It’s not your imagination; I’ve been neglecting the blog. Since leaving Arizona, I’ve been enjoying shorter stints at different locations. It never feels like there’s enough time to sit down and do some blogging, but here I am – in Idaho and reflecting on the last six weeks.
I’ve been lucky enough to visit a lot of different places in California before – San Diego, LA, San Francisco, and Sonoma – so I wanted to stay somewhere I’d never been before. I threw a dart of over-analyzation at it and came up with Morro Bay – just northwest of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo. Unfortunately, California is getting an unseasonal amount of rain, and I didn’t have a rental car, so we hung out solely in Morro Bay for two weeks.
We stayed at a great RV park – Cypress Morro Bay – that was only about two blocks from the bay. It’s a smaller park, so Estella was a perfect fit. We were sandwiched between a group of folks who have been camping there during the winter months for a number of years. They were so welcoming and kind, so it was a really comfortable. The bathrooms were delightfully clean and empty every time I used them.
Without a rental car, I got a chance to take some great walks. The picture above is from a stroll around the bay after a lovely lunch at House of Juju on the Embarcadaro. The main town part of Morro Bay was nice as well – very walkable. There were some opportunities that I missed out on – like a farmer’s market and a gathering with the other folks in the RV park – but I think I just needed the solo time.
I did have an adventure totting 2.5 gallons of DEF a half a mile from the O’Reilly Auto Parts store. In hindsight, which really is 20/20, I probably should’ve just gotten a Lyft ride back to the RV park, but this was character building and sweaty. 🍫
And that was kinda it in south central California. On March 1, we took started our drive north through the rest of California. It was really amazing to see the state from the road. We took the 101 all the way into Oregon. Along the way, we stayed at a county fairgrounds in Cloverdale and a great RV park in Northern California overlooking the Klamath River. It rained..a lot, which seems to be the story of California this time.
The upside from the rain were the number of rainbows we saw along the way. I lost count at 5, and they were all perfect in their own way.
We also drove through the Presidio, crossed the Golden Gate Bridge, wound our way through Sausalito, were dwarfed by the majestic redwoods, and saw the power coastal waves. It really was a remarkable journey, perched in Estella’s driver’s seat. Arthur did well in his hideout during the drive, and I am grateful to have his love and support – even if it’s because I give him treats, food, and water.
Our time in Arizona has come to an end already. Hard to believe how quickly the month flew by. The combination of having a work trip and making the most of my time with the rental car helped expedite our visit, so it’s time to say goodbye to the Grand Canyon State and head out to find our fortunes in the Eureka state.
The road from Camp Verde to Twentynine Palms, California, was not for the faint of heart. We took off around 10AM local time, and we traveled about 2.5 hours when Arthur really started to struggle. In hindsight, I think it was the frequency of the DIPs on the route. State route 72 and Aqueduct Road seemed to be the main culprits, and he was relieved when we arrived at our RV park – Twentynine Palms Resort – that afternoon. He had found another spot to hide while I was driving, and I decided that it would be better to just keep going instead of stopping and letting him rest and having him think we were done with the road. A short drive made very long.
There are some amazing sites when you drive across the country. It’s hard to capture them in words, and I really try not to take pictures while I’m driving. On this trip, there were two things – outside of the scenery – that piqued my interest. On one particularly open space, I looked out the window to my left, and flying parallel to me were two helicopters. I think they were military, but it was not what I was expecting to see. Where were they going? What were they doing? On that same road, there was a car full of stuff – no people from what I could see – that was just on the side of the road upside down, laying on its roof. How did that happen? Is everyone ok? No answers; just mysteries on this road trip.
When we arrived at the RV resort, I signed up for the Saturday night dinner that the park offers for $12 for first-time attendees. That night, it was chicken-fried chicken with corn, mashed potatoes, and a delicious cake for dessert. I ended up sitting with a great couple from Arizona who are just starting going out on long weekend trips in their motorhome. We talked about where they live, what we all do for work, and they had suggestions for future cities for me to explore.
The weather was beautiful, so we were able to open the sunroof and bathroom vent and pull in the fresh air, which was great for sleeping.
On Sunday, we drove out to the Yucca Valley and went on a horseback ride in Joshua Tree National Park with Knob Hill Ranch. Cara and Madeline were very accommodating, and the ride was great. My horse, Biscuit, was a trooper and loved being out on the trail. It was a great way to see the park and, according to my watch, it was great exercise.
Because I didn’t have a rental car, Arthur made the trip to Yucca Valley with me and Estella. He did great, but by the time we headed back to the park in the late afternoon, he was ready to be done.
Glamour snap of Arthur, advising me that he’s done traveling.
Unfortunately, Estella sustained her first injury under my care. When we were leaving Knob Hill Ranch, I didn’t turn wide enough and ended up scrapping the step on the sliding door. 🍫🍫 It’s surface damage, so nothing terrible, but it’s a bummer. Sorry, Estella.
Planning around weather is just part of the journey. Our venture further into California called for us to drive through an atmospheric river on our way to Morro Bay. I like to use Weather on the Way, but it really doesn’t tell you about road conditions – just about the, you guessed it, weather on the way. Luckily, our neighbor at the RV park used to work for the California Department of Transportation, and she was able to give me so solid advice about our upcoming drive.
It was my last weekend with the rental car, so I decided to make the most of it.
The RV park where I was staying was minutes away from Montezuma Castle National Monument, which I had never heard of before getting to AZ. On Saturday, I took a walk back into time to see how people built homes into the sides of the hills of northern Arizona. There was even a narrated diorama on the walking path that was really interesting.
The Arizona Sycamores in this park were beautiful. You can see some of the dwellings from the ground, but they stopped tours of the actual dwellings in the 1950s. Unfortunately, it looked like the park had recently disturbed by vandals, including the area by the creek. 😦 There may have been a sign that I may have ignored, so I could grab a peak at the creek (pic below).
After my visit to Montezuma Castle, I had time to stop at the Camp Verde library, which was great. They had a great assortment of used books for sale, so I found some more books for the road.
Then I headed south to meet a former co-worker for lunch. We ate at a restaurant in Anthem, AZ, and it was so great to catch up. We estimated that it had been 10 years since we had last seen each other, and it was like no time had passed.
After lunch, I found a new pair of hiking boots at an outlet mall close to the restaurant. I discovered, after walking part of the Grand Canyon rim trail, my feet are now too old for my hiking shoes. After three different stores, I found a very comfortable pair of hiking boots that support my old feet and have some ankle support, which my old hiking shoes were lacking.
I headed back to Camp Verde for a massage that I had scheduled, and my massage therapist gave me a bunch of recommendations for the rest of my time, including a small mining town called Jerome.
Sunny Sedona on Sunday
I thought I’d take advantage of being close to Sedona and take a day trip to visit. I found a local breakfast spot – Cafe Jose – and headed up there early Sunday morning. The potatoes were awesome, and the cinnamon roll was even better – a great way to start the day.
I also scheduled two trolley tours with Sedona Trolley. This tour made it easy to see the city and some of the sights surrounding the area.
Red rocks of Sedona! We also went to the Chapel of the Holy Cross, which was surprisingly tiny but lovely. One of the great parts of the tour was that trolley dropped us off at the chapels, which was great because parking near the chapel was pretty limited. The afternoon trolley drove up to the north canyon, which was so peaceful that I managed to fall asleep on the trolley, so the pic on the right is my post-nap face.
From Sedona, I decided to drive up to Jerome, AZ – a small, former mining town. This drive was not for the faint of heart, which I didn’t realize until I was driving the road. If you go to the Jerome link, you’ll see some excellent pictures on their home page to give you a sense of how far up the mountain I was. I went to the local museum, which had a lot of great information about the origins of the town, when it became a ghost town, and how it has recovered. I also grabbed some lunch at Clinkscale, a local restaurant.
There were probably other shops or sights to see, but I wanted to get to Prescott, Arizona, so I finished lunch and drove to Prescott. Coming out of Jerome, you drive through the Prescott National Forest, which was just amazing. It had recently snowed, so it was extra lovely. I was on the interior side of the road, so I had fewer butterflies taking that road down the mountain.
When I got to Prescott, I parked near Whisky Row and walked around. I had hoped to visit a historical site (Sharlot Hall Museum) instead, but it was closed because of recent snow. There were some interesting shops and plenty of bars. I had a nice walk around the square and in the nearby neighborhoods.
The first stop on my weekend of fun in Flagstaff was a stop at the Grand Canyon National Park. I’d never been, and it was overwhelming beautiful. The pictures don’t give you the sense of grandeur that you get on the Rim Trail. It was the most epic national park I’ve been to so far.
There was a bit of a winter storm the Friday before I left for Flagstaff, but they’re used to that sort of thing, so the roads were clear sailing, and the scenery was beautiful. In addition to the national parks, I also gotten to drive through many national forests, including the Coconino National Forest on the way to Flagstaff and then Kaibab. There was a bit of fog, too, which added to the mystic of the Saturday morning drive.
The parking lot at the Grand Canyon visitor’s center was covered with snow, so there was a lot of improvised parking. That turned out to be quite amusing when I left in the afternoon and the snow had melted. I think I ended up accidentally took up 3 parking spaces. Oops.
While I was in the park, I took one of the shuttles to the village area. I went to the restaurant in the Bright Angel hotel for lunch and had some pot roast, which was a delicious, warm treat on a cool day. They had a small museum with some history around the hotel, and I learned about Mary Colter who had designed many of the buildings still remaining in the Grand Canyon area and reminded me that I saw something she’d designed in Santa Fe as well.
After lunch, I wandered around the village area and saw the Lookout Studio, Kolb Studio, Hopi House, and stepped into the Verkam Visitors Center. I took the South Rim trail to the Yavapai Point, which had numerous great views of the canyon. It was also paved, which was a great surprise. I also learned that my hiking shoes were on their last leg – at least for my old feet. 🍫🍫 Toward the end of the day, it slowed me down.
After my time at the park, I drove back down to Flagstaff and checked into my hotel. I had a great room, and I laid down to relax. Honestly, I was not feeling the best, and I couldn’t put my finger on why. I did look up altitude sickness, and I did have some of those symptoms. It seemed to pass after I took my nap, so I headed out to find something to eat. I ended up at a brewery (Dark Sky), and the food was good; the beer was fine.
On Sunday, I grabbed breakfast at a great spot – The Station Cafe and Lounge – and drove around Flagstaff to check out the library (where there was a quilt display and used books for sale), the university, and to find a place to inflate my tires. I also noticed that someone had taken the caps from my tire valve stems on two of my tires, so I stopped a bought some of those. It was surprisingly difficult to find a place to inflate my tires where the actual device worked. 🍫🍫🍫
Unplanned Adventure
By midday, I was ready to do some more exploring, so I headed out to Winslow, AZ. On the way, I kept seeing signs for a giant meteor crater, so of course I stopped to see it. On my way out of that area, I did find a place to inflate my tires for free.
It was an amazingly large crater.
I had lunch at this beautiful hotel in Winslow, AZ. Where I had a lovely salad for lunch in the Turquoise Room and enjoyed a delicious glass of prickly pear lemonade, and they even gave me a to go cup for the road. Then, of course, I stood on the corner, and it was remarkable.
How beautiful it is to do nothing and then rest after.
Since being in NM, it felt like I had been running around every weekend and some week nights, especially dealing with the night when we lost power. I was looking forward to having a weekend to just rest and relax. After putting in some long days at work, I settled in to a weekend with no real plans. I set myself up for success by grabbing a shower at our new RV park. The shower rooms at Distant Drums were even better than the ones in Albuquerque at Coronado Village. They have double locks – outer door is locked after hours and each bathroom had a secure lock – and were always very clean.
I did almost nothing during my first full weekend in AZ. I read a little, blogged a little, and did some internet surfing – all excellently uneventful. I knew the following weekend that I would need to start looking ahead to where I was going to hang my hat in the coming months.
Generally, I know that direction where I’m headed and when I’ll be in that area and for how long. The interesting part is diving into the RV Life Pro app and trying to figure out where I want to stay when I’m in those areas. I’m looking for a few things – a decent price, a good location with reports of good internet signal, and a location that is near some conveniences like grocery stores and delivery if I don’t want to eat what I have in the RV. I also try to find RV parks that have access to safe showers since Arthur’s litter box takes up my shower and is a pain to move.
I’ve learned that the off-the-beaten-path parks are great if you’re on vacation, but it’s a lot easier to stay within the city limits if you’re needing to do errands or working remotely. The internet signal is the strength I need to work and stream shows at night when I’m relaxing, and when I’m more “in town”, I usually don’t even have to drag out the signal booster. There is more traffic, but that doesn’t bother me. I can sleep just about anywhere.
After I was finished doing the planning for the next six months, I needed to pack because I had a work trip. Planning for this was a feat within itself. Usually, work trips are simple, I book the flight, pack, drive to the airport, and go to work in a different location. It’s a little different when you’re in a van with your cat. So, I had to figure out where I was going to be when I had to travel, where I was going to park Estella, and what would I do with Arthur.
After looking at Rover.com for a possible cat sitter and looking for places to park at the PHX airport, I decided to leave Estella and Arthur to their own devices for 48-ish hours. I left our space heater on and set to a comfortable temperature just in case the newly repaired heater decided die while I was away. I also left the bed up, so Arthur could spread out and not have to share with me. Of course, I made sure he had plenty of food, a clean litter box, and plenty of water.
Unbelievable Mishaps
A reminder of the Mishap Scale >>> (🍫 = minor; 🍫🍫 = ordinary; 🍫🍫🍫 = embarrassing; 🍫🍫🍫🍫 = terrible; 🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫 = not enough chocolate in the RV to recover)
Showering, no matter how nice the bathrooms are, reminds me a lot of the prep that I used to do in the residence halls in college. Back then, I had a cute basket for my bathroom stuff, and everything – if I forgot it – was a few steps away. I forgot my towel on my first trip to the bathroom. 🍫 I used my t-shirt – that was pretty clean….
This last mishap wasn’t really mine. When I was on my work trip, I had a 6AM flight to head back to AZ. So, I had arranged the Lyft ride for myself and some co-workers at 4:30. Around 4:10, I got a notification that the Lyft driver was early. Nervous that he might leave, I finished getting all my stuff together and headed to the elevator. I turned the corner from my room, and there was a man, laying face down with his pants and underwear around his knees. Not something you want to see at any time of the day – let alone 4:15 in the morning. Did I check to see if he was alive? No. Did I take a picture? Yes. Did I call the front desk to let them know? Also, yes. I have no idea what happened to him or what the front desk did after I called. 🍫🍫🍫🍫
More Adventures!
One of the benefits of going to the airport is that I could pick up a rental car, so let the adventures in AZ begin. Next post…a trip further north with some grand views.
After our adventure in Tucson, we headed a short distance to Gilbert, AZ, and hit up Target and a gas station. The weather was great, and it was kinda fun to refresh the supplies and just be around people. I have to say that one of the things I’ve learned is that, if there are other spots available, don’t park right next to the large RV in a small parking lot. It’s just a courtesy. (Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.)
When I got back out to the RV, you guessed it, out of all the open parking spots, someone had parked on either side of me. I pull through the parking spaces because Estella is 24’3″, so we fit width-wise in a standard parking space, but we take up two spaces length-wise. Thankfully, no one parked in front of us, so we were able to maneuver out without damaging anything.
We stayed in the driveway of another Boondockers Welcome member for the next two nights. The homeowner was from NY, so we talked a bit of football, and I let him know that the RV repair person would be coming the next day to help sort out my heat situation before I headed north again. He was very pleasant about it and even offered to let the repair guy park in the driveway when he was there. I cannot say enough about how positive my experiences have been with BW; every host has been kind and helpful and knowledgeable about the area where we’re staying.
The Truma/Alde repair person arrived in the early afternoon the next day, and he was able to diagnose that I had a leak in my system. His initial diagnosis had been a full system replacement, so I’m glad we didn’t have to go down that path. He also did a flush of the system and fixed the light switch and the outlet in the “garage” of the RV.
While I was in Gilbert, I took advantage of being in a pretty populated area to get my hair done. I prefer going to Aveda salons because I know the products, and they are good on my hair. I also needed a haircut, so the timing was perfect. My stylist was great, and I would highly recommend Eden Salon & Spa in Chandler. Also, they had the cutest cross stitches in the bathroom.
“Please don’t do cocaine in the bathroom.” and “TITS UP”. Excellent reminders for us all.
When I left Gilbert, I was able to meet up with a former co-worker for lunch. We had a great chat, and I finally got some tamales and fresh, warm tortillas. YUM. I have loved being able to meet up with friends who I haven’t seen in years, sometimes decades, and just pick up where we left off. I also stopped at Lowe’s to get another hose connector for my fresh water supply. Luckily, the previous owners had left me with a great selection of hose connectors, but there’s a lot of stuff one connects to the fresh water hose – pressure-reducing valve, water filter, hose splitter, etc., and sometimes those parts need a different fitting. I got a brass female-to-female fitting and some more of that teflon tape you put around the male end of water things.
After lunch, we hit the road again to our destination for the next month Distant Drums RV Resort in Camp Verde, Arizona.
It’s Me, so – of course – there were mishaps.
A reminder of the Mishap Scale >>> (🍫 = minor; 🍫🍫 = ordinary; 🍫🍫🍫 = embarrassing; 🍫🍫🍫🍫 = terrible; 🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫 = not enough chocolate in the RV to recover)
A heater leak is just one of those things that could possibly happen when you live in an RV. Something else could go wrong tomorrow, but it’s our home, so we fix it, so we can keep thriving on our journey. My mishap here was that I didn’t recognize the signs – like the fluid on the floor under the mat where Arthur’s water bowl sits. 🍫🍫🍫 If I had recognized that, it might’ve been easier on the technician that came out to repair the van. He thought he was in for a lengthy job that turned out to be more of a maintenance appointment than anything. I think we were both relieved that it wasn’t something bigger.
And the maps got me again. This time, instead of moving the RV and having to re-park, I just got a Lyft ride to the salon. I was there early, the stylists were busy, so I just went to the bathroom and waited until they were done. I started looking around, and I didn’t see any Aveda products, which is odd. If you’ve ever been to an Aveda salon, it’s Aveda everywhere. I did some Googling, and I realized that I was at the wrong Eden Salon. 🍫🍫 At this point, this kind of mishap is starting to feel rather ordinary…unfortunately. I got another Lyft to the correct Eden Salon, and I was only a few minutes late.
The drive to Camp Verde was beautiful, and there was a rest stop, so I stopped to try to get a picture and take a work phone call. I pulled off the side of the road because I thought it was one of those rest stops where you just have a scenic view but no bathrooms or picnic areas. I was futzing with the teflon tape that I bought at Lowe’s, and the wind took it and unspooled the whole roll…. It was windy, I had the window open, and it just slipped out of my hands. 🍫🍫🍫🍫 So, I spent the entirety of the work call re-rolling the teflon tape back onto the bobbin that had – of course – rolled under the van before I could stop it from unwinding. To add insult to injury, I drove up the hill a little further, and there was an actual rest stop with bathrooms and a gorgeous view. Unreal. I was so annoyed with myself that I didn’t even get out and take a picture.
And that, ladies and gents, was my time in Gilbert, Arizona. Always an adventure!
After a month of staying in one place, it almost felt like we were starting all over again when I fired up Estella and got on the road. I decided to leave ABQ a day early, so we could make a stop at Saguaro National Park outside of Tucson, AZ. This benefited us in two ways: we could take a southern route and possibly avoid some unsavory winter weather, and we could check another national park off our list.
We took advantage of our Boondockers Welcome membership again and stayed at a ranch off the highway near Willcox, AZ. The sunrise (pic above) was beautiful, and the hosts were very kind and made time to visit about everything from schools to politics to AZ life. I am the type of person who likes to keep to myself, but I’ve tried to be open to impromptu conversations on this journey, and they have not been disappointing.
The next morning, we drove to Tucson and made a stop at a local bakery, La Estrella Bakery, on our way to Saguaro. The donuts and churros were fresh and delicious but – sadly – it wasn’t a tamale day.
When we arrived at the Saguaro National Park, I was stuck by the sheer number of cacti. I caught another park ranger talk in the morning and met two women who were visiting the area from Lakeville, MN, where I used to teach – such a small world. The ranger was also a retiree from, you guessed it, Minnesota. We strolled around the garden area where he pointed out an abundant amount of information about the Saguaro cacti and other plant and animal life in the park. Did you know that the Saguaro cactus is about 60 years old before it starts to grow its first limb and that they are also self-healing?
After the ranger talk, I strolled around the visitor’s center and took some more pictures, and then we traveled out of the park toward Gilbert, AZ, our next stop. This was probably the warmest day that we’ve had so far on our adventure. The sun and the heat felt good after the colder temps we just left in NM.
Mishaps and Maps
A reminder of the Mishap Scale >>> (🍫 = minor; 🍫🍫 = ordinary; 🍫🍫🍫 = embarrassing; 🍫🍫🍫🍫 = terrible; 🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫 = not enough chocolate in the RV to recover)
We had only one real mishap on this travel day. While the bakery was delicious, the parking situation at the bakery was not. You’d be just fine in a car or truck or mini van, but in a 24′ van, it was a little hair-raising. In hindsight, I should’ve parked further away and walked a little bit to get there, but there was road construction near the bakery, and I misjudged the size of the parking area a bit. I was able to park without issue, but the leaving was another story. It was about a 10-point back-up, turn the wheel, go forward, back-up type situation. No damage to Estella or the bakery, but that chocolate-frosted donut tasted even better after we made it out unscathed. 🍫🍫🍫
It’s a great question. For those of you who haven’t visited our About Us page, Arthur, Estella, and I are on the search for our Unicorn City. I took some time to figure out a way to determine what will constitute the particular unicorn we’re looking for.
Here’s my Unicorn City List
Mid-sized city. Not really looking to live in a big city or a small town. I’m ok with some high rise buildings, but I’d prefer to be in a city/town under 150,000 people.
College town. There’s a lot of pull for me, with my background in academia, to be in or near a college/university town.
Good library. I think a community with a good library says a lot about that community. I like to stop at local libraries when I’m in a town and checking out what kinds of events they offer to the local folks and buy used books.
Close to a major airport. Just because we settle down, I don’t expect my desire to travel will abate, so I’d like to be close (within an hour to an hour-and-a-half) to a decent airport.
Nice people/ Good vibes. When I visit the different cities, I’m trying not to just do touristy things. I want to see how people live in that community.
Home Improvement Stores. I’m likely gonna need to do some home improvements and, when getting supplies, convenience is important.
Decent housing prices. I’m not getting any younger, and I want to be able to travel, so I gotta find a place where I can rent or buy and not go into retirement as a pauper. I also recognize that I may be with Estella for a bit longer than the year I anticipated.
Climate plays a big factor in my decision. You know those people who are always cold? That’s never been me. I need to be somewhere with cooler temperatures.
Well-rated hospitals/clinics. I think this is also a sign of a strong community. Healthcare, especially as I age, is important. Good healthcare is even more valuable.
Diversity. For me, it’s not that the area has a lot of different folks around but that those groups are integrated together – not separate – or at least the community is really working on neighbors being neighborly no matter who you are, where you come from, or what you do.
I’m going to give each city a rating from 0-1 in each category. The cities that are the highest rated will get a closer examination. I’m not 100% sure this is the best methodology yet, so stay tuned.
Cities We Visited
Topeka, KS: 8
Albuquerque, NM: 8.5
Gilbert, AZ: 7
Camp Verde, AZ: 5
Flagstaff, AZ: 8
Winslow, AZ: 3.5
Sedona, AZ: 3.5
Prescott, AZ: 9
Morro Bay, CA: 5
Corvallis, OR: 8
Salem, OR: 8.5
Portland, OR: 7
Missoula, MT: 8
Jackson, WY: 5.5
Fort Collins, CO: 7
Colorado Springs, CO: 8
Manhattan, KS: not info to rate…although I was not a fan of being in KS during tornado season
Minneapolis, MN: 7.5
Wheeler, WI: 4.5
Springfield, IL: 8
Chicagoland, IL: 8
Grand Rapids, MI: 8.5
Ann Arbor, MI: 9
Syracuse, NY: 7
Buffalo, NY: 9
Shelburne, VT: 4
Bethlehem, NH: 4
Bangor, ME: 6.5
Prince Edward Island, Canada: 9
Baltimore, MD: 8
Greensboro / High Point, NC: 7.5
Myrtle Beach, SC: 6 (although the number of pancake-centric restaurants was inspirational)
Hilton Head Island, SC: 5.5
Gainesville, GA: I don’t think I explored enough to rate this one.
Houston, TX: 7
Austin, TX: 8
Over time, I did make some adjustments to my list, but the finalists are the greater Chicagoland area in IL, Grand Rapids / Ann Arbor, MI, Buffalo, NY area, and Prince Edward Island in Canada. Since I can’t work in Canada, I can only hope to visit it more often and maybe spend my retirement years there.
On Friday night, after I traded rental cars, I drove down to Roswell, NM. It was a really easy 3-hour drive, and I arrived in time to grab a quick dinner at the alien-themed McDonald’s. There were aliens everywhere, but I didn’t get a chance to check them out because I had a plan. I did see this beautiful mural when I was going through the drive thru, which was a highlight of the pretty ordinary town, sprinkled with alien statues and decor.
The Plan
I had a pretty aggressive itinerary for the Saturday when I woke up in Roswell. First up, I was driving to Carlsbad Caverns National Park, which is about an hour and 40 minutes from Roswell. After that, I was going to make the 3 hour trek to White Sands National Park by 4:30PM, so I could go for a sunset stroll with a park ranger and other park visitors.
Carlsbad Caverns
I cannot even begin to describe how beautiful the drive was to get to the cavern itself. You turn into a little town with a gas station, some shops, and a hotel. Then you enter the park itself, and I was amazed at the topography of the park. I should’ve stopped to take some pictures, but – you know – the plan must be obeyed. By the time I got to the visitor’s center, I had about an hour before I needed to get on the road to White Sands.
So, I bought my annual national parks pass, and I took the elevator down to the caverns. I gotta say that I’m still coming to terms with the feeling of claustrophobia that creeps up on me when I have time to think about the small space I’m in. There’s a lot of time when you’re in an elevator, going over 700 feet down an elevator shaft that is partially under construction. Apparently, the ride is only a minute, but I have to tell you that it felt longer. If I ever go back, I’d plan for more time and hike down and back up again.
It’s really hard to capture the grandeur of the caverns, so these photos really don’t do it justice. The photo on the left is The Bell formation, and I don’t remember what the one on the right is. I did end up being able to walk all the different paths in the caverns and get some underground steps in. It surprised me how humid it was, and by the time I was done walking all the trails, I needed to shed a layer.
I did stop for a snack because they have a snack station in the cavern (!!), and I didn’t know if I would have time to stop for lunch. The gal who took my money told me about the recent weather that I might encounter on my journey to White Sands. It was really helpful get a preview of the road conditions from a local, and I did end up taking the most direct route to White Sands NP.
Lincoln National Forest
When I entered the forest from the east on US Highway 82, I wasn’t particularly impressed. It was nice, but it didn’t seem that remarkable – mostly desert and vegetation, but definitely not as impressive as the drive into Carlsbad Caverns NP. About a half hour or so in, there was some snow on the ground, which was really beautiful to see. There are were ranches and houses along the road, and it looked peaceful with the fresh snow and sunny skies. The forest wasn’t done surprising me.
I hit the most beautiful stretch of Lincoln National Forest when I approached Cloudcroft and after I left the town. I hope I can go back soon, but I’m also glad that I wasn’t driving Estella. Since I wasn’t expecting it, there were a couple white-knuckle moments that had my palms a little sweaty.
White Sands National Park
I was about 5 minutes early to the sunset walk at White Sands NP, and the drive through the park to the meet-up spot was remarkable. The park ranger, Sarah, was great. She shared that White Sands was one of the newest national parks – before it was designated as a national monument. Since it’s become a national park, more has been invested in the park, and they’ve made some incredible discoveries. We heard about wildlife, water sources, and the vegetation in the park, and we enjoyed a beautiful sunset.
Just gorgeous views in all directions. That’s my adorable rental!! Take a close look at the ground clearance on that darling ride…more to come on that….
During our walk, I met a fellow traveler from San Francisco who was on her own adventure, meeting with a group she met through the Road Scholars. She was a delight, and it was really nice and encouraging. I did get on the road a bit later than I had anticipated, and it was definitely dark when I started trying to finding my way back to Albuquerque. Cue the mishaps after a mishap-free day….
Mishaps and Maps
A reminder of the Mishap Scale >>> (🍫 = minor; 🍫🍫 = ordinary; 🍫🍫🍫 = embarrassing; 🍫🍫🍫🍫 = terrible; 🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫 = not enough chocolate in the RV to recover)
I feel fortunate that, other than my heating issue, my travels have been fairly uneventful. The majority of this trip went to plan, which was a refreshing. I had done quite a bit of planning for the trip to get to my destinations and precious little planning for my return trip to Albuquerque. I had thought, “Just drop the address in the gps, and I’ll be back to Estella and Arthur in a few hours.”
It was about 20 minutes into the drive when I turned onto a very dark and unpopulated road. At the end of that road was a lovely gate with barbs and signs that said stop, turn around, and testing area. When I got back and Googled where I had been, it was a missile testing site. 🍫🍫 Pretty ordinary mistake to unwittingly trust that your GPS isn’t going to try to take you through a potentially hazardous road.
Crisis averted, and I made my way back toward the main road. I had stopped, looked at the actual map, and found the best way back to the highway via the lovely, non-missile laden Railroad Ave. Seemed harmless, and I was hungry. It was now pretty close to 7, and the last time I ate was around noon when I bought snacks at the cavern’s underground snack bar. I was ready for food, my rental car was ready for some fuel, and the road seemed like a perfectly lovely way to get to both.
I have no idea how long I drove on Railroad Avenue, but there were several signs along the road for “DIP”s in the road. Usually, these signs are a gentle warning and not a big deal, as dips happen. This road appeared to be the same – just small unevenness in the pavement.
I will say that I’ve noticed them more now after this one particular DIP incident, but there are occasional, short overpasses that you see in NM, where you could drive a car under, and I always thought they were curious but never knew what they were for.
I can tell you now that they are for water. On Railroad Avenue, I found a “DIP” that was more than just a bit of a bump in the road. I cannot explain to you how fast the moment went from driving on road to driving through water of what was likely Tularosa Creek. Remember the Mini Cooper from above? Not great for crossing creeks. I was shaken up, praying that I didn’t get water in the engine, or damage the rental, so instead of stop and take a picture of what we had just managed to muddle through together, I just kept driving. Once again, I was thankful that I wasn’t in Estella, that Arthur wasn’t with me, and that I had my wits about me enough to keep driving.
After I reached the main road again and found a gas station. I ate a corn dog, put gas in the rental, and said a prayer of thanks for getting to wherever I was and for that corn dog. 🍫🍫🍫🍫 I would’ve rated this one a 5-bar mishap, but there was, thankfully, enough chocolate in the van to ease my stress after that adventure.
Disclaimer: I completely understand that it doesn’t make a lot of sense to get on a tram that hangs from some cables and makes its way up the side of a mountain (and swings a bit when you pass by one of the supporting towers) if you’re afraid of heights, but here we are, or there I was.
This is the tram I rode up and down the side of Sandia Peak after the New Year. Amazingly, it also carries hundreds of gallons of water to the top of the mountain to support the restaurant / bar – Ten 3 – that sits at the top of the peak.
I can tell you that I felt relieved when we safely reached the end of the ride up, but I was still feeling nervous about the ride back down. I had made a reservation for dinner at Ten 3, and I thought a drink and some food might help assuage my fears a bit. Dinner was delicious; the ribeye steak was about as big as my face, so I happily left with leftovers.
I think the tram driver said we went from 6000 feet above sea level to 10000 feet above sea level. It makes my palms a little sweaty just looking at the pictures…
Safely on the ground again, I would say that it was a worthwhile experience, and I’m glad that I talked myself into it. I don’t think I would do it again.
The Adventures of Ms Haps & Arthur 