Windsor, Ontario

Another of friend of Erin’s from Australia held two wedding receptions, one in Australia and one in North America.  This time we flew to Detroit, rented a car, and drove all over Canada!  We visited with Amanda and Owen, staying with Amanda’s parents and then drove over to Niagara Falls and back in one day!  It was a whirlwind trip but we got to drive a Prius making it a car-geek friendly trip!  Matt had a blast driving the Prius and nomming on yummy reception cake.

CAKE!

Brrrrr...it's cold at Niagara in December!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kisses

The other side of Niagara...weird.

Fun in the Prius

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Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Colorado

In August 2007 after dating for two years we proposed to each other and packed up the car for a camping trip in the deserts and forests of southern Utah.

Newly engaged lovebirds!

We stopped at Natural Bridges near Lake Powell where Erin was bitten by an unknown insect that caused some radiating pain in her arm.  Matt, lovingly, pumped her full of Benadryl and stayed up all night to make sure she kept breathing!  Erin was ready to go the next morning so we set off for Bryce Canyon where we enjoyed another full campground (oh, yeah.)  and some spectacular views.  For whatever reason (probably because we decided to flee Utah and the annoying, rude campers) we don’t have many pictures from this part of the trip.

Leaving Utah in a hurry!

 

After Bryce we zipped over to Zion, Erin’s first extended visit, where again we struggled to deal with the thousands of people already there.

We’d been a bit spoiled with our camping trips that were down scary dirt roads that giant, gas guzzling RVs can’t even begin to navigate and do not attract anything but the hardiest campers.

We spent a lot of time at Zion picking up trash on the trails so that was good.

After a horrifying night next to an RV that was running non-stop to keep the inside air-conditioned while the owners played cards outside, we jumped in the car and hauled ass back to Colorado.

 

We ended the trip with a nice long weekend in Black Canyon of the Gunnison where we hiked, sort of swam, and met a lovely family from California (who we are still in touch with to this day!).

Cold, clear, mountain water

Magnificent view

Moss & Aspen

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Chaco Canyon, New Mexico

This was one of my favorite camping trips!  An easy drive from Durango, we enjoyed a quick weekend trip in the early spring to soak up the sun and beautiful architectural remains from the Puebloan people.

 

Photo Credit: Jim Spadaccini, Ideum

Rainbow over Pueblo Bonito

 

After spending the morning at Pueblo Bonito, we jumped on the Pueblo Alto hiking trail and spent the rest of the day taking in the breathtaking views.

Matt and Pueblo Bonito

We highly recommend taking the trail if you visit!  The Visitor Center is full of information and films that help convey the importance of this location for the Puebloan culture.

Visit Chaco Canyon for more information on hours, camping rules, and directions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are more pictures from our trip for your viewing pleasure!

Good morning!

 

Can you see the moon?

My favorite fossils we found on the trail - spiral seashells.

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