I've had to think through a lot of contingency plans in the past, but nothing as great as this.  We shall see what the morning brings!I

What a beautiful day to start a Parkwest tour!  We have everyone accounted for and checked in to Moab's Gonzo Inn--a fun and funky hotel.  After the briefings, we filled our bellies at Zax, also fun and funky due to the great waitstaff!  Tomorrow we raft the Colorado and have a sunset tour of Arches National Park.

It's wonderful to see Richard, Kay, Garney, Carolyn, Robin, Shane, Piet, Nelly, Bob, Leslie, Beto, Dan, Bill, Mary and Dana. Welcome newcomers Jim and Anita!

May Richard's flight below be the most exciting it gets for the next 10 days!  The forecast weather looks great, the federal government negotiations do not.  A Parkwest tour with no Parks?  Stay tuned!

It's five days until tour time.  Cat Herder is triple-checking her plans, pilots are programming routes, the foreigners are on their way.  The Dutch arrive today, the Brits on Thursday, and our Paraguayan pilot on Friday.  The sojourn to Moab, UT and points beyond has officially begun!

Stay tuned for "live" news from the tour front!

This recent article was sent to me by Suzanne Harris, with a gentle request that perhaps Parkwest spend some more time there.  Sounds great to me!

Should we worry that word has gotten out?  Let's hope the bumpy road-foot-bridge-dirt-airstrip-only access will keep it safe, for awhile.

This past week has dumped more rain than ever on Colorado. We here in the Western Slope emerged relatively unscathed, thank goodness.  The sandstone has been glistening wet for days, the thirsty flora is thriving, my rain buckets are overflowing, and the Colorado looks like a real river again.  Our hearts go out to all those displaced on the Front Range.

A great article on the New York Times blog "Dot Earth" about why the West is burning...

Parkwest pilot and firefighter Mark Cassidy sent me this incredible cockpit footage of the containment efforts at Yosemite National Park.  Those are some cool cats flying those planes...