Up the Crooked Road

As we pulled out of the campground between Sedona and Flagstaff Arizona, we might have gotten a slight twitch out of the camp host, but he certainly wasn’t going to smile! Oh well, we had a very nice stay in his park.

We immediately started to climb, and the Garmin showed the switchbacks that were ahead. We climbed quite a bit, and it was a very steep long way down looking out the passenger side!

It was a short easy drive to our first stop, Walnut Canyon National Monument, but we arrived about 45 minutes before the gates opened. Arizona isn’t on Daylight Savings Time unless you are on Navajo reservation, and they go on DST. Kind of confusing. Anyway, we just drove back a little way to a picnic area and fixed our breakfast. After cleaning up the breakfast mess, we went on to the VC. We got our stamps and listened to the ranger telling about the trail to the ruins. After we heard 240 steps at 7000 elevation, that was enough to direct us only to the viewpoint! I don’t think they said anything about the length of trail between the steps, but you could see quite a trail system. The viewpoint gave us a good view of the ruins. One of the maintenance men said he goes down at least once a day, and tries for twice. Of course he was quite a bit younger! There were warning signs all over the place!

Next up was Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument just north of Flagstaff. It kind of reminded us of Craters of the Moon in Idaho. There were cinder cones all over, and the cinder covered hills were quite extensive. Of course we got our stamps at the VC and watched part of the video, then took off on the drive through the park. It blended right into the next one, Wupatki National Monument.which is home to a number of different ruins. The first one we came to was open to walking around in, so we explored it, then went to the VC and again got our stamps and watched part of the video. The video was just shown on a screen in the exhibit area instead of a separate little room, so we got in on it while other people had already started it.

We have seen a lot of ruins in a few days, and they sort of all blend together after while, so we left Wupatki and had several hours to drive before the next stop which was Navajo National Monument. It was a considerable distance off our path, but had overlooked it when we were in closer range. Since Navajo nation does daylight savings time, we didn’t know if we could get there before it closed, but decided to take a chance. Then we still had at least two hours to drive back to Page for the night. We made it with 20 minutes to spare which isn’t enough time to see anything. But we got our stamps! Then we talked to the ranger a minute and found out they have a campground here! We felt blessed! So we found a couple of spots for the night and then went on the easy trail to see the cliff dwellings. It is about a mile and a half round trip from the campground, and classified as easy. Well, don’t say that to our old unconditioned bodies! I don’t know what the elevation is here, but it certainly makes you huff and puff as you ascend the “gentle” inclines.  Somehow we made it back to the campers and have watched a beautiful sunset. There is another occupied campsite, maybe two, but it will be a quiet night, with some dark sky to see all the stars.

I’m amazed that out here in the vast open lands we have a good mifi signal, so I got yesterday’s blog posted. I’m almost out of battery, so will get the pictures in and post this tomorrow when we leave.

 

Messing up in Mesa

Friday, April 6, 2012

We have had a great couple of days with Lee in Mesa, and once again he was a great host. First power we have had on this trip, and really nice showers, and even got the laundry done! And Barney got some good time with his brother. Thank you Lee.

We didn’t do anything special while in Mesa, just warmed up and relaxed. Betty and Wilma hit the new and used book store, and got a few groceries for our continuing trip.  Betty and Fred tried to watch the beginning rounds of the Masters, and were frustrated by the golf channel coverage, but did get to see some of it.

With Betty and Barney in the lead, we left Lee’s about noon our time. We got on the freeway headed out of town. About forty miles later we turned off. Fred and Wilma had to stop for a “no turn on red” light, and we temporarily lost sight of Barney and Betty, but soon saw they had turned into a gas station to fuel up before really getting on the road. The road at the turnoff had a familiar name – it must extend clear across town. But wait, the crossroad was familiar too. Oh no, we found ourselves at the gas station within a few blocks of Lee’s.  We had made a 40 mile grand circle, and it was quite funny. (except maybe for the driver in the lead!)  I’m not sure what really happened, but we now know how to get where we want to go from there. Let’s just hope our old brains can remember that scenario the next time we are in the same spot!  We had a really good laugh about it around the campfire tonight!

We did finally make it out of the Phoenix metro area, and headed north on 17. Our first stop of the day was Montezuma’s Castle which is an ancient ruin high on a hillside. As we turned down into the monument grounds, there was a lot of traffic, and we found some not totally legitimate parking spots in a very full lot. The VC was packed, but we did get our stamps, and they had three bonus stamps, so that makes it fun. We then went down the path to the view point for the ruins. We didn’t stay long because there were so many people. It is spring break in this area.

Back on the road, we stopped at a roadside vendor that had Indian fry bread and bought a couple of pieces. It was piping hot and very good. I had expected it to be premade and packaged, but she was frying it up as ordered. We had already decided on Taco Bell for lunch, which was just around the corner, but the Indian Tacos from this vendor would have been very tempting.

After our stop at Taco Bell, we continued on to our next stop, Tuzigoot National Monument. Tuzigoot (pronounced two-zee-goot, like “boot”) is an Indian word for crooked water. It is another ancient Indian ruin, and was discovered in a mounded hill and has been excavated. We got our stamp there, and they also had some bonus stamps. Barney and Fred went to the top of the ruins and looked around. The excavation produced a large number of artifacts, and the museum had a lot of very large pots. They were pieced back together, and I don’t think any of them were complete, but they were authentic, not reproduced. It was very interesting. I don’t think we have seen many pots that large in all the places we have visited.

Just before leaving Tuzigoot, Betty and Barney overheard a young girl talking to her dad about our campers. She wanted to know how they got put on the truck, and why they couldn’t have something like that. Their family was in a minivan. Our two rigs look very similar, and it’s fun to watch reactions of those who see us. We see a lot of double takes.

Then when we were finally headed for Flagstaff, we took 89A through Sedona, Arizona. It is in a beautiful red rock canyon, but much too touristy for us. I suppose spring break and Easter weekend made it more busy, but there were people everywhere. Since is isn’t far from Phoenix, it is probably a nice getaway for people from that area. It is higher, so cooler.  Just too many people for us to be comfortable.

We had hoped for a Forest Service campground along the route, and the first few after leaving Sedona were full. But farther up the road we found one that had a couple spots open, so we stopped. We asked if they were going to open the last loop of spots so we could park near each other, but he wouldn’t do it until all the spots were full. Before we got fully situated, he relented and opened the other loop. We got nice spots, and enjoyed a great campfire. It was a little chilly, but so far on the trip it has been downright cold at night, and very windy. So this was very nice. Before too long, there were lots more spots taken in our loop, so he would have had to open them anyway. His wife was nice when she got us registered, but he was a grump!

We will turn in now and maybe get this posted tomorrow.

We are in Pine Flat campground between Sedona and Flagstaff, Arizona, spots 39 and 41. This one was the most expensive of the trip so far, all of $9 each. I guess we are going to have to lower our tastes in campgrounds! Good night all!

Show Low to Mesa

It was a cold morning in Show Low, Arizona. We showed 36 outside and 45 inside, so wasted no time in getting some heat going. Show Low is a pretty town in the hills. I’m not sure of the elevation, but it must be fairly high to have been so cool.

We made a couple of purchases in WalMart before getting started toward Mesa,  going down through the Salt River Canyon. It was a pretty drive, and we stopped at a couple of pullouts.  

When we got to Globe, we stopped for a late breakfast, then turned toward Roosevelt Lake and Tonto National Monument. We stopped at a viewpoint and wondered where the ruins of Tonto National Monument could be. It didn’t look like the typical canyon landscape where ruins would be found. We were in between some hills and the Roosevelt Lake reservoir, with typical desert scenery. Lots of cacti abound in this area. When looking at the highest hills, we spotted one of the ruins, and could see it quite well with the binoculars.

We proceeded up the road to the monument turn off, and then climbed quite a bit to the VC. We stopped and got our stamp, and went up to the upper patio. There they had some seating facing the video monitor, so we watched the movie. The trail to one of the ruins begins there, and there is only partial cover, so it was sunny and noisy trying to see and hear the video. But it was nicely done. Barney was the only one interested in climbing the switchback trail up to the ruins, so the rest of us just enjoyed the sun and people watching.

After leaving the National Monument, we headed on toward Mesa, turning down the route we had chosen by map. Immediately there was a sign that said pavement ends in one mile, and another that indicated we were on the Apache Trail. After reading a little about it, we decided we would backtrack to Globe and head on into Mesa from there. The Apache Trail sounded much like the Moki Dugway we mentioned yesterday, with tight switchbacks, and a 15 percent grade. That is steep!  Since we arrived in Mesa I have read more about the Apache Trail and know we could have done it, but would have had to watch out for rock overhangs that might reach out and grab the cavemobiles!

         So back to Globe we went, and from there turned toward Mesa once again.

Barney’s brother Lee was out to greet us as we pulled up. It was much warmer than we have had so far, and no wind. We got showers and started laundry, so we are happy campers.

We went to Golden Corral with Lee for dinner, and then crashed.  Don’t have any big plans for tomorrow, so might not get a blog done, but we will soon be back on the road.

Gooseneck to Show Low

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

We made several route changes today, starting our day in Gooseneck State Park near Mexican Hat, Utah, very close to the Utah Arizona border. Since we had gone the long way around to avoid driving the Moki Dugway, and being so close to the bottom of it, Wilma wanted to drive up and see if we could see how interesting the drive would be. We did drive up there after breaking camp this morning, but didn’t really get to see much. The Moki dugway is a series of tight switch backs hugging the cliff, with about 1100 foot drop in three miles. The rest of the road is paved, but that section is dirt, and not recommended for anything with a trailer, or RVs. We could only see the first couple of switchbacks. But we were glad we had taken the long way around!

Next up we drove through Monument Valley (think old western movies.)  So much of southern Utah is just gorgeous! Wilma didn’t make the right choice there, and we did not go out to see the VC and probably the most interesting monuments, but that can happen on another trip.

We had planned to go on over to Page and the Lake Powell area, but instead decided to head down to Canyon de Chelley and the Hubbell Trading Post. They are on the eastern side of Arizona, north of Interstate 40. Then we were heading back to Page. We did get to Canyon de Chelley (pronounced Shay), got our stamps and enjoyed part of the drive through the park. We did not go clear out to the end. After leaving Monument Valley the landscape looked like high desert, with not a lot to see except sage brush type plants. Then when you get to Canyon de Chelley you realize how much there could have been hiding all along the way. All of a sudden we were on the edge of a canyon with a small river running through it, and several ancient ruins that we could see from view points.

 

                  One of the interesting things about being in Navajo country is the selling the locals do at all the viewpoints. Anywhere you stop there are several vehicles displaying jewelry, rock paintings, woven rugs, etc. They can be aggressive with their selling tactics, but have some very nice products.

After Canyon de Chelley we stopped for lunch, then headed south for the Hubbell Trading Post. We stopped at the VC and got our stamps and looked around at the displays. There was a woman sitting on the floor demonstrating some rug weaving. It was beautiful work. Then when we went to the store, there were many rugs for sale, among other things that were hand made. We saw small rugs (about 2 ft square) for $295.00, and Barney found a larger one that was priced $1600.00.  Sorry, we don’t have any stashed away for Christmas presents!  They are beautifully made, and would take many many hours to do, but just a little beyond our budget. As we entered the store, we had to laugh. No one could sneak into the store, and they certainly don’t need a bell on the door to announce arrivals. I don’t know how old the place is, but ancient according to the uneven wooden floors. Every step you took was a very loud squeak/squawk.

Then we decided not to go back over to Page. It was about 4 pm and Page was 200 miles, with no marked camping places along the way. So we headed south toward Phoenix, stopping in Show Low for the night. The Show Low WalMart does not allow overnight parking, but there is a very rough dirt lot just next to it where we had stayed last fall, and we again pulled in there. We did see one 5th wheel parked in the WalMart lot, and they were still there in the morning, so I guess no one gave them any trouble.

Before leaving home we had thought we could be in the Flagstaff area in about two weeks, but we have had a lot of route changes. We are still thinking of doing the Flagstaff route when we leave Phoenix. We shall see. We have been on the road for a week now, and have yet to be somewhere with electrical hookups. But we are charging our electronics off the inverters as we travel, and having a great time. Just don’t always have a signal to post at the right time!

Scones and Goosenecks

Monday, April 2, 2012

No, the title is not really what we had to eat today! but we did start the morning with scones from the little store in Capital Reef National Park.
It was COLD this morning. It was 46 in the Flintstone cavemobile this morning because we don’t usually run heat during the night. We didn’t hesitate too long to get some going this morning. The wind was still with us this morning, and it felt icy. We had dumped the tanks last night knowing it would be pretty cold to do it this morning. 
  Leaving the campground and park behind, we headed east. The drive out through the canyon was very pretty, and the pretty just kept going and going. And even when it quit being pretty, it wasn’t long before we were in it again.
We went east to a crossroads at the little spot on the map of Hanksville, then turned south toward Lake Powell. We made the decision not to take the road down to Bullfrog, and that was a good choice because the ferry across the lake isn’t going to start running until later this week.  Would have had to backtrack about 50 miles. But we missed several stamps by not going down there. We stopped at an overlook just before crossing the Colorado River, then stopped at the ranger station in Hite to get a stamp. He said he didn’t have one, and hadn’t seen one last year either. I bet he scoured the place after we left and came up with it!
     Our next real stop was at Natural Bridges National Monument. We got our stamps, watched the movie, and drove the scenic drive. There are short paths to three natural bridge overlooks, and we walked out to those. The cold, icy wind was howling, knocking hats off, and generally just making us cold. The first path was fairly short, and not too steep, but still made us breath hard at about 6500 feet elevation. The second path was lots longer and lots steeper, so we weren’t so sure about the third one, but it was almost level, so not bad. We have learned that natural bridges are formed by water action. If there isn’t rushing water to create the opening, then it is an arch. These three bridges were at least at one time formed by water. At one, the water has taken another direction and left it dry under the bridge.

     It was too early and too cold there to care about staying in their campground, so we went on to the town of Blanding where we stopped at Subway for lunch, and then fueled up. We also stopped at the VC. Barney saw an interesting picture on the wall and asked why we hadn’t seen that. It was of Goosenecks State Park, and that is where Wilma hoped to stay for the night.

Headed south again to try to see the Valley of the Gods, but water in the wash made us turn around. Many of the dirt roads are impassable when water is present. The washes get washed out pretty bad. We didn’t want to have to jostle everything around, just to get stuck in some pretty nasty mud further in.
We headed out to Goosenecks State Park, where we are stopped for the night. The river here does several bends where it almost comes back to meet itself. Very interesting. This is basically just a couple of dirt parking areas with a couple of picnic tables and pit toilets. But there are quite a number of RVs here for the night. It is free. Can’t get too much better than that! And it is fun to see the goosenecks.  Most amazing is that we have some mifi here, but am running out of battery life on the computer, so will post tomorrow if able.

Capital Reef National Park

Sunday, April 1, 2012
Where we are: Capital Reef National Park near Torrey, Utah, Fruita Campground, sites 34 and 35. 5 dollars each with geezer card. No mifi signal.
As I write this the sun is shining on the tops of the rock cliffs just opposite the campground, but the wind is really whistling around the cavemobiles. When we left Bryce Canyon NP this morning it was beginning to cloud over, and was expected down into the 20s overnight. It has been windy most of the day, with strong wind advisories posted. We have taken our time and stopped a lot of places along the way, and probably travelled less than 200 miles today. We have gone through many different kinds of scenery.
We had a fairly early breakfast and then headed out, stopping for more pictures along the way, and pulling off into most of the viewpoints. As soon as we left Bryce we started heading down, and got a couple of pictures looking back up. Just a different angle on what we had been seeing in the park.
Not too many more miles down the road was a VC that had a stamp or two, so we had to do that. We got a brochure about travelling on Utah 12, so had that as a guide for our travels. It is a beautiful road to travel. We must have stopped at three or four different Visitor Centers to get a variety of stamps.
We started in Bryce at about 8000 feet elevation, and went over a pass that was 9600. I think that was fairly close to the viewpoint we pulled into where it was howling wind, and cold! We didn’t stay very long!
One of the featured highlights of the road was a place called The Hogback. The brochure says “as the asphalt clings to this thin razorback ridge of slickrock, the terrain spills steeply off to each side…”  When we got there, we weren’t even sure we were there yet, and felt it was given quite a bit more drama than it deserved. Although there was a quarter mile or so where there were no shoulders of any kind along the road, and it was very steep on each side.
     


Besides being low on battery power for the computer, our mifi coverage hasn’t been real great in some of the back areas we have been in, so our blog postings are slow.

We finished the day by pulling into the Fruita campground of Capital Reef National Park and found a spot to spend the night. Then we went back to the VC and watched the movie and looked around at the displays. They had a pie and baked goods display that was advertising a house right next to the campground where there is a small store and museum. So we stopped there to pick up a couple of pies (the very small ones) to have later.
We still had plenty of time, so took the scenic drive through the park, went back to the campground, dumped the tanks, and crashed early. The wind was very strong, and very cold, so we are tucked in for the night. Good night all.

The Beauty of Bryce Canyon National Park

Saturday, March 31, 2012
Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
Sites 35 and 36, 7.50 per night each with the geezer card
What a beautiful day we have had today.
After breakfast we set out to see the sites of this great National Park. We started at the VC, got our books stamped, watched the movie and looked around through the exhibits.
Next up we went by the General Store to check it out. They are opening tomorrow, but actually had shortened hours today. That didn't really matter to us, but we saw that they had showers, so checked that out. They looked good, and we made plans for later.
We stopped at the viewpoints all along the way out to the end of the park road, and that included many stops, with lots of walking, and a stop at the flying plate picnic area for some lunch. It was windy, and we had to hold everything down. Betty's plate took to sailing after depositing her hard boiled egg in the middle of the table. Barney was able to collect the plate, and the egg was rescued, so we weren't littering.
This park has some awesome views, and we took lots of pictures, but the camera doesn't do quite as good as the eye does. The park ranges from about 8000 feet elevation to about 9100. It is quite a challenge to our older bodies to manage the ups and downs of the paths and trails. Breathing comes in gasps! Barney even went a short way down into the canyon and took some pictures there. Many of the trails are closed or only open part way because of snow. Different areas of the park are just beginning to open up. But there are plenty of visitors, and again, many languages.
We had a wonderful day. It was fairly warm except for the strong winds, but the sun was out in full force, and we are slightly burned, again thanks to the elevation. It was fairly clear, and we felt like we could see forever, but our main focus was on the hoodoos.  
After spending much of the day sightseeing, we headed for the showers. Believe me, we needed them! We are still off grid, after four nights on the road. It was nice to have a hot shower. The showers had all been redone recently and were clean and nice, had a dry dressing area, and even had a nice shelf in the shower stall for all your stuff. From all our travels, these are some of the nicest we have used. They were 2 dollars for 8 minutes, and we soaked them up! Lots cheaper than an RV park!

After cleaning up, we came back to camp to relax for a while, and then had our dinner in the campsite inn, after which we headed back out to Sunset Point to watch the shadows creep up over the spectacular scenery. Like I said, what a wonderful day.
We will be continuing our travels tomorrow. More from the Bedrock Bunch later.