Category Archives: RV Travel

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.

Cottonwood, Arizona

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February, 2021

We probably moved too soon to Cottonwood, Arizona, in mid-February. The elevation of Cottonwood is 2,000 feet higher than the Phoenix area. The first couple of nights the pipes froze that supplied our water. After that, we left the water dripping during the night. The days were warm and pleasant, however.

DEAD HORSE RANCH STATE PARK

We took a day trip to Dead Horse Ranch State Park. There is a story about how it got its name. Calvin Ireys bought the ranch in 1950. The first time the family looked at the ranch to purchase, they saw a dead horse lying in a field. After buying the property, they named it Dead Horse Ranch. In 1971, Ireys sold the ranch to the state for a state park. Today the park is 423 acres with 10 miles of hiking trails, 150 campground sites and several picnic areas.

We took a walk on the “Canopy” trail which is just a quarter of a mile long.

Canopy Trail Dead Horse Ranch State Park
Canopy Trail
Canopy Trail
Canopy trail to bird feeders

We sat on a bench and watched the birds at the bird feeders.

Canopy trail
Bird feeder at Canopy Trail

Later we took a short hike down this trail by the Verde River.

Trail to Verde River, Dead Horse Ranch State Park
Verde River

“Verde” means “green” in Spanish, and it is green! The cottonwood trees that surround the river on both sides were dormant. In spring or summer, they would be a brilliant lush green.

Verde River

We saw some horseback riders.

Dead Horse Ranch State Park

Later we drove around the park and found the “West Lagoon”. I got out to take some photos and walked on the pathway that goes completely around the lagoon. (about .7 miles)

Lagoon at Dead Horse Ranch State Park

The lagoon was home to much wildlife.

We got some exercise and enjoyed the scenery and wildlife. It would be nice to see the Cottonwood trees (which the town is named after) in spring and summer when they have their full foliage. It’s a bright green, which gives another reason for the name Verde Valley. The entire valley is a green oasis in the desert, surrounded by red rock rimmed mountains. It’s a place to see!

The Airstream reflects the evening sunset in Cottonwood, AZ.

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

Fall Foliage in Utah

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October 2020

While staying in southern Utah, we took a day trip to see the fall foliage. Driving up the canyon on Hwy 9, we caught some leaves turning beautiful colors.

We stopped at a county park where I hiked up a hill pathway to see where it might lead. I was rewarded with this beautiful pond capturing the reflection of the golden aspen trees.

Categories: RV Travel, Utah Travel Tags: Airstream Travel, CA RV travel, Fall colors, Fall foliage, Full Time RVing, Golden aspens, RVing, Travel, Traveling, Utah, 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

Great Falls, Montana

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August 23, 2020

We traveled north into Montana and camped at Conestoga Campground and RV Park in White Sulphur Springs. This was our view out our window.

The RV Park even had it’s own fish pond.

We like to camp in one place for a couple of weeks and take day trips to places around our base camp. One of our side trips while in Montana was to Great Falls, Montana. We were happy to find a Mongolian BBQ that was open. It was one of the first times we were able to dine in at a restaurant since the Covid-19 pandemic.

From there, we drove alongside the Missouri River to see Black Eagle Falls and Rainbow Falls. Other stops were at Giant Springs State Park and the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center.

The drive to Great Falls was beautiful through the mountains and forests. This is a lookout just a few miles outside of Great Falls.

There are five falls within a 10 mile stretch of the Missouri River. The one seen below is Black Eagle Falls which is right in the middle of the city of Great Falls.

The next one seen below is Rainbow Falls.

As you can see, there are power houses built before each of the falls to maximize electricity generation for the area.

Between Black Eagle Falls and Rainbow Falls is Giant Springs State Park. Giant Springs is one of the largest freshwater springs in the nation. It is the source of the Roe River, one of the world’s shortest rivers. Roe River flows into the Missouri River. But the source of the springs itself comes from miles of underground water from the mountains miles away. The water the bubbles up from cracks in rocks into a pool and runs over rocks into the Missouri River. By the way, did you know that the Missouri River is the longest river in North America?

The park grounds were green and beautiful.

Notice how clear the water is!

In the photo below, you can see where the water bubbles up out of the rocks below and into the pool.

You can faintly see circles in the water where the water is bubbling up.

The world’s shortest river of just 200 feet.

Beyond the walkway is the Missouri River.

The Missouri River is also the river that explorers Lewis and Clark traveled to find a waterway to the Pacific and to explore the large region of the Louisiana Purchase. We stopped at the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center. One floor of exhibits was closed due to the pandemic, but the top floor still had some interesting exhibits, including a panorama of what it was like to carry heavy dugout canoes around each of the falls in this area.

The Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center

It’s interesting to see sites where history took place in the beginnings of our country. I would love to come back to Great Falls, Montana, and explore the area and its history further.

Categories: Airstream Travel, RV Travel Tags: Full Time RVing, Giant Springs State Park, Great Falls, Montana, MT, RVing, Sites to see in Great Falls, White Sulphur Springs

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.