Day 1 of the Drive East: Goodbye Las Vegas, Hello Grand Canyon

With our house sold, our possessions packed and shipped, and another season of softball over, the time has finally come to move east. We pledged to document our trip day-by-day through the blog, so if you'd like to travel with us virtually, we've got a seat for you here.


We started our last day in Las Vegas right, going to breakfast with our close friends the Piets so we could celebrate Alex's 11th birthday before we left. The Original Pancake House at Aliante Station served us well -- chocolate chip pancakes, pecan waffles, fresh squeezed orange juice, etc. We had a great and filling breakfast together, all 12 of us. After an emotional goodbye in the Aliante Station parking garage (an odd setting for a heartfelt and tearful farewell between two families that have grown so close over the years -- yet oddly appropriate for two families that have found joy together in all types of circumstances), we hit the road.



After eight years in Vegas, we had never made the drive to the Grand Canyon, so that seemed an appopriate place to start our cross country trip. We crossed Hoover Dam into Arizona at 12:52 p.m. on the dam clock, marking our official departure from Nevada and the end of a slew of dam jokes, including:

- "This is the best dam view"
- "Look at all the dam rocks"
- "Check out the dam bridge"
- "I'm getting tired of your dam sarcasm"

I'm sure you get the idea... plenty of dam jokes during a long delay across the dam.



One exciting detour was a much needed restroom stop at a roadside gas station outside Kingman, Ariz. The only problem was that we were heading southbound, and the only access was from the northbound lane. We were in the middle of nowhwere, and there was an urgent demand, so Jason did what had to be done -- he cut across the highway median. Dylan, who had dozed off earlier, woke up with a start as Jason turned our Suburban across the gravel center strip. Always calm and collected, Dylan asked coolly in a tired voice, "Dad, why are we off-roading?"

The drive the Grand Canyon was beautiful. We hiked along the rim and ventured along the many lookouts. We wanted to mark our long first day on the road with a view of the canyon at sunset...so we did. It was simply gorgeous...a great start to the long drive to Maryland.

Tomorrow, we're off to the ABQ: Albuquerque, N.M. We'll fill you in from there...