Lastly, but not leastly...our time in US is done for the summer

BRRRRR.....We never dress this way in the islands!
We're sitting next to the Yellowstone River, near Big Timber, MT

So much happened while we finished up our time in the US, and I will touch on some of it briefly before heading the blog back to island time. Yes, I know we left for the islands in November....and it's now January. SOOORRRRYYY!

Prior to leaving the US for the islands, we stopped in Las Vegas, NV to visit with some friends of ours. Ken and Lori flew in from Florida, while Toddy and Sue came over the "little pond" from England

We're all spiffied up for an evening in Las Vegas

Toddy, in front of a 3-wheeled 1934 Morgan Super Sport
at Harrah's Auto Museum. He owns a similar one in the UK

Where else can you visit New York, Venice, Rome, Cairo, Paris and the
 Old West in one evening

Daytime at the fountain of Ceasar's Palace

 We went to the Grand Canyon next...stopping at Hoover Dam. There are tours offered here, taking you into the bowels of the dam, where the turbines are. That's what we were told, anyway. We didn't stop long enough...there were other places to go and things to see.

Lake Mead starts here at Hoover Dam...or does it end here?  Anybody know?

The overflow for Hoover Dam goes waaaayyy down that hole

Looking over the edge at Hoover Dam...I wonder what it would look like
if you dropped a bowling ball

Next, we headed over to the Hualapi Indian Reservation to see the famous "Skywalk". We had heard that the natives built an attraction on their reservation that allowed visitors to venture out over the Grand Canyon on a glass balcony extended out from the cliff edge. I figured it was another great place to investigate dropping objects off of high places. It was a truly fun time, and we couldn't believe how close to the edge you could get. Just outside the entrance to the Skywalk building, you could approach the canyon edge...no ropes, no fences, no guards...just one small step and a reaaally long scream to the bottom. The Skywalk was quite an experience, also...it extends out, cantilever-like, over the canyon edge about 65'. The walkway is shaped in a half-circle with the inner/outer edges being concrete and the center...just 5' wide plate glass panels about 6" thick. In other words, you can look right below your feet and see nothing but air for over 800'. The staff makes you wear socks or booties over your shoes, so you are quiet and can hear the wind blow through your hair.
Or maybe so the glass doesn't get scratched by dirty shoes.
Or maybe because they got a good deal at the local hospital supply store.

Lori and Ken at the edge

Toddy and Sue, not quite at the edge

Our close friends,
Ruthie and Stanley Parkenfarker, foolishly
horsing around near the edge

The "Skywalk" on the Hualapi Indian Reservation.
The outer edge (right-hand side of the picture) is about
800' above the sloping canyon floor.

I always seem to find the really interesting stuff:
An abandoned trolley system, used to harvest bat guano from a
nearby cave system