Heating things up

After being so cold when we stayed overnight at almost 8000 feet, we high-tailed it to a lower altitude. First we had to climb even higher over the mountains between Bryce Canyon and Cedar City. By the way, there are lots of good dispersed camping spots there along UT14 for summer stops.

I believe the pass elevation was close to 10,000 feet and the visibility was terrible. I would have just parked and waited for the clouds to lift which might have taken days. Ron just drove on.


Finally it cleared up and was beautiful on our way into Cedar City. Whew! I was exhausted from the drive. How did I ever do it myself?

Question - What happens when you don't see a Walmart for three weeks?
Answer - You spend $189 stocking up!

The next day we continued downhill for 200 miles (Wow! Did we really drive 200 miles in one day?) and joined our WIN friends at Boulder Beach campground in Lake Mead National Recreation Area. In this picture you can see how much the lake is down. Our campground in the trees in the upper left used to be on the lake. (The RVs you can see right in front of the the trees is acutally run by a concessionaire and costs a lot more than the one run by the National Park Service. Of course they do have hookups.)


Our first morning here, I got up before sunrise for this early morning shot. Sounds impressive, but sunrise was about 7:10 and we had just gained an hour crossing into Pacific time.


The campground is nicely laid out with spaces large enough for us and lots of trees for shade. Usually we look for full sun for the solar panels, but it is so hot here (in the 90s), that we picked one with morning and afternoon shade, but still a clear shot to the south for satellite TV. Perfect. The only problem here is the campfire smoke that just hangs over the campground. We've had to keep our windows shut in the evenings and overnight and even with that I woke up last night with a runny nose that wouldn't stop. I finally took some Benadryl. I know, what kind of a camper am I? (A wimpy one.)

There are Oleander bushes all over the campground which surprised me. It only takes one person who doesn't know they're toxic to cut a branch for a hot dog roasting stick. They sure are pretty though.


On Saturday there was a half-triathlon in the area. On our way to town, we passed some of the athletes biking among the sheep. That stuck us as funny.


Although they seem to be pretty used to people, the rams did keep an eye on the strange rolling creatures.


Nearby Boulder City is a very cute town. Although close to Las Vegas, it has a small town atmosphere with a very active downtown. There are wonderful bronze statues all over town. Here a just a few.

Being very close to the Hoover Dam, Boulder City's history is closely tied to the dam. I like this memorial to the 'Puddlers' who spread the concrete to create the dam.


At the height of construction, over 7000 men labored on the dam. Although his job wasn't as glamorous as some, this man was very important to the operation. He swept the outhouses and kept them supplied with paper.


With jobs available in the area, men brought their wives and families who made Boulder City into the pleasant town it is today.


I found this cute outhouse behind the 'Tastie Pastrie' and took it for my cousin. I loved the 'No Dumping' sign.