Home Sweet Home

We are home.

Home Again, Home Again

Last post for this trip, now known as Our Trip of Discovery. We are leaving the North Karick Lake campground, well as soon as Bruce investigates the big extension cord someone threw in the dumpster. About 300 miles left, back to today's forecast temperature of 93° that feels like 101°. Sweat City, here we come. Boy will this this take some getting used to. At least lizard skin is gone.

Cat's on the center console, Hazel is on her perch in back, looking out the window, we are the proud new owners of 100' of extension cord needing at least one new end, truck is full and all that is left is to pick up something quick for us. McD's here we come. I have to admit I am really looking forward to getting home to The Pig's breakfasts and my favorite wait staff. I have missed their cheery attitudes the last few months.

Trip has been very sucessful, just not as originally planned. Even with all the perceived issues, we can both say we enjoyed it. There were less than stellar moments, but on the whole we had a good time. In fact, we are already talking about another trip, maybe late summer, early fall to the NE, in The Beast and pulling the HHR for running around. Guess we will see.

We already have plans to go south for Thanksgiving staying at least until Christmas, first at Rainbow Springs and then on to Curry Hammock at Marathon Key. This is becoming an annual trip it seems, to enjoy sun, water, oysters and alcohol in December in the Keys. It's a hard life, but we continue to step up.

What's left? Clean up and no one wants to hear about that so until next time, later...

Why did the Turtle cross the Road?

I sure couldn't tell you why, grass looks the same on both sides to me. We must have avoided driving over an easy dozen turtles yesterday, all trying to cross busy roads to somewhere else. Who knows what natural instict drives them but if they keep trying to play chicken with the 4 wheel monsters, their whole race will be extinct in a decade.

We are currently near Minden, LA at Beaver Dam campground in the Kisatchie National Forest. Nice and quiet, it is part of the Caney Lake Recreation Area. Wonderful level private sites, most with a view of Upper Caney Lake. We have enjoyed the sunshiny day with minimal breeze (not wind, just a breeze). Even got to use our awning, probably only second or third time this trip.

We are planning to be back in Jacksonville by Wednesday afternoon so are enjoying some down time doing nothing for next day or so. Just wanted to do a quick update. Will add final post Wednesday. Even with us not going to Alaska we have driven just short of 7000 mi to date. Not bad - and Bruce is still in one piece. Later...

Blowing in the Wind

That certainly has a whole new meaning for us, especially since this week we have gone through several Oklahoma style severe thunderstorms - in a 27' camper.i can assure you there is not a great deal of comfort being in a trailer when the winds (gusts or not) are 50-70mph and the whole trailer is continually shaking and swaying. That was Monday night at Supply Lake. I laid awake all night (as if there was anything I could do) imagining the worst of course and frightened of it too. Bruce, on the other hand, snored through most of it, waking periodically to ask if the front had passed, safe in the knowledge that if anything important happened I would let him know. Hazel, on the other hand, stayed awake with me, though she showed much more visible signs of the stress. When we left the next morning, there were several trees down in just our little area. I was thankful nothing fell on us. Note to self, make sure no dead or dying trees are around our camp site when we pull in or find a different site.

The drive Tuesday was not too bad, until we reached El Reno west of Oklahoma City and started to see first hand some of the recent tornado devestation. What was left of buildings had been scattered like pick up sticks by a child throwing a tantrum, mangled metal roofing was still on some businesses but additional pieces that had been shredded and tossed haphazardly were visible in many road side farm fields, mixed in with the crops and other detritus. Then we turned south down I-35 and through the west edge of Moore. The little we saw brought tears to my eyes. Even Bruce commented that the tornado did damage different than he expected, everything broken into bits and tossed around. It was like seeing the aftermath of Mt. St. Helen, everything completely smashed, pushed over flat like matchsticks, complete devestation of buildings in swaths. Give me a hurricane any day.

We are currently camped at  Buckhorn Area campground (again) in the Chickasaw National Recreation Area near Sulphur, OK.  We got here early Tuesday, set up, my sister Terrie came down for an overnight visit and we avoided bad weather until early the next morning when the edge of a storm north of us brushed by. That has not been the case the last two nights. We have had severe thunderstorms with terrible thunder and lightening . Being surrounded by forest seems to dampen the wind sounds but doesn't make me feel any safer. I still lie awake with Hazel seeing the flashes, hearing the rumbles and waiting on the tornado I hope never comes, all while Bruce still sleeps. Today one of the locals said not to worry here that since tornadoes bounce off the hills but travel through flatlands, we were ok since we were in the Arbuckles. The host said you just get used to it.  Right, that will certainly help my sleeplessness and ease my tornado anxiety. The forecast does say tonight should be better as should the rest of the weekend, but of course it won't help us as we are leaving tomorrow. Isn't that always the case?  We are heading towards home, and they are getting the first tropical storm in the first week of this year's hurricane season. We must be snake bit.

Tomorrow we are off to Minden, LA just outside of Shreveport. Think we may shorten our reservation there and leave Sunday rather than Tuesday, getting us home by Thursday at the latest. We still have a stop or two but I am ready to be home so I can lie awake in my own bed listening to the storms blowing in the wind.  Later...

Go East Young Man, Go East - oops that was West,

Anyway, we headed east Thursday, not west, on US 50 out of Pueblo through farm land, pasture and the occasional feed lot. Not familiar with feed lots? That is where the cows are sent from farms and pastures to fatten them up for market. Thousands of head crammed in pens just being fed and fattened. Seeing the process always puts me off beef for awhile. Think about that expensive pasture fed beef you buy that was "finished"mI with corn, in many cases this is how that happens. Guess this is why most of those operations are out of sight on backroads. The visual does not conjure humane to me so no pics.

In Lamar we turned south and drove one of the most boring and desolate roads through SE CO to OK.  Acres and acres of nothing, including the Comanche National Grasslands.  We were such a benevolent nation to give them such a wonderfully verdant area of the country. Yes, I am being sarcastic, this land was exactly what you have seen in movies as Indian country, high plains and desert.

Of course we were driving uphill and against the wind so our mpg took a hit (OK, it has never been great but a head wind and big climb don't help.). Turning east at Boise City helped since just west of there is Oklahoma's highest point, Black Mesa at  4973', so east meant we were going downhill.  We dropped 2000' as we drove towards Ft. Supply. And, based on the ever present wind and spinning dervishes encountered, we learned first hand how easy it would be for this whole area to become a giant dust bowl again without irrigation.

We pulled in to Supply Lake after a long driving day. Cat ran into Tempy, ate and passed out on the couch. The next day he spent the whole time inside, sacked out in the AC, never once even asking to come out.  Guess 8 hrs is too much for him in the truck on bumpy (Did I say before OK has the worst roads?) roads and he needed recovery time. Those 8+ hours  very nearly did both of us in too so I guess it was understandable, although Bruce would not let me sleep all the next day recovering.  Seems a little unfair don't you think?

Setting up was a breeze, thank goodness.  We have gotten pretty good with Tempy unless there is alot of time required jockeying to get level.  Site this time only needed plywood on one side so we were finished in 15 min. That meant we could cook hotdogs, eat outside and still enjoy the sunset before hitting the hay. Yea!!

Yesterday was a late morning, a semi-OK Mexican food lunch, grocery shopping on a full stomach (thank goodness I had made a list) and then sitting in the breezy (right! in my view it was down right windy) late afternoon sun watching all the weekend campers show. I think I mentioned in my earlier Supply blog that this park caters to the oil field crowd. I have never been in any campground, let alone a COE campground, where the entrance gate hours are 1pm - 11pm, check-out is 4pm and check-in is 6pm. Talk about getting a late check-out time. And everyone here double tows, e.g. truck pulling camper pulling boat, motorhome pulling truck with 4Wheeler in back pulling a trailer with another 4Wheeler. Lots of boys with toys in this part of country. Quite an entertaining process watching them get all those toys set up. And... are you ready...we even braved the breeze (wind) and grilled steak, vegetables, potatoes in foil and garlic bread. Took both of us to keep things from blowing away, off the grill and the table, but we managed. Best meal we have had outside in awhile. Yeah, I know you are thinking it's probably the only one too, but it still counts.

Today we actually got to visit the historic Ft. Supply since it is only open Th - Sat.  We were the only ones there for 2 hours. We were initially followed in by the DOC van (Remember I had previously mentioned there was a prison on part of the grounds as well as a mental hospital? I am thinking they don't trust visitors.) Guess we were lucky the historical society man came out when we pulled up and parked or who knows, we might have been searched for drugs or contraband. Anyway, we had a wonderful history lesson, learned about the supplies here, the troops stationed, visited the one real building that has been saved with original furniture, visited the stockade that had been reconstructed using the original plans with wood from same location as original and more.  The docent, if you could call him that, was a retired correctional officer from that prison facility as well as a history professor at the local college and the president of the historical society here so we really enjoyed his stories. All in all a good morning.

Now I am getting ready to go back outside and doze in the sun, cooled by that ever present breeze (wind I tell you, wind!) Later...

Liar Liar Pants on Fire...

Left Grand Junction Tuesday morning and headed east on I-70 as originally planned. Problem is we threw that plan away, concerned with all the weather unrest in mid-country. So, after about 7 mi we  jumped off on US 50 that connects the western range of Colorado with the Arkansas Valley and the Front Range, but is a more southern route than I-70. So we drove kinda south and then east through the wonderful Rockies, over Monarch Pass at 11312' and ended up in Pueblo, Co. We stayed at Pueblo Lake State Park last night and again tonight, making our revised (again) plans. You have to have plans so you have something to change - at least that's our motto.

From here it will be east to Lamar, Co and south back to Fort Supply, OK tomorrow. Then on to Sulphur, OK again, and then pretty much on to I-20 and a straight shot towards Jackson where we will probably angle down towards I-10.  We have decided to just get home so we can move on with other plans, thus the interstate driving.  All this screwy weather has made me wonder what our hurricane season will be and whether we should be home for it anyway.

Today we drove all around Lake Pueblo State Park.  The main feature is the Pueblo Dam built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation as part of a massive water diversion program called the Frying Pan/Arkansas Project, or Fry-Ark. (Don't you just love acronyms? This one makes  me think of cooking.) This project diverts water from high on the western slopes of the Rockies, under the continental divide to the Arkansas River Basin through 9 tunnels that total over 26 miles to supplement the water poor eastern side of the state. It involves 5 dams, including Pueblo Dam and its terminal reservoir. Water from Pueblo Dam Reservoir continues to feed the Arkansas River that flows downstream to Kansas, the Colorado Fish Hatchery located at the park and at least two aquaduct type ditches that serve multiple municipalities on the eastern side.

The Colorado Parks & Wildlife has leased 5912 acres of land and the 4611 surface acres of water around the dam from the Bureau of Reclamation since 1975 that, along with the adjacent lands owned by them , make up the 12885 acre Pueblo Lake State Park.

Within the park there are 2 marinas, several large boat ramps, 4 campgrounds, group facilities, multiple picnic areas with individual shelters (we are  pretty much in the desert here) and a swim beach that is like a giant swimming hole. (It must be very popular as there were multiple parking lots surrounding it.) There is a paved trail, the Pueblo Reservoir Trail, that connects everthing, as well as the paved Pueblo River Trail that connects the park to the city.

We are camped at Arkansas Point campground, right by the south Marina, and the road to the boat ramp was getting high use, even in the middle of the week. The idea of boats in the high desert have always made me smile, but based on the number we have seen in and out here, there are plenty around. Lots to do here and at only 4600' or so, I would guess we will be back.

Just had a very windy front pass over. Winds were rocking the camper and that always gives me concern, but it is gone now and all seems still outside.  We are supposed to wake to 48° in the morning, but this area will warm quickly. Enough for tonight. Later...

Decision Made - Homeward Bound, Slowly

We have finally made our Alaska vs no Alaska decision and will move SE from here on a slow route back to Crestview, FL and then on to Jacksonville.  Apparently this just wasn't the right time or circumstances for a trip to the big A right now. We are both OK with the decision, in fact Bruce is already planning what project to tackle first when we get home, AFTER we unload this whole traveling ensemble.

We will be leaving Grand Junction early tomorrow morning. Last visits with family this afternoon as they will soon be off back to Breckenridge. Everyone enjoying the afternoon, Bruce & Larry communing over a beer in the garage, Janet taking a short nap after their(Janet & Larry) 35mi morning bike ride on the Monument Loop, Merrick visiting with a friend and I gave my poor, dry cracked feet a spa day and am wandering around in the red dirt in sock covered lotioned feet. Makes for an oriental picture opportunity.

Trip home begins with us driving EAST on I-70 to spend night tomorrow in Seibert, CO and then on to stay at a COE Park outside Junction City, KS. We intend to meander east by southeast over next 6 weeks staying in mostly new locations so will still be updating blog. Trip home will be more like we enjoy, leisurely stays in fewer locations.

This sojourn in Grand Junction, especially these last few days at my sister's, has been wonderful. We have eaten well, relaxed, played, toured the area, enjoyed the vistas from the monument and valued the time wth family. This trip has included probably my best visits with each of my sisters respectively. Well worth any route change!!

I leave you with one last picture from the Monument. Later...

Sittin in the Shade Wasting Time..

We moved Tempy this morning. Since we made spontaneous plans to get outta Dodge (Grand Canyon) we had no reservations for Memorial Day. Not good, especially in the camping west.  As a result the Fruita campground could only accomodate us until today. They were fully booked for this weekend so this morning we moved to Janet's place. Not our most level trailer set up, but it will do, and it is under the trees and free.  On a sunny CO weekend where it looks like temps could hit 90 and we are without our trusty AC, those trees (and the ever present breezes) will make all the difference. Oh yeah, and the bath house is great, we have free wi-fi and unlimited ice.  Who could ask for more - Thanks Janet :-)

So what have we been doing while de-altituding (that has to be a word , right?). We visited the Colorado National Monument earler this week. Bruce and I and Hazel were the lucky passengers on a narrated auto tour with Janet of the 23 mile Historic Rimrock Drive. Check out the webcam view from the Visitor's Center, talk about panoramic.  We stopped at all the appropriate photo op places, but unfortunately my new Nikon SLR camera battery was gone before we reached the top (guess moving 500+ pictures off the camera the previous night put a strain on it), so you will have to be satisfied with the paltry few I have included from my phone and the stellar ones here posted by NPS.The one I took of the switchback trail down the mountain is impressive in that 1. I actually got the picture, and 2.  Janet has hiked it, and probably run it, multiple times. Even more impressive, she rides the Rim Rock Drive all the time, up, across and back down, probably 33+miles from her house on a regular basis, on a bike, pedal not motorized either.  (I know, you are all wondering if we are truly related but I can assure you, she is my younger sister. Just look at her picture and tell me we don't look alike. Ok, Ok, look at her picture, add 100 pounds to her and then tell me we don't look alike.)  Since we had packed lunch, the picnic area just inside the east entrance at the bottom of the descent gave us a chance to relax (What? You think being a passenger isn't stressful?) and eat it while lounging in the sun. The drive (OK, ride then) was awesome, the tour guide very solicitous and as a result a wonderful time was had by all.  The view is so memorable that I think Bruce and I might just drive up to the Visitor's Center tonight and enjoy the almost last rays of the sun. At our age we certainly want to be back before dark as driving several miles of switch backs on skinny mountain roads in the dark where your eyes are pretty much night blind is dangerous for everyone.

So that was Tuesday. Whew!  What else you ask, besides of course relaxing in the breezy, pleasantly warm temperatures on Janet's front porch? (That is the perfect activity for me.) Well, this week Bruce  helped Janet trim overhanging trees and cut rampant growth (trees) from their irrigation ditch, I helped her get her wi-fi/internet/streaming movie Blu-Ray, etc. up and running (exhausting work but someone had to do it) and we have taken several opportunities to just ride through the general Fruita/Grand Junction area doing what we love best, sightseeing. We could easily relocate here, at least based on this week's visit.  Low humidity, relatively few aches & pains, beautiful scenery, balmy breezes (have I mentioned it has not stopped since we arrived and is pi,king up at this very minute, which, now that I think about it, might actually be a negative rather than a positive, especially in winter), plenty of sun (oh right, we already get that part) and closer proximity to family. Of course it would take more than a week here to get me to move, or would it?  I am sure we have done lots more but the front porch relaxing has caused everything else to slip my mind.

So it's another nice day today oexcept that bladted wind is kicking up again). Instead of sitting on Janet's front porch, I am sitting under the trees in front of Tempy on my makeshift front porch. (Camper rug and chairs) Bruce is in town trying to replace work boots that I am pretty glad he was wearing and pretty sure he cut while chainsawing ealier this week (remember the branches and trees?)  Janet returned to Breckenridge last night so we have the place to ourselves. Don't worfy, I have a kdy so bath house, wi-fi and ice still avsilable. Othetwise, g uess we will see what eateries are open in Fruita until she returns Sat night or Sun morning. What? I am supposedly on vacation. Life is soooo hard right now. Later....

Decicions, Decisions..

We are sitting outside the camper enjoying the "breezy" (25mph+} sw winds on a balmy 85°, 6% humidity afternoon. Tempy protects us from most of the wind, so it really does feel balmy in the shade. We are both very respectful of the sun here, because even at this lower altitude and with a dusty haze, you will burn in an instant. Been there, done that - not fun.

When I left you last, we had arrived here as if by magic. Not so of course. We left the Grand Canyon on the one road out, AZ 67. Reaching Jacob Lake we turned north on Alt US 89 to Kanab, UT, where we once again merged with US 89 out of Page.

Here you ascend the Grand Staircase via the Mount Carmel Scenic Byway, passing through the vermillion, white and ultimately pink cliffs. This road features a veritable tableaux of the area's geological development as well as providing access first to Zion National Park and then Bryce Canyon National Park. As we had been to both of these wonderful parks on previous trips, and because we had a destination in mind for that day, we bypassed them. Trying to take the "road less traveled" as well as stay at places we had never been, we decided to stop for a day or so at Otter Creek State Park in Utah before continuing on to Grand Junction, CO.  So we left US 89  at Kingston and turned east on UT 62, a delightful road through canyons and small farms that followed the east fork of the Sevier River. Reaching Otter Creek Resevoir, we discovered dispersed camping on its shores, down gravel and gullied roads. If that was the park, we determined it wasn't for us. If that wasn't the park, then we missed it completely. Either way we decided  it was still early and we could probably make Capital Reef National Park (my suggestion of course) and the first come, first serve park campground at Friuta. Now let's recap right here - it is Saturday, the weather is sunny and mild, spring has just really emerged in the west, we have no reservations, oh, and by the way, it seems there are lookers and campers appearing everywhere. Anyone want to guess where this is leading?

We were only 25 mi south of I-70 when I convinced Bruce it was only about 40 miles to Capital Reef, so following the instructions from his manual GPS (who is never, or at least rarely wrong), he turned east on the beautiful scenic byway (you do realize byway means you are in the middle of nowhere most of the time, a beautiful nowhere, but nowhere none the less) UT 24 towards Capital Reef National Park. The ride (my point of view since he refuses to let me drive) was spectaclar, green valleys, high mountains, even a quick wait while the cowboys and dogs drove a herd of cattle up the road in front of us to a different field, and then we began to approach Capital Reef. If you have ever been in that part of Utah you will know what I mean when I say it is amazing. My words and paltry pictures (as we drove right through because of course, the campground was full) can never do it justice. Here is a link to experience this area from NPS view

The first indication I had that we might be in trouble was seeing campers coming towards us in mid-afternoon on this byway. (Remember my definition - middle of nowhere). I just told myself they were on thier way to some place else - Otter Creek for instance.  As we got closer, we started to see campers in odd places, pulled off on side roads, up small trails, balanced precariously on large rocks, etc. Then we hit the park entrance and that stopped, so I felt all was still OK. But when we slowed to turn in the Visitor Center and saw the cluster there and the Campground Full sign, I could hear Bruce's silent fuming as though he was talking out loud, then again, maybe some of it was said out loud. Anyway, we drove on.

Unfortunately, we had driven this road years earler and unless something had changed materially, we knew there were little or no amenities between us and the edge of the world. We were not wrong. We finally hit Hanksville (did I say byway and no amenities before?) where 24 veers north towards I-70 and drove most of those remaining 44 miles without even cell service. We reached the interchange at I-70 and found nothing but access, so we went on to Green River. I had called the Green River State Park and they said they still had sites available so we headed there. But we weren't the only ones racing for some place open that night and apparently they beat us. We did the Park drive thru, looking for anything but it was not to be. Then we tried a private campground advertising outside the park, but it looked like an old KOA with permanent residents, broken down vehicles and not even working amenities. We couldn't even figure out who to pay. Moved on.  I tried the internet one more time and found another private campground just on the other side of the State Park's golf course.  Finally, a place to park. I didn't even object to the cost when we ended up with a full service site, including cable we couldn't even access. We were there and stopped.

We set up on a level,(yea!!!} mostly shady site, unhooked, (yeah, I know, you are wondering why for only one night), fed the children, started the AC and hit the local bar & grill (now you know why we unhooked.)  The food was great, homemade 1/2lb cheeseburgers and hand cut fries, along with beer for Bruce and wine for me. We were in Utah. Sign over the bar said that alcohol would only be served if you ordered a meal, so we ordered a meal.  Though it looked like a regular bar, they only had beer and wine. It was perfect.

Apparently we weren't the only travelers looking for a place along I-70 that night because several more had arrived by the time we returned to the campground. I was serenaded to sleep by a couple of fellows in the camper next to us singing and playing guitar and fiddle. It had been a really long day and the manual GPS went out for the night.

We woke, found breakfast, dieseled up and got on the road Sunday morning feeling much better. It was less than 2 hours to Fruita and Grand Junction so we had plenty of time to hassle the park rangers, find several sites, change arrangements, write blog catch up,  and still visit with my sister Janet. She and her husband and son live in Breckenridge but also have a small house on some land just in front of the Colorado National Monument in Grand Junction, thus our route change to here.

But what are the decisions I referenced in this blog's title - well, are we really ready to take Tempy and these 2 animals on this drive, drive, drive type trip to Alaska. When we left the Grand Canyon my answer was No, let's go home. Even after a couple of sanity restoring days at a much lesser breathable altitude and with markedly better weather my answer was still No. But today it is, we don't know.  This has definitely been a trip of Discovery. We have discovered we really don't want to take what amounts to a continual driving trip with the dog and cat. We are tied to them. Stopping to do a museum or tour along the way is nigh impossible if it is hot. That spontaneity I wanted is almost impossible with feedings, walking, etc.  We discovered we are already 3000 miles into the trip and aren't having the fun we imagined, as a result of routing, weather, Tempy, small bed and needy animals or other things yet unidentified, we just don't know. But has this still been a good trip - wholeheartedly Yes! We have learned so much about how we like to "camp" as opposed to traveling.  Thete is so much more, but you get the picture. Anyway, will we still go on to Alaska - today I can truthfully day We don't know and we don't have to decide untIl Tuesday, when we go East or West on I-70.  Later....

The Grand Canyon North Rim is ...Breathtaking - Literally

We arrived at the North Rim after a long drive on some pretty bumpy Arizona roads. (Imagine the mess in the camper when we stopped, things were everywhere.) Traveling north out of Flagstaff on US 89 towards Page, AZ will take you to both sides of the Canyon, but you turn west on AZ 64 to reach the South Rim East Entrance at Desert View.  If you continue north on US 89 through the edge of the Navajo Nation, along Echo Cliffs to Bitter Springs, AZ and there, instead of continuing to Page (which you can't right now anyway as a result of a landslide on 89), veer on to Alt US 89, drive almost up to the Utah line and cross the Colorado River at Navajo Bridge just south of Lee's Ferry in Marble Canyon, drive past the Vermillion Cliffs through House Rock Valley and ascend 2500 feet on winding roads to the Kaibab Plateau to Jacob Lake, you will intersect with AZ 67, the road to the North Rim.   Once you reach Jacob Lake, where we spent the night on the 14th, it is still 30 miles south on AZ 67 to the entrance gate on the north rim and then another 12 miles to the actual rim and any accommodations or other amenities.  That road was not opened officially until May 15th (so you can see why we spent the night in Jacob Lake), the same day as the opening of the North Rim. 

We stayed at Kaibab Camper Village (cute name huh) overnight because we wanted to get an early start on the 15th.  It is the only campground in the area with facilities (electricity, water & sewer if you so desire) and we wanted to fill our water tank and make sure our batteries were fully charged.  There are absolutely no hook-ups on the North Rim.  Kaibab Camper Village is located on AZ 67 right at Jacob Lake and a good thing too, since that seemingly short 42 miles still took us an hour and a half the next morning.  As I said, forget those fast driving speeds, even if you aren't a big ole' truck pulling a 5th wheel up and down the mountain roads, you will certainly end up behind one. LOL.  Altitude at the entrance gate - 8827', help, I can hardly breathe!!!  What were we thinking?  Once we arrived at the north rim campground and checked in, we set up on what was one of the most beautiful, but uneven sites we had camped on to date.  Admittedly, the park service does tell you to bring wood, etc. for leveling, and you had better take them seriously. We, of course, always have wood, and this trip we also had 2 sets of those lovely plastic leveling blocks and ended up  using almost all of our supplies. Altitude at the campground - about 8300'. Not breathing much better here either, but the view of the Canyon from our site was pretty awesome.

Temperatures weren't too bad on the 15th when we first arrived, but the wind was wicked by early afternoon and the temperature dropped 20 degrees every time a cloud covered the sun. We drove (yes you heard me, drove) the 3 miles to the Lodge that afternoon, walked around to see what was there, made reservations for dinner the next night, came back to the camper and I took a nap - must have been the lack of oxygen.  Dinner was whatever we had in the camper - wind precluded using the little gas grill, even with Bruce's home made wind shield.  Then it was an early night - you can bet there was absolutely no TV reception, although I did have 3G cell reception at our rim campsite on and off.  Sleeping that night wasn't any better and it had nothing to do with the earlier nap.  In fact, sleeping didn't really happen the whole time we were up that high. Obviously one of the downsides of this adventure.

Next day we got up early and went on a wonderful winding  scenic drive to Cape Royal and Point Imperial (the highest point on the North Rim at 8803'.)  Point Imperial overlooks the Painted Desert and the eastern end of the Grand Canyon. Cape Royal is at is at the other end of the drive and gives you unlimited vistas to the east and west.  There were numerous stops in between and we actually took several short walks on the trails at that altitude.  It was warm and we were there before most of the other park visitors were out for their outings (except for all those really fit people who were hiking the Kaibab Trail).  The morning trip took several hours and the wind cooperated for most of the drive. 

But what do I want to say about this time seeing the majesty of this Canyon.  I want to say get out there and see it while you can and not just this Park.  The pictures show you how much pollution is in the air, so everything is covered in a haze, unless you are right on top of it.  vistas are not clear.  This pollution isn't all man made either.  The west has been in a drought position for awhile and the dust in the air gets worse.  Add to that the inversion layers created by exhausts and other contaminates and the air is getting less and less clear.  If you haven;t seen any of the majestic parks, mountains, rivers, canyons, etc. of our country and want to - then make the time.  Get on a plane, fly some where you want to go or take a road trip, rent an RV, get a tent, sleep in your car, get cheap hotels, eat out of coolers, etc. - just do it.  Stop waiting because in the years Bruce and I have been doing this, the views have become more and more diffused.   May people I have spoken to say- Boy,  I want to do that some time, and then they don't.  Bruce and i have met so many young people who have just said- I am going to do a road trip, and they are doing it.  They are not living the high end life, but they are enjoying what they are doing.  They are on motorcycles & in jeeps, sleeping in tents, packing coolers, hiking and driving.  They have babies and small children and pets with them.  They take kids out of school and take them outside.  If you are close, take a long weekend, if you are far away, take a long week with a Friday and second Monday.  Maybe you can;t take the time to drive to the Grand Canyon, but I bet there is some place that is a stretch you can reach.  Don't wait.  Make it part of getting to old age, not something you do when you get there because too many people never get to that part.  It will be much more enjoyable to do while you are young and you will impart a sense of adventure and a love of nature and the outdoors if you do these things with your children when you are both young.  Make memories while you can.

OK - Back to our regularly schedule program.

Thursday, after the drive and we returned to our site we actually got out the grill and our chairs, fixed some lunch, sat in the sun and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon. Although there were clouds and some wind, Mother Nature seemed much more willing to cooperate.  Dinner that evening was something different though.  Usually we find that lodges such as the North Rim are great places to experience a good dinner in the full ambiance of the location.  Unfortunately, when the North Rim opened on the 15th, the campground was booked full, the tour buses began arriving and I don't think the Lodge was up to speed.  Dinner Thursday night did not go as expected.  We were sat timely, and the server did what she could to make sure we had bread (great loaf baked fresh with garlic and served with a wonderful spicy balsamic olive oil for dipping ) and our Cesare Salad was served timely, but an hour later we were still waiting for our dinner.  When it finally arrived, it was overcooked (if it is any more than medium it is overcooked in my opinion) oh, and it was burned.  We had them just send both meals back, since by then we were stuffed from the bread, water and salad.  Once thing I can say for 8300', my appetite is diminished and I am easily satiated. Would yes - say we really get healthy and can breathe at that altitude, can actually take some of the better scenic hikes, etc. ;-) and return - but we would never try to do it on opening day or even opening week.  El Tovar, on the South Rim, is open all year, so they never experience the opening day issues, all new staff, seasonal problems to the degree we found here and of course, we held them up for comparison.  And even though everything I read up to the day of our visit said the concessionaire would have the whole lodge up and running by on the 15th, they didn't quite make it. By the time we got back to the camper, it had turned cold, we were less than happy and of course, the winds had started up again big time. Oh, and by the way- I still couldn't sleep, so of course Bruce couldn't either.

Friday dawned cold as the dickens (30s that morning) completely overcast and the winds blowing at a sustained 30mph.  We had listened to them howl through the canyon all night, so were not surprised when again, there was going to be no cooking outside and probably little, if any walking for us.  We are such wimps, I know.  So what do wimps from Florida do who can't breathe comfortably (that means short, gasping breaths), really don't want to put on winter coats and cinch the hat around their ears to even leave the camper do? They find some place warm. And where might that be? If you have ever been to one of the more remote National Parks, you might know the answer to this question - no?  Well in the showers and the laundry of course.  So Friday became was shower/laundry day with a sandwich from the deli for lunch while we waited for the dryers to finish.  After that, it was back to the camper, turn on the wonderful catalytic gas heater Bruce had installed (remember, we didn't have electricity and camper heaters take electricity for the fans to work and generator times wer 7-9 am and 6-8 pm only in the park) and read.  Even the cat stayed in front of the heater. We had already visited the registration kiosk during laundry time to tell them we were checking out a day early (way too high and cold for us, remember and that meant we were not having fun, no matter the wonderful view.) So finished our last full day getting ready to leave, again. Bruce did have to go out to put the grill away and the chairs we had used once, oh and walk the dog, but even the cat and dog seemed miserable at that altitude.  Wolfy could hardly move around, was not even jumping up for dinner and Hazel was definitely off her feed.  She didn't even want to walk around the campground and hurried right back to he heater as soon as she could get around the circle. I know the two of them were agreeing on what a good idea we had to leave a day early.  Next morning we were up early, gave the Lodge a chance to redeem itself for breakfast (you don't really think I was going to cook and then clean up to leave do you?). Breakfast was fine, they were doing both a nice buffet with eggs to order as well as serving off a menu, so we were happy. We were out of the site by 8AM and off for another adventure.  I will leave the telling of that for tomorrow.

Where are we - We are currently in Grand junction, CO visiting with my sister until after Memorial Day.  We are at a much lower altitude (4600') where we can make some sensible decisions about going forward while we are not under the terrible influence of too much altitude, too little oxygen, too little sleep and just general orneriness.  I am sitting at her dining room table using her internet connection after eating a nice grilled ham, assiago cheese and tomato sandwich and drinking a lovely glass of white wine. Bruce is now outside with Janet cutting up trees (men and chain saws - what can say) and creating a place to move the camper to her house for the weekend.  With this type of connectivity, and service, the next chapter should actually come much faster.  Suffice it to say though, the Grand Canyon North Rim took our breath away. Later.....

Homolovi Ruins

Every time I said Homolovi while we were planning our trip, my pronunciation was short O, long O, short O, short I (e). I would imagine we were in the movie The Mummy and would be in Egypt. Wrong place , the correct Hopi pdonunciation is Hoe Mole' ve, with emphasis on second syllable. Much more Native American.

The ruins are exatly that -ruins. They have excatated 4 different sites, I-IV, but only I & II are open to the public, and only II, has much to see. They are on State Trust Land, and were pretty much decimated by people looking for artifacts before the Park system got involved or there was any offical archeology performed. The ruins at II include a stabilized 5 room dwelling, a kiva and what would have been an underground common room. The rest of what would have been an 1100 room community that may have housed about 1200 people lies in rubble clustered around circular "artifact search" holes.  Some of the pieces of pottery recovered by the archeologists is on display in the park's visitor center.II is ADA accessible by a 1/2 mile paved trail (walk one of the day)  

The ruins at I afe barely visible and ne,t to the Little Colorado River. Interesting fact, even when that river bed seems dry, there is water 3 feet down. One of the reasons the ancestral Hopi people probably came down from Second Mesa to this area, both to live for generations amd then once they left, to return periodically.

We are on our way nofth from Flagstaff snd I want to post while I can so will stip now. May be awhile before I can post agian since have no idea of.connectivity in Grand Canyon.  Later..

Standin' on a Corner...

In Winslow Arizona, such a fine sight to see... part of the classic and still popular lyrics of the early 70's #1 song by The Eagles, Take It Easy. Surprisingly, the lyrics were not written by any of the band, but by Jackson Browne, a good friend of Glen Frey, who wrote the music. Apparently the line about Winslow is a true incident that happened to Browne a few years prior and he memorialized in the song. It has also been memoralized in Winslow on historic Route 66 in Standin' on the Corner Park.  Featured are a life-sized sculpted  bronze balladeer with a guitar, AKA Easy, created by Ron Adamson, a real flatbed ford, and a trompe l'oeil style mural by John Pugh painted on the brick wall behind Easy of store windows reflecting "Its a girl my lord in a flat bed Ford, Slowing down to take a look at me."  Fun, fun, fun...even took a campy picture to prove I was, wait, wait...it's coming... Standin' on a Corner in Winslow Arizona.

The other two places we visited (besides the Walmart of course) were the Hubbell Trading Post, now the Winslow Visitor's Center, and La Posada Hotel. Well you ask, what is so great about those two places.

The Visitor's Center is in what used to be one of John Hubbell's Trading Posts on Route 66. It has all the original floors, the tin roof, the old wooden elevator and two safes - one for pawn items and one for money.  John Lorenzo Hubbell was one of the most respected and well known Navajo traders of his day. He was considered a true friend by the Navajo because of his honesty in business dealings and his wise counsel to them. He acted as both their merchant and their liaison to the rest of the world. The original Hubbell Trading Post located in the Navajo Nation near Ganado, AZ still operates and is now a National Historic Site.

La Posada Hotel is the last and most elegant of the Fred Harvey Hotels built by the Santa Fe Railroad. It was designed by Mary Colter, the same Mary Colter of Grand Canyon fame, when she worked for Fred Harvey. Fred Harvey hired her as chief designer and architect for his company in 1910. That was an amazing accomplishment since women couldn't even vote for President until 1920.  For La Posada, she designed the buildings, decorated the interiors, planned the gardens and oversaw construction.

Fred Harvey brought civilization to the west via the Santa Fe Railway. He developed and ran all their hotels and restaurants. He introduced linens, silverware, china, crystal and impeccable service to railroad travel. He is very famous for his Harvey Girls.

La Posada was the last great railroad hotel. It opened in 1930 and was rumored to have cost $2 million (about $40 million in today's $.)  All the passenger trains from LA to Chicago stopped there and everybody who was anybody stayed there. Until about 1950, Winslow was the big town, even Charles Lindberg designed their airport. But then rail travel dropped off, people were in too much of a hurry for that type of travel. It became planes and automobiles. For a while La Posada was the finest hotel on Route 66.  By 1957 though, Route 66 had been bypassed and shut down and La Posada was closed and nearly torn down. But it wasn't. For a time in the 60s it was gutted and made into offices by the Santa Fe Railroad. Then they abandonded it. In 1997 it was purchased by 4 people, using grant money and private investments. They have been restoring it little by little and there is a treasure trove of history available in the rooms open to the public. It is again open as a hotel and is on the National Register of Historic Places. It still fronts the railroad and you can still sit in the shade and watch the trains.

More tomorrow on our early morning at Homolovi Ruins.  Later....

I did it, well almost.....

We were up early and at KKTR by 7:44 this morning, ready to hike through the canyon and climb to the mesa (yeah right.)  We were the first people at the Monument this morning and had the rocks all too ourselves. We walked the 1/2 mi to the Canyon cut off and decided to give it a try. Unfortunately, sun had not reached the canyon while we were there so pics are not as colorful as they could be, but I did get some.

With Bruce's help I was able to ,climb over the rocks in the trail and get through most of the canyon.  We stopped short of the last climb to the top with probably 100 vertical feet to go, but I will make it next time. The picture of me without a face is a Bruce normal, but it is truly me coming under the rock. So our first walk of the morning was about 2 mi round trip with an elevation change of about 500' up and of course back down. We then drove back to the Veteran's Memorial Overlook at 6500' and walked the mile trail around the mesa. After 3 ibuprofen and a snack of jerky and pistachios I felt good enough to come back to Tempy and sit in the sun and nap for awhile.  Boy, talk about a rough day.

We leave tomorrow for Homolovi Ruins State Park right above Winslow, AZ.  Plan to spend Monday in the park, seeing the ruins. Then Tuesday it is on to Jacob Lake and Wednesday the North Rim. We are getting everything put away now so we can leave right after Bruce's Huevos Rancheros breakfast tomorrow.  We want to get thete early since once we set up camp at Homolovi, it will be back to Winslow for groceries.  Don't think we will be running out to the convenience store once we reach the Grand Canyon.  So I will make this short and leave you with this last fact.

The waters of the Rio Grande River flow through Cochiti Dam without any slowing of the speed they  normally flow or any reduction in water volume unless there is the potential of flooding.

Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument

Kasha-Katuwe means "white cliffs" in the Pueblo language Keresan. Yesterday we visited the KKTR National Monument early in the day. The Monument lies on the southeastern edge of the Jemez volcanic field, a volcanic system that has been active for the past 15 million years. As a result of that activity over the years, the ash and sediment have fallen in layers so bands of grey/white are interspersed with pink and beige rock. Makes for a beautiful view of the weathered cliff sides. Add wind and water action and canyons and arroyos (deep gullys/dry stream beds) have been created, holes have been scooped into the soft rock and the ends of small, inward ravines polished into smooth semi-circles. This area is very much like the Moab area in Utah.

We walked the 1.2 mi cave loop trail around the base of the monument. It is labeled easy, but to me even that is questionable. The trail is sand, up and down hills starting at 5700' elevation to about 5900'. For a girl from 0' elevation, catching my breath was the worst part. When we reached the cut-off to the Slot Canyon Trail (1/2 mi into walk) I didn't even want to go the additional 300' to its start/rest area because I would have to come back and still do the other .7mi of the cave loop. What a wimp. One of the interesting things to see on the "easy loop" is a cave sitting above our reach that was used by ancestral Indians. Apparently they preferred their housing high to avoid animals, inclement weather, floods,, etc. There are obvious  smoke discolorations on the roof,{soot) indicating use for prolonged periods.  The real gems of the walk are the "tent" rocks, spires of soft pumice and tuff created by the volcanic activity, often topped with a mushroom hat. Where the hats are missing, the spires have begun to deteriorate.

Slot Canyon Trail is 1mi one way, up a 630' climb to the top of mesa. I am sure it is beautiful, but I sure wasn't ready for that activity yesterday. Instead, once we returned to the truck, we drove the additional 3.5 mi on the winding, gravel, uphill road to the end of the monument and Veteran's Memorial Scenic Overlook - which was definitely worth the bumpy road.

This small monument is a great place to visit and walk. As Bruce said, it is good for me to get out and get more fit. So, we are going back tomorrow morning, early since Saturday will be 71° and likely very busy at the monument as the day warms. I may not climb to the mesa, but I am definitely going to walk the slot canyon part. Hope to have some pics to share later.

Today we never made it to Bandelier, instead had a wonderful breakfast at the Stone Kiva Bar & Grill at the 18 hole golf course owned by the Pueblo de Cochiti. Huevos rancheros with pintos, hash browns, eggs om over flour tortillas and covered in cheese and some of the best homemade green chili we have ever eaten. Bruce could not get the recipe or even get them to sell him some. Seems we may need to visit again Sunday before we leave so he can try again.  We picked Hazel up from the camper and drove to the other side of Cochiti (emphasis on CO) Lake to visit the Tetilla Peak Campground. It is  quiter, older and only 30amp service but the view across to our side includes the rock ridge that surrounds the lake. All of this property is part of the Pueblo de Cochiti, with the COE taking care of the dam and recreational areas in trust for the Cochiti. We will be back to stay in this area again and probably at this camground.

Laundry called this afternoon and then because the park will be full this weekend, I decided on an early, leisurely shower while the bath house was empty and there was still plenty of hot water. Bruce may regret waiting, although he has already complained to me that he thinks they give the female side of the bath house preferential treatment and most of the hot water so it won't matter.

Enough of my ramblings for today. Later....