Day 14 (04-Oct-13) Las Vegas - Los Angeles (278 miles)

And so we bid Adieu  - to Simon, his legion of followers… and of course Bob! Having dropped Simon off at the MGM Grand to ‘lick his wounds’, Astrid and I headed off for the final leg to Los Angeles. This was an uneventful, and, for the first time this trip, a rather dull drive, with no interesting scenery or other distractions worthy of note. It was thus all we could do to simply stay awake! Once we eventually arrived at our motel close to LAX airport, we elected to quickly unpack and drive to Santa Monica, for a walk along its famous pier and a light dinner. The pier is of course the starting point for the equally famous drive along Route 66, which ends at the Great Lakes near Chicago. 

The following day, we frequented a number of iconic sites in and around Los Angeles, including Venice beach, the Hollywood Sign, the Hollywood Bowl, the Walk of Fame along Hollywood Blvd, Sunset Strip on Sunset Blvd, Beverly Hills and of course Rodeo Drive. After soaking up the traffic jams, polluted air, crowded streets, and innumerable street touters, we gladly retreated to the airport for a final few hours together in the piece and quiet of the Qantas lounge. Reflecting on the day's activities, and those in Las Vegas, they were a far cry from life exploring the various national parks at the start of our holiday - with the latter being far more enjoyable.

And so finally at 21:30hrs, I bade Astrid farewell and headed for my flight to Denver, eventually arriving in Laramie at 04:00hrs, in deep snow, and with the rental car buffeted by 50+ mph gusts along the final section from Cheyenne on I-80. Astrid departed on flight to Brisbane three hours later, whch was a far more comfortable affair. She arrived back home Monday morning (after loosing a day cross the international dateline), in stiffling Summer heat. After dropping off the luggage, Astrid jumped in the car to collect the cats, with Floyd sporting a new thin coat, having been shaved the day before. The look of indignation on his face left no misunderstanding as to his views on this matter. Shamrock, our little Princess, expressed her dissatisfaction at being locked up with her brother for two weeks by screaming loudly all the way home.

Day 13 (03-Oct-13) Las Vegas (62 miles)

Being quite nonplussed by Q's "Viva Las Vegas baby!" exclamation of yesterday, I quickly began to realise this was entirely due to him having been a good student of Simon's. Had I only realised that Simon had been passing subliminal messages to Q throughout the holiday, I would have surely put a stop to the madness. However, as it was too late for any such measures now, I simply had to pretend all was normal and ignore the weird utterances from both gentlemen, even if it meant being woken up at 06:30 hrs by Quentin dancing through the room. While he checked for any tatoos, missing teeth, unwanted breast implants, and four-legged guests, I chose to attend to e-mails and write this blog. After 10-15 minutes, Quentin returned to claim nothing untoward had happened to him, though I have yet to here Simon's side of the story - assuming he is still in the hotel and can account for his whereabouts last night.

We assembled in the lobby at 08:00hrs (waiting as ever on Simon, who despite having more gadgets on his personage than Inspector Gadget, seems unable to set an alarm on any of them). We then drove the short distance to Hoover Dam, a marvel of engineering, enterprise, ingenuity, endeavour and shear hard work. While parts were closed due to the US government shutdown, the dam itself is state-run, with walking access provided across the old road running across the top of the dam and various vantage points either side. The dam is truly iconic, and was instrumental in taming the Colorado, while at the same time provided a means to irrigate the vast, and otherwise arid, south western US states, and generating electricity for over a million households. The facts and figures regarding the construction of the dam almost beggars belief; not least the feats of the 5000+ workers that toiled to first divert the Colorado river through four tunnels around the construction site, and then the construction of the dam itself. 

More spectacular views of the dam are provided from the walkway across the new Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman memorial bridge situated a short distance down river. The bridge, opened in 2010, and carrying US 93 across the Colorado, was the first concrete-steel composite arch bridge built in the USA, and took as long to complete as the Hoover Dam (5 years). The bridge has a length of 1,900 feet (579 m) and a 1,060 ft (320 m) span. The roadway is 900 ft (270 m) above the Colorado River and four lanes wide. It includes the widest concrete arch in the Western Hemisphere and is also the second highest bridge in the USA, with the arch 840 ft (260 m) above the river. The views from the walkway going north over the bridge, to the Colorado river below, are quite dizzying.
 

Suitably impressed, we head back to the Hotel to attend to a few more chores, expend more energy in the gym and then set off again at 17:30hrs for an evening on The Strip. Simon acted as tour guide, providing a first-person account of life in the many different casinos, as we trudged through each to take in the sights and sounds, and gork at the multitudes that had descended on this small piece of Nirvana. It was a most enjoyable evening, and  was reminiscent of life in Dubai in many respects – minus the gambling of course. It was also evident from Simon's many anecdotes of long, intoxicated, nights, spent at various clubs, bars, dens of inequity and other questionable establishments, that he had 'donated' a sizeable chunk of his estate to the alter of hedonism down the years. Even a few of the wretched homeless that we encountered knew him by name!

Day 12 (02-Oct-13) Grand Canyon North Rim - Las Vegas (270 miles)

I will start today's entry with an apology. A number of follower's of this blog have commented that my sardonic barbs, aimed at Simon, reveal a homophobic hatred for the man. Far from it, I love Simon as much as any man - except Bob, who loves him VERY much. What follow's is a 'cut-and-paste' of pure drivel, submitted by the man himself....

 

After our early morning escape from Grand Canyon National Park, which had been in lockdown mode since Monday, we decided to head straight for Vegas, on a long and winding road. First Astrid (Dominatrix), then 'Mother', took turns at the wheel, with people in electric strollers passing us by. On eventual arrival in Sin City, we checked in at the Rio Casino & Suites hotel, where Sheldon clearly showed that he had some empathy with this town, shouting "Viva Las Vegas baby" as he entered the reception area. He then immediately went to the Casino to count cards....... 

 

Astrid & I left him to his highly illegal pursuit (he can count 4 decks using String Theory apparently) while we checked into our suites. It was only later that afternoon when I found out that the choice of Rio Casino & Suites was no mere happenstance. The Morgans had both packed Rio Carnival Mardi Gras outfits, which they wore to dinner that evening, despite my protestations. It was like being with Mr & Mrs Barry Manalo.
 

 We decided to book tickets to see Rock of Ages Musical at the Venetian, so after changing their attire we headed back to the 80's (have Q&A ever left them???) for a fabulous trip down memory lane, when we all met in Holland over 25 years ago... Nostalgia was all around us, with Q, decked out in his usual attire, fitting in beautifully...... No rental costumes necessary for him. After almost 14 days on a 'Geological Ages of Rock' tour, it was somehow fitting that in Vegas I should take Q to the 'Rock of Ages' musical, where he clearly demonstrated that I knew much more about musicals than geology.

And remember, "What happens in Vegas , stays in Vegas". And so with that in mind, while Astrid & I retired to our chambers after a few beers for a frenzy of darting tongues,  Simon elected to wander The Strip, in search of the wierd and outright strange....

 

Day 11 (01-Oct-13) North Rim Grand Canyon (16 miles)

Despite Simon clearly being at death's door, Q showed no mercy - the alarm went off at 05:30 hrs. Q leapt out of bed, and got straight to the task of dragging the crew to Imperial Point (at 8,900ft the highest point on the North Rim) to capture the sunrise; and proclaim "shot of the day" in the process.

 

The rigours of this march, allied to the 2C (34 F) morning temperatures, proved too much for Simon. Though he collapsed on the trail, we (Q&A) nontheless left him for dead; opting to power on in true Klingon warrior tradition instead. After hours spent crawling on hands and knees (parallels of Touching the Void), Simon eventually made it to the cabin, whereapon he dragged himself back to bed. Cocooned under multiple blankets, he fought the fever that was so melodramatically ravaging his body, with the high altitude exaserbating his precarious condition. Damn The Sheldon plague...... Simon's last thoughts before losing consciousness!!

 

With Simon left to safely die a slow miserable death (which probably involved clinging on to anyone unsuspecting the seriousness of his illness - man flu), Quentin and I 'headed for the hills', or to be more precise, canyon, in this instance. Leveraging his OCD skills (though he prefers to refer to his condition as OCO), Quentin had thoroughly researched the route we were to take and had prepared me mentally for the hardships to come.

We reached the start of the North Kaibab Trail (8,241 ft) at 08:45hrs, and having read the warning about possible mule encounters, headed downhill for the Roaring Springs (5,020 ft). With weather being very pleasant at this early hour we made good progress, allowing ourselves time only for more "shots of the day". We did not notice the soft sand on the trail gradually filling our shoes until we were barely able to put one foot in front of the other. The added stop to empty our shoes of the sand dunes that had accumulated therein came as a most welcome relief.

Upon reaching the end of the mule trail at Supai Tunnel (6,800 ft), some 1.25 hrs in to our trek, we had a quick drink and refilled water bottles at the tap conveniently located there. Onwards and downwards we went, literally walking back through time! The trek down the side of the canyon passes through a number of sandstone, shale and mudstone formations, spanning the Permian to Devonian epochs, each with distinct faceies and colour. Vistas were absolutely stunning, adding to our sincere feelings of compassion, sorrow and concern for poor Simon, who was left to fend for himself in the little log cabin that was our shared room for the night. That said, I will not regale you with detailed "tales of the unexpected" that occurred during the middle of the night, when Simon, in his own words, was "looking for the bathroom".....Suffice to say Simon is clearly missing his girlfriend!

We reached Roaring Springs at 11:30 hrs. The name given to this spot is quite apposite, as water emerges from a spring in the cliff face from the side of the canyon and roars down to the Colorado river (2,400 ft). We had a quick lunch, while spying this natural wonder, and then started on the long uphill return to the canyon rim at 11:45hrs. At this altitude, and with the air temperature now approaching 100F, we elected to go slowly - NOT! We managed the return hike in the same time it took to descend the canyon, overtaking legions of laggards in the process.

We reached the rim at 14:15hrs and then drove back to the lodge for a well earned cup of tea. There, we spotted Simon, replete with very bulbous red nose, streaming eyes, and a missing back bone. He had managed to extricate himself from bed and was slumped in a chair on the terrace. We spent the rest of the afternoon attending to simple chores and modifying the itinerary for the remainder of our expedition - a situation enforced by the closure of all US national parks.

We then head out back to Imperial Point for photos of the sunset, which was more spectacular than sunrise. After returning to the lodge we booked an early dinner - a simple and alcohol-free affair for Q&A, not so much for Simon!  

Day 10 (30-Sep-13) Page - North Rim Grand Canyon (203 miles)

As is our usual custom we were 'up and at it' at 06:30 hrs in Page, with the crew splitting up for the Antelope Slot Canyon guided tour. Simon went on the 8 o'clock early morning departure and Q&A took the 10:30 hrs 'special' tour, specifically structured for 'real photographers'. This is one of the great photo opportunities on the Colorado Plateau, and much soughtafter. The tours are run by the Navajo tribe and the amazing combination of sunlight & sandstone produce some almost ethereal, yet otherworldly images, which mere words fail to do justice. So, given my limited vocabulary, I shall refrain from doing so. Suffice to say, the Navajo do know how to 'pack them in'!!

As always, there are  a few minutes to spare only in colonel Q's almost militaristic timetable. So, after grabbing a salad from Safeway, we immediately left Page, in blazing sunshine, for the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Despite Q's brave & provocative words of the previous day's blog, he quite unexpectedly developed some driving skills, and drove below, or near, the speed limit for much of the route. This was in the place of his usual headlong maniacal F1 antics, conducted whilst simultaneously taking photos, programming the Garmin GPS and eating or drinking. He became 'Mother' for the day!

Huge flashfloods had washed away the main road out of Page, so we were forced to detour almost 70 miles to re-join I-89. The quest for the "Canyon sunset shot of the day" was now a race against time! We eventually entered the park, with the scenery immediately giving way from the brutal sandstone cliffs & brush-covered prairies to soft rolling meadows and woodlands. These comprised a mix of perennial elms and evergreen pines, with the elms covered in Autumnal yellow leaves. We passed several groups of Mule Deer grazing nonchalantly at the roadside, barely registering our presence as we stopped to photograph them. Fortunately, we are experiencing glorious weather, with middle 90's (mid 30's) during the day, dependant upon altitude of course. After arriving at the Iconic Grand Canyon Lodge, we dumped our bags and rushed down to the sunset boulevards to catch the fading rays across the canyons.

The impending US government shutdown, triggered by their precipitous dive over the fiscal cliff, hung ominously over our schedule, as the first casualties of the gridlock are the National Parks. The budget for 2014 has not been agreed, yet despite the fact that the Parks actually make money for the government, they are the first to be shutdown.....go figure that one?? It was finally confirmed over dinner that the Parks were closing, with no new  visitors permitted to enter. However, we soon learned that those already in the park would be allowed to stay until the Thursday - what unbelievable luck! We thus elected to extend our stay at the Lodge, and watched a mass exodus of other very irate tourists stampede for the exit. A strange way to run a country and even stranger way to encourage tourists!

As ever, we were wholly unperturbed by these disruptions & challenges and settled into a couple of bottles of Californian Pinot Grigio to review our contingency options. To smile in the face of adversity, such a British trait, is Q's mantra. So, as we tucked into a sumptuous meal in the main dining room, the Canyon itself seemed to be staring back at us in all its splendour, questioning our next move...... We would not disappoint her....

Well, mine was straight to bed as I finally succumbed to Sheldon's alien strain of man flu (Astrid appeared to have immunity) and collapsed into my pit to produce gargantuan volumes of space slime, develop a fever and be in desperate need of some TLC and medication. As you would expect, none was forthcoming..... The Morgan's follow a brutal Spartan code of honour devoid of even the merest hint of humanity.  It was therefore a long night of coughing & spluttering.... punctuated by dashes to the throne room.