From Mt Charleston... From eastern California and Oregon...
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After leaving Mt Charleston, we headed for Hawthorne, NV for one night and then to Alturas, California. These 2 overnight stops were uneventful, except for the scenery along the way. After quite an altitude drop from 7000 ft to 3000 in 16 miles we were on our way to Hawthorne. The traveling was sooooo beautiful. Eastern California and eastern Oregon, along US Hwy 395, is worth a revisit one day. Arguably a highly desirable parking spot in a hotel parking lot, we felt safe and the price was acceptable... free :) Our arrival was blessed with a double rainbow! This is our next stop. Another safe parking lot, this time in Alturas, California. Again...free :) Today's travel was indeed a very beautiful drive. It is soooo nice to be free from distractions in a setting such as this! We stopped several times in the middle of our driving lane and got out to stretch and take pictures. For at least 125 miles, we enjoyed traveling 15 to 20 minutes at a time, several times, with no traffic in sight!!!!!! Here we are at Erickson's Aircraft Collection, in Madras Oregon. In 1943, with WWII surging overseas, the United States constructed the Madras Army Air Field in central Oregon to train American soldiers for war. When the conflict ended, the facility’s two massive hangars were left mostly vacant—until 2014, when one of them became a museum housing the Erickson Aircraft Museum. It is one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of original WWII-era aircraft. The vintage aircraft collection was started by Jack Erickson in 1983. The collection features over twenty-five rare aircraft, most of which are still in flying condition, such as the P-38 Lightning, P-51 Mustang, Ki43 Hayabusa, F4U Corsair, SBD Dauntless, Grumman Duck, Me-109, FW-190, B-17 Flying Fortress, and many more. The Erickson Aircraft Collection is the Pacific Northwest’s premier Flying Collection. This Corsair was actually the one used in the movie Devotion. Most of the aircraft in this collection still fly and are used in regional airshows.
But not for 2 more days. That will put us 12 days here at Kyle Canyon Picnic Area, 22 miles north of Las Vegas. The pollen from the Ponderosa pines has finally subsided but not without taking its toll on our lungs. We've taken the last couple of days off from our hiking and are just about back to normal. Today is our wedding anniversary so we are taking it easy today and will start preparing for our Monday departure tomorrow. We definitely hope to visit here again! Everything seemed to be in bloom :) The Bristlecone Pine—the oldest living trees in the world—are found throughout Mt. Charleston. Interestingly enough, this wilderness area contains 18,000 acres of them and is considered to be one of the largest Bristlecone Pine groves in the Intermountain West. The Mt. Charleston Wilderness Area also is home to 15 endemic wildflower plants as well as the Ponderosa Pine and White Fir, which are home to the Palmer’s Chipmunk — a species exclusive to the Spring Mountains. Rocky Mountain Elk also are found here, along with wild horses and burros, desert tortoises, deer, coyote, foxes, bobcats, songbirds, hummingbirds and various birds of prey. Even the lichen and mosses are getting in on the act :) We've seen evidence they're around but have yet to see one :) Let's go this a way! The first 1/4 mile was brutal but the rest was fine! On a challenging hike to Mary Jane Falls we were not disappointed. Wendy caught this little guy in mid-air :) He came up for a reward for his performance but since it's illegal to feed the wildlife he had to settle for a simple clapping of our hands :) Paul A. would be proud of us to know we took a ski lift ride :) As you can tell by Wendy's grip, she doesn't care much for being airborne. Artificial snow machine? Here's where it gets interesting. How do we get off this thing? Almost everyone got off at the top to ride bikes down the trails so we had no one to watch as they got off. The lift never stopped the entire time we were on it so we were obviously concerned by getting run over by the chair as we exited our seat. I reckon my white beard tipped the attendants off that we might need some assistance... they gave us directions on how to lift the restraining bar on our approach and stopped everything so we could safely exit our chair...whew! :) We have truly enjoyed our hikes and adventures on Mt Charleston and hope to be back one day!
A change of sites made for better times. We were next to a double tent site that brought about many people this 3 day weekend, and after being challenged by a pretty big unleashed dog we decided to move to another site. We are happy here and will probably stay for at least another week. Many more pictures to follow of this beautiful area in a couple of days.
What a difference an hour's drive makes! From the streets of Las Vegas you can see snow capped Mt Charleston above the speed limit sign. It was on the way to being another 100 degree day...arggg! Less than an hour's drive away we were here enjoying temps in the low 60's. As you can imagine there are many local visitors from Vegas trying to escape the heat. Thanks to my dear friend, Veston, for telling us about this place. There seem to be many, many hiking opportunities ahead :) A picture of our site below. The views from our picnic table. Happy Father's Day to all you fathers out there :)This will end our structured schedule for about 4 months, when we will then return to SC through Texas after a rally in Ft Davis, TX. We will definitely try to do a better job this year in finding cool weather during the summer months. Altitude will be our friend :) Believe it or not, we can see snow covered Mt Charleston while we sit at our campsite, surrounded by 100 degree heat. Guess where our first stop will be :) We found our way to Las Vegas to see Wendy's first cousin, twice removed, marry the love of her life. Lauren and Lawrence graciously invited us to their awesome event. I mean it was AWESOME. 3 days of celebrating, dancing, and eating with, 300 or so, family members and guests left us in need of the next 4 months off :) :) The food was 5 star quality and always at hand. Most of the time I didn't know what I was eating but I can assure you it was stellar. The waiting staff must have been 50 strong and they made sure we were all well taken care of. The music and performances were of Broadway caliber. Their beautiful, Jewish, wedding will always be remembered! Our campsite on Nellis AFB. Wen caught a pretty nice picture on the way into Las Vegas. A lot of haze and smoke around so I couldn't do the picture much justice in post editing. Just a couple shots of downtown...drivers are nuts here as well. The city has greatly changed, not in a good way, from 1998. Here is a link to a very short clip of the reception. The first day was a pre-wedding day meal where everyone got to meet one another. Wedding day and reception was the following day. My head finally hit the pillow at 2:30 AM! And day 3 was the brunch, which was actually a party from 2 PM until midnight. We only stayed a few hours as we were so worn out from the day before. I suspect that was probably a good thing! In no particular order I'll just post 3 days of wonderful times :) A first for me...sherbet served over a glowing ice cube :) All who were invited were given a pair of Nike shoes for the dancing :) And a bottle of wine sent with the invitation. Ours was sent to our previous residence we moved from in January of 2020. We were able to retrieve it from the current residents, who kindly called us about it.
A long day took us through Monument Valley for one night at Zion Vineyards. The wines were top notch as all of their 10 entries at the state level won medals last year. The town of Mexican Hat, named for this rock, is just outside Goosenecks SP. Wen and I and her parents spent the night in a hotel there...in 1998 :) I keep looking for cowboys and Indians every time we go through Monument Valley :)
Goosenecks SP outside of Mexican Hat has been quite a stop for us. It's quite beautiful and relaxing (both physically and spiritually). Here is a link to Wikipedia for the area . en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goosenecks_State_Park I just couldn't stop with the picture taking :) Our new canine friend, Cora, is prepared for departure :) One of the things we love the most is to run across new friends, even if we only spend a few minutes together knowing we may or may not cross paths again. Carrie and Kamal...may you enjoy safe travels and good health :)
After the mountain pass we ended up in the Sky Ute Casino RV park. It was a nice stop as we washed clothes and went into Durango. A fast wash job at the gas station and fill-up on a propane bottle and we're ready to move on. After leaving the casino we traveled to Gooseneck SP in Utah. We passed by and stopped at the 4 corners of AZ, CO, UT, and NM. We were there 25 years ago with Wen's parents while traveling all around our wonderful country! At the suggestion from our friend, Dwaine, we went for a Navajo Taco...kinda messy but VERY tasty! After leaving 4 Corners we enjoyed the sights towards Mesa Verde and on to Gooseneck State Park in Utah. We didn't stop at Mesa Verde as we've been there several times.
We are now at Goosenecks State Park, UT, close to the town of Mexican Hat, and I have a bazillion pictures for you in my next post :) After we left Colorado Springs we went through Wolf Creek Pass at over 10,000 feet. It was raining and snowing. No trouble going up, but coming down was another story. In order to "stay off the brakes" we had to shift down into first gear in areas to maintain 20 mph and 4000 rpm. I still had to occasionally use them to maintain 4000. Thankfully we had 2 lanes so the speed demons could use the other lane. All went well. After the descent we came into this valley with such beautiful views :) Stress relief ... Wolf Creek Pass in the side view mirror :)
We're now in Colorado Springs, CO, for just one night. We're staying at a Cracker Barrel again. We dined out at our first ever Red Robin. The food was actually pretty good :) This is a view from our trailer. That's Pikes Peak in the background. The 14,115 foot ascent will not be attempted this time! We're currently at 6478 feet and I can tell you it had an affect on our 1/2 mile hike to Red Robin.
Our first time staying at a Cabela's. Wendy called ahead to verify they allow overnight stays in their parking lot, most do. This one actually had a campground with full service so we opted for that. We're in Sidney, NE, where Cabela's is headquartered. Bass Pro Shop bought them out in 2017 but elected to keep the Cabela name. They make $3 billion per year...yikes! After Wendy and I purchased a membership we kindly contributed to that figure :) We enjoyed our 2 night stay and after a quick trailer washing Mother Nature followed up with another washing :)
I'm gonna rant... on our way to Miletta Vista Harvest Host winery in St. Paul, Nebraska we had to drive through Omaha. NEVER AGAIN!!!!!!! I have never seen so many dangerous drivers in one town. I won't even begin to describe the spectacle. I told Wendy I would Google the town and see if it was just a bad day, or what. Well, they were ranked the worst drivers in the nation last year... surprise, surprise. DO NOT GO THERE!!!!!!! Here ends my rant! This was a very scenic and relaxing stop :) On our way here we took this photo of John Wayne's birthplace and childhood home in Winterset, Iowa.
After the world's largest truck stop we made our way to Covered Bridges Winery in Winterset, Iowa. A one night stay and we were on our way, with a couple additional bottles of wine :)
On the way to our next Harvest Host we were advised by our wonderful friend, Dwaine, to stop and see the worlds largest truck stop...so we did. This is their website https://iowa80truckstop.com/ We didn't visit the majority of the grounds but we did spend some time in the museum. Here are a ton of pictures inside the museum...I hope you're watching, Norm :) I like our camper better :)
Next up was Bellview State Park along the Mississippi River, in Bellview, Ia. We stayed 2 nights in order to visit the Field of Dreams. The park was quiet and very well tended to. We'll probably visit here again. We took a hike in the morning and later went to the Field of Dreams. Again, Sasquatch shows up:) We never figured out the reasoning for tying a pine cone to a tree and there were several hoisted in this fashion. The trails were marked with paint hashes on the trees already. This pretty much captures the movie's mood.
Our next stop was to visit a Harvest Host in Atlanta, Illinois, specializing in producing and marketing various chocolate delicacies. Yum! We had no problem supporting this host. No midnight raids permitted...
As many of you know, Wendy is a major pig person. This Harvest Host is a "swinery". The host has KuneKune pigs...lots of them. The Mkono farm is in Bloomington, Indiana. You can visit https://mkonofarm.com/ for more information. Wendy was in Hog Heaven!!! For some reason these little guys would not leave Wen's ankles alone. They kept knibbling away, nothing serious...just tickles:) This fawn showed up and followed Amanda's dog around. Check out this video from the "swinery" :) This beautiful cat is in charge of mouse keeping (instead of house keeping....sorry, couldn't resist :) )
The rally went way too fast! It was sad in that everyone went their own way but exciting that we were all starting a new journey :) We stopped at a distillery, a "swinery" and now are at a candy factory for the night. All 3 are connected with Harvest Hosts, the largest collection of small business campsites in North America. There are over 6,000 hosts across the country. Usually no charge to spend the night but you're expected to buy something from their list of products. No water or electricity, usually, is provided which makes it boondocking time. Soooo.....it wasn't very difficult to find items to buy at the distillery, swinery (brats and salami) and the candy factory. I think it would have been much cheaper to have used a regular campground but then we would miss out on so many wonderful experiences. Over 100 trailers and 230+ people were at the rally and we shared an opening night meal together. Vendors and group discussions help everyone with answers to problems. Our most excellent CGI team, minus Colin, taking a lunch break :) We did have a couple jam sessions to enjoy. The weather just didn't cooperate. Of course the weather didn't bother these guys! An overnight stop at a distillery exposed my ignorance concerning all things bourbon.
We took a short trip to Hohenwald, TN for a little repair work on our air conditioner. Then on to Tunica, MS for 2 nights. It was the first time another traveler had taken "our spot". They put us in the north 40 so to speak. We washed clothes and vehicles. Naturally, that brought the rain. We made it to Lake Guntersville, AL for the Oliver rally only to find out major electrical work was underway on our campsite. We were fortunate to find another site. This place gets pretty busy, especially on Mother's day weekend. BTW...happy Mother's Day!!! We'll be here for a week and will post some pictures of the rally soon.
Peoples Creek campground is on Wappapello Lake in southeast Missouri. Our welcoming committee! Seemingly 4 happy dogs, until we got close...2 of them turned into gremlins :) On our 3 mile hike today... 6 Miles this day, Wen poses with Ranger Willie B. Safe :) Today we finished off our 3 days of hiking with a 7+ mile excursion. This picture is of the pass under a road that leads to a campground that has been closed for a while due to wind damage from severe storms. A very hilly and challenging walk! As you can see, this campground has a ways to go before it reopens. Wen and I enjoy a brief respite to let knees and hips recuperate before continuing on. A video from our campsite.
So much has happened in the past 2 weeks. We left the Outer Banks 2 weeks ago. We went back to SC for a quick visit with my Dermatologist to have some additional surgery. Margins were all fine...so thankful for that! Dr. Wendy removed the stitches 10 days later...all looks good. We had a chance to be with our Via de Cristo group and share a couple of hours together. We talk most every Thursday morning from all parts of the country. They like to wake us up when we're on Mountain and Pacific time. :) We rushed back out to Tunica for a couple of days and the plan was to meet up with friends at Mt View, Arkansas. I had to go to an ER in Memphis, TN, for problems with my blood pressure. A few tests revealed nothing and the likely culprit was dehydration. A call back to my SC doctor resulted in a new prescription for me and I'll follow up with a virtual visit in a couple of weeks. We met Dwaine and Nancy in Mt. View and stayed 3 nights at an RV park there. It was very quiet and relaxing. We enjoyed good food and music. It was a wonderful time we'll always remember. A quick trip to Garfield, AR to get our ice cream fix and off to where we are now...Lampe, MO. It's beautiful here by the lake and the weather has been wet and cool, but we've been able to squeeze in our daily walks. I'll post all the pictures in this one blog entry so as to "catch up". In line for the long ferry ride back to the mainland. A quick trip to Costco in Mt. Pleasant, SC, to stock up on paper towels :) One night at a Cracker Barrel in Adairsville, GA, and we're back in Tunica, MS. Wendy decided to wander from the established trail and the scenery was worth it. However, you do have to keep your eyes open... 3 days later we're in Mt View AR, This was a cool little music store. I ended up swapping my hard guitar case for a soft case. It is so much lighter and I have a lot more room in the closet now :) Dwaine is enjoying Nancy's progress with a dulcimer :) A much needed rest after a testy walk up a long and steep stairway to the visitor center. I won't say who suggested we attempt such a climb but I will tell you his initials are....DWAINE! It's great to see the young ones jump right in and play. This was a good group of musicians. They joined together for this last song and I heard a very good bass voice that I hadn't heard all night, yet there was no-one added. I looked and looked during the song to see who had the bass voice and could not see him. I had to ask Wendy. Well, SHE is the second from the right holding the guitar. I've never heard a lady sing bass. She has a wonderful contralto voice and I was stunned :) Ice cream fix in Garfield, AR. Believe it or not, I went back for seconds...a much smaller chocolate one. I had to sample the chocolate to see which one I'll get next time through. Chocolate it will be! Now in Mill Creek COE park in Lampe, Missouri. A little laundromat humor before we go :)
The computer is fixed (for the moment). I really appreciate YouTube!!! You'll notice some subtle changes as I tried to fix a lot of mistakes I made with my fat fingers using Wendy's tablet. We left Nags Head during some pretty windy weather...gale force winds and cool temps. It was our first ferry with both trailer and truck. It was an hour and a half ride. We thought it nice we were at the front of the line as the view was great, but didn't reckon on all the salt spray from the gale force winds. The other bad reason for being at the front of the line I'll explain a little later. It was his first trip out and very evident he was not a happy camper :) This ride was 1 1/2 hours long. A straight line to our destination would have taken about 15 minutes but many sandbars and obstacles had to be negotiated. After landing at Okracoke, I found the second reason to avoid being first in line! We were first off and leading the pack down the only road to town, some several miles away. I wished this fellow had been down the road sooner, he would have scraped a pretty good sized sand dune out of my way before I hit it at 50 mph! I think we were slightly airborne for a moment. No damage...yay. And no flipped shackles...yay! We've moved to 4 different spots in 6 days. And decided to extend for 2 more days and 1 more move. A lot of people travel through and we had to piece-meal through reservations to find unreserved spots. It has been well worth it! This lies 150 yards away from us, on the other side of a large sand dune. Very beautiful :) Nice sounds to sleep with every night!
I'm fearful of my mental recall of the past few days' events, so here goes. I'm finding out my fingers are really NOT compatible with touch screens. After leaving Ft Fisher we made our way to Oregon Inlet in Nags Head, NC. Naturally we found an icecream establishment but picked up a hitch-hiker along the way. Thanks, Connie, he likes ice cream as much as I do! This was a very nice park and we could only stay 1 night because it stays full. We visited a local restaurant, on the beach, and took these pictures, below, of thousands and thousands of migrating cormorants (I think that's what they were). They paraded by for about 45 minutes. The highlight of the day was when we saw this couple on the beach. Wendy said " He's going to propose". I mildly gave another explanation for what we were seeing. Sure enough....he got down on one knee and we witnessed the blessed event from the restaurant deck. As soon as were were confident she said yes, as captured by our camera, we stood and cheered :)
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