Hot Journey and Mountain Gathering

 

David’s heart doctor gives us good news on a Monday morning five days before the beginning of the Rocky Mountain fiberglass rally.  The last test indicates that his heart functioning is greatly improved over the test in May.  This means we can head to the big mountains….it also means we must go into overdrive to get packed and out the door!

Unfortunately a dome of heat is settling over the country….heat unlike any we have experienced on the road.

The first day on the road we only turn off the a/c when the Tundra is fueling.  It is around 98 degrees and and 90 percent humidity!  We stay in the comfort of the truck’s AC all day and manage to drive 500 miles, making it to the other side of Little Rock.  It is just as hot the next day but the humidity begins to drop as we get further west. Day two ends at Red Rock Canyon State Park in Oklahoma.  The thermometer says 98 but there is shade and a breeze! We sit outside and enjoy the rocks.

 

Hot breezes are blowing as we arrive at the Santa Rosa RV Park in New Mexico.  We pick the private park because it has a restaurant…who wants to cook when it’s 103 degrees?

It also has a pool, a very clean and cold pool.  I learn that my husband will still go swimming if the temperature is in the 100’s.

There’s even some shade in Santa Rosa!

The next day we manage to survive driving through Albuquerque and head north toward Colorado.  Aztec, NM is our next stop, just 40 miles south of Durango.

The Animas River flows next to the campground. I’m enchanted with the river.

 

 

The next morning I am playing with Google Maps and realize the Aztec Ruins National Monument is only 1/3 mile away.  It’s already hot at 8:30 AM but we want to see a piece of history.

 

 

 

Excerpts from one of the brochures: “the Aztecs never lived here.  Aztec ruins were built by the ancestors of the native Americans still living in the west.”  These Great Houses were a result of thousands of years of Pueblo history.  The Spanish explorers incorrectly named many places “Aztec”.

After a stop at the Durango Walmart, we start up a mountain toward Chris Park group camping area.  What a surprise!  We find a large parking lot full of eggs clustering around half a dozen electrical outlets.  And we join the circus.

 

 

 

And it has been pretty much non stop party since Sunday afternoon.  I was not sure I could handle all this intimate camping, but, overall, it is FUN!

We visit the Public Lands office in Durango obtaining maps for dispersed camping.  While David naps, I take to the back roads looking for campsites, feeling very much kin to RV Sue.

A few photos from my scouting trip:

 

 

 

It’s a great week in the mountains!

We are saying our goodbyes today and are off to search for the next perfect campsite!

Emerging from the Cave

 

Sunrise over Guntersville Lake, AL

When I last wrote, back around the first of April, there was no warning that it would be my last post for three months.  Did not realize that some piece of me….the part that can feel peace……was breaking or had already broken.

In April we returned from a great rally in Townsend after spending lovely times with wonderful friends whom we adore.  But something was not right…..

Looking back it may have been just too many lovely times with the wonderful friends…or the stress of the ongoing medical issues around David’s heart, or the scary weather traveling back from Arizona and ….. who knows what!!!

But all I wanted to do is crawl into my cave and not come out.  Someone asked “when are you hitting the road again?”  My reply is “we are staying at home until it feels like we live here!” 

Surprisingly, it has been a good three months. The goal was to create a life in our new home that feels rewarding and makes us happy.  We are being mostly successful with a few bumps.

One of the unpleasant bumps happened in May.  David experienced chest pain and I called 911.  The ER doc diagnosed him with a “baby” heart attack which is the best kind to have if one is going to have a heart attack.

He appears to be doing very well.  A few weeks after the event we spent a long weekend on Guntersville Lake.  It was hot but he seemed to be ok during the trip.

Going to back up now and do a little show and tell on our last few months.

The Townsend rally was without a leader this year.  Tom P. retired after leading this event for many years. Everyone managed to have fun at the leaderless event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The last two photos are from the Middle Fork in the Tremont area of the Great Smoky Mountains.

When we returned home…..remember it’s our new home after downsizing last year…we had a new deck!  And it has been my hide out for the summer.  My place to hide from the world.

 

 

We have done a lot of small improvements on our space.  The front porch got stained… a four day project.

 

Carpenters work at repairing fascia boards and soffits….a two week repair!!

The roof repairs have been completed for several weeks….such a relief to have our space back!

Now we are in the dog days of summer with lots of heat and humidity.  We are staying in, reading library books and binge watching several shows that somehow have passed us by…’Mad Men’ and ‘Orange is the New Black’.

Dusted off the gym membership and proud to report we have been going three times a week for the past month.

It’s time to get back on the road!

Pending a good report from more tests on David’s heart this week, we plan to be heading toward Colorado in about 10 days or so. 

Can’t wait to get out of this heat!!

But if the verdict is to stay home, it’s not too bad.  We are learning to flow like a river.

Sending apologies to everyone that I have neglected…still love you!

Spring at Home and more..

 

Phlox

Spring at home, fall at home, winter in the desert, summer in the mountains….that’s been the goal since we downsized and now it is happening!

Arriving home later than usual this year, we are greeted by trees adorned with blossoms, looking like mounds of white and pink cotton candy.  As we travel north on I-59, my eyes are delighting in the lavender blooming redbuds welcoming us to Tennessee.

As much as I enjoy the desert and its flora,  Spring in the Southeast is not something to miss. The landscape is dotted with different shades of green as new leaves appear on trees. Wildflowers are showing their color, azaleas are budding, lavender wisteria is draped in the woods.  New growth is everywhere and my plant disease is back!

Should say “plant addiction” instead of disease!  But remembering how this gardening bug drove us away from our house last year, I am looking, not buying, as we go through Walmart and Lowes!

Backing up in time to St Pat’s Day…..

The weather in Montgomery for the Green Eggs and Ham fiberglass rally is perfect.  A little rain falls later in the week, but nothing like the previous year where we never left the camper without a raincoat!

 

Multiple activities happen each day. This is our fourth year to attend.

 

 

Listening to the musicians at night….one of the magical events.

Wildflowers are blooming in the woods.

 

 

This lily like flower is blooming several places in the park..some in the deep woods. Not sure of its name.

For more info on the Green Eggs and Ham visit Jerry C’s blog. Wanda and Jerry are just across the road from us.

It is marvelous to arrive in our downsized new home… unlock the door, turn up the thermostat, switch the water back on and move back in!

Physically, we are back home.  Psychologically, I am still back in the desert. Upon waking each morning, I must remember I am not in the camper. 

But I am really enjoying all the sights of spring all around us. There are phlox blooming in our front yard…first photo.  Dogwoods and redbuds showing in the woods. Red azaleas are blooming in my neighbors’ yards.

And I notice that I am happy!

Just read an article on happiness.  It liken happiness to an ongoing journey and ended with “happiness is living the life you want to live.”  We are so blessed to be living that life!

David’s heart continues to be in rhythm.  And we have another rally to attend next week.  Part of the happiness is knowing that we soon will be camping with some treasured old friends!

Took this photo while getting reacquainted with our downtown….Market Street Bridge over the Tennessee River.

Tennessee River with Lookout Mountain in the background. Close to home.

It is a bit chilly today….we may still be in Dogwood Winter…but polishing the Escape is on the menu.  She needs to look her best for the rally.  Off to to the Great Smoky Mountains in a few days!!

Rain from AZ to AL

Warning….boring post. (Just wanting to document this extremely difficult trip for future reference.)

We stay three nights at the Escapees Dream Catcher park in Deming…did I already say that?  Our time in New Mexico seems so long ago but it has been only 9 days!
One of the highlights of our stay is meeting a fellow blogger, Susan, of the Travel Bug.  It’s a brief encounter but it’s great fun to run across someone with so many shared interests! Our paths will cross again.
Leaving Deming we are perplexed about the route back east.  There is a great rain event coming and I can’t decide whether to go through Dallas or San Antonio.  We head east on I-20 and land in Pecos, TX at the Escapees park, Tra-Park.

 

Their dry camping spot is just outside of the office.  If the photo looks desolate, it is a dismal, bleak place.  But we are in west Texas.
It’s raining the next morning.  Nothing significant, just light rain.  We decide to take I-10 as the bad weather seems worse on I-20.
It’s around 200 miles to Sonora where there’s a little RV park at Caverns of Sonora.  It’s a quaint place but we have an electric hookup…our first in several weeks!  We decide against the cave tour as it will take several hours and it’s 20 bucks.  Maybe next year?

The truck and trailer are soaked from the rain and we give them both a good rubdown.
Another day of traveling in the rain deposits us in Boerne, Texas. (Say Burney, rhymes with Barney.)  We locate the Walmart and park in a nice quiet spot close to a Visitor Center. It’s a short travel day…due to the rain we drive less than 150 miles!  I manage to have fun by getting my hair cut and shopping. Forgot to take a photo of our great spot.
The next day we have a huge obstacle in our path…it’s called Houston! It is like a nightmare to drive through this town and I worry that the rain will stress me over the edge. But the rain has slowed and the sun is shining.  And I see clusters of blue growing along the freeway.  I believe it is bluebonnets!
Later I get it confirmed…they are bluebonnets!  My first sighting of the famous Texas flower.
The traffic in Houston is bad but not as bad as the last trip when we hit the city during rush hour.
We stop for the night at the Isle of Capri casino in Lake Charles, LA. Not sure if it is the anticipation of the good food or the great shower but both are appreciated!

I’m amused at the casino advertising.  We know nothing about gambling….I’ve never even played the lottery.  It appears that many people are enjoying this past-time.
We are getting closer to Alabama…just need to get through Louisiana and Mississippi.  But the heavens open and the rain gets heavy.  We go slow and try to stay safe.  I-10 slows to 5 miles per hour.  The west bound lanes are also crawling.  I notice flood waters lapping onto parts of I-10 west.  Began wondering if the flooding would trap us on the interstate.  We decide to go to Fontainebleau SP and get off onto SR 22. Traffic stops again after 5 miles as the road is underwater.  We manage a U-turn and head back to the parking lot of I-10.

This is a side road close to where we made the U turn.
After forever on the interstate we manage to get off at Covington and get to another Walmart.  (This is a special place….where we completed the paperwork last May to buy our Escape.)
We spend the evening doing more shopping and having dinner at a Chinese place.
The trip from Covington, LA to Summerdale, AL is uneventful.  We arrive at Rainbow Plantation, another Escapees park, before noon.  Again we choose to dry camp.  (The dry camping only cost $5.00)

Sylvester and David enjoy the green grass and tall pines.  The sunshine is lovely after all the gray wet days.
The next day we arrive at Gunter Hill COE near Montgomery, AL where we will be for the next 6 days.  And it is NOT RAINING!
Now we are having fun with our non-stop visiting!

Winter Paradise Ending!

 

The warm days are just getting warmer!  Looking to find somewhere cooler we travel east to the Congress area where the Escapees’ North Ranch is located. We decide to dry camp for a couple of days which turns into four nights!

Beautiful flowers are blooming in the ditch next to our spot.

We spend our days exploring the area, looking at the cute little houses and walking in the desert behind the park. A drive up to Prescott, AZ, finds big trees and, surprisingly, fruit trees in blossom!

David has another doctor’s appointment, it’s time to return to the big city of Phoenix.  David’s report is good….heart rate regular!  We say good bye and thank them for their excellent treatment.

We have one last week in AZ before it’s time to hit the road. We decide to spend it at Lost Dutchman SP…our very most favorite place!

 

 

 

 

 

 

It gets hot during the week with temperatures in the upper 80’s but we manage to survive without too much discomfort.

One day we drive up to the Tonto NF to visit Phon D Sutton, our favorite parking lot from last year.  The forest service has now banned camping and the area is deserted.

I get a real treat…no photos…but there is a river otter playing in the waves, one of the few I have seen in the wild.  He’s in the current where the Verde River runs into the Salt and he dives and cavorts..much like a porpoise!

On our last night John and BJ join us for dinner at the campground.

We have a great time sitting around the fire and swapping stories….forget to take photos!

Heading east, we take a new route through Globe and stay on HWY 70 until Lordsburg, NM.  We decide to stay in Safford, AZ at a RV park but it is not too appealing and there is a WalMart handy.

 

The Dream Catcher Escapees Park in Deming is our destination and our current location.  We are waiting for the big rain to move out of our path.  Meanwhile we are socializing and learning how to line dance!

The plan is to stay at Escapees parks on our way east…but you know how it is with jello plans.

Reservations at Gunter Hill COE start on 3/14/2016.  See y’all!