April 23, 2018 through July 2, 2018 - Some Final Thoughts As the Great Transcontinental Circuit Comes To A Close, Some Facts and Figures

First, here are a few facts and figures. We were on the road for 72 days. We drove 9047 miles and used approximately 423 gallons of gasoline (@ avg. of 21.4 mpg). We visited 24 states. We replaced one car battery and one iPad.

Back in April, we jumped in the car and headed eastward. We had some general ideas of where we wanted to go and who we wanted to see. The specifics, however, would have to sort themselves out as each new day came. It was a definite departure from our usual way of operating: Karen and I each normally feel more comfortable having a little more certainty to our daily schedules. Along the way, we learned some new things and we confirmed some old things. Following are three things that come to mind for me:

You Don’t Need as Much as You Think You Do

We knew we’d have limited space for clothing and other items so we packed accordingly. We came back with a lot of clothing unpacked and unused. Today’s electronic gadgets are small enough and powerful enough that we were able to stay connected just about everywhere we travelled. And, when we were ‘off the grid’ it was a nice break from the outside world. Our little Aliner kitchen had all the basics and Karen made some great meals for us on the road. When I got back to the house and looked at all the ‘stuff’ I have laying around, I realized I didn’t really miss most of it at all.

Move On and Get Over It  

We shared each other’s company 24/7 for 72 days, most of it either in or around our 12’ trailer, or in the car. We were always on the move, rarely staying somewhere for more than a few days at a time and often staying only one night in some places. The act of breaking camp and moving to our next destination was an opportunity to leave yesterday behind and start a new day. Living together in such close proximity can really increase the odds of rubbing each other the wrong way. There’s no way to avoid this, so you just have to figure out how to deal with it. I think we got better at moving forward and starting off fresh each day. Figuratively, ‘breaking camp and moving on’ is good therapy.

If You Make a Wrong Turn Once in Awhile, You Can Still Get Back on the Right Track…If You Listen to Your Navigator

This trip confirmed that my sense of direction is not what you’d call acute. Karen did a fantastic job of finding our campsites and guiding us from place to place using both her GPS, and the many maps and guidebooks we brought along. We managed to stay off the interstates for most of our trip, using secondary and tertiary roads instead. This allowed us to see much more of the country than we otherwise would have had we taken the straight line. There were a few times when we were in areas that were a little dicey, but we mostly enriched our experience by going on these routes. Much to Karen’s consternation, I often would turn left when she said turn right, or right instead of left, etc. Sometimes, neither of us got it right. I think this reinforced for me that, just like on this trip, life is not always as linear as we’d like it to be. We may not know exactly where we’re going, but if you work together you can usually get to where you need to be. I’m glad I have Karen to help me navigate – she’s good at reminding me when we get off track.

Thanks again to our great friends and family who hosted us along the way, and thanks to all of our friends and family who took the time to read about our trip!

Days 71 and 72 – Viva Las Vegas – NOT, Hilton Hideaway in Hot Henderson, Back Home Again - July 1 and 2, 2018

We’ll wrap things up over the next couple of days with some facts and figures and final thoughts. In the meantime, here’s a quick recap of the last two travel days.

Our plan was to get down to Las Vegas and grab a cheap hotel room somewhere on the Strip. We found a good rate at the Stratosphere, which is at the north end of the strip and the south end of downtown. Karen called ahead and they told us there was RV parking available across the street from the hotel.

When we got there, the unattended parking lot looked pretty desolate and it was exposed to all the pedestrian traffic on the nearby streets. This part of town has gone a little bit to seed since the last time we came through here. The signs in the lot warned that you parked there at your own risk. Karen pointed out that all our gear was in the car and in plain sight of anyone who wanted to break in.

So, we decided to drive down Las Vegas Blvd. and see what else we could find. Karen called a few places and found that none in the vicinity of the Strip had RV parking. We also noticed huge throngs of people on the street and it looked like the town was overflowing with tourists. Part of this was probably because we’ve been so used to being in more remote areas, but part of it had to be because something was going on this weekend.

After striking out in Las Vegas, we headed for Henderson. This is one of the cities where Karen’s brother, Mike, is thinking about living when he comes out to Nevada (he’s one day behind us) later this week. So we thought we’d have a look, too. Karen found a small Hilton hotel that could accommodate us and the Aliner (it’s worse than having a pet) and we checked into the first hotel of our trip. By this time, it was 109 degrees outside and we were ready for a shower and some air conditioning. We also learned that there was an Avengers Comi Con Convention in Las Vegas for the weekend – this could have contributed to the large crowds.

This morning, we got up early for our last leg of the trip. It was already 101 degrees at 10:00AM when we pulled into Baker for gas. It seemed like the closer we got to home, the slower and more congested the traffic became.

We finally made Fullerton late this afternoon. Now, it’s time to get unpacked, get some rest and clean up the car and trailer.

Next: Some closing thoughts.

Day 70 – Living Large In A Small Space, A Toast To The Last Night In The Aliner (For Now) – June 30, 2018

Today was a long ride out of the Rockies and onto the Colorado Plateau. We spent a lot of time slogging up and down steep stretches of the interstate through various passes at 7000 to 8000 feet. This region has spectacular rock formations in colors ranging from red, pink, orange, brown and white. Last year, we spent three weeks exploring the area and it was good to get another quick view as we made our way to our next stop.

Karen called ahead to the Beaver Canyon Campground to see if we could get a space for the night. They told us there was one campsite left, but they would not reserve it – first come, first served. We’d heard about the campground from Laurie and David and we were willing to take the chance to see if we could get in when we showed up.

At about 3:00PM we pulled into the campground to learn there were no regular spaces available. However, the ‘emergency’ site was available for a reduced price. It had a 20 amp electrical hook-up and that was good enough for us. The site is right at the entrance to the camp, but this is a real quiet place. 

The owner, Dave, checked us in and asked us if we wanted to see an old car. We walked back to an old shed where there was a shiny yellow and black 1957 Studebaker Hawk. Dave was pretty excited to tell us how it was all original (except for the paint) and how he uses it as his daily driver.

Karen made friends with one of the campground cats, Peter, who helped her with the paperwork at the front desk. Dave told us Peter was part of a trio, Peter, Paula and Mary. Sadly, Mary is now deceased so it's up to Peter and Paula to control the local rabbit and gopher population.

This is a family owned campground and there’s a very good Mexican restaurant located right in the campground. It opened for dinner at 4:00PM and cars from the local area started pulling in to the parking lot at 3:50PM to line up at the door. We managed to get in. It’s a one room log cabin with about 8 tables and good food.

Earlier this morning as we were preparing the Aliner for departure, we managed to bump into each other (believe it or not, this has happened at least once or twice before on this trip), which prompted Karen to state, “you’re living too large, in too small of a space!”. I thought this was pretty funny - and probably true, so it’s one of our headlines for today.

During dinner, we toasted our last night of the trip sleeping in the Aliner. We plan to get a hotel room tomorrow in Las Vegas before taking the last leg back home. After dinner, we took a walk through the nearby ranches to have a look at Beaver Creek. The elevation here is just below 6000 feet and we’ve enjoyed how it cools off in the afternoon and evening.

 

Next: Nevada

Days 68 and 69 – Goodbye Laurie and David, Passing Time In Palisade - June 28 and 29, 2018

Thursday was a record setting day for Greeley: not only did they have lots and lots of people attending this year’s Greeley Stampede, but they also had the highest temperature recorded for this date – 103 degrees. We used this as a good excuse to stay indoors the entire day. We did laundry, watched a Sandra Bullock movie, ate steaks and played cards.

Laurie and David were very welcoming hosts and made us feel right at home. It was fun to visit with them. Thanks for everything Laurie and David! We enjoyed your company.

Summer has arrived in full force in the west. It seems each day is progressively hotter than the previous one. I’m sure some of this is attributable to a certain degree of road fatigue on our part. We’ve been at it since April 23 and we can hear the faint call of our hometown.

We decided to set aside our peripatetic ways and make our way back to Fullerton. This means there are still several places we have yet to visit, but we now know how to make the most of our time on the road. This will come in handy on future trips.

Friday morning we got an early start and got onto I-70 West. This road takes you right up over the Rocky Mountains. Much of the first part of the day was spent going about 45 mph up the eastern face of the mountains. I’ve been up I-70 through to Vail a few years ago, but everything west of there was new to us.

This highway is something of an engineering marvel. The Eisenhower Tunnel is at about 11,000 feet elevation and you can feel the altitude even when you’re sitting in the car passing through the long tunnel under the mountain. Further west, you get to the Glenwood Canyon section of the highway, which has spectacular scenery and amazing road design. 

The gorge through the canyon is very narrow and somehow they got a four lane highway through there. There are sections where the westbound lanes are elevated above the eastbound lanes, and where winding tunnels go right through the mountain. They put several rest areas within the 12 mile section of highway that are designed to let travelers get a closer look at the towering canyon walls, the Colorado River, Hanging Lake and other natural features.

We couldn’t get a confirmed campsite ahead of schedule, but Karen called the James Robb State Park and found out that there was a good chance we’d find a walk-in site. Sure enough, we got to the campground and they let us in. Located just off the highway along the Colorado River, it’s just what we need for tonight.

It’s Friday night out on the town, so we headed a couple of miles west to the town of Palisade, CO. Palisade bills itself as the ‘Peach Capital of Colorado’. This is not peach season, so we didn’t get to try them out. However, we did have dinner at the Palisade Café 11.0 (the current owner is the eleventh owner). The locally grown heirloom tomato appetizer was great. So was the deep fried avocado taco and the locally brewed beer.

After dinner, we walked over to the Palisade Brewery to try some more beer. We chatted for a while with the brewer, who gave us a sample of this year’s special brew, ‘Love Potion Number 8’. Apparently, they’ve made a special Love Potion each of the years they’ve been in business and this is the 8^th year. Karen told him he really needs to pull out all the stops for next year’s ‘Love Potion Number 9’.

On the way back to the car, we stopped at the Palisade Distillery, whose specialty spirit is a pear brandy. The distiller told us they start off by carefully hanging empty brandy bottles on pear trees, then let the pears bud out and grow to maturity inside the bottles. After that, the rest of the process takes place.

We’re back at camp now and the temperature has finally dropped to the low 70’s here at 4700 feet elevation. It’s strangely comforting to be surrounded by the high mesas and buttes of the west. We plan to get up early and get over to Utah tomorrow.