We rented a Ford Explorer and left Vegas. It felt good to be driving again. I hear that soon autonomous vehicles will end the era of self driving cars. I hope that's still far in the future.

We drove southeast towards Hoover Dam. I was struck by the enormous urban sprawl of Las Vegas once we left downtown. I was reminded of the sad subdivision Donna Tartt described in The Goldfinch. I once represented a client who lived in one of the more affluent inner rings. During the real estate boom of the late 1990s people would trade up to the newest fancy developments, and the slightly older housing stock quickly lost value.

It was a relief to get past the city and enjoy the desert views. My daughter controlled the sound system. We turned it up loud as we negotiated and compromised in choosing multigenerational driving tunes. When we reached the desert mountains approaching Hoover Dam, which is a truly spectacular stretch of highway, we listened to Close To The Edge by Yes, a unanimous choice.

When we arrived I was happy to discover that we could drive across the dam. Since the structure staddles Nevada and Arizona, the road atop the dam passes through two different time zones. Pillars with clocks mark the changes.

We couldn't spend much time there, but we took in some incredible views. I posted about the strange tale of the dog who appeared as a puppy during construction of the dam yesterday.

Here are some photos, but none compare to the one @gnilma posted yesterday from the pedestrian bridge. We didn't have time for that, and I have a fear of heights.

Next we drove to southern Utah. The view from the road was breathtaking at times. I am generally an anxious person. Nothing relaxes me more than driving way past the speed limit on a beautiful highway in the US Southwest with the music blaring. I feel young again. Luckily my wife and daughter like it too.

We are staying in Springdale, Utah, which borders Zion National Park. It is a town of less than a thousand year round residents, but there are always plenty of tourists to aid the local economy. It was originally settled as a Mormon farming community. I was offered a free copy of the Book Of Mormon in one of the small shops in town, and I accepted it. I intend to flip through it in the next few days.

For dinner I had a ground beef, bison, elk and wild boar burger. It was delicious.