Basin and Range and beyond

...or, it's a long way from Winnemucca... Nevada was grand, but not as warm as we had hoped. We headed south along a flat basin and then east over a series of mountain ranges that were separated by the intervening basins. Route 50, the so-called loneliest highway, is an established, if demanding, bicycle route. There are long stretches between water. We are really enjoying driving along and thinking what it would be like if we were biking the same route. I think route 50 would be more fun if someone was carrying our camping gear! We re-supplied in Ely, NV, and stopped for the night in a state park. There was a lake with lots of ducks and some families fishing from shore. We took a hike before dinner. Beautiful campsite but when the sun went down it was cold. In the morning we packed up and moved on to Great Basin National Park and had breakfast in the sun when things warmed up. But the problem was...things never really warmed up enough! It could be said that Ididn't do my homework, but, as i like to say, if you know how it's going to turn out, it's not really an adventure! GBNP was almost empty. Its claims to fame are Lehman Cave and a 13,000 foot mountain, neither of which exude warmth! We did a cave tour and it was very interesting, almost fabulous, in a stalagtite and stalagmite kind of way. Later at our campsite we saw a couple of turkeys. We were at 7,500 feet so it was another cold night. Next stop, Capitol Reef National Park. We finally hit the jackpot! The place was amazing. There is a huge up-lifted, well, cliff. Think one half of the grand canyon. And it was warm. We biked the 20-mile scenic drive, hiked in the early morning, saw deer in the pastures with the hourses, and met some folks who had just met and spent a few days with our neighbors who were in Zion NP. Did i mention it was warm? No cell phone coverage but the place was fabulous. Funny thing, these parks seem to be populated with recently retired people!!! After a couple of days we drove down to Lake Powell (glen canyon). The scenery just knocked our socks off! Especially in the morning light. We camped at Bullfrog Basin last night, in fact we slept in the Honda, which was great. We could watch the (almost) new moon set out the back window. And it was warm. This morning we went for a bike ride then we packed up and took a ferry across the lake. Utah surprised and impressed us! We had been to Arches and Zion and the Grand Canyon on previous trips but there is so much to see...I guess we will have to come back! Whizzing through Arizona and on our way to NM!