California. And I mean LOVE them. But we love our journey and the places we visit. And we love our land in West Virginia.

Tonight we'll sleep in our own beds. No more hotels. As a send off to Arizona, here's a look inside the Grand Canyon.

Wildlife Spotted At The Grand Canyon

We saw some donkeys, a few horses and cows and even a Coyote. But I'm quite certain the Turner Family was the wildest group of animals in the Grand Canyon National Park today. :)

The Grand Canyon Is Just That

I could spend all night trying to come up with the right words to describe the Grand Canyon, and I'd still fail. That's not self deprication, that's a fact. If you've seen the Grand Canyon for yourself, you understand. The right words don't exist. Not in the English language. These panos speak a language all their own. They'll will do a much better job than I ever could. So here are 7000 "words" to describe the awesome beauty of the Grand Canyon.






Click on the photos to view larger.

The Road To The Grand Canyon

The drive to the Grand Canyon is the perfect appetizer for the main course... and the perfect dessert for your return. Click on the photos to view larger.

Oregano's - A Great Way To End The Day

We literally stumbled on Oregano's last year. And we've been thinking about coming back ever since. We planned our trip to make sure we got into Flagstaff, Arizona early enough to miss the crowd. The wait last year was over 2 hours. The food is that good. After our trip to the Grand Canyon tomorrow, we'll be eating there again. It's not just our favorite restaurant in Flagstaff, it's one of our favorites, period. Oregeno's... not to be missed.

View Of A Desert Storm

Thunderstorm in the desert, looking South about 60 miles from Flagstaff.

Extreme Poverty. Extreme Beauty.

Within the same 15 mile stretch, we saw extreme poverty:


And extreme beauty:

The road that leads from Window Rock back to the I-40 toward Flagstaff is worth the trip.

Window Rock, Arizona

I'm glad we took a break from the long drives today. Window Rock, Arizona is just a beautiful side trip. Only 24 miles off the I-40, it's more than worth the time. Next year we're going to stay in Window Rock and spend a bit more time there.

Window Rock is the administrative capital of the Navajo Nation. Rocky saw this place on Oprah and had a strong desire to see it. I thought the kids might not enjoy it, but our oldest is the one who suggested we come back and stay longer and everyone agreed. That thrilled me. Rocky bought a couple of pieces of jewelry from a local Navajo artisan and we all just had a great time eating lunch and looking around. The kids were most impressed by the horses and cows roaming around with no fences. OK, I admit it. I thought that was cool too!

Amazing Canyon Pass

This pass lies between Mesquite, Nevada and St. George, Utah.
It's awe inspiring.