We'd been eagerly awaiting their arrival as they hadn't met Matthew yet.
If the first 11 weeks of leave were spent never leaving the house...
We packed a ton into the last week of leave while they were here.
One day was spent rafting in Black Canyon at the base of the Hoover Dam.
First, I'll admit... I didn't even know this was there.
I've been in Vegas for 14 years in August and I've driven over the dam countless times and never had any clue that you could get down to the river or take a rafting trip down there.
The company was called Black Canyon River Adventures.
It was a ridiculously hot day to start. Temps were around 114.
We were shuttled down a private road and we got views of the Hoover Dam that I'd never seen.
It's a completely different experience to see the dam from the bottom.
I guess being on the top of it doesn't exactly allow you to realize how gigantic it really is.
The bypass bridge that's been under construction for what seems like ever, is nearly complete. I'm pretty sure it's expected to open in November. I'll tell you. It's a beautiful bridge. I grew up on an island so I've spent a lot of time crossing bridges and this bridge is quite the architectural feat.
We really didn't know what to expect of the "rafts". I can tell you that I bitched all the way down to the river because we were lolly-gagging and taking pictures like we were tourists. I was sure that we were going to get the worst spot on the boat as the last ones on.
Turns out that it pays to be the last ones on the boat. We wound up at the front of the boat with incredible views and plenty of water splashing over the front to keep us cool.
I was really surprised at the beauty we saw down here. The canyon is a stunning, deep brown and the water is crystal clear. Strangely enough, even at 114 degrees outside, the water was 58 degrees. We stopped twice for lunch and some exploring and it was tough to get in the water, it was so cold.
Our guide Brian, who was incredibly knowledgeable and extremely funny, let Michael drive the boat. Michael was so proud of himself and took his job very seriously. Hilariously, he even told Kevin to sit down when Kev tried to take some video of his captaining skills.
We saw mountain goats.
And all and all had a fantastic time.
