Interesting stops on the way to and from the Grand Canyon

The bus stopped for a bathroom break (and shopping break) at the Castle Rock Bar and Grill.  A common place for busses to stop for bathroom breaks, the bathrooms had been partitioned off so that the only way that you could get to them was to go through the store. You can't blame them.  If they are going to provide bathroom in the dessert for tourists, they should make a little money off of us.


Castle Rock Bar and Grill

The rock formation that overlooks the bar and grill looks like a distant castle; therefore the name Castle Rock.  HEY! Another person like me that looks at the rocks and sees other things.


Castle Rock

There was another formation that was just a few miles away from Castle Rock.  I loved the character of this formation.  A combination between the color and the varied height of the rocks. The road trip was long and there was a lot of beautiful views along the way.  But it is so difficult to get good photos through bus windows.


Rock formations near Castle Rock

Most geodes have interiors made of either quartz or calcite. Quartz crystals are silicates. Silicates are the most common mineral in the crust of the earth. Over 90% of the minerals present in earth’s crust are silicates. http://www.rocksandminerals4u.com/geodes.html



Geodes

This store was the store that had the beautiful South West and Native American Style Jewelry.  I couldn't remember the name of the store, so I looked at my credit card receipt and looked it up online.  It was the Cevron Gas Station at Williams, Arizona.