Day 11, the layover day

Coffee call was set back to 5:45, and breakfast to 6:15, or so I was told the night before.  I got up at 7, and there was still plenty of both.  Today was a kick back day, not that there wasn't activities.  A day hike up Tuck Up Canyon is on the agenda.  Eat breakfast, pack a sack lunch, 3 quarts of water, and let's explore.  Unlike the multi-hour hike to Whispering Springs, Tuck Up Canyon is relatively dry, so this was a dry shoe hike.  Much more to my liking. The first hurdle was scaling about 25 feet of a boulder pile.  Susan opted out of this hike, as her hurt rib prevented her from making the maneuvers necessary to get over the boulder pile.  

The bridge was likely formed by a natural debris dam that was eventually eaten though by water.  The cement is just dust and sand from the canyon holding rocks in place.  That same dust that gets everywhere, when mixed with water and allowed to dry, makes a very hard cement.

We spied a rock that contained an obvious sea shell fossil, pretty cool!

I guess everyone else got up early today, and needed a nap.  The view from atop the bridge allowed the perspective for the next few pictures.

Michael, Katie, and Chris still had the energy to play cards under the bridge.

A rare group picture in the COVID era, our talented guides and their assistants.

After a restful time in the canyon, we returned to camp in the early afternoon.  Pepper was unable to go due to nagging back problems, but his time in camp was well spent.  

Later in the afternoon we Stefanie, and I taught Pepper cribbage.  Then after dinner, was the epic Bocce Ball game.  It started with Pepper and I, game to 11.  Pepper was up 4-3 when we invited Michael to join in.  By the time Michael found the Bocce Balls and returned it Pepper was up 8-3-0.  Seemed like the game was almost over.  But, before we knew it (or awhile later in the dark) the score was tied at 9-9-9.  Pepper got back on track and closed us out with the last two points.  Another fun end to a fun day in the canyon.
Link to Day 12