We left Napa valley and got to see many many more vineyards on the way out of the valley. We also saw smallish trees that I suspect were nut trees like almonds etc per the conversation we had with the couple we road to the top of the St Louis arch with. I had expected for some reason that the Napa Valley would have been more green and lush. But then again we were there in the fall and I dont get the feeling there is an immense amount of rain and more irrigation. But all supposition on my part.

Next stop was Angels Camp in California Gold Rush territory. Those of you who have read my blogs may remember I am a “Gold Rush” TV series fan and have an official Gold Rush Panning outfit. So I am ready to start panning and seeing the gold country and towns of the California Gold Rush era.

The trip there was uneventful until we hit the town of Angels Camp and had to drive down an old gold rush town street that was no wider than in the gold rush days lol and the roads out of town and into town ran along the rivers and valleys with very narrow and curvy roads. But we made it to our RV campground and got a very nice side hill terraced site and set up camp.

Angels Camp did not have anything to do with heavenly Hosts but instead named after Henry Angell from Rhodesia Island who started a tent camp for the miners. Initially placer gold which was found in the rivers was plentiful but soon ran out. The town dwindles until gold bearing quartz was found and the town bustled again with stamp mills processing the stones to extract the gold. These mills did what the name implied and pounded the stone rather than grinding. According to Wikipedia when the last mill shut down it was so quiet the townspeople couldn’t sleep!

I am not one to assume anything so despite the rumors of placer gold (gold that has broken away from its source and been deposited in a waterway) being depleted so I decided to find a waterway and we went off the first afternoon to find water. After a long drive around winding roads and incredibly deep ravines I gave up. For that day at least.

The next day we struck out to se Murphy’s another mining town north of our campsite. What a cute town that except for electricity appears much the same as I imagine it was during the 1800’s.

Murphy’s was started by two Murphy brothers as a supply tent camp for miners in the area. One of the Murphy brothers developed a lucrative trade with the native Americans where he gave them blankets and supplies in return for Gold. He left town about a year later with as much gold as 6 mules could carry and never returned. He moved to San Jose and married a survivor of the Donner Party Virginia Reed. For those who dont know the history of the Donner Party (also known as the Donner-Reed Party) you should read about their harrowing adventure where to survive being trapped in the Mountains by cannibalism. Yup no McDonalds or Walmart Supercenter back then.

After a bit of shopping we headed north of Murphy’s to the National Forest where I heard there were accessible streams. I stopped at the Ranger station to confirm it was legal to pan in the forest and she said it was and unlike the White Mtn Forest in NH I did not need a license. So with Jo being a good sport we headed out. And found the river.

I spilled most of that coming back up the rocks but it wouldnt have been enough to pay for the $5 per gallon gas I spent lol. But I do love seeing the flakes.

We headed back to camp to have dinner and relax before hitting the road for Yosemite.

We left Green Acres for Napa bright and early. Today’s trip was a relatively short one as I had not planned initially to visit Napa and stuck this one in between sites. So today was only a little under 4 hours.

This trip was more rolling hills and golden grass similar to what we saw in the old westerns. No scary roads though still a lot of ups and downs and winding roads. The only potential interesting part of the trip was that the normal entrance my GPS wanted me to go to was closed for construction and a map they sent by email showed us going around the back of the park on Juarez street. And this was an expo center (fairground) in the middle of the city. But we found it without a glitch and with the help of a security guard who will be mentioned later we found our level pull through site onto a level cement pad and hooked up quickly.

The next day we headed out to see the wine growing areas. And took a wrong turn and gave up lol since we had a reservation for noon at the Clos Du Val winery recommended by friends. We took a right turn and found the winery with time to spare. The reservation said there could be 1-6 people but ours was just for us two in turned out. We had a nice young lady sommelier who wasnt wine snobbish and answered all our first time questions and then some. The wines we tasted were blends which I didnt know was a usual thing but for this winery was. We started with a white and then 4 reds. I didnt finish all mine as I was driving but Jo did lol. The setting was what I think Italy would look like…….just beautiful. Oh and the dip they had to eat with veggies and crackers was to die for. Cream Cheese, Feta, topped with ground pistachios, honey and 100% sure garlic was involved lol. Mmmm

We headed back to the Airstream for a nap before heading out to a restaurant recommended by friends. We dont usually go out to eat on the road but decided to take a break from cooking and enjoy a night out. I think we were out of our league or the staff was having a bad night but we felt rushed from the minute we walked in. My duck was very good and Jo’s halibut though good was just ok. I suspect the waiter was a bit miffed he didn’t get a couple that ordered multiple drinks but instead had root beers on the rocks lol. I think I am just spoiled having Jo cook.

Oh getting back to the security guard we met on arrival…..It was pretty brisk our first morning in Napa. We typically walk Mocha before leaving him for an outing and thought we would walk around the grounds. We saw a field on the expo grounds that was in the sun and headed there only to have the guard come driving order saying we needed to stay behind the fence. We were walking on gravel and there were no buildings nearby but we must have been shady looking and had the killer dog. Gave him something to do I guess but we felt like rule breakers in Napa of all places.

During the night I awoke to strange sounds coming from the AC/Heat pump over our bedroom again. The last time I thought it was from icing up and defrosting but this time it was in the mid 40’s so shouldn’t be struggling. We have another AC/ Heat-pump unit and a separate gas furnace so no biggie but just another middle of the night do I need to get that fixed moment. I shut it off and switched to the from unit and quickly went back to sleep. Not so much poor Jo who is an incredibly light sleeper and between my messing with the thermostat and my runny nose didn’t go back to sleep. 😦

The next AM we had a leisurely breakfast and camp breakdown as the next leg of this changed itinerary was only a 2 1/2 hour drive. Easy peasy.

On the road to a gold mining town. And I have my panning equipment coincidentally…..not!

Some of you aren’t old enough or don’t live in the USA to know that this was the first lyric in a TV show song. It was a TV show where Eddie Albert playing a rich New York attorney and his wife played by Eva Gabor played farmer. Kind of our life experience except Jo was the New Yorker when we had our farm in Brownfield Maine. I remember my mom sitting out on the back deck of our farmhouse asking if we liked the smell of manure lol. And my NY brother in law locking his car despite the odds of anyone driving by let alone breaking in close to minus zero. Habits. But I digress.

Todays trip was an overnight on our way too Napa. This park was rated highly despite being in the city. After a few weird RV GPS twists and turns in town which didn’t seem necessary but its a RV GPS so maybe it was a clearance or wt limit thing. But we made it to the park and were greeted by a very friendly park owner who was training someone and said we don’t need him to sign this paper about the rules which he already signed on line (I did?). I suspect I did but didn’t remember as they are all the same. Park on the site not the grass, quiet hours 10PM-8am, Speed limit 5 mph etc. And off we went to our site. Oh and the las few places we have been all said you must be William Brewster in my mind meaning they don’t get a lot of transients as most are seasonal a trend we’ve seen all over.

The site was a nice level spacious level pad with plenty of room and we were soon hooked up and settled.

One of my projects was to try to find and fix the leak around the front window. I hope i fixed it by tightening a loose window latch but just in case had some caulk and while there (despite rules not to work on RV) I dismantled the window guards and cleaned all the seams and caulked around where I think the leak could have been. There are more possibilities but fingers crossed this will fix it. So far the weather has been dry since the leak so time will tell. And no one yelled at me.

As is our usual out west we were across the street from train tracks but only a few polite short whistles during the night. I did have to get up once to shut off the heat pump on the roof over our beds and switched to the front heat pump as there seemed to be a rattle I hadn’t heard before. Let’s hope that isn’t a harbinger of issues with it.

We walked around the cleanest neatest RV park we’ve ever been in and found a Koi pond and waterfall. One of my wants for our perfectly sloped side hill in Maine. Jo isn’t a fan of that idea but we will see. Not sure I will be able to have fish as not sure what to do with them when winter and not there.

After a reasonably restful stay at a lovely stop with new caulk and clean front windows (I don’t think I have mentioned just how dirty our airstream is from the early Philly rain and the western dirt but it is filthy …. Except the front window thanks to the leak) we headed out for the Napa Valley with a wine testing scheduled as well as one of our first dinners out on the trip.

Oh and Jo decided this clean park was a perfect time to wash and groom Mocha lol. She keeps him looking handsome.

Our drive today was to head to California and the northern coast where some of the Redwoods live. The day was gray as we started out and wet but as we got closer to the coast the sun and blue sky we had been missing. Once we hit California we started seeing big trees but also acres or black burnt deadscapes where acres of trees have burned. Al this while I am doing on steep up and downhills with rocks all over the road in places from rockfalls from cliffs right up to the edge of the road. Narrow is an understatement. So I was just a bit nervous and then…..the border guards.

Our first stop in California was at a Port of Entry to check for agricultural products to prevent disease spread. First I was in the wrong lane and luckily no one else was there so switched as the very bored looking border agent leaned back a little further. So now I am even more nervous so when he asked do you have any agricultural products and I immediately said no and he said ok you can go. No dont you have any fruits or vegetables in your Airstream fridge (we did) or two bananas in your wifes pocketbook (she did). Jo just looked at me as we drove away incredulously. WHAT DO YOU MEAN WE DON’T HAVE ANY FRUITS OR VEGETABLES????? And I said ooops and dont take that banana contraband out til we are parked at our campsite lol and we sped off watching for pursuit. Bonnie and Clyde are we!

The trip once we were of the coast road US 101 brought us into crescent City. And then sticker shock hit with regular gas being $5.49!!! I decided rather than fill then I would check around but station after station all were over $5 a gallon. OMG.

Just down the road we went back into the Redwood National Park with GIANT redwoods right up to the edge of the road. Im sure my mouth was hanging open as we wound around curve after curve weaving up and down hill around the trees. Just beautiful. And then we came back out to the coast and my jaw dropped even more. What a beautiful coastline.

We kept on to the campsite Mystic River. Mystic because there really wasnt a visible river. This campground has new owners who were some of the friendliest I have met both on the phone when I had to change dates at one point and in person. They gave us two choices of sites and I picked the back in site with a better view of the sky as most places have very slow wifi that wont work if I am doing video calls for work so I set up my Starlink dish that needs a view of the sky. And this campground was old…. But when I checked the wifi speed it was faster than xfinity at home in Florida. We dont need to set up no stinking Starlink.

Because it was such a beautiful day and we got setup early afternoon we decided to be tourists right away. I had read about the Trees of Mystery tourist attraction. Mystic…Mystery…hmmm a pattern emerges. So off we went and our senior status got us in at a discount. What a cool place. They had a sky walkway in the trees and walking paths and a gondola that took us up high enough to see the Pacific and still in the Redwoods. And did I say the trees are frickin huge.

The next day we went to church in Crescent City. I thought I had been to a quick mass in Hooksett where an ex Army chaplain always was done in 35-40 minutes. This priest while pleasant and spoke well was done in 25 minutes including someone speaking about breakfast Tacos available across the street in the KofC Hall. I am from NH and couldnt keep up lol. On the way back from church put the “Tribal Nation” gas station at the casino right off the road back to the campground. $1.5 less than all the other stations in town. Not sure why everyone doesnt go there. And Jo wouldnt go to the casino.

During the night the rain drumbeat started again. So we got up to a soggy break down of camp. And a soggy spot by a front window inside the camper. I think (and hope) it was a loose window clamp. I tightened the window closure mechanism and sealed a seam above the windows and hope I fixed it. Pray that is so.

We left Hines, Oregon for another Oregon stop in Prospect, Oregon adjacent to the Crater Lake National Park. The scenery changed from desert old western like terrain to lush evergreen forests. We passed through Bend, Oregon where coincidentally we made a 90 degree turn, which was a very cute town that reminded me of North Conway, NH with lots of granola eating hiking outdoorsy LL Bean types many of whom must have significant dollars to put toward their hobbies by the looks of Bend. It was the first sign of a booming economy we’ve seen in hundreds if not thousands of miles. Very cute town and beautiful surroundings. As we drove out of town we passed lava fields like Ive never see before in the middle of lush green forest. An amazing contrast. I wish we had time to stop but just another beautiful part of the scenery we have gotten to see so far.

Once we hit Bend and the evergreen forest it was more of the same with scattered small towns catering to tourists. One thing I dont think I have mentioned in my ramblings is how many modern day ghost towns we have driven through. Having worked in North Conway and seen and heard from my patients how close to bankruptcy they are despite the facade (one rainy tourist season away from losing it all) I suspect Covid did many of these small town diners, motels and stores in. Kinda sad to see modern ghost towns and the dreams they had represented gone.

We drove through and around the National Park seeing BIG trees that were not redwoods but equally tall and straight and right up to the road. It was a misty cloudy day but still beautiful. We arrived to our next RV stop Crater Lake RV Park and checked in. Our very local gold cart guide to our site remarked that we were going to be seeing a lot of the damn pine needles. And we did. Im still cleaning them out of nooks and crannies of the Airstream lol.

Our first afternoon we took a walk up a trail that was adjacent to our site. After about 100 yds I decided it was time to turn around as it was getting dark and I could hear the faint sounds of banjos so we turned around and headed back. It was time to see Crater Lake the next AM!

We awoke to the pitter patter of rain drops the next AM. More like a drum beat when you are in a drum lol. And it was cold. I went to the office to get a “smart card” for the laundry which was actually a great idea rather than fumbling with quarters. You just load it with x dollars and turn it in when you leave to get any unused money back. While I was there I mentioned the cold rain and wondered if they had seen any snow this season. She said no but that it was snowing up at Crater Lake. And it was! As we climbed to the 7000 foot plus elevation the temperature dropped and it began snowing with more and more of the white stuff on the trees and then the road. Have I mentioned that Westerners clearly must have a “we dont need no stinking guard rails” motto. 100 foot drop offs right by the road and no guardrails. Oh and like always during the first snow people drive like its dry pavement til that first loss of grip “OH S%$T” moment. While going up people were coming down hairpin turns at 40-50 mph on a 25 mph dry road speed limit road. But we kept going as there are also no turn arounds. But it was beautiful.

When we got to the top it was 28 degrees and windy with 2-3 inches of slush everywhere. And the view well lets just say beautiful once I had something to hold on to. It was very scary with minimal railings and a huge drop and massive expanse in front of us. I think I am getting more fall conscious in my old age as I don’t think the steep drop offs and expanse would have given me the falling queasy feelings I get now. But OMG another beautiful spot we have been blessed to be alive to see.

I didn’t mention that on the way up I noticed that the markers we have back in New England to show the edge of the road are baby markers. Clearly this area gets A LOT OF SNOW based on the twenty plus foot tall markers to show the plows where the road is. That’s some snow.

No fish in the lake til it was stocked. It is the deepest lake in the world at 1949 feet deep though some say it isnt but just one of the deepest. I didnt check. The last time it froze over was in 1949!

We made it back down to the park and called it a day. And turned the heat up.

The next day we went to see the Natural Bridge formation on the Rogue River near us. Lava tubes form tunnels in the rocks and the river disappears into these and then reappears creating a natural bridge that early people used to cross the river. This was one of the first attractions out west that actually had some fencing and guardrails! That said this was the first attraction that had a memorial cross for someone that had died there. Fencing looked new!

Before leaving for another destination I try to fill the gas tank before hooking up the trailer. After shopping for groceries in the town below us where a lady called me honey when I apologized for not seeing the sign (or signs ugh) that says to ask for help before grabbing a bottle we stopped for gas at the local station in town. When I went to the pump I noticed all the pump handles had giant padlocks on them. Sooo I went next door to the grocery story and she said oh yeah you can get gas but Bob is in the cooler helping me stock he will be right out. Small town helping each other out. Pump was unlocked and full service Bob pumped my gas while checking the air pressure in another guys truck tires. Been a while since I saw that service.

The next AM we started out on time after turning in our smart laundry card and got our 50 cents backs phewww. We are off to see the Redwoods.

Well after a quick stay in Idaho and some pretty good Wild West Chinese food we headed to our next stop for an overnight at the Bosch Big Bear RV Park. It was another day of desert like territory that still amazed me as to what do people do here given the terrain. I can tell you that if we need more land for any reason there is plenty of open prairie. With no houses or people.

We were about 3 hours into our trip and I started to worry a bit as there were no gas stations. And no gas stations. Oh and we drove some more and no gas stations. I had thought of stopping when we got off the interstate but I had over 3/4 of a 36 gallon tank. We finally made it to Hines, Oregon and the first station we saw was designed for vehicles without a trailer. You can get in but not out. The next station we saw was on the other side of an intersection but who knew when we would see gas again so we pulled in to find a guy working on the pump. Pull around to the other side was the solution he gave. This station was also pretty tight but we pulled around and as we did I an elderly couple pulled in front of us and proceeded to tag team how to turn the pump on like it was the first time they had pumped gas. They finally figured it out and 15 minutes later pulled out. I had to back up and reposition to swing wider as a big truck pulled in. 32 gallons later I pulled out and headed to our RV campground passing two newer stations with wide lanes and plenty of room to turn on our way. Oh well I had a full tank so we would be ready to leave for Crater Lake the next day.

We pulled in to our campground to no office. The sandwich board outside the only building (a prior restaurant by the looks) said welcome this is an office free campground. Just proceed to your site. I found the email and my site number and off we went. The site was really just a large parking lot of crushed black stone that had been turned into RV hookups around the perimeter. That said the hookups were new and two over from us there was a state trooper living there so no fears about issues while we were there.

There wasn’t any laundry, showers, dog park etc but level site and full hookups. As an aside i don’t think Ive shared what is involved if the site isn’t level as many aren’t. You really don’t want the blood rushing to your head when you lay down with your feet slanted above your head or end up against the trailer wall if leaning to one side (the aluminum can be pretty shockingly chilly when your arm lays against it. Front to back leveling is usually easy by racing or lowering the jack on the front of the trailer by the hitch. Side to side involves putting curved ramps under the low side and driving or backing up on them. That involves jo usually saying whoa when I am about to drive off the ramps lol.

Wish I had taken more pics of gas station etc. Oh the things I take for granted. Tomorrow we head to Crater Lake National Park.

Well after a water rationing stop we headed toward Idaho for another overnight stop. I’m not sure what I expected but Idaho was not the lush farmland I expected. Lots of dry dirt, dry mountain scapes, fairly flat and lots of square rocks in the fields. Oh and lots of potatoes. Jo tried to get pictures of the trucks heaped up with potatoes and the machines used to dig them but never managed to eat a great shot.

Some of these pictures may be before and after or Idaho stop but Utah and Idaho kind of blended into one another. Beautiful in their own way but not where Jo and I would feel comfortable. We are spoiled with all the greenery in Maine and Florida though our neighbor in Florida said lots of brown and wind blown damaged greenery at our place form the Hurricane Milton. The wind dries our the leaves along with the salt in the rain that is blown inland from the gulf even though we are a couple of miles inland. Oh well the nice thing about Florida is everything grows back fast if its alive. We are fortunate to have a nice lawn guy and great neighbors to watch over things.

We arrive at “Abundant Life Campground in Caldwell Idaho and we were greeted by a nice person at the desk who said you must be William Brewster. Odd as I left my name tag at home lol. Turns out we were probably the only camper passing through as everyone looked like full timers or at least not a short stay. But we had water and a train. Yup they keep following us and I wanted to get up at 5 AM anyway. With the time changes we have been trying to adjust but still go to bed earlier and arise earlier as we acclimate.

While walking the dog we met a gentleman who appeared to be heading to his camper from the showers. He asked how we liked the Airstream and proceeded to tell us about his work doing renewable energy sites grading and excavating. He also mentioned his daughter Tiffany Rea was Miss United States 2020 (Not Miss USA or Miss America) and was now Miss Oregon in the Miss USA pageant. He also said he wasn’t a fan of Covid shots and took Hydroxychloroquine when he got Covid once he learned we were Doctor and Nurse. We had a friendly conversation where we agreed to disagree on all of that but left friendly. People are really friendly even when you disagree but speak in person not anonymously on the internet. We need more in person discussions and less pretending the internet is an equal substitute.

It was nice to have plenty of water. Jo cooked up a to die for Pasta with Pesto and Shrimp…could of been why he stepped back a few steps when we met Mr Rea lol.

Next stop Caldwell Oregon.

PS Totally unrelated to this leg of the trip but one night a few nights ago we had a package of chicken Pad Thai. In the package were two small package of Thai Noodles with all sorts of warnings not to eat the smal tin foil package. I am a little worried that they think we need all the warnings lol.

We left Bryce Canyon for a series of one night stops to get us to Oregon and California. Next stop was the Golden Spike Campground in Brigham< UT. I assume they have that name because of their proximity to where the final or golden spike was hammered to connect and complete the transcontinental railroad which was started January 8, 1863 and finished May 8, 1869. There were actually 4 spikes the first being a gold cast spike from David Hewes friend of the Central Pacific RR President Leland Stanford using his own 17.5 carat gold. No one had thought to do it so he had it done. A second silver spike from Nevada and barely made it to Promontory Point in time for the ceremony. A third spike made of gold and silver from Arizona’s governor. And a fourth spike made of gold made by Frederick Marriott owner of the San Francisco News Letter. The four spikes were pounded into a ceremonial polished RR tie made of California Laurelwood that had 4 holes drilled for the ceremonial and softer metal ceremonial ties. A silver plated maul was used to drive the spikes.

After the spikes were driven the RR tie and spikes were removed and a regular pine tie and 3 iron spikes were driven in. The fourth and final spike was wired transcontinental telegraph line so the nation could hear the blows as it was driven in.

The Transcontinental Railroad was an amazing engineering feat accomplished with quite a story with good and bad parts as to land taken and lives lost but connected the East with the West and made commerce and travel time immensely faster than by wagon train and stage Coach. Too much to go into here but fascinating.

The information above is from the National Park Service website which goes into more detail as to the engravings on the spikes etc.

But I digress. In my last blog installment I mentioned that there was an interesting turn of events to come. When we were about two hours out from the RV Park we received a text saying that there was a water main break so no water in the park BUT there was a free water source 10 minutes from the park. I don’t like the unknown when pulling the trailer but with Jo’s help we navigated to the water supply and after a small bath for my feet managed to fill our fresh water tank we usually leave empty to avoid another 300# of water weight we dont need at our full hookup camp sites that supply fresh water, power and sewer at the campsite. With only 30 or so gallons we had to be sparing with water use and because I hadn’t sterilized the fresh water tank in a while had to get water from Walmart to drink, feed Mocha and make coffee. Things could be worse at least we had a safe spot for the one night.

Like many of the commercial campgrounds we typically stay in a fair number of the sites are occupied by workers in the area for a few months and families and seniors either seasonally to get away in the summer or permanently due to housing costs versus the cost of an RV and long term rental price which is much cheaper. This one had about 3 rows of ten sites with two rows permanent or semi permanent campers and one row of 10 for transient campers like us. We hadn’t been there more than 10 minutes when a man and a woman stopped by with cases of sealed vegetable trays they were giving away from an open house they had. What a nice gesture and delicious add to our meal that night. People have been super friendly this trip no matter their bumper sticker. Oh and they have DoorDash even in Brigham City Utah and we had Chines food that wasn’t bad delivered to or campsite trying to not make a lot of dishes to wash.

We packed up the next AM with me realizing I didn’t have a water hose to rinse the sewer pipe since no water duh. CAUTION THE FOLLOWING CONTAINS DETAILS OF THE SEWER PROCESS. So our trailer has a 30 gallon black tank (not sure why they don’t call it a brown or yellow tank) and a 40 gallon grey water tank bot hooked to one sewer hose with a release valve for each. My process is to don surgical gloves and empty the Black water tank then via a rinse port I normally hook a garden hose to, I rinse the black tank via a sprayer inside the tank. I rinse and empty at least three times then fill with a small amount of clean water to have water sloshing around in the black tank while traveling. The best step is to release the shower and sink soapy water which rinses the sewer hose followed by a garden hose spray into the hose with fresh water before capping off the hose and storing in its bumper outside compartment. Not as gross as it sounds and almost second nature now. If there isn’t a sewer hookup at the site like in many state campgrounds you need to go to a dump station usually on the premise and do what I described above but with a line of other campers waiting for you to finish so they can do it and leave. No pressure.

We headed out the next AM after a Walmart quick stop for bottled water (a way to avoid altitude sickness is to acclimate at increasing altitudes and drink LOTS of water). The Walmart had a beautiful backdrop.

Westward Ho next stop Idaho.

We left Grand Junction, Colorado after a brief stop at a local post office to mail our Presidential election ballots. Felt great to have voted in as always a very important election. This one was another classic Trump hate filled election that was supposed to energize people by promises to deport millions of immigrants, jail left wing crazies or been worse get the military involved (last I checked illegal unless an insurrection to involve active military in domestic issue but oh well its just another fear mongering lie) I digress. But I know I did my part by voting even though I dont hate anyone no matter where they came from or who they vote for. I hope future elections become more about policy differences than hate for anonymous people. So sad this has been a part of our trip that Jo and I stress over daily as we listen to Fox, CNN, ABC like watching a train wreck but trying to stay abreast of all the viewpoints. Sirius goes everywhere.

Our travel to Bryce seemed long with lots of uphill climbs and ear popping for me. My allergies have continued to be brutal but at least Jo understood as her nose was unusually sneezy and clogged too which is unusual.

I drove past a lot of streams that looked like gold panning opportunities but we were on a mission to get to the next spot. I will pan before the trip is over!!! I have my pan and folding shovel in the back of the truck!!!

We also drove by Butch Cassidy’s boyhood home which was approximately 200 sq feet if that lol. I can see why he went out to explore. Jo did some reading up on him and unlike other “outlaws” doesn’t appear to have killed anyone and seemed like a nice guy per Jo. I need to do some more reading on that for sure. One of the dry gulch’s in the Red Canyon was named after him. Maybe where he “hooked up”?!

Driving in to Red Canyon that is just before where we were camping was just beautiful Red Orange rocks and canyons (hence the name Red Canyon) . The trip through the canyon was beautiful but short and I hoped it was the whole Bryce Canyon experience which will make those of you chuckle who have seen Bryce Canyon.

We checked into our campsite at Ruby’s RV Park which was a continuation of a travelers lodge started by the current owners grandfather (great grandfather) Reuben “Ruby” Syrett 108 years ago. The lodge was more of a barn type structure in the park that was accidentally built within the boundaries of the park when Bryce Canyon became a National Park. He offered some of his land to the park to build a road into the park to settle the dispute with the government. Now the town is mainly “Ruby-fied” with RV park, gas station, Lodge, grocery store, art store and so on. The RV park check in was easy and we drove to the back of the park to our site. Easy set up.

Jo decided it was laundry time so I drove her to the front of the park and watched as she and another couple were blocked by a gentleman at the laundromat door. After some shaking of heads and gesturing by the other couple Jo returned to the truck with the laundry bag. Turns out unlike any other campground we have experienced the Laundromat closed at 6:30. Very odd since many people stay one night and usually dont get around to laundry after set up and a meal til then and leave early the next AM per checkout rules. The gentleman said something like “what do you think you are doing?” To Jo when she tried to go in. He is lucky she didnt get all “you talking to me????” on him lol. Laundry got done the next AM. It was really the only not so great experience of the trip or Ruby’s.

We headed out to the park the next AM and went to the lodge inside the park. There literally were no signs in the parking lots showing where to go to hike the park. Lots of couples milling around asking for directions. I went into the lodge and the nice person at the desk pointed to the back door and said walk that way. The edge of the canyon wasnt more that 100 yards behind the lodge but again zero signs until you got behind this big lodge. The view from the edge once we found it was a Grand Canyon take your breath away but more beautiful moment.

We decided to do a 3 mile hike down into the canyon and back up loop. Luckily we had been at 5000 feet since Denver so a bit acclimated to what was now 8000 feet. And despite a sunny day we had a breeze but it was quite a hike. A true challenge for our lungs. Luckily the steeper trail out of the canyon had lots of rest stops in the shade. If you go bring lots of water, comfortable hiking clothes and hiking boots or supportive footwear as it can be slippery even when dry.

After a walk back to the truck we went back to the RV for a late lunch (and a nap). My Denver allergies had followed me (and Jo) to Utah and between the altitude and the allergy meds I was wiped. Lots of water and a nap later I was ready to explore again after dinner at the RV.

I had looked at the park map and saw quite a way further into the end of the park was a spot called Bryce point. I assumed it must be a good view to be named after the man who stumbled on it possibly while looking for his lost cow (fake news?). We were there as the sun was going down and it literally took our reach away it was so beautiful.

We headed home to the RV for a rest planning to go to Zion the next day. I had thought it was 50 minutes and that we would be able to drive through Zion with Mocha. Well both were not true. GPS now said almost two hours and scenic road closed to vehicles except park busses and no pets. Sooo a few minutes into the drive we looked at each other and said Zion would have to be another trip sadly. We did drive to the Red Canyon near us and hiked a bit. One of the hoodoo’s was called the salt and pepper.

Hoodoos are a mistaken translation of the Paiute Indians that called these Anka-Ku-Was-A-Wits translated means “red painted faces”. And they believed these were people turned to stone by the coyote as punishment for bad deeds. A new twist on getting stoned!!

A nice relaxing day at the campsite followed our hike into the Red Canyon.

We headed out the next AM for the Golden Spike RV park in Brigham City, Utah. And on the way got an interesting text from them. That’s in the next blog post!

We left Cherry Creek a little later than usual as we had already driven the first art of the trip when we went to the Cabrini Shrine and it involved a route straight thru Denver. Traffics was the usual stop and go but not bad. The climb out of Denver was a steep one. Im glad I had my oil changed in Aurora as pulling 7000 pounds up an 8% grade pulls hard.

I dont think I mentioned my Valvoline quick oil change experience which was a good one. This is a drive thru dont get out of your car sir experience. Is it the grey hair that gets me more “sirs” lately? LOL Well I got back in my car as something or someone beneath my car started removing the Tundra TRD skid plate. Do they flip for who gets to be in the pit below the cars? Anyway after some low pressure upsells (muffler bearing lube, windshield wiper repair etc) they were finishing up and came around the front of the truck holding something. Did you lose a YETI soda holder sir? Turns out the Yeti can holder I couldnt find has been sitting somewhere in the engine compartment for the last 8 months. It took a licking and kept on kicking. Oh well now I have it for the trip and no damage done to it or my truck. Phewww

The trip to the Grand Junction KOA was uneventful and we were met at the gate by a energized greeter who directed us to where our checkin spot was. She asked if I was William Brewster and when I said yes she said to the other person behind the counter he has the package!! ITook me a second but then I realized they were talking about our absentee ballots my daughter had sent us by priority mail. Pheww wasnt sure I we would be able to coordinate getting them as we were on the road before they were sent out. Thank you Collier County and Melissa Blazier our election supervisor who actually answers the phone when we called to confirm our mailing address was my daughter’s house. First thing we did was vote and with the help of multiple google searches figured out what yes and no meant on all the ballot initiatives. But we drove to the Post Office and handed to the post mistress after confirming a forever stamp was enough postage. WE VOTED!!!

This was a KOA Holiday with some full timers but an equal number of travelers. Very nice KOA for an overnight. And Mocha gave it a thumbs up for having a dog park!

Oh and we were near train tracks again which is a running joke as we seem to be near them quite often. But minimal sleep disruption. Early bed and off to the next stop Bryce Canyon, UT.

Bouncy area Jo wouldnt do when blown up the next day lol