Wandering Around: May 2016

March 11-30, 2016

When we left Ontario in October, we planned to stay 2 months in the US, then 3 months in New Zealand, and 2 months again in the US. That worked with all the "rules" we had to follow from both countries: no more than 7 months out of Ontario, no more than 6 months in the US, and our vehicles could only be insured on our Ontario insurance for a maximum of 6 months in the US. This last rule entailed buying an extra month of insurance from a US provider, something we knew our friends Jeff and Barb had done the year before. No problem, we figured.

From Leah's journal:

"Unfortunately, this (buying an extra month's vehicle insurance) is proving to be impossible. Can’t get it in Canada as our provider will only insure for 6 months in the US…which the vehicles will have been by early April. US providers will not sell less than 6 months and there are other stipulations which we cannot meet. We have a different situation than Jeff and Barb: our vehicles would be travelling, while theirs were stationary. Big difference, it appears. Richard called a number of places and eventually emailed our broker at home, but it looks like we may have to leave in a week. This is very unexpected and means that we can really only go to one more place: probably Red Rock Canyon about 90 miles south of here. No Tucson, no Phoenix, no Lake Roosevelt, no New Mexico…just straight home after that. We are disappointed and hoping that someone will have a solution for our problem, but we are not too optimistic."

Our broker didn't have a solution...and neither did anyone else we consulted, so that meant we had to cross the border no later than April 4th (6 months in the US). But we must allow a few extra travel days on the way, as our progress in the northern states, like Michigan, could be hindered by bad weather and road conditions. Consequently, we shot for April 1st as our border-crossing date. That meant we had only about 2 weeks left in the Southwest before we made a bee line for home. Won't have time to meet Levi and Jess in Colorado, either. &*^%$!

Where would we go after Lone Rock?? On a recommendation from Molly and Ted, interesting folks we met in Death Valley, we decided to camp at Red Rock Canyon State Park, CA, which was just 90 miles south of our current location at Lone Pine. However, when we arrived, the park was packed, the wind was high, and we couldn't quite level in the one available spot--next to a boy scout troop. Tried another spot down the road, but no luck. Finally, we drove another 45 min. and stayed the night in the Ridgecrest, CA Walmart. Noisy night. Next day, we drove all the way to Las Vegas, spending a couple days there, stocking up and relaxing at Boulder Beach campground.

An RVer and blogger we know recommended Quail Creek State Park, Utah, which was on our way east to our last Southwest destination this year: Lone Rock, UT. The route to Quail Creek took us through the breathtaking Virgin River Gorge. What a drive! We arrived at Quail Creek and were pleased that it was quiet and not too full. Thanks for the tip, Gail.

Quail Creek State Park, UT. That's us more or less in the middle.

Closer look at our site.

Someone at this campground told us there was great hiking just up the road at Red Cliffs Conservation Area, so, next day, we drove over to take a look. I think this hike was called the Red Reef Trail. Here are some photos:

Red Reef Trail: Upturned stump of a long-dead tree looked weirdly prehistoric

Red Reef Trail...definitely red.

Taking a rest in the canyon on Red Reef trail

Canyon walls got higher the farther in we hiked

The farther up the canyon we went, the more wading we had to do.

We had to climb that little cliff on the right to continue on past this small waterfall. Note the rope and foot holds carved in the rock. Made it.

The day after the Red Reef hike, we headed for Lone Rock, since we knew we'd want to stay a few days more there before the long drive back to Ontario.

From Leah's journal:

"Drove to Kanab and then stopped at Lone Rock. Expected Lone Rock to be like a parking lot and in fact there were numerous people parked at the beach; however, no one was up above (on the plateau where we've parked in the past). No one!!! We parked in the best spot overlooking the water - lengthwise - and no one else came until a few days later. The moon is almost full and it is really beautiful here."

All alone at Lone Rock!

Next night: same thing.

Lone Rock on Lake Powell at magic hour

Just after the sun set.

From Leah's journal:

We had breakfast at the trailer, then I packed a few snacks and we drove to the BLM Visitor Centre in Big Water. From there we took a dirt road directly across the highway and headed to Alstrom Point, a drive and hike that the young ranger recommended yesterday. This took us about 25 miles into the interior that joins this side with the Escalante side, but I’m not sure if there is another through road besides the Cottonwood Canyon Road. Incredible scenery! Utah, is really a world of wonders. I am running out of words and superlatives to describe it. The mountains and rocks ranged in colours and textures: smooth blueish black to craggy reds. Some rose from the ground gradually and others just shot straight up. Unbelievably beautiful. There were expanses with nothing growing at all and other areas where there were yellow wildflowers and lots of growth. We stopped a few times so P could take pictures and it was so quiet. At one stop, I saw a lot of broken glass gleaming. When I went closer, this turned out to be thin, translucent rock pieces. There were balanced rocks, sand patches, and it ended at a red cliff face overlooking the Lake Powell. We stopped here, although the road went on. It was very rough and we didn’t want to risk driving it. There, we met Trevor and Kalua, a young boy travelling with his dog who had quit his job and was out to discover the world. He had slept in a tent up here last night, arriving in the dark, and then was treated to this spectacular view in the morning. He was very personable and we told him about Levi’s Thisamericanroadtrip Instagram site. He said that he hoped he would run into Levi and then he would say, “I met your parents.” Something about this really pleased me. While Richard took photos, I walked along the cliff ledge, moving from point to point trying to find the best view. I went about a mile alone. I was worried about animals, but I think that my walking sticks make me feel more secure. Joined P and then we set out to walk the 2 miles to the look off. We ended up not going to the road look off, but rather, turned and walked to the edge, which had a magnificent view of Lake Powell, Page, and miles and miles of the surrounding area.

View from the cliff edge of Lake Powell, the water winding in and out of canyons

Farther along the Alstrom point trail, here looking toward Page, AZ

On the road to Alstrom Point. That small, pointy mountain is black sand and rock.

Just managed to capture a powered flying wing landing behind our trailer on the flat, empty lot. Really cool!

Visiting roadrunner usurps Leah's queen chair.

Eastern sky at sunset from our trailer, Lone Rock, UT

View northwest from our trailer at Lone Rock, UT

Lone Rock, UT, at Lake Powell shoreline below our trailer

I knew that Antelope Canyon, one of the most spectacular slot canyons in the world, was near Page, and I'd always wanted to go on one of the tours offered by the Navajo Nation; it's the only way to see the canyon. However, I'd resisted before because I'd read it was crowded, really a turn-off for me. But I also knew I wanted to photograph it, and the timing was right: the canyon would be relatively cool, the weather forecast was perfect, and we were heading back to Ontario in a day or two. So I paid my $150 and reserved a spot on the photography tour. The Navajo Nation also offers a tourist tour--not as long or as specialized. When you get to the staging point for the tour, you have to board one of their old army trucks and sit facing each other, knee-to-knee in the canvas-covered truck bed with 10 other photographers. Everybody is clutching tripods and photo gear covered in plastic to protect it from the clouds of dust thrown up by the 4-wheel drive truck as it bounces for 20 minutes along sandy washes on the way to the destination. When you climb out at the entrance, you are herded toward the canyon as droves of people emerge from it, heading for their own truck or Suburban, and the dusty drive back to the staging area.

From Leah's journal:

"Richard got up early and was very pumped for his trip to Antelope Canyon. My original plan was just to stay at the trailer. Last minute I called Adventurous Tours and booked a spot on the tourist tour that left around the same time as P’s photographer’s tour. I snagged a spot in the front of the vehicle so it wasn’t dusty and I didn’t have to ride sideways. Although I heard that it would be busy, the actual canyon was far busier than I expected. Like a busy mall or even busier. It was very narrow and the farther you went into it, the darker it got. Because there was a narrow slit at the top, varying degrees of light entered it along the way. It was all red sandstone and the light turned it different colours along the way. I have never been in a canyon like it before and it was very beautiful. Unfortunately it combines 2 things that are difficult for me: looking up (and you had to, to appreciate the views) and going from light to dark, so I got dizzy. Not so dizzy that it ruined the experience, but dizzy enough so I could not take full advantage of the place because I had to limit the amount of looking up that I did and was dealing with the dizziness. Bummer!!! I am not sorry that I went, but for me it wasn’t worth the money. Had I not gone, and afterwards seen P’s pics, I would have felt that I missed something, and I actually would have missed something special."

Antelope Canyon, AZ. Looks empty, but the Navajo guides block the tourist traffic so photographers can get the shot. We got a few minutes to get our shots, then the guides let the hordes through--like 50 people moving through the shot, above.

I think you can see what looks like a person's head and back in the lower left, above.

In spite of the crowding, I'm glad I went. The views in there are surreal.

I plan to go back in the future and photograph Lower Antelope Canyon, and maybe a few others in the area. Thanks, Rob, for encouraging me to go. You said it was worthwhile in spite of the crowding. You were right!

The next day we bid farewell to Lone Rock, and drove to Flagstaff, where Leah did some last-minute thrift storing and we ate at Cracker Barrel and Pita Jungle. The next four days were nearly constant driving, with the only bad weather a blizzard in Tucumcari, NM. We stayed the night at a motel. Crossed the border on March 30, ahead of schedule. I think next time we might store the truck and trailer in Las Vegas, fly home, then back the next season. We'll see.

That's all for this year. Have a good summer!

March 7-March 10, 2016

From Leah's journal:

"Calling for a big storm tonight so we decided to go to Bishop for the day. Drove the same way we went to Big Pine earlier in the week, but it seemed to be more beautiful….maybe the sun or the clouds….not sure why but very beautiful as we drove through the wide valley with the snow capped Sierras on one side and the stark rocky Inyos on the other. Bishop was bigger than we expected. First we went to the top rated restaurant for lunch. This was a bakery/deli called Erik Schats Bakkery." No, that's not a typo; that's the way he spells the name of his business. Had delicious food there, then Leah went next door to a Trading Post, while I looked for a library and took some photos of an old ('57 or '58) Cadillac:

Late 50s pink Cadillac outside the Trading Post

Someone had installed a table where the seats used to be, converting it into an outside dining spot

I neglected to mention that the Trading Post was going out of business...and it sold turquoise jewellery.

Leah and her jewellery haul outside the Trading Post. Happy Birthday, Leah!

Mono Lake

We'd both heard and read that Mammoth Lake, CA was an interesting town worth a visit. We thought we might even move the trailer up there, but, at 8000 ft., it was too cold. Still, we wanted to see it and Mono Lake, which was nearby, so we decided on a day trip.

From Leah's journal:

"The drive to Mono Lake reminded us both of the drive to Flagstaff. … The lake itself was awesome! It has tufa (more than one but the computer keeps autocorrecting) growing out of it. These are basically limestone formations of every size and shape. A lot of the water from the lake was diverted to LA in 1941, and now many of these limestone 'sculptures' are on dry land. There was a 1 mile walking path down from the parking lot, the original water level, to the shore and then back on a different route. Although still light, the sun kept going behind cloud cover making less interesting pics for Richard. The place itself is magical….especially at the water. There were stretches of beach with huge tufa outcroppings that looked like the ruins of forts and castles. Wandering amongst them was so cool. Also there were old sage bushes that were dead and bleached white and these in combination with the texture of the sand and the tufa(s) were amazing. …really like nothing I have ever seen before. I kept thinking about the rocks in the Alabama Hills and noting how different these were and yet how beautiful they both were."

Tufa formations, Mono Lake, CA

Cerro Gordo Ghost Town

I'd heard and read about this town, and since it was only about 45 minutes away, I really wanted to see it. But first, I had to call Bob, the live-in caretaker for the town, which is on private property. It's at 9,000 ft, so weather and road conditions are iffy quite a bit of the time. In fact, I'd called the day before and he'd said there was too much snow. However, when I called this time, Bob confirmed that we should have no problem, "Just go slowly, and keep your eyes on the road. We've lost people coming up here."

From Leah's journal:

"At the top of the road was Cerro Gordo, what we thought was a ghost town. And yes, it is, but this was not entirely abandoned or as run down as one would expect. Yes, there were crumbling structures (the most beautiful of which was a large stone chimney left from the smelter), but there were a number of buildings in good shape with signs and the doors open for exploration. There was also a sign that said, “ask the caretaker if you would like a tour.” Others were already there and on a ‘tour’ so while Richard got out his camera, I joined the men. The caretaker’s name is Robert and he is a real character. He was a miner there and then stayed on to help the various owners maintain the place. It is his personal mission and life’s work to keep this place going, get it protected and added to the registry of preserved historic locations. He sells rocks, rents out the bunkhouse, and has parties in the old saloon to make money. He stays there alone all year, and they get some pretty severe weather. He is afraid to leave the town unattended as it has been plundered on several occasions. He is thrilled to talk about the lineage of the mine and town, the animals and rodents and snakes that inhabit it, the occurrences during its heyday, as well as the value and the quirks of the original items. He has written 2 books: one about the mine and town, and one about his life there. In the poker room he showed us a bullet hole that went thru the wall, a spray of bullet holes and a blood stain on the floor beside the poker table. All the buildings are a combination of original stuff and old crummy stuff that is there for when he rents it out. Although a very beautiful location, I sure wouldn’t want to sleep in any of those rooms or beds. I must say, he really does keep it clean: no mouse turds anywhere and the outhouses are all stocked with toilet paper, sanitizer and wet naps (according to Richard)."