Cedar City

We had a great time on our overnight trip to Cedar City.  Jane and Abe were so nice to babysit the kids so Sam and I could go to a play (Noises Off; we LOVED it; we laughed so hard we couldn't breathe).  The kids  had a great time with Gwen and said it was their favorite part of the trip.  We also had a fun time swimming, hiking and exploring up the Canyon and near Cedar Breaks.  It was gorgeous!

There were wildflowers everywhere.  I guess the cooler air in the mountains must allow more flowers to grow.  They were SO pretty.

This was a beautiful hike (with view of Zion National Park there in the background).  The kids (even Daisy) are such great hikers.  They love it just like we do!

Red Daisy

The hike ended at a waterfall which came out of a hole in the rock and then spilled down the hill like this.  Spectacular.

This is the lake the waterfall comes from.  (Water goes through a sinkhole in the lake and comes out below to make the falls.)  Navajo Lake, it's called.

I thought one of the most amazing things we saw was Mammoth Cave.  It was formed by lava flows (there are huge lava fields and a bunch of old cinder cones in the area) underground.  We went in and explored with flashlights, and it was SO interesting.  You climbed down from above, like this:

And then there were several different chambers/tunnels to explore.  This one was really tall (way above my head when I was standing) and went on for a long way.  (Picture isn't great.  It was pitch dark in there; only so much the camera and the flashlight could do.)  It was cool to imagine these chambers being lit by glowing rivers of lava at one time.