Day 8 - It ain't over 'til it's over

On this, our last day, we expected a quick, straight shot into Las Vegas from St. George. But first we backtracked a few miles to Washington to visit Zion H-D for the requisite tee-shirts where we encountered a group of 20 or so riders from Japan, complete with an accompanying photographer. We would cross paths with them a couple more times on the way to Las Vegas and even had our pictures taken on the road, to end up in someone's electronic scrapbook or, more likely, in the bit bucket.

Back in St. George we picked up the ladies, checked out of our hotel, and hit the road on Hwy 15. Then we rode into the Virgin River Canyon. After all the riding we'd done over the past 7 days I think this was the best canyon riding of them all - 30 or so miles of high-speed curves, high canyon walls, and (again!) spectacular views. This bit of road by itself is worth a day trip from Las Vegas in my opinion.

By the time we exited the canyon the temperature was 100 degrees and there we encountered the long straight shot into Las Vegas. It was a very HOT ride and in less than an hour the initial symptoms of dehydration could be felt. But we were then in the outskirts of town and so pressed on to Eagle Rider to return the bikes before heading over to the strip to check in at MGM, which was to be home for the next 3 days.

And, sadly, that's then end of the adventure. We had a great time, riding good roads with great travel companions, seeing amazing sights and vistas long dreamed of, and taking hundreds of photos and hours of video which now have to all be viewed, culled, and edited.

Now it's time to start planning the next trip. Europe, perhaps.