ROCK CANDY MOUNTAIN AND COTTONWOOD TREES

One of the good things about doing our own thing rather than being on a tour is to have time to stop and enjoy the scenery as well as chat to the locals which we have really done today. 
The landscape was similar to yesterday although not as dramatic and colourful.  There were still plenty of interesting formations and canyons along the way and it was easier to stop and spend time as the road was not as hairy as yesterday.  We discovered that the haze all around is from the fires that have been in the Idaho area and are now blowing across to Utah and Wyoming.  We were blaming some of the power stations that we have passed, particularly today and there is a lot of mining in the area.
We stopped at Marysvale at the only cafe in the vicinity which looked pretty ordinary however it was well past lunch time and we were ready for a break.  This little place, Prospectors Cafe, turned out to be a gem.  The owners, Rick and Donna were great to chat to. They moved from Las Vegas two years ago and needed work which was hard to find so they leased the cafe.  Besides being a wealth of information about the area they were interesting.  He had been a graphic artist and printer with his own business and she had been the 'mother' for the girls in a strip joint in LA.  She had some great stories to tell.  The food wasn't gourmet but filled the spot.
I headed this Candy Mountain and Cottonwood trees because we did drive past the real rock candy mountain that the song was written about and we have been in cottonwood country most of the day.  The trees are a beautiful yellow through to orange as they change.  These are mostly near water or damp areas, once you get up into the higher parts the birch are prolific. 
We booked into a motel online last night and miscalculated the distance from Bryce Canyon so had a long drive out of our way to Brian Head which is where we are and have to retrace our steps back tomorrow to get to Bryce Canyon however the road is very scenic and not too hard to take, it just means that we will be later getting into the canyon than planned so will miss the early morning light.

Cottonwood trees along a creek with grey formations in background

Rock Candy Mountain - there is a resort in front of it named Rock Candy Mountain Resort.

Prospectors Cafe, not the most inviting to look at

 

 

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A LONG DAYS DRIVE

 When we started out this morning from Jackson we drove through mile upon mile of flat sage brush and very else. At one point Ian said 'there's not even a tree to have a pee', not that he would have wanted to anyway as it was in the minuses again this morning. When we did get to a town the toilets were closed for the season. We've discovered this a lot as everything starts closing down on the 1st October for winter. We finished up having a hot chocolate in a bizarre cafe, it must have been there for 100 years however it did have toilets and then continued on. When we arrived at Rock Springs the landscape suddenly changed to the most amazing canyons and we drove through these for the rest of the trip to Price  (Utah) which is where we are tonight. The road was very windy as we drove up and down mountains and along rims of these canyons. The colours are fantastic but unfortunately there weren't a lot of opportunities to stop for photos.   

 

 

Along the road.

We have spent the last two days driving through Yellowstone.  Yesterday we took the geothermal area road stopping and looking at the many and various thermal sights, geysers, mud flows, hot pools through to Gardiner in Montana.  It was 23 degrees F when we left Jackson Hole yesterday which we think is about minus 5C and didn't get past 5 degrees C all day.  Each time we got out of the car to walk around the areas we really had to rug up.  I love my gloves with the mitten fingers, it means I can take photos with gloves on even if they are a bit shaky with the shivers.  We waited at Old Faithful to see the eruption which happens approximately every 75 minutes and once it starts spurts for about 3-4 minutes.  It was well worth the wait in the cold and some soup and hot chocolate was very welcome when it was over
We made a vast change to the number of layers we put on this morning however it wasn't quite as cold.  It probably started at minus 2 and warmed up this afternoon to around 10C. 
We started off this morning at Mammoth Springs.  When I came here 22 years ago these were huge with pools of steaming water flowing down from the top however they are much drier now and there is only one small area which is like I remember.  We wonder if the many hotels and resorts that have sprung up since then are draining some of the underground water similar to what has happened in Pamakale in Turkey,  we hope not but it does make you wonder. 
From here we drove around the Canyon area which is fantastic and the Artist Point is just as I remember it, beautiful. 
We are now back in Jackson and will start driving south tomorrow.  There is plenty of driving to do and we have to keep moving on towards the Canyons which is where we want to spend some time.

 

Steaming hot pools.

Old Faithful

 

Bubbling Mud Pools

 

 

Mammoth Hot Springs

 

 

 

 

Yellowstone Canyon and Falls from Artists Point

 

TETON NATIONAL PARK

We drove from Afton to Jackson then to Jackson Hole this morning, called into the Information Centre and then booked into a motel for the night.  We then went exploring the Teton National Park.  These majestic mountains are worth spending the day around.  The colours are not as prevalent as they were yesterday but still plenty, mainly yellow which we understand are cottonwoods.   We walked along a couple of the lakes and as we were heading back to Jackson Hole saw our first bison by the side of the road.

                                                                         The Tetons

 

The Tetons across Lake Jenny

UTAH

                        OMG - This was our first real sight of fall.  Just magic.

We had arranged for a hire-car to pick us up at 7.30 this morning and take us to the airport in Seattle.
As we drove out of the city the sun was just coming up and the light was just magic.  I would have loved to have jumped out and taken some photos.  We flew to Salt Lake City and picked up a rental car and after a few lefts instead of rights and wrong exits we finally stopped and asked for directions. The fellow we spoke with found it difficult to explain so suggested we follow him and he guided us onto the right road.  What a wonderful thing for someone to do.  All we could do was wave and toot as he pointed us on. 

Once on the right road we just kept driving to Ogden and then started up the Ogden Canyon.  This is where we first came into the magnificent colour.  We finally stopped and had some lunch and then continued to climb up over the mountains.  The colours changed from the multitudes of reds and oranges to the yellow birch.  As we came down out of the high peaks we left the trees behind and discovered another palette of colour on the hillsides which ranged from creams through to rich reds and blacks and greys.  As the sun set the hills changed to soft purples and pinks.   We were hoping to make it to Jackson tonight however decided to stay at Afton about 70 miles before Jackson but had already driven 236 miles (approx 375 ks) and we were both feeling pretty tired and it was getting late. 

 

The yellow birch

SEATTLE

We've spent the last two days around Seattle.  Yesterday we hopped on the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus and did the rounds around the city eventually getting off at the Markets which are iconic to Seattle.  They are huge and have grown from simple produce markets suggested to farmers by the women in the early 1900s when they couldn't afford to buy vegetables from the middleman, to what they are now.  After walking around and up and down the multitudes of levels we kept going down till we came to the foreshores.  Seattle has hills all around so everything goes up or down hillsides.
 
When we were on the bus the commentary mentioned Ivars for fish and chips and made a point that this is where the locals eat so we decided to try it.  This place certainly stands up to it's reputation and after a clam chowder and sharing the salmon and chips we didn't need dinner.  We did another round on the bus before coming back to the hotel.  Lots of interesting stories told as we drove around.

Today we went up the Space Needle for a view over the city.  (We still haven't been up Sydney Tower but keep going up towers in all these other places). It was interesting to see just how big Seattle is and to see how many different harbours and water ways there are.  When we came in on Saturday morning an old rail bridge opened up for us to get under then we came through three locks before eventually docking at one of the smaller mariners.     Later we spent more time around the Seattle Centre.  This was the site of the 1962 World Fair and the buildings and areas have been well utilised and people obviously make use of the parks and gardens which are really lovely with lots of interesting pieces of sculptures, fountains etc.  There are also numerous buildings for music, art , science etc.

Seattle Foreshores

 

Mr Ivars opened the fish and chip shop in 1938 and it continues to grow.  It was nice sitting in the sun overlooking the water.

 

The Space Needle.  Like the Eiffel Tower, this was to be pulled down after the World Fair however survived and is certainly a draw card for tourists.

 

Looking towards Mt Rainier from the Needle with the Downtown buildings towering in the centre.

 

We fly to Salt Lake City in the morning and pick up a car and start the next part of this adventure.