SLC and SAN

Trying to fit in all our travel needs and desires. Yes, I know, a first world problem, but it is my situation. How to fit in trips to see Spaulding and Mary into our summer schedule? Then it dawned on me: combine them. Duh.

That meant flying Delta, since Frontier would be the only other choice direct to Salt Lake City. Comfort+ out, first class red eye back. No more small seats for us.

June 27-July 2, we were in Salt Lake City, charmed by Teddy who now has 2 bottom teeth and was fairly stoic about getting 2 uppers that were just about to break through. Friday, Molly worked from home, so Spaulding, Grant, and I went down town to Caffe d’Bolla where Spaulding had made reservations for a coffee tasting experience. Thank goodness there was a mix up, and we only had 1 seat reserved (total of 3 spots for event, and the other 2 were taken by the production manager and head of visuals for a touring DJ whose name I’ve forgotten, but Spaulding and Molly knew). This was way over my head and tastebuds. Grant and I sat in the row of seats for people who just stopped by for a cup of Joe. It was fun listening to the host’s patter while pots were meticulously cleaned, coffee weighed and ground, water boiled, etc. He claimed he and a guy in Japan are the world’s best coffee brewers. Could be. He talked about coffee the way oenophiles describe wine. When Spaulding’s coffee was presented, in a fabulous porcelain cup, he was told to wait 8 minutes before tasting, so the temperature was exactly right to begin, then to spend 30 minutes to drink the coffee, to be able to taste the full range of flavors. The bros got it. My Americano was nice.

On Saturday, we drove to Bountiful to see the sidewalk chalk art show/fundraiser with 200+ entries. And to let Teddy play in the water stream, a cute area in the downtown park. He had a big time. Spaulding has the jeep running, so he and I drove in it. I didn’t ask how the brakes were until we’d made it down the mountain. Serviceable I believe was the answer. On the way back, Grant and I traded places; I rode with Molly, her sister Hailey who is being nanny this summer, and Teddy. A car seat takes up a lot of room in the Ford Escape, but there was AC.

The rest of the time we sat around the house. Too hot during the day for any outside activities. I practiced taking pictures through the scope with my phone. Spaulding worked on his beehive, trying to find the elusive queen. He brought in a frame and scraped off a quart of honey and comb for us to take home. Since I’d brought my scope in my carryon, Grant had to put the honey, double plastic bagged in his suitcase. Crossed our fingers.

One evening, we ate dinner at Salt and Olive in Salt Lake City. Delicious. Teddy had fun munching on whatever he was given. Not particularly successful, but he seemed to enjoy it. 

I’d made reservations for a flamulated owl tour for Monday night with Tim of Pita Tours. Unbelievable, it was cloudy and rainy. We hadn’t even brought rain jackets on the trip. By the time the other 3 attendees arrived and we’d gotten settled in Tim's van, the rain had stopped. At Bridal Falls in Provo Canyon, we saw black headed towhees, yellow warblers, lazuli buntings, etc. The low clouds kept the black swifts from coming back to roost, one of the few places they do. Another place is Burney Falls in Northern California, so the couple from California made plans to see them there. We had been to Burney in 1999, after we participated in a US National Forest event at Larsen. Seeing others kids playing in the water, my kids wanted to too. Those little Floridians ran into that snowmelt water and ran right back out. We didn’t know about swifts, so didn’t look. 

Once the sun went down, we drove up Sundance Canyon to look for owls. Extra treat: a moose and her calf in a roadside pond. Flamulated owls are small and quiet, but our guide was an expert who’d studied them for years. He knew where they hang out and how to call them in. Like so many owls, they suffer from habitat loss, which is likely to accelerate once their canyon is sold, and developers move in. One dutifully answered Tim’s call and posed perfectly for pictures. I asked the fifth member of our party to share her pictures, which she kindly did. She is a writer of werewolf novels, so I encouraged Grant to read one. Not my genre.

The next morning, we flew to San Diego, upgraded to first class. Nice.