Desert life.

Heading south on Utah.  I don't really know what else to say except I really dislike Utah.  I think even Utah hates Utah, because they let you get out of there as fast as legally possible.

More mountains.  We stopped with the intent of visiting Mt. Zion national park.  It was a bit of a scenic detour through little western towns.  The park looks really beautiful, however, it was 115 degrees, the sun literally felt heavy on our backs, and the park required hours of hiking and bus rides to enjoy it.  We decided we just couldn't spend the $25 per person today.  We did, however, start thinking about several what ifs for our next road trip, perhaps in the winter.  Maybe, we'll see.  A few shots from outside of the park ( we actually road the shuttle bus from the town into the park entrance, before doing the same thing right back out.)

Back on the road...  More lifeless Utah until...

I honestly didn't realize we would be entering Arizona.  I-15 South briefly passes through the north west corner of Arizona.  There really aren't any exits, or any towns along this route, so it was just rural desert Arizona.  Still 115+ degrees at this time.

20 minutes later we were in Nevada.  This point of the trip was the hottest, at 117 degrees.  Right back into the car for the AC!  Nevada is a lot like Utah.  Just desert... and then you hit Vegas.

I guess I wasn't prepared for Vegas on the 4th of July, or for the still 100-110 degree weather.  The streets and the casinos were so crowded, it really felt like a human oven for the duration of our stay, except for being inside.  Took a few photos of the Vegas night, gambled away some money, and just passed out. 

Friday, July 5th 2013.

Woke up to a night and day (pun intended) difference in Vegas.  The streets were dead!  Most probably still comatose I suppose.  Did a little driving to see the sights, grabbed a quick bite, and back on the road.  I-15 south for a little under an hour, and we were in Cali.  Welcome to the Mojave Desert.

Another 4 hours and we'll be in San Diego for the night.  Until then!