Brrrrr

The December 2010 road trip started out calmly...no 2-hour saga about getting out of happy valley inch by inch during horrid weather, no forgetting the chargers for all the many electronic 'musts' that one now requires for entertainment and guidance during road trips, no last minute lens/camera/battery purchases. Smooth sailing.

We made our merry way down south, thinking we'd pass Vegas by and stop for the night in Laughlin. For non-gamblers, Laughlin is this nifty little gambling town not far from the Hoover Dam area. Casino rooms are inexpensive, the weather is balmy, there's an Outback restuarant in the casino and its about mid-way if one is wending their way ever southward. The trip without a plan went well - sights were seen, losses were accrued, gains were amassed, pictures were taken. Very relaxing. For much of the trip we didn't have cell service, so no work emails, texts, or calls. Ahhh, the joy of it!

Then we decided to head home. From Tucson we'd wend our way through Flagstaff, spend a night or two in Kayenta, head on home through Moab and on to Salt Lake. Hello. Worst snow storm in a century in Flagstaff. Roads closed due to snow, ice and sub-zero weather. Blissfully unaware, we zipped along northward bound. At 75 miles per, we spotted a freeway sign: Roads closed at Flagstaff. Googling madly, we found that the east/west freeway was closed for 180 miles. Had been closed over 24 hours. What, we wondered, about the road going north? ADOT was so helpful, with a chat line up that responded to our query. Could 'probably' make it, road open, might be tricky. MIGHT BE TRICKY is not my favorite way to travel, especially when I'm driving. Should we continue on? Head the other way and detour to Vegas? Of course not - we're hardy souls, we have AAA don't we...of course we'll continue on.

Might Be Tricky was certainly the right phrase but we made it...temperatures from south of Flagstaff on to Kayenta and onward to SLC remained low - the temperature rose to a hot 13 degrees and generally hovered around 5 or 10 degrees. That's the daytime high folks, not the nighttime low. Kayenta roads through the Monument Valley Park were closed except by escort (read $$$$). Nada on that. But we had a great time, made it home safely and thanked our lucky stars for safe traveling once again.