Antelope Island, Utah

Recently, friend of mine came up from Tucson for a conference.  So, one Saturday afternoon, we drove out to Antelope Island. 

North of Salt Lake City, a long causeway takes you out to the island, the largest one in the Great Salt Lake.  The island is a designated natural preserve.

 As we drove around, we saw deer, bison, a coyote, and beautiful scenery.

During our visit to the visitor's center, we learned that the proper name for these animals are American Bison.  Buffalo are a different thing; think of water buffalo and the difference becomes obvious.

The geology of Antelope island is very intesting.  We encountered some twisted formations of gneiss.

I wanted a sample so bad!

More scenery as we drove the long road along one side of the island:

 Looking east back toward Salt Lake City, the sunset added color to the skyline:

We drove to the northern point of the island, where we were treated to a colorful sunset.

We then had a nice quarter moon to light up the sky

Cactus flowers

It is monsoon season here in Tucson.  We get thunderstorms from time to time.  The moisture has made one of my cactus bloom:

Meanwhile, my Organ Pipe cactus thrives.  It is growing a new arm at the base:

Hoover Dam

The weather here in Tucson has gone to full monsoon mode.  So, I'm playing "hermit", hiding inside where the air conditioning keeps it cool.

Today, I'm attaching some photos I took when my brother and his wife came to visit.  We took a trip north to the Grand Canyon, stopping by the Hoover Dam.

 This is Lake Mead

Surveyor's marker

The turbins which generate power from the falling water.  It's all really done from gravity.

Now for some photos I took at the rim of the canyon:

Introducing Fiji's Fishies

Here are some photos of the various fish species you will see while diving the reefs in Fiji. I added the name of each fish so that you can tell who is who!