CROSSING NEVADA AND WECOME BACK HOME TO CALIFORNIA

Kudos to those early pioneers crossing here long ago

 Nevada leaves one with a sense of monotonous boredom viewing the endless barren rugged landscape along Hwy 50.

 It became quite a feat for the motor home engine as JR maneuvered the rig up and down over seven steep grades of summit peaks at  7800 ft elevations.   

He certainly faced a hard challenging task driving against gusts of strong winds off and on during some 380 miles through the Nevada desert. It was the longest day’s drive of our entire journey by far. Of course naturally we had to consider it as just a small part of the territory's adventure.

 It is no wonder the road is called “the world’s loneliest highway

Passing through Reno we pull off in Boomtown’s casino parking lot with a case of eight hours worth of road rummies. After resting a few hours we caught a bite to eat, played black jack on a slot machine for a little while, and called it our last night out on the road. It was a windy canyon so the motor home rocked most of the night but we were too tired to really care.

At dawn I stepped outside in the brisk chilly air to catch the last sunrise of the trip. It didn’t take long to shiver my way back into the cozy comfort of the Chateau with Gaspe, Madeline, and Mohegan our three little bear travel companions until JR awoke. Yukon the little bear whom we lost along the way in Quebec, Canada came to mind in spirit.

 It would be just a few hours until we’d finally reach home in California with the rig intact after two years and approximately 35,000 miles of travel making a full circle loop of North America. 

We are forever grateful to all the relatives and friends who extended their hospitality to us around the country. What an incredible adventure the entire journey has been filled with enough memories and stories to last a long while. At least until the road beckons us elsewhere to other places beyond the next horizon.  Would we do it again???  You bet...

Best of all upon arriving home we found the GREATEST SURPRISE EVER waiting in the driveway. Our youngest son Justin and his family were there to welcome us back  along with a wonderful homemade dinner waiting 

Nothing in the world gets any better than ones family no matter how far or wide you ever travel.

DELIGHTS IN GREAT BASIN NATIONAL PARK

Catching the sunrise at Great Basin National Park, Nevada

Crossing Utah the land of great canyons

Pushing west along Hwy 50, from Moab, Utah we knocked off 320 miles on the road in six hours to reach Great Basin National Park in eastern Nevada. It was to be our last big hurrah and proved to be a gem of a sanctuary, relatively undiscovered. In the shadow of 13,063-foot Wheeler Peak, where 5,000 year old bristlecone pine trees grow on rocky glacial moraines, we were fortunate to obtain the last of the limited sites in Upper Lehman Creek Campground.

People come to GBNP to experience the solitude of the desert, the smell of     sagebrush after a thunderstorm, the darkest of night skies, and the beauty of Lehman Caves. With the gradual melting of snow on Wheeler Peak, streams dance down the mountain, diversity explodes, and bouquets of Prickly-Pear Cacti, Indian Paintbrush , and Globe Mallow begin to dot the late springtime desert.

Here we were able to witness the rare annular solar eclipse happening for the first time in two decades. Half a dozen high power telescopes for viewing the solar eclipse in the sky were set up at the visitor center’s parking. 

A fellow fully dressed as Galileo was on the scene to humor and add dimension to the gathering. A chance to see the stages of the eclipse through the various big telescopes and place our cameras on several of their lense tubes to take photos was pretty cool.. Unfortunately, cloud cover dampened the opportunity for seeing the full ring of fire during the latter stage except for just a few seconds as the moon passed in front of the sun. 

All was not lost, however, as in Great Basin National Park on a clear, moonless night thousands of stars, five of our solar system's eight planets, star clusters, meteors, man-made satellites, the Andromeda Galaxy, and the Milky Way can be seen with the naked eye. The area boasts some of the darkest night skies left in the United States which we will attest to having seen.

Touring Lehman Caves within the park through passages and various chambers to a depth of 194 feet below ground on a ranger 90-minute tour became great fun. The dim lighting along narrow surface pathways illuminated the cave for safety. At one point the power went out leaving us all in total darkness for a period of time. The ranger with his flashlight returned back and found the auxiliary switch to reboot the lighting in the cave.

Those hollow rooms and sculptured walls started thousands of years ago as surface water turned slightly acidic from carbon dioxide gas, mixed with water deep below the surface, dissolving the soluble rock below were amazing. Drop by drop trickles of dissolved limestone formed stalactites , stalagmites, columns, draperies, flowstone, and soda straws within the cavern which continue to grow.

As if a solar eclipse and cave adventure weren’t enough there was still Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive yet to conquer in the park. With our Jeep we whined up the mountain range through a landscape of forest limber pines, pinon trees, aspens, and a few bristlecone pine trees  before the road ended at the summit’s 10,500 ft elevation parking lot. From there hiking trails lead higher up to Wheeler Peak at 13,500 ft in elevation. Absolutely worth giving it a bit of a go I suggested. Now most good hikers usually have some high altitude training conditioning. So you can imagine it wasn’t long before we turned and hoofed it back down the trail short on oxygen. 

The most we conquered after that was a few photos from below of the glaciers up on the peak . 

All in all a solar eclipse, cave spelunking, gazing at thousands of bright stars in a dark night sky, viewing the Great Basin region on a grand scale from Nevada’s highest peak along with another sunrise as we departed the park made for a grand time before continuing further westward on the long haul home.

CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK BRINGS GRAND VISTAS

Island in the Sky section atop the Colorado Plateau in Canyonlands 

What a world of grandeur happened to be spread before us standing high above the Colorado and Green Rivers on a mesa in what is today Canyonlands National Park in southeastern Utah. We've been to many national parks but this is certainly one of the most impressive. Stunning views like you've never seen before! 

Watched a hiker climb across the top of Mesa Arch in the Island to the Sky section

The walk to Mesa Arch is worth the reward always

The grand vista view through Mesa Arch becomes a thrill for anyone

The park encompasses deeply eroded canyons interspersed with sheer-sided mesas and a variety of spires, arches, and unusual rock formations. It is definitely a paradise for backpackers, hikers, and four-wheel vehicle thrill seekers who like to venture onto the high desert mountain trails or numerous unpaved dirt roads around the Canyonlands.

Adventure thrills await many 4-wheelers who drive along the canyon edges of the White Rim's unpaved roads

There aren't words to describe the breathtaking vistas in this park. It requires some driving but the results are worth it especially if you take advantage of some hiking. You will be treated to a geological wonderland of canyons, rivers, mesas and towering red rock formations - even an arch or two, all visible a short walk from the parking lots. With sweeping views of the Green and Colorado Rivers swathing their way through the ancient rock we couldn’t help but be impressed by the magnitude of it all. 

A glimpse of Green River carving its way to the confluence of the Colorado River

It was fun tracking down some ancient Indian petroglyph writings on a wall along the Colorado River.

ARCHES NATIONAL PARK RANKS IN OUR TOP TEN

Arriving on a mid day in May at Moab  Valley RV Park, UT without a reservation we encounter a grid lock of 4-wheel vehicles jammed at the entrance. JR told me to jump out and go on ahead into the office to see with any luck if there might a campsite available. It proved to be a smart move as I was able to secure us a campsite for five days. Once settled into the site, we hopped into the Jeep and drove to the Arches NP Visitors' Center three miles away. Arches National Park on the Northern outskirts of Moab, Utah, is another of the truly amazing scenic wonders of North America. It is a gorgeous 76,679 acre landscape which preserves over 2,000 natural sandstone arches. The park is in the high desert where the forces of nature like erosion have exposed millions of years of geologic history, diverse colors and textures of arches and very unusual rock formations. 43 arches have collapsed since 1970, yet still the beauty of nature here does leave anyone in awe.

The scenery is varied, from desert to huge cliffs of shining red stone and all look different at different times of the day. The arches themselves are pretty spectacular as well as the soaring red sandstone cliffs. We let an audio CD tour guide us as JR drove the park’s winding road up to many turnouts and hiking trails, punctuated all along the way by magnificent rock and cliff formations. Hiking a short distance in the Park Avenue area at the first stop it was so windy our hats blew off. The 

view was phenomenal and we could hardly pull ourselves away taking our eyes off everything there.

Trekkin up hill

Easy you can do this. Keep climbing

Moving on we attempted to do several of the shorter hikes. Most of all, what one cannot miss is the hike to "Delicate Arch", the world-famous arch seen on Utah's license plates. 

Delicate Arch from Upper Overview

Turret Arch

Tunnel Arch 

Does this fellow poise or what? 

Pine Tree Arch

The other hiking trails were awesome as well, especially the "Devil's Garden" area with lizards scurrying about. Arches National Park is definitely a 5 star national park worth visiting anytime. We spent the best part of two and a half days here, and still didn't see all that we could have.
 Be aware one must arrive early in the morning to avoid the crowds later in the day. Like so many of our national parks, Arches NP has become over impacted with visitors as well which is unfortunate for those seeking solace with nature. No matter what, without a doubt, this national park’s splendor does lift and renew your spirit though.

Sunrise at Arches

Pothole reflection

A DAY ON THE DURANGO SILVERTON NARROW GAUGE RAILWAY IN COLORADO

xWe had the fun experience of riding an old fashion locomotive train through the Rocky Mountains with beautiful scenery visible only by train. This trip has been on Christa’s "Bucket List" for years. The route from Durango to Silverton aboard the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad became an unforgettable journey along the spectacular Animas River, one of the last free-flowing rivers in the entire western United States.

  The adventure was like stepping back into the 1800s. With the Durango depot, the vintage train equipment, the staff wardrobe, the sites (and sights) along the way, and Silverton, we hardly remembered we were in the 21^st century. The  DSNGR  train crossed the river five times on its journey to Silverton, offering unbelievable views from both sides of the train. We passed fertile farmlands, old stagecoach roads, the breathtaking "Highline" steep canyon, the remote Tacoma Power Plant, old mining camps, and were able to be in the shadow of Rocky Mountain peaks reaching over 14,000 feet, many with year-round snow. 

                                                Click for a train video clip

 The train climbed nearly 3,000 feet in altitude from Durango to Silverton at 9200 feet. A few miles into the trip, the train was deep in the Colorado mountains with snow capped peaks surrounded by forests, cliffs, the Animas River, and finally arrived in the old mining town of Silverton with structures that were built in a bygone era.The train layover for two hours in Silverton allowed for a chance to walk the old mining town to take photos, buy a few rocks and minerals off some youngsters with little red wagons at the train wayside, enjoy seeing the old stores and buildings, and grab a bite to eat for lunch at Grumpy’s Saloon as piano player Lacey Black livened up the place with old time miner tunes. 

Click the video clip
 
When the train locomotive approached around a bend with steam hissing, the whistle blowing and the smokestack billowing, it was absolutely a blast to witness. The weather was perfect so we opened the windows for good photo opts and simply enjoyed the thrill of riding the train through one of the most gorgeous Rocky Mt. canyons ever. 

Oh my, what a great adventure to be remembered sitting on the right side of the train going up and being right on the edge of the cliff at the highline section along the tracks.  Looking down into the deep Animas River gorge below literally had everyone on board in a state of awe catching their breathe. One can’t help but love a good train ride anytime with such grand views.