Travels in the southwest states
We have checked the Guadalupe Mountains National Park box. Typically when we visit a national park we say to ourselves that we will absolutely have to come back to visit stuff we weren’t able to see. There is much (let’s call that most) of the park we did not see. But for whatever reason I… Read More Guadalupe Mountains NP – Mar 2017
I don’t really do campground reviews, and this is not a campground review. BUT, the Cherry Creek State Park is a most excellent urban oasis near Denver, CO. We were here to act as sherpas evaluating apartments for our son – a freaking abysmal experience I might add; it has been a while since the… Read More Cherry Creek SP – Mar 2017
We knew when good friends of ours gave us a US map that identified the national parks in this country that we were in trouble. Not bad enough, you could identify your personal weaknesses by seeing all the “un-visited” parks we had yet to darken. Carlsbad Caverns National Park, in Carlsbad, NM was on that… Read More Carlsbad Caverns – Mar 2017
This is our second time to see White Sands National Monument in Alamogordo, NM, although it is the first time we were actually able to see it (the first time it was so windy we blew it off – no pun). White Sands sits in the basin of the Chihuahuan Desert, and abuts the White… Read More White Sands – Mar 2017
For anyone who has ever traveled in the desert, you know that 98% of the effort to construct roads (or anything) is to manage flooding. We are talking about an area that might get 6 inches of rain – per year. Death Valley gets about 2 inches per year. Anyway, I mention this because we… Read More Desert Addendum – Feb 2017
We have been camped out for a few days at the Lake Pleasant Regional Park in Morristown, AZ. With the cell phone tower as close as it is, I feel confident we have been spayed and neutered. I seem to be picking up Radio Free Europe on my fillings, and we seem to have a… Read More Lake Pleasant – Feb 2017
A musical instrument museum? Really? Cha! The Musical Instrument Museum (Phoenix) might be the coolest thing ever. Recommended to us by new Airstream buddies at McDowell Mountain RP, we went for an afternoon to see this unassuming looking museum. It is technically in Phoenix, but really close to Sedona. Neither of us are die-hard museum-goers,… Read More Musical Instrument Museum – Feb 2017
The real story about McDowell Mountain Regional Park is the beauty. Yes, there are a boatload of things to do here, miles and miles of hiking, mountain biking, and horseback trails. Since the park borders Scottsdale and is only 20 miles north of Phoenix, there are tons of other activities you can partake in. But… Read More McDowell Mountain RP – Feb 2017
Like Karen said to me, “beauty as far as the eyes can see.” That pretty much captures Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. If you don’t know where that is, you can be excused; it is located in the Sonoran Desert in southwest AZ on the border of Mexico. Over 95% of this 500+ square mile… Read More Organ Pipe – Feb 2017
I really deliberated whether to post on this visit to Lost Dutchman State Park, in Apache Junction, AZ (20 miles east of Phoenix). I have posted previously about this place and in spite of what you might think I try to keep the blog current but also interesting, and with new places. But Lost Dutchman… Read More Lost Dutchman SP – Feb 2017
Our destiny is clear: Get to Mesa (AZ) in plenty of time to set up and watch the Superbowl, with the New England Patriots facing off against the Atlanta Falcons. This is clearly a game I want both teams to win, being as we spent most of our lives in New England and have lived… Read More Bowie, AZ – Feb 2017
Karen, Dottie and I have been commissioned by our new “leadership” and his crack team to figure out the best place for the new wall on the Mexican border to go, and of course any décor items that might compliment it. We have looked around, and I think I have some great ideas! It’s all… Read More Big Bend – Jan 2017
Karen and I are here in southwest Texas in our quest to find the coldest part of America; seems we are on track. Seriously, we are about to head into Big Bend National Park but are camped just outside the park in Marathon, TX. Marathon is a cute little town of about 500 residents. You… Read More Marathon, TX – Jan 2017
Since departing Atlanta, we have been living in high society. FDR stayed in his “Little White House”. William Hearst stayed in the Hearst Castle. Two nights ago we camped in the parking lot of the Cracker Barrel Restaurant somewhere in Mississippi, and stayed in another one last night in Waco, Texas. I’m sorry, but does… Read More Waco, TX – Jan 2017
I fully realize looking at someone else’s photos might be close to torture, but none-the-less I put together some of my favorites from our travels in 2016. For me the criteria for choosing these photos was simple: does the photo stir an emotion, trigger a cool memory, or just put a smile on my face.… Read More Favorite 2016 Photos
One of the most common questions I am asked (second only to how exactly did you get Karen to marry you) is what is my favorite place visited this year? Since we have finished our travels for the year, I thought it would be timely to put this list together. I struggle with this question,… Read More Top 10 Places – 2016
The National Park Service was created this month in 1916, one hundred years ago, “to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and wildlife therein, and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.”, and… Read More National Park Service 100th Anniversary – Aug 2016
This ain’t no disco. It ain’t no country club either. This is LA! First, apologies to our LA area peeps that we did not get to see this trip. We did, however, get together for dinner with our friends Lloyd (my college roommate) and his wife Ann. Like Sheryl Crow says, all I want to… Read More M. A. S. H. – Mar 2016
Short post – short stay. We came back to Palm Springs for a very short stay at Outside Resort, an RV campground in Cathedral City (adjoins Palm Springs). I don’t know why we have a hankering for this place, because it is so not us. Maybe it is us and we just don’t know it.… Read More Palm Springs Part Duh – Mar 2016
San Diego – what a great town! And this is a first in months of traveling: no wild animals outside the trailer baying at the moon, no threat of poisonous snakes, no razor sharp cactus to remove from your paws. Life is good. After two months in desert surroundings, we have been experiencing in San… Read More San Diego – Mar 2016
Tucson undoubtedly means many things to many people, but to us I’d have to say it means rodeo – Fiesta de los Vaqueros (Celebration of the Cowboys), one of the Top 25 rodeos in North America. For the second year we traded in our backpacks and hiking boots for dungarees and cowboy hats and headed… Read More Tucson – Feb 2016
The thing about camping? When the weather gets too hot, or too cold, or too whatever, you move. As nice as the weather was at McDowell, it was getting on the warm side so we decided to head back to Sedona, part Duh. If doing something once is great, then doing it twice is greatuh.… Read More Sedona part Duh – Feb 2016
Success! We finally captured photos of wildlife with our new “Stealth Cam”. Catching photos of wildlife has eluded us until now. With this new camera in our arsenal we expect to catch more candid photos, but at least this is a start. I did discuss these photos with the park ranger. His counsel was, at… Read More McDowell Reg’l Park – Feb 2016
I know, you thought we ended up in Africa. Not so fast, Big Boy (or Girl). We are firmly in the US, although if you listened to the accents you would be sure we were in Canada, Wisconsin, Minnesota, or one of those other northern countries. That is because no one over the age of… Read More Mesa, AZ – Feb 2016
No, we didn’t change continents, but it feels like we did. We boondocked for a few days near Sedona, AZ and it felt like we were dropped into a scene from the movie, Out of Africa, somewhere on the Serengeti. We half expected lions and tigers to appear. Not so much, but we did see… Read More Out of Africa – Feb 2016
Prescott, AZ seems like one of those places where, if you were looking for the perfect weather year round, would/should be on your radar. Having been here for only three days in February it is a bit hard to say. Never the less, it sure seems like a pretty good candidate for that short list… Read More Prescott, AZ – Feb 2016
The places and people we have seen and met along the way, on the road, and in between destinations, is every bit as interesting and as much fun as when we land somewhere. By way of example, this was one shot taken on our approach into Anza-Borrego Desert. And I could not possibly list all… Read More On the Road – Feb 2016
Better than Thor. WHAT? What say you, heathen, for such high treason? Hang the man from the tallest cactus! We have been camped at Anza-Borrego Desert SP in southern California and Karen has outdone herself getting us the nicest site in the world. We are situated on a very private spot (don’t take umbrage –… Read More Anza-Borrego Desert – Feb 2016
Talk about going from the sublime to the ridiculous! After spending multiple days boondocking in the Mojave Desert we are now situated in Palm Springs at an RV resort (Outdoor Resort). This could not be more different than where we came from. The weather in Palm Springs this time of year is nothing less than… Read More Palm Springs break – Jan 2016
The risk (really now, is there a risk?!?) to posting again about a place you have been before is remaining engaging, relevant and fresh. Of course that presumes you were ever engaging, relevant or fresh. I’d be thrilled with one out of three. We revisited the Mojave National Preserve for five days and enjoyed it… Read More Mojave Preserve – Jan 2016