Views From The Open Road

Picacho Peak State Park - Day Two

2012-02-01T02:00:00.000-07:00

Bill and I knew today's hike was going to be a tough one so we wanted to hit the trail by 9:00. Well, after coffee, breakfast, and clean up, we made it to the trailhead at 9:45, not too bad.

There are two trails which lead to the top of Picacho Peak. We opted for the Sunset Trail, a 3.1 mile trek to the top. The first two miles are rated moderate, while the last mile or so is rated strenuous.

Bill and I hike a lot, and on some of our hikes I have often wished for the abilities of a mountain goat. However, this is the first hike where I wished I had the abilities of Spiderman. Did you know it is possible to scale the face of a rock wall? Just keep reading....

The trail started out simply enough. We hiked through a "forest" of saguaro, barrel cactus, and chollo cactus. It was beautiful! And, of course, the humming of the Border Patrol helicopter just adds to the southern Arizona hiking experience. : )

As we expected, the trail became a little more difficult. First, we had some switchbacks to climb. Then, we came to the first cables, and these cables were almost vertical.

Bill went first, and then I followed. We both made it just fine, although we were breathing pretty hard. From there, the trail got even more interesting. I'll let these pictures speak for themselves.

Our efforts paid off! We made it to the top! Here's a picture of the campground. See that blue speck in the southeast corner? That's our tent!

The view was pretty nice!

And Bill got all theatrical on me. When we reached the top, he stood on this rock and sang out, "Somebody left the gate open!" (You have seen that commercial on TV, right?)

We have hiked using cables before in Arches and Zion National Parks. But this hike to Picacho Peak is the most extreme hiking experience we have endured. Man, what a hike!

Picacho Peak State Park - Day 1

2012-01-31T17:26:00.000-07:00

Bill and I have just returned from a great weekend camping in Picacho Peak State Park. Picacho is the Spanish word for peak, so in essence, we camped at Peak Peak State Park. : )

Picacho Peak is located just off I-10, about 40 miles west of Tucson, and we have driven by it many times, going to and from Benson. We took advantage of this beautiful, perfect weather, loaded up the tenting gear and headed out Sunday after church.

Based on the park's website, there were plenty of campsites available so we didn't bother making a reservation. When we arrived at the entry gate, the attendant asked if we wanted to be near the bathroom and showers, since we were camping in a tent. Well, I like being "near" the bathroom but not right on top of it. The site she gave us provided a wonderful view...of the bath house. Normally, Bill and I take the site we are given and make the best of it. But when tent camping, we spend all of our time outside, and I really didn't want to be looking at the bathroom all weekend.

We drove the loops and headed back to the gate and requested site A13. Fortunately, the site was available for two nights.

Granted, we were about as far away from the bathroom as we could get, but at least we had nice view of Little Black Mountain and the saguaro cactus dotting the landscape.

One of the main attractions of this park is the hiking, especially hiking to the top of Picacho Peak. We had read about the hike, about the cables used and the recommendation of wearing gloves. Here is Bill looking at the peak with his binoculars, just trying to figure out how we will get up there. Picacho Peak is the peak on the left. It may not look like it in this picture, but that peak is much higher than the peak to the right of it.

Before dinner, we drove down to the "Sunset Loop" and waited for the sunset. We had hoped to get one of those amazing Arizona sunsets, and we were not disappointed.

Afterwards, we went back to the campsite where Bill grilled some bratwursts for supper, before we settled in with a campfire and a good night's sleep. Picacho Peak awaits!

In Search of Ghost Towns

2012-01-18T17:23:00.000-07:00

Today Bill and I went along with Rich and Ronda to visit some Arizona ghost towns in the Patagonia Mountains. It was a beautiful day for a drive, and since Rich and Ronda have a Jeep, we weren't worried so much about the condition of the Forest Service roads.

The first stop we came to was Harshaw, AZ. This town was established in April 1880, and the Post Office closed in March 1903. The town grew up around the Hermosa Mine, a silver ore mining operation. At one time there were over 200 buildings in town.

Now, however, there is a big "private property" sign on the road that enters Harshaw. We had to be content to visit the town cemetery across the street, where most of the graves dated back to the 1800's.

According to Ronda's 4x4 Guide Book, our next stop should have been the town of Mowry. You noticed I said "should have been." We were driving along, when we finally came to some road signs. The signs indicated Mowry was five miles behind us. Apparently we past it without realizing it. To make matters worse, we had gone way off our planned route. We studied the signs and determined which way we should proceed.

We were driving through a beautiful part of Arizona heading to our next town, Lochiel.

After a few miles, we come to a fork in the road. There is a big sign giving the direction to lots of different ranches, but nothing about Lochiel. Finally, a Border Patrol agent pulls up alongside us and asks if we need directions. (Speaking of Border Patrol agents, they were all over the place...in vehicles and helicopters.) The agent was very friendly and gave us directions, and we continued on. We had to make two turns. When we got to the second turn, our Border Patrol agent was parked on the corner. He was standing outside his car pointing the way we were to turn. I guess he didn't want a car load of gringos getting lost on his watch. : )

The town of Lochiel is very close to the Mexican border. In fact, we could see the border fence off and on as we drove along. There was an active post office in Lochiel from August 1880 until September 1911, and the town had 2 smelters, 3 saloons, a butcher, a bakery, livery stables and 5 stores. Lochiel was also a favorite place of Pancho Villa to steal cattle and take across the border back into Mexico.

Today's main attraction was the one room school house.

The school was locked, but I was able to get a pretty good picture through the window.

Our next point of interest was the town of Duquesne. There were many dilapidated buildings, but everything had big "NO TRESPASSING" signs on them. Like the other towns, Duquesne was also a mining town. Here is a remnant of the mining past.

The final town listed for today's drive was Washington Camp. We did not see any old buildings, dilapidated or not, but we did see this sign posted at the entrance of someone's property.

Now it was lunch time. We found a nice area to pull off the road and enjoyed our picnic with a beautiful view.

After lunch, we were back in the Jeep and heading on down the road towards home.

Wow! Another fun day of exploring southern Arizona.

Moving Right Along

2012-01-14T16:52:00.000-07:00

Our friends, Phil and Victoria, pulled out today, heading to explore other parts of Arizona. We went out for pizza last night and then back to their rig for some delicious lemon bars Victoria made. We said our good-byes and look forward to seeing them again this summer.

Speaking of this summer, Bill and I have received our Yellowstone job assignments. This year I have been given the opportunity to be Campground Manager at Canyon Campground. We have never worked at Canyon, although we did camp there a few times last summer. We are excited about this opportunity. We will be working with good friends and expect to have a great summer!

Canyon Campground is the most centrally located campground in Yellowstone. We are located within Canyon Village where there are restaurants, a National Park Visitor Center, and a General Store. And, as the name implies, we are very close to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. The location is just about perfect. Just a few miles south is Hayden Valley, and to the north is Lamar Valley. These two valleys are the BEST for wildlife viewing!

The only drawback to Canyon is the short season. We are opened from the first of June until just after Labor Day. However, my work season is extended by doing some preseason training. I trained Guest Service Agents (GSAs) back in 2009 and look forward to doing it again. As a Trainer, my report date is April 10.

Bill and I LOVE getting to Yellowstone early. The wildlife viewing is incredible. I just hope and pray we don't as much snow as we did last year. : )

My job at Kartchner Caverns continues to go well. And the Arizona weather has been great! In fact, if the forecast holds true, we may find ourselves camping next weekend. Stay tuned!

A Scenic Drive and a Decapitated Bird

2012-01-12T16:59:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday Bill and I decided to take a scenic drive that I had read about on-line. Our friends, Rich and Ronda, came along for the adventure.

First let me tell you about the bird. Sometimes strange things happen...things you could never plan or ever expect. Well, we were driving along I-10 and enjoying our stimulating conversation, when all of a sudden, we heard a "thunk." I had heard that noise in the past, whenever a bug would hit the windshield. But today's "thunk" was louder.

I was in the front passenger seat and looked out my window to see this:

We were all shocked! A bird had flown into the CB radio antenna on the truck. What are the chances??? And then we noticed blood splatter along the windows of the truck and down the side of the truck to the tailgate. Of course Bill, my hero, took care of the situation. Once we exited the interstate, Bill pulled off to the side of the road and did the manly thing. He donned his work gloves and removed what remained of the bird from the antenna. And yes, indeed, the poor thing was decapitated. Sorry I didn't get a picture. You'll have to take my word for it. : )

Now we were ready to begin our scenic drive. Today we explored Rucker Canyon. It was a beautiful day for a beautiful drive into the Coronado National Forest and the Chihuahua mountains.

As we turned off of Hwy 191 and headed onto Rucker Canyon Road, we saw these...tanks! What the heck? Actually there were three tanks. I could fit only two into my picture. Whatever....

We continued on Rucker Canyon Road, which eventually turned into Forest Service Road 74 after entering the Coronado National Forest. Beautiful vistas were on every side.

Being fellow-Yellowstoners, the four of us are used to seeing signs like this one. But, alas, no bear was to be seen.

(However, we did come across a couple of nice campgrounds that Bill and I may visit with our tenting gear.)

I had read that Fort Rucker, an active U.S. Army outpost from 1878-1880, was located in this area. Apparently, some remnants still remain from the fort that was used during the campaign against the Chihuahua Apache who were led by Geronimo and Cochise. We had hoped to come across it.

As we were driving along, we saw an adobe building on the other side of a field. We also saw what looked like an information placard in front of the building. We parked in a cleared area and went through a fence. Sure enough, we found Fort Rucker.

Fort Rucker was first known as Camp Supply. The name was changed in 1878 after Lt. John A. Rucker drowned in nearby White Canyon Creek while trying to save the life of a comrad, Lt. Austin Henely.

Here are Bill and Rich taking a look at what remains of the Captains' Quarters. It appears that someone, perhaps U.S. Forest folks, have made some repairs to the buildings, as most of them had new metal roofs.

There was no information provided about this house, but I believe it was built after Fort Rucker closed and the property went into private ownership via a squatter's claim. The property then changed hands a few times and was used as a ranch headquarters, until the last owner donated the property to the U.S. Forest Service.

Ronda found us a nice spot for a picnic, and after lunch, we took the obligatory group shot.

What a great day! It was an all day drive, and on our way home, I received an important phone call from Xanterra, the company we work for in Yellowstone. I'll share more with you once I get the OK.

Dinner with Friends

2012-01-08T23:18:00.000-07:00

Bill and I love our life on the road. We love working in magnificent places like Yellowstone, and we love living in different areas of the country. But the best part of our life on the road is the friends we have made.

Tonight Bill cooked up a batch of lasagna. Normally, I am the cook in the family (unless we're grilling...Bill does all the grilling), and I've made lasagna in the past. But for some reason, it just taste better when Bill makes it. And tonight it was delicious! Best of all, we were able to share it with some of our RVing buddies.

We first met Rich and Ronda in 2008 while working at Yellowstone National Park. This winter they are in a nearby RV site, so we get to visit often. We always have a good time together.

Phil and Victoria also joined us for dinner. We first met them about 14 months ago. It was November 2010. Bill and I were in Florida visiting friends and family. Phil and Victoria were following our blog, and they dropped me an email. They were in the early stages of beginning the fulltime lifestyle and said they would like to meet if we would be in their vicinity. We had a nice visit and apparently didn't scare them away from the fulltiming lifestyle. : )

In just five months they sold their house, bought their rig, and hit the road. Having just completed a workamping stint with Amazon in Kansas, they emailed and said they were heading our way.

What a great evening! We talked and laughed, and before we knew it, it was past 10:00. Phil and Victoria will be around for a few more days, so I'm sure we will get a few more visits in.

What are the chances that folks from New York, Connecticut, Georgia, Florida, Oklahoma and California would all end up having dinner together in Benson, Arizona? That's why we love the lifestyle!

Today's History Lesson

2012-01-03T18:23:00.000-07:00

Today Bill and I visited the Titan Missile Museum in Sahuarita, a small town about 20 miles south of Tucson. What an interesting history lesson! Our first stop was in the visitor center, where we purchased tickets for the 12:00 tour. Once again, we took advantage of our Tuscon Attractions Passport and were able to get two tickets for the price of one.

After spending time in southern Arizona, we are getting used to seeing friendly reminders such as this:

Our tour began in the "briefing" room where we watched a 10-minute video showing us what we could expect on the tour. Our tour began outside. Here is our tour guide, Mike, talking about the missile engine.

Here is the re-entry capsule. This capsule contained the hydrogen bomb and was the nose cone of the missile.

At one time there were over 50 of these Titan II missiles in three states: Arkansas, Kansas, and of course, Arizona. They were built in the 1960's and decommissioned in 1982 through 1987, in accordance with the SALT treaty. The SALT treaty allowed one of the silos to remain open as a museum. Of course the U.S. had to prove to Russia that the missile was unusable. In fact, the missile at the museum is a training missile and never had fuel or a bomb in it. The museum's underground silo is opened permanently, and glass covered, so visitors can see the missile.

Next, the tour went below ground, into the control center. Although this was state of the art electronics at the time, it looked like an old movie set to me. During the years this missile was on "stand-by," the Control Center was manned by four U.S. Air Force airman, two officers and two enlisted. Each group of four provided coverage for a 48 hour period.

I found it interesting to learn that had these guys received the orders to launch, it would have taken about one minute to launch the missile. And once the "launch" button was pressed, there was no turning back. Thank goodness, they never received the order.

Here is the countdown clock. Mike, the tour guide, said if the crew had received orders to launch, they would have written the launch time on the face of this clock with a grease pencil.

Once our group cleared out of the control center, I took a seat in the Commanding Officer's chair. Man, what power back in the day!

What a great history lesson! And to think all of this is 35 feet underground. A visit to the Titan Missile Museum is well worth it! And if you are ever in Badlands National Park in South Dakota, make sure you visit the nearby Minuteman Museum for another great history lesson.

We also learned that many of the other missile silos that were decommissioned were sold to private parties. While Bill was putzing on-line, he came across an ad where you can buy your very own missile complex. Click here to take a look.

Happy 2012!

2012-01-01T06:47:00.000-07:00

Well, it looks like we all made it to another year. Congratulations! I'm always a little excited at the beginning of a year. It is like an unopened package. I wonder what 2012 has in store for us? 2011 was great, and I hope 2012 is even better for you and for us.

This morning we are off to church and then back home to enjoy our traditional New Year's Day meal of black eyed peas, collard greens, and corn bread and maybe a slice of coconut cream pie for dessert (if I can get it made in time.)

Happy New Year!

Food for Thought

2011-12-31T02:00:00.000-07:00

As we leave 2011 behind and enter into 2012....

And remember.....

Bill and I thank you for following along with us through the years, and we wish all of you a very happy, healthy and exciting 2012!

A Little Work, A Little Play

2011-12-29T17:49:00.000-07:00

Today I had a short day at work at Kartchner Caverns. I went in from 8:15 until 11:00 for training. Wanting to take advantage of this wonderful southeastern Arizona weather, Bill brought my hiking clothes with him when he picked me up at 11:00. I changed clothes, but we didn't go far. In fact, we never left the park. We had a nice lunch at the Bat Cave Cafe before hiking the Guindani Trail.

Here are a few pictures from the hike. It is a 4 mile loop trail which climbs steadily before reaching the summit that afforded some nice views.

As the trail led back towards the trail head, we got a bird's eye view of the state park. The building in the distance is the Discovery Center, where the cave tours begin. Also in this building are the gift shop and the Bat Cave Cafe, where yours truly works. The RVs to the right of the large water tank are in the Volunteer Village, where the Kartchner Cavern State Park volunteers reside.

Bill and I enjoyed our afternoon very much. We shared the trail with only one other couple. An uncrowded trail, 70 degrees, and absolutely clear blue skies...that's why we're here!

A Whirlwind of a Weekend!

2011-12-26T11:48:00.001-07:00

After a whirlwind of a weekend in Georgia, Bill and I are back in Benson. Maybe now we can relax.

Although our flight on Thursday out of Tucson was delayed 45 minutes, we had a smooth flight into Atlanta. Thankfully, the airport wasn't too terribly busy, and we had no problems getting our rental car and heading out to my mama's.

Friday night was the big event: the wedding. My nephew, Ryan, married his sweet Katie. It was a small family affair, but I must say it was the sweetest wedding I've seen. Katie's daddy is a minister and performed the ceremony. It was very personal and simply lovely. I am so glad we were able to attend.

Bill and I don't dress up often. I mean everything is so casual now days. Even at church, most folks, including us, wear jeans most of the time. So, it was fun getting dressed up a little. Here is a picture of us at the wedding reception.

After the pictures and reception, the 1st Lieutenant and his bride were ready to go.

In year's past it was tradition to throw rice when the just married couple left the church. Twenty years ago, when Bill and I were married, the tradition was to throw birdseed. Now, apparently, the tradition is for the newlyweds to leave among sparklers. It was really cute and fun.

Everyone survived the wedding beautifully, and we still had Christmas to celebrate. We all attended the Christmas Eve service at church, and then gathered at my sister's for a delicious brunch on Christmas, before Bill and I flew back to Arizona, and the newlyweds flew off to Paris.

What a fun weekend we had with friends and family! Thank you God for Your many blessings.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T00:30:00.000-07:00

From our house to yours....Merry Christmas! Wherever you are and whatever you do, enjoy this special time of year.

Our Christmas Ham

2011-12-19T13:42:00.000-07:00

First let me say thanks for all of the recent comments and emails. Bill and I enjoy hearing from our blog readers. Many of you have asked about my job at Kartchner Caverns State Park. This is my second winter to work for Aramark, who operates the gift shop and cafe at Kartchner Caverns. I started on December 1, and so far, it is going great, and I see no reason why it should change.

Funny story from last week: I was opening the cafe by myself for the first time this year. I knew we were expecting a Sysco order. When Sysco arrived, they had the things we normally order: sliced cheddar cheese, sandwich bread, lettuce, etc. Then the delivery guy asked if we were expecting 12 cases of ham. What? We are a small cafe, and I couldn't imagine why we would receive 12 cases of ham. Plus, it was not on my copy of the order. I called my manager, and she said to accept the 12 cases. Alrighty, then.

Turns out the 12 cases were actually 12 hams that the manager ordered as Christmas gifts for all of us workers. The hams were huge, probably 15-20 pounds. Then I heard the rest of the story. Our manager ordered smaller hams to be delivered the first part of December. They never arrived. When she called to check on them, she was informed Sysco was out of the hams she ordered, and they would replace her order with larger hams at no additional cost.

I brought the ham home and put in the fridge. (We had to rearrange the items in the fridge and remove a shelf.) Yesterday after church, I brought out the ham. It was as big as I thought. I had to do something with it, as Bill and I will be in Georgia for Christmas. I used my chef's knife and cut the ham into smaller pieces and put a good bit of it into freezer bags. Bill delivered those bags to our friends, Rich & Ronda and Paul & Vickie. For the remainder of the ham, I used the Food Saver that my mama gave me when I visited back in October. Now we have lots of ham in the freezer, and I am not complaining. As we were cutting up and packaging the ham, Bill and I had to have a taste. It is delicious!

So, if any of you have some good ham recipes, would you mind sending them our way???

Southern Arizona is in the Desert...Right?

2011-12-14T17:16:00.000-07:00

R-A-I-N! We have gotten lots of rain here in Benson, AZ., so much in fact, we have started to question if we are actually in the desert. Of course it had to rain on Monday and Tuesday, my days off. But it takes more than rain to keep us down.

On Tuesday Bill and I, along with our friends Rich and Ronda, visited the Biosphere 2, outside of Tucson. In a previous post, I mentioned we had purchased a discount book for attractions in the Tucson area. Well, with a 2-for-1 entrance coupon, we loaded up our rain gear and headed out.

Are you familiar with Biosphere 2? Do you recall back in the early 1990's a group of eight people lived inside the biosphere for two years. It was an experiment to see if humans could live within a closed environment. Depending on who to talk to, some folks saw the experiment as a success, while others considered it a failure.

Within the biosphere are several different landscapes or "biomes." Because everything was inside and close, it was very hard to take any decent pictures. But, here you go...

Here is the 1,900 square meter rainforest. At one point they had bushbabies and hummingbirds living within the rainforest. However, they got rid of the bushbabies when the hummingbirds began to disappear. Apparently, bushbabies like to eat hummingbirds.

There is also an 850 square meter ocean with a coral reef....

And just beyond the ocean was the 450 square meter mangrove wetland. I hadn't seen mangroves since leaving the Florida Keys in 2005.

Although the "human" experiment ended 20 years ago, research continues within the Biosphere 2. Much of today's research is focused on how plants react to water or the lack thereof.

After touring the different biomes, our guide led us to the below-ground level technical infrastructure. This is where everything happened to insure the Biosphere participants had fresh water and enough oxygen to survive.

And here is the South Lung (there is also a West Lung). This contraption, weighing 16 tons and held up by air pressure, insured there was enough oxygen within the Biosphere. Don't even ask me to explain how it all worked. : )

There is also a solar panel experiment taking place at Biosphere 2. They have set up every different kind of solar panel imaginable and are comparing them to see which type is best. Of course, this got Bill's attention.

We enjoyed our visit to Biosphere 2. However, a sunny day would have been nice so that we could explore more outside the Biosphere. But, the 2-for-1 coupon made it worthwhile, even in the pouring rain.

2011 Bean Counting

2011-12-11T16:21:00.001-07:00

When Bill and I had our business in the Florida Keys, I was the bookkeeper, or as Bill always called it, the bean counter. Even though I no longer keep books for a business, I still keep track of lots of numbers...I just can't help it! Anyway, I've noticed lots of bloggers starting to recap their 2011 expenses, and it got me curious about our numbers for the year.

I have never posted our monthly expenditures. The main reason is because it varies so much from person to person. No two fulltimers live the same way. We all choose to spend our money differently. When folks ask me what it costs to fulltime, I simply tell them it takes whatever you have. I'm not being a smart-alec...it's the truth.

However, I did put some numbers together that you may find interesting. I know I did.

For 2011, we averaged a per-night camp fee of just $2.48. We didn't do a lot of "traveling" this year. Basically, we went from Benson, AZ to Yellowstone and back again. We stayed on our lot in Benson, AZ for 190 nights. We have no nightly fee, but I did include our yearly maintenance fees of $592 when figuring our average nightly fee. We also worked in Yellowstone for 155 nights where we had no nightly fee.

We stayed in national parks for 167 nights, including Yellowstone, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Grand Teton National Park and Zion National Park. We stayed in privately owned parks for 8 nights. Two of those nights were in a Coast to Coast park, and one night was in a Passport America park.

We put 17,905 miles on the truck and bought 1,383.04 gallons of diesel with an average price of $3.87 per gallon. The lowest we paid for diesel was $3.05 at Fry's in Sierra Vista, AZ on January 2, and the highest we paid was $4.34 at Conoco in West Yellowstone, MT on May 4. We averaged 12.9 miles per gallon, including towing and non-towing miles.

Looking ahead to 2012, we plan to return to Yellowstone for the summer, and a fall trip to the east coast may be in the works. If these plans come together, I know an average nightly fee of $2.48 will be just a fond memory.

Back at It

2011-12-04T13:51:00.001-07:00

Well, I am once again among the gainfully employed. I started work back at Kartchner Caverns State Park on December 1. It was great seeing all of my former co-workers, and after our hugs and hellos, I felt as if I had never left. Everything is coming back to me pretty easily, I'm just thankful they didn't change the procedures too much in the gift shop or in the cafe. (I just can't remember how long to cook the bacon for the BLT!)

I'll be working about four days a week, which is perfect! It allows Bill and me time to get out and enjoy the area. To help us do that, we purchased a Tucson Attractions Passport, a small booklet that has quite a few coupons, many 2-for-1, for attractions in and around Tucson. At $18, it is well worth it. We plan to use as many coupons as we possibly can this winter. If any of you are planning on spending time in Tucson this winter, you might want to check it out!

While I've been working, don't think that Bill has gotten off scot-free. He has found a few projects he wants to complete this winter. The first one he tackled is adding fiberglass insulation to the shed on our lot. We have a washer and dryer in the shed, and we hope to protect it from the freezing weather, which we know will come sometime this winter.

Here is Bill geared up to work with fiberglass insulation. Notice he even taped his sleeves closed to keep the insulation off of him.

It took him about three days, and the shed looks great! (I love being married to a guy who can do anything!) It's a good thing he got finished...we are expecting freezing temperatures early this week.

Our good friends from Yellowstone, Rich and Ronda, arrived on December 1. They recently sold their sticks and bricks and are fulltimers once again. They plan to stay most of the winter, so we look forward to getting out and exploring the area together.

Oh yeah, for those you working at Amazon. Keep up the good work! We've ordered a few things recently, and we've received many of them overnight, without even requesting it! You pickers & receivers are doing one heck of a job!

Black Friday to Cyber Monday

2011-11-28T11:03:00.001-07:00

I have many memories of hitting the shopping malls at 6:00 a.m. the day after Thanksgiving. My sisters and I would spend Thanksgiving afternoon mapping out our strategy so we could get the best deals. My how things have changed. I guess living in a box will do that to you.

I hope all of you enjoyed your Thanksgiving and have recovered nicely from any food coma. We finished up our leftovers on Saturday, and anything that remained was thrown in the garbage.

After a few years of prodding from my dear husband, I have finally succumbed. On Saturday I did something I have never done before. I ordered my first pair of prescription glasses. And I'm not getting a bit of sympathy! Even when I called my sweet mama and whined to her, she simply said, "Cathy, I've been wearing glasses for years. It's not a big deal."

Basically, I am getting reading glasses. I've been using "cheaters" that I bought at the drugstore, and I've hated having to put them on and take them off, and just keeping up with them is a pain. So, once I get my new glasses, I can wear them and have them when I need them. So, this is a good thing...right??? I mean, when we are driving down the highway, and Bill asks what exit we will be taking, I will no longer look at the atlas and say, "Well, it looks like exit 85, or is that 88, or maybe it's 68?"

So, that was the highlight of our holiday weekend. Oh, and it looks like I will be starting work once again at Kartchner Caverns State Park on December 1. Now, we are really getting settled in for the winter.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-23T13:43:00.001-07:00

Thanks for all of the comments and emails about our new blog format. I think we'll stick with it.

Bill and I wish all of you a very happy Thanksgiving, albeit a day early. We will be enjoying a Thanksgiving-for-two this year. And even though it is just the two of us, I have already started cooking.

I've never been a big fan of the canned cranberry sauce, so I am making my own this year. It is on the stove now, and while it doesn't look like Christmas around here, it sure is smelling like it with all of the spices in the cranberry sauce.

The weather here in southeast Arizona could get interesting over the holiday weekend. We are expecting a tropical storm...yes, a tropical storm in southeast Arizona! I thought when we left Florida, we would be leaving those kinds of storms behind. Oh well, as they always say, Arizona needs the rain.

Wherever you are spending Thanksgiving, we wish you the best. And don't forget to take a few minutes, look around, and be thankful for all that you have.

I read something this morning that stuck with me, "We don't need more to be thankful for, we just need to be more thankful."

Blog Changes

2011-11-19T17:50:00.001-07:00

As you can probably tell, Bill and I have changed the format of our blog. We are trying to make it easier for folks to navigate between our web page and blog.

It is still a work in progress, and we still have a few things to tweak. We've been looking at it so much, I think I'm about to go cross-eyed!

So, what do you think about the new look?

New Friends!

2011-11-19T11:27:00.000-07:00

I have said over and over that one of the best things of living the fulltime RV lifestyle is the folks we meet along the way. Yesterday lived up to that statement.

We met future fulltimers, Jerry and Kim, for lunch in Tucson. They have been following our blog and dropped us an email about getting together. We had a great visit! We talked like we had known each other for years, and I don't think anyone would have believed we had just met.

That's how it is with fulltimers. From the get-go we have lots in common and lots to talk about. Jerry and Kim have done their homework, and I hope we were able to provide some good first-hand knowledge.

I love meeting new and future fulltimers. They bring so much excitement and remind us once again that we do have a great life!

None of us brought a camera inside, so we took a group shot outside in the parking lot.

You can keep up with Jerry and Kim on their blog at Creating the Life . Now, we just need somebody to buy their house!

Can't Play all of the Time

2011-11-15T13:30:00.000-07:00

Although Bill and I thoroughly enjoyed our camping trips over the past couple of weeks, we knew real life would call. Even though this week's weather looks very nice, perfect for camping, we are staying home and taking care of things. Things like oil changes, rig maintenance, and hair cuts. Boring, I know, but it has to be done.

There is one bright spot, however. On Friday, we are meeting some of our blog followers. We always enjoy meeting our readers, but it is also a little strange. All of you know so much more about us. : ) It still amazes me that folks actually read and follow along with us. But, I'm so glad you do, and being able to meet some of you is the icing on the cake!

Oh yeah, it looks like Bill and I will be making an unplanned trip to Georgia for Christmas. My oldest nephew, Ryan, the West Point graduate, will be getting married on December 23. Of course, we have to be there! Ryan is scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan spring of 2012, so he and Katie decided to get married now so they can spend some time together before he leaves.

And it looks like I may start work the first part of December. So, as we settle into winter, things will soon be getting very busy around here.

Gila Box Riparian National Conservation Area - Day 3

2011-11-12T00:37:00.003-07:00

This morning Bill and I awoke to no wind, but cloudy skies. But, before too long, the sun was up and burned off the clouds. We had us a beautiful day! Perfect for hiking. Today we headed to Bonita Creek and once again, we started off cross country.

This area has typical dessert plants: ocotillo, prickly pear cactus, and creosote. Speaking of ocotillo, this place was covered in them! Bill and I hope to get back in March see them in bloom.

We finally reached an overlook into Bonita Creek. We were still amazed at all of the "green" in the middle of the desert.

We picked up one of the primitive roads and walked down into the canyon. Can you believe this picture was taken in the desert???

The most exciting thing was just around the corner, literally. As we continued around a curve in the road, we saw a coatimundi! These animals are found only in SE Arizona and SW New Mexico. We are always on the lookout for them, and today was the day...finally! We saw three of them, one adult and two juveniles. Unfortunately, it all happened so quickly, I was unable to get a picture, so here is one I've borrowed from wikipedia:

And you can read about this animal here. We were so excited to finally see these guys.

After a while we headed back to our campsite, where we were treated to a beautiful sunset....

....and moonrise....

Gila Box Riparian National Conservation Area - Day 2

2011-11-11T08:06:00.019-07:00

We knew the weather today would be "iffy," so after breakfast we bundled up and headed down to the river. There was no real trail, so we just walked cross country. In no time, we were down along the Gila River.

I am always hoping to see some sort of wildlife. We didn't see any four-legged creatures, but we saw this big eight-legged one.

And then the rains came. We made it back to the campsite quickly and hunkered down inside the tent. We both had good books to read, so we were fine.

The rain finally stopped, but the winds remained and steadily got stronger. We needed to cook supper and had to create some sort of wind break. Bill, who is always prepared for most anything, took out this tarp and created a wind break.

And it worked well. The temperature was dropping, but at least we were out of the wind for the most part while cooking dinner. We prepared a Mexican chicken and rice dish in the Dutch oven.

By the time dinner was done and the dishes were cleaned, it was dark, windy, and cold. No fire for us tonight! Back to the tent for more reading. Tomorrow's forecast is better!

Gila Box Riparian National Conservation Area - Day 1

2011-11-10T11:58:00.000-07:00

We have discovered a real gem! Has any of you ever heard of this place? We hadn't until we began to do a little research on where we wanted to camp.

This is how the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) describes it:
"The Gila Box Riparian National Conservation Area (NCA) is one of Arizona's best kept secrets. This 23,000-acre NCA was designated by Congress in 1990 to protect its valuable riparian habitats and related values for present and future generations. More than 20 miles of the Gila River and 15 miles of Bonita Creek form the lifeblood of the NCA's riparian system. Short section of two other perennial waterways, the San Francisco River and Eagle Creek, flow intot he Gila within the NCA. Abundant wildlife, scenic vistas, and plenty of shade make this cool oasis worth a visit."

In other words, the Gila River and Bonita Creek create a ribbon of green that flows through the desert.

We were so surprised. This time of year, the rivers in Arizona are pretty much bone dry. To see the Gila full of water and supporting all of the green trees was a shock.

There are two campgrounds that bookend the Gila Box. Riverview Campground on one end and Owl Creek Campground on the other. We chose Riverview. Everything we read said the campground was accessed by a maintained dirt road. I guess "maintained" means different things to different people. We had no trouble with the truck, but we would never bring our fiver down these roads. Some stretches of the road were worse than others.

And yes, that sign does say 15% grade. : )

I'm glad the roads were well marked. There were dirt roads leading all over the place.

One of the reasons we chose Riverview was because we read the campground had big sites. Well, we sure weren't disappointed. There are 13 sites, and we chose site number 2. Another camper was in #4, and that was it, except for the campground host.

Our site overlooked the Gila River. Although we could hear the river, we couldn't see it, due to all of the trees and undergrowth. After getting set up, Bill brought out the spotting scope to see if he could spot anything on the cliffs beyond the river. Not much was going on, except for a big hawk who just hung around all afternoon.

After our normal first night camping dinner of bratwursts and potatoes, we settled in around a nice campfire for the evening. We were looking forward to a couple of days of exploring this amazing place.

Chiricahua National Monument - Part 3

2011-11-01T15:09:00.001-06:00

After our hike yesterday, we decided to take it easy on our last day in Chiricahua National Monument. After a leisurely breakfast, we decided to visit the Faraway Ranch Historic District which is within Chiricahua National Monument.

There is an easy trail that leads from the campground to Faraway Ranch, which began as a homestead of the Erickson family back in 1887. Over the years it evolved into a guest ranch which was operated by the oldest Erickson child, Lillian, and her husband Ed Riggs. Faraway Ranch has an interesting history which you can read about here. This is the first house the Neil and Emma Erickson lived in, before building the main house.

Bill and I did not inquire about the tours that are offered, and instead, we just meandered about the property on our own. We had the place to ourselves, except for these guys.

We are now back in Benson and planning our next outing. We're thinking somewhere around Safford, AZ.

Thank you for all of the recent comments and emails. I primarily keep this blog as a keepsake for Bill and me. However, it is great to know other folks read it and hopefully enjoy it. Here are answers to some of the questions I have received:

1. Bill and I do not backpack. (We do love our day hikes, though.) Our camping is what is called "truck camping." We load up the truck and drive to a campsite. Believe me, with all the stuff we bring, there is no way we could backpack! Whoever said camping must be uncomfortable? We have our big tent, cots, sleeping pads, sleeping bags, etc. etc.

2. While we are out tent camping, our fifth wheel is on our site in Benson, AZ. When we began fulltiming, we realized we missed "camping." Camping and living in an RV are NOT the same thing. So, now we have a pop-up that we enjoy on our weekends in Yellowstone during the summer, and we tent camp while in Arizona during the winter.

3. And Sherry, one day our paths are sure to cross. You can pick the trail!

Chiricahua National Monument - Part 2

2011-10-31T12:26:00.044-06:00

One of the best things about living the fulltime lifestyle is the friendships that we have made through the years. We now have friends all over the country, from Florida to Montana, and it is always fun to meet up when our paths cross.

The reason Bill and I decided to visit Chiricahua was due to an invitation to hike by our fulltiming friends, Art and Connie. They were in Willcox, AZ for a few days, so we met up for a hike in nearby Chiricahua.

The first time Bill and I hiked Chiricahua, we took advantage of the hikers' shuttle provided by the National Park Service. We took the free shuttle from the visitor center to the top of the scenic road where we picked up a major trailhead. From there, we hiked down through the most amazing rocks until we reached the visitor center where we left our truck.

Well, this time was a little different. Due to damage incurred from Horseshore Fire in June of this year, the scenic drive is closed for repairs. So, today we hiked up from the visitor center to "The Heart of the Rocks," 3 1/2 miles with a 1,400 foot elevation gain, before retracing our steps back to the visitor center. Definitely not as easy as taking the shuttle, but it was a great hike nonetheless. Here are a few pictures on our way up:

And here a few pictures from "The Heart of the Rocks," a 1.1 mile loop hike through amazing rock formations. This one is called "Punch & Judy."

And this one, "Duck on a Rock," is one of my favorites.

And what would this park be without a "Balanced Rock?"

And here is a picture to prove we all made it to the top:

After working our way back down the trail (or as Art would say cheating our way down), we enjoyed a dinner of BBQ chicken, provided by Chef Bill. All in all, it was a very good day!

Chiricahua National Monument - Part 1

2011-10-30T18:17:00.000-06:00

Bill and I have just returned from a great camping trip to Chiricahua National Monument. We have visited and hiked this "Wonderland of Rocks" before, but this was our first camping experience here. What an enjoyable three days we had.

There is one campground inside the monument, Bonita Canyon Campground, and reservations are not accepted. We thought we would be safe arriving on a Thursday, and we were. We got a nice site not too far from the restrooms. Since we were in a tent, being close to the restroom is important. : )

After getting set up, we had some official business to take care of. Did I mention Bill had a birthday last week? Well, this was a very special birthday, as he now qualifies for the National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Senior Pass, aka the "old fart" card. For a one time fee of $10, the card holder (and folks with him) gains free access to most national parks, national monuments, etc. and saves 50% on camping fees in most national campgrounds (National Parks, National Forests, Corp of Engineers, etc). We plan to use the heck out of this card! And here is the proud card holder.

When tent camping, Bill and I enjoy having a campfire. Although ground fires are not permitted in the campground, fires are allowed in the grills provided on the site. We weren't sure how it would work, but it wasn't bad. The fire still felt good once the sun went down and the temperature began to drop.

The campground has just 25 sites, and there is a maximum vehicle length of 29'. Our site was a good size, and we had plenty of elbow room. We also had daily visitors. The first to pay us a visit was the Acorn Woodpecker. These birds flew among the many trees in the campground, and it didn't take us long to get used to their constant "peck, peck, peck" on the tree trunks.

Our second daily visitor was the Mexican Jay. These birds are known as "camp robbers." We had to keep an eye on any food we had out, as these guys were wanting their share...and they almost succeeded in getting a small bag of potato chips.

After Bill grilled a couple of bratwursts for supper, we settled in with a nice warm fire, and were looking forward to a good hike with good friends on day 2.

Mt. Lemmon

2011-10-26T12:28:00.000-06:00

October in SE Arizona is nice! The weather has been absolutely gorgeous, although temps in the low 90s is a tad warm for us. Spending summers in Yellowstone, with highs maybe reaching the 80s, has really spoiled us. But today things are cooling off a bit with a high predicted in the mid-70s.

But even with the warm temps, there are cool places to escape, even in SE AZ. The other day we drove up to Mt. Lemmon, via the Mt. Lemmon Scenic Byway in Tucson. Although we have driven part of this highway in the past, the upper portion of the road was always closed due to snow. Yes, snow...in southern Arizona. In fact, there is a ski resort at the top of Mt. Lemmon, where the elevation is about 9,000 feet.

As we drove up the highway, we saw the outside temperature drop from 83 degrees to 63 degrees. It was a very pretty drive, and here are a few pics.

There are a few campgrounds and lots of picnic areas along the drive. We stopped for lunch at one towards the top of the mountain, and with the breeze, it was a bit chilly.

We had to laugh at this sign. We just thought we were out of bear country when we left Yellowstone. At least we are out of grizzly bear country. : )

We have been enjoying nice sunsets and moon rises in Benson. The full moon was gorgeous the other night.

I've mentioned we hope to do some tent camping. Well, it looks like tomorrow is the day. We'll be out of touch for a few days, but I hope to bring back some great adventures and photos to share with you. Until then....

I'm Back!

2011-10-20T10:59:00.012-06:00

It's good to be home!

I had a great visit with family in Georgia, and I always get teary-eyed when saying good-bye to my mama, but it was good to get back to Bill and Arizona.

The main reason for my visit was to celebrate my mama's 70th birthday. The sisters and I carried her out for a movie and dinner. We watched the new "Footloose," and I have to admit it was very good. I loved the original from 1984, and at first, my younger sister and I agreed that the original was better. However, after watching the original the following day, we had to admit the new one is better. The 80's version is really dated now; however, I still think the original soundtrack is better. I guess I'm showing my age. : )

For dinner, we went to Provino's, a good Italian restaurant in town, where they give free dinners to folks on their birthdays. Hard to pass up a deal like that. Here are a couple of pictures from dinner.

Me and my mama, the Birthday Girl!

The Girls - my sisters & me!

Something cool happened while I was in Georgia: the hummingbirds discovered the feeder Bill put up last spring. We have enjoyed sitting out and watching the hummers do battle over the feeder. They are so territorial! Now, it's time for Bill and me to do some camping! Stay tuned!

Leaving on a Jet Plane

2011-10-13T17:28:00.001-06:00

Tomorrow, I fly to Atlanta! I'm not thrilled about the Atlanta part, but I can't wait to see my sisters, and my mama, and two of my nephews and bro in law. Oh, I'm sure I'll squeeze in a visit to the grandparents, as well. And for Ryan, my nephew at Ft. Riley in Kansas, I'll wave as we fly over.

I bet the feds who keep track of emails and cell phone calls have seen an uptick in activity between Benson, AZ and Douglasville, GA. And I haven't even mentioned Facebook! Sisters and I have been planning birthday dinners, get-togethers, shopping trips, etc. Is it any wonder that Bill is "sacrificing" and staying in Arizona?

But, Bill should be OK. Lately, I've cooked dinners that provided good leftovers for the freezer. I made a run to the grocery store today, and we went to Costco yesterday. I don't think he'll starve. Plus, I'll be sure make a pan of brownies before I leave. Who would ever believe he was a bachelor for 42 years???

The next few days will be busy ones for me. The big event, of course, is my mama's 70th birthday on Saturday. I think 70 is the new 50...for my mama, anyway. She is still going strong!

I don't know if I'll be posting while in Georgia, when I get with the girls, I never know what to expect!

Home Sweet Home

2011-10-07T20:10:00.001-06:00

Today we had planned to stop for the night in Camp Verde, AZ. However, with the time change (AZ doesn't change time, so we gained an hour when we entered the state), we were on the road before 8:00 this morning. Bill made the comment, "If we keep going, we could be back in Benson before dark." We decided to play it by ear and see how we felt later in the day.

Well, we reached Camp Verde before noon and kept going. At 4:30, we pulled into our winter home in Benson, AZ.

I was shocked to see this towering plant! That "sprout" or whatever it is called, grew to that height while we were gone. You can probably tell I'm not a plant person. : )

We are getting settled in for the winter. I'll be heading to Georgia soon for a visit with the family. And then we'll see what winter in Arizona has in store for us this year.

Lee's Ferry - Arizona

2011-10-06T18:50:00.001-06:00

After a day of rain on Wednesday, more rain was predicted for today, our travel day. We have traveled in the rain before; we just don't prefer it. Thank goodness forecasts can be wrong. Once we got on the road, the skies cleared, and we had a nice day for going on down the road.

Today we took Hwy 89A along the top of Arizona, with our destination being Lee's Ferry, which is part of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Hwy 89A is a pretty desolate piece of highway. At one point, we climbed from about 2,000 feet to almost 8,000 feet, near the north rim of the Grand Canyon. Before we began the climb, we started to notice vehicles with snow on them coming from that direction. Sure enough, once we got higher in elevation, we began to see the white stuff.

We were happy when we reached the summit, and the road began to descend. We were soon pulling in for the night and were very happy to see none of the white stuff.

Lee's Ferry is situated along the Colorado River, which can be seen from the campground.

We decided to take a walk down to the river for a closer look. We were surprised to see this sign.

So, I guess we can say we walked down to the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon...sure beats doing it with a 5,000' elevation climb down and back up!

Zion - Last Day

2011-10-06T08:16:00.000-06:00

And then the rains moved in. The rain that had been predicted finally arrived, which made a day perfect for reading, putzing on the computer, watching a little television and making a batch of brownies. Nothing too exciting.

Sad to hear of Steve Job's death. He was only 56. Just shows that having oodles of money can't buy you a long life. So, embrace life now; live the life you've imagined.

Zion - Days 3 & 4

2011-10-04T16:13:00.000-06:00

After doing some hiking and exploring on Sunday, Bill and I decided to lay low on Monday. We walked to the town of Springdale, Utah, which is just outside the park's entrance. We picked up a few groceries and enjoyed an ice cream cone. Later in the day, we watched a cold front move in, which lowered the temperatures significantly. That was fine with us since the temps had been way above average for this time of year. Cooler temps mean better hiking!

Speaking of hiking, this morning we were up and out early. We had wanted to catch the first shuttle of the day at 7:00 a.m., but didn't quite make it. We did get the 7:30 one.

Today's agenda: Angels Landing

According to the park's newspaper,

Angels Landing is a 5.4 mile round trip hike with a 1,488 foot elevation gain with long drop-offs.

Not for young children or anyone fearful of heights.

Last section is a route along a steep, narrow ridge to the summit.

Angels Landing is probably the most popular hike in Zion. Bill and I had to give it a shot, but we both agreed that if either of us wanted to turn back, we would. So, how did we do? Keep reading to find out....

Here is the view of Angels Landing from the beginning of the trail.

From the start, the trail climbs. I'm glad most of the trail was paved. It was easier to keep traction on the really steep sections.

We had beautiful views of Zion Canyon the entire way.

And did I mention that the trail climbs? Here is a picture I took while we stopped to catch our breath. And yes, it is as bad as it looks. : )

In just a bit, we reached "Walter's Wiggles," a series of 21 switchbacks. We were literally going up the face of a mountain.

After all of that climbing, we reached "Scouts Lookout," a great spot to rest before climbing the last 3/4 mile to the summit of Angels Landing.

Of course there are the necessary warning signs.

Here we go....

I was able to get a few pictures of Bill maneuvering along the trail, aided by chains drilled into the face of the mountain. I was holding on for dear life.

After successfully getting through the first group of chains, we were greeted with this view.

The trail went down quite a ways and then back up along this narrow ridge to the summit. We both studied it a bit, and then Bill said, "I don't think we need to do this." Boy, was I relieved! For those folks who make it to the top, good for you! And good for us for having the good sense to turn back. : )

But, all was not lost. After working our way back through the chains, we picked up the West Rim Trail from Scout's Lookout. What beautiful views! We were as high as Angels Landing and didn't have to deal with chains or scampering across the face of a cliff.

And we got this great view of Walter's Wiggles:

Moral of the story: No where does it state that you must climb the highest mountain or hike the longest trail. The main thing is to get out. Spend time with nature. Get to know a national park...you'll never be the same.

Zion - Days 1 & 2

2011-10-03T09:35:00.000-06:00

On Saturday, we arrived to a nice site in the Watchman Campground inside Zion National Park.

I am glad it's a nice site because we reserved it on-line. We would have no one else to blame if we didn't like it.

Watchman Campground is nice. Like many national parks, the sites are huge, but unlike many national parks, the sites have electricity! Our site even has 50 amps. It is still quite warm here in southern Utah, and we actually turned the AC on for a while on Sunday. This was the only time we had it on since leaving Benson, AZ in April.

Zion is definitely a hiker's park! While one can enjoy the beauty of the park on the scenic drive on the park shuttle (more on that later), I love getting out in the park on one of the many trails.

Our first hike was Watchman Trail, easily accessed from the campground.

From the overlook at the top of Watchman Trail, we could see our rig down in the campground. That's our 5er with the truck out front.

Now, more about the shuttle in Zion. During the summer months and to the end of October, folks cannot drive into Zion Canyon, the main area of the park. Zion provides a free shuttle system which drives up and down Zion Canyon making several stops along the way.

We first experienced the shuttle during our 2006 visit. We love it! Once we get settled into our site, we park the truck and don't have to move it until we hook-up to leave. To catch the shuttle, we only have to walk to the nearby visitor center.

Yesterday afternoon we hopped on the shuttle to do a little exploring.

After a busy day of exploring, we have enjoyed sitting out in the cool afternoons and watching the sunset at the end of another great day.

For Our Friends, John & Lisa, in Bozeman

2011-10-02T08:47:00.000-06:00

We found our marbles! Believe me, after working in Yellowstone for the summer, we definitely lost a few!

What fun! We are now in Zion National Park, and we have friends who will begin working here November 1. We enjoyed finding the cache so much, are going to follow your lead, and leave one for them.

Fall in the Tetons

2011-10-02T08:41:00.000-06:00

The last posting I did was a brief one about the horrible traffic we encountered coming through Salt Lake City. Well, allow me to back up a few days and tell you about the three great days we had in Grand Teton National Park.

After closing Fishing Bridge RV Park and spending another night in the park, we headed south just a bit to our neighboring national park. The aspen trees were a beautiful golden. We stopped at a popular overlook, Oxbow Bend, to get a few pictures. The haze from the wildland fires distracted from the picture, but the golden leaves could still be seen.

We continued south to one of our favorite campgrounds, Gros Ventre Campground. This is a no-reservation campground, and we were hoping a nice big site would be available in the A loop...and it was. Not too shabby, huh? We had a great view of the Tetons out the front, and wide open space behind us that leads to the Gros Ventre River out the back, where we were hoping to see moose out our back window.

On our second morning, while enjoying our first cup of coffee, Bill looked out and spotted a female moose. I was unable to get a picture, but it counts. I always tell folks if they want to see a moose, go to Gros Ventre Campground. It never disappoints.

The weather was warm and sunny, and we were able to get out for a hike. We hiked out to Taggert Lake and Bradley Lake, via the Beaver Creek Trail, which amounted to a 6 mile loop hike. Here are a few pictures:

Here I am taking a break at Bradley Lake and enjoying the view.

This next picture requires an explanation. As Bill and I were coming down the trail, we saw a pretty 20-something striking a yoga pose on this rock, while her male companion took a picture. Not to be outdone, I had to strike a pose as well. I guess this is a "40-something hiker" pose. : )

And here's a picture of Taggert Lake. You can see how calm the water was, providing a nice reflection.

And here are the majestic Tetons.

Although we saw lots of moose tracks, elk tracks, and even wolf tracks, this is the only wildlife I was able to capture in a picture. He was definitely enjoying his pine cone.

After our hike, we took the scenic route home. Fall has definitely come to the Tetons.

Bill had just made the comment that we hadn't seen any bison, and then we came upon this scene. It's nice to know they are still around.

One afternoon during our stay, we decided to walk the campground. And once again, we spotted a moose. We had heard moose had been hanging out along the river near the closed loops in the campground. We watched this girl for a while before heading back to the rig.

We had such a good visit to the Tetons; I can't believe I was able to condense it into one posting. We have moved further south and arrived in Zion National Park yesterday. More to follow....

We've Resurfaced!

2011-09-30T18:57:00.000-06:00

After three glorious days in Grand Tetons National Park, we pulled out today and headed south. The drive through Salt Lake City took much longer than expected, due to an "event" in Provo. Needless to say, we are worn out.

I'll post more about our adventures once I recover from being back in the real world. : )

Tomorrow we head to Zion National Park.

Put a Fork in It...It's Done!

2011-09-27T06:49:00.000-06:00

This is the view from our rig.

Fishing Bridge RV Park is closed for the season. We've had a busy last few days, having dinner with friends, having a last pot luck with the crew, covering signs and packing up the office.

We officially closed at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday, September 25. The staff's check out date was Monday, September 26. Most folks checked out as soon as Personnel opened at 8:00 a.m. Being a manager, I had to hang around to make sure the last few office items were picked up by Dave, the Courier.

While waiting on Dave to show up, Bill and I were hanging around outside the front of the registration building. We hear a noise, and notice a herd of bison coming down from the RV park, walking through the parking lot, heading southeast towards the east entrance road. There were probably about 50 or 60 bison...big ones, little ones, some running, some just moseying, and quite a few grunting. When they started getting just a tad too close, Bill and I stepped into the office and watched the from the doorway. It's like the wildlife knows when the RV park closes, and they make it their own once again. I told Bill it was nice of them to come by and tell us good bye. : )

After checking out with Personnel, everyone had the option of leaving or staying for one more night. Three rigs stayed the additional night. (Why pass up a free night in Yellowstone with no guests?) We grilled hot dogs and bratwursts and then enjoyed a last campfire. It was great to have an extra day to decompress from the busy summer.

Today we are in no hurry to leave. We're just going down to the Grand Teton National Park for a few days. After living in the middle of Yellowstone National Park for five months, we have to ease ourselves back into civilization. Wish us luck!

Our Last Yellowstone Hike for 2011

2011-09-22T11:26:00.000-06:00

Our days in Yellowstone are dwindling. Bill and I wanted to take advantage of the beautiful weather and do one last hike before the end of the season. The hike we chose is one we had been wanting to do but could never find a parking spot at the trail head. With the number of park visitors starting to decline, we decided to give it another shot.

We headed up to the Tower/Roosevelt area of the park, and were happy to find plenty of parking at the Yellowstone River Picnic Area. The trail we wanted to hike, aptly named "Yellowstone River Picnic Area Trail" begins here.

This is an easy 4-mile round trip hike. To begin the hike, the trail climbs about 200 feet through a pine forest and then levels out into an open meadow. The trail then follows along the Yellowstone River, which is 700' below. As you would expect, we were afforded many spectacular views.

We saw these guys off in the distance. We watched them as they watched us. We kept our distance, and they allowed us to pass without incident.

I expect to see thermal pools in the geyser basins throughout the park, but I was a little surprised to see these pools alongside the river. It's just a reminder that Yellowstone is sitting on an active volcano and geo-thermal features can show up just about anywhere.

And while we have been enjoying the beautiful fall weather, Bill keeps reminding me we are on borrowed time. At this time of year, the weather can change in an instant. Here's proof that fall is here...the aspen are starting to turn golden.

This was an excellent hike to end the season. The views were amazing, and other than the two bison, we saw no one else. And on the way home, we got caught in yet another bison jam.

And this picture shows how close the big guys get to the truck. We are in an F350 dually with four wheel drive, and this guy is still intimidating.

What a great way to end the season! I'm already looking forward to returning next year!

Yellowstone's Norris Geyser Basin

2011-09-15T09:22:00.000-06:00

With about two weeks left in Yellowstone, we are trying to do some things we've been wanting to do but haven't gotten around to it. It appears the crowds aren't leaving anytime soon, so we decided to get out there with them. (I keep looking for that first snowfall that tends to have people leaving the park in droves.)

Today, we visited Norris Geyser Basin, the oldest and hottest thermal area in the park. How hot is it, you ask? Well, a scientific drill hole once measured 401 degrees at just over 265 feet below the surface. The test well had to be abandoned, when steam pressure and temperatures almost destroyed the drilling rig. That, my friends, is hot!

We hadn't visit this geyser basin in a few years, and I had forgotten how big it is. We spent a couple of hours exploring and still did not see the entire basin.

Steamboat Geyser is the world's tallest active geyser, reaching 380 feet during an eruption. However, the eruptions are few and far between, with intervals between eruptions ranging from four days to 50 years! The steam phase that follows the eruption can last up to 12 hours. As you can probably guess, we didn't see this one erupt...maybe next time. : )

I can't believe we have just one more weekend. Bill is finally finished with the year-end movie (after many, many hours). We've got dinners planned with friends before we all head our separate ways. Before we know it, we'll be pulling out and heading south.

P.S. I've received some great emails lately! A special shout out to the folks stationed in Iraq! Thanks for reading, but most of all, thank you for your service!

Starting to Wind Down

2011-09-08T09:10:00.000-06:00

It must be September.

On Sunday we put the pop-up to bed for the winter. We keep a storage garage in Livingston, Montana where we store the pop-up, along with our kayaks and a couple of snow shovels. It's always a little sad to put everything away because that means we will be leaving Yellowstone soon.

After dropping everything off in Livingston, we continued on to Bozeman, where we spent a couple of days with our good friends, Gene and Joyce. I had a couple of doctor visits, so it is nice when I can combine that with visiting friends. Thank you, Gene and Joyce, for the wonderful hospitality and the great food...especially the steaks which were cooked to perfection and the divine meringue cookies. The cookies didn't last long, as Bill finished them off last night after dinner.

We are now back at Fishing Bridge with just a little over two weeks to go. Bill is making a year-end movie for everyone, so for the next several days, when not working, he will be in front of his Mac computer organizing everyone's photos into a great keepsake. We also have dinners planned with friends and hope to get in a few more hikes before we head out.

This could be a sad time for me, but knowing we will be back next summer (Lord willing) helps me to really enjoy the little time we have left in Yellowstone.

Our Three Day Weekend - Part II

2011-09-02T08:37:00.002-06:00

This morning we were up and at 'em. Our goal was to kayak String Lake into Leigh Lake. A friend and co-worker, Nan, told us about this paddle, and since we hadn't even gotten our kayaks wet this summer, we decided to give it a shot.

Our paddle began in String Lake, a small shallow lake at the base of the Teton Mountains.

In less than an hour we had reached the portage area. Playing like Lewis and Clark, we had to carry the kayaks about 100 yards to Leigh Lake. Technically, the two lakes are connected, but they are connected by some rough white water. So, in order to paddle Leigh Lake, one must portage the boat (in our case, two boats).

And here's the trail where we had to carry the kayaks.

And to get into Leigh Lake, we had to carry the kayaks down these stairs. It looks worse than it actually was.

I'm already in my kayak, and Bill is about to get into his.

Although not terribly crowded, String Lake had too many people paddling for our taste. But, we soon learned that most folks will not portage their boats, so we had Leigh Lake practically to ourselves.

After paddling along the perimeter and then stopping for lunch, we headed back. For some reason the portage going back sure seemed a lot longer than before. I wonder if kayaking for a few hours had anything to do with that?

What a beautiful day we had on the water. We have thoroughly enjoyed our long weekend in Grand Teton National Park.

Our Three Day Weekend - Part 1

2011-09-01T21:24:00.000-06:00

One of the perks I get as a campground front office manager is a three day weekend. And last week, I took mine. Since I'm the person who makes the work schedule each week, I was able to get Bill the extra day off as well. (Rank has its privileges.)

We had been vacillating on whether to go camping at a National Forest campground in Island Park, Idaho or go down to the Grand Teton National Park. My concern was the wildfire burning in the Gros Ventre Wilderness and the possible smoke in the park. However, after talking with a few folks who had just been in the Tetons, we learned that smoke has not been a problem. So, we headed to one of our favorite campgrounds in the Tetons, Gros Ventre Campground.

We checked in and picked out a site with a nice view of the Tetons on one side and within easy walking distance of the Gros Ventre River on the other side.

On our first morning, I walked down to the river while Bill was getting the coffee going. It was perfect timing! As I got to the river, these three fellows came swimming by. Otters are one of my most favorite animals, and these guys were having a ball swimming and diving as they went down the river.

After breakfast, Bill and I had some errands to run. We wanted to get info on kayaking and then we had to run down to the grocery store in Jackson to pick up a few things for my birthday dinner.

On our way to the Moose Visitor Center, we saw a lot of cars pulled off to the side of the road. We went on and parked at the visitor center before walking back to see this beautiful bull moose.

Yellowstone visitors are always asking where they can see a moose. I always tell them Grand Teton National Park. The park hasn't failed us yet.

After we got back from the grocery store, Bill was soon preparing my birthday dinner. He was making beef stroganoff in his Dutch oven. The winds had really picked up, so he put one of his cook tables on its side to use as a wind break.

And here's the finished product. This meal is so rich and so high in calories, we don't eat it often. But it is probably my favorite birthday meal.

And what's a birthday without cake? We picked up this slice of Red Velvet Cake while at the grocery store. It was just enough for the two of us without any leftovers.

After dinner, we took a short walk around the campground and then came back to enjoy a campfire and to do some star gazing. We are always amazed at the number of stars we can see out here. The Milky Way looks close enough to reach up and grab a hand full of stars.

After a good night's sleep, we awoke to this nice view of the Tetons with the sun shining on the tops of the peaks.

Our three day weekend is going well. Stay tuned to see what else we get into.

In Search of Tomato Soup

2011-08-23T18:28:00.000-06:00

While at a managers' meeting earlier in the month, I overheard some folks talking about a hot spring named Tomato Soup. It gets its name because it has the color of cream of tomato soup. This hot spring is in the Yellowstone back country and no trail leads to it. You have to hike cross country. When I asked for details on the spring's location, my friends were very elusive. My curiosity was definitely piqued.

Since I received little information on the where to find this hot spring, Bill and I did some research. With a little knowledge in hand, we headed out today in search of "tomato soup."

We knew which pull out we needed to park the truck (we think), and we knew the general direction (we think). So, we parked the truck, put on our backpacks and headed cross country. We followed along a small creek and then entered the forest. We fought our way through the pine trees and then climbed up the side of a ridge. We finally broke out onto a thermal area.

We saw lots of great pools and thermal features but not another human. It was great! I remember our first trip to Yellowstone in 1991 I could not imagine hiking out here. I just knew if I stepped onto a trail a grizzly bear would be waiting to devour me. Fast forward 20 years and we are hiking off trail in grizzly country! My how I have changed!

OK, we saw these great features.....

We even saw this cool dragonfly...

....but no Tomato Soup.

We climbed another ridge and decided to take a water break and eat some trail mix. After we got our strength back, we headed off once again. We entered another treed area, but through the trees we both saw something red. Could it be? Yes, indeed! Tomato Soup!

Mission accomplished!

What a fun hike! We had this entire area to ourselves and saw features few people see. As we got back in the truck and pulled out, we couldn't help but notice all the crowds at the nearby geyser basins. We just smiled.

Just What the Doctor Ordered

2011-08-18T12:47:00.000-06:00

I've mentioned in previous posts about how full Yellowstone is and how busy we've been at Fishing Bridge RV Park...and it continues. But, like clockwork, our weekend came around once again.

Bill and I knew we needed to go to Cody to do some shopping to prepare for Christmas in Yellowstone on August 25. But, we sure hated to give up a weekend of camping, so we did both. Bill had the great idea to camp between Yellowstone and Cody. (OK, so we will be smelling of campfire smoke when we go to Walmart...remember, this is Walmart I'm talking about.) There are a number of National Forest campgrounds along the highway, and we chose a nice one!

The campground was almost empty, and we chose a huge site right along the Shoshone River.

There were lots of willows across the river, and we kept an eye out for a moose. We did see a bald eagle soaring above the river, and we had a deer walk through the campground, but no moose.

Oh well, we still had a great time of doing practically nothing, except for reading, taking a few walks, sitting by the campfire, and simply enjoying the view.

After a week dealing with lots of lots of visitors, it was great being anonymous for a couple of days. And this afternoon, it starts all over again.