The summer of 1997, a rare phenomenon occurred.  The entire Katz family was together for a week of vacation.  Our voyage began at the Fort Lauderdale International airport when  Jody, Eric, Jonathan, Ryan and I flew to Las Vegas where we hooked  up with Ronnie.

    We rented a 15 passenger Ford Club Wagon, turned the A.C. to maximum and took off on I -15  Northbound.  We drove through the deserts of Nevada and northern Arizona and into the lush foothills of Utah.  After about three hours we arrived at the Cliffrose Lodge located just two tenths of a mile from the entrance to Zion National Park.  The weather that afternoon was clear and mild with temperatures in the low 70's.  We had a nice dinner in town and retired after a leisurely stroll.

    Ryan and Eric explored a lazy creek  just behind the lodge.  The view was absolutely spectacular.  A massive mountain of rock  rose perpendicularly about a thousand feet or more up to the clouds. It was a perfect background to enjoy a placid sleep.

    We all awoke at 1:00 A.M. to a salvo of thunder claps that vibrated the windows of our rooms.  Jody thought there were fish in the cabin! Lightening and thunder continued for  awhile.  Then the pitter-pat of the rain lulled us back to a deep sleep.

    We awoke to blue skies and bright sun puntuated by billowy cumulus clouds. The mountain air was brisk and fresh. This was  far different from the oppressively humid Florida air we all have been so accustomed to.  The lazy mountain creek behind out  behind the lodge was now a roaring, violent river carrying red mud and rocks of various sizes.

    We spent the day hiking in Zion and enjoying the magnificence of the of the rock formations, streams and wild flowers. We went to the Imax theater and watched a film describing the travails of the Mormon pioneers who first settled this land.  Dinner in town was quite good and the beds in our rooms were a welcomed refuge for all.

    The next morning was spent back in Zion after a hearty breakfast. We drove the rugged terrain of route 89 with great care.  The roads were caked with mud and slippery.  One miscalculation could mean devastation since there are virtually no guardrails protecting you from careening over a cliff! Before too long we began to see the awesome hoodoos balancing boulders the size of a car as we entered Red Canyon. This could only mean that Bryce was not too far away.

    We arrived at Ruby's Inn in the mid afternoon and checked in.  A short drive to one of the many lookout points was only a few minutes away.  I kept my eyes on the faces of my four sons as we approached the rim. I know that they have never seen anything like Bryce. If you've never experienced Bryce then you can't count on me to adequately  describe this great natural wonder.  I thought about including a photo in this essay but  pictures are wholly inadequate.  You really just have to go there yourself and look.  It's not crowded like the South  Rim or Yellowstone.  It is a truly marvelous place to spend a day or two.  While at Ruby's Inn we took advantage of a covered wagon ride out to a campsite where we had dinner and saw a hokie show put on by a nice Mormon family.

    We left early the next morning after a final thirty minute stop at the rim of Bryce Canyon. We worked our way back to I-15 and headed south through some of the most beautiful country in our nation.  In two and a half hours the topography was desert like as we headed toward Las Vegas.  We checked in at Caesar's Palace and promptly began losing money! A little black jack here, a little craps there and all our excess quarters into the slots.  Barely a win!  We did the great Caesar's Magic Dinner Show and got to see Howie Mandel the next night.  But we almost didn't make Howie.

    You see, the boys and I left Jody and drove to Death Valley for the day. It was my second time there and a much better day than going to the Hoover Dam or to a shopping mall! My advice is to get up to date maps and not use the ten year old roadmaps that I brought along with me.  It was kind of cool in Death Valley because of some rain - only 122 degrees F! But the sights were truly awsome and I'm glad we all made the trip.

     We arrived back at Caesar's just in the knick of time to shower, grab a quick bite at the Stage Deli in the "Forum".  Howie Mandel is always funny but not worth $ 75 a ticket.  The drinks were 20 degrees warmer than the room temperature........and those were the frozen drinks.  The beer was warmer than the chicken soup!

    The flight home was long but we arrived safe and sound.  Jody can't wait to go back to Las Vegas to get us even!