Category Archives: Camping

Nevada Northern Railway

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June 11, 2021

After leaving Arizona, we made our way north by way of eastern Nevada, going through Caliente, Ely and Wells, NV.

Wheeler Peak Great Basin National Park

On the way there, we drove along the backside of Great Basin National Park. I could see Wheeler Peak in the distance. We drove to the top of it when we visited the park last year. The 13,000’ peak still had snow on it.

 In Ely, we stopped for four nights so we could ride the Nevada Northern Railway and visit the Museum. The Railway is a National Historic Landmark and the museum complex includes a rail yard on 56 acres with 63 structures to explore.

We enjoyed a 90 minute ride in an old passenger car pulled by a steam locomotive.

The train depot for the Northern Nevada Railway.
The elevation of Ely is 6,437 feet. In winter, this snowplow was used to clear the snow off the tracks.
Water tower for Northern Nevada Railway.
The conductor punches our tickets.

The ride took us through the hills around Ely to a large copper mine and back. Along the way we learned about local history.

We view the historic town of Ely, Nevada, on our train ride out to the mine.

As we head out of town and uphill, the smoke gets blacker.

Northern Nevada Railway
Tailings from the Robinson copper mine.

Copper was used for wiring homes for electricity in the late 1890s. This was once a thriving mine and is still being mined today.

Humorous grave yard on the way to the Robinson copper mine.

On the way back, we were told that sometimes the train gets held up by bandits, but we didn’t see any that day. We did, however, see the graveyard and fake western town nearby.

On our way there and back, this fellow with his little dog on the back rode along the highway parallel to the railroad track.

As we arrived back at the depot, we see the rainbow at our journey’s end as the locomotive lets off steam.

Arizona, Texas and California

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March, April and May 2021

While we were in the Cottonwood area, we visited a few other places nearby. Jerome, 9 miles away, is a ghost town that has come back to life. It is now a tourist trap. Jerome State Historic Park is worth visiting.

The “ghost town” of Jerome is coming alive once more.

We drove the windy road through Jerome to Prescott, Arizona, where I spent one summer of my life as a kitchen helper at Prescott Pines Campground. The campground is a few miles outside of town. In many ways it looked the same, just updated.

The chapel at Prescott Pines Campground where I worked as kitchen staff in 1972.

While we were in Cottonwood, we flew to Texas for a week-long stay with my dad while my sister was on vacation. We visited Round Rock, Texas, a pretty little town and the home of the beautiful historic Woodbine Mansion which is now a wedding venue.

Round Rock, Texas, main street.
Woodbine Mansion in Round Rock, Texas

Another day, we visited the Texas Military Museum in Austin. It was large, so we saw just a small portion of it. We plan to visit it again someday.

Texas Military Museum

When we got back to Cottonwood, it was time to head back to California for the birth of our 10th grandchild. We used our Harvest Host membership for the first time and stayed overnight in the parking lot of Peggy Sue’s 50’s Diner about 10 miles from Barstow, California.

Inside gift shop at Peggy Sue’s 50s Diner

We stayed at our Thousand Trails Encore park in Oceano until our grandchild was born, helping the family with meals and laundry and other such things. Getting to be around the grandkids is always fun, but we made sure we took time for a side trip to Morro Bay for a lunch near the water.

Morro Bay, CA, marina

With the new baby welcomed, we made one last visit to our storage unit before heading north for our summer travels. The campground where we like to stay is in Oakhurst, CA. There is a beautiful little waterfall and wildflowers just behind the campsites and plenty of shade.

Our waterfall at Oakhurst, CA.
Wildflowers at Oakhurst, CA.
Our campsite at Oakhurst, CA.

Santa Barbara, California

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January, 2021

During November and December, we enjoyed spending the holidays with our kids and grandkids. In January as we were headed out of California again to spend the rest of the winter months in Arizona, disaster struck.

California has bio-diesel at a much cheaper price than Diesel #2. We thought we were saving money. Now we know better. Apparently, our truck has a unique fuel pump that can’t handle bio-diesel. It failed and all the metal parts were distributed throughout its fuel system. Three weeks and thousands of dollars later, we were wiser but poorer. Thankfully, we were able to spend those three weeks in a nice campground near Santa Barbara while the truck was being repaired.

The hills outside Santa Barbara, California.

We were surrounded by mountains, and the hills were beautiful in the evening light.

The campground was a working ranch with horses a plenty. I took the opportunity to get acquainted with some of the equine one afternoon.

Rancho Osa outside Santa Barbara, California, is a working ranch.

Our main concern was not being able to shop for groceries. Although there was a country store on the campground, the selection was very limited, especially when it came to fresh food and meat. After a couple of weeks, our supplies were very low. Our daughter, Ann, rescued us by driving there and taking us grocery shopping one afternoon in Santa Barbara. We were very grateful.

Because of the pandemic, auto parts were delayed in coming. We had a great mechanic, and the park rangers were very helpful in extending our stay. The hardest part of being stuck there for three weeks, was the lack of communication. The campground was in a canyon. We had to walk to another part of the campground to get enough phone signal to make a phone call.

One way to spend time while we were waiting for our truck to be repaired was to take walks in the afternoon or evening discovering the beauty around us.

Prickly pear cactus
Bloom where you’re planted!

We were so grateful to have our truck back, and in the future, we would love to explore this area more.

White Sulphur Springs, Montana

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September 2020

We stayed for two weeks in White Sulphur Springs, Montana, a small town with a population of less than 1,000. There are lots of beautiful areas in and around this quaint little mining town.

Nearby, there are wheat and hay farms. Everyone grows hay here, it seems. They roll the hay in big bales and use most of it for feeding their own livestock. Winters are harsh here, so I’m sure it takes a lot of hay to last all winter long.

One afternoon, we drove around the back dirt roads around the town. Here are some of the sights we saw.

One day while driving toward Bozeman, Montana, we found this quaint old church from 1898.

And nearby was this iconic view of a typical Montana ranch. Notice the rows of bales of hay to the right.

In September, we moved to a KOA outside of Townsend, Montana, just a few miles from Helena, Montana. One evening it rained and we could see snow on the nearby mountains across the lake. However, in a couple of days the temperature was up in the 80’s again.

As we made our way south, we stayed in Downey, Idaho, for a couple of nights. We were really close to Bear Lake in the corner of Southeast Idaho and northeast Utah, so we decided to take a day trip to see it. We drove most of the way around the lake. It was hazy from the wildfires, but the water was still a beautiful turquoise blue.

Further south, we stayed at a nice campground in Duchesne (pronounced du-shane), Utah, which was right by a reservoir. It would have been nicer if there wasn’t so much smoke from a nearby fire.

The fire nearby.

Categories: Airstream Travel, RV Travel Tags: Airstream, Airstream Travel, Bear Lake, Duchesne, Full Time RVing, Idaho, Montana, Montana back roads, Montana travel, Old Sedan Church, Places to see in Idaho, Places to see in Montana, Places to see in Utah, RVing, Townsend, Utah, White Sulphur Springs

Kolob Canyon Utah

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October 11, 2020

Zion National Park is bigger than I thought! We drove into Kolob Canyon little realizing it was a part of Zion NP. However, there is no road to the main part of Zion through Kolob Canyon. It’s a dead end road. But the beautiful red rocks cliffs are just as stunning.

This was a nice short trip to the backside of Zion to see more of these amazing rocks.

Two more nearby sites we saw while camping in Hurricane, Utah, were the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corp) Camp in Leeds, Utah, and an old ghost town that was a former mining town called Silver Reef.

The CCC was an organization started from 1933 to 1942. It was a work relief program for young men between 17 and 28 years old. It provided manual labor jobs related to the conservation and development of natural resources in rural lands owned by the federal, state and local governments. It provided them with food, clothing and shelter plus a wage, part of which was sent home to their families.

Silver Reef was once the site of a silver mine in 1866. Geologists were at first uncertain about the claim since silver is not normally found in sandstone.

 

Categories: Airstream Travel Tags: CCC camps Utah, CCC corp, Civilian Conservation Corp, Hurricane Utah, Kolob Canyon Utah, Leeds Utah, Mining towns, red rocks, Silver mines, Silver Reef Utah, sites to see in Utah, Southern Utah travel, St. George Utah, Utah travel, Zion Kolob Canyon, Zion NP | Comments

Bryce Canyon National Park

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October 10, 2020

On the way to Bryce Canyon, we passed through Red Rock Canyon. In Bryce, you are looking down into the canyon. However, in Red Rock Canyon, you are down in the canyon looking up.

The red rock spires reach into the sky.

We drove on to Bryce Canyon where we saw this awe-inspiring display at Sunset Point. It wasn’t sunset, but the rocks were beautifully reflecting the afternoon light. Down below were trails, wildlife and conifers. It you look closely, you can see the tops of the trees.

Bryce Canyon is a changing landscape. The spires, or hoodoos, as they are called, continue to change through erosion from wind, rain, snow and ice.

Bryce Canyon National Park is a rather narrow but long national park positioned along the edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. In the distance are the gray, white and vermillion cliffs that stair-step down to the land below. The elevation at the rim varies between 8,000 to 9,000 feet in elevation, thus the expansive views.

At around mile 12 of the road into the park, there is a “natural bridge,” which is really a natural arch. The name was given so long ago that it stuck. A true natural bridge by definition is formed by flowing water that cuts through the sandstone. This arch was formed by other means.

Looking across the span of Bryce NP at the end of the road at Rainbow Point.

We enjoyed our day at Bryce Canyon National Park. We would like to go back some day to spend more time there.

Categories: RV Travel, Utah Travel Tags: Airstream, Airstream Travel, Bryce Canyon, Bryce Canyon NP, Bryce National Park, Full Time RVing, National Parks, Red Rock Canyon, Red Rock Canyon Utah, Utah, Utah destinations, Utah scenery, Utah travel

Zion National Park and Surrounding Areas

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September 29, 2020

While staying in Hurricane, Utah, near St. George, we took day trips to Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks, Cedar Breaks National Monument and Pink Sands State park. The day we went to Zion was a Friday. Big mistake!  The parking lots were full, so we decided to just drive through the park. None of the turnouts were available, so the first photo I got was while waiting in line for 15 or 20 minutes to drive through the tunnel. The above photo is the shot I got from the car. The park regulates the tunnel traffic to one lane, and thus the wait.

As we drove through the park, we eventually found a few turnouts where I could get some photos. The huge red rock canyon walls are just as beautiful as ever. I even managed to see a big horn sheep, though he was too far away to get a good photo.

This was our last stop in Zion. It is called Checkerboard mountain.

On the way out of the park, we drove through the town of Kanab, Utah, where we once stayed for a family vacation back in the late 80’s. There’s a restaurant called “Trails End” and just a few doors away was an art gallery (not there now) where Ray bought a watercolor painting by Roland Lee, now a renown artist. Little did we know then that we’d made a good investment. We just liked the painting!

A little ways out of Kanab, we came across this interesting “cave” and lagoon. The fall colors caught my eye.

Our trip that day took us in a loop that dipped down into Arizona. We drove through the town of Colorado City, Utah, where the polygamist Fundamentalist Mormons used to have a large colony, and on to a Utah state park called Pink Sands. The sands aren’t really pink. They are more like red or orange. It cost money to drive into the park, and I didn’t plan to stay long, so I climbed up a sand dune and got a couple of shots of the “pink” sand dunes.

Our day trip took us many miles, but discovering new places is one reason we travel full time. Our great country is full of beautiful national parks, state parks and scenic beauty.

Categories: Airstream Travel Tags: Airstream, Airstream Travel, Full Time RVing, Highway 9 Utah, Kanab Utah, Pink Sands, Pink Sands State Park, RVing, Utah travel, Zion, Zion National Park

Beyond Sun Valley, Idaho

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August 19, 2020

While we were staying near Mountain Home, Idaho, we took a day trip up Highway 75 that goes through the Sun Valley resort area. We drove several miles past Sun Valley into the mountains. We found these beautiful views, some wildflowers blooming and lots of beautiful vistas from the lookout in Sawtooth National Forest.

This is the road up over the pass. There are plenty of pullouts where you can get some great photos.

Looking across at the Sawtooth Mountain Range, this valley has plenty of creeks and rivers where the fishing is great.

At the foot of this mountain pass was a pretty valley where there was an airport.  Across from the airport was Smiley Creek Lodge with a restaurant, RV park and store. We split a hamburger. The hamburger was one of the best I’ve had in a long time. So if you make it to this part of Idaho, be sure to stop in and try it out.

Nevada to Idaho

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August 18, 2020

Wells, Nevada

On our way to Idaho and Montana, we stayed at this pretty place in Wells, Nevada. The campground had an artesian well. The water comes from the nearby mountains from the rains and snow melt. All around the area is dry and arid, except for this small area where the water flows from the mountains and makes a green oasis, as you can see from the photo of the campground.

Welcome Station RV Park, Wells, Nevada

Our next stop was in Glens Ferry, Idaho. We only stayed one night there. We were on our way to Mountain Home, Idaho. The campground was actually 25 miles northeast of the town of Mountain Home. It was quite a bit higher in elevation and therefore had milder summer temperatures than the town of Mountain Home. We were following our GPS that suddenly had us driving down a dirt road. I asked Ray to call the campground to make sure we were on the right road. Yes. It turns out we were on the right road and had about a 3 mile drive to the campground. We had recently washed the truck and Airstream, but the campground turned out to be worth the drive.

On the way there, we saw this reservoir with a view of the surrounding mountains.

Little Camus Reservoir

The campground itself was nestled in among pines and other trees in a beautiful mountain setting.

Fort Running Bear RV Resort

While we were there, we took some day trips to the surrounding areas. One of our trips was to Anderson Ranch Reservoir. It’s a scenic drive with a spectacular view when you approach it. We drove around it and saw the town of Pine and Featherville. To get back home, we turned around because the road was blocked due to a landslide further on.

The first view of Anderson Reservoir

The following photos are a panoramic view counterclockwise.

As we got closer, were able to see more of the reservoir.

This is a popular summer recreation area with boating, water sports, fishing and camping. Many RVs were parked right near the water (dry camping).

As the Covid-19 restrictions were still preventing dining in, we ate sandwiches we packed with us. However, we did order french fries to-go that were delicious. Idaho potatoes make great fries!

Categories: Airstream Travel, RV Travel Tags: Anderson Ranch Reservoir, Fort Running Bear RV Resort, ID, Idaho, Idaho travel, Little Camus Reservoir, Mountain Home, Pine

Ingram, Texas – Stonehenge II

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Ingram, Texas – Stonehenge II

January 26, 2020

Stonehenge II, Ingram, Texas

We took our Airstream for some minor repairs near Kerrville, Texas. We heard about Stonehenge II and decided to drive a few miles out to Ingram, Texas, to see it. Situated in the middle of the 13.5 acre Hill Country Arts Foundation’s Campus, this is a totally man-made (even the stones) smaller-scale reproduction of the one in Salisbury, England.

It all started in 1989 when Doug Hill finished work on his back patio in Hunt, Texas. He had one big extra limestone slab left over. As a joke, he offered it to his neighbor, Al Sheppard. Al stood the slab upright in the middle of his pasture. Doug and Al then built an arch around it. It reminded them of Stonehenge in England. A vision formed and Sheppard contracted Hill to build his very own Stonehenge II. Later, Sheppard added two Moai head statues after visiting Easter Island. After Sheppard passed away, Stonehenge II was donated to the Hill Country Arts Foundation and moved to its current home in 2012.

Ray was suffering from allergies that day, so I took a walk around the site and visited the Gift Shop in the Visitor Center. The Art Gallery was closed, so our visit was short. By then, we got a call that our Airstream was ready to go, so we headed back to pick it up. Instead of heading back to our campsite near Medina Lake, we decided to head away from the cedar trees and the pollen that was making Ray so miserable.  Our campsite that night was in Seguin, TX, near the Guadalupe River. 

The Guadalupe River was a beautiful calm river complete with lily pads.

As the sun started setting, we were treated to some amazing beauty.

 Categories: Airstream Travel, RV Travel, Texas Travel Tags: Airstream, Airstream Travel, Guadalupe River Texas, Ingram, Kerrville, Stonehenge II, Stonehenge II Texas, Stonehenge in Texas, Texas