Journey

Just back from a 13-day, 4200 mi (~6800km) trip where I swept through some of the best grandeur of the west.
It was all - beautiful, dramatic and incredible - through ice/snow, 8000-9600ft mountains, 10-12% grades and dense fog and/or heavy snowfall you can see nothing, absolutely nothing.. through, and deserts where the car was tilted at angles i thought at times it would rollover any moment..

Trip facts
4200 miles, 13 days, 6 states
6 Natl Parks (Yellowstone MT/WY, Grand Tetons WY; Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, UT; Mesa Verde, CO) and
3 Natl Monuments (Natural Bridges, Grand Staircase Escalante, Hovenweep UT) and passisng by Bryce and through Zion in UT - unplanned.
$280 in gas
$177 in traffic violation tickets. (still lucky without accident for the tough driving conditions and not a moving violation..)
1st use of tire/snow chains

Special treats: being 6-9 ft from a walking along the road bison; enjoying a pack of wolves: pure white mom lying on a top of a hill while 5-6 of her grown up kids and other wolves - most of them black playing in the snow;
standing over the snowy print where a moose has just been lying - and all the special moments in UT: Mesa arch glowing at sunrise, the experience of the Canyonlands' backcountry, sunrise in the Valley of the Gods at New Year's day, etc, the sudden friendliness of Colorado..


It's spring here in Calif., I'm so happy to be back..
In the next few days I'll be posting pic.s and stories from the trip as they become ready.
Cheers and Very Happy New year everyone!!