1177 October 28, 2024 No Place Like Home

We are home. We had quite an amazing trip. Our journey took us through 19 states, 6 national parks, more than 5 national forests and on countless dirt and gravel roads. We really had the opportunity to explore. We enjoyed 8 overnight rooftop tent trips. We slept in extraordinary places. We saw wildlife and birds and plants and mountains and rivers and deserts and there were times that our senses were overwhelmed by the natural world in which we were immersed.

Tim’s favorite adventure was the White Rim Trail. I loved the Jeep rides that we took from Payson to Marble Point and Peek-A-Boo Slot Canyon and White Pocket and White Fold. I also loved touching dinosaur fossils in the wall at Dinosaur National Monument. We loved seeing the elk at Rocky Mountain National Park. Yellowstone was its own kind of special. The scenic drives we took surrounding that park were breathtaking. It is hard to choose favorites. We have lots of beautiful pictures and tons of memories.

It is time to be home now for awhile. We will blog again when it is time to travel.

1176 October 27, 2024 Still Tennessee

I took a short walk and then we got another early start.

We drove and drove and drove across Tennessee.  We stopped at most rest stops to walk and stretch.  It is day 5 of driving and we are stiff.  We are not accustomed to sitting so much. 

We were looking for the next rest area when we ran into a section of red traffic.  The phone GPS initially said 1 hour and 1 minute of traffic.  Tim and I switched places and we creeped along.  The traffic did dissipate much more quickly than we expected.  I drove then for about 1 ½ hours.  It was not nearly as nerve wracking as yesterday!  We stopped and took a break and Tim got back behind the wheel.  We did over 400 miles.  It was a sunny Sunday and driving was fairly pleasant with less traffic and far fewer trucks.

Some signs of fall.

The cutest little pumpkin!

We stopped at around 4pm in Kingsport, Tennessee at another Cracker Barrel.

Dinner, then showers, then bed!

1175 October 26, 2024 Tennessee

We took some time this morning for some stretching and a shortened walk.

We traveled out of Arkansas. 

It was densely cloudy and then we had some scattered mist and showers.

I took a turn driving with about 80 miles left in Arkansas.  We have had several days of chunking away the miles and I really want to help. There was a lot of traffic and there were trucks.  Then, it began to rain steadily.  It was an intense drive.  I was so glad to arrive safely at the West Memphis Welcome Center.  Tim drove after that.  I have a renewed appreciation for my driver.  He drove most of the many miles since we left Atlanta two months ago.  In mountains and on steep grades, on rough roads, in the snow and wind, he is unflappable.  He is an excellent driver and I always feel safe when I’m riding with him.  I am so grateful!

We went across the mighty Mississippi into Tennessee at Memphis.

We were tired and we debated riding further.  The camping options are limited along this stretch of road.  We decided on the Cracker Barrel in Jackson.  It was right off the highway and there was plenty of room to park.  We were glad to stop and rest.  It was enough for today. 

We had grilled chicken salads in the restaurant and spent a quiet evening.

1174 October 25, 2024 Hope, Arkansas

Happy Birthday, Kyle!!!

Another early start this morning. 

We filled the RV with diesel fuel at the station adjacent to the Walmart…$2.99 per gallon…yahoo!

We left Eastland and watched the sun come up as we traveled east on 20.

We took 30E up and around Fort Worth and Dallas.  The road was very rough.  There were multiple sections of roadwork.  There was lots of Friday morning rush hour traffic.  It took two hours to get past the two cities.

We finally found a rest area and we stopped for a break.

It was my turn to drive.  I did the last portion of Texas and drove us right into Arkansas.

We stopped at the Welcome Center and looked for a place to spend the night.  We drove to Hope, Arkansas and stayed at the Fair City RV Park.  This is a large city owned park with lots of facilities.  There are baseball fields and a livestock coliseum and basketball and tennis courts and a pool and playgrounds and lots of open space. 

We parked in the shade of a big old oak tree.

I walked the park this afternoon having missed an opportunity to get out there earlier today.

We drove the Jeep to see the birthplace of Bill Clinton.  This is Hope’s claim to fame.

We had a really good dinner at Big Jake’s BBQ.

We took a ride into the downtown area.

It was nice to enough to be outside this evening. 

There is a mama cat with 4 sweet tiny kittens living in the shed nearby.  It was fun to watch the kittens romping around in the grass and fallen leaves. 

My husband is out there as I write this blog, offering the cats yogurt and sardines.

1173 October 24, 2024 More Texas

We were up at 5am and decided to get an early start. 

The city lights were glittering in the darkness.  We knew that the Mexican border town of Jaurez was off to the right. 

We watched the sunrise as we traveled toward El Paso.  These would be the last bunch of mountains that we see for a while.

Usually driving through El Paso is not that fun.  We were early enough that we missed rush hour traffic and it was smooth sailing.

We drove across Texas all day.  It was hot and windy and dusty.  Around Abilene, we drove through oil country.  We stopped frequently for stretch breaks and snacks and water.   I did two stints today.  This was the first time that I had driven the new RV.  I found that I was more comfortable driving this than the old RV.  I did 100 miles and then Tim took the wheel again.  Later in the day, I did another 70 miles.

We pulled into a Walmart.  We didn’t want to unhook the Jeep and we needed a few supplies. It was an easy overnight solution.

We did 530 miles today.  Yahoo! We are 900 miles closer to home!!

The part of Texas we are driving through is 850 miles wide.  I think tomorrow we might try to have a shorter day.  Hopefully, though, we can leave Texas in the rearview mirror.

1172 October 23, 2024 Texas

We have been on the road for more than 2 months.  We have seen a lot.  It is time to go home. 

We were in Arizona just north of Tucson last night. 

Rest stop at San Simon, Arizona.  The rock formations here are interesting. 

We drove across Arizona on 10E and continued through the dusty New Mexico desert. 

We stopped again for lunch and rest near Las Cruces.  We made a plan for tonight.

Tim drove about 370 miles today.  We found a decent campground near the highway just north of El Paso.

1171 October 22, 2024 Picacho Peak

We were up early and surrendered our RV keys to Gerry at 6:30am.

We found a Starbucks and then headed to Friendship Park.  It was a great morning for walking and riding bikes. 

We had our breakfast and then waited for a phone call.  The RV was ready at 12:45.

We left Phoenix and traveled the short distance to Picacho Peak State Park.

We didn’t venture out into the heat until this evening.  Tim walked out and saw a guy pick a tarantula out of the road, allowing it to walk on his arms.  He came to get me and his camera but when we got back to look, the hairy spider had wandered off.

It was pleasant outside and I sat watching the sky change.

I spied something dark moving in the road and there was another tarantula.  This time, we were ready with our cameras.  I had read that October, the most active month, is the time when the males go searching for female friends.  Sometimes they can we seen walking together in a large group.  Though they are scary looking, their bites are supposedly no more harmful than a bee sting. 

1170 October 21, 2024 Camp Cummins

We each started the morning with our normal exercise routine.  I could hear Ralphy, the burro, braying as I walked.

We drove south from Payson.  It wasn’t long before we began to see saguaros.

We got onto 202 and suddenly we were in 4 lanes of traffic with tractor trailers on either side…culture shock!

We went straight to Danny’s Truck and RV Wash.  The big baby was very dusty and dirty and needed a big bath!

We headed across the street to the Cummins Dealer.  Gerry is our service guy.  He greeted us and came out to the RV.  We have to get up super early.  They want us ready to roll into the garage at 6:30! 

After lunch, we went into Phoenix with a list of errands.  Tim had a flat bike tire and my bike brakes needed adjusting and so we started at the Trek Bike Shop.  We were in the store less than 15 minutes…missions complete!

We went to the Sprouts in Avondale where we were able to fill our 5-gallon jug with fresh water and then we shopped for some stuff that we had been wanting.

We found a carwash and treated the Jeep to a scrubbing as well. 

The good thing about getting the RV serviced here at Cummins is that there are RV sites with electric that we are camped in.  We can stumble out of bed and pull right in.

Service will take until about lunchtime and so we will have to find a way to occupy our morning.

1169 October 20, 2024 Mogollon Rim

There is a country lane that leads from the highway down to the campground. I was able to take my morning walk here. It was chilly but the sun was warm and I was moving quickly and soon felt comfortable. There is a burro that lives in an enclosure across from the campground. I went over to take his picture and he thought he was going to get treats!

We decided to take the Jeep and drive to the Mogollon Rim. We had been there before and remembered the view from the top. We knew there were places to walk as well.

The Rim from the highway.

We stopped at the ranger station in Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest for maps and information but it was closed today. The views from the porch were outstanding.

We started on Rim Road.

We stopped to take pictures. Mogollon Rim is almost 200 miles long and bisect the state of Arizona. The limestone and sandstone cliffs are at 8,000 feet above sea level and 4,000 feet above Route 260 below.

We parked at the Rim Lakes Vista Trailhead and took a two-mile walk. It was 43 degrees but the sun was shining and we were moving. The air was fresh and the walk was invigorating!

We pulled into one of the few open camping areas and found a spot on the Rim for our lunch.

We sat there awhile looking out at the view. Ravens came as soon as we got out our food. We watched a group of five ravens or an unkindness of ravens soar in the updrafts along the cliff edge. We saw a raven chasing a hawk…not sure who won that race!

We saw these funny looking squirrels with extra large ears. They were large and had a red stripe on their grey backs. Their tails were extremely fluffy. They were Albert’s squirrels common here in the western mountains. I could not get a good picture but I did borrow this from the internet.

We rested this afternoon and then prepared for moving again. Tomorrow we will drive to Phoenix. We have an appointment on Tuesday at the Cummins there for the first oil change for the RV.

1168 October 19, 2024 Payson, Arizona

We were up early. It was cold last night but we had no snow.

I walked a short while in the campground. It was a small space and there wasn’t a lot of walking room.

We left for Payson, heading south. As we approached Flagstaff, there was snow on the roadsides and the mountains.

Shortly after we passed through town and began to descend in elevation, the snow disappeared.

We drove several hours first on the interstate and then through forest.

We arrived in Payson around lunchtime.

We saw several people walking by our RV and stopping and pointing. They lingered there awhile, and we thought is a little odd. Later in the afternoon, I went out to walk. A woman saw me and came to talk. She wanted to know if our rig was new. She said that until this year, her husband and she had owned a similar Tiffin. He suffered a stroke this spring and they were forced to sell. They now travel in a smaller van. She said that her husband loved his Tiffin. When he saw us pull in, he just had to come and look. When Tim and I talked about it later, we were reminded how fortunate we are to have our health and to be able to travel and explore the way we do. Life is short.

We spent a quiet and uneventful day.

The sky was weird tonight.

We did venture into town this evening for dinner at La Sierra Mexican Restaurant. After our meal, we were chatting and I mentioned to Tim that I had been watching the family next to us. A couple with three teenage boys. The boys seemed to be happy and they seemed to get along well. Tim looked over and saw that the father was wearing muddied work boots. Tim reached over to the man and told him that he had a beautiful family. The two men shared stories of hard work and raising boys and the rewards and stresses of each. This guy was working 16 hours a day at two jobs and missing his family. He did a bunch of side work and eventually, he was able to start his own business. The mother helps to do the paperwork and payroll and bills. We had a lot in common with this young family. We are on the other side of all that now…but we did it too.

We had a delicious meal.