Zion National Park

Little compares with your first introduction to Zion, words nor pictures can describe the experience, you must make an effort to close your mouth, gawking withstanding it is totally awesome. When my pals agreed to visit Zion as part of our Vegas extravaganza I knew I was definitely going, Zion has been on my to do list forever. In fact everything west of the Mississippi is on my vacation destination radar my travels that direction are minimal and there is so much to see.

Heading north on 15 out of Vegas the mountains were starting to pop up, the drive is a bit over three hours and the scenery gets better and better. We noticed lots of shimmering bits along the road sides and in the mountains themselves. Baffled we stopped to take a closer look but could find nothing other than bits of broken glass. Nearing the park entrance we spied a roadside stand that appeared to be selling glass rocks we immediately turned around to investigate. Feeling smug we had found the mother load to solve our shiny road mystery we approached the owner and began pumping him for information. Turns out the mother load of the blue glass rocks was actually the raw material for making windshields and had been purchased as scrap. The multicolored rocks were from a china factory in WV. They were still pretty.


Zion is Hebrew for refuge, the park evokes a raw power that can be felt in your bones. From the mesa tops to the canyon bottoms the soaring heights are breathtaking. The rivers music is sometimes heard and not scene as it pushes down the canyon. The Patriarchs greet you their towering presence hiding the sun.

Since we arrived before April 1, we were allowed to drive in the park which normally requires a tram as transport. The ecosystems, diversity, micro climates of swamps, deserts and lush greenery are only magnified by the color that is everywhere. The colors changing with the daylight and shadows hiding a brilliant sun, deep blues and greens from the Fir and Junipers, the mountains themselves a sandstone rainbow of creams, reds, oranges with black water stained drips that flowed onto a sea of sparkling aazure and green.

Climbers were being restricted when we visited because of peregrine falcon nesting but they were allowed in some areas. Water is the life force in Zion, the Virgin River cuts through the soft stone and pushes bits of sediment down the bed. There is even a swamp in the desert environment where water cress cover the stream bed. We walked two trails one along The Riverside Walk that rose a gentle 50' and the second a moderate climb on the other side of the tunnel where we saw Desert Bighorn Sheep, 2 adults and one baby. The Canyon Overlook Trail was brilliant, you could walk all around the stones and climb about cliffs. It was a bit scary if you leaned out over the edges. My crew was definitely careful with our footing. The views were so incredible and to think it has not changed in thousands of years, wow. Totally awe inspiring. The root photo teased my imagination. So much to see beyond the obvious, it screamed, "take my picture."

"O" and The Strip

I am not a gambler, I worked one season as a deck hand on a gambling ship out of Fort Meyers Beach, Florida and was frequently tipped but I was the only employee as far as I knew that cashed in my chips at the end of my shift, my fellow workers put them in the various one armed bandits. In the last six months I have visited two smaller gambling venues and now of course Vegas and my only wager was $20.00 on the Purdue basketball game last week end, which by the way I won as Purdue defeated Texas A & M to secure a berth in the sweet sixteen of the NCAA tournament, good luck tonight Boilers. We watched the game at the Hard Rock Hotel shouting our approval at every opportunity.

The strip in Vegas is a photographers dream, color, neon, freaky people and each casino vying for your attention and money. My experience in Vegas begins and ends with voyeurism, I mostly watch it all swirling around, do a lot of walking and chit chatting with strangers. When I go to Vegas for a show I am interest in current entertainers, a couple of years ago I went to Vegas just to see Jimmy Buffett and Cirque Du Soleil Beatles Love both of which were excellent. This trip Cirque Du Soleil, "O" was on the schedule and it did not disappoint. This was the fourth different Cirque show I have seen and the first for my friends. Cirque currently has seven different shows running in Vegas, the name means "Circus of the Sun" and a carnival atmosphere is certainly present is every show I have seen. I absolutely recommend one of their shows for anyone who has the opportunity, they are an event. My conclusion is that ex gymnasts and Olympians never die they join Cirque Du Soleil for true athleticism is on display at every show. Unfortunately no cameras are allowed at their shows. "O" is incredible since it is in water, the stage is so tricked out it is difficult to wrap your head around how they are doing half the stuff that is happening.

"O" is in the Bellagio Hotel and we walked from the other side of Cesar's Palace where we had dinner to the show, I snapped a few pictures of the strip along the way and a couple of the inside of the hotel. For our finale of the evening we caught the fountain show at midnight outside the Bellagio which is always awesome but due for an update if you ask me. I would be remiss in my Parrothead ways if I did not snap a photo or two of Jimmy's Margaritaville, one of his best stores and restaurants.

Hoover Damn & Cacti Garden

The Hoover Damn is one of the modern wonders of the world a spectacular demonstration of mans ability to control nature and benefit from that control. The current bypass bridge that is being constructed is nearly 2000' long and around 900' above the damn, it is expected to be completed late 2010. What a sight. There will undoubtedly be those among us who will be unable to cross the bridge without some fear and others who will fight to bungee jump off while avoiding prosecution. A marvel indeed.

The current water level is near a all time low as evidenced by the white water line shown in the photo. The construction of the new bridge means those passing between Nevada and Arizona will no longer be able to drive over the damn.







I admired this rock wall which was one of several I saw, free standing, mortar less, with a slight set back our glacial stone walls are similarly constructed but without the benefit of the angular stone. We stopped at the first ranger station past the damn and found a pleasant surprise, a native garden filled with cacti and signs warning of rattlers. Lake Mead a dramatic backdrop.

Fremont Street, Las Vegas

Taking a long week end in Las Vegas with old college buddies was a great. There will be few vacations on the horizon for the next several months. We had talked about vacationing together for several years and finally made it happen last weekend when seven of us met up, staying at a time share one of the couples owned. The three bedroom, two bath condo was perfect for our group and the price was even better, free. Couple that with the air miles we used for the plane ride and we definitely had a bargain vacation.

We started out the evening on Fremont Street where neon is king, the music is loud and the crowd young and rambunctious. The old neon features the original Vegas cowboy, the martini glass and of course the famous over head awning that displays mind blowing visual effects as lights form into a montage designed by what must be an ex acid head. The music drives the visual imagery that races up and down the street pulsed by popular rock and roll, the two shows we viewed were George Thouroughgood and Queen, the last few minutes was a basketball montage that featured the NCAA basketball tournament and bracket pairings.
George was cool but Queen was my favorite I wish we would have made the 9pm show that featured The Doors. A new feature since my last visit to Fremont Street was a sax player who jammed to original tunes, at one point he held a note for 30 seconds as the crowd silently counted. By the time we left Fremont Street we had been up for 24 hours and our bunks were sounding pretty good. We still had two more days jam packed so we headed back to the condo for sleepy time.

Colors Are Flying At Flower Show

While attending the Indianapolis Flower and Patio Show I couldn't help but notice all the Hoosiers who were wearing various college apparel in honor of March Madness, for those of you who are not basketball fans, that is the contest for the number one team in the nation. The Big Ten Tournament was playing out a few miles from the Fairgrounds downtown at Conseco Field House. These Boilermaker backers are identified as "White Boy" and Bruce, as a Purdue graduate I felt obligated to plug the Boilers who were playing later that afternoon. They got embarrassed by Minnesota but are still going to the big dance and I wish my team well. Good luck to all the Big Ten and Indiana schools that make it to the NCAA tournament unless they are playing Purdue.

Brilliant Blooms, Buds & Ourdoor Rooms

The Indianapolis Flower and Patio Show was spectacular we raced into the fairgrounds building during a downpour and were immediately enveloped in the warmth of lush greenery and bubbling brooks. All the participants should be applauded for their creativity and willingness to put it all out there in these difficult financial times. My god the effort and people hours that went into the displays would be staggering. To say I enjoyed myself would be a tremendous understatement it pushed my spring button over the edge.
Fire and water was everywhere in a dozen different shapes, styles and locations; barn beams that dripped into a rock base with a line of burning fire, block walls with water falls that dropped onto polished pebbles where perfect gas logs created the desired ambiance with the flick of a remote. Each display was carefully crafted to allow the huge crowds walk through access. Durability, well thought out product selection and safety was evident. The Golden Willows and River Birch trees provided a canopy in excess of 30' in some instances, those trees near a thousand pounds each require professional installation. The results are instant shade.Belgard seemed to have cornered the market on both flower shows I attended with their block and paver products prominently used by many of the participating landscape companies. The look was elegance all around with a timeless beauty that make the passerby salivate and awestruck. Color schemes tended to be more neutral and browns, one dared a bold blue. The use of large natural moss covered boulders and glacial rock outcropping was stunning.This is my all time favorite water feature that I have ever seen at any Flower Show or Trade Show it just blows my mind the way they pulled it off indoors. I asked them how it was constructed and they basically built wooden forms that they stuccoed over, normally they would build mortared block walls then stucco for permanent installation. The fountains are sitting in giant tubs again this would be a block structure, it all circulates with some heavy horsepower and man what an effect. A very clean zen look that is at once relaxing and invigorating. I could picture this water feature up against a large building or in an interior scape as well as the focal point in any Japanese inspired garden. It really blew the top of my head right off, cool.