1167 October 18, 2024 Winter Weather

At around midnight last night we had booming thunder and gusty winds with lightning and rain. 

Tim got up early this morning and it was still dark.  I could hear rain on the roof. 

It was moving day today.  We were going to drive the RV up and over the mountain at Jacob Lake at higher elevations.  There was a potential for snowflakes up there.  The forecast showed that it was not below freezing and we relied on that information as we set out.  We left at 7:45. The sky was gunmetal grey and it was still raining.

After 15 minutes of driving, we were at 6,000 feet.  There was a short stretch of snow in the low-lying grasses.

A truck passed us coming from the other direction and there was an inch of snow on top!

We climbed higher and we were in the clouds.  It was dense and foggy with poor visibility and more patches of snow.

We stopped for a break at Jacob Lake.  We were at 9,000 feet and it was actively snowing.

As we continued our ride, there was light snow frosted on the tall pines.  It was kind of pretty!   It might have been a good day to take a Jeep ride on roads of Kaibab Forest.

It was 36 degrees and the roads were wet but not icy.  I was so thankful for my good driver.  Tim took it slow and easy.

As we made our descent, there were a few flurries, no snow on the ground, and the sun was trying hard to peek through.  Elevation matters!  Mountains also matter.  Sometimes they have a way of containing the weather.

We got to a scenic viewpoint.  I had no idea when we started that we would be able to see the Vermillion Cliffs.

If we were driving something different, it would have been cool to sit in the valley and watch the weather change.

We stopped near Soap Creek.  We could see a portion of the Marble Canyon. 

We had hoped to have a night of dry camping here with a magnificent view of the scarlet cliffs but our big baby and rain and mud are not a good mix.

89 followed the Vermillion Cliffs all the way to Navajo Bridge at Marble Canyon.  There was no place for us to park the rig and so we traveled on. 

The last glimpses of the cliffs from the other side of the Colorado River.

We had more clouds and more rain.  We had no destination or plan in mind.  Our goal was to get past Jacob Lake and toward Flagstaff. 

We stopped for lunch and a planning meeting about an hour from Flagstaff.  We were looking for a place to camp.  It was cold and windy and it was obvious that we needed hookups; no dispersed camping tonight.  We found a place 20 miles away.  Tim was done driving.  We made a reservation and drove in. 

Don’t let this beautiful picture of the evening sky from our campsite fool you. It has rained and sleeted and snowed and we had a thunderstorm as well.  It is supposed to be near 32 degrees overnight.  In retrospect, we wished that we had rested in place and drove on but we didn’t.  Travel isn’t always easy…but it is always worth it!

We spent the day cleaning and doing laundry and cooking and resting.  Sometimes it is okay to have a snow day!

We will move further south tomorrow.