Month: June 2022

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Friday, June 24, 2022

Last night we decided to go out for pizza. We had a choice between a restaurant serving New York style pizza and a restaurant serving local, wood fired pizza. I suggested that we’d never be happy with some inauthentic New York style pizza and so we went for the wood fired one. It was highly rated.

We ordered a sausage and onion pizza in the only size that they made. Along with two Cokes the bill came to $25.00. We sat at a table for over 50 minutes before our pizza was finally ready and when it arrived we were already disappointed. It was pretty small. I could easily have eaten two all by myself. What’s worse is that fully one third of the pie was plain crust without any toppings whatsoever. We noticed that most people ordered one pizza for each person at their table. That meant that pizza for two would cost around $50.00. That’s just ridiculous. After dinner we just went back to the hotel. We were too annoyed to look for dessert which we assumed would be sub-par. For us Portland had been a gastronomic nightmare.

The next morning we were on the road headed to Boise, ID. We’d be on I-84 for virtually the entire 6.5 hour trip. During the first couple of hours we followed along on the South side of the majestic Columbia River. Washington State bordered to the North. Outside of the city the River was wide and deep. It was interrupted in several places by hydro-electric dams. Eventually the interstate jagged South and we went through farm country. Both towns and rest stops were few and far between.

Once in Boise, we hung out at the hotel for a couple of hours before seeking dinner. The one thing we knew for sure was that we wanted something made of potatoes. We found a local haunt called The Westside Drive-In. According to the sign on the door it had been featured on the show Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. It was a fifties style diner. The drive-in portion was limited to the drive-through window. We went inside.

We decided to share a loaded baked potato and a cheeseburger with onion rings. The burger was fresh and we both remarked that even the bun was good (it was probably made of potato bread). The onion rings were homemade and really quite good, but the star of the show was the loaded baked potato. It was crusted in salt and topped with bacon, sour cream, green onion, cheddar cheese, and butter. The potato itself was truly fresh and flavorful. It might have been the best potato we’ve ever had. For dessert we indulged in a couple of shakes. Deborah’s was peanut butter and mine was chocolate with wild cherry and marshmallow. They were thick, refreshing, and delicious. Fortunately, they were served with large diameter straws.

Saturday, June 25, 2022

The drive from Boise to Grand Teton National Park took 7.5 hours.  It wasn’t a bad drive.  About 30 minutes from entering the park we drove through the town of Jackson, not to be confused with Jackson Hole, a town that doesn’t actually exist. The interior of the Teton and Gros Ventre Mountain ranges form a large valley, or in the local parlance, a hole.  The entire valley is called Jackson Hole.   The town of Jackson is just one of several towns located in Jackson Hole.

Driving through the park we encountered many signs indicating that wildlife was in the area. One of the signs told us to slow down because bison were near by.  Just then we rounded a bend onto a large prairie where we saw a small herd of bison about 100 yards away.  On the other side of the road was an even larger herd but they were even father off.  We watched them for a while and proceeded on our way.

We found our campsite rather easily.  Everything went up in a smooth and orderly fashion.  Oh what a difference a little experience makes in these matters.  We also knew that our campsite came with a fire pit and a cooking grate.  We were prepared.  We drove over to the camp’s store and purchased some charcoal, matches, and lighter fluid.  Once the briquets burned down a bit Deborah began the process of cooking our dinner.  Bratwurst were on the menu. It was nice to have a hot meal in the evening for a change.

In Lassen by 6:00 pm it was already very cold. We would already have changed into warmer clothes and could usually be found chasing the last rays of sunlight for warmth.  Here in the Tetons it was still quite pleasant at 7:00 pm.  In fact it didn’t get really cold until about 4:30 am the next morning.

Sunday, June 26, 2022

By 9:30 am we were in the car and driving over to nearby Jackson Lake.  We intended to hike a trail that went along a good bit of the waterfront.  The guide we received when we got here said you could swim in any of the lakes but advised against doing so.  Being that the water comes mostly from mountain snowmelt the temperatures are quite cold.  The sight of the lake and the jagged snowcapped mountains behind them was amazing.  We snapped a bunch of pictures before embarking on the hike.

We decided to head into Jackson for lunch.  This time when we got to the prairie we saw a very large herd of Bison no more than 50 yards off.  Many people had stopped to take photos.  After a while we walked back to the car and as we were pulling into the road we noticed that the animals were on the move.  They were headed towards the road.  I raced down the road a bit and pulled off to the side to get a better angle.  I got out of the car to take even more pictures when all of a sudden the herd of about 70 animals, including a bunch of youngsters, started crossing the road right in front of me.  Some walked and some ran.  It was quite exciting.  They were so close. Just then a ranger came down the road and got out of his car.  I was afraid he was going to tell me to get back into the car before I got hurt.  Instead he took out his phone and starting taking pictures, too.  It was quite a sight.

Rant on…

These are bison, not buffalo. Several types of buffalo can be found in Asia, Africa, and Europe. North America is blessed with bison. Buffalo and bison are different animals and are not genetically related. Any reference to buffalo in North America is factually wrong. In spite of that we have government web sites that refer to herds of buffalo at Yellowstone National Park, town and rivers named for buffalo, and on several occasions the US Mint has created coins with the images of buffalo (to name just a few faux pas). It’s ok to be informed.

Rant off.

It turned out that many of the restaurants in Jackson were closed on Sunday.  We settled for an American restaurant that was only serving breakfast.  Afterwards we walked around town for a bit.  It was filled with the usual clothing, Native American crafts, and jewelry stores.  We checked out several ice cream shops.  Most had mediocre ratings and very high prices.  We decided to get dessert elsewhere.

Back in the park we decided to stop at one of the informational pullouts.  It was Glacier View Turnout.  We noticed it the day before and were curious to know if there really was a glacier there or it was just an interesting name.  Sure enough, high up in the mountains, you could see parts of several glaciers.  It was surprising to us that they existed so far south.

Passing the Bison pasture once again we found a single Pronghorn Antelope. He was right by the side of the road happily grazing away. He didn’t seem to mind that quite a few people stopped to take his picture.

By the time we got back near the campsite we were both pretty tired.  We had intended to cook out again but I suggested instead that we just get some sandwiches at the general store.  In the end we decided to make sandwiches out of the packets of tuna we had brought along. The trip to the general store wasn’t a complete waste.  They had hand scooped ice cream in a dozen flavors.  The small size, consisting of two good sized scoops, cost just $3.50.  We both got the bear claw (vanilla ice cream with caramel and chocolate chunks).  It was absolutely delicious.  The ice cream became our de-facto dinner.  We never did have the tuna.

Monday, June 27, 2022

This morning we explored some of the park’s more Southern attractions.  We parked at the trailhead for the Taggert Lake Trail.  We had hoped to start the hike before it got too hot but by the time we started it was well into the 70s.  Most of the trail’s 400 foot gain in elevation happened in the first mile where there was little shade.  The trail crossed several streams before it leveled out and we finally arrived at Taggert Lake.  The rather small lake had crystal clear still waters and incredible views of snow capped mountains in the background.  It was idyllic.  For the trip back we had the option of going an extra mile with the strong possibility of seeing bear.  Deborah wasn’t interested in tangling with any bear so we went back the way we came.

Almost every part of the park hosts its own lodge, restaurants, and general store.  We opted for Dornan’s Pizza Pasta Company right near by.  The menu included a seven inch and a 12 inch pizza.  The 12 inch looked a little small so we got one with pepperoni and a Greek Salad.  The salad was enormous and could easily have been lunch for the two of us.  The pizza was quite good.  We finished it and took the left over salad back with us to eat with our dinner.  While getting into our car we overheard someone say they were going over to the Jackson Lodge for milkshakes.  Now that would be worth investigating.

Next it was the Northern end of the park.  Just South of our campsite we found the cutoff for Jenny Lake and the associated scenic drive.  We crossed over the Jackson Dam, over the Snake River, and found ourselves very near the base of the mountain chain.  There was a pullout near the lake.  It was another incredibly beautiful spot.  Some came for the scenery but quite a few brought their lunch and picnicked on the provided tables.  On the way back we noticed a car stopped in front of us.  There was a huge elk with an enormous rack grazing right by the side of the road.  We watched him for a while before stopping at the dam to take some pictures.

We had intended to drive further North all the way to Yellowstone National Park.  Yellowstone had been completely closed due to flooding but the Southern Loop had been recently opened.  The problem was that we were pretty tired.  We thought a milkshake might give us a needed jolt.

The Jackson Lodge, the biggest and most elegant of the lodges in the park, was gorgeous.  In addition to being a full service hotel it hosted several restaurants and meeting rooms.  We found the grill and ordered two milkshakes: one chocolate and one vanilla.  The menu didn’t mention malt but we asked about it and since they had it, we had them add it to both of our drinks.  The vanilla had swirls of caramel and was topped with whipped cream and a cherry.  The chocolate had swirls of chocolate and was similarly topped.  They were $7.50 each, with no extra charge for the malt, and they were worth every penny.  In fact, they were so large that I wasn’t able to finish mine.

We decided to call it a day.  Back at our campsite I made a fire and Deborah cooked some Italian sausages for dinner. Later that evening we noticed some people moved into a nearby campsite. They had a very young, golden retriever with them. I wanted to go over and say hello but Deborah said we should be more circumspect. We’d pretend to go for a walk around the campsite loop and just happen to notice the puppy as we passed by. Our plan worked perfectly. The six month old puppy was delighted to make out acquaintance. Before leaving I offered to babysit should the need arise. Let’s be fair: Deborah co-stalked this one.  😎

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Monday, June 20, 2022

We got up early and headed North via 101. By now we knew the first hour and a half would be through the twisting forest roads. The roads straightened out a bit before we came to the Northern edge of Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park where we were once again on small, curving roads. After that park we actually got to a two lane road but that was short lived. Soon we were back to mountainous country roads. Finally, three hours later we came to the city of Grants Pass where we switched to I-5 for the next four hours.

Along the way we passed Crater Lake National Park. We decided to bypass that one. Lassen had taught us that the Northern parks still had too much snow to visit. Our new plan was to spend a week in Portland and then go East to Grand Tetons National Park. We’ll just have to come back West and do Oregon and Washington’s parks another time.

We stopped at a Costco just south of Portland to get some supplies. It was lunch time and Deborah wanted some decent pizza. The only problem is that the best pizza places were closed on Monday. We decided to choose another restaurant from her list. Soon we were entering Portland. Then we saw signs that said Leaving Portland and eventually signs that said Welcome to Washington. Oh well. We’d never been to Oregon or Washington and had intended to visit both on this trip. It just happened sooner than we thought.

The Stardust Diner was well rated – especially for its burgers and shakes. I ordered a patty melt and a “real” cherry coke. Deborah had an open faced turkey sandwich. Both were good but nothing to rave about. We checked into our hotel and did some laundry. We’re looking forward to exploring the town tomorrow.

Tuesday, June 21, 2022

This morning we walked over to a nearby food pod. This is a group of food trucks that are permanently situated. We ordered a couple of breakfast sandwiches at a place called, “Fried Egg, I’m in Love”. The sandwiches are custom cooked for each order. It took a lot longer than your typical fast food restaurant but it was worth it. The food was very good. The sourdough bread was toasted on the grill, the eggs were just a little runny and the meat was very spicy – just on the verge of being too spicy. They didn’t offer coffee but we were able to get some from another member of the pod. The coffee in Portland seems to have a rather “green” flavor to it. It’s hard to tell if it’s under-roasted or under-ripe. It’s not bad, just different.

Having our fill we walked back to the hotel and drove to Washington Park. Portland is known as the city of roses and this park has a vast collection. In fact it is the oldest continuously operated rose test garden in the United States and features over 10,000 flowers. It started as a safe haven for hybrid roses grown in Europe during World War I.

We strolled around the large, multi-level gardens for well over an hour admiring the blooms and drinking in the names of the more exotic varieties. We were fortunate in that most of the plants were in full bloom during our visit. Most of the flowers are in beds but some have been trained to climb up trellises and some up lamp posts. It’s really a lovely spot to come on a sunny day.

Afterwards we drove downtown to visit a very famous bakery: Voodoo Donuts. We’ve seen them many times on travel / food channel programs. We’d heard that there were better donuts in town but we still had to visit this place.

The downtown store was the original location. They had about two dozen different types. We choose seven donuts, which we intended to sample in the car. On the way to the car we stopped at their neighbor, Stumptown Coffee, so as to have something to wash the donuts down with. The donuts were rather large, well filled, and generously topped. In fact they were quite delicious. It was a fun little diversion.

Next we drove to Powell’s City of Books. It’s a huge bookstore spanning three floors and an entire city block. They sell both new and used books (think Strand in New York City). We had a blast browsing through the shelves. It’s hard to find real bookstores any more. This was quite a treat. We both found some interesting things but, because we travel so much, we don’t buy physical books any more. It’s sad because reading on an iPad can’t compare to holding a hardcover book.

We went back to the hotel to do some trip planning. It was a complete failure. We still have no idea of what we’ll be doing in a little over a week’s time. Getting campsites at some of these parks is really difficult.

For dinner we finally got Deborah some pizza. We went to Atlas Pizza. No, it wasn’t real New York pizza but it was very good. We decided to try four different slices instead of ordering a pie. The crust was thin and crusty but not cracker thin. The toppings were fresh and flavorful. It was the best pizza we’ve had since we left Vegas more than three months ago.

Wednesday, June 22, 2022

Once again the car needed service. This is the second time since we left Las Vegas almost four months ago. We’ve put a lot of mileage on that puppy. I found a place that had high ratings. Since they only operated on a first come first served basis I got there at 8:00 am when they opened for business. I told the cashier that I would be waiting for the estimated one hour service. She suggested that if I wanted breakfast I should walk down the block to a grocery store that had breakfast sandwiches and coffee. Forty-five minutes later I was on my way back to the hotel.

Our plan was to visit in Fort Vancouver in Vancouver, WA. It was the main location of the Hudson’s Bay Company starting in the 17th century. At that time the area was controlled by the English. The company, chartered May 2, 1670, is the oldest incorporated joint-stock merchandising company in the English-speaking world (it is still operating today). Its main business was trading furs. Operations declined and eventually ceased when the area was ceded to the United States in the mid 1800s. The fort was burned to the ground in 1866. What you see today is a recreation.

Today Fort Vancouver is a National Historic Site. Since the 1950s the site has been undergoing archeological excavation. A number of buildings have been recreated as accurately as possible. We toured the entire facility. The carpenter’s shop was manned by two volunteers who happily demonstrated woodworking techniques commonly employed by the Hudson’s Bay Company. There were also volunteers in the commercial bakery, the kitchens, and the main house, where the company’s administrators lived and entertained. It was all very interesting and informative.

Adjacent to the fort, also administered by the Federal Government, we found Pearson Air Museum. Pearson field is the one of the oldest continually operated airfields in the United States. We started off by watching a film featuring many early aviation pioneers and then toured the museum, where we found a half dozen or so planes from the early 1900s. Today general aviation thrives on the field.

For lunch we went over to the waterfront district and ate at a place called The Cove. It’s an upscale restaurant that specializes in seafood. We were able to watch all sorts of boating from our vantage point on the Columbia River. Deborah had the King Salmon. The fish was very fresh and expertly prepared. I had the seafood pasta. It was rather disappointing. The pasta was completely dry. It had not been tossed with the pesto sauce, which could be found at the bottom of the dish (a rookie mistake). The noodles were accompanied by previously frozen shrimp and perfectly cooked fresh scallops. Unfortunately, the service was bad too, which was surprising because the restaurant was not busy and the waitress was not overtaxed.

After lunch we walked around the waterfront for a bit and then drove back into Portland in search of dessert. We decided to try some custard. This was another upscale restaurant that creates several custom flavors daily. I got a scoop of cookies and cream and Deborah got fluffer nutter. It was supposed to be custard but it was much more like ice cream. Also, the flavors were very subtle and unsatisfying. At $7.00 for a medium sized single scoop I would have expected a lot better.

Thursday, June 23, 2022

You never know where the day will bring you. We started off by having breakfast at a restaurant called Gravy. Ironically, only two items on the menu (biscuits and chicken fried steak) had gravy. Deborah ordered the blueberry pecan pancakes. She said they were excellent. I had the smoked salmon hash. It was very good except for the fact that the salmon really wasn’t smoked at all – it was baked. The portions were absolutely huge. We didn’t even come close to finishing off our plates.

Next we drove about 30 minutes to Beaverton, OR. We’d seen an ad for a chain that promised inexpensive glasses in one day. We were skeptical but the fact is that I needed new glasses. There was another store closer to us but it was in Washington State, and if we purchased glasses there, we’d have to pay sales tax; there is no sales tax in Oregon. One of the arms on my regular glasses broke a few weeks ago and I’ve been nursing them ever since. They’re still functional, but just barely. The truth is that my prescription is five years old and really needs to be updated.

When we arrived I decided to ask them if they could repair my frames. They said that they couldn’t but referred me to someone who could. That meant driving another 30 minutes to Hillsboro, OR. The guy there said he could fix them – and he did. The repair cost $42.00. It was worth it. I’ll get a new pair another time at a place I will have more confidence in.

Next we hit a WinCo for groceries. We needed some items for our upcoming trip to Grand Teton National Park, where we will once again be camping. There was a Dutch Brothers Coffee in the same strip mall and we decided to indulge. We even had enough points for one free coffee. When we got to the pickup window the clerk told its that she’d actually made an extra. She said we could have it for free. Score! Instead of one we got two free coffees. Truthfully, we like Dutch Brothers’ coffee better than the “green” stuff we keep getting in Portland.

We got gas before we left Hillsboro. We hadn’t known this before we got to Oregon but there are two states where you may not pump your own gas. We knew about New Jersey. Now we know the other is Oregon. I still had to get out to squeegee the windshield, but I didn’t mind.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Saturday, June 18, 2022

We drove up to the Prairie Creek Visitor Center. The entire complex is actually composed of Redwood National Park and three California State Parks (Del Norte Coast, Jedediah Smith, and Prairie Creek). We intended to do some hikes emanating from the visitor’s center and then do the ten mile scenic drive. Just as we were arriving at the park there was a sign stating that the road was closed one mile ahead. What the heck?

Before we got to the visitor’s center we encountered a large field full of Elk. Apparently the area is lousy with them and they are a constant presence in the park. I broke out the long lens and snapped a bunch of photos before parking at the visitor’s center and talking to one of the rangers.

We were told that the scenic drive was closed for a special event. I asked, “how can you could close a public park on a Saturday?” The snotty ranger replied that the park wasn’t closed – it was just closed to cars. If you wanted to see the scenic drive you could walk it instead. It was only 20 miles round trip. I went outside before I said something impolite. Other visitors were, like me, bat-shit crazy pissed off. Many had driven hundreds of miles to see the park and this was their only day in town. The “special event” was some sort of fair that was occupying a small part of the main road. It was clear that there was insufficient parking for all the people who were presently in the park – much less the people who would be coming. They had trinkets and tacos for sale. YOU GOTTA BE FREAKING KIDDING ME!!!!!!

We took “The Big Tree” trail that emanated from the visitor’s center. I must have ranted for the entire hour and half we were on the trail. Other people heard me and heartily agreed. Our one sole consolation was that we were planning to be in town for two days and the scenic drive was expected to be open tomorrow. The highlight of the trail was a very large coast redwood that was said to be 1,500 years old. It was huge but we’d seen much larger trees near the parking lot.

The other thing that was troubling us was that there was no National Park sign. We always stop at the park entrances and take a selfie with the sign. Everybody seems to do this. It’s probably the most photographed place in every national park. We Googled for places to find a suitable sign and found some. Supposedly there would be one near the trails we intended to hike tomorrow.

Next we drove up to Jedediah Smith State Park. Instead of being able to access it via the scenic drive we went out of the park took route 101. Route 101 was another twisty, turning mountain road with lots of construction. Most of it went through vast forests of evergreens and redwoods. When we got to the park the road turned to gravel and became very narrow. We were concerned that we’d come in through the wrong entrance. Had there not been some cars behind us and several that were coming out of the park in front of us we’d have probably turned around.

A note on navigation in these parks. It’s pretty rare that there is cell service in the parks and often, because the parks are in remote areas, there is no service in the surrounding areas as well. When that happens we switch from Apple Maps to Google Maps. If you download an “offline map” beforehand you can still navigate as easily as if you had service. It’s been a lifesaver for us many times.

Once inside the park the road got even narrower. In places you had to pull over to let oncoming cars pass you by and the maximum speed you could go was about 10 MPH. It was, however, fantastically scenic. The park was full of impossibly tall redwoods with trunks over 100 feet in circumference. It was truly impressive. We’d been to Muir Woods recently and, although they had a lot of redwoods there, these absolutely dwarfed them in sheer height and size.

We’d identified a trail that we wanted to hike but rather unusually we couldn’t find it using Google Maps. After a few miles we found an interesting sounding trail called, “Grove of the Titans”. It turned out to be a fantastic trail. We wended up and down through the forest getting up close and personal with the tallest living things on Earth. Many of these trees were said to be around 2,000 years old. The trees are so tall and have such large canopies that the path was rather dark, cool, and protected from the sun. It was a lovely hike.

Back in the car we realized that we were fairly close to the ocean. Let’s have seafood for lunch! We drove into Crescent City and found a restaurant that suited our needs. Deborah had fish tacos (what else) and I had an oyster po-boy sandwich. Both meals came with a cup for clam chowder. Yum!

After lunch we got back on 101 and headed South. Just as we were about to head back into the forest Deborah noticed a sign. It was the national park sign we had been looking for. I stopped as quickly as I could. I’d actually driven just past the sign. Seeing that no one was behind me I backed up into the pullout and we got our picture.

By the time we got back to Arcata, where our hotel is, it was 4:00 pm. We decided that we’d have ice cream for dinner. We found an artisanal ice cream parlor in a very residential neighborhood. The place is known for making unusual and seasonal flavors. I had a scoop of maple cinnamon and Deborah had their signature flavor: honey vanilla lavender. The ice was really creamy, flavorful, and delicious. It was $4.50 for a large scoop. The only thing that would have made it better is if they’d strained the lavender from the finished product. Biting into a small piece of frozen herb was a little off-putting.

Sunday, June 19, 2022

This morning we drove to the Lady Bird Johnson Grove. It was dedicated to the former First Lady by Richard Nixon in 1969, “in recognization of her devoted service to the cause of preserving and enhancing America’s natural beauty for the enjoyment of all the people”. We hiked the loop trail and enjoyed seeing more of the amazing redwoods. We noticed that most of the redwoods that had lived at least 1,000 years had significant scars and charring from a fire. We imagined that the last big fire in that area was sometime between 500 and 750 years ago. That’s pretty amazing.

A few miles away we also hiked the Trillium Falls Trail (not to be confused with people who trade in Kevas and Trillium – extra points of you know that reference?). There was a picture of a Trillium flower on the trailhead sign. We looked everywhere but never did find any. The trail undulated through the redwood forest for over a mile until we got to a lovely little waterfall. We stopped to take pictures and enjoy the sounds of running water. The trail continued for quite a ways more but we decided to head back.

We re-entered the Prairie Creek entrance and were delighted not to see the sign about the road closure. We proceeded ahead and drove the ten mile scenic drive to the other end of the park. It was a very pretty drive. No one was behind us so we luxuriated at about 15 MPH the entire way.

Next we drove back to Arcata for lunch. We found a bar in the middle of town that specialized in seafood. We ordered a fried oyster basket that featured local oysters. We also ordered a calamari basket. Both came with fries. We intended to share them but Deborah preferred the calamari and I preferred the oysters, which made things rather easy.

The restaurant abutted the town square where they were having some sort of fair. We circled the entire square looking for dessert but most of the booths were involved in selling clothing and trinkets. Across the street we noticed a frozen yogurt store. It was one of those places where you fill your cup with one or more flavors of yogurt and then top it anyway you like. The yogurt was really good and the toppings were fun. We got gas and started our preparations for our move tomorrow. We have a long drive so we’ll probably get an early start.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Tuesday, June 14, 2022

This morning we got up VERY early (4:30 am).  The drive time to Lassen Volcanic National Park was estimated at 7.5 hours.  We eschewed Denny’s and had a quick bite a McDonald’s.  Based on our experience it’s not possible to have a meal in under an hour at that Denny’s.

The first 280 or so miles was on route 50, which is known as the Loneliest Road in the United States.  In more than four hours we only passed through three tiny towns.  The drive was actually quite beautiful.  Some of the scenery was on long, very straight roads through the valleys.  We were surrounded by high, jagged mountains on all sides and you could see for miles and miles without glimpsing evidence of man at all.  We were able to do 80 MPH through these areas.  The other part of the drive was much slower.  That part entailed climbing over mountains on twisting, turning, and switchbacked roads.

Eventually, when we reached I-80, we started looking for gas stations.  All of the stations were showing prices of at least $6.50 a gallon.  We decided to press on and see what we could find in Reno, NV.  We stopped at a T/A where we had lunch at a Fuddruckers.  Gas was $6.01 – a bargain!

A good part of the rest of the trip was through Lassen National Forest.  It was clear to see that large potions had been burned recently.  It was mostly due to the Dixie fire.  Finally in the park we needed to speak to someone about our campground reservations.  This was the first time we’d used the government’s web site to book a campsite and very recently we realized that we’d made a big mistake.  The park’s campgrounds are very popular and most of the campsites were already book.  It wasn’t possible for us to book a single campsite for three nights so we booked one site for two nights and another for one night – or so we thought.  What we actually did was book a campsite for Tuesday night and another for Thursday night.  We were missing Wednesday night!  No biggie, we’d seen a bunch of first-come-first-serve campsites on the website for Wednesday night.  All we had to do was figure out how to get one.  We were told we had to speak to the campsite hosts.

We found our campsite and pitched our tent.  The manufacturer says it should take ten minutes.  We took about 20.  We expect to get better at it.  Then we went off in search of the campsite hosts.  Just as we arrived we saw them driving off.  The sign said that they would be back soon.  Just a little further down the road we checked out the park’s store.  They had souvenirs and some packaged food items.  We were hoping for better.  On the way back we checked again and the hosts were still not there.

Back at our campsite we decided to do a little exploring.  We starting walking towards Manzanita Lake.  Our path took us right past the campsite hosts and this time they were there.  We explained our predicament and they offered us a solution.  They said that if we moved from site C-09 to C-07 we could stay there for three days in a row.  Wonderful!  The new site was just next to our current site.  We simply removed the tent spikes, carried the already built tent to its new location, and hammered the spikes in once again.  Easy Peasy.  Problem solved!

We were tired from our long drive so we really didn’t get to do any exploring.  We just sat at the campsite and talked about what we planned to do the next few days.  Before we could come to any conclusions we were interrupted by a stranger: a deer came walking through our campsite. She helped herself to several patches of green grass before hopping off into the woods.

At 5:00 pm we ate our dinner.  It was already quite cold and seemingly getting colder by the minute.  Many of the other campers we met warned us that it’s been getting very cold at night.  Last night it was in the low 30s.  I hope those sleeping bags we bought are warm.

Wednesday, June 15, 2022

We had a really bad night.  Three things went wrong.  First was the air mattress.  Even though our tent has a floor we figured an air mattress would make us more comfortable and provide an additional barrier against the cold ground.  Wrong!  It turns out that the air mattress was a wonderful conductor of the cold ground.  Any part of us that touched the mattress directly was subjected to freezing temperatures.  Secondly, the tent has vents on all four sides.  On two sides you can zip them closed to prevent the flow of air.  The other two sides are only somewhat covered on the outside by rain deflector.  Instead of the tent trapping the warm air inside it allowed cold air from outside to seep in.  What a poor design – and this is the most popular four person, three season tent sold on Amazon.  Lastly, it was freaking cold outside.  The temperatures probably dipped into the 20s.  Neither of us slept very well.

By 6:30 am we’d given up the ghost.  We dressed, got in the car, and turned on the heat.  We also ate our breakfast in the car.  Soon the sun was out and the temperatures moderated.  We decided instead of hiking in the morning and sight seeing in the afternoon that we’d do the sight seeing first to give the thermometer a chance to climb.  By 8:30 am we were headed down the scenic drive.  It was a real luxury to start the day off already in the park.

We made a few stops along the drive and hiked at the so-called Devastated Area.  This area had been pummeled by the eruption of Lassen Peak in 1915.  There was evidence of gargantuan rock slides and huge boulders that had been thrown several miles.  According to eye witnesses the rocks were still too hot to touch several days later.

On our way back to the campsite we stopped at the park store.  We had come up with a plan to make tonight more comfortable.  We bought a blanket to cover the air mattress and another with which to cover ourselves.  We had high hopes.

We changed our clothes and drove over to Manzanita Lake.  The lake is just 350 years old.  It was formed when an earlier eruption caused a stream to become dammed up.  The lake is very popular with boaters, fisherman, ducks, geese, and all sorts of waterfowl.  We were told that the lake is full of rainbow and brown trout; catch and release only.  We walked the trail that circumnavigates the lake.  At several points on the far side there are magnificent views of snow covered Lassen Peak.

The park’s store was reputed to have all sorts of groceries and prepared foods.  We’d counted on that.  Instead we found mostly chips, snacks, and candies.  We left the park and drove about 15 miles to a grocery store we’d passed on our way in yesterday.  That store no longer has a deli or groceries.  They just sell chips, snacks, and candies.  The clerk recommended a pizza place in Shingletown, about 20 miles past the park in the opposite direction.  By the time we got there we were staving.

They had a special: a meatball sub with a side salad for $11.99.  We got two.  They were somewhat disappointing.  The meatballs were obviously from the freezer, the sauce from a can, and the bread wasn’t even toasted.  During our time there we noticed that the restaurant was popular with the locals.  That was logical because it was just about the only restaurant in town.  Cash only.  We planned to console ourselves with ice cream from the parlor next door but it is closed on Wednesdays.  Wednesdays?!

We went down the road and found an IGA supermarket.  We bought some supplies for the next couple of days.  We also topped off the gas tank at the bargain price of just $6.88 per gallon.

Thursday, June 16, 2022

What a difference a day makes.  We had a really good night’s sleep.  We both woke around 4:00 am and noticed that the temperature had really dropped.  We put on some extra clothes and went right back to sleep.  We awoke at 7:30 am and, for the first time in days, felt rested.

After breakfast we drove up to the Bumpass Hell Trailhead on the opposite side of the park. The road climbed higher and higher and the temperatures kept getting cooler and cooler. By 7,000 feet we saw large patches of snow. By 8,000 feet the snow was several feet thick. This part of the park had just opened a couple of weeks ago. The 3.5 mile trail goes through some of the most active hydrothermal areas in the entire park and is one of the park’s most interesting attractions. When we got there we found that the trail was closed. A park ranger told us that the trail may not be open for several more weeks because of the snow.

We continued on through the park and stopped at a place called The Sulphur Works. The air was thick with the smell of brimstone. We walked on the trail alongside the road and found a pool of bubbling mud. Lava seven miles deep was still hot enough to make the water boil. The soil around the pot was very colorful from all of the minerals being ejected. Further down the road there were several steam vents and even more bubbling pots.

Finally we got to the other end of the park and the main visitor’s center. We stopped there to use their WiFi for a bit. This is the first time we’d had service since we’d been in the park. We continued out of the park to the nearby town of Mineral and had lunch at the local Inn constituting of BarBQ pork ribs and a salmon sandwich.

Back in the park we used the National Park Service’s App and listened to the guided tour. Still looking for a suitable replacement to the Bumpass Hell Trail we drove clear out of the park again and drove about 15 miles to the Subway Cave Lava Tubes.

These tubes are natural tunnels through which lava flows during eruptions. This one was about 1/3 of a mile long. Since the cave was pitch black we were advised to bring a good flashlight and sturdy shoes. The entrance was about 1/3 a mile from the parking lot. By the time we got there we were sweating heavily from the direct sunlight. The lava tubes, however, are a constant 46 degree F. We donned our sweatshirts and headed on it.

Our eyes adjusted very quickly. At several spots in the cave the park service had placed informational signs detailing the site. When we got to the end we decided instead of walking back in the sun we would reverse course and go through the tubes again in the other direction. Back outside we noticed that the lava tube was actually much longer. That part was no longer accessible.

Back at our campsite we found that we got new neighbors on one side. A group of six twenty-somethings had moved in. They played loud music, talked even louder, and were drinking heavily. They turned in for the night at around 9:00 pm and quiet was restored. They must have partied heavier than we thought because we were woken up in the middle of the night by the sounds of one of them being sick.

Friday, June 17, 2022

We had some concerns about breaking down the site. The sleeping bags went back into their bags rather easily. We weren’t able to fit the air mattress back in its box but we managed to fold it up into a neat package. The tent was a bit of a challenge. We took it apart easily enough but were only able to get the main part of the tent back into its bag. We put all of the other pieces into a garbage bag and considered ourselves successful.

The drive to Arcata, CA was only four hours but it seemed much longer. Almost the entire drive was through the mountains. The roads twisted and turned the entire way through huge forests. Fully one third of the forests we saw had been destroyed from fire. It was very sad.

Having reached Arcata we headed towards a pizza place that Deborah had found. In contrast to their Google listing they did not have seating of any kind. We opted for the more pricey crepe restaurant next door. I had a buckwheat crepe filled with sliced chicken, tomatoes, chevre, and basil. Deborah’s was filled with prosciutto, cheese, mushrooms, and scallions. Both were very large and both were very tasty.

It was still too early to check in so we visited the Holly Yashi factory store. The owners, Holly Hosterman and her husband Paul “Yashi” Lubitz, have been making jewelry in Arcata for many years. This is their third location. It combines a retail store, their factory, shipping operations, and administrative offices. We looked around the store and joined the 2:00 pm factory tour.

Deborah told the guide that she’d bought a pair of Holly Yashi earrings on her honeymoon in Maui 36 years ago. Five years later they had been stolen. She wondered if they could be replaced. After the tour the guide found a pair of earrings that were similar to the ones Deborah had lost but, for Deborah, they were not close enough. We walked away empty handed.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Friday, June 10, 2022

Our hotel includes a free, complimentary breakfast at Denny’s. Like many restaurants these days the place is somewhat short staffed. We waited almost 15 minutes just to get seated because, although there were plenty of empty tables, none of them had been bussed. It took another fifteen minutes before someone waited on us.

It was an hour’s drive into Great Basin National Park this morning. We stopped at the visitor’s center, got our maps, and proceeded to the scenic drive. We had almost three hours until our cave tour – or did we?

The visitor’s center is at about 6,000 feet in elevation. The scenic tour wended, winded, twisted, turned and switched-back all the way up past 11,000 feet. The temperature went from 85 degrees to a lovely 72 degrees. Along the way we stopped at a number of viewpoints and got information about the trails. There were lovely views of the valley, or should I say basin, below. The park’s name is really a misnomer. The park is actually situated on a very large mountain with views of the “Great Basin” below. We had an audio guide that explained the changes in vegetation and wildlife at the different elevations. It was quite interesting.

We stopped at Mather Overlook. It was named for Stephen Mather the first director of the National Park Service. The spot has magnificent views of Wheeler Peak. At 13,065 feet it’s the second tallest peak in Nevada (only Boundary Peak, which tops out at at 13,146 feet, is higher). After the stop at Mather Overlook I noticed that the car’s clock, which is slaved to my iPhone, was off by an hour. Did the drive up the mountain take longer than we thought? It mattered because our cave tour was scheduled for 12:30 pm. If we were late we would not be able to get another tour date for many weeks. We pondered for a bit. I called the visitor’s center and Deborah googled. The visitor’s center confirmed that we were an hour off. Deborah found out that, because we are so close to the Mountain Time Zone, it is common at higher altitudes for phones to connect to towers in the wrong time zone. Yikes! We manually adjusted the timezones on our phones and were once again at ease. We had plenty of time.

At the end of the drive we came to the Bristlecone Lakes Trailhead. We had first encountered Bristlecone Pines in Bryce Canyon National Park. They are marvelous looking trees with twisted trunks and roots that often project out of the ground. Bristlecone Pines have an enormous lifespan and are some of the oldest living things on Earth. They can easily live several thousand years and the oldest ones have been clocked in at around 5,000 years old. We had intended to take the three mile hike to the Bristlecone Pine Grove but the sign at the trailhead said that the path was slippery and icy and that crampons and poles were required. Apparently the snow hadn’t melted in that part of the park yet. For us it meant we were going to have to find some other trails to hike. We took a short hike through the forest while we were there. At that altitude the air was clean, crisp and cool and there was ample shade from the trees. It was lovely.

We reversed course and headed back towards the visitor’s center. The grade was so steep that we didn’t use any gas at all. By the time we had another 1,000 feet to descent we could smell the heat from the car’s brakes.

Our cave tour was not for another hour. We filled the time by having a light lunch at the cafe. I wanted a salad but the choices of dressing were so unappealing that I opted for the grilled cheese sandwich. Deborah got the salad.

The Lehman Caves were discovered by Absalom Lehman in 1885. The caves began forming over 550 million years ago and are made up of mostly marble and limestone. Over many years water eroded the rock and left large cavities. To tour the caves you must book a tour through the National Park Service. Our tour, The Grand Palace Tour, was scheduled for 90 minutes. We were told that the environment is wet and slippery, has low ceilings in places and requires scrambling. Participants are suggested to bring flashlights and rugged shoes. Groups are limited to 20 people.

At 12:30 pm our group was assembled and the guide took us into the caves. We were immediately struck by the fact that there was lighting. Also, the path was paved with grooved cement to make traction easier. It reminded us of trips to Howe or Lurray Caverns.

The cave was quite beautiful. It was filled with large caverns, stalagmites and stalactites. We moved from cavern to cavern and our guide talked about the cave, how it was formed, the various structures and the inhabitants (the major inhabitants are bats). It was damp in places but it was never an issue. We enjoyed the constant 52 degree temperature. It was a lot of fun.

Back outside it was close to 90 degrees and the light was blinding. Once our eyes adjusted we went back to the cafe for dessert. During our lunch we’d noticed a few people were eating ice cream. We couldn’t let an opportunity like that pass us by. The cafe served vanilla soft serve which could be topped with chocolate, caramel, or peanut butter sauce. Mine had chocolate, Deborah’s had peanut butter. The ice cream itself was really good but the toppings were amazing. It was only $3.50 for a huge helping. It’s possible we might go back on another day for more 😇.

Saturday, June 11, 2022

This morning we planned to do the The Osceola Ditch Trail. In 1872 gold was discovered near what was to become Great Basin National Park. To aid in the mining effort an 18 mile long ditch was created to carry water to the mining site. The miners still lacked adequate water and in 1901 commercial mining operations were abandoned. This trail parallels the old ditch. In places remnants of the old wooden structures are plain to see.

The trail was initially quite steep as we descended into the forest. The way was rather narrow and rocky. The further we went the more we encountered slabs of pretty, multi-colored marble. Suddenly, something crossed very quickly in front of me from left to right. A snake was hiding in the rocks just on the right edge of the path. We were able to get a good look at him: it was a rattlesnake. We didn’t know what to do.

Deborah gave me one of her hiking poles and I pounded it on the nearby rocks. It had the intended affect. The snake slithered off. We stopped for a moment to regain our composure before continuing on our way. About fifty feet further down the trail I heard something and we both stopped to listen. It was another rattler somewhere on the hill to our left. We’d had enough. We turned around and scurried back to the car as fast as we could.

We may not have hiked the full trail but we still managed to get into the forrest, see some pretty rocks, sniff some trees, find some snakes, and live. We considered it a full day’s work. Yes, I said sniff some trees! During one of our hikes at Bryce someone told us that if you get up close and personal with a Ponderosa Pine they smell like vanilla. Naturally we tried it. They smell sweet with a distinct aroma of vanilla. Ever since then we’ve been tree sniffers 😜.

Deborah suggested that we go to the visitor’s center and inform the rangers that there were rattlesnakes on the trail. I said that they’d just laugh at us. It’s a wilderness. There is all kind of wildlife everywhere – including snakes.

We decided that we’d had enough hiking for the day and decided, instead, to see The Ward Charcoal Ovens at a nearby state park. We’d seen pictures of them and they looked interesting. The ovens were built around 1876 by Italian immigrants in order to turn wood into charcoal. Six of the original beehive shaped ovens still stand and are said to be in excellent condition. When we got to the turnoff we realized that the next ten miles would be over dirt and gravel roads. We decided it was best not to make the attempt in our little Corolla.

For our combination lunch/dinner we went to a burger place called Hunters. The burgers were made from fresh beef. They were just ok. The fries were made from fresh cut potatoes. They were really good. We wanted to try their soft serve but their machine was down. Not easily put off we went over to a drug store with an old fashioned ice cream fountain. They were serving some brand of ice cream we’d never heard of. It was hardly premium. We ordered sundaes. They came with virtually no sauce at all. They did, however, come with nuts. The problem is we ordered them without nuts.

Sunday, June 12, 2022

We stayed close to our hotel today and did a bit of trip planning. We booked some hotels and some campsites at our next few destinations. We’re set until the end of the month.

We originally had intended to leave tomorrow but had to stay an extra day so Amazon could deliver our camping equipment. Way up here in the boonies there’s no such thing as two day delivery, much less same day delivery.

This evening we watched a new TV show called Dark Winds. It’s a collaboration between George R.R. Martin (of Game of Thrones fame) and Robert Redford. The show takes place in Navajo lands and was obviously filmed in Monument Valley. We had fun picking out all of the formations and roads that we have become familiar with. It was a hoot!

Monday, June 13, 2022

This morning we tried to take the Toyota in for service. It’s just about time for an oil change and tire rotation. We assumed we could get it done here in Ely because who knows when we’ll be in a position to have it done again. We called just about every service center in town. Only one was “possibly” available and it turned out that they didn’t have the right oil filters in stock. It shouldn’t be that hard.

Around noon our Amazon order came in. Everything was there. The tent and the sleeping bags were even more compact than we’d hoped they’d be. We broke out just about every power converter we had because we needed six USB ports to charge all of the electronic “felgercarb” we bought.

Our route tomorrow is going to take us through Reno, NV. We figured we could pick up the missing air mattress there. Two of the three Walmarts in Reno claimed they had the item we wanted. In sequence I purchased one at each store and was later informed that they were not in stock. What is wrong with these people???

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Wednesday, June 8, 2022

Having finished with Utah our choices were go East to Colorado or go West to Nevada. We didn’t want to go too far because we still didn’t know if I had to return to Las Vegas for jury duty. We decided to head West and spend a few days at Great Basin National Park in Northern Nevada. One of the park’s main attractions is the cave tours. The park offers a 30 minute, 60 minute and 90 minute version. We had tried to make a reservation for the 90 minute version a few weeks ago but it was sold out for many days in the future. This morning we logged on to their website and were able to get a reservation for the 90 minute tour at 12:30 pm on June 10.

The trip from Bluff to our hotel in Ely was expected to take at least eight hours. We decided to do the trip in two parts. Today we went to Natural Bridges National Monument and stayed the night in Moab, where Arches National Park is located.

Natural Bridges National Monument is fundamentally similar to Arches National Park – just smaller. We took the scenic drive. In addition to the many hiking trails it takes you to three of the largest and most famous bridges. We had intended to do some of the shorter hikes but the heat was so oppressive that we decided against it. We were a little underwhelmed by the park. There are many canyons and high buttes to see but the issue is that the rock is mostly just white, Navajo sandstone. After seeing so many parks with very colorful, stratified layers of sandstone this one seemed a little plain. Maybe we’re just spoiled.

After touring the park we drove North back to Moab, where we stayed when we went to Arches. For lunch we went to Canyon Pizza Co and ordered a medium sized pizza with pepperoni and onions. While waiting for the pizza I checked my emails and low and behold I’d received an email from Clark County Jury Services. It contained just one line…

“You are not required to report as summoned, and your service is now complete.”

What a relief! Our time was once again our own. Now we’d be able to make some concrete plans. The first thing we did was to order some camping equipment from Amazon. We’re having it delivered to our hotel in Ely. When we were in Cedar City we found the rest of the items we wanted in a local Walmart. If we can’t find what we want in a Walmart along our path to Ely we’re planning to divert to Cedar City to get what we want.

Since we still had about an hour before we could check into our hotel in Moab we decided to go to Crystal’s Cakes & Cones for ice cream. Once there we changed our mind and ordered two large, chocolate malts. They were damn good – so good, in fact, that we neglected to take any pictures!

Thursday, June 9, 2022

We had a brainstorm. We went online to see if the Walmart along our route had the items we wanted. It didn’t. We ordered (and paid) for the items we wanted at the Walmart in Cedar City and specified that we’d pick them up later that day.

It was past lunch time when we got to Cedar City. We headed directly over to Culver’s. Since we’re leaving Utah it might be a long time before we get to indulge again. We split an order of chicken strips and then ordered some of their wonderful custard. It was too good an opportunity to miss.

Over at Walmart two of the items we ordered were unavailable. They substituted another item that we didn’t want. Seriously folks? We drove an hour and a half out of our way to get these items. We actually bought and paid for them in advance just so we wouldn’t have this kind of issue. The System told us that they were in stock. How the heck can you treat customers like that? REALLY ticked off. We also stopped by the Cal-Ranch store and got some stadium seats. Many years ago we bought some for about $7.00. Now, if you can find them at all, they are around $50.00. Amazon was a bust. Cal-Ranch had them for $25.00. I think I heard my credit card groan.

The morning’s drive was on I-70 and I-15. They are boring roads with nothing interesting to see. They hardly even have any billboards to read. The three hour drive from Cedar City, UT to Ely, NV was much more enjoyable. It was on smaller, less congested roads and we passed by some interesting scenery.

Our hotel room was on the fifth floor but the elevator was unavailable. It was being used to transport beer kegs. We were told we’d have to wait 5-10 minutes before we could use it. We decided to put the time to good use and have some dinner. None of the nearby restaurants interested us and we really didn’t want to get back in the car so we settled for the Denny’s at the hotel. Our experiences with Denny’s in the past have been less than satisfying but we actually had a good (and inexpensive) dinner. We shared an order of their loaded nachos. It was laden with cheese, onions, and chili. Deborah also had a cup of their loaded potato soup and I had a mixed green salad.

Tomorrow is the cave tour. Deborah was concerned that her well worn, no tread left sneakers would be inadequate for the wet and slippery conditions. Cal-Ranch came to the rescue again. She found some nice hiking shoes with deep treads. Yesterday we put new batteries in our flashlights. I think we’re all set for the caves now.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Monday, June 6, 2022

We decided to take a break from National Parks and go to Monument Valley. Isn’t Monument Valley a National Park? No! The fact is that it is part of the Navajo Nation’s Reservation who’s origin dates from 1868, when Congress ratified the Navajo Treaty. The name, in Navajo, literally means Valley of Rocks.

Monument Valley should be familiar to all. It’s been featured in countless Westerns as well as many modern movies. Visitors may drive the 17 mile scenic route at a cost of $8.00 per person. Visitors may not get off the route nor are they permitted to hike or camp without a permit. You may engage one of the many authorized private tour operators if you wish to see even more of the grounds.

The drive from Bluff, UT was expected to take about an hour. After thirty minutes we could see a vast plain with tall structures in the distance. About ten minutes later we came to a vista point where we pulled off to take some photographs. This place has become known as Forrest Gump Point as it was the place in the movie where, with Monument Valley in the distance, Forrest decided to stop running and walked back to Alabama. We stopped at several more vista points along the way before we got to the visitor’s center where we purchased our tickets. Tickets can also be purchased four miles down the road at the entry gate or ahead of time on the Navajo’s website for an extra $1.00. We showed our tickets to the attendant and continued on down the road. Once past the gate we crossed from Utah into Arizona.

Another mile down the road we found some buildings. There was a hotel, a gift shop and a restaurant. This is your last chance to enjoy any sort of services. Once on the scenic drive there are no restrooms, water, food or anything else. The website describes the scenic drive as a dirt road that is suitable for any car. We found it to be very rugged. In many places it was very uneven, rocky, slippery, had huge potholes and all sorts of other mayhem. The speed limit is 15 MPH. We were lucky to be able to go 10 MPH throughout most of it. We bottomed out several times and, at one point, we had a lot of trouble getting up a steep incline. A high clearance, four wheel drive car would definitely be recommended. At least the road was rather wide so people could pass or pull off to take some pictures.

Seeing the Valley was worth all the trouble we encountered. Using the provided map we were able to locate and name many of the rock formations. At many of the pullouts members of the Navajo tribe were selling handmade jewelry, arrowheads, knives and other similar souvenirs. The prices at these stands were usually quite reasonable.

After two hours we had completed the tour. We drove over to a small town on the Reservation named Oljato. There was another hotel, another gift shop, another restaurant and some movie artifacts. We checked out the restaurant but the menu didn’t interest us. Next we walked over to the artifacts. They were from 1939 version of the movie Stagecoach. The building that the passengers used while the horse team was being changed was there. Today it is a museum. We were not able to enter because it was closed for lunch.

On the way back we stopped outside of the town of Mexican Hat. We took some photos of the rock formation that lent the town its name.

Options for food in the town of Bluff are severely limited. Most of the few restaurants are only open a few days a week or have scanty hours. Our two choices for dinner tonight were the gas station/grocery store/pizza parlor/sandwich shop and a steak house. Since we’d had gas station pizza the night before we opted for the steak house. Our meals started with a small mixed salad. Deborah ordered the barbecue combination plate with ribs and pulled pork. I ordered an 8 oz. New York Strip. Both dinners came with potatoes and carrots. The food was generally very good. The restaurant specializes in homemade pies so Deborah ordered a slice of the Key Lime pie and another one of the Cherry pie (I say Deborah ordered them because I was only permitted, as usual, a small sample of each). The Key Lime was very tart and the Cherry had an amazingly good crust covered in sugar. The meal was a lot more than we would normally spend so we considered it our belated anniversary dinner.

Tuesday, June 7, 2022

This morning, after another excellent breakfast, we headed off to another Native American site: Four Corners. It’s the only place in the United States where the four states meet. The initial survey, ordered by Congress in 1863, was off by about 1,821 feet. In 1925, after many disputes where the actual marker should have been located, the Supreme Court ruled that the original 1863 location should be used. The area around Four Corners belongs mainly to the Navajo Nation. The Ute and other tribes control smaller portions.

We started out in Utah, crossed into Colorado and entered through Arizona. Entry to the monument costs $8.00 per person. We’ve heard that the line to take a picture at the actual intersection can be quite long but we only had to wait a few minutes. There was a sign that said you could only take three pictures but nobody was monitoring that. Everyone took turns and snapped whatever photos they wanted. It was all very orderly and everyone was in a good mood.

Afterwards we walked around the perimeter of the monument. There was a large number of booths manned by Native Americans selling all sorts of souvenirs including jewelry, t-shirts, arrows and more. Deborah purchased a set of dangling silver earrings that have a small symbol representing the four corners on them. We walked around for just a few minutes to see if there was any sort of view. There was very little. The monument is in the middle of nowhere and there is nothing around for miles.

Since it was still early we decided to take a detour and visit the nearby Hovenweep National Monument. The route took us through some very rural areas where wild horses roamed freely. We saw several small herds (including some foals) walking on paths near the road. The area has been home to ancient peoples for over 11,000 years. By 700 CE The Pueblo People started settling the area. Their population grew and by 1230 CE the Pueblos migrated from more primitive homes to much larger, two story, stone buildings. The remnants of these buildings are on display at Hovenweep. Today’s Paiute and Ute tribes are descendants of these Pueblo Peoples.

The park covers a large area where the remains of many settlements can be seen. Fortunately for us there is a two mile loop trail near the visitor’s center where quite a few of these buildings can be seen. We walked about a third of the trail until we came to the very impressive Hovenweep Castle. After that we took an alternate trail that took us back to the visitor’s center. It was just too hot to do the entire loop.

Back in Bluff we went to one of the other major restaurants for lunch: Twin Rocks Cafe. They are open daily for breakfast and lunch. Their menu was rather small and their prices were rather high. We opted for one of the least expensive things: a burger. We had our choice of fries or salad. Deborah got the fries. I tried to get the salad but their selection of dressings was so unappealing that I wound up opting for the fries as well.

The burger was well dressed and even had onion (a rarity in Utah). We barely made a dent in the huge pile of seasoned fries. As we were eating the check came. Deborah was annoyed. She hadn’t had a chance to order dessert! We worked it out and eventually shared a peach cobbler. It turned out to be more like a crumble with lots of brown sugar on top. It was more than enough for the two of us and was quite good.

Back in our hotel we did some juggling and came up with a schedule that will get us to June 13, when we should finally know if I have to go back to Las Vegas for jury duty.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Friday, June 3, 2022

Today we drove to Canyonlands National Park. It is our fifth and last national park in Utah. Whatever we will do next?

The drive from Moab was a quick 35 minutes. Ironically, Arches is one of the most popular of the national parks and Canyonlands, just a short drive away, is one of the least visited. We really had little idea of what to expect. The park is rather odd. It has three distinct entrances / sections and it’s impossible to get from one section to another from within the park. Island In The Sky, the entrance we came through, has the most friendly trails. The Needles section has some camping grounds but most of the trails are rather advanced. The Maze section is only for serious hikers / campers. That section requires a four wheel drive vehicle with high ground clearance. None of the sections have electricity or running water.

The road to the park is through the now familiar desert with high sandstone bluffs. Just across the road from the visitor’s center we found an enormous canyon that seemed to stretch on for miles. It was very reminiscent of The Grand Canyon. We took some photos and drove down the road towards our first hike: Mesa Arch Trail.

The Mesa Arch Trail was almost a mile through a rocky desert landscape to what promised to be a spectacular view point. It was still before noon and the temperature was in the mid 70s. Fortunately there was significant cloud cover and some light breezes that made the hike enjoyable. As we walked we saw a number of prickly pear cacti with flowers. Some were yellow, some pink and others were red. Everyone on that hike stopped to take pictures. Eventually we came to a steep cliff. At the end was a long arch through which you could see bluffs in the canyon below. It was quite a remarkable sight.

Back in the parking lot we found a raven. He was hopping back and forth between cars. He was looking for handouts. Every time a car passed by he moved to the side and then continued about his business. He was so appealing and so amusing that, in spite of the fact that you’re not supposed to feed the wildlife nor should you reward bad behavior, I gave him a few cheese doodles. He really seemed to like them.

Our next stop was Grand View Trail. At the trail head is a lovely lookout over another canyon. The trail follows the rim for quite a ways and then crosses over to the other side where there is another canyon to see. At the end of the trail you can climb a high pile of rocks and see both sides at once. By the time we were headed back the temperature had climbed and the sun was shining brightly. It was rather draining. We stopped to drink many times along the way but it didn’t seem to help. By the time we got back to the car we were rather overheated. Fortunately we had plenty of water and Gatorade so we suffered no ill effects. Once we cooled down we ate our sandwiches (and whatever cheese doodles we had left over) and continued on.

The Grand View Trail was at the end of the main road. We doubled back and took the fork to Upheaval Dome. The parking lot there was overflowing. We had hoped to see the dome from the car but apparently we had do some more hiking which we were not prepared to do.

Our next stop was the Green River Overlook. This view featured a narrow ribbon of water almost imperceptibly hidden in a deep fissure on the canyon floor. Both the Green and Colorado Rivers flow through the area and have helped form the canyons.

The park has many pullouts strategically place along the roads from which you can take some fantastic pictures. We’d been stopping at these pullouts all along. On the way back to the visitor’s center we stopped to see a huge rock formation in the middle of one of the canyons. It was one of the best sights we’d seen all day.

Saturday, June 4, 2022

We went down to breakfast at 6:30 am so we could be back in our room by 7 to watch the ladies final of the French Open. Coco Gauf, in her first major final, put up a rather poor showing. Iga Swiatek dispatched her in two quick sets to win her second French Open in three years. We stuck around to watch the Men’s doubles final, too. It was a very competitive three set match.

For lunch we drove into town and ordered an eggplant and onion pizza at Pasta Joe’s. It was a little disappointing. Instead of thin slices we got chunks of eggplant and the sauce had none of the natural sweetness you usually find in tomatoes. Also, the service was rather bad. To make up for it we walked across the street to Crystal’s Cakes & Cones. We’d been there before. Their ice cream is really quite good, the portions sizes huge and the prices reasonable. What more could you ask for?

Back at the hotel we intended to rest so we could go out late that night. I wanted to take some pictures of the night sky. Sunset that night was at 8:38 pm and it wouldn’t likely be fully dark until at least 10:00 pm. Arches National Park is an excellent place to photograph the stars. It has been designated as a Dark Sky Park. Getting high quality photographs of the stars is not as easy as pointing your phone’s camera skyward and snapping a picture. It takes a complex camera setup, careful planning, and a tripod. By evening there was thick cloud cover so we just stayed in and watched some TV.

Sunday, June 5, 2022

The day started off much as the day before. This morning was the French Open Men’s Final. The contest was between Raphael Nadal, who has 21 Majors and 13 French Open Championships and Casper Ruud, who’s having a good tournament. Not surprisingly Nadal took Ruud easily in three sets. Coco Gauf was also competing in the French Open Women’s Doubles Final but we didn’t feel like getting up at 3:30 am to watch it.

After the tennis match we packed up, went to the grocery store to get another case of water, got gas for the car and had an early lunch at The Canyon Steak and Waffle House. We each got one of the senior specials for $7.99. Mine was eggs, bacon, home fries and three pancakes. Her’s was eggs, bacon and half a waffle. What a bargain.

We headed South out of Moab. Our destination was 90 minutes away to a town called Bluff. Talk about the middle of nowhere. Our room wasn’t expected to be ready until 4:00 pm so we tried to kill some time. We stumbled on to an historic site called Bluff Fort.

In the late 1870s the Mormon Church launched a mission to the area. They created a settlement and eventually became very successful raising cattle. The trip was expected to take six weeks but, because of the rugged terrain and many unforeseen obstacles, it took six months.

The historic site is a realistic reproduction of what the original settlement was like. The cabins have been rebuilt and decorated by ancestors of the original settlers. One of the volunteers gave an in-depth talk about the settlement. After we toured the grounds we sat under a covered porch and spoke with some of the other volunteers. They were more than happy to answer our questions.

Still having some time to kill we drove the length and breadth of the town. There wasn’t much to see. Since it was Sunday most of the businesses, including restaurants, were closed. We visited a Native American Trading post that had a lot of hand made jewelry, rugs, pottery, etc. The items were very high quality and the price tags outrageous.

Finally, still a full 90 minutes early, we went over to the hotel hoping for an early check-in. At first we were rebuffed. We were told that we’d have to wait until 4:00 pm to check-in. Then the clerk decided to see if our room was ready. It was! I’d forgotten to request a ground floor room so we had to drag our stuff up a flight of stairs. Still, it all worked out well in the end.

We had a little camera scare. Some of the photos from the last two days showed signs of vignetting (dark spots on the corners). This afternoon I had some time and played around with things. I determined that it wasn’t the camera but one of the lenses – the main lens of course. I googled the issue and none of the causes mentioned seemed on point. Finally, I decided to readjust the lens hood and voila – all was well. When I was experimenting with techniques for shooting the night sky I had removed the lens hood. Apparently I put it back in the wrong orientation. I hate when that happens!

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Wednesday, June 1, 2022

We drove down from Richfield, UT to Arches National Park. We had gotten an 11:00 am – noon entry time; we were about 45 minutes early. We stopped near the entrance and took the obligatory selfie in front of the park sign and got in line for the entrance. We passed a sign that said if the line was up to here the wait would be two hours. We passed another one that said the wait would be one hour. We figured it would be about 45 minutes, and it was. So, they make you purchase a ticket for timed entry and you STILL have to wait on line to get in. That system is definitely broken.

Once inside the park there is a small visitor’s center and then you have to climb a steep set of switchbacks to get to where the good stuff is. There is a pullout where you can see the huge Moab fault line. The cliffs that were once connected are now several thousand feet apart. The town of Moab actually sits in the valley created by the fault. Once on top the scenery is quite beautiful. There are many sets of sandstone formations with the characteristic weathering patterns – but no arches. Our first stop was at Balanced Rock. That’s not an arch either. It’s an interesting formation with a large boulder sitting atop a long, skinny base.

Next we drove down to a viewpoint for Delicate Arch. This is one the arches that is typically seen on the NPS website. It sits way up on top of a large cliff. We then went back up the road a bit and came to the trailhead where you could hike up to the arch. It was a rather arduous hike which we though we might do the next day. We did do a short hike down that trail and found some petroglyphs made by Ute Native Americans. In spite of them being between 200 – 400 years old they were in great condition and were easy to see. We learned that the State of Utah derives its name from this tribe.

Returning to the main road we found another spot to hike. We walked on some soft sand, slipped through a narrow canyon and found Sand Dune Arch. We then turned around and headed out across an open plane and found Broken Arch. By now it was past midday and temperatures were well into the 80s. There was no shade on the hike so by the time we got back to the car we were rather overheated in spite of all the water that we drank along the way. We sat in the car for a while and drank quite a bit more before moving on.

Further down the road we encountered Skyline Arch. It was easy to see near the trailhead and, since it wasn’t the most interesting arch, we settled for taking a few pictures from afar.

Our last hike of the day was to Double Arch. We drove down a road past an area called The Garden of Eden with many interestingly shaped sandstone pillars and found a number of unlabeled arches. At the end of the road there were several hikes to several different arches. We planned to do the others the next day.

Double Arch is an enormous cavern with two large windows separated by two arches. It’s really quite impressive. We walked down the path and into the hollowed out space. It is possible to climb on the rocks almost all the way to the arches themselves but we had no such aspirations. On the way out of the park we stopped in a few places to take pictures of some of the more famous structures.

For dinner we ate at the Moab Diner. It is known for its large menu, generous portions, reasonable prices and its ice cream. We were tired, probably slightly dehydrated and not in the mood for anything too heavy so Deborah ordered a taco salad and I ordered a chef salad. While we were waiting for our food I logged into the NPS website in order to get an entry for the next day. We decided, because the heat was supposed to be even worse, that we’d shoot for an entry time of 8:00 am. Our food came at 5:58 pm but we didn’t start eating until 6:00 pm when I got our reservation.

After dinner we went over to a local supermarket and got sandwiches for the next day’s lunch. We also bought a few bottle of Gatorade to help insure that we were properly hydrated.

Thursday, June 2, 2022

We ate breakfast at our hotel and headed over to the park. We arrived about a half hour before our entry time because we assumed there would be a considerable wait. There was almost no line. By 7:30 am we were in the park and headed to the furthest end where we intended to hike The Devil’s Garden Trail. Actually, we only intended to hike the first 1.5 miles of it. After that it becomes, in the words of the park service, “primitive”. At the end we found the largest arch on the planet: Landscape Arch (it’s larger than Zion’s Kolob Arch by three feet). Turning back we took a detour and found Tunnel Arch. It’s basically just a large hole in the middle of a sheer cliff. Off another side trail we found Pine Tree Arch. It’s a very sturdy arch that gets its name from the pine tree growing at its center. We had to step carefully so as to avoid some Northern Whiptail Lizards. We had been finding them underfoot throughout the park. Three arches on one hike. We were pretty happy with that. If we had continued on to the “primitive” portion of the trail we would have encountered several more.

We drove back to the same area where we’d found Double Arch and took a different path which lead to The North Window, The South Window and Turret Arch. The trail was a loop that visited all three of these arches. I had fun climbing up into The North Window and Turret Arch. By the time we were finished it was about 10:30 am and the temperature was approaching 90.

We drove up to Panorama Point where we found some cool breezes and some picnic tables and ate our lunch. This high point looks over a huge valley. The signs explain that the entire park rests on several hundred feet of salt deposits left over from an ancient ocean. Because of heat and water erosion the salt became unstable and caused a buckle leaving a high ridge and an enormous valley.

By noon we were out of the park and eating gelato at a food truck park. The temperate in Moab later reached close to 100 degrees.