2009 – Week 6



May 21, 2009, Thursday:
We, or actually Susie, stayed up late last night so we didn’t get up as early as we might have wanted. We were able to leave the RV Park at 8:30am, stop to fill-up the gas and finally try (unsuccessfully) to buy more socks for Susie. The wool ones we purchased before leaving home are too hot for her. Driving south through Moab, we were struck by the number of motels, gas stations (even though Gabby Garmin didn’t seem to recognize them), RV parks, adventure tour companies, self-store facilities and restaurants. One company was loading a group of sightseers in one of the original (large size) Hummers. The occupants wore helmets, seatbelts/harnesses, and the vehicle had a roll bar. Susie commented that this trip might be a bit dangerous for her. We also commented how over the last 3 weeks we have noticed the number of home junkyards, and Moab is no exception. It seems that there are no places to take old autos and abandoned stuff to get it out of sight. South of Moab there is some new housing, but mostly the area is irrigated farmland. We drove about 40 miles south on US191, turned on to UT211 and headed northwest into The Needles area of Canyonlands NP.


On the way south, we noticed that the terrain seemed to change from mesas and buttes to pointy mountains, looking more like the east coast ranges. However, when we turned on to UT211, we soon returned to mesa and butte territory. When we arrived at the entry kiosk at 10:45am, we were told that all the sites in the main campground were taken. We continued on to the Visitor Center to ask about other camping and hiking trails. We headed back out of the Park and were able to select a spot at Hamburger Rock, a BLM facility. The access is a bumpy dirt road, but the rock itself is great. We stayed here in during our 2004 trip and have decided that the main campground has flush toilets and we have pit toilets. Other than that no difference so we’ll stay here for 2 nights.
After lunch, we headed out to the far north end of this section and parked the RV. We took a very short walk and then moved a bit south and headed out over the Slickrock Foot Trail. This is not the formal name of this rock, but when it gets wet, it is very slippery. This was a 4-mile hike and provided for several great views. We were able to see quite clearly the Grand View Point Overlook in the Island in the Sky section of Canyonlands NP where we were a few days ago. There are no trails between Big Spring Canyon Overlook and the Grand View Point Overlook, but we felt as if we had connected both sections of the Park. We saw many different types and formations of rock on our walked and note that the rocks on the surface looked as if a herd of very, very large cattle traversed the area a long time ago leaving deposits that eventually solidified. Actually they were solidified sand dunes. When were at the top, we had a 360 degree view and a clear picture of the Needles. It was a great afternoon, and we headed back to our campsite, expecting that a claim-jumper had taken over our site, but we were OK. All the sites are taken, and some people have doubled up. We may be a few weeks too late on this section of the trip. We are going to try to take a 14-mile round trip bike ride tomorrow to the Colorado River Overlook. It may be a bit dicey because the sand is getting soft as the temperatures dry out.

May 22, 2009 Friday:
The winds blew, and it rained for about 4 hours in the early morning. We thought for sure the bike trip was cancelled. Susie worked on her drawings, and I ran my computer battery down to zero before the rains stopped. We decided to have a hot breakfast and head off to the Visitor Center to see if we could ride and walk the Colorado River Overlook Trail. We left the Visitor Center at 1:40pm, a bit late for this adventure, but everyone seemed to be late starting today. This Trail is designated for high clearance 4-wheel drive vehicles, but mountain bikes are also allowed. We had neither, but we had our new ‘comfort’ bikes with fatter tires that the old hybrids. We did pretty well, but every so off the combination of going up hill and thick sand was more than we could manage.

We were able to ride the bikes for a bit more than 6 miles before the trail was impossible for all but the high clearance 4-wheel drive vehicles and walkers. We locked the bikes to a very dead tree, ate lunch and started walking. A mile later, we came upon the sign you see below and then climbed a few rocks before the Colorado River came into view, 700 feet below us.



If you remember, the White Rim Trail we saw from Grand View Point Overlook was 1,000 feet below. Today we were riding our bikes and walking on that same white limestone layer. We were closer to the Grand View Point Overlook than we were yesterday, and it was more magnificent and overwhelming than before. When we reached the Overlook and were astonished by the beauty of the river, we noticed that we had a 360 degree view of the entire area, and it was better than yesterday. Seeing several black clouds near the La Sal Mountains, we decided it was time head home. It would have been much more enjoyable lying on the rocks and enjoying the view. We started walking, saw that several of the clouds had joined and were looking very ominous. We retrieved the bikes and headed back. We hadn’t gone a mile before we saw a brand spanking new Jeep with 4 people inside going to the Outlook. We chatted for a minute and asked them if they had bike racks so maybe we could hitch a ride back. No such luck! Anyway, we continued on our way and with about 4 miles to go, the clouds darkened and lightning started. In my hurry, I caught a tire in the loose said and ended up face down in the sand. Thank goodness, there were no cactus plants for we had seen some earlier. Off we went, hoping to beat the rain but failed. The temperatures dropped and the rain came down so we stopped to put on raingear. This is the same raingear that we bought for the wet Northwest but never used. Now we’re in the dry Southwest and getting soaked. Go figure! We reached the Visitor Center at 6:30pm during a lull in the rain, and used the RV’s outside shower to wash down the bikes. Just as they were loaded, the rains came again. We were soaked, but Susie solved the problem by making hot chocolate. Soon the rain stopped. We ate cheese and crackers and then headed back to the campsite, noting that there were several large puddles along the road. You would think that it would percolate quickly, but no such luck. We pulled in to the campsite and worked on the blogs. I took Daisy for a walk after feeding her, and the rains came again.

May 23, 2009 Saturday:
By 7:00am, the sky was bright enough to wake us. However, during my walk with Daisy I noticed that the lowest cloud layer was about 800 feet off the ground and so the tops of most the buttes and mesas were not visible. We took sponge baths and washed our hair before breakfast. The rains last night made a mess of the few things we had left outside so it took as a bit of time to clean off all the sand and try to fold Daisy’s bed and the tablecloth into manageable sizes. You might ask why we didn’t do that last night before we went to bed, and the answer is that everything was already wet, and we hoped the rains would wash them off. Good plan but lousy execution. We managed to lose the plastic doormat, and a good search was to no avail. Off we went, waving good-by to the others who were unable to find spots in the main campground. Several of them seemed mighty wet. Susie drove out over the dirt road, trying to avoid the very large puddles (larger than last night). It was a hopeless task, and when she looked in the rearview mirror there was a Park Ranger following closely behind. He was probably checking on the condition of the campers. We noticed sand, stones and brush in areas along the road that had signs warning not to cross when flooded. We wondered how many people had heeded the signs. We passed by a herd of cattle grazing on both sides of the road.
The first stop was at ‘Newspaper Rock’. This section of rock is covered by petroglyphs, some as old as 2,000 years. It must have been the bulletin board for the ancients. It is pretty well preserved, but there is some graffiti. We stopped in Monticello for lunch and some staples. While I was walking Daisy behind the Days Inn, I heard a terrible crash and grinding noise. I turned around and noticed a pick-up truck pulling a 5th wheel trailer (and we saw later that pulling a smaller ATV trailer) had not checked the clearances and broke a number of covers for the roof-mounted equipment. I don’t think I’ve ever seen 2 doors open and people jump out as I did that moment. Not a happy time, but we did it with the Washington State Ferry last summer. We headed south towards Chile AZ to visit Canyon de Chelly NM. Being Memorial Day Weekend, we called to make sure we could get a spot. They indicated that they were not busy, and we’d be OK. We also called to make reservations for a tour of the canyon bottom tomorrow. We passed through several thunderstorms. Canyon de Chelly is within the boundaries of the Navaho Reservation, and when we were here last, there seemed to be beer containers and trash everywhere, but this trip it seems much cleaner. Maybe more respect for their surroundings. We found a site in the campground and returned to the Visitor Center, Susie and I noticed that the flags were at half-mast. I inquired and was told that one of the original 29 Navaho code talkers in WWII had passed away. We returned to the campsite and, while checking the plans for the next few days, discovered several exciting places to visit while on our way to Sedona and the Grand Canyon NP. It’s going to be a bit hectic, but we’ll be filling in the gaps left during previous trips. There are clouds in the west. NOAA is forecasting heavy thunderstorms tonight. We’ll see.

May 24, 2009 Sunday:
We arose a bit earlier than normal so we could be prepared for the trip along the bottom of Canyon del Muerto and Canyon de Chelly. We had signed up for the 1/2-day trip and at the end that was the correct answer. The vehicle was an old US Army ‘deuce and a half’ or a 10-wheeler with a carrying capacity of 2.5 tons and was first used in WWII. It was this vehicle frame that the late Olin Stephens of Sparkman & Stevens used as the basis of his design for the DUWK (amphibious vehicle) for transporting personnel and cargo from the ships to the beach and beyond. Anyway, the bottom of the canyon was almost flat, but had enough pitch so that the water flowed from east to west.


At the west end, the top of the canyon was about 60 feet above the bottom, but at the east point where we turned around, the distance was 700 feet. The bottom of the Canyon was used for farming, and the streambeds were full of Cottonwood trees and Russian Olive trees. The CCC planted the Russian Olive trees in the 1930’s as an erosion control measure. They have become a nuisance, and we saw where the NPS has cleared and burned some areas. The trip took almost 4 hours, and it was well worth the time. It is a very different feel when you are in the bottom of a canyon looking up than vice versa. We returned to the RV, collected all the things we had left outdoors to dry, dumped the tanks and refilled with good water before heading south to the Petrified Forest NP (including the Painted Desert). It was about a 100-mile trip, and we each fortified ourselves with an A&W Root Beer Float. I mentioned yesterday that the town of Chinle was cleaner than our earlier trip, but while getting gas, we had a young man come up to the RV and ask for money. Then we saw a guy (in his 40’s?) wandering around, crossing the main road without any sense of caution. The drug and alcohol problems have not been resolved. It seemed like a long trip, probably because the road was bumpy. It was late, and the sun was behind the storm clouds so we drove through the Park, a 28-mile trip.


The south end of the Park is where all the petrified wood is located so tomorrow, we plan a more detailed viewing of the Park’s splendors. We had learned about a store just outside the south entrance to the Park that offered free camping so in we went. We found a place with electricity so here we are. There was thunder and lightning in the distance and eventually it became rain. Daisy hid under the table.

May 25, 2009 Monday:
Memorial Day. We are now on Mountain Standard Time because, except for the Navajo Nation does not acknowledge Daylight Savings Time. It must be a labor saving decision because they don’t need to adjust the clocks twice a year. The result is that the sun comes up 5:16am and sets at 7:31pm. Normally we wouldn’t change our clocks to the correct time, but we will be going to places where we need the correct time. It was a beautiful morning, and Susie made French toast and brats for breakfast. It had rained during the night but without thunder, lightning and wind. I think it has rained for at least the last 6 days. The ‘free parking’ didn’t stay free as Susie went into one of the stores and bought a ring. We drove into the Park, stopping at the Visitor Center and then took two small walks through areas strewn with petrified trees.




These ‘trees’ are about 220 million years old and were buried until erosion removed the covering material. The material is the Chinle Formation and is the layer where the fossils of dinosaurs and such creatures have been discovered. I took so many pictures of these ‘trees’ that it will be a long time before I get to cull then. We then traveled to the Blue Mesa where we were able to view the many layers of materials that make up the Chinle Formation. The National Park Service no longer tries to preserve what is old, but lets nature take its course. Every so often a Ranger will have toured the Park and discover that rock formation had collapsed during the night. The Park has put together a small exhibit of ‘before’ and ‘now’ photographs to show a few of the changes. As we proceeded on our trek, the sky darkened and rain threatened. We took additional photographs of The Painted Desert, hoping that they would be better than the ones we took late yesterday afternoon.

We have great hopes. The last serious stop on the drive was the visit to the Painted Desert Inn, a National Historic Landmark. It has been restored and is now an exhibit building. Susie noticed that the ceiling on the main floor is backlit and the glass is painted with symbols from the local Indian cultures. We returned to the north Visitor Center just as the rain started and decided to have lunch in the cafeteria before driving further west. We proceeded west on I-40 towards Flagstaff, but stopped short so that we can visit a meteor crater. More about that tomorrow. We checked in a RV Park, worked on the bikes, washed the laundry (well, most of it), had dinner and worked on the blogs. Susie will be caught up when she goes to bed tonight. What a time consuming task this is. We had a heavy thunderstorm with high winds just before sunset and were treated to a double rainbow afterwards.

May 26, 2009 Tuesday:
I awoke at 5:45am this morning and worked on downloading the photos into my blog. I thought, foolishly perhaps, the load would be less than at other times, and the downloads faster. Eventually it worked, but speed was not great. We had showers, left the RV Park and headed towards the Meteor Crater to view and learn as much as we could about how this hole in the ground with a diameter of 4,000+ feet, a circumference of 2.4 miles and a depth of 550 feet. That’s pretty big, but let me but it another way: the bottom of the basin would hold 20 football fields and the slope sides would provide seating for 2 million people watching the 20 games. The guide was knowledgable and fun to listen to. There was an indoor display focused on other identified meteor craters around the world, the largest of which is in South Africa and has a diameter of 186 miles. The South African crater is also the oldest. For my Maryland friends, the seventh largest meteor crater (55 mile diameter) is located in the southern Chesapeake Bay and may be the reason the drinking water in Fishing Bay at Deltaville VA tastes so awful. The guide claims that the craterhere is the best preserved in the world. NASA used it to train astronauts for the Apollo Missions, and Buzz Aldrin discovered that the original space suits were not strong enough to resist tearing when he stumbled during a training session. Back to the drawing board! While we were eating lunch in the RV a localized thunderstorm came through, and the winds were strong enough to rock the RV from side to side. After lunch, off we went west to the Walnut Canyon National Monument, located a few miles east of Flagstaff AZ. We had discovered that there are several National Monuments in the Flagstaff, and we plan to visit them all in the next 2 days. Walnut Canyon was the home of the Sinaqua (meaning ‘without water’) people starting in 600AD. The Sinaqua were primarily dry farmers but learned about irrigation. Starting around 1040AD Sunset Crater (northeast of Flagstaff) was created by several volcanic eruptions, spreading ash all over the area, and life changed for the Sinaqua people. They started to build cliff dwellings in the canyon and eventually created more than 300 structures before leaving the area around 1250AD.



The Canyon was declared a National Monument in 1915, and he National Park Service has created a few pathways that allow visitors to view many of the dwellings and the wonderful canyons without being close enough to do damage. It is really a gem! As we approached Flagstaff, the change in scenery was profound. Whereas at the Meteor Crater the land was generally flat and pretty barren, all of a sudden the terrain was a bit rougher and evergreens (Douglas Firs I think) became prevalent. I don’t think that we have seen so many large trees since we left Arkansas. It was a pleasant change, but I don’t think it will last for long. At Flagstaff we headed south on I-17 and are staying in a huge RV Resort where numerous folks seem to live full time. You can buy a small house for $46,000, but I think your neighbor is a bit too close. Another thunderstorm came through, but it was a small one. Tomorrow we head a bit further south to see Montezuma Castle National Monument.

May 27, 2009 Wednesday:
Another beautiful morning with evergreen and deciduous trees all around. I had a great walk with Daisy as the temperatures rose from 45 degrees to 55 degrees in the RV but warmer outside. We had an eggs and brats breakfast, took showers and refilled with propane before heading south to Montezuma Castle National Monument. The one remaining building started out as a single storey structure, but as space needs increased, it was expanded vertically until it was 5 stories tall and had 20 rooms. Construction started around 1100AD. Like all the structures of this era, it was built of stones that were then held together with packed mud. Cement, as we know it today, did not exist until the early 1800’s. I stand in awe every time I see one of these buildings and wonder why it is still standing or how many people were killed in building collapses. There is the remains of another building that was much larger than the castle, but it is in severe disrepair and will not be repaired. We moved on to Tuzigoot NM near Cottonwood AZ. This is another small site, and the CCC completed the excavation of the ruins in the 1930’s. The CCC also constructed the Visitor Center in the same manner as the Sinaqua constructed their pueblos. The exhibits in the Visitor Center were more impressive than the partially reconstructed pueblo. Back in the 1920’s there was a big copper mining operation in Jasper, the nearest town, and during the process, the tailings and residue from the copper consolidation were pumped to the area surrounding the pueblo and left to dry. The copper company owned the land, but no one would get away with that now. The skies darkened and the winds blew, but there wasn’t any significant rain. We left Tuzigoot NM and headed back to Cottonwood to restock the RV food lockers. We continued on to Sedona and the Rancho Sedona RV Park. Susie had an interesting experience when walking Daisy tonight. She met a lady with a Yellow Lab that lay down as they approached. Talking starting, and it turned out that this lady and her husband are on the 57th day of their first RV trip. Not only that, this couple lived in the Meadowood housing development that backs up to our property in Sykesville. Unbelievable! Unfortunately the will be leaving tomorrow, but on the bright side if we hadn’t arrived in Sedona a day early, she wouldn’t have met her. She gave Susie some tips about Sedona and tomorrow or the next day we’ll take a Jeep trip up into the red hills. We’ll be here for 3 nights before heading north to the Grand Canyon. It is interesting to note that over the last two days we have experienced elevation changes that not only change the vegetation, but also the age of the exposed rock. On Tuesday we started at 5,600 feet at Meteor Crater, went to 6,600 feet at Walnut Canyon NM, peaked out at 7,000 feet at Flagstaff, dropped to 3,400 feet at Montezuma Castle NM, and ended up at 4,500 feet in Sedona. We had a good dinner, and went to bed early.