Goodbye 2019, Hello 2020 and a new decade tonight at La Quinta, California

Thursday, November 14, 2019

One of my hobbies is to study historical accounts of the particular area where we are residing. In California, I just read “Blood Will Tell” by Baumgardner, an account of California’s early history. From Spanish Missions to California Statehood, many influential figures are mentioned, which always leads to reading more books on their contributions. There are many “first” and “last” in California and this book references many and many more, like:

Gaspar de Portola, first Governor of Spain’s Alta California

Californios, Juan Bautista Alvarado first Governor of Mexican California

Bodega, California, first Russian outpost on the California coast

Monterey, first Capital of California

Pio Pico, last Governor of Mexican California

John Sutter, first gold discovery in California

Mississippi’s William McKendree Gwin, and John C. Fremont, first US Senators of California

Politics were a “dirty business” in California’s history. Guess it will always be!

Friday, November 15, 2019

A list of winter 2019-2020 things to do:

McCormick’s Classic Auto Auction  F/Sa/Su November 22nd, 23rd and 24th, 2019 Tickets can be purchased at the gate. Friday is FREE all day. Saturday & Sunday is $15 per day or $25 for both days.

 Zoo The Living Desert 47900 Portola Avenue Palm Desert, CA 92260

Telephone: 760-346-5694 $24.95

Palm Springs Aerial Tramway 1 Tram Way Palm Springs, CA 92262

Phone: (888) 515-8726 Seniors $24.95

Winter Gathering POW WOW Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians Spotlight Casino

38th Annual Cabazon Indio Powwow on November 29 – December 1, 2019 at the Fantasy Springs Special Events Center in Indio, California. FREE

FRIDAY

5 pm Gates Open

5 pm Bird Singing

8 pm Grand Entry

SATURDAY

11 am Gates Open

1 pm Grand Entry

5 pm Bird Singing

8 pm Grand Entry

SUNDAY

11 am Gates Open

12 Noon Grand Entry

HITS Coachella

Empire Polo Club 2019 Sundays=Jan-March Friday nights=TBD

Shields Data Gardens

Eisenhower Walk of Honor

Cabot’s Pueblo Museum

Thousand Palms Oasis Preserve

Palm Springs Architecture Tour

Palomar Observatory

Farm Tours

Alford’s Antique Car Museum — One of California’s outstanding car collections. Free admission — Open Monday — Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 599 E. Main, El Centro, CA. Information: (760) 353-3920.

Marvyn’s Magic Theater

Ritz Carlton at Rancho Mirage

Escena Grill at Escena Golf Club

Indian Canyons Golf Resort

Koffi

Palm Springs Air Museum

Moorten Botanical Garden

El Paseo Drive

Palm Springs sign Hwy 111

La Quinta Resort & Club, A Waldorf Astoria Resort 49-499 Eisenhower Dr, La Quinta

JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa 74-855 Country Club Dr, Palm Desert

Robolights 1077 E Granvia Valmonte, Palm Springs

Palm Springs Walk-of-stars

Twin Palms Frank Sinatra Estate 1145 E Vía Colusa, Palm Springs

Pioneertown

Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park 10700 Escondido Canyon Rd, Agua Dulce, CA

Arnold Palmer’s Restaurant

Polo Club Events

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Today marks two weeks into our winter home and we’re still settling-in. We have selected and potted an assortment of colorful plants to landscape our site. We also purchased a laser-light projector and directed it into our large Eucalyptus tree, giving it an appearance of being covered with thousands of red and green lightning bugs. Our patio is arranged on a nice reversable mat with Baja and Navajo designs on opposing sides. We have irrigation for our trees but we have to water our plants on a regular basis.

We have started our identical work schedules in the office, both working 10 hours per week, over three days, with four consecutive days off. Our volunteer staff associates have returned with the exception on one new person. The “snowbirds” are now arriving in droves and the park and campground are getting busy. December 8^th is the annual “Ironman” competition, our first big event of the season and we’re getting ready for that challenge. Large events are our greatest challenge and Easter Sunday is our largest day-use event.

We’re making a list of all the local attractions, entertainment, and other activities which we can attend for enjoyment during the season. We have had a volunteer, campfire get-together to catch-up since last season and get acquainted with the new associate.

Looking forward to another great winter!

Monday, November 18, 2019

With two days of “Big America” filming at the park, we’re getting an overview of movie-making. The crew is from LA and the location is Palm Springs. Lake Cahuilla is the set for several scenes. In talking to some of the crew, we gained an appreciation of what it takes to make a movie on location. They have a small city of equipment, people, and rentals, and there’s a constant flow of goods and services arriving. We even got an invitation to lunch but declined, due to park policy.

Friday, November 22, 2019

SilverRock Resort: Our neighbor, is set against the backdrop and natural beauty of the Santa Rosa Mountains, SilverRock is a former home course of the PGA Tour’s Bob Hope Classic from 2008-2011.

PGA West, our other neighbor: Six legendary golf course resorts;

Arnold Palmer

Greg Norman

Jack Nicklaus

Nicklaus Tournament

Tom Weiskopf

Stadium Course, the former Bob Hope Desert Classic.

The Quarry at La Quinta is an avid golfers’ paradise and our neighbor on the south side.

11-18-19 Thursday

On Thanksgiving Day, we enjoyed a Thanksgiving feast with our colleagues at Agua Caliente in Rancho Mirage. It was a cool, rainy day but the dinner was superb!

12-7-19 Saturday

After a month in Riverside County at Lake Cahuilla, we have completed our annual dermatology check-up, and our annual physical check-ups are scheduled. We have reacquainted ourselves with regular services, shopping, and the other necessities of residency. We have also been making an opportunities-list of the entertainment and attractions that we want to attend this winter.

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Today is the annual Iron Man race, so I decided to make a brief photo collage about the event. More than 3,000 athletes from 48 states and 40 countries have registered for the race. The 70.3-mile race consists of a 1.2-mile swim at Lake Cahuilla, followed by a 56-mile 

bicycle segment, ending with a 13.1-mile cross-country run.

12-9-19 Sunday

Today is the annual Iron Man race, so I decided to make a brief photo collage about the event. More than 3,000 athletes from 48 states and 40 countries have registered for the race. The 70.3-mile race consists of a 1.2-mile swim at Lake Cahuilla, followed by a 56-mile bicycle segment, ending with a 13.1-mile cross-country run.

I was most impressed with the $3-million-plus collection of bicycles awaiting the second leg of the race!

Friday, December 13, 2019

Our winter-season at Lake Cahuilla has thus been very enjoyable and our associates are all very friendly. We are all returning volunteers with the exception of one new couple.

For my records, our fellow-hosts, by preeminence are:

Brandon and Kelly from Iowa

Richard from Oregon

Dick and Devera from Montana

Bob and Terry from Mississippi/Florida

Gordon and Connie from Alberta Canada

Rick and Vivian from Coachella

Ali and Gina from Florida

Routinely, we work shifts and see each-other in-passing and all gather for periodic staff meetings, so we have instituted our own social gatherings. Terry has been coordinating a covered-dish dinner each month which everyone likes and it provides a nice opportunity for us to have fellowship and intermingle as a group.

We also have a campfire-gathering monthly, where we bring our chairs and have a circle of friendship around the fire. We enjoy our gatherings and the ladies always provide nice homemade treats to share.

December 24, 2019

We will spend and celebrate our 36^th Anniversary on the west coast. We drove over to Temecula to spend a few days and enjoy the area. We shopped, dined, toured, and explored Temecula. We spent one day at Oceanside, where we went to the beach, had fish and chips at the Harbor, and watched the sea lions at the Marina.

Sunset Market Oceanside CA

Thursday evenings, 5:00  – 9:00 pm.

Pier View Way and Coast Highway

Tuesday, December 31, 2019

Goodbye 2019 Hello 2020 and a new decade! We wish eveyone a Happy New Year! May the New Year bring you peace, joy, and happiness!

This closes  our 2019 blog………………..

Re: Text to (Texas) friends that we worked with at Ridgway State Park in Colorado:

Hi Barry and Gail, we were glad to talk to you and get your e-mail information.  Also, good to hear that your winter is going well.

We’re settled-in for our fifth winter at Lake Cahuilla, in Riverside County, La Quinta, California. We work the same schedule (M-Tu-We), in the office, together, putting in a total of 20 hours per week, 10 each. This is the best schedule that we have ever had, three days on and four consecutive days off!

Our original goal was to volunteer in a different place each season and we have generally done that. On the other hand, it’s a lot of work to find a new spot each season. We have worked numerous parks around the country and have learned a lot about the business but we’re still learning and probably will never be experts. Here’s an approach that I recommend:

·       Make an outline of what you would like in a park-job

ü Good fishing

ü Close to town

ü Close to Church

ü Twenty-four hours/week max (Total for both)

ü Four consecutive days off

ü Set/fixed schedule

ü Pay job or volunteer in exchange for a Full-Hook-Up campsite

·       Make a list of parks where you would like to volunteer

ü  Start making a match of park vs likes

Most of the parks that you find on the Internet will usually have a web site.

National Parks generally are more structured and stricter about everything and they tend to be more remote. Most of the National Parks, Memorials, Monuments, Lighthouses, have web sites to start volunteer inquiries.

US Army Corps of Engineers parks are all managed (volunteers) through their web site.

State Parks can be too remote but some are just-right. It’s important to get something that you will like! Some States have a central Volunteer Office to start volunteer inquiries and match-ups. Some do not, so you have to (contact) each individually.

County Parks are the easy-going parks giving you more freedom to match what you want to do and decline what you don’t like. Most County parks you have to contact individually.

These are just some things that come from our experience. Everyone has different likes and you have to make them known to the volunteer-coordinator. We have made some mistakes but have never left a job because of it. Good luck and keep us informed on what you’re doing? We really look forward to seeing you two again someplace, sometime, and we always look forward to hearing from you two!

Bob and Terry

Late Fall 2019 Cruising on down to La Quinta, California and beginning Winter at Lake Cahuilla

10-18-19 Monday
What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas but we happened to be here at the same time as these family friends (Max and Sandy) from Ipswich, Suffolk England. Had a great lunch at Mimi’s in Summerlin, and a nice afternoon drive around the city!
Enjoying the city, weather, friends, and relatives, during our week at Arizona Charlie’s, we decided to take an additional week at Sam’s Town. Both are great locations and adjacent to the attractions. Winter is a great time to visit Las Vegas, evidenced by the multitudes of snow-birds who congregate in the Las Vegas Valley during the winter months. Real winter weather is nonexistent in Las Vegas, it might get cold but it does not get the freezing temperatures and the days are sunny and warm. We meet people from around the country and around the world at Las Vegas and they all agree that “Fabulous Las Vegas” provides events and activities, going on in the city and the surrounding areas in the winter, that never fail to entertain. This way, you can make the most of your trip over the festive season. From seasonal attractions to day-trips worth checking out, you’ll have no problem keeping busy.
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
On Max and Sandy’s last day in Vegas, we made a day-tour to Ethel’s Mars Chocolate Factory and Botanical Garden. Ethel says: “Ethel M Chocolates' breathtaking Botanical Cactus Garden is Nevada's largest and one of the world's most prolific collections of its kind. Based on the English landscape model of naturalistic design, the Ethel M Botanical Cactus Garden features three acres of drought-tolerant ornamental, cacti, and other succulents. Over 300 species of plants can be found on the grounds. Half are cacti and succulents largely native to the American Southwest, and the rest are desert trees and shrubs from the Southwestern United States, Australia, and South America. All of these plants were chosen both for the beauty of their floral displays and their ability to adapt to the climate of Southern Nevada.
Come visit Ethel M Chocolates at the factory location in Henderson. Take a leisurely stroll through the cactus garden, and view the botanical desert terrain, enjoy the self-guided chocolate viewing aisle (get samples) and see how we make the best chocolates we know how to make.”
After lunch, we visited the Mermaid Aquarium at Silverton. We just had a real fine day with Max and Sandy! We just by chance met-up in Vegas and had a nice visit!
10-23-2019 Wednesday
We had a nice lunch with Larry and Deborah at the Hitching Post in North Las Vegas. As full-time RVers, these “Terry” cousins, shared lots of travel-stories and experiences they have encountered around the country. At the Hitching Post, adjacent to Nellis Air Force Base, we got to see powerful military jets roaring around the area. Following lunch, they gave us a tour of their rig, currently located at the Hitching Post RV Park. A good outing and fun visit!
10-27-19 Sunday
Yesterday, we moved down to Sam’s Town for a week, a favorite RV Resort on Boulder Highway, just east of the “Strip”. Today, we met with the “Terry” cousins at Blaze Pizza on Decatur, in North Las Vegas. We had a comprehensive group and enjoyed several hours of dining and visiting with the cousins, (Jones) children of Terry’s Aunt Pat. We enjoyed spending time with Aunt Pat when we worked in Las Vegas several winters back. Aunt Pat spent most of her adult life in Las Vegas and she knew and was part of the fascinating history of the early founders (some memorialized in the “Mob Museum”) of the hospitality industry. We sure miss Aunt Pat!
Monday, October 28, 2019
At Sam’s Town, we are enjoying the attractions and the valley. Got our annual Flu Shots today at the Walgreen’s. Winter weather has come to the valley, with nighttime temperatures down in the thirties. We have recurrently frequented Henderson because it has loads of new shopping, dining, and entertainment venues.
Our Henderson favorites:
Ethel M’s Chocolate Factory- a world of chocolate and extensive outdoor “Cactus Garden”. Always good for free chocolate samples!
Acacia Demonstration Gardens is a collaborative effort among the City of Henderson, Conservation District of Southern Nevada and several other local organizations. The gardens provide a wealth of landscaping examples that are water efficient for this dry desert climate. In addition to providing visual examples of landscape possibilities and information about the plants displayed, Acacia Demonstration Gardens also hosts a variety of workshops every spring and fall.
Galleria at Sunset- A upscale shopping mall in Henderson. Great place to walk, eat, shop, people-watch, and bench-sit!
We drove the “strip” several times enroute to or from North Las Vegas but we only stopped-off on Wednesday, when we had “coffee and Chihuly” at the Belagio. Dale Chihuly’s interpretation of Italian flowers in the spring, permanently adorns the overhead-lobby with thousands of massive, colorful, hand-blown, glass flowers.
The awesome Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Garden had the “Fall” seasonal display, an indescribable creation of a magical “Fall Scene”. Ed Libby leads a staff of 120 in designing, creating, and maintaining each unique, seasonal display in the giant garden space. (Having met Ed several years back, he has a contagious enthusiasm for this art.)
At the Bellagio Starbuck’s Coffee, a couple of conspicuous, feather-clad show-girls were just outside, in the chilly, windy promenade, promoting the entertainment aspects of the casino. We wondered if they received supplementary remuneration on cold mornings. It was a great morning-visit!
Saturday, November 2, 2019
After two fabulous weeks in Las Vegas with family and friends, we had a McDonald’s breakfast and headed south on US 95, working our way to our winter-place in La Quinta, California. The drive down the Mohave Desert was scenic and we played identify the desert plants and mountains, as we traversed the eastern Mohave. Many people zoom across the desert seeing only an austere, sterile place of nothingness, when in reality, its teaming with life and amazing stories! At Needles, California, on the Colorado River, we had lunch at McDonald’s, the second McDonald’s meal today but that was our best choice, and it was good!
From Vidal Junction, we caught CA 62, along the Colorado Aqueduct, southwesterly past Joshua Tree National Park, then CA 177 on down to Desert Center, where we took a walk in the desert, and rested in the shade of our rig. Next, we took I-10 to La Quinta and Riverside County’s Lake Cahuilla. We had a brief reunion with our friends at the office, then set-up for the night on the lake, under the Eucalyptus trees. This closes the loop that we began on April 1st, 2019, upon completion of our past winter at Lake Cahuilla.
We enjoyed our summer experience at Ridgway State Park, working with the Colorado Department of Parks and Wildlife. With an emersion experience in park, community, and Colorado towns, it was informative, revealing, and appealing.
Our Fall vacation through Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Nevada, and Arizona was entertaining, engaging, peaceful, and very enlightening. It was hot, it was cold, it was high-altitude, it was strenuous, it was dangerous AND, it was GREAT! Now, we begin a new winter in La Quinta! Our first day at Lake Cahuilla reminds us that November in the Coachella Valley requires the furnace in the morning and A/C in the afternoon! It’s good to be back in southern California!
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” – Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad
“Good judgement is the result of experience and experience the result of bad judgement.” ― Mark Twain

Continuing our Fall 2019 Journey to Lake Cahuilla at La Quinta, California

Friday, October 4, 2019

The day brought cool and clouds, not a deterrent to our plans to cruise US 191 on down to Vernal, Utah. South of Rock Springs, US 191 opened up to an amazing vista of painted rocks, buttes, and canyons. The Green River is the soul of Flaming Gorge, cutting through the rugged, red, rock to craft deep canyons. Constrained by Flaming Gorge Dam, the river becomes Flaming Gorge reservoir, spreading out and painting over the reds, yellows, and greens of the land, with blue. At an overlook, we stopped, and the ground melted away into a vast remote colorful landscape. Over the miles, we followed the road as it descended into the surrounding canyons and valleys, only to discover more canyons and valleys below. Driving down these red rock “stairs” of southern Wyoming, we entered Daggett County, Utah.

Crossing the Uinta Mountains, we admired vast groves of golden Aspen above 8500 feet. The mountain air was cold and windy but very refreshing. Out next thrill was the switchbacks leading down to Vernal. Just north of Vernal, there's some serious switchbacks. For nine miles, there's five to eight percent grades through ten switchbacks. I had the dog-in and jake-on but still did some brake-burning! The lower switchbacks wind through the Simplot phosphate mines, an amazing example of mountain-eating mining operations.

At Vernal, we did lunch, shopped Walmart and fueled-up. Finally, we drove 13-miles east to Outlaw Trails Campground, at Jensen, Utah, the gateway to Dinosaur National Monument. In late afternoon, the predicted weather front moved in and we had wind with 40mph gusts. Fortunately, by 9pm, it was calm and clear, making for a quiet night’s rest.

Saturday, October 5, 2019

This morning was cool and crystal-clear, with cobalt-blue skies. Outside, we immediately noticed migrating Sand Hill Cranes, passing high in the sky, heading north toward the Dinosaur National Monument. We naturally wondered what was attracting the Cranes.

After breakfast, we trekked out on a day-trip of the Dinosaur National Monument. Along the route, beside the Green River, we discovered the Cranes feeding on those round, pivot-irrigated corn fields, just south of the Park. Now, we had our answer!

At the Park, we checked-out the comprehensive Visitor Center, a very attractive building, perfectly set in the natural surroundings. We drove the Tilted Rock Tour, our first visit since we lived in Colorado, 31-years ago. This stunning Park is a spectacular display of geologic faults, folds, uplifts and colors in 32 rock layers, exposing 4.6 billion years of earth history. We saw petroglyphs, old homesteads, Bighorn Sheep, and the layers where the largest known Jurassic Dinosaur fossil beds are located. We have noticed that places we revisit after 30 years, are more impressive and comprehensive. It was a great-day-in-the-park!

Sunday, October 6, 2019

Terry’s notes this cool, clear morning:

In 1993 my mom and dad drove a small car filled with camping gear to Alaska. My dad was in his 70’s and my mom was in her 60’s. Tent camping. Mom kept a journal of her trip which I just read in its entirety.  I don’t know why I didn’t read it while she was still living.  We could have discussed it. I really regret that.

In her journal she wrote about going to Dinosaur National Monument in Utah.  While there they visited Josie Morris’ Ranch (look this up because she was a very interesting woman) which is in the monument.  We were not far from there so we made a trip to Dinosaur to drive to the ranch where Mom and Dad camped, had their picture taken next to a dinosaur femur, took a long walk at Josie’s ranch and found some petroglyphs.  I took these photos to share with my siblings.

I enjoyed watching the migrating Sand Hill Cranes this morning! Yesterday, we discovered that they are feeding on cornfields just north of us. Flying over in the morning air, they sound just overhead but they can be quite a distance away. The sound carries well, especially in the cool, morning air.

On a walk this morning, I saw this White Oak in a landscaped atrium. A rare sight in the west, and a real treat to see it with great Fall colors!

Monday, October 7, 2019

US 191 in Utah is an eastern Utah route, which is composed of several Scenic Byways. Driving south on US 191, a Utah Scenic Byway, we traversed the Uinta Mountains, with spectacular Fall colors, on the Uinta Scenic Byway. Crossing the Ute Reservation, we followed the Indian Canyon Scenic Byway, a narrow canyon with steep sides and multi-colored layers of rock. The route also passes through the Ashley National Forest, a land occupied and hunted for centuries by Native Americans, before the arrival of Europeans.  

At Roosevelt, initially part of the Ute Indian Reservation, opened up to homesteading in 1905, later became a vast oil reserve, so now the settlers have nice oil revenues to support their ranching habit. Pumping oil wells dot the area, amid the canyons and ranch lands.

In September 1776 The Dominguez–Escalante Expedition came from the east where they crossed Blue Bench and descended into the valley north of the present-day town of Duchesne. I read the Expedition Diary of Escalante this summer and the attractive valley, rivers, and geography are much as he described it. Ironically, Escalante’s notes were what later brought the hunters, trappers, and settlers to the area. Loved seeing it all in the Uintah Basin!

Around Wellington, we passed along the Dinosaur Diamond Prehistoric Highway, and the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry. Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry at Jurassic National Monument contains the densest concentration of Jurassic-aged dinosaur bones ever found. Their unanswered question; How did the carcasses of so many animals end up in one place, and why are most of them carnivores? Who knows what dinosaurs were thinking?

We stopped for a break at Helper, Utah, named for a train engine. This is the heart of the coal-mining area and railroad DRGRW history. A dusty little historic town in the Price River canyon, trying to reinvent itself.

We crossed the Price River several times as we followed it on down toward its confluence with the Green River. From Vernal, south to Green River, Utah, we parallel the Green River but little access exists as it flows through Desolation and Gray Canyons. Desolation Canyon is a remote canyon on the Green River in eastern Utah,  that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is said to be one of the remotest areas in the contiguous United States. Having read the 1869 Powell Expedition journals this summer, these canyons remain unchanged by manmade structures.

In late afternoon, we arrived at Green River, Utah, closing the loop that we began here, late last April. Fortunately, the summer fruit stands still had those famous “Green River” melons and we made a few variety selections. So sweet and juicy!

The beaten path, it gets you there, but for those to whom the reward is in the journey, there are paths less trodden. A great route!

10-8-19 Tuesday

We decided to continue south on US 191 and make a two-day camp at Blanding, Utah. From Green River to Blanding, the highlights were the Colorado River crossing, Moab, Hole in the rock, Wilson Arch, and Church Rock. The route continued very scenic and we had lunch at Moab. Moab, lingering very busy with tourists, motivated us to continue south, following a picnic lunch from City Market.

This area of Utah is the Trail of the Ancients, set amid the canyonlands and dramatic desert landscape carved by the Colorado River. We admired the huge, flat-topped mesas, arches, towering rock pinnacles, remote canyon mazes, Native American ruins, pictographs, and petroglyphs, and stunning Fall colors. Blue Mountain RV Park in Blanding, Utah is a great base-camp for exploring SE Utah and the four-corners area.

10-9-19 Wednesday

We made a day-trip to Natural Bridges National Monument. At the Visitor Center, we enjoyed the audiovisual program about the geology, history, and wildlife of the Park. We drove the nine-mile Bridge View Drive, for a great overview of the canyons.  Descending into the canyon, we hiked the canyon trail and admired the natural bridges created by water erosion. We took a picture at the same arch where our Swedish friends posed with us 28 years ago. The term “dugway” is found on maps of the area and it provoked my curiosity to research it; The name "Dugway" comes from a technique to dig a trench along a hillside to keep a wagon from tipping. With the terrain of the area, now I understand!

From Bridges, UT 276 journeys to the Glen Canyon Recreational Area and northern Lake Powell. A ferry-crossing takes you across the Colorado River to Bullfrog, Utah on Bullfrog Bay. We have visited on the Capitol Reef side and elected to return to Blanding on UT 95.

We loved the adventure and the route!

Thursday, October 10, 2019

With a cold-front moving in, we did maintenance, laundry, and planning research all day. The day was sunny and clear but brisk, cold wind kept outside activities to a minimum. Snow is forecast for the north of us but we will just have cold weather. Good reason to stay put!

Thursday night was really cold, we drained our plumbing to winterize, so we were safe from freezing, but our heaters ran all night. Daisy resisted going out but we bundled-up and put her winter coat on. We were glad to see the sun on Friday! Saturday is much warmer and the forecast is predicting warmer temperatures for the week. With the scenic area and cold weather, we decided to extend our Blanding camp to six days.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

College football is the major attraction today! Just hanging-out, watching college football and enjoying snacks.

10-13-2019 Sunday

Stayed at the camp and did chores, research, relaxed, watched TV.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Travel plans today take us from Blanding, Utah to Tuba City, Arizona. This entire route is very scenic, with a wide variety of sights. We crossed mesas, canyons, desert plateaus, and followed rivers, along red rock canyons.

At Bluff, Utah, we explored around and were stunned by the cliffs and the river valley. Bluff is situated in the San Juan River canyon, surrounded by towering sandstone cliffs, rising directly over the buildings and homes. Large, house-size boulders are laying around the canyon floor, posing the question of how many have fallen on people. The area was occupied by Native Americans until the Mormons came and took over the land and water. Brigham Young directed the pioneers to construct Bluff Fort (1879) and build their cabins inside the walls to protect against Indians. Next, they built San Juan Mission to teach the Indians how to behave and grow wool and make items to supply a lucrative market.

Mexican Hat has a “Mexican Hat rock” and beautiful scenery along the San Juan River canyon. There’s no mistaking hat rock as it is visible many miles from the little town. It’s looks just like a sombrero on a head.

Monument Valley had perfect lighting and clear air for viewing some of the most stunning works of nature. Just couldn’t take a picture that conveyed the vast display of monoliths sculptured by nature!

Kayenta, on the Navajo Reservation, was our lunch stop. Great views of the distant sandstone formations! We grocery shopped at Bashas' for supplies and headed on to Tuba City. This whole area is Navajo Reservation, the largest land area retained by a Native American tribe in the United States. At almost 17-million acres, 27-thousand square miles, covering part of three states, it’s larger than 10 of the smaller US states. To maintain consistent time throughout its territory, the Navajo Nation observes daylight saving time (DST) on its Arizona land as well as on its Utah and New Mexico land, even though the rest of Arizona, including the Hopi Reservation, an enclave within the Arizona portion of the Nation, have opted out of DST. Lots of confusion!

Tuba City, on Navajo lands, was our campsite. A great, shady campsite near the original trading post. The name of the town honors Tuuvi, a Hopi man from Oraibi who converted to Mormonism. The Hopi village of Moenkopi lies directly to its southeast. We had a nice visit with a Hopi lady who has lived here all her life. She grew up in a Hogan, with no plumbing, electric, or gas. Amazing stories of the Navajo and Hopi life in the area! What a great day!

Wed. 10-16-2019

This morning found us at the Grand Canyon Camper Village, on the south rim, just south of the Visitor Center. Yesterday, we traveled from Tuba City and Cameron to the Grand Canyon via the east entrance. This route traverses part of the Navajo Reservation and the route has frequent shanties and sheds where the Navajo are selling jewelry and other Indian Art items, especially along the Little Colorado River canyon. The Little Colorado River carves a deep, narrow canyon just above its confluence with the Colorado River. The Little Colorado River gorge, part of Grand Canyon National Park is a unique canyon, frequently missed by Grand Canyon visitors. From Cameron, just east of the Park, the Little Colorado River carves an extremely steep and narrow gorge into the Colorado Plateau, eventually achieving a maximum depth of about 3,200 feet, with a spectacular, breathtaking viewpoint on the sheer south wall. This would have been a perfect location for a Navajo Skywalk!

At the park, our first activity was to experience the Grand Canyon IMAX show. We almost got air-sick on some of the segments but it was an exhilarating, informative, and historical presentation. It covered the people-history of the Grand Canyon, from the Anastasi to current times. We cannot imagine how it was filmed in those extreme conditions and locations. The IMAX was a perfect get-started activity for visiting the Grand Canyon!

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

WOW! We spent the day at Grand Canyon National Park and it was perfect. The weather was calm, cool, and clear, making for great visibility. Our plan took us to the Visitor Center and a parking spot. With a picnic lunch, we hiked the rim trail from Mather Point to Bright Angel Lodge. The rim trail was fantastic and our picnic lunch at Yavapai Point, with spectacular views, was scrumptious. A new discovery for us was the two-billion-year-walk, on the south rim trail. There are descriptions of the layers, samples of the rock found in each layer, and one side is cut and polished to reveal its composition. Some look like "gem stones" and they are all unique! The park is celebrating one-hundred years and the canyon is cerebrating 6-billion years. Better hurry, another 5 billion years and it will all be gone!

We took the very convenient bus system back to our beginning point, at the Visitor Center. Today we saw Pinion Jays, Nuthatch, Titmouse, Junco, Hawk, Elk, Ground Squirrels, and the ubiquitous Raven. At the Village, we toured the El Tovar Hotel, and the Train Depot. We are exhausted but our day was picture-perfect!

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Our second day at the Grand Canyon focused on the east side in the morning, and the west, in the afternoon. The morning adventure took us out to Yaki Point. Next, we hiked the Rim Trail from South Kaibab trailhead to Mather Point, at the Visitor Center, where we had our picnic lunch.

In the afternoon, we bused from the Visitor Center to Bright Angel Trailhead, then adventured out to Hermit Rest. Mid-afternoon, got really cloudy and windy but the air was clear, with great visibility. The cloud shadows painted interesting and captivating patterns on the rock walls. The gusting wind, at 7-thousand feet, made us nervous on the high overlooks. At Hermit Rest gift shop, they had a thick book on the people who have died in the park. Probably not a good read but a good reminder that your safety is your business.

Friday, October 18, 2019

After three strenuous days at Grand Canyon, we turned-in early last night and consequently awoke at 5:30AM this morning. We had some Elk and wild horses in the campground early this morning. It made me recall, that we have seen lots of urban wildlife on this trip. In some small, mountain towns we have seen bear, deer, mountain lion, Pronghorn, elk, burro, wild horses, fox, coyote, just hanging-out in the neighborhood.  

Being a traveling day, we walked over for a McDonalds breakfast and then were hooked-up by 9m. We headed south to Williams for Starbucks and Safeway shopping. We fueled-up and took Daisy for a walk in the old town and took pictures of the Old Bill Williams memorial.

Hitting I-40 west was a picturesque drive, (regardless of the traffic) while listening to country music followed by 60’s music, on Sirius radio. At Kingman, we had Friday-Fish lunch at the Cracker Barrel and then pulled in to our campsite at the Zuni Village RV Park. With a sunny, warm afternoon, I switched to shorts and tee-shirt and did laundry. The well-managed campground is in town, with shady trees, cable TV, and nice, clean sites. Looking forward to a quiet, restful night for traveling to Las Vegas tomorrow.

Las Vegas RV Resorts:

Clark County Shooting Complex

11357 North Decatur Boulevard

Las Vegas, Nevada 89131

(702) 455-2000 shootingcomplexinfo@ClarkCountyNV.gov

Arizona Charlies 4575 BOULDER HWY , LAS VEGAS, NEVADA 89121 855-258-3639

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Our Kingman morning was a disappointment because we missed the Starbucks. Declining to backtrack, we drove through the old town on Route 66 and then took US 93 north.

Driving to Vegas was desert but lots of Cholla, Yucca, Creosote, and rocks. We also played a research-the-mines on the Internet game, to determine the object of each mine we passed. At Hoover Dam, we elected to stop for lunch and get in a good hike. It was a “Dam” good hike, with lots of high overlooks and long walks in the facility. We were surprised to see the water level so low, because the Colorado River had some good runoff from the past extraordinary winter snows and spring rains. I was thinking that President Trump should push for more development at Hoover Dam. The dam and facilities are already developed, so it would be easy to incorporate an amusement park. I could easily envision terrifying zip-lines, heart-stopping bungee jumps, roaring skate-board courses, and all sorts of thrilling and lucrative amusement for parents and kids with credit cards and a death-wish! After a few hours at Hoover Dam, we headed north to Las Vegas.

We arrived at Arizona Charlies RV Resort, on the Boulder Highway, just west of the “strip”. We have a great site and close to all the Vegas attractions. We plan to visit friends and kin for a week, or two before we decide on an arrival date for southern California.

Getting set-up on our site, we settled in for college football and a comfortable evening. Our neighbors are friendly and we shared some travel stories, local info, and personal backgrounds. Later, we walked over to the Sportsbook and watched a bunch of college football games, simultaneously on the big screens. 

Sunday, October 20, 2019

We started our morning with breakfast at Arizona Charlie’s, then made some contacts to set dates for our visits with Terry’s kin and some friends. Next, we drove down to the Sunset Station and Galleria Mall to walk, shop, and do lunch.

Many Las Vegas visitors frequent the “strip” and “downtown” and never recognize that Vegas has thriving communities and ethnic neighborhoods, all around the valley. As an example of measure or comparison, there are 16 Walmart stores, splendid shopping malls, and scrumptious ethnic restaurants, public parks and facilities, in the valley. Several websites list the current attractions, so we’ll make a list of our likes. After spending a winter and working in Las Vegas, we now, seldom go to any casino or hospitality industry attractions. Enjoying the sunny, warm days and visiting friends.

Fall 2019 Wyoming down to Utah

“Whiskey is for drinking; water is for fighting!”

Fresh water is an essential western resource, and the battles over water rights in the Western region of the United States can be bruising. Famed humorist Mark Twain is often given credit for this incisively funny remark about water.

Irrigation is the lifeblood of the western states and attorneys specialize in water litigation out west. Irrigation was the first priority of pioneer landowners in the arid west. They dug canals to bring the water from the streams through the valleys and dug lateral ditches to bring the water to the towns and agricultural crops. These irrigation systems have been improved and even incorporated into legal irrigation districts, but in many places the old 1880’s canals and ditches are still seen and being utilized.

Water shortages in bureaucratic systems have long been a source of conflict. State is pitted against state and region against region in the political struggle. The fight will continue as long as water is allocated by politics instead of the market or until the water vanishes.

My interest however, is how the old, original irrigation systems are still effectively delivering water after 140-years. These longstanding irrigation systems are surviving in the old towns and small valleys, where things have not changed much over the years. Just too remote and not much room for growth! You can see water flowing in ditches that are 140-years old and amazingly not much maintenance has been done. Even more interesting is that erosion is generally not an issue. Because of the rocky soil composition, erosion is minimized but sedimentation occurs, requiring some cleaning of the lateral ditches. In the south, a small lateral irrigation ditch would erode into a canyon in a brief period of use. I find western irrigation history and associated irrigation systems interesting and water is only becoming more critical. If the current trend continues water issues will spell an economic end to food and fiber markets in the west and that will be felt by all of us.

Tuesday morning, September 24, 2019

This morning we had a sleep-in at the Fireside Buffalo Valley RV Park in Moran, Wyoming, just south of the parks. For breakfast, we made Chiles Rellenos, finished to perfection in our convection oven.

My first notes must be to recap yesterday’s trip from Wapiti, Wyoming to Moran Junction, via the east gate of Yellowstone National Park. Traveling up the North Fork of the Shoshone River was a very scenic ride. The North Fork Highway, the road to Yellowstone's East Gate, follows the North Fork from Buffalo Bill Dam Visitor Center all the way to Pahaska. The canyon road is paralleling the North Fork of the Shoshone River and meandering through some of the most magnificent mountain scenery in the nation. As you ascend through the forest, cliffs and narrow columns of volcanic rock carved by water and ice begin to appear on both sides of the canyon. These formations, including Chimney Rock, are the remains of ancient volcanic dikes. Geologically, the section of the Absaroka Range in Wyoming consists of volcanic breccia, whereas there is a transition to granite and gneiss bedrock further north of the state line, into Montana. We observed this transition and the amazing formations that occur from this material.

Entering the east gate of Yellowstone, we continued our climb along the Shoshone River headwaters. As we ascended Sylvan Pass (8530-feet), we encountered snow at 8000-feet but the road had been plowed and was drying in the sun. At Sylvan Pass, we walked around, admired the views, played in the snow, and took a picture. The downhill drive from Sylvan Pass was easy and scenic, with views of Yellowstone Lake, the steam vents, and the Tetons far to the south. We stopped at overlooks for pictures and spotting with our binoculars. There were lots of Bison and some birdwatching. Around Steamboat Point to Fishing Bridge, the road construction made for rough towing but the slow, stop-and-start pace provided opportunity to admire the scenery and wildlife.

At Gull Point Drive, we found a nice picnic spot and had a picnic lunch. It was cool but the sun felt very nice. This location was perfect for our picnic!

Heading on south, through the Parks, we turned east at Moran Junction, to the Buffalo Fork of the Snake River. Fireside Buffalo Valley RV Park will be base for our visits to Yellowstone and Teton Parks.

We love Fall in the Yellowstone Country, there’s always plenty of room to breathe in the cool, clear mountain air, but in the fall, there’s even a little more. Autumn in Yellowstone Country is pure gold. Elk are bugling. Birds are migrating overhead. Hillsides are aflame with tamaracks and rivers are lined with the oranges and yellows of aspen and cottonwood trees. Evening sunlight filters through autumn’s hues. Fall is the time to take a scenic drive, explore, picnic, walk trails, or just sit-and-watch. It’s the time to see the Yellowstone Country in full color.

Tuesday afternoon, September 24, 2019

We made a picnic and headed to Teton’s Colter Bay. Located on the shores of Jackson Lake with the majestic Grand Tetons as a backdrop, Colter Bay is a super-scenic setting. We toured the Visitor Center, then hiked the Lakeshore Trail on Colter Bay and Jackson Lake. The water was so blue and clear, with the Tetons reflecting on the surface, it was picture-perfect. We saw lots of color and splendid views of the Tetons from the east side. We returned to our picnic and then headed back to base camp for a rest after a good hike. It was another great day in Yellowstone Country!

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Looking for something new, we decided to visit Grand Teton’s, Two Ocean Creek today. Two Ocean Creek is an unremarkable little forest stream in person, but, as you might guess from its name, it's the only creek in America that flows into two oceans.

Anyone who's driven over the Rocky Mountains has probably seen signs for the Continental Divide, the backbone of North America. What the Continental Divide actually divides is watersheds. Everything on its western slope drains into the Pacific, and everything on its eastern slope into the Atlantic. But its most unusual feature might be one little creek in Wyoming, which drains into both.

Two Ocean Creek splits into Pacific and Atlantic Creeks at Two Ocean Pass, along the Continental Divide. Pacific Creek travels southwest into Grand Teton National Park and receives outflow from Two Ocean and Emma Matilda Lakes just before it empties into the Snake River, immediately northwest of Moran, Wyoming. Atlantic Creek flows into the Yellowstone, Missouri, and Mississippi Rivers.

That means that the Continental Divide through the Teton Wilderness isn't a line. Around Two Ocean Creek, it bulges into a whole, high valley over a mile wide. To me, a fan of maps and geography, this is a nice little jewel-of-a-secret of Grand Teton National Park.

After our exploration, we had lunch at Jackson Lake Lodge and later walked the ridge trail for some grand views of the Lake, Tetons, and some Bull Elk. We also encountered a Wildlife Cinemaphotographer, attending the “Jackson Wild Summit” convention at Jackson Lake Lodge. A large gathering of these folks was there for a film festival and meeting. They make wildlife video for documentaries. Gordon, our acquaintance, works for National Geographic. We had an interesting conversation and he was very excited to demonstrate his two-hundred-thousand-dollar video camera. Opportunely, we got to view two Bull Elk through the camera system, which can magnify 90-times.

Glad we went! 

Thursday, September 26, 2019

We arose to a “killing frost” this morning in the Buffalo Valley, not the first here but the first for us. This will be good for the Fall colors but the tender vegetation is going fast.

Today, we head down to Jackson for a five-day stay in town. The sun is coming up over the mountains and beginning to melt the frost and warm the campsite, so we’ll hook-up and move before lunch.

Cruising the 30-miles down Jackson Hole Valley to Jackson was a pleasant drive with spectacular views of the Sage flats, the Tetons, lakes, and the glacial moraines. The warm sun, on a clear day, felt really good in the cool NW wind.

We shopped and resupplied at Jackson, then took our campsite one-block off the Square, at the Kudar Resort. We strolled and shopped the Jackson shops in the afternoon, had dinner and then had an evening stroll around town.

Friday, September 27, 2019

What a difference a day can make! Fall in Jackson turned to Winter overnight! Weather in the high country is unpredictable and can change rapidly, so we’re hoping Fall will return after this weather front passes!

We had a Bar-B-Q lunch at Jackson and then drove around town, with sprinkles, and sun breaking-through periodically, accompanied by a cool wind.

Regardless of the rain, today, we plan to visit the National Elk Refuge, which is really a refuge for all sorts of animals and birds. We hope to see some today! My new word today is “ungulate”, (a diverse group of primarily large mammals with hoofs). I want to see a large herd of Wapiti, of the ungulate class!

We also visited the National Fish Hatchery, which is also located on the National Elk Refuge. We had a very informative, enlightening, and educational guided-tour which was given by a knowledgeable, conversant docent. What an amazing job they do in producing the native fish and providing stewardship of the fisheries.

I also visited the Wyoming Fish and Wildlife Headquarters in Jackson, and enjoyed the interesting displays and materials on Wyoming Wildlife. A very nice building and a pleasant surprise for wildlife conservation and management information.

 Saturday, September 28, 2019

Overnight, rain turned to snow and we got out our winter gear and headed to the Cowboy Coffee Shop. We decided that College Football would be the best attraction for today. Concurrently, I’m catching-up on my stuff-to-remember notes.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Another wet, cold, snowy day, so we headed to the Cowboy Coffee Shop. We had lunch at the Liberty Burger, a quality hamburger place.  After lunch, we headed to the theater to see Downton Abby. The movie, and settings, costumes were really stunning on the “big screen”!

In the evening, we went for a walk around town and dropped in at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, Jackson Hole’s landmark honky-tonk. It was a great day for inside activities!

Monday, September 30, 2019

We started our cold day at the Cowboy Coffee Shop then took a trip out to the Gros Ventre Slide area. The Gros Ventre landslide (groh-VAHNT) is in the Gros Ventre Wilderness of Bridger-Teton National Forest, on the Gros Ventre River. The massive landslide came down Sheep Mountain, leaving a mile-wide scar. Billions of tons of rock damed the river and created a lake. Several years later the dam broke and now the scar and debris are all that remains. The piles of debris seen today contain large chunks of Tensleep Sandstone, along with remnants of the original forest. It’s a geological wonder to imagine to the power of the landslide.

Today, our trip up and down the Gros Ventre River canyon was very scenic, with Fall colors and river overlooks. We made some pictures and headed back to Jackson Hole. We had a late lunch in Jackson and stayed inside most of the remainder of the cold day.

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Western Wyoming places of interest today, traveling from Jackson Hole to Rock Springs.

On July 5, 1840, Father Pierre-Jean De Smet offered the first Holy Mass in Wyoming. A monument to the event stands on its site one mile east of Daniel.

Before the present-day town of Daniel, the Green River Rendezvous, a gathering of fur trappers and traders, was held at the site six times, from 1833 to 1840.

At Pinedale, Fossil Butte National Monument, perfectively preserved fossils are found in the flat-topped ridges of southwestern Wyoming's cold sagebrush desert. Baffling to realize that this was once a seabed.

Killpecker Dunes is one of the largest active sand dune fields in North America. The ice-cells are a surreal feature.

Near South Pass, this area was traversed by the Oregon Trail and the Pony Express route.

We could clearly see Pilot Butte where the actual trail ruts of the Oregon, California, Mormon Pioneer, and Pony Express National Historic Trails passed the landmark.

At Eden, Wyoming, we witnessed the Pronghorn migration. This agricultural area is a perfect place for the herds of Pronghorn to winter.

At the Little Sandy crossing, on Monday evening, June 28, 1847, Brigham Young and Mormon pioneers met James Bridger and party near this place. Both companies encamped here over night and conferred at length regarding the route and the possibility of establishing and sustaining a large population in the valley of the Great Salt Lake. Bridger tried to discourage the undertaking. In this conference he is reported to have said that he would give one thousand dollars for the first bushel of corn grown in the Salt Lake Valley.

At Rock Springs, we took a campsite at the Rock Springs KOA Journey, a convenient spot just north of I-80. 

10/2/2019 9:56 AM

The morning started comfortable but cold and snow began about mid-morning, obscuring historic Pilot Butte. Pilot Butte is a prominent landmark used by the early pioneer travelers, but now it’s for communication towers. After consideration, we decided to take three nights at Rock Springs to relax, explore and drive the Flaming Gorge Scenic Byway.

It’s a good day to look out the window or go to the museum or go downtown! Terry decided to use our new vacuum and it worked so well that she decided to vacuum Daisy’s bed-cover. It instantly ate the whole thing! Use your tools!

Thursday, October 3, 2019

With a clear, cool, blue-bird day, we hit the coffee shop at Green River, then took the circuitous, loop-drive Flaming Gorge Scenic Byway, for a day-trip around the gorge. We explored the west side in the morning and the east side in the afternoon, with a picnic lunch at the Red Canyon Lodge overlook, on the south end. The Flaming Gorge sprawls from Wyoming, south into Utah, so there’s a lot to see.

The west side provides some expansive vistas and lofty overlooks, with great views of the water and canyons. Looking out over great distances, you wonder how anything could live here but the fact is, there is abundant wildlife.

Along the south end we could see 30-million years of geology, in a glance. Over the several-hundred-millions of years, the land has experienced many different environments, from tropical seas to deserts. Abundant layers, formations and assorted fossils verify it all. The whole area rises from 6,000 to 8,400 feet in elevation and many slopes had great Fall colors.

On the east side, the Byway ventures east into the side-canyons and washes, giving an enlightening experience of the basin. US 191 descends down to Rock Springs offering views of jagged escarpments, off in the distance. At around mile 17 on US 191, the sagebrush flats turn to pinyon and juniper. A few miles farther and this has become an alpine drive, with aspen the predominant roadside tree. This stretch had some high ledges with no guard rails, so watch out for flat-landers, hugging the middle of the road.

The Flaming Gorge Scenic Byway encircles the gorge and lake, where you can just soak-up the scenery and experience the amazing diversity of the huge National Recreation Area. Made of spectacular red canyon walls and arid green forest, the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area sprawls across the southwest region of Wyoming and the northeast region of Utah. Flaming Gorge Reservoir is the largest reservoir in Wyoming, on the Green River, impounded behind the Flaming Gorge Dam. The dam, in the south end of the gorge, is a water-storage and hydroelectric generation facility, with an informative Visitor Center.

With the lake inundating the course of the 1869 Powell Expedition, many of the landmarks that he described on his journal are still visible today. Our only disappointment was a large road-killed Elk on the east side. In my opinion, and my experience with Parks and Wildlife, people drive out-of-control in the wild areas. Shame on drivers who kill wildlife when it could be avoided.

We had a real-fine day in the Flaming Gorge Country!