Southwest National Parks
Albuquerque, NM was wonderful. An excellent Mexican style breakfast – Tom had a pork enchilada with red sauce that was not hot but very flavorful, Tanya had a vegetable omelet that had fire roasted peppers, oh so good.
We bought fuel at the Air Force Base nearby and discovered it had no Ethanol and the performance was truly improved.
Continuing down the interstate and taking a two-lane road to Aztec, AZ and the Aztec Ruins National Park showed how the period of time that the native Indians changed from hunter gatherers to living in one place growing their food more agriculturally that gathering. The town was not built into the side of a cliff but on flat ground creating a village with ceremonial lodge for gatherings from many miles around. There were also smaller round enclaves for family’s gatherings aside from the ceremonial rooms called Cavas.
Leaving Aztec the Ranger showed us the best route toward Mesa Verde. We spent several hours driving down Mesa Verde section of Chapin Mesa and making many stops for sightseeing. We didn’t get a chance to drive down Wetherill Mesa and see the alcove dwellings from the inside, but we got very good views of the dwellings from the other side of the canyon.
We camped in the Mesa Verde National Park. The overnight stay at the campground was very restful. The temperature was perfect for sleeping with the windows open, and the stars in the sky were so bright! Climbing to 8,000 feet we were so very impressed with the temperature and topography change and Tanya could not help herself as its reminder her so much of her childhood in Kazakhstan. In the morning, Tanya Skyped her brother and mother to show them how similar the vegetation was. They right away recognized it even though it’s been 30 years since the family left Kazakhstan.
Leaving Mesa Verde in the morning and drove towards Marble Canyon. The RV handled elevation changes very well even though we went through lots of switchbacks in Mesa Verde and later dropped from 8300 ft to under 4000 and went back to almost 8000 ft.
Driving past the Vermillion Cliffs and enjoyed beautiful views, although there was some smog in the air from a wildfire nearby and we didn’t get very clear views of far-away cliffs. Later, we saw a wildfire burning in the far distance.
We visited the Four Corners Monument took pictures and looked at the displays. Found a Dreamcatcher to hang in the bedroom of the RV, it works too! Tanya received a nice bracelet with Indian colors. Not much else to see or do here so off we go.
Not a picture of one of us but cool to see.
Along the route the Navajo Bridge and took some nice pictures of the (very narrow at this point) Colorado River and the beginning of the Grand Canyon. Another man had yelled from the center of the bridge “Hello” and you could hear the echo way back along the river.
We stopped for the night in the National Forest near Jacobs Lake, AZ on our way to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. The air is so pure here, with very light but complex fragrance. There is a scent of pine trees and wildflowers and it seems like some fruit trees. I know there are no fruit trees around, but this is the best way to describe it. The pine trees around us are of varying height and thickness: some are tall and mature, some are younger and thinner, and some are just like babies and children. It feels like we are visiting with a large and very welcoming family. I feel endlessly blessed to be given the chance to live through these experiences and share them with the man I love. Life is so beautiful. When it got completely dark, we looked up and saw so many stars! I’ve never seen stars so bright before.
The next morning was as great as the night before. We had the best breakfast, prepared by Tom The Awesome Chef: perfectly cooked hash browns with sweet peppers and onions, and eggs over-medium. I thanked the pine trees for their hospitality :) and we resumed our trip.
On the way to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon we saw Buffalo herd, got good pictures obviously they are used to people nearby. Thankfully no one was stupid and tried to get close and personal with them.
Also saw a large flock of turkeys crossing the road.
The North Rim does not have the vast visibility that the South Rim does (at least from my memory which we all know is fallible :) I must be showing my age for I felt quite dizzy and disoriented when standing on the highest point of Bright Angel Trail.
Tanya: The narrow trail from the visitor’s center to the observation point was narrow enough for my fear of heights (which I didn’t know I had until we drove up and down the switchbacks in Mesa Verde) to completely overcome my ability to look around. I was walking very cautiously, looking down at my feet. I was only able to look around and see the beautiful mountains when I stopped, and my hand was touching the stone. Knowing that my fear is completely irrational and that I would have easily run down a path quarter that width if it were on a flat surface didn’t do anything at all to manage my fears. The only option was to keep going despite the fear, which I did, but I wouldn’t climb up those rocks even if someone would have offered me a million dollars!
The drive to Bryce Canyon was beautiful, some grades that the Rialta handled very well but good scenery along the way.
Bryce canyon is the most spectacular sight I have ever seen, walking the Rim Trail in early morning and as the lighting changes it provided a different view every moment. This is truly a must-see destination. I have been having trouble with my left leg for a few weeks now and cannot hike very far so the Rim Trail was more than enough for now. I plan that someday I will hike among all of the spheres of rock for the entire trail.
The drive out of Bryce Canyon the GPS took us over a very steep road and we hit 9886 feet. The Rialta performed magically!
Listening to other campers made us decide to skip Zion for now. Apparently, it is the closest to Las Vegas and always very crowded. So instead, we continue to Las Vegas and the Air Force Base for the 2nd campground we have used this entire trip.
So nice to have electric and AC for a while, this made the stay here very tolerable. It is in the high 90’s every day and often high winds. We checked around through Yelp and found a place to install window film on the front and rear windows as well as driver and passenger door windows. What a difference this makes in the amount of heat entering the RV. Very glad to have done this for we will be in desert country for a while yet. Even back on the east coast it will be beneficial.
Supposed to meet my sister Mary and her husband Larry in Las Vegas but other things changed and made it difficult to meet. So. since living in an RV we have the opportunity to go where we want to, we are going to the California Coast to stay on the beach and after that will go to Marry and Larry’s home.
