Summer of Fun: Chapter 4

Utah in mid-July?   Seriously, what were we thinking?   
But fear not, there was a method to our madness.  

The BMW Motorcycle owners were having their annual rally in Salt Lake City.    While Hubby no longer considers this a "must attend" event, our friends would be in the area  and we consider spending time with them worthy of suffering through the heat...so off we went...Utah in Mid-July!

Day 1:  Saturday, 7.8
First stop was to say "Welcome Home" to our former babysitter and her lovely family.

 * Bad blogger:   didn't get a good picture of Dr. Caitlin, instead just the hubby and the daughter....and her Oma (who is our neighbor back home, how funny is that...we have to travel 150 miles to catch up with the neighbor friend?)

  For as long as I've known Caitlin, she was determined to become a pediatrician.   And so she did just that, attending med school in VA and residency in PA, she is now back home and both she and her husband will be joining the pediatric practice in Glenwood Springs.  

Way to go, Dr. Caitlin...we're proud of you and what a great example you are showing to those Things you once babysat for...set the goal, chart the course and off you go!

 How's that for a "starter" home?!   

Little Lainey announcing to Hubby "READY READY"...

In our quest to visit as many Colorado State Parks as possible, we spent our first night at James M. Robb Colorado River State Park.   While cell coverage was weak,  and natural shade wasn't as plentiful as one would like (yet, more trees than one expects given the surrounding terrain), it was very close to the interstate, affordable cost and we found this to be a good fit for our needs. 

Day 2-4:   July 9-11 

With the rally not scheduled to start  start until later in the week,  we decided to stay in the Provo area.   The original plan was to try out Utah Lake State Park but we opted instead for a privately owned RV campground near the lake.  

  Reviews of the state park included limited shade, buggy and there would be no wifi options.   Lakeside RV park turned out to be the answer to all of these worries.    The large tree provided much appreciated shade as local temps would start to climb to the mid 90s with little evening cooling off like we enjoy back home.    Bugs weren't bad since we were further away from the water.   And wifi was adequate.   

While in Provo, we  did what seems to  be a pattern to our usual activities when camping:   I spent a little time poolside, reading a book, 

and Hubby managed to capture a few good sunsets.  

When work was done we managed to take a motorcycle ride...

 In search of cooler temps

Majestic views...

 Wildflowers

and waterfalls...

Success was clearly found on all objectives!  

  I had been told that a certain Provo school has a creamery with really good ice cream.    

And yes, said information was accurate...in fact, I'd say that was the best scoop of ice cream I've had in a long time.   *Opinion is likely influenced by the hot weather and all the walking I did in search of said ice cream treat.

Day 5:  July 12

It's often been said  that Army friends never say good-bye and instead, it's more of a "see you later"...such was the case with our next stop.  Hubby's Army buddy,  El Guapo (now retired from his job in the Chicago area) and his wife  had recently decided to move closer to their youngest daughter and her two cute little ones.

Yeah, you can see what a hardship it is being closer to these little darlings...

We bartered "driveway camping"  

for side car rides...

 Seems like a pretty fair exchange, right? 

Day 6-8 7.13-7.15  Salt Lake City!

Welcome BMW Motorcycle Owners...

And Hello, Richard...

And Bridget...

Being strangers to the city, without a car, I asked Bridget if she wanted to join me on a city tour..

Expecting a regular bus, it was pretty fun to see this pull up for our trip...

On the tour we enjoyed several landmark SLC sights

From the train station that inspired

 a man named Walt to build a replica at his park in Anaheim...

To a park oddly named "This is the Place" 

where a man named Brigham upon seeing the views, 

declared to the Mormon pioneers that their journey would end in the valley below...

But the real treat of the evening was hearing a choir rehearse...

With a full orchestra in a hall that seats some 20k visitors...

I'm pretty sure had my own mom been offered a spot in the choir, she'd have converted?!

And before we knew it...our friends were back on the road...

and we tried to find cooler air...with another ride into the nearby 

Wasatch Mountains..

Wild Flowers were in bloom...

 Tourists were out in full force...

 and yes, slightly cooler temps...

Day 9, 7.16 Headed Home...

Almost home...one last night of camping at Boyd Lake State Park...where bug spray is key to surviving being so close to the lake...

All in all, it was a wonderful time spent in the company of good people that we just don't see often enough...

Until next time...See You on the Road....