Tag: travel

Big Sky

I stayed overnight in Washington and Idaho on my way to Montana. The first night, I stayed in Kennewick, which was an easy drive from Portland. It was another really nice Boondockers Welcome stay. It was Easter weekend, so no one was around. The weather was sunny and a bit windy, but it was a very easy stay with electric hook-up and water. I would love to stay there again when I get back to Washington.

The next day, I picked up I-90, which is a road that I am very familiar with. I grew up in a town just south of I-90 in Minnesota, so it was a little piece of home, knowing that was on the western part of a road that I know so well. I was in awe of the topography of this stretch of I-90. The most lovely area was near Sprague Lake. We overnighted at Tamarack RV Park, which had an easy check-in process since it was still Easter, and the office was closed.

My plan was to get on the road and in Missoula on Monday. I didn’t have a chance really look around Coeur D’Alene, but the RV park was great – beautiful mature pines and spacious spots for my B class. I made a stop at St. Regis Gift Shop for fuel and for some postcards. I also discovered Huckleberry soda, which was absolutely delightful. This bag sums up Montana for me:

My pictures will never due Montana the justice that it deserves. Steinbeck had it spot on. “I am in love with Montana. With other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection. But with Montana it is love. And it’s difficult to analyze love when you’re in it.”

The drive to Missoula was uneventful, and Jim & Mary’s RV Park – where I was calling home for the next two weeks was perfect. They gave me a great spot on the end of a row, and it was spacious and easy to hook-up with a beautiful tree. I wasn’t sure if I’d have water or not because their website said limited water until mid-April due to the possibility of overnight freezing. Luckily, we had water!! I’ll say it again for anyone who will listen – life with running water is amazing.

On Tuesday, I took my rental car over to a salon to get a much-needed hair touch-up. Unfortunately, my stylist was pre-occupied and after waiting a half hour, I had to reschedule for another day with a different stylist. During my wait, I also realized I had entered Taco John’s land again. I do love Taco John’s tacos, cheese sauce, and potato oles. I grabbed some TJ’s and headed over to my co-worker’s home. We ate tacos, laughed, talked about prom with her daughter, and caught up – a great second day in Missoula!

On Friday, I headed out to Highlander Beer with my co-worker and a couple of her friends. There was a singer at the brewery, and they had pizza! I had a cider and enjoyed the ease of a conversation with girlfriends. How I have missed these kinds of evenings!

On Saturday, we ventured to Glacier National Park after enjoying some deliciousness from The Breakfast Club in Missoula – biscuits and gravy for me!! We were plagued with fog, but we did have a great drive up and back along Flathead Lake. We made our way back and stopped at Flathead Lake Brewing Company for a snack.

On Sunday, we hit up the Bitterroot Valley and stopped at the Big Hole Battlefield for some learning. It is a tragic story, but it’s important to remember. I’m writing this on Memorial Day, and all the lost lives to protect this country is somehow more moving after seeing so much more of this country. The sacrifices that so many have made on both sides of the weapons – if only we could do more with words and less with violence. The battlefield hosts an annual gathering to honor the Nez Peace ancestors.

My co-worker also took me to the Patagonia Outlet – a delightful way to end the day. Of course, we found some bargains, and then we ate at Dairy Queen on the other side of town.

Arthur loved Montana, too. He had some great sleep while we were there.

Cor-vuh-lis or Cor-vah-lis?

You know, I still don’t know for sure how to pronounce it, but I spent a lovely two weeks at the Benton County Fairground RV park. As a young person in 4-H, I spent a lot of time at fairgrounds, primarily the Martin County Fair. It’s a great idea as well – for fairgrounds to rent out their RV sites when there isn’t a fair going on.

We had a great spot, and it was a first long-term camping with only water and electric – no sewer. I wasn’t sure how much of a challenge this would be since we’d been staying at parks that were full hook-up (electric, water, sewer). Surprisingly, we didn’t have any issues. Our grey and black tanks were sufficient for that long of a stay. We used less water, but that’s probably just a good thing in general. We also had a spot in an area that hardly had any other occupants, so Arthur was on full-time neighborhood watch.

Must keep RV safe.

I did rent a car and ended up with one that I’d never had the chance to drive before – VW Tiguan. It was an older model, but interesting nonetheless.

Did it rain a lot? After coming up from Morro Bay, it wasn’t really that bad and definitely not unpleasant. We had a lot of days of sun and hit the 70s a few times.

The trying part of the trip to Corvallis was the stretch after we left Highway 101. It started out great. There was a beautiful snowfall and a good amount of traffic that was moving at a decent clip on 126 after Florence. There was an intersection in Mapleton where literally everyone else turned right to go to Eugene, and I decided to go straight on highway 36. 🍫🍫🍫 Not sure how the snow compared on 126, but 36 winds next to the Siuslaw River, which was high and angry. It was extra exciting because highway 36 was pretty narrow, and I was in the outer lane, right near the angry river. The good news was that there was no one else on this road, so I did Pac-Man the road for quite a long time. I did see some very beautiful small towns, including Deadwood near Triangle Lake. All in all, it was about 40 miles of white-knuckle driving.

When we arrived in Corvallis, I stopped at the Walmart to grab some supplies because – believe it or not, they don’t have a Target in Corvallis. Strike one against Corvallis. Between the RV, the Girl Scout cookie table, and somewhere in the store, I lost one of my airPods. I usually only use one airPod at a time, so I only lost one. 🍫 I didn’t discover that I had lost it until we were at our campsite. I did end up trying to go back and see if anyone turned it in, but – alas – no such luck.

I’m not sure if I mentioned this before or not, but I love to tour old houses. Frank Lloyd Wright homes are my favorite to visit, but any historic home will do. So, I toured the Deepwood Mansion in Salem, OR. It was a great tour with knowledgable guide and a friendly group of young women. When I told them about my journey, one of them offered me her phone number and said to call if I needed anything while I was in this part of Oregon. Really can’t emphasize enough how many extremely kind people I’ve met on this journey.

The gardens were just starting to bloom, and the woodwork in this place was amazing.

After Salem, I headed over to Silverton, OR, for lunch at the Main Street Bistro and for a tour of The Gordon House, the only publicly accessible FLW house in the NW. The couple that commissioned the house were farmers, and the conservation group had to move the house from the farm land when new owners decided to tear it down. I’ve been able to tour Kentuck Knob, Fallingwater, and Taliesin. Can’t wait to see more on my travels.

On my way back from Silverton, I stopped by the Willamette Valley Pie Shop. This was a great idea provided by the gals I toured the Deepwood Gardens house with. I picked up some gifts there for my Dad’s birthday, and a Marionberry hand pie for me!! It probably goes without saying that it was delicious, and Dad enjoyed the gifts I found for him there.

I did end up swinging by and touring the other historic house in Salem – the Bush House. This was a grander house than the Deepwood Mansion, but it wasn’t as lovely. Before the tour, I was able to walk around a small gallery on the grounds of the house that featured art from local school students. It was really nice, and I ended up getting to meet one of the young artists who was there with her Mom.

The last highlight of Corvallis was the Ol’ Spaghetti Factory. The last time I had eaten at one of these was when the one in Minneapolis on Washington Ave was still open – maybe decades ago? The food isn’t great, but sometimes it’s the nostalgia that enhances the flavors.

Two Weeks in Morro Bay

A beautiful view of the bay from Tidelands Park.

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.

Weekend Adventure in AZ

A Castle?

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.

A view from Jerome.

Fun in (& around) Flagstaff

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.

Gilbert Galore

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!

On to AZ

Hitting the Road Again

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. 🍫🍫🍫

ISO The Unicorn City

So, what is it that I’m looking for?

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.

National Park Adventures

But first…the aliens….

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.

Feed the Fear

The Sandia Peak Tramway

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.