We woke up late again - I guess it must be the change in time zones as we are an hour ahead here in Utah. We have become really good at packing up the tent quickly and moving on, although, it is quite tiring. We had a quick breakfast and then drove on to Sunrise Point to start our hike through to the Queen's Garden. This hike has been labelled as "easy" by the National Parks information centre but it was a pretty tough terrain. The descent was steep and slippery...

We woke up late - 7am! Had to get ready, pack the tent and drive to the Visitor's Centre by 8:45am, which we managed to do with 15minutes to spare. Our ranger Mike Large and driver Russ picked us up. Ironically, Mike Large is very small in stature but very much larger than life in personality! He reminds me of the actor Danny Devito. Ranger Mike Large has lived and worked in Zion for 28 years and is quite the character. In the 1860's, small farms along the river...

We were both so glad to be leaving Las Vegas. Especially, after I got lost and we ended up driving through the sad Downtown with its delapidated, cheesy chapels, sleazy sex shops and queues of hopefuls (or hopeless) outside the pawn shops. There's definitely a dark side to the city of lights. We were lucky enough to snag one of the last remaining campsites at the National Park - it was definitely a full house that night! First things first - go to the Visitor's...

Decided not to fork out $100+ to see a tacky soft porn show in Vegas. All the Cirque du Soleil franchise shows were overpriced and, in any case, sold out. Vegas on a tight budget ain't that much fun, let me tell ya! So, instead, we went out to find somewhere to eat breakfast. I'd spotted some outdoor seating near the Parisian-themed hotel in the Strip when we'd first driven in to Vegas and fancied sitting outside rather than in some overly air-conditioned, badly...

Left Kaibab forest quite early so we could get to Las Vegas in good time. Popped over at the Jacob's Lake Inn for some of their fabulous cookies again. The drive to Vegas is long and hot. On the way, we stopped at Virgin River Canyon Recreation Area to eat our lunch. Wow, that is possibly the hottest place I have ever been in! Felt like I was being roasted alive in a fan-assisted oven. Nothing around us except cacti, dried shrubs and rocks. Oh, and a tiny, muddy ...