At almost 9,000 ft, the north rim is a couple of thousand feet higher than the south rim, so it’s cooler, wetter and gets more snow and fewer visitors. We camped at a campground just outside the national park and had our 17th consecutive night of thunderstorms. Yesterday was rainy and foggy, so not the best day for trying to see the canyon in all its vast splendour, but this morning it was fine, so we drove to Point Imperial and Cape Royal and did a few short walks to see down and across the canyon. Wonderful.

And now we’re in the biggest Sin City of them all … Las Vegas. Our end-of-holiday holiday – 4 nights in a suite at the Holiday Inn Desert Club Resort, a couple of blocks from The Strip, just behind The Venetian Hotel. Last time we were here, it was Easter and there were people everywhere. Seems like there are still people everywhere, although we haven’t been out exploring yet.

The Narrows canyon, Virgin River Zion National Park, about an hours walk into the canyon

The only way up the narrows in Zion is to wade up the Virgin river

HooDoos in Bryce Canyon National Park

The upper parts of the Narrows Zion National Park

The highest lookout on the Grand Canyon rim at 8,803 feet

The Colorado river snakes through the Grand Canyon 1,600 metres below North Rim

Camped at DeMotte Forest campground 40km north of North Rim, at 8,700 feet.

Looking down into Grand Canyon from North Rim, with the Colorado river, and south rim in the distance