Grand Canyon West or it rains in the desert

the gate to the petrified forest is automatic
and it does not open until 7am
so we are waiting

began the day in vegas with an oil change
there were over 5,320 miles so far on the trip
at that point so it was needed

the sticker says next change 16,320
which will happen within the week
bought the car new in march
and the warranty was 15,000 or three years
well goodbye warranty

from vegas we drove to grand canyon west
which includes nine miles of unpaved rough road
it was rather bumpy

the site is on a reservation
they charge you over 40 to enter
and then over 30 more
to go on the skywalk

it is a rather large ripoff
they wont let you take phones or cameras on the walkway
and when you are on it
the staff photographers make you move so they can pose
the people willing to pay for photos

it is one thing to get scammed but at least
be nice to me while you do it

the “gatekeeper” was such a tool
after listening to him bark rude commands
told him that respect would go a long way
and he actually answered
it would in shitty shitty way

it was a bad taste
and big waste of money

it was slightly redeemed
by the bus taking us to guano point before back to the car
yes bat shit point
we climbed a hill and at the very top
one person at a time could
see the grand canyon west
360 degrees unimpeded
when i got to the top
the wind started blowing big time
and it was tough to stay there

the drive from the skywalk
was a bit harrowing
dad drove
first with the cloud cover and the shadows
it was almost like sunset at 4

then it started raining
in the desert
did not rain hard
but water started collecting on the road
and you could see it collect along side the road
and there were 100 signs warning of a flash food area

it started lightening
one hit the desert like a meotor
you could see an explosion from
where it hit the ground

we did not drown in a flash flood

after seeing no signs of life for a long time
there was a fairly big town at the end
we ate a chilis

i then drove fours hours or so
to the gate of petrified forest
which still has about a half hour til it opens
its automatic gate

plan is forest then it is four hours to albuquerque
then on to santa fe
found to possible places to crash one in new mexico
and one in Colorado depending on how late it gets

found a browns bar in colorado springs for the game
then pikes peak and the rocky mountains on sunday