Get Out the Map
The Road Less Traveled, Part…?
By Mike & Darlene Jordan

Wikipedia defines adventure as an “exciting or unusual experience that may also be a bold, unusually risky undertaking with an uncertain outcome.”

We decided to leave Lake Powell a day early and take our time on the drive home to Fort Garland. Although the drive to Arizona was beautiful most of the way, it was long and we didn’t want to repeat it.

With Darlene navigating, we headed back down highway 98, the only way out of Page that heads in anything resembling an easterly direction. So, yes, we did have to backtrack some until we reached Kayenta where we turned north on Highway 163 and into Monument Valley.

If you’re not sure what Monument Valley is (it’s not a national park or monument), think of the tall spires and monoliths shown in the old Roadrunner cartoons. Monument Valley was actually the inspiration for the animated shorts featuring the Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote. It’s a beautiful area we had seen only once before, but at almost sunset, and didn’t really get a feel for the size and beauty of the area. We didn’t even drive all the way through, then. This time we had a beautiful day and the Valley didn’t disappoint. There are about 50 miles of awesome views and, if you have time, it’s worth the drive.

Continuing on into Utah, we passed through the little town of Mexican Hat, named for a rock formation just north of town, and we noticed a small sign that read, “Valley of the Gods,” with an arrow pointing to the left. The road wasn’t on our map, but we’ve never let that stop us, so we headed left. (See the definition of “adventure” above.) The virtually deserted, but well maintained, dirt road led to some beautiful cliffs and rock formations and each bend in the road brought something new into view.

With the exception of a couple of carloads of people from France, (talk about a long drive!) we had the place to ourselves—about 30 miles of winding dirt road—one of the best-kept secrets in the West. We just kept going until the road ended, spilling us out onto highway 251. (We think. We really weren’t sure where we were). We opted to turn right and found ourselves on the most incredible drive up the face of one of Utah’s famous cliffs! The road was steep, but not really narrow, and climbed almost 1,500 feet up the wall, switching back and forth until it reached the top of the mesa. The view looking back on the Valley of the Gods was breathtaking. Unfortunately, we determined that we were headed the wrong direction and had to drive back down the cliff to get back on track, but it was worth every bit of the drive.

We continued east, dodging the occasional bicycler participating in the “Race Across America.” They actually made the trip rather dangerous. The roads are paved, but very narrow with virtually no shoulder. The cyclists and their slow moving support vehicles held up traffic all along the road.

It had been a long day, and we were happy to pull into one of our favorite places to stay in western Colorado, the Sky Ute Hotel and Casino, about 20 miles southeast of Durango. The place is amazing, especially considering that it’s located in the tiny town of Ignacio. This 2 year-old, sparkling clean, 5-story resort has everything you’d expect to find in a Las Vegas hotel except, maybe, Wayne Newton or the Blue Man Group, including live music, full casino, restaurants (both traditional and buffet), excellent indoor pool, and a staff that’s much friendlier than any we’ve encountered in Nevada—all in a town with a population of about 800.

Next time you’re on the road, leave time for an adventure. It may be bold, it’s not that risky…and it IS new and exciting.
Until next time…get out the map!

Mike and Darlene Jordan are franchisees of CruiseOne., and are based in Southern Colorado. You can contact them at 800-267-7613 or by email at mjordan@cruiseone.com.
http://ping.fm/SyeoS

Mike and Darlene’s Weekly DEAL
June 24, 2011

Good Morning Everyone, and Happy Friday!

Sorry we didn’t send out a DEAL last week, we were enjoying a short get-away at Lake Powell. Gorgeous place, but HOT in June.

Since it was so very warm at Lake Powell, we’re thinking about a cooler destination this week for the DEAL, and we’ve found a really nice one for you! It’s aboard Princess Cruise Line’s Caribbean Princess, sailing September 17th, 2011 from the Big Apple. This is a beautiful 7-night itinerary that offers great ports in the US and Canada, and the timing should be good for fall colors. Look at the time allowed in Boston- you’ll have a full day there to explore the historic sites and the local hot-spots (and we have friends from there, we’ll be able to give you great tips on local eateries and places to hang out like the locals!).

New York speaks for itself, and when you book this trip, we’ll be happy to help you set up a pre-cruise hotel for a night or two, we can even pre-arrange tours so everything is scheduled before-hand, or you can just take in the sights at your own pace…just let us know how you like to vacation, and we’ll tailor the trip to your specs!

Princess Cruises
Caribbean Princess
7 – Night Canada/New England, New York City R/T

Sat, 09/17/11: New York, New York – Embark
Sun, 09/18/11: Newport, Rhode Island
Mon, 09/19/11: Boston, Massachusetts, 10:00 AM-
07:00 PM
Tue, 09/20/11: Bar Harbor, Maine
Wed, 09/21/11: Saint John, NB, Canada
Thu, 09/22/11: Halifax, Nova Scotia
Fri, 09/23/11: At Sea
Sat, 09/24/11: New York, New York – Disembark

Now for the DEAL: We were amazed to see these low fares* on a high-season Canada/New England cruise, and if we weren’t booked elsewhere soon after this date, we’d be on this one ourselves! Interior staterooms start at only $591.50 per person, with port fees and tax included! Move up to an ocean view for only $741.50 PP, and if you want full access to the scenery all the time, book a balcony stateroom for only $1091.50 PP, and yes, that INCLUDES port fees and tax!

AND-if you act quickly, book this beautiful cruise with us and you’ll get a coupon for $75 toward the shore excursion of your choice, booked thru our supplier, Shore Excursions Group, on our website! But you must act fast. The shore excursion offer is only good thru the end of today, June 24th.

If you’ve wanted to try out one of these great scenery cruises, now’s the time! Give us a call at 1-800-267-7613, and we’ll get you booked by the end of the day so you can take advantage of the $75 credit for your shore excursions.

‘Till then, have a great weekend, remember that sunscreen-and let’s all pray for the safety and success of our firefighters here in the Southwest, they need all the help they can get!

Darlene & Mike

*Fares include port fees and tax, are based on double occupancy and are subject to change and availability. Airfare, transfers and insurance are additional.

Get Out the Map June 17, 2011
An Awesome Day

By Mike & Darlene Jordan

Regular readers of this space know that birthdays are travel events at our house, and this year is no exception. We’re off celebrating Darlene’s birthday and, as we write this, it’s 5:30 a.m. at one of the most beautiful places in the U.S., Lake Powell, Arizona.
No, we’re not crazy. We don’t usually get up at 5:30 a.m. when we travel, unless it’s to catch a plane. Arizona, however, does not observe Daylight Savings Time so our internal clocks are a little off.
We arrived in Page, Arizona, home of the Glen Canyon Dam and the beginning of Lake Powell on Wednesday after a long drive from the San Luis Valley (about 7 hours). It’s a beautiful drive and we never tire of the trip over Wolf Creek Pass, but the stretch from about Cortez, Colorado, through eastern Arizona is pretty barren. Eventually, though, travelers come upon Monument Valley and it gets more interesting.

Page, Arizona, was founded in 1957 when construction on the Glen Canyon Dam began; its purpose being to fill Glenn Canyon and provide a reliable water source for Arizona and Southern California. Of course, all that water comes from the Colorado River and we’d sure like to keep a little more of it these days!

The result of the dam’s construction is a gigantic lake, 183 miles long, with some of the most beautiful scenery on the planet. We’re not sure what the canyon looked like before the dam, but we don’t see how it could be much better than this.

With the odd time difference we started our visit early. Out of the hotel by a little before 7:00 a.m., we headed toward the small section of the river known as Lee’s Ferry for some hiking. Oh…did we forget to mention that it was 106 degrees when we arrived in Page? For hiking here in summer, an early start is mandatory. It was already in the 80’s when we started up the trail.

Visitors here are literally surrounded by the awesome works of nature. We chose a trail that climbs up a cliff overlooking the Colorado River at the place where many Grand Canyon rafting trips begin. From high above the river we watched as rafters set sail for their 16 day float through the Grand Canyon. Someday, maybe we’ll write about that in this space!

The increasing heat of the day and time constraints made it impossible to complete the climb to the top of the mesa. We had so much we wanted to see! On the way back to Page, we stopped at the Horseshoe Bend overlook, a ¾ mile hike off the highway to the edge of the canyon where the Colorado River makes a u-turn some 1,000 feet below. The view is breathtaking, especially considering that many parts of this very deep canyon are cut into what is relatively flat ground.

The rest of the day was taken up by an incredible boat tour of Lake Powell, itself. Our cruise started at the Wahweap Marina inside the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Wahweap is also one of the entrances to the park, and does require a $15 fee, which allows access to the entire lake for 7 days. There’s also a very nice resort there with a fantastic, although pricey, restaurant.

The two and a half hour lake tour covers only a small portion of this amazing lake but visits two of its most spectacular areas, Navajo Canyon and Antelope Canyon.

Sailing into these offshoots of Glen Canyon is amazing. The rock walls of the canyons rise hundreds of feet straight up from the water, making it seem as though the boat is in its own separate sandstone world, completely cut off from the rest of the lake. Water and wind have carved the walls with unique formations of sweeping curves and fascinating textures. At some points in Antelope Canyon the passage becomes so narrow that the boat can barely pass through. If the water level is higher, as it should be in July, the boat can go through areas where the passengers can actually touch the canyon walls on both sides of the vessel as it passes through.

After a dinner at a local steakhouse and listening to some live music, we tumbled into bed.

Now that we think about it, after a day like yesterday, what are we doing up at 5:30 a.m.? Oh, yes…so much to see…so little time!

Until next time…get out the map!

Mike and Darlene Jordan are franchisees of CruiseOne., and are based in Southern Colorado. You can contact them at 800-267-7613 or by email at mjordan@cruiseone.com.

Good Morning Everyone, and Happy Friday!

This week was only an hour and a half long…where does the time go? When we think about that, we remember a little tag line we heard somewhere: “stop talking about it, and GO ALREADY”! Well, if you’ve been thinking about a trip to Alaska, but you haven’t done it yet, now’s the time to GO ALREADY!

We have a great DEAL on the Norwegian Star, sailing on September 3, 2011. It’s a little later in the season, so not so many crowds in the ports, and the wildlife tends to be a bit more active when the weather cools down a bit from the summer heat.

This is a round-trip from Seattle, so your airfare will be reasonable, and some of you may even want to drive there…it can be a lovely road trip. Here’s the itinerary:

Norwegian Cruise Line Norwegian Star
7-Night Sawyer Glacier, Seattle R/T

Sat 09/03/11
Seattle, Washington – Embark – 04:00 PM
Time subject to change

Sun 09/04/11 Cruise Inside Passage

Mon 09/05/11
Ketchikan, Alaska 07:00 AM – 03:00 PM

Tue 09/06/11
Juneau, Alaska 07:00 AM – 01:30 PM

Wed 09/07/11
Skagway, Alaska 07:00 AM – 05:00 PM

Thu 09/08/11
Prince Rupert, British Columbia 04:00 PM-10:00 PM

Fri 09/09/11 At Sea

Sat 09/10/11
Seattle, Washington – Disembark – 08:00 AM
Time subject to change

Now for the DEAL: Interior staterooms start at a very low $749* per person, plus tax. Book an ocean view for only $979* PP, plus tax, and if you want to really treat yourselves, book a room with a view AND a private balcony for only $1349* PP, plus tax. (There are also a few suites left on this sail date, call us for details.)

Good deal, no? Yes, but not good enough! We have a special DEAL for this ship and sail date, so you’ll get a $100 shipboard credit for each stateroom booked, to use any way you like onboard the ship; shore excursions, gifts and souvenirs in the onboard shops, specialty restaurants, or spa treatments.

Still not good enough??? OK, if you book before June 24th, 2011 (and we would recommend sooner if you can), you’ll also get a $75 credit certificate FROM US, to use toward a shore excursion booked on our website!

So, great rates, a beautiful ship and itinerary, AND $175 spending money! What are you waiting for? Call us NOW at 1-800-267-7613, and we’ll get you all set up for this beautiful trip. And tell you’re friends-we reward referrals! For every referral you send our way that results in a deposited reservation, we’ll add $25 to your onboard account! Forward this DEAL to all your friends, you could earn some serious onboard credit!

In the meantime, have a great weekend, and be safe out there,

Darlene & Mike
1-800-267-7613
kdscruises@gojade.org
http://ping.fm/4owyI

*Fares are based on double occupancy, and are subject to change and availability. Port fees are included, tax, airfare, transfers and insurance are additional.

Get Out the Map June 10, 2011

Off the Beaten Path
By Mike & Darlene Jordan

We’ve never been ones to shy away from taking the lesser known route to just about anywhere. Interstate highways are fine if you’re in a big hurry, but a few days off is no time to be on the run.
That’s why, on our recent trip to Idaho (and considering the rush we were in to get there) we took the long, out of the way route home.
We see the most amazing things totally by accident when we do that.
After leaving Ely, Nevada, early in the morning we headed south on Highway 93 toward the little town of Panaca where we’d join 319 into Utah toward Cedar City. Highway 93 is one of those very lonesome roads on which you’re unlikely to see more than one or two cars for a hundred miles. It’s rolling hill country with mountains, the Wilson Creek Range, to the east and the Egan Range to the west. The valley between them is long and deserted, but the lack of traffic keeps the road in good shape, and there are few curves.
As we approached Panaca, Darlene noticed a short loop of road off of the main highway and some microscopic green type that said, “Cathedral Gorge State Park.” We were in no hurry, so we decided to check it out.
What an amazing place! Discovered by a couple of young men around the turn of the 20th Century, the park was declared a Nevada State Park in 1924. Cathedral Gorge is a long valley where erosion has carved amazing formations into soft bentonite clay.
We entered the park at Miller Point, where there’s an excellent scenic overlook into the canyon. According to the sign at the top, the two young discoverers spent a lot of time making trails throughout the gorge. Folks who’ve been to the Wheeler Geologic Area near Creede, Colorado, will recognize the pointed “hoodoo” formations that abound in this small canyon.
If you’re even a little adventurous, you’ll want to take the short trail (including stairs) that allows visitors to walk down into the Gorge. There are trails throughout this geologic marvel, and we took a half-hour or so to go down to explore.
The gorge has many cuts, hoodoos, and slots that are excellent for exploring, but since the area around Miller Point is not huge, we were able to get a feel for the gorge while sampling what looks like hard rock, but is really just packed bentonite clay that water has formed into amazing formations.
Miller Point is a free access area so, although we weren’t in huge rush, we opted not to visit the visitor’s center. The main area of the park requires a fee of $7 and an extra $10 if you’ll be using a campsite.
If you’re passing through southern Nevada, you’d be well rewarded if you stop for lunch or just to look around this amazing formation. If you’re heading west on Highway 54 from Cedar City, Utah, go about 80 miles to Panaca, NV, and turn north just a few miles to the Cathedral Gorge State Park entrance. You’ll be well rewarded for the effort!
Until next time…get out the map!

Mike and Darlene Jordan are franchisees of CruiseOne., and are based in Southern Colorado. You can contact them at 800-267-7613 or by email at mjordan@cruiseone.com.
http://ping.fm/C7ZHv