Arizona

Entering Arizona

Tucson

July 17, 2016

We would have to spend the night in Tucson because the largest aircraft boneyard only operated tours on weekdays. Calling it a rest day, we checked into a hotel in Tucson, and ordered pizza, before heading out to catch the sunrise at Gate's Pass, a scenic drive right outside of Tucson. At the scenic overlook where we decided to stop and watch the sun dip beneath the earth, we were treated to some wonderful Mexican music, courtesy of the family sitting in their car with the windows down and music playing (unfortunately they left too soon).

July 18, 2016

We had an early start this morning as we wanted to try and make the 11:00 AM boneyard tour. Unfortunately for us, when we arrived at the Pima Air & Space Museum the 11 o'clock tour was sold out. Instead sure we got tickets for the 2 o'clock tour, and headed into the museum to kill several hours before starting the boneyard tour. We ended up almost running out of time while exploring the museum as they had an incredible collection of aircraft! Several Air Force One planes, an SR-71 Blackbird, a B-29 Superfortress, a B-36 Peacemaker, and many other awesome planes! After boarding the bus for the boneyard tour, we headed into the military base where all the aircraft are stored. All in all, the tour took about an hour and a half, and the whole time we were driving by stacks and stacks of decommissioned planes. It was incredible seeing so many planes and helicopters all stacked up in neat rows that went on for miles. After the tour ended, we got back on the road to head to Monument Valley, which was the site for many famous cowboy movies! The drive would be several hours though, and we didn't end up reaching Monument Valley until midnight.

F16 fighter jets waiting for better days

Monument Valley

July 19, 2016

We'd like to start the entry for this blog by thanking both our parents for all the incredible support over the years they have given us that has allowed us to grow up and go on this road trip. We had arrived under the cover of darkness, so sunrise was the first true view of the valley we got, and when the sunrise came into full form, lighting up the sky with an array of pastel colors, both of us realized just how incredible it is that we had been able to go on this trip and see so many wonderful things. Seeing the rock pillars rising out of the valley, with the backdrop of the sunrise is a site neither of will soon forget. Anyways, enough sappy stuff and onto the rest of the day. After a wonderful sunrise, and packing up the car, we decided to do the 17 mile scenic drive through the valley before heading out. While on the scenic drive, both of us constantly wanted to pull over at nearly every overlook to take pictures of the out-of-this-world scenery. It could have been straight out of a Clint Eastwood movie. Khyber proceeded to bottom out the car, and both of us spent the next few hours wondering whether he had ripped the oil pan. Today was the day we headed to the Grand Canyon though, so both of us were excited to get on the road and see this world famous site for the sunset. But before that we had to pass by Antelope Canyon and see Horseshoe Bend. Luckily, it was a quick drive, and then an even shorter hike to Horseshoe Bend, which is this incredible view of a 'U' shaped bend in the Colorado River, and was well worth the hike up there. The pictures below don't do it justice at all. We ended up getting to the Grand Canyon just as the wonderful colors of the sunset came into bloom, and both of us were awestruck by the magnitude of the canyon.

The Grand Canyon

July 20, 2016

Have you ever woken up knowing that today you would be doing something you would never forget, and would be telling your kids about decades later? Well, one of us woke up today knowing that he would be skydiving over the Grand Canyon for the first time ever, so he knows that feeling. They say that the Grand Canyon is one of the most impressive sites in the whole United States. After waking up and seeing the canyon in all its majesty, we can both agree with that sentiment. This morning though, Robert jumped out of a plane, opting to take the quick way down. Don't worry, he had a parachute, and an instructor to keep him safe. Skydiving is one of those activities that nearly everyone has on their bucket list, and today, Robert was able to cross that off. The adrenaline pumping start to the day, meant that the day could only go down from here, and we spent the rest of the afternoon driving along the rim of the Grand Canyon, while stopping to take pictures at the various viewpoints. The crazy thing about the canyon is that even after driving several miles along the rim, the view remained mostly the same, as the Grand Canyon is just that big. After catching a wonderful sunset at one of the viewpoints we headed to the lodge/cafeteria to grab a bite to eat and connect to the wifi in order to catch up with the outside world. Calling it a night around 11, and after Ghostbusters (which was playing at the lodge) was nearly over we headed back to our cozy tent for some z's (sleep for you international folks out there).

Tomorrow, Vegas!

Skydiving at the Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon as seen from one of the viewpoints