![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.zurekbrau.com\/blogs\/richsblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/06\/Flamingos-at-The-Flamingo.jpg\" "\\"Flamingos")
<\/a>You guessed it, Rich woke up today.<\/p>\n
Allergies all messed up this morning.\u00a0 I’m hoping it’s from the cigarette smoke and will go away.\u00a0 My nose and eyes keep running all through the drive.\u00a0 When I stopped for gas in Utah, my eyes were running so bad; it looked like I was crying.\u00a0 The attendant gave me a very strange look.<\/p>\n
I got the guys up at 8:00 so they could shower.\u00a0 We went downstairs to the caf\u00e9 for breakfast.\u00a0 We were told that it didn\u2019t open until 9:00.\u00a0 What the heck?\u00a0 That probably explains why the food court was overflowing with people trying to buy doughnuts and other items with their coffee.\u00a0 Who thought this was a good idea.<\/p>\n
We checked out, loaded up the car, and headed out of Vegas.\u00a0 Whew!\u00a0 We headed up 15 North toward Henderson.\u00a0 Rich got a place in the GPs that sounded interesting called The Omelet House.\u00a0 We found it with no problem. It turned out to be a very old place tucked back in a strip mall.\u00a0 Once you entered, you got the feeling you were in the 1940s or so.\u00a0 I noticed that there were signed pictures on the walls.\u00a0 Most of the people I knew.\u00a0 I thought it was cool that a lot of B stars had hung out here or knew the owners.<\/p>\n
We got a table and some coffee.\u00a0 The breakfast menu was this list of omelets a mile long with really interesting names.\u00a0 Rich got the Black Forest omelet.\u00a0 Rick got French toast and I settled for Country Fried steak.\u00a0 It was all very good.\u00a0 Rich\u2019s omelet looked like it weighed in at a ton it was so large.<\/p>\n
Getting filled up ourselves, we filled the gas tank and got the heck out of Vegas.\u00a0 Once again, you head out into the desert to cross through Arizona and into Utah.\u00a0 The southwest corner of Utah is one of our all time favorites.\u00a0 It was a shame not to be able to stop in a Zion National Park or Bryce Canyon National Park.\u00a0 That will wait for another vacation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because you can see for so far out here, we could tell where a forest fire was burning out toward Canyonlands.\u00a0 There was thick, black smoke rising into the air.\u00a0 Later, the guys saw a helicopter with a water bucket headed that way.\u00a0 Four or five fire trucks pulled into the same station where we stopped for gas.\u00a0 We assumed they were filling up to head down to the fire.<\/p>\n
Utah is a long haul to get across.\u00a0 However, the rock formations are amazing.\u00a0 The landscape changes as you pass through it.\u00a0 I love it out here.\u00a0 The traffic was light and we made good time.<\/p>\n
Rich actually drove from Vegas for a couple of hours so I could stick my other arm out the window and try to burn it.\u00a0 Actually, my left arm is very brown and I\u2019m looking a little uneven.\u00a0 I just wanted a chance to try and remedy the problem.<\/p>\n
As we were descending into one of the valleys, there was an overlook along the road.\u00a0 Rich wanted to stop and take a look.\u00a0 The view looked to be promising.\u00a0 I parked and got out of the car before I realized that some Indians had an entire store spread beside the entire length of the sidewalk.\u00a0 Rich always gives me a hard time about having to look at the Indian jewelry.\u00a0 I can\u2019t help myself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The overlook had a gorgeous view of the canyon below.\u00a0 We walked around and took pictures.\u00a0 Then we returned to the parking lot.\u00a0 I just had to look.\u00a0 There was a sign that stated No Vending or Solicitation.\u00a0 The Indians had covered the No part of the sign with a piece of paper.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At one point, a young girl came running up to me.\u00a0 I think she was sent over because I might not deny her request to make a purchase.\u00a0 I would have and should have bought something, but the guys headed to the car and I thought I had to go.\u00a0 Later, I found out that I could have looked and bought something.\u00a0 My bad for not asking first and assuming something else.<\/p>\n
While the girl was making her sales pitch, she was telling me what she knew about all the symbols that are used by the Indians in their jewelry. \u00a0She had a good knowledge and recall and could answer questions.\u00a0 I was very impressed.\u00a0 I wished I could have told her how important this knowledge is.\u00a0 You should always know your family traditions and cultural heritage.\u00a0 I wish my family had passed on more of their own.<\/p>\n
We made it to Grand Junction, Colorado and found our hotel.\u00a0 From there, we needed to find something to eat.\u00a0 Now we are in Colorado, home to the homebrew association.\u00a0 There used to be a ton of microbreweries here.\u00a0 Looking on Beer Advocate, the list seemed to have dwindled.\u00a0 Rich found the Kannah Creek Brewing Company.\u00a0 I found Breckinridge Brewing, but he wanted to go with his choice.\u00a0 It was a little more microbrew than Breckinridge, which has gotten pretty big.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We got to the brewery and got seated inside.\u00a0 The menu was less pub grub and more pizza, pasta, and subs.\u00a0 I ordered a porter, my favorite style, and Rich got one of the cask conditioned IPA.\u00a0 The food came out and was fine.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t the best quality I\u2019ve had.\u00a0 I was disappointed with the porter.\u00a0 They had brewed a weaker version for the masses.\u00a0 Rich had the seasonal beer also.\u00a0 Then Rich ordered a deep fried apple pie for desert.\u00a0 The crust was tough, but the filling was definitely apple.<\/p>\n
So with bellies filled, we headed back to the hotel.\u00a0 This meant going through a roundabout.\u00a0 It seemed a little strange to have them in the West, but Grand Junction was filled with them.\u00a0 I guess they were trying them out.\u00a0 The problem is that drivers can\u2019t do a normal 4-way stop so the roundabouts take some time to learning how to use.\u00a0 They are not intuitive for most drivers.\u00a0 However, it is\u00a0fun to watch people try to use them.<\/p>\n
Well, another night to call it quits.\u00a0 We are headed in Nebraska tomorrow for the second of our three leg journey home.\u00a0<\/p>\n