she's showin' us some great times, but she's keeping us on our toes!!
let's see... after leaving manitou springs, we headed over to pagosa springs, CO. we seem to like the springs, don't we? the drive was going well until a thunderstorm popped up outta nowhere right before we headed up the mountain. pulled over and napped (well, jen napped, wendy watched a dvd!) until the rain had cleared up. we got back on the road and hit the mountains. bessie crept her way up that hill then came careening down that hill... until we remembered about the 2nd gear slowdown. brakes were smelly, but the transmission saved the day! whew. jen had to pry wendy's knuckles free from the steering wheel once we got to camp. girl's from the flatland, ya heard?
the next morning, we were showered and relaxed (you'd be surprised how few and far between those things have been lately!) we stocked up for a couple days in the san juan national forest. once we found our perfect spot at west fork campground (thanks Darren!), we set up our new hammock... and lo and behold, those damn ticks found us again! pesky little buggers...
moved over to the recliners and enjoyed a great dinner and a sky full of stars. we saw a couple of shooting stars... it's amazing what getting out into the middle of nowhere does for a night show!
spent the next day taking a little hike along the river (san juan). collected lots of rocks and tons of pictures. had a beautiful afternoon. nothing could have been better... until we got campsite envy! we saw this dude (who had actually gotten there at the SAME EXACT time we did the day before) who had found the perfect spot right along the river. it was the only spot like it... not that we're complaining, but sheesh, what else do we hafta complain about?? ;)
well, jen could complain about her ear infection that she woke up with the next morning... but had great luck finding a doctor (reasonably priced, no less) and got on some antibiotics. problem solved.
showered, relaxed and full of souped-up sudafed, we headed out toward the grand canyon. north rim. got about 4 good hours under our belt, then ol' bessie got the hiccups. fortunately, we wanted to pull over at the four corners national monument anyway. while we played tourists, bessie got some rest. problem is... rest wasn't the answer. we made it about a quarter mile down the road, when ol' bessie said "no mo' this ol' girl is tuckered". UNfortunately, we were at the four corners. check it out on the map.
the closest town to where we broke down is Teec Nos Pos, which in native american means the middle of freakin' nowhere. rainbeaux (the vespa) to the rescue! wendy rode her into town and used a pay phone to call command central - debbie heather AND jason! after using their valuable resources (cell phones and computers.... which don't work in teec nos pos) they came up with a solution to get us out the desert.
hi country towing to the rescue! six hours and $600 dollars later, we were unloaded into a parking lot in farmington NM. who knew?
next morning, we woke up and stepped 10 paces into the auto repair shop where the tow truck dumped us... problem: they don't work on gas engines, only diesel. oi vay.
limped a few blocks down the road to sweetland's auto shop... who DOES work on gas engines (and RV's too -- lucky for us!) after explaining the symptoms, and a thorough exam, they figured out the fuel pump was to blame for ol' bessie's hiccups. 24 hours, $600 more dollars and some really tasty bbq later we were on the road again. baklava.
grand canyon, here we come again! we were nervous about getting back into nowhereville, but the big hole was waiting for us.
stopped in page AZ to get a good night's sleep and get an early start to the grand canyon. we had no idea how early... we discovered later that morning, that AZ doesn't observe daylight savings time. 6:30 was really 5:30... we haven't been up at that hour since our going away party!!
an amazing drive throught the vermillion cliffs and over the navajo bridge. we staked out our campsite in kaibab national forest, then headed into the park. love the annual pass (thanks rachel)... we've saved over 30 bucks on this trip. $1200 repair bill notwithstanding.
north rim of the grand canyon -- woo hooo!!! it is abolutely breathtaking. and each view of it is a different one. packed a lunch, hiked a trail and marveled at its grandeur. had a beer and a nap... then woke up to take a photo workshop/hike with volunteer ranger nancy. got great tips and stories as we hiked out to take even more pictures. caught a beautiful sunset as we hiked back to ol' bessie. headed back to camp hoping not to hit one of the 15 or so deer we saw on the way.
early start back to the canyon (making sure not to hit the one turkey we saw), unhitched rainbeaux and headed out for a morning ride to cape royal and point imperial. still breathtaking from every angle.
got a rock star view from our table at lunch as we splurged on the pasta and salad buffet. perfect view after a perfect morning and a big full belly to boot. on the road again.....
kanab UT... our current location - 1st time with real internet in a while...so we decided to stay an extra day. leaving tomorrow.... maybe zion, maybe bryce... maybe both.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Monday, June 11, 2007
The First Weeks on the Road...
we left BR on Wednesday 5.21. packed up all of our belongings either into storage or into our 27 foot motorhome. two girls and a cat, pumpkin... traveling together for a year. this is our journey.
the first couple of weeks after leaving BR didn't even feel like we had left home. in fact, Heather and Sunny even started the journey with us on our way to Opelousas.
we stayed with friends and family along the way for first two weeks. it was nice for us (and Pumpkin, the amazing traveling cat) to get used to life on the road SLOWLY!!) we practiced living in the rv, but also had "real" bathrooms and kitchens. we still had lots to do around the rv to get organized and all checked out... and along the way, we realized just how much we still need to learn about this rig!
what all could have gone wrong in just two weeks, you ask?? well, we have had a tire blow out (but luckily it was one of the dualie tires in the back and we barely felt it), we found a leak in the front window... and where water sits, what do you get?? MOLD and MILDEW. then our battery nearly blew up. when we opened the case, it was smokin. and not in the good way.
none of those problems were too terrible though. definitely could've been worse. and we were still @ wendy's brother's house when we discovered them all, so we had plenty of time and help to get it all done.
after leaving dallas we had a couple of nights on our own camping in Oklahoma. found this great state park - Natural Falls - with a 77 ft waterfall right in the park. we spent an entire afternoon exploring and loved it... until we found TICKS on us. eewww.
after leaving Oklahoma, we headed on up through AR and MO on our way to Kansas for Wakarusa (music festival) where Debbie, Sheri, Brett and Bethany met up with us. amazingly enough... six of us in ol' bessie was NOT too overcrowded!!! except when we needed a midnite snack and debbie's bed was our table... few crumbs, but nothin too serious!!!
the rest of the drive thru KS was pretty uneventful - lots of farm land on rolling hills. jen says "uneventful" but the driver had something else to say: there were 50 mile an hour winds blowing Ol' Bessie all over the road, but Wendy knows how to keep her in line.
up until this point, Pumpkin had been handling this whole trip EXTREMELY well for a cat in a "housetruck" but was boarded at the vet for the four days we were at Wakarusa... and by the time we picked her up, she had forgotten all about those two weeks. It took a couple of days for it to all come back to her, but she's enjoying life in her jacket once again. (her "jacket" is really a harness and leash, but don't let her hear you call it that)
made it in to CO by Tuesday 6.12. drove down I-24... right up to a great view of pike's peak. it is abso-friggin-lutley gorgeous out here. we met Bruce in the Wal-Mart parking lot, and after two and half hours of talking to him, he told us about this little town - manitou springs that has great rock formations and natural springs throughout... so we've decided to spend a couple of days here. we're in pike's peak rv park -- parked right next to a creek that makes incredible music.
we spent today riding around on our vespa... checkin out some of the natural springs around town. we were expecting them to be some geyser-like spouting spring... but really, they were bronze statues that offered water to you. we found four of the seven, and each of them had their own distinct flavor. one of 'em even had traces of lithium in it. we filled up a whole jug of THAT one!!!
this afternoon, we drove up to the Manitou Cliff Dwellings. saw real indian dancers performing, then climbed our way through the dwelling. those anasazi indians must've been little people, cuz wendy could scoot in and out of all the little holes and crevices, where jen of course had a harder time getting those legs through!
to end out the day, we took a hike along on of the trails in the garden of the gods that we hadn't gotten to yesterday... then drove through the mountain to catch the sunset. i don't know how we could have had a more beautiful day than we did today, but we've still got eleven months to keep tryin'!
we don't wanna leave, but pagosa is calling our names next. until then...
the first couple of weeks after leaving BR didn't even feel like we had left home. in fact, Heather and Sunny even started the journey with us on our way to Opelousas.
we stayed with friends and family along the way for first two weeks. it was nice for us (and Pumpkin, the amazing traveling cat) to get used to life on the road SLOWLY!!) we practiced living in the rv, but also had "real" bathrooms and kitchens. we still had lots to do around the rv to get organized and all checked out... and along the way, we realized just how much we still need to learn about this rig!
what all could have gone wrong in just two weeks, you ask?? well, we have had a tire blow out (but luckily it was one of the dualie tires in the back and we barely felt it), we found a leak in the front window... and where water sits, what do you get?? MOLD and MILDEW. then our battery nearly blew up. when we opened the case, it was smokin. and not in the good way.
none of those problems were too terrible though. definitely could've been worse. and we were still @ wendy's brother's house when we discovered them all, so we had plenty of time and help to get it all done.
after leaving dallas we had a couple of nights on our own camping in Oklahoma. found this great state park - Natural Falls - with a 77 ft waterfall right in the park. we spent an entire afternoon exploring and loved it... until we found TICKS on us. eewww.
after leaving Oklahoma, we headed on up through AR and MO on our way to Kansas for Wakarusa (music festival) where Debbie, Sheri, Brett and Bethany met up with us. amazingly enough... six of us in ol' bessie was NOT too overcrowded!!! except when we needed a midnite snack and debbie's bed was our table... few crumbs, but nothin too serious!!!
the rest of the drive thru KS was pretty uneventful - lots of farm land on rolling hills. jen says "uneventful" but the driver had something else to say: there were 50 mile an hour winds blowing Ol' Bessie all over the road, but Wendy knows how to keep her in line.
up until this point, Pumpkin had been handling this whole trip EXTREMELY well for a cat in a "housetruck" but was boarded at the vet for the four days we were at Wakarusa... and by the time we picked her up, she had forgotten all about those two weeks. It took a couple of days for it to all come back to her, but she's enjoying life in her jacket once again. (her "jacket" is really a harness and leash, but don't let her hear you call it that)
made it in to CO by Tuesday 6.12. drove down I-24... right up to a great view of pike's peak. it is abso-friggin-lutley gorgeous out here. we met Bruce in the Wal-Mart parking lot, and after two and half hours of talking to him, he told us about this little town - manitou springs that has great rock formations and natural springs throughout... so we've decided to spend a couple of days here. we're in pike's peak rv park -- parked right next to a creek that makes incredible music.
we spent today riding around on our vespa... checkin out some of the natural springs around town. we were expecting them to be some geyser-like spouting spring... but really, they were bronze statues that offered water to you. we found four of the seven, and each of them had their own distinct flavor. one of 'em even had traces of lithium in it. we filled up a whole jug of THAT one!!!
this afternoon, we drove up to the Manitou Cliff Dwellings. saw real indian dancers performing, then climbed our way through the dwelling. those anasazi indians must've been little people, cuz wendy could scoot in and out of all the little holes and crevices, where jen of course had a harder time getting those legs through!
to end out the day, we took a hike along on of the trails in the garden of the gods that we hadn't gotten to yesterday... then drove through the mountain to catch the sunset. i don't know how we could have had a more beautiful day than we did today, but we've still got eleven months to keep tryin'!
we don't wanna leave, but pagosa is calling our names next. until then...
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