Traveling Together: Hoover Dam

It's been a while since we have been on a trip (other than camping and that doesn't count). A long time ago, my little granddaughter, Twizlet, visited a place with her family called Scottsdale Links Resort. She was so excited that even as a two-year-old, she learned to say the name. So when it came up in our travel list of destinations, my sweetie said, "Book it!" and here we are.

But let me back up and tell you a little more about our travels to get here. We started out picking up Baby Doll from Horse Lover's Camp a day early. It was supposed to be Scout AND Baby Doll, but Scout ended up coming home on Wednesday because her toe was infected, but that's another story...

So we drove from Trefoil Ranch in Provo Canyon to Cedar City. We pulled in around midnight, fell into bed and got up the next morning ready for takeoff. Scottsdale is a suburb of Phoenix as you know, and we were looking at 8 more hours in the car. Thankfully, the kids were in good spirits and Sport did part of the driving, giving my sweetie a chance for a break. 

One thing that absolutely fascinates my sweetie are these huge hydroelectric dams like Hoover Dam, so that was destined from the beginning to be a major stop during our long drive. 

We had fun in the free Visitor's Center and then spent a bunch of money in the not-so-free gift shop.

We were sad to see that the Dam Tours were not functioning yet, but the uphill hike to the top of the bridge was open. 

Thankfully, there were a few places to sit that had shade. Honestly, in over 100-degree weather, this path nearly did me it. 

Once we got to the top, I was really glad I went. Hoover Dam is massive and even though levels are noticeably low, it held back an incredible amount of water. 

After we were finally back in our air-conditioned van, we decided to drive across the bridge, but it was not nearly as amazing as the hike, so if you go there, I strongly recommend you take the time and take water. 

Arizona is mostly cactus and joshua trees, and sometimes it felt like we were driving on a different planet, but last night we finally rolled in to Scottsdale Links Resort just in time to unload the van and jump in one of their outdoor pools for a cool-off. 

I can hardly wait to explore this unique and incredibly hot part of the United States. Thanks, Twizlet, for encouraging us to come here. Wish you were here too!