I was very impressed with the grounds at the San Diego Zoo.  Some of the plants and trees are grown for the animals to eat.  The animals are still in cages or limited space though. 

This was the beginning of an extreme heat wave.  As we headed east in California to Joshua Tree National Park we took a picture of the weather app that said 100 degrees. The next several days are even hotter.  We try to explore and hike earlier in the day.

They encourage visitors to get out and climb the boulders.  That was really fun!  The boulders are rough, like concrete.  

The topography approaching Hoover Dam was awe inspiring and so was the electrical grid leading up to it. 

Lake Mead is very low and unfortunately the photo of the dam doesn’t do it justice.  

Las Vegas was less than an hour from Hoover Dam so we decided to check it out.  Not being gamblers or big drinkers we just enjoyed the spectacle of the trip.  The people watching was great, even though we were there during the day and missed the nighttime people. One casino looks like any other but it’s fascinating to see how the hotels try to outdo each other in their grandeur.  

Heading east we went to our first of many National Parks in Utah.  The road on the way to Zion had topography like we’ve never seen before! 

The canyons are deep and the Navajo sandstone rocks are red.  We did some nice hikes here and ended the day in the early afternoon as the temperatures were over 100.  We drank a lot of water and looked for shade if possible.

We have now checked off three more states to take our picture in front of the “Welcome to” signs.  We rode the tandem in Nevada but still need to ride in AZ, NM and Utah.