The Rim Area

Running around the north side of Payson, Az, is ridge line of mountains known as The Rim. It's a dirt road for the most part and about 20 miles long or so. It was so wash-boarded that we went in a ways and turned around. It was loosening our teeth. We did get to see a few great views and were out on one of the edges. There is also a golf course and community called The Rim just on the east side of Payson, and maybe we will check that out today. I know it's been widely advertised in golf mags.
Later in a the afternoon, we went over to Grant Leonard and his wife Ann's home. They live out the north side of town in a little community off the beaten track down Flowing Springs Road. The road in is reminiscent of the road into Stag Pond, his families place back in NJ. We had a nice visit with them and wnt into town for some Mexican food. Lots of that served out here. Dinner was terrific. They're coming over here tonight for dinner.

The Long Ride to Payson

This type of thing occurs when one fails to follow the seven P's. I eyeballed the map from across the room and figured the trip to be about 250 to 300 miles from El Paso to Payson, Az. Mike Empson thought at least 300 and I didn't double check. The 250 was closer to the halfway mark. We ended up travelling 475 miles to get here. They fit an Arizona or New Mexico map on the same size page that New Jersey is on and the proportions are all different. Oh well. It was a very scenic drive and what's a few more miles?
We will get togethor with Grant Leonard and his wife later today. He said he thought Becky and Dave Rubenstein (Becky is the daughter of my cousin Tom and his wife, Trilby) were in town on business and maybe there's a chance we can all get together.

Football & Fajitias

We spent the day at Carol and Mike's home. Mike had to go onto work for awhile because his company was changing or updating the computer system. He does the purchasing for them and is concerned about the accuracy of inventories after the change. Upgraders and changes always seem to come with a glitch or two.
The Giants squeaked one out over in London in on of the more boring games I've seen this season. The field was sopped and torn up pretty badly during the game. The english fans looked like they were enjoying the game or at least their beers.
Later on, Mike's Mom, Toni, and his sister came over for a fajitia dinner prepared by Carol. It was really good and everyone had a nice time.
We head over to Payson, Arizona today to see Grant Leonard, an old friend from back east.

Cattleman's Finest

We had a busy day yesterday by our standards. Carol, Dana and Kate took off in the am to find a seamstress who would alter a few things for Dana and Kate. A little after they left, Mike said let's go to Barnes and Noble and get us a Starbucks. We were out the door in a flash. I hadn't realized that this set up combined two of his favorite things, a cup of strong coffee and a store full of books. Unbelievably, when we arrived back at the house, the girls were already pulling back in.
The four of us then headed over to a bird santuary on the Mexican border on the east side of town and took about a three mile walk. We saw quite a number of birds, most of which we couldn't identify. There were some egrets, great blue herons, ravens and quail. At one point, it seemed birds were jumping out everywhere.
Later on, Carol and Mike took all of us out to dinner at Cattleman's, a truly excellent establishment. The meal was great. I had the Wagonmaster, a pound and a quarter t-bone grilled to a perfect medium rare. It may have been the best steak I ever had the privaledge of cutting into. All of us enjoyed great meals. The place holds 400 and had a waiting line of 40 or 50 as we exited. Anyone who gets in range of El Paso should do whatever they need to do to get there.
Something else of interest: the area near Fort Bliss is being expanded to accomodate 30,000 more troops and 100,000 more people including families and support personal. Desert training.

Old El Paso

The drive over from Silver City, NM, was smooth, easy and relatively short. El Paso does not have many RV parks. We ended up in one that's pretty much in the center of town and only about 5 minutes from Carol and Mike's place. It's a typical urban park and is clean but narrow. I almost defoliated a couple small trees getting in.
We set up and headed over to the house. Carol and Mike's home is in a very nice area of town. A few years ago, the city of El Paso encouraged citizens to convert their landscapes from lawns and trees to xeriascape or desert landscaping to conserve water. It's the first we've seen the change and it came out great. They also have a new roof thanks to a nasty hail storm. Carol and her daughter Kate got there just a little after we did and Mike got in shortly thereafter.
Kate picked up her boyfriend, Steve, and we all headed out to dinner at one of El Paso's fine Mexican restraurants. Mike thinks El Paso has the best authentic Mexican food anywhere and after the meal we had to agree. Mexican places also give you way too much food. None of us were able to finish everything. I had a beef and chili stew that was great.
Today we'll tour around town or shop or both.

More Cliff Dwellings

North of Silver City up Rt. 15 is another area where ancients constructed habitats in cliff caves. The drive up took about an hour and a half and the walk up, out and to the dwellings about an hour. New Mexico has the bluest skies that we've seen. Along those lines, the full moon last night and tonight will be the biggest of the year, the moon being the closest it will be to earth. In select locations, it may appear to be up to 14% larger than normal. If skies are clear in your area, do get out and take a peek. You won't need a flashlight.
Today we head over to El Paso to visit Carol and Mike Empson and their daughter Kate, who will be home from San Antonio for the weekend.

The Catwalks

We headed north on Rt. 180 up to the town of Glenwood, NM, where a series of catwalks has been built hanging off the inside of a canyon wall. It's not often you get to see a canyon from the inside. The walk was absolutely beautiful and a pretty good walk. The catwalk actually follows the path of the pipelines which serviced the old gold and silver mines up here. The mine operated until 1942. At this time of year, we are having most places to ourselves again. The area was also home to one of the largest ranches ever known, the Lyons-Campbell or LC Ranch which was 60 miles north to south and 40 east to west. Like most of the open ranches out here, it is fenced and cattle graze on it. On several occasins we have seen cowboys bringing herds down into the valleys from higher elevations for winter or for slaughter. Most of these cowboys ride ATV's these days.
Sports headline of the day: Rockey's Bubble Bursts.
For those of you who don't have time to follow the news of our intelligensia, please note: according to well known channeler Shirley MacLaine, Dennis Kucinich, Democratic presidential hopeful, and her observed a UFO at her Washington state home. She later said in her book, "He felt a connection in his heart and a direction in his mind." Kucinich had no comment.

Following Autumn--and Fires

Hi all--Bruce does such a great job on the blog, there's not much I can add. We've been following Autumn since California. The seaside bluffs were turning red and golden. The hills were golden and warm browns--so big and so pretty. This state was just lovely, and changed my EastCoast prejudices. We're so sad to see it on fire--such special place.!! Now, farther West the rocks add a riot of color to the landscape--sage, evergreens,grass, and crazy colored rocks!!--and it's been just perfect weather--sun and blue,blue skies. Now, for more pictures--.

Silver City, NM

We drove down from Santa Fe to Silver City, about a 300 mile journey. The first portion was down I-25 and easy. The second part was on Rt. 152 through the Mimbras Mountains and very windy and steep. Two bridges we crossed over were listed as being only 12' 6" high on advance notice signs. since the RV with roof top A/C unit is exactly that, we were worried about turning around. Fortunately, when we got to the bridges they were actually 12' 8". Plenty of room to spare.
By the time we got set up, it was getting a little late and we decided to just take an exploratory trip around town. Since our site has no cable tv, we were happy to see a movie theatre in town. The theatre looks like a warehouse, just a rectangular steel building with two screens. We decided on Ben Stiller in The Heartbreak Kid which is supposed to be grossly funny. Just as we were getting to know who was who, the power went out and everyone was evacuated from the theatre. They refunded the $6/tix on the way out. The real surprise was that the power was out everywhere. Police were at some of the lights on traffic control, but there were a lot more lights than cops available. People remained cool and did a rotation like they do at all the four way stops, so no one got hurt. That was the days excitement.

How 'Bout Those Giants?

We got the Giants game out here yesterday which is great to me. They seem to be getting better and better, but are still prone to lots of mistakes. What you get away with against poorer teams doesn't necessarily work against good teams, but they have flashes of brilliance. Miami next week. They haven't won yet and that can be a problem. They're gonna win sometime.
It was cool here yesterday and a snow squall blew threw about 4:30 pm or so. Very blustery winds. We leave tomorrow for Silver City, NM, and then El Paso,Tx, on Friday where my sister Carol and her husband Mike live.

Santa Fe, NM

It was an easy drive down from Taos to Santa Fe, only about 65 miles. It was below freezing both night s in Taos, so we had emptied on 30 lb. propane tank and were working on the second. Our RV park didn't have a propane station, which is unusual, so the lady at the desk sent me down to the local propane company. They were supposed to be open till noon and I got there at 11:47 and not a soul was around. I stopped in another campground, but they didn't have a fill and sent me to a third campground just south of town. They were out and their refill was stuck in traffic somewhere. They sent me further south and finally a place was open with propane. It shouldn't be that hard.
With that out of the way, we headed into downtown Sante Fe. Our first stop was the Georgia O'Keefe Museum. They had a film on her life and times. 1887 to 1986. Quite a run and quite a productive career. She was her own person.
From there we walked through an outdoor art show and down to the Plaza. Jewlery everywhere and torquoise coming out of their ears. I found a sheepskin vest that was nice, but at 1395 decided to leave it where it was. A wedding procession with Mariachi band leading them was on a lap around the Plaza. It's all pretty neat.

Taos, NM

Taos is a very artsy town with lots of fine galleries for almost any kind of art. The buildings are all Sante Fe style and finished in adobe or adoabe look a like. The outskirts of town are filled with funky, environmentally friendly houses, many half built into a hill or the ground. It's a very neat place with shops and tons of restaurants.
I dropped Dana off to shop and gallery view while I took care of some truck maintainence with wash and fuel. Fuel has cost me about 50% more than budgetted, parly because of price and partly because of the number of miles driven. We're mat 35,000 and climbing and I had not figured on quite that much.
Down to Sante Fe today, site of the I-man's southern broadcast studio. I hear he's back on 770 in NY starting Nov. 1. Hoo-ray!

Where The Hell have We Been

We was under cybered and blocked out the last few days over in Dolores, Colorado. Some places have wi-fi and cable tv and some don't. Always in a spot with good cable on Sunday. Anyway, the trip over from Green River, Ut., was scenic. The RV park is nice and we backed up on a pond. After getting squared away, we rode over to the Four-Corners Monument. It's a spot in the desert where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona all meet. The only place in all the USA that a body can stand in four states at once. I refused to lay down on my back on the thing, but did manage a pose touching all four. That was about enough for one day, so we headed back. At this time of year out here, hunters are the main occupants in the campgrounds which are still open, but it is real slow.
We headed over to Mesa Verde National Park the next am. They show an excellent film about the area history and have a museum to wander through. The pottery and baskets are very sophisticated and quite beautiful. We chose to take the short walk down to the Spruce House, an incredibly well preserved example of the cliff dweller abodes. They were pretty good masons.
The next day, Wed., we decided to drive up to Telluride, Co. It's about a 65 mile trip. As we headed north and uphill the temp began to drop and before long it was sleeting followed by a little snow. Some cars going the other way looked to have 4-6" of snow on them. We walked around town a little while and then headed east and south down the other side of the mountain to Durango. Once again we ran into some frozen precip. Durango to Delores completed our loop.
Yesterday morning it was about 30 in Dolores so we packed up and headed east and south to Taos, NM. It was a delightful ride, hitting 10,000+ elevation going across. Our RV park here is very nice, but once again it's pretty cold. We drove up to Taos ski area to see what was going on up there. They've been dusted a few times, but no accumulations. On the way we passed a little place that had a sign up saying that the Subdudes were playing in person that evening. We wipped around and got tickets for the show. I had heard of these guys 10 or 15 years ago and had a cassette of theirs digatized and loaded on the ol' i-pod. The venue was a tent with sides attached to the building. It had a couple propane heaters going and we staked a claim to a seat next to one. About 100 to maybe tops of 125 people were there. At $17/head, I don't know how the five Subdudes make much money. They set up themselves with maybe two tech guys to keep things straight. Well the band was terrific. They would be classified as Delta music. Some neat percussions, a jazzy accordion and four of the five sing and harmonize. About half way through, something blew and the whole stage went dead. The Subdudes simply stepped off the stage into the center of the floor, everyone surrounded them, and they did three numbers "unplugged." It was the highlight of the evening.
It was about 34 when we got home and 27 this am. Tomorrow we head down to Santa Fe and hopefully warmer temps.

Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down

That's the name of an old Johnny Cash song. We've been taking Sunday off since the start of football season. I was pumped up for the Cowboys-Pats game. Two undefeated, playoff bound teams with good talent, and in one case, great coaching. (even if he cheats) Well the highlight of the game for me was a jar of Newman's Own salsa with black beans and roasted corn. If you see a jar in your local store, grab it. Nice and thick to the point it doesn't drip off your dipping chip.
Tonight we'll be in Dolores, Co., for the Giants-Falcons game. The Falcons have lost their teeth with Vick on his way to the big house. High profile sometimes get you off and sometimes get you in. He didn't have Johnny Cockrain. '"If he's not in the pit, you must acquit."

Canyonlands NP

Almost right across the street from Arches is the entry to Canyonlands NP. It's divided into three sections which must be accessed from different entries. They are the Grand View, Needles, and The Mazes. We went in the Grand View and the name is accurate. Another incredible area of natural beauty. When we left, our intention was to go to Needles, but it was 65 miles down and the same back, so we just headed for home.
Tomorrow we leave Utah and head into SW Colorado to the Mesa area.

Arches National Park

We started the day by picking up and heading over to Moab, a town about 50 miles SE of here. At this time of year, we haven't been making reservations at parks. When we got to Moab, everyplace was packed. After looking at maps and the campsite directory, it was evident that the best place to go was back to where we came from. So back we went to Green River. Arches may be the most photogenic park we've been to. Every turn in the road reveals another view of incredible beauty. It's mainly red sandstone cut and carved by water. The extent of the erosion makes one believe that the climate must have been different at some time, but it's also hard to think in terms of geological time. How many flash floods and gully washers occur in 10, 20, 50 or 100 million years? It certainly makes mankind seem insignificant. Unfortunately, the day was overcast and the blue sky which acts as backdrop was lacking. Balancing Rock, The Windows etc. are something to see.

Looping -the -Fold

We visited Capitol Reef NP yesterday. It's the top step in the Grand Staircase. The bottom step is the north rim of the Grand Canyon. The park name was originated from a large dome rock which to somebody resembled the dome of the Capitol in DC. That's a stretch. The dominant feature of the park is the 100 mile long Waterpocket Fold, a stair-step fold known to geologists as a monocline. Nearly 10,000 feet of geologic strata representing 250 million years of earth history lie exposed along the fold. It became a national park in Oct ,1996, amongst great controversy. Some believed Clinton rushed it through to take Arizona in the Nov. election. The dedication ceremony was held in Arizona even though the site is in Utah, and the Utah state government was only given two days notice and no input on the decision. Most of the preserved land is in a very conservative range and mineral extraction area and they haven't gotten over it yet.
Loop-the-Fold is a 127 mile ride down the eastern flank of the Waterfold and requires a full day. We left the Visitor's Center a little after 11:00 am and completed the jouney at about 5:30 pm. The park will tell you a high two -wheel drive vehicle is adequate for the trip, but I would advise high and four -wheel drive. Rains ten days ago carried sand and gravel down into the low creek areas where flash flooding must have occurred. The dip into the bottom of the road crossings were steep and the sand was soft. I was in four-wheel on all unpaved sections, about 30 of the miles. It was a big, blue sky day and the vistas were spectacular. Bob Breckenridge had told me that he thought this was about as pretty and magestic as it gets and I can't disagree with him. Also, after having travelled Zion and Bryce, it was nice to have a place to ourselves.
Today we move to Moab to finish Arches and see Canyonland.

Green River, Utah

We hauled over from Zion yesterday, about a 6 hour drive. We set up at a KOA owned by a couple repatriated Vermonters. Most RV parks and campgrounds claim to have had pretty good years out here. What's really taken off is the RV rental business. A few years back we looked into renting one for a few weeks and found them difficult to find and expensive to rent. Now there are three or four companies renting them. At Zion, there must have been fifteen in the park at one time. The rentals are normally class B motorhomes and come in many different lengths.
After setting up, we shot over to Arches NP for a quick preview. We only went in a few miles and then saw the visitor's center. It should be a good one. Today is a big drive day to Capital Reef.

Stalled

Ran into a little vehicular problem two days ago. The speedometer started flopping around aimlessly. Luckily, there is a dealership over in St. George who was open on Monday, Columbus Day. Unluckily, the "cluster", whatever that is, which needed to be replaced, is not a stocked part. They have to call with stored information from the old cluster to load in the new one. So we had to go over Monday and then back yesterday to have the new one installed. Weren't cheap either.
Today we leave for Green River and Capital Reef NP>

More Zion

Big sports day yesterday with a little touring. The Giants-Jets game was not on out here. The Steeler-Seahawks was. After watching that and following the NY game on the crawlers, we once again took the shuttle up into Zion Park. The reflections off the cliffs are something. The shuttle system here is one of the best ever. About every 6 minutes a bus comes along. The place was very busy but didn't feel crowded. More hikers and bikers than you can shake a stick at.
When we got back, Clemens was coming out and the Yankees were down 3-0. They've been swinging at balls in the dirt for two games now. Ya gotta make 'em throw strikes. After screaming at the tube for a few innings, they seemed to get the idea and began being selective and taking the pitch where it needed to go. We'll see what happens today.

Kolob Canyon

Kolob Canyon is a part of Zion separated by mountains and canyons. It is accessed by going up I-15 to it's own entrance. There is a five mile road winding in with excellent views. Another beautiful place. On the way home we stopped and did some shopping in the town of Hurricane. A smallish town, not yet qualifying for a Wallmart. We stocked up on provisions and headed home. In the middle of Springdale, they have a bunch of elk in a large corral for display. They are one big critter.
We are here one more day, and then heading to Capital Reef National Park. That's really in the middle of nowhere.

Bryce Canyon

Another spectacular array of red rocks carved by water from massive pieces of sedimentary stone. We may need to go look at some ordinary scenery to get a perspective on how unusual all of this stuff is. The rock isn't all red. It's layers of various colors with red being the most prominent. We had to get amove on when rain started with an occasional spot of sleet in it. Higher elevations may have gotten up to 6" tonight and the northern parts of Utah, mainly the Wasatch, getting up to 18". Tomorrow is supposed to be back in the 70's, thank goodness.
Yanks down 2-0 after letting yesterday's game slip away.

North Rim

We took a very long ride yesterday, traveling from Zion to Page, Ar., and then down to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Talk about wide open spaces. The sites from Point Imperial are magnificent. The North Rim is about 1,000' higher than the South Rim. The Point Imperial elevation is 8803'. Everything is big out here and it takes a long time to get anywhere. We left the rim at about 4:30 and didn't get home until 8:30.
You Yankee haters out there must be happy with the first game against the Tribe. The best team that money can buy doesn't have any pitchers younger than 35.

Zion

It was an easy trip over here from Pahrump,Nv. Everyplace is packed do to Seniors' Games over in St. George. We set up and road through the park, forwards and backwards. It's a very pretty place. At about 5:15 pm, we headed back in to take the shuttle ride up into the canyon. Cars are not allowed until Nov. The formations and colors are amazing. As usual, it was late when we got back.
We will also go to Bryce, the Grande Ecalades, Capital Reef and the north rim of the Grand Canyon from here, so we'll be riding a lot.

Death Valley II

Yesterday we toured the southern half of Dath Valley from our digs in Pahrump, Nv. We made a big loop from Shoshone to Badwater to Furnace Creek to Death Valley Junction and home. It's radical terrain and beautiful. The first stop was at Badwater, the lowest point in the western hemisphere. There's a walk out on to the salt flats. Nothing drains out of Death Valley. If it rains, it accumulates in low areas and evaporates, leaving whatever sediment behind. A side loop road is through what's called the Artist's Palette. It's a narrow, windy but paved one way road through some incredible geology of amazing colors. Had lunch at Furnace Creek and then took the ride out to Dante's View, another adventure in extreme geology and colors.
If you were taking a day trip from Vegas, the Artists Palette and Dante are the sights to see.
On to Zion and southern Utah today.

Leaving California

We departed Lone Pine, California, yesterday, our last day in that great state. Our first day there was Sept. 3, so we were a day short of four weeks. Redwoods, Sequoias, ocean views, San Fran, Yosemite, Carmel, San Simeon, Kings Canyon and Death Valley. And we didn't hit the southern portions from LA down. It's a beautiful place. Politically, it's a lot like Jersey: rural areas are conservative and urban areas liberal. That's pretty much everywhere.
We're now on the other side of Death Valley in the town of Pahrump, Nevada. Casinos and legal brothels. Our RV park is next to and owned by a casino. It's supposedly the second ranked RV park in the country and it's very nice. The brand new ones, like this one, are built to accomodate the large rigs with slide outs. Many of the older places are well kept, but the spacing just doesn't work. To change that, they would need to relocate all the electric, water, sewer and tv lines and in many cases hedges and trees. It would probably be better to bulldoze the whole place and start over. Of course no one does that, so most places are too narrow and too short.
Had the truck tires rotated for the third time which means we've crossed the 30,000 mile mark. The truck has been great. The Duromax diesal and Allison transmission combo is tough to beat. From what we've seen, the Chevy-GM group is dominating the heavy truck market. Thanks to Dick Pollard for that recomendation.

Old Western Movies

Chore day was interesting. After Dana finished the laundry and I washed the truck, we had spare time before the Giants-Eagles game kicked off at 5:30. A road called Whitney Portal Road heads up toward the mountain and we'd heard good things about it. The drive through the floor of the Owens Valley cuts through the area known as the Alabama Hills. It's a geological wonder of rocks, boulders and ledge rock that all looks as if it were just dropped there. The closest place to resembling it I've ever been is Hueco Tanks outside of El Paso, Texas. Anyway, the drive toward Whitney was spectacular and ends in a trailhead for all the hikers.
On the ride back we took Movie Road past Lone Ranger Canyon and the Roy Rogers Movie Flats. It's all dirt roads and dusty. So much for the truck wash. Many old westerns and their stars were made up here. I swear I recognize the canyon where the Lone Ranger and his band of Texas Rangers were ambushed by the Cavindish gang. You may recall that the Lone Ranger survived and was nursed back to health by Tonto. We ended up pretty lost back in them thar' hills. No signs anywhere. Almost missed kick off. If you're ever in Lone Pine be sure to check out the Alabama Hills.
How 'bout those Giants? Almost gave up on them after thr first two loses. Eli's comin'.