Wednesday- Sedona! Thursday- Head Sweatin' at the Hoover Dam

On Wednesday we packed up and said goodbye to the Grand Canyon. Since we ended up staying on the easternmost side of the park, we left through the east exit and headed back into the Navajo Nation. We were on the same road we took to Williams and had basically just made a big circle. We headed back towards Flagstaff but this time went south to Sedona. If I could afford it, I would move there. If anyone has ever gone there and taken the scenic route in through the Cococino National Forest, you know what I am talking about. The road takes you through about ten switchbacks as you come down through the mountain covered in Ponderosa Pines. You see a mountain stream crisscrossing under the road and the giant red rock formations towering above you. It is absolutely beautiful. I saw a sign in Sedona itself advertizing two bedroom condos for sale, starting in the low $500,000's. A bit too expensive for me! We hiked for a little while in Red Rocks State Park. I kept my eyes peeled for rattlesnakes and Desert Tarantulas...both of which can be found in the park, but didn't see any. We hit the road again and set out for Kingman, AZ. This was one of the last big towns before the Hoover Dam, and we were in a rush to get there. The reason being that we were going to stay in a hotel when we got there!! We checked into what was actually a really nice Super 8, cranked the AC, took showers, and hung out trying to fix the problem with the blog program on my phone. I don't think I have ever in my life been as dirty as I was before that shower. In fact, Joel told me my legs looked like they were tanner than when we left. We joked about it just being dirt, but then l accidentally spilled some water on my leg, and come to find out it really just was dirt stuck to my sunscreen! Gross! A sign said that Kingman was in the "high desert" and I have decided that I could never live there because it was way tooooo hot. As soon as you went in the sun, it felt like your skin was roasting. When we went out to dinner at 7:30, it was still 100 degrees. When we left the hotel this morning, it was already 100 degrees, and they were forecasting it to be 115 today. Yuck! Also, Kingman was a scary town. It felt kind of like we were in the twilight zone. We went to a Denny's for breakfast this morning and we had the joy of sharing the resturant with a crew of weirdos...my favorites being the haggard meth addict wearing shorts and a bikini top (not a pretty sight), a man who looked like Hulk Hogan with a woman who looked oddly like his ex-wife Linda, and a legitimate Elvis impersonator! We were 100 miles from Vegas, but could tell we were getting closer by the minute! We headed out of Kingman and on toward the Hoover Dam. It kind of sucked getting stopped at a security checkpoint on our way in and having to unstrap and open the rooftop carrier in the heat. The dam itself was a little underwhelming for me. I thought it would be bigger, but Joel is in electrician heaven. On the short walk from the parking deck into the dam it was so hot that I instantly started getting head sweat...so embarrassing! Annie and Michael know what I'm talking about...we are a family of head sweaters...we can't help it! Now to make it worse, I may have to wear a dorky yellow hard hat for the "dam tour." It was $30 each and better be worth it. It is so awesome that there is 3G power in here so that I can write this post while waiting for our tour guide. We have relived parts from some of my favorite movies throughout the trip so far (Dumb & Dumber, Joe Dirt, Napoleon Dynamite, Pee Wee's Big Adventure) and today is certainly another example. Who goes on the Dam Tour and doesn't think of poor Clark W. Griswald. Hope I don't get separated from the tour!!!