Dan's North American Journey

[DHC6twinotter]

Hey all,

So, I've been on the road for nearly a month, and I thought I should go ahead and start a thread about my trip. Sorry for taking so long to get this going. I know some of you have been waiting for some updates.

Right now I'm in Lincoln, Nebraska visiting family and enjoying the food from Valentino's and Taco Inn. Over the course of the next few days, I'll try to catch you up with my progress thus far.



A North American Journey

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The plan? I don't really have one. My contract at work expired a couple months ago, so I figured I'd take the opportunity to do a trip across the U.S. This trip has two goals: First, while on the road, I'll be searching for a jobs hopefully within my field of study (GIS), and, second, I'd like to see and experience some of the great things this country has to offer.

Between the ages of 8 and 12, my family (my parents, my sister, my brother, and myfself) spent those 4 years traveling around the States. Anybody remember the TV show Promised Land on CBS? That was us, except for we didn't have a Suburban and Airstream camper...we had a 1984 Buick Century with a ugly, brown car-top-carrier. The five of us had a blast, and I'm excited to experience life on the road once again.

I left North Carolina on June 10th. From there I stopped in Norfolk, VA; Washington DC; Chicago, IL; Oshkosh, Wi; Lincoln, NE; and a few other places in between. I'll update you all with the places I've been thus far, and here's a very rough outline of my upcoming schedule:

July 10-20: Head northwest from Nebraska to the following areas:
-Mount Rushmore
-Badlands
-Grand Tetons
-Yellowstone
-Glacier NP
-Waterton Lakes International Peace Park (Canadian side of Glacier)
July 20-Aug 5: Head south from Montana to the following areas:
-Drive around northern UT and visit what I can there.
-Rocky Mountain National Park
-Drive around CO
-Maybe do the Alpine Loop in CO
-Moab
-Arches National Park
-Canyonlands National Park
Aug 5-9: Visit friends in El Paso, TX. Maybe drive to Big Bend.
August 10-30: Stay somewhere around Flagstaff, Prescott, or Sedona, AZ. Visit Grand Canyon sometime in there.
September 1st-?: Stay in Southern California. Visit Yosemite sometime and DV if not too hot.
September 21-24: Ultimate Yota Pismo Jamboree
October 5-7: BrickCon LEGO convention in Seattle, WA (unsure if I will make it)
October sometime: Fly back to NC, then to the Philippines to help my sister and her family move there. (unsure of this as well)

After October: I have no clue. If I have a job lined up, great! If not, then I may settle down somewhere out West (southern CA or, more likely, northern AZ) or maybe head back to NC and settle down in the Raleigh area.

Continue reading below for the updates, and I'll try to update whenever I can bum internet off a restaurant or hotel.

Thanks,
Daniel

[4x4mike]

Great to read about your travels. Hard to believe it's already been a month.

[Seanz0rz]

We can't wait to hear more!!!

Glad it is going well for you, and we look forward to seeing you in September!

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 1: Virginia

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I664/Monitor-Marrimac bridge-tunnel

June 10th: I left Fayetteville, NC and headed up to Norfolk, VA to meet my brother and his wife. I've always liked the Hampton Roads region, and thought all the underwater tunnels were pretty awesome.

This area is also rich in history, and I drove up to Jamestown and Yorktown to check out some of the historical stuff.

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Jamestown Archeological Dig

In 1994, an archeological project, The Jamestown Rediscovery, was started. A few days before I arrived, the archeologists discovered horse bones in the remains of a cellar. The ribs had been butchered, and the archeologists believe the horse was eaten during the winter of 1609.

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Jamestown Church

Archeologists also recently discovered the remains of old posts around the church tower. The church and tower were built in 1639, and archeologists think the old posts were used to construct the tower.The tower is the only remaining part of the church, and one of the oldest European built structures in the U.S.


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Yorktown, VA

I also made a short trip to Yorktown. This area has become a tourist trap, and I didn't stay very long. They did have some great old houses, and some still had canon balls wedged in the walls.

[paddlenbike]

That was us, except for we didn't have a Suburban and Airstream camper...we had a 1984 Buick Century with a ugly, brown car-top-carrier.

Sounds like a car I would like. :)

It would be great if you moved out this way, we will introduce you to some nice wheeling trails and scenery. See Mike's post and write up for Signal Peak on here.

[DHC6twinotter]

Thanks guys! Hopefully I can make it to Pismo this year...it'll be great to see you all!

[DHC6twinotter]

[b]Post 2: Virginia to Illinois

From Yorktown and Jamestown, I drove up to the northern VA and stayed overnight in a rest area off of I66. This was my first night sleeping in the 4Runner, and, despite it being warm, I was pretty comfortable. The Shikibuton foam mattress I have is a perfect fit for the 4Runner and provides adequate cushion for my 250 pound frame. While at the rest area, some guy with his motorcycle spent several hours sleeping a few parking spots over from me. He slept on the ground next to the motorcycle. No sleeping bag or anything. I felt pretty happy to have my enclosed space with my nice mattress. :D

The next day, I drove over to the Udvar Hazy Air and Space Museum at the Dulles Airport just to the west of Washington DC. It's an amazing museum.

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Lockheed Martin F-35B engine and lift fan

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Space Shuttle Discovery

The F-35B engine and lift fan display was one of the highlights for me, as well as the space shuttle Discovery and the B-29. I'm also a fan of radial and rotary (the piston type) engines, so the engine displays were really interesting as well.


After visiting the Udvar Hazy Center, I visited a good friend, Bruce, and his wife, Helena, in Bethesda, MD. I've known Bruce since I was 5, and it was really great to see them again.

June 13, I left Bethesda, MD and started to make my way to Wheeling, Il for a LEGO Convention.

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I hit my first major climb on I68 in Maryland. Mountain driving is great, and I was excited to finally be in some hills. I pulled off to a rest area at the top of Sideling Hill to take some pictures, like the one above.

After I parked and took in the view for a few minutes, I noticed smoke coming out from under the 4Runner...d'oh! :confused:

[corax]

Gotta leave them hanging till the next post. Looks like you're having a good time of things, good luck and stay safe

[YotaFun]

This is an amazing trip Dan, I do envy you!
Good luck and stay safe and keep us posted!
Hope the 4Runner is doing alright

[Obi..]

;) Until I see a bug splattered windshield and a dirty Runner I call b.s. :D

Sweet pics, wish I could travel what you're getting to.

[DHC6twinotter]

Just for you Shane :D :

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_3809.jpg

[Seanz0rz]

you're killing us Dan! we need updates!

hope you are well!

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 3: Illinois to Wisconsin

The clutch was slipping, and the smoke was evidence of that. I really wish I would have been able to get the clutch replaced before I left. I tried to take it easy the rest of the way, but I could smell the clutch burning on a few of the long climbs. As much as I love mountain driving, I was pretty happy to finally make it though Maryland and West Virginia.

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Wind Turbines in IL

Between Indianapolis and Chicago, I passed seemingly hundreds, if not thousands, of wind turbines. They were dotting the landscape as far as I could see in either direction. They weren't some rinky-dink turbine either...these were huge! I was pretty blown away.


In Wheeling, IL, I attended the Brickworld LEGO convention. There were some pretty impressive displays:

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LEGO Village and Castle

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LEGO Cathedral

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Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader two sided Mosiac--Anakin Skywalker when viewed from the left and Darth Vader when viewed from the right.

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Two LEGO Technic models build by yours truly. :D

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 4: Union, IL

From the LEGO convention, I drove over to Union, IL to visit the Illinois Railway Museum. Supposedly, this is the largest train museum in the United States, and maybe the world.

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The above picture is GE turbine locomotive. Only two remain. Built in 1960, this locomotive has a 850hp diesel engine and cab in the forward unit, the turbine and generators in the 2nd unit, and fuel oil for the turbine in the 3rd unit. The diesel engine is used for low speed movement and starting the turbine.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 5: Wisconsin

From Union, Illinois, I drove up to Oshkosh, Wisconsin. I had a couple weeks to spare, so I decided to go Oshkosh and do a bit of volunteer prep work for the AirVenture Fly-In. This turned out really nice, and I was given a place to stay in an old farm house, and free food on weekends.

The farm house had a couple other volunteers staying there. When I stepped through the back door and into the kitchen, Bud was the first person I met. He is a large guy with a long white beard. Reminded me of Santa Clause. He was drinking a gallon of chocolate milk, and using two fingers, he was eating some kind of bacon flavored dip straight from the jar.

While there, I painted this:

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Paint Project

What did I get myself into?! The building was a pain to paint. All the vertical groves in the siding had to be painted with a brush. Took forever! After 2.5 days of painting, I was really happy to finally be done painting....or so I thought.

Then they asked me to paint the interior. I figured it was probably sheetrock and couldn't be that bad. I was wrong. The interior had the same vertical siding as the outside, only this time, they wanted a three tone paint job. Brown on the bottom half, white on the top, and a beige chair railing. Yay! I'm far too meticulous of a painter to ever be efficient at it. After 8 days, I was glad to finally be done. Oh, on my last day of working in 90+ degree heat, they told me the AC worked, despite all the electrical work and bare wires hanging out everywhere.

During the paint job, I was treated with the occasional sound of a Bassler Turbine DC-3, the jet engine on a Saber, and the sound of radial engines.

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Many hacked up VW Bugs are used for various purposes during the airshows, but mostly for flight-line operations. They've become an icon at the airshow.

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Scooters donated by Honda

On my last day, I managed to visit the EAA Museum. This is a surprisingly great museum with many rare aircraft, and I especially liked the radial engine "shop" they had.

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Space Ship 1

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Buggati Racer. This plane was powered by two Buggati V12 engines mounted behind each other in the rear. Power was transferred to the counter-rotating prop via two drive shafts that ran along either side of the cockpit.

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Whitman Airport Control Tower. During the week of AirVenture, this control tower is the busiest in the world. To handle the amount of flights coming in for the show, 3 airplanes land simultaneously on the same runway. There are various colored dots on the runway for pilots to "aim" for. There are a total of 2 paved runways, 2 grass strips, plus a seaplane base a few miles away. It's crazy!

All my hard work was rewarded with a flight in a 1927 Travel Air. The open cockpit flight was amazing, and I love the sound of the 7 cylinder radial engine.

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[DHC6twinotter]

I need to hurry up and get you all updated so I can start posting new stuff. The last few days have been awesome, and I managed to get some great pictures.

Let me know if I'm posting too many pictures. Also, I'm still learning photography, so if anybody has any suggestions about how I can improve, please let me know.

I'll post more updates in the morning. :D

[Obi..]

:D Cool pics and trip info man. As far as photo tips, Rule of 3rds, lead your shots into the movement, use the golden hours, don't be afraid to experiment, take more shots than you need to, and never second guess the shot. Do that and it'll all work out. The composure and framing of that one train from between the cars is my favorite so far.

Oh yeah, last tip, you'd be surprised what you can fix in a digital editor or even completely tweak into something better than you ever thought of.

~Editing dropping the exposure and upping the saturation https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-_zyrJaAUWb4/T87Hp12vynI/AAAAAAAABGg/z0XCuswVx5E/s720/IMG_0060.JPG
~Experimenting and not doubting yourself (also how to risk your camera going swimming ;) ) https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-CL6BT9uV3Rc/T87I1ZlFjyI/AAAAAAAABIc/Ae3Bg2xhT7Q/s720/IMG_0039.JPG
~Experimenting and changing what I thought was a completely ruined shot because of all the smoke from the Tahoe fires into an amazing pic just by upping the contrast and upping the saturation, saving, and repeating in different forms to get this https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IwF6xCY2fgw/UAKIAFbUKgI/AAAAAAAABMI/5xhAu1Y92jI/s1024/Bypass-Panorama.jpg

[DHC6twinotter]

Thanks, Shane. I have been playing around with color saturation and making various tweaks to some of the photos. All the train pictures have had the the color saturation turned up.

Unless I'm shooting through the windshield, I've been using my DSLR. I'm still learning how to use it, but for most landscape shots, I leave the aperture between 18-22 and the ISO around 100-200. I don't know if that's correct or not. Many of the pictures, when shot with overhead sunlight, appear to be a bit over exposed. I need to experiment with shutter speeds a bit more as well.

[DHC6twinotter]

Northern Wisconsin

While in Wisconsin, I decided to drive up to the tip of the "thumb".

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Light house on the shore of Lake Michigan. Algoma, WI.

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Feed store in Algoma, WI.

I found a road that weaved its way along the shore of Lake Michigan. I really didn't know where I was going, but I figured it would be difficult to get lost on a narrow peninsula.

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Shore of Lake Michigan

On this winding road, I found Cave Point County Park. This place was really awesome, but I really wish I could have seen it in the early morning sunlight.

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Cave Point County Park, Wisconsin

As I followed the road up a bit more, I rounded a bend and was surprised at what I saw. Ford Model A's! Lots of them! As it turns out, here in the middle of nowhere, there was Model A gathering. Way cool.

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Model A gathering

Then I reached the tip of the peninsula. There's a ferry that runs over to Washington Island, but I was running low on fuel and daylight, so I had to turn back.

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Tip of the Wisconsin "thumb"

Then I headed down the Green Bay side of the Peninsula. This side of the Peninsula was dotted by neat little bay side town.

I passed a neat looking barn with graffiti painted all over it. Turns out that years ago, boaters would sign their name on the building whenever they came to port. The city continues this tradition and lets anybody sign their name.

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Anderson Warehouse Graffiti

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Sunset over Green Bay

On the way up, I passed this place.
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Pooh Soon? I caught a blimps of the sign as I was passing by. What's Pooh Soon? I thought maybe it was a pharmacy that specialized in laxatives, but that would be odd. As I drove by again for a second look and a picture, I realized it was some kind of Thai restaurant. Pooh soon indeed!

[Obi..]

:D *Done on a mac, not sure how well this will show on a screen for a pc.
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https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-eTa5IqBy0xU/UANFgYoSxmI/AAAAAAAABMg/VdIUqpBfgVk/s796/IMG_0966.jpg

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[04 Rocko Taco]

Pooh Saan. Southeast Asian Cuisine, and from what I hear, its pretty decent Dan, should have stopped in.

[Seanz0rz]

thai food rocks!

[Crinale]

thai food rocks!


Agreed 100% One of my favorites

[DHC6twinotter]

Huh...I should have tried it. Name didn't sound very appetizing, but I guess that's because I read it wrong. :hillbill: I prefer Chinese or Filipino food over Thai, but Thai food is pretty good too.

Shane, that picture of the warehouse looks much better. I realized I didn't edit the warehouse picture I uploaded, and after a bit of manipulation, it did turn out much nicer. That being said, it seems to me that a good photographer shouldn't have to do any kind of post editing. I'd like to get to the point where my photos are good enough to post without any editing. I dunno...maybe I'm expecting too much.

Right now, I'm at the I90 visitor center in Wyoming, about 10 miles from the SD border. I'm heading west to Devil's Tower, then back into Wyoming and up into North Dakota. I'll stay up there for a bit, then probably take Highway 2 west to Glacier and Waterton Lakes in Canada.

But for now, I'll try to get you all a bit more caught up on where I've been.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 7: Nebraska

So, as I type this, I'm listening to a Rapid City rock station. The DJ forgot to turn off his mic as the song is playing, and right now I'm listing to the Eagles with the melodious sounds of the DJ hacking and blowing his nose in the background. What a hoot.

Anyways, as my poor effort to keep you all updated proceeds, this post will highlight what I did in Nebraska.

My 88 year old grandmother lives in Nebraska, and we had sort of a mini family reunion. I also had the clutch replaced at a local shop. Nothing too exciting for you all I suppose, so here are some other highlights of the trip:

Spent Indepedence Day in Lincoln. After a day at the Omaha Zoo with my nephew and niece (5 and 7), nobody felt like going anywhere. We sat out on the driveway and watched the neighbors shoot of their fireworks. It turned out really awesome, and I've never seen so many fireworks! Fireworks were going off all around us for hours on both the 3rd and 4th. It was insane.

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Fireworks over Lincoln

My uncle and I drove out to the farm where he and my mom grew up. Right now it's all bean fields, but my grandparents used it as an apiary when they lived there.

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Farmhouse where mom grew up.

We also ran up the road a bit to check out my Grandpa's old bee truck.

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Grandpa's 1945 Ford 2 ton truck with wheelbase stretch

It's a 1945 Ford 2 ton truck. It has a flathead V8, 4 spd manual trans, and 2 speed rear axle. My grandfather had the frame and wheelbase stretched shortly after he bought the truck new in '45. He also had an auxiliary fuel tank, which was nothing more than a barrel strapped to the driver's side. He used it to haul his bees around, but he stopped migrating with the bees shortly after he bought the truck. The truck broke down, and he gave it to the neighbor in '77. It's been sitting in the garage since. Everybody is pretty adamant about it being a '45, but from the little research I've done, the 2 ton trucks weren't out till '46, so I dunno.

Anyways, the reason I'm telling you all this is because this may be my truck once I settle down. I can get the truck free, but I've got to decide if I want or can restore it.

While in Nebraska, I also stopped by the Strategic Air and Space Museum. If you like old bombers, this is the museum to to go. They have rare aircraft like the B-36, B-29, B-47, B-58, B-1B, SR-71, and many more. I just went to see the B-36 mostly.

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Two of the four turbojet engines and intakes for three of the six 28 cylinder "corncob" radial engines used on the B-36

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Three of the six pusher props on the B-36


You know you're in the midwest when you see this:
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_09381024x683.jpg

But if you're confused what pop is, some places have a sign like this:
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3814.jpg

[Crinale]

Looks like you are still having a good time Dan! Wish I could make that trip..

And about the photo editing, every professional/high level amateur photographer I know spends a lot of time editing to make the pictures perfect. Also Digi-cams are notorious for not exactly accurate color reproduction, and every camera is different, so editing can bring the photos back to realism.

[Obi..]

..it seems to me that a good photographer shouldn't have to do any kind of post editing. I'd like to get to the point where my photos are good enough to post without any editing. I dunno...maybe I'm expecting too much.



:rofl: :clap: Yeah...

..industry secret here, nobody cops to editing. I can prove it, check out Mr.Dodgy Rock-n-Roll Photography. Neil may not admit it but I know he's one of the best I have ever met and even he "tweaks things a little".

Cool pics from S.A.C. Museum! My Father was in SAC/MAC, I'll pass those onto him. :D

[04 Rocko Taco]

Good times Dan. I know I loved the Glacier/Waterton area when I was there years ago.

Keep up the pics! If you need anything sent your way and are in one place long enough, let me know!

[Obi..]

Ditto that. When you leave So-Cal to head to the Washington Lego deal I got your back if you need a spot to fix whatcha may break.

[Robinhood4x4]

Cool pics and great write up.

Most good pictures aren't straight from the camera so don't feel bad about photoshopping them. Even Ansel Adams was known for "photoshopping" his pictures, except back then it was all done in the dark room.

You're doing good in that you're not using a flash indoors. I'm of the theory that natural light is better unless you have a good external flash.

My monitor is semi calibrated (calibrated, but about a year ago) so maybe it's my monitor, but shane's editing looks a little over saturated to me. The warehouse pic looks to be a tad on the green side.

Your horizons are pretty level so that's good.

The fireworks pic needs a little bit longer exposure so the light trails are longer.

Read a book called Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. Best book I've ever read on photography.

Anyway, keep it up.

[Obi..]

..Shane's editing looks a little over saturated to me. The warehouse pic looks to be a tad on the green side.



Yep, all 2 minutes worth of tweaking there. I did it so he'd get the general idea, you've seen my other pics. ;)

Dan, Dad said "more airplane pics!!". :D

[Robinhood4x4]

I'm glad you agree because that means my artistic eye is getting better. The technical side of photography came easy to me, but my artistic side needs work.

[DHC6twinotter]

Awesome, thanks for all the photo tips guys! I guess I won't feel as guilty about editing my photos. :D

Thanks for all the offers to help too.

Shane, I'll try to get more airplane pics up in a bit, maybe tomorrow morning.

[Bob98SR5]

great pics, dan. Love the airplane pics the most. the SAC museum mustve been awesome and in some huge hangar(s)

[DHC6twinotter]

Yeah, the SAC museum was awesome, and not bad at all for a museum out in the middle of nowhere and surrounded by nothing but corn fields. The museum had two larger hangers, with a center atrium and restaurant. It's right off I80, so if anybody is driving by, it's worth a stop.

As requested, here are more pictures from the museum:

Note how much larger the wings are on the B-36 (background) when compared to the B-52 in front of it. The B-36 is massive.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_1362.jpg
U-2, B-17, B-52, B36

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_1422.jpg
B-29

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_1419.jpg
Vulcan

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_1416.jpg
B-1A

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_1412.jpg
KC-97 Stratofrieghter

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_1370.jpg
B-47

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_1367.jpg
B-58

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_1414.jpg
Pratt and Whitney R4360 "Wasp Major" 28 cylinder engine cutaway

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_1395.jpg
XF-85 Goblin. Stored in the bomb bay of a B-29 or B-36, the Goblin can be released in flight to help protect the bomber. 1 of 2 in existence.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 8: Nebraska to South Dakota

My trip has taken taken a drastic turn. As you can see, up till now, my trip has been focusing more on seeing family and attending a few other events in between. Now that I've left Nebraska, the trip will focus more on visiting parks and some of the back country. I will be doing much more truck camping, and things should be much more interesting.

I left Nebraska on July 11th. I'll be heading up to the Badlands and the Black Hills, with a couple stops on the way. The new clutch is great, although I'm having to get used to driving my 4Runner all over again. It's really nice to no longer have to push the clutch pedal all the way to floor whenever I want to change gears.

I stopped at Harold Warp's Pioneer Village in Minded, NE. You want to see old tractors? They've got a couple hundred. You want to see old cars? They've got a few hundred. You want to see old outboard boat motors? They've got a couple hundred. You want to see old stagecoaches and carriages? They've got a couple hundred. You want to see old airplane engines? They've got a few of those. Old steam powered fire trucks? They've got a few of those. You get the idea. They've got a lot of a lot. This place is crazy.


http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1459.jpg
Otto Engine. This was the first 4 stroke engine built

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1476.jpg
1937 Cord

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1503.jpg
Steam Powered Fire Engine

From the museum, I drove up and stayed overnight in the Nebraska National Forest. Pretty neat park, although the section I stayed in had few trees.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1619.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1631.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1637.jpg

While prepping my wonderful breakfast (cereal), I realized I left all my silverware at home. Not sure I how did that. I know I set the silverware aside to bring, but I guess I left it somewhere. However, I did have a giant stirring spoon, so that filled the breakfast spoon role for now.

After breakfast, I continued my drive up highway 83 to South Dakota and the Badlands.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1664-1.jpg

[DHC6twinotter]

BTW, what do you all think about the '45 truck? Should I restore it?

[paddlenbike]

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1619.jpg

I knew a 4Runner pic would come along eventually...lookin' good! Are you running wheel spacers?

[DHC6twinotter]

lol...I guess I should have posted a picture of it sooner. Nope, no wheel spacers.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 9: Badlands, South Dakota.

July 13th, I made to the Badlands. I wasn't sure what to expect, but this place exceeded my expectations. What a great park!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1814.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1838.jpg

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http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1897.jpg

I set up camp in a free "primitive" campground. It turned out being a pretty nice campground, but you did have to drive down 12 miles of dirt roads to get to it. Of course, I didn't mind the dirt roads, and the view was great.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1964.jpg

I set up camp next to a horse coral at the Sage Creek Campground. I still didn't have proper silverware, and once again I ate my wonderful breakfast (cereal), and a great dinner (ravioli) with my giant stirring spoon.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_1960.jpg

On my way out of the park, I came to a T intersection. To the right was route 44 which takes me to my next destination, Rapid City, South Dakota. To the left was a road that took me to the south side of Badlands National Park. At first glance, the map didn't seem to show anything more spectacular in the south side, so I turned right towards Rapid City. After driving for a mile or so, I glanced down at the map again, and noticed a road that said, "Sheep Mountain--High Clearance Vehicles Only". That sounded fun! But, that meant I had to turn around and head back to the south side of Badlands. I was low on fuel (again), but figured I had enough to make it.

This turned out to be a great road to take, and the views were amazing. The first few miles of the dirt road were really nice, and I couldn't figure out why the map said "high clearance vehicles only". A car could make it. Turns out, once you pass the first scenic overlook, the road turns into a couple of ruts for the next several miles. There were a few hairy off-camber sections as well.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_2025.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_2021.jpg

[DHC6twinotter]

I'm looking at staying somewhere in the Prescott or Flagstaff area for a few weeks starting in early to mid August. If anybody knows of a place (room, apartment, house...doesn't matter) I can stay in for 2-3 weeks for a good price, let me know.

Same for southern California. I'll be looking for something 2-3 weeks, maybe longer. Ideally somewhere around Temecula or as far north as Pomona.

Thanks!

[Seanz0rz]

dan, you are welcome here any time! not sure if that goes well with your plans for so cal, but there is a bed and a plate with your name on it, and we would be happy to have ya!

awesome pictures, lexi and i are loving the pictures, and very happy you get to do this trip!

[4x4mike]

dan, you are welcome here any time! not sure if that goes well with your plans for so cal, but there is a bed and a plate with your name on it, and we would be happy to have ya!

awesome pictures, lexi and i are loving the pictures, and very happy you get to do this trip!


What size are you spoons? By the time he makes it down there he may have a preference.

[Seanz0rz]

HAHA! we have every size, from teaspoons and table spoons to giant serving spoons and i think we might even have a tire spoon or two somewhere.

[Robinhood4x4]

Do you have Wendy's out there? They've got plastic utensils sitting out.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 10: Black Hills, SD.

From the Badlands, I headed up to the Black Hills. I wasn't sure what to expect, and I figured the only thing here was Mt. Rushmore. I was wrong. There's so much stuff do here! The scenery is amazing as well!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2193.jpg


If you're ever in the area, make sure you take the route 16A, AKA the Iron Mountain Road. This is the funnest paved road I've ever been on, so much so that I drove the road 7 times during visit.

The road has 3 "pigtail" turns. In one spot, the road loops around itself twice. The wooden bridges are way cool as well.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2287.jpg
Pigtail on the Iron Mountain Road

There are three tunnels on the Iron Mountain Road, and all three were constructed to frame Mt. Rushmore.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2271.jpg
Tunnel framing Mt. Rushmore on the Iron Mountain Road

That night I checked out the lighting ceremony at Mt. Rushmore.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2246.jpg
Mt. Rushmore

I stayed overnight in a super nice KOA campground. The shower and internet were nice. The plumbing in the shower was connected backwards, but I didn't realize this till halfway through my shower. It was kinda cold at first, but still very welcome.

Once again I ate my wonderful breakfast (cereal), except this time, I didn't have to use my giant stirring spoon! I used a fork. I went to Wal-Mart to buy supplies the day before, and I bought a box of forks. I figured I'd get more for my money, and I couldn't think what I needed spoons for. The jury is still out whether cereal is easier to eat with a fork or giant stirring spoon. It's rather dry with a fork.

The next day, I drove back to Mt. Rushmore for a daylight view.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2256.jpg
Mt. Rushmore

Then I drove down the Needles Highway, which was another awesome drive!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2318.jpg
View from the Needles Highway

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2336.jpg
Eye of the Needle

All of the tunnels on both the Iron Mountain Road and the Needles Highway are single lane and most are on blind corners. Much honking is involved when driving through.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2335.jpg
Tunnel on the Needles Highway

[Bob98SR5]

wow great pics, dan. keep posting!

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 11: Black Hills Continued

The Iron Mountain Road has all kinds of signs warning RV and campers about the narrow roads and tunnels. I noticed this class A RV at one of the observation points. It must have been at least a 32'. I wanted to see how well it negotiated the turns, and I purposely followed it down the mountains.

I was impressed with the driver's skill, even though he often took up both lanes.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3823.jpg

However, the tunnels were a pretty tight fit.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3827.jpg


While in the Black Hills, I also visited a couple of the caves in the area.

First, I stopped at Wind Cave National Park, which is known for it's boxwork formations. It's estimated that 95% of the world's boxwork formations are in Wind Cave.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2435.jpg
Boxwork formation in Wind Cave

The path was made from cement, and I asked the guide how they got the cement down in the cave. In the 1930s, the workers took innertubes from the tires, cut them in half, filled them with concrete, and carried the concrete filled innertubes around their necks. Even today, that method is till used.

Next, I drove over and visited Jewel Cave National Monument.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2487.jpg

Both caves had quite a few stairs, but I got the most pooped at Jewel Cave. Walking up the sloped parking lot to my car wore me out.

That night, I visited the light show at Crazy Horse.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2562.jpg

The next day, I stopped by Thunderhead Falls. The falls are inside an old gold mine. Back when the mine was being mined, miners accidentally blew out the bottom of a creek that ran above the mine. The result was waterfall and flooded mine.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2604.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2612.jpg

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 12: From South Dakota to Wyoming

From Thunderhead Falls, I headed up 385 and stopped for lunch along the Pactola Reservoir.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2597.jpg

I followed 385 to 85 North. Somewhere along one of these roads, I made a detour down a dirt road to some falls.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2671.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2635.jpg


I ended up staying overnight at a Hotel in Spearfish, SD. I ate some Taco Bell for dinner, and the greasy taco didn't settle well. I figured a room with a toilet nearby would be really nice. I did manage to grab a spork at Taco Bell though, so no more eating my cereal with a giant stirring spoon or fork. Woohoo!

After staying overnight in Spearfish, I made my way west to Wyoming. I wasn't planning to stay too long in Wyoming, but I did want to visit the Devil's Tower. Some neighbor campers in the Badlands highly recommended it.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2718.jpg
Devil's Tower, Wyoming

Some strong storms moved through the area while I was there, and the trail up to the tower was closed. There was some nickle sized hail as well, which I think put a new ding on my hood.

It's a pretty neat park. The Devil's Tower is the remains of a volcano and is made from igneous rock. The tower is made from columns that are mostly 6 sided, but also 4 or 5 sided.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2701.jpg

[Seanz0rz]

WOW! the picture of the lightning is amazing!

[4x4mike]

Great pictures! It appears as you're having a great time.

[DHC6twinotter]

Thanks for the compliment guys! This trip is the first time I've used a DSLR, so it's definitely a learning experience. I'm now shooting in full manual mode, and I've been much happier with the results. I've still got a lot to learn though.

Right now I'm in Sandpoint, Idaho. Beautiful area. I'll be working my way back east to Yellowstone, before heading south through the Rockies. I90 is the most direct route, but I'd like to avoid interstates as much as possible. If anybody has any recommended routes, let me know. I'd like to drive through the Bitteroot range, and I'm currently studying several possibilities on the map. Hwy 12 through Idaho looks like a nice curvy road, but that adds about 2 hours to my drive. Then, I'll take some other roads through the Bitteroots.

Anyways, my updates are about a week behind my actual location, and I'll try to get another update up in a few minutes.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 13: Wyoming to North Dakota

From the Devil's Tower, I started to make my way to North Dakota. There were still storm warnings out, and I changed my route to skirt pass the backside of the storm. I headed back into South Dakota, then north on Hwy 85 to North Dakota.

The stretch of hwy 85 between Spearfish, SD and Watford City, ND was probably the most desolate stretch of highway I've been on thus far. The only trees in sight were telephone poles, but after a while, even those disappeared.

After a while, I did stop at a truck stop and took a picture of a semi hauling a blade for a wind turbine.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3829.jpg

I had a little chat with the driver of the flag car that followed the truck. This particular semi was 147' long. The rear axles on the trailer are steerable, and the steering is controlled via remote control from the following flag car. Pretty cool I thought, and it turns out these steering flag car drivers get paid good.

I have seen many of these trucks on my trip, but haven't had the chance to take a picture. The trucks that haul the turbine nacelles are really impressive as well (this one just had an empty trailer):

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3815.jpg

Anyways, I continued north on hwy 85. One of the few towns I drove through was Redig. Redig was nothing more than 4 junk yards, a couple stacks of hay, and a few dilapidated buildings. I drove through, and didn't even stop to take a picture. Kinds wish I did.

So, the drive north continues. My destination was Watford City, North Dakota. This is one of the towns that is experiencing an oil boom right now. It's pretty crazy.

Watford City is pretty small and doesn't have enough housing for the workers, so there are many makeshift campsites.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2741.jpg

There are constant traffic jams at the major intersections, and there were long lines at the two gas stations. It seemed like there were more trucks than cars, and in some places, the paved roads had deep ruts.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3830.jpg

I stayed a couple nights at the north unit of the Theodore Roosevelt National Park, which is about 15 miles south of Watford City. I wasn't sure what to expect from this park, but it's actually pretty neat. The park lies within a valley that was carved by the Little Missouri River.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2723.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2730.jpg

At this campground, I met Al and Mary Berry. They were from Michigan and had one of those neat Volkswagon/Winnebago campers. But, more about them later.

[Robinhood4x4]

Back in college I went to the tehachapi wind festival where they had a blade on display. You know those things are big when you're just driving by, but you have no idea just how BIG they really are until you are up close and personal with them.

Keep the stories coming.

[4x4mike]

147' long!!!

Those are pretty long. I know you said your posts are about a week behind but how are you doing on your initial schedule? On track? Just curious and jealous.

[DHC6twinotter]

Yeah, those blades seem much larger when your standing next to one. I stopped at a rest area somewhere (Ohio, I think) that had a blade on display. They had it bolted to a cement base in the ground, and it stuck straight up. That particular blade weighed over 37,000 pounds, which was far more than I ever thought they weighed.

Mike, I'm still kinda on schedule. Maybe a week behind, but my schedule wasn't really set in stone anyways. I spent an extra day in the Black Hills, 3 days in Watford City, ND, and I'm staying an extra day in Sandpoint, Idaho. The detour up to Watford City wasn't in my plans at first, and I moved my stop in Yellowstone from before Glacier to after Glacier.

Ideally, my budget allows for 1 tank of gas every 2 days, but I haven't been sticking to that as well as I'd like. I'm trying though, and that's why I stayed an extra day or two in the places I just mentioned. I do have a lot of ground I want to cover in the next month, so I may have to pick up the pace a bit. I've also been staying in fee campgrounds more than I first anticipated. Since I'm running solo, having other people around is nice for company and safety. So, I'm having to dip into my savings a bit more than I wanted, but I guess I won't have this opportunity very often, so it's worth it.

I have a lead on a job in Kansas City, so we'll see how that pans out. It's not necessarily a place at the top of my list to live, but it'll be a good company to get into. :thumbup:

Anyways, sorry for being long-winded.

[Crinale]

Glad you are having a good trip Dan! So jealous I can't make a trip like that.

Also, good-luck on the job prospect :thumbup:

[Robinhood4x4]

By the way, I meant to say your waterfall pictures are pretty good.

[DHC6twinotter]

Thanks Steve. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to shoot waterfalls. I've seen some waterfall pictures that use a longer shutter speed for that blurred effect, but I've also seen some waterfall pictures shot with a short shutter speed and every drop is visible. Both ways look good, and I'm not sure what is the correct way to shoot waterfalls.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 14: North Dakota to Montana

Forgot to mention, my last night in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, I made my Taco Salad that I love so much. It's easy, just crush some chips on a plate, dump on a can of chili, add cheese, and whatever fresh vegetables you like. I love Tomatoes on mine.

As I was prepping dinner, I realized that I also left my knife behind, and I had no way of cutting my tomato. I sat at my picnic table and, while staring at my tomato, I pondered how I was going to dice my tomato.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3225.jpg

First, I poked my tomato repeatedly with a fork (think shooting a watermelon with a machine gun). That didn't work too well. After starring at my tomato for a few more minutes, it dawned on me. I have the lid from my can of chili! The edges of the lid are sharp! Using the lid from my can of chili, I gingerly diced my tomato. It worked surprisingly well, and sure did taste amazing.

Anyways, from Watford City, ND, I made my way up to Williston, ND. The oil boom is having an impact on Williston as well, and housing is in very short supply. From what I hear, people are starting to leave the area because of the lack of housing.

In Williston, I picked up Hwy 2 and headed west. Next destination was Glacier National Park and Waterton Lakes International Peace Park in Canada.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2743.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2750.jpg

Hwy 2 through Montana wasn't as desolate as I expected, and there were many farms and small towns along the way. BNSF Railroad also had a major east/west line that ran alongside Hwy 2.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2758.jpg

I had the cruise set at 65 (speed limit was 70), and I was surprised that the freight trains could keep up.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2768.jpg

The Walmart in Havre, Montana will always have a special place in my heart. It was at this Walmart that my 4Runner hit 100k. I had the oil changed here too, so it should be pretty easy to remember when to do my oil changes from now on. Next change at 105k! They didn't have any Ford Taurus filters in stock, so I had to settle for the smaller 4Runner filter.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3834.jpg

[Crinale]

Dan, there is no "Correct" way to shoot waterfalls, it's all based on stylistic choice of the photographer. Also, those freight trains will easily hold 65, in SoCal I have paced 100+ car trains at over 80mph.

[oly884]

I can't wait to see your Montana Pics! You're going to make me need to plan a trip back their asap!

[DHC6twinotter]

David, do you know anything about the road that goes from Modina, MT east to Hwy 20, just outside of West Yellowstone? According to my map, it's an unpaved road that runs along the continental divide. It's about 40 miles long and should cut off quite a bit of miles.

[oly884]

Dan, I'm not too familiar with that road sorry. I spent most of my time closer to the Bozeman area and north of that.

[DHC6twinotter]

Ok, thanks. There's a NWR along the road, so I can't image the road to be in too bad of shape, but there's been rain in the area today, so I dunno.

I love Montana! Had an amazing drive today.

[Robinhood4x4]

You can turn in your man card for not having a pocket knife...or three.

[DHC6twinotter]

:laugh: I do have a couple pocket knives, but I forgot to pack those as well. One of them was my grandfathers, so I probably wouldn't have wanted to use it anyways. I saw a leatherman for sale at Lowes, but I got tired of buying stuff for the trip. :chair:

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 15: Glacier National Park

Every time I come to this area, I'm amazed at how abruptly the Rockies stick out of the plains.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2770.jpg

In the picture above, the mountain on the right edge (barely visible) is Chief Mountain. Chief Mountain is where the US/Canada border crossing is.

My first stop in the area was Heart Butte. Heart Butte is located within the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, and from what I've been told, this is one of the poorest areas in the United States. Back when I was in school, a group of us students made a trip up here for a week every summer. We would do things like VBS with the kids and make repairs to the church or other structures in the community.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2777.jpg
Church in Heart Butte

I took a drive up to the top of Heart Butte. 5 years ago, I took a Subaru Outback up this hill, but the rail has gotten considerably worse since then.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2778.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2788.jpg

The town of Heart Butte. The nearest grocery store, gas station, and fast food is 45 minutes away. No cell signal and no radio stations.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2780.jpg

From Heart Butte, I took a drive towards Many Glacier, which lies within the eastern side of Glacier National Park.

The last three times I've been been to this area was much earlier in the season, and crowds were almost non-existent. This time however, the parking lots were full. If you plan on visiting, come in the earlier part of the season. As beautiful as the area is now, I think it looks even better when there is snow still on the peaks.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2796.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2809.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_2800.jpg

[4x4mike]

You can turn in your man card for not having a pocket knife...or three.


I'm glad someone said it. You always have to have something on you. I've had a knife on me everyday since I was about 15 with the exception of things like airports and jury duty but other than that something is always there. And in the 4runner there is always a Leatherman and at least 2 other knives of sorts.

[Robinhood4x4]

Same here. I felt so naked on the alaska trip without a knife, and it would have come in handy too. I wasn't quite sure of the canadian laws and how strict there were going to be on the ship, so I didn't risk it. Next time I'll probably get a swiss army knife or something innocuous looking.

[4x4mike]

Yep. In a pinch a Swiss Army knife, Spyderco Delica or Gerber knife/money clip that takes the carpenter blades (or just all 3 to make sure). They are small enough to keep on a key ring or, like the Gerber, use for it's other purpose. Sometimes a small blade is all you need.

We went to a concert once and while waiting to get in I heard the wands going off. I asked my wife for her purse. I put my EDC of the day (Spyderco Para Military) on the key ring of my car keys and threw it in the bag. I kept the bag on my shoulder and laid it on the table for them to check it. They scanned the bag then me and moved me along. There weren't any signs saying what was allowed and what wasn't but I didn't want to stash anything in the bushes or walk a half mile back to the car. The closed knife is a bit big for a keyring knife but it looked better than in my IWB.

Maybe it was just the dude wearing a purse that distracted them, either way. Better than having a wand go off at your waist band and pulling out a knife. I would guess just that would get you a walk back to the car.

Carry on Dan.

[Obi..]

"Everything is a weapon." /TOPIC. ;)

Just saying, when I can't have my EDC there I am always sure to have a old style bic pen...






..or 2. :D

[DHC6twinotter]

Yeah, I guess it would be good to have a knife on me. I have plenty of cutting tools with me though, just nothing that would cut tomatoes. :hillbill: I have a utility knife with extra blades, a camp ax, 2 scissors, and a wire cutters. I guess I figured I had enough cutting tools to cover my needs, except for I forgot my kitchen knife. :D

I should change my username to Chief NoNknife. Probably be easier to remember than my current username. :laugh:

Anyways, I've been without internet for the past few days, but I finally have some sketchy internet to use. Time for another update...

[Crinale]

:thumbup: got it, we need to print a t-shirt for Dan to give him at Pismo that says Chief NoKnife, with some graphic and a UY logo on the sleeve XD

[DHC6twinotter]

Seriously, I'll change my username to Chief NoKnife.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 16: Waterton Lakes National Peace Park in Alberta, Canada

I'm not forgetting about my part 2 of Glacier to post, but for now, I'll post about my side trip to Waterton Lakes National Peace Park in Canada. Waterton Lakes is the Canadian side of Glacier. It's a much smaller park, but almost just as beautiful as Glacier.

First stop was the town of Waterton. Neat little town with nice views of Waterton Lake. The US/Canada border crosses the lake, and the south side of the lake is in the United States.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_2871.jpg

On the backside of town, there are some pretty neat falls. I never noticed the falls the last 3 times I've been here. I discovered it while I was trying to find the road to Cameron Lake.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_2881.jpg

I finally found the road to Cameron Lake. It was actually pretty well marked--when you are coming from the other direction. Cameron Lake also lies on the US/Canada border. Last time I was here, the lake was frozen over and there was an avalanche on the US side. This time, however, the lake was busy with boaters and tourists.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_2890.jpg

Next I headed over to Red Rock Canyon. It's a great drive with lots of twists, nice scenery, and a good chance to see some wildlife.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_2939.jpg

After spending the day in Waterton, I headed back to Glacier. Just south of the Chief Mountain boarder crossing, I stopped to take some pictures of the setting sun.

I thought the shadows being cast by the clouds were pretty cool, and not something I've ever seen before:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_2956.jpg

And took a picture of the setting sun over Glacier:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_2962.jpg

[04 Rocko Taco]

Man, I hope you ate at Zum's while you were in Waterton...

[DHC6twinotter]

Absolutely! It's a tradition every time I go to Waterton.

Have you tried the fried chicken there? I have to be careful how much grease I eat, and I always just get a burger or something.

[04 Rocko Taco]

I didn't have the fried chicken the few times I've eaten there. Usually a burger, or I am there for breakfast.

[DHC6twinotter]

BTW, I saw a lifted 4th gen while in Yellowstone. I don't think it's anybody from this forum, but maybe from another? Curious if anybody recognizes this:

It was a white '03-'05 4Runner with painted Sequoia/Tundra rims and California plates. Had '06-'09 tail lights. Looked like a 3-4" lift with tires not a whole lot bigger than stock...maybe 32s. Had either a Gobi or BajaRack rack on the roof, and iirc, it had sliders. The red lights on the bumper were retrofitted to LEDs and wired as brake lights. Asian guy driving it. Anybody recognize it?

[4x4mike]

Is it just me or is the pic not showing up?

[DHC6twinotter]

Sorry, I didn't post a pic of it. I didn't even take a picture, although I should have.

I had both my cameras right next to me, but didn't even think about it....d'oh!

[Obi..]

Quick Question here, would this the same spot they use, or used to film sections of some of the recent Canadian Company's Sci Fi film stuff? Like, say the lake scenes from Tin Man as well as RiverWorld and some of the X-Men?
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_2871.jpg

[DHC6twinotter]

Not sure Shane. I did a quick search, and Excess Baggage and Showdown at Williams Creek were the only two I found. I think Body of Evidence was shot there too. I only saw a small portion of the movie, but I remember seeing the Prince of Wales Hotel in one of the scenes. Some other movies, like RV, were shot in Alberta as well as a few movies shot in Banff National Park. From what I gather, X-Men was shot in British Columbia.

[DHC6twinotter]

August 6. Right now I'm in Rocky Mountain National Park. I just arrived today, and haven't gotten to see much of the park. I'm sitting in my car typing this as a thunderstorm is going through the area. A super cool park ranger told me a good place to bum some internet, and even gave me the wifi password. I'll try to post this update once I get some internet tomorrow.

I've gotten a bit behind at posting updates again, and I'm sorry about that. It looks like my updates are about 2.5-3 weeks behind my actual location. I'd like to get back to my updates being less than a week behind my actual location.


Post 17: Glacier National Park part 2

Remember Al and Mary Berry, the couple I met back in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota? In my last post, I forgot to mention that I ran into them at St. Mary's Lake in Glacier National Park, and again in Waterton Lakes National Peace Park in Canada. What are the odds of that!?

Anyways, on my last day in Glacier National Park, I took the drive down the Going to the Sun Road. It's said that the Going to the Sun Road is the most beautiful drive in the United States. It's definitely fantastic, but I've been on some other roads that would rival its beauty. More on that later.

The east side of Glacier, heading towards Logan?s Pass.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3048.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3061.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3062.jpg

I always thought this small gorge was really neat. The gorge is only about 4' or so wide at the top, and the river runs about 20' below the top of the gorge. I've wondered how many people and/or animals have fallen in.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3004.jpg

There are several trails to hike on starting at the Logan's Pass Visitor Center. I wanted to see Hidden Lake, which was a 1.5 mile hike in. The trail was super slick, and after going about half-way and almost falling a few times, I turned around and headed back. I definitely wanted to see the lake, but I really didn't want to fall and break my camera. I should have thought things through a bit, and just left my DSLR in the car and taken my old point-and-shoot instead. Next time, I'll make the hike!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3096.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3099.jpg

There were a few goats at the visitor center as well.
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3066.jpg

During each spring when the visitor center is dug out of the snow, metal plates help metal detector equipped snow removal teams find the steps.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3100.jpg


The last three times I've been here, I was never able to make the complete drive through the Going to the Sun Road. It was always snowed in, and the farthest I've made it was Logan's Pass. This time, however, the road was open the entire way, and I was excited to see what lies west of Logan's Pass.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3125.jpg

The west side of the Going to the Sun Rd. seems to have more waterfalls. Many of them are really easy to miss, especially for someone who is driving westbound. This waterfall I missed, and I had to do a couple of U-turns to get another shot at it.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3111.jpg

A couple more waterfalls.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3141.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3148.jpg

I had a blast in Glacier, and I will definitely be back. Next stop: Kalispell, Montana, then on to Idaho.

[04 Rocko Taco]

I hiked to Hidden Lake last time I was up there, was still some snow, and plenty of goats around. I cant see your pictures at work, and am looking forward to looking through this post when I get home in the AM.

[troyboy162]

keep the pictures coming! I have never seen that amazing road with the water falls.

[DHC6twinotter]

keep the pictures coming! I have never seen that amazing road with the water falls.


Yean, the Going to the Sun Road is in my top 3 or 4 favorite roads so far. The scenery in Glacier is really great, and it's probably one of my favorite parks so far (along with Waterton).

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 18: 2 Months on the Road.

I've been on the road for 2 months now, and I've had a blast. Here are some stats so far:

Miles driven: Just over 9,000.

Favorite roads: Beartooth Pass in Wyoming and Montana, Going to the Sun Road in Glacier NP, Montana state roads 43 and 278 from Hwy 93 to I15.

Favorite Park: Probably Glacier/Waterton.

Favorite Town: Sandpoint, ID; Colorado Springs, CO; Cumberland, MD; Wisdom, WY; and I'm probably forgetting a few.

Favorite food: Pahaska Tepee on the east entrance to Yellowstone. Awesome breakfasts!

Worst Food: China Buffet in Missoula, MT. Everything tasted off, even the chocolate pudding.

Favorite campground: Island Lake off of Hwy 212 on the NE entrance to Yellowstone. It's a National Forest Campground about 10 miles south of Beartooth Pass. KOA in Lyman, WY and Sage Creek Campground in Badlands NP were great as well.

Worst campground: Some National Forest Campground just south of Estes Park, CO.

Dumbest drivers: Aspen, CO.

Best gas mileage: 24.2


My fuel and food budgets are right on track, but I'm spending a bit more camping. I'm not staying in hotels as much as I originally planed, but I'm staying in fee campgrounds more than I anticipated. Oh well.

Over the next couple months, I'll be heading down into New Mexico, maybe Texas, Arizona, Utah, and California. Woohoo!

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 19: Montana to Idaho

From Glacier National Park, I headed west on Hwy 12 to Sandpoint, Idaho.

Much of Hwy 12 runs along the Kootanai River. It was a great drive, and at one point, I stopped at some county park and hiked down to some falls.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3174.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3177.jpg

I also passed over a dam and hydro electric plant somewhere along Hwy 12. I took a dirt road that was supposed to lead me to a better view of the dam, but I couldn't find the right turn-off. It was still a cool drive, and I managed a picture or two.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3200.jpg

I stayed overnight in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Kalispell, MT. Wal-Mart parking lots aren't my favorite place to stay, but I got tired of trying to find a campground. This Wal-Mart had a bunch of RV's parked in front, and looked more like a campground than anything anyways.

As I was pulling into the Wal-Mart parking lot, I noticed a familiar looking Volkswagon/Winnebago camper. Could it be Al and Mary Berry? I drove around the camper, and sure enough, there were Michigan tags and a giant multi-colored map of the USA on the side. I could hardly believe it! I said howdy, and they were just as surprised to see me. After trying to convince each other that neither one of us were stockers, I headed next door to catch the new Batman flick. Great movie!

The next day, I headed west to Sandpoint, ID. Sandpoint is way up in the skinny part of Idaho, and lies on the edge of a pretty large lake.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3220.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3149.jpg

Why go to Sandpoint? Several years ago, I was thinking about applying for a job at Quest Aircraft, located in Sandpoint. They make the Quest Kodiak. The Kodiak is a fairly new single engine turboprop specifically designed for bush operations. Anyway, at the time, the company wasn't very stable, and I decided it wasn't someplace I wanted to work. However, I did do some research on town, and it looked like a cool place. So, I decided to swing by on this trip.

As usual, I didn't take any pictures of the town, but I did get a picture of this:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3226.jpg

"Traffic Revision Ahead"? That's almost outside the scope of my vocabulary. Why couldn't they just have said, "New Traffic Pattern" or "Lane Shift" like everywhere else? People in Sandpoint must be smart! :D

On a completely unrelated note, I noticed that many semis in the northwest have many more wheels than the typical 18 wheeler. On the east coast, 18 wheelers are the norm, but here, it seems they are the exception rather than the norm. Most of the flatbed, tanker, livestock, and grain trucks have at least 26 wheels, and some, like the one pictured below, have 30.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3223.jpg

Longest truck I saw had two long trailers, the first being a tri-axle lowboy with a combine on it, and hitched to the rear was a 48' grain trailer. Wish I had a picture.

[Seanz0rz]

i like the part about dumbest drivers. Oregon does it for me every time! also fun is the triple trailer trucks (although i didnt see any on my most recent trip)

dan, once you move more to the southwest, there is more open BLM, etc. land you can camp on for free, and most of the camp grounds are less expensive than in the national parks.

[DHC6twinotter]

Yeah, I'm hoping to stay in more BLM campgrounds. I've done some dispersed camping in National Forests too, but in bear country, I'm not a fan of that, and some National Forests won't let you do it anyways. I've been staying in National Forest Campgrounds mostly, and the majority of them are ok. I do try to get to a KOA campground every 4 or 5 days so I can shave, get a nice shower, and some internet connection.

It's working out ok, but to be honest, I'm looking forward to maybe finding a place for a couple weeks in AZ and CA. :D

[Obi..]

*FWIW the wheel counts are b/c of the road type and base we have out here vs. back there. Even then you'd be surprised how quickly "wheel channels" end up cut into the asphalt. Good pics, keep them coming!

Try some town shots, restaurants, etc, just saying. ;)

[DHC6twinotter]

Yeah, I need to work on more architecture shots. I've got a few building shots that I'll post up in the next few posts.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 20: Idaho back to Montana

While I was in Sandpoint, I bumped into Al and Mary Berry again. This is now the 5th time I've seen them. So crazy!

Once I hit the western part of the U.S., I've tried to avoid driving on interstates as much as possible. It seems like there is so much that is missed when driving down the interstate. So, from Sandpoint, Idaho, I took state rd 200 to Missoula.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3230.jpg

I stayed overnight in Missoula and ate some pretty terrible Chinese food. That evening was rough, but, feeling better the next day, I was off and on Hwy 93 south to state rd 43.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3240.jpg

93 is a great road with some amazing scenery. Right at the continental divide, which is also the Idaho/Montana border, state road 43 turns off to the left. It runs along the top of the continental divide for a bit before heading back down into Montana. This stretch of road, along with state road 278 would become one of my favorite areas.

I wasn't on 43 very long, when the mountains gave way to a large valley. After the long climb up to the continental divide, I was expecting a long descent as well. The valley was a surprise, and probably one of the reasons why I liked this area so much. The west side of the valley had snow-capped peaks, and a row of smaller, but still impressive, mountains to the east.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3280.jpg

There wasn't a whole lot in the valley. There were some ranches and a couple of small towns, Wisdom and Jackson, but not much else. It was a pretty desolate area.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3259.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3233.jpg

I stopped in the town of Wisdom for some pictures. Even though this was a weekday, it seemed like everybody from town was out and about having a good time. Everybody seemed to congregate around this roofless flea market, which was one of a few buildings in town.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3261.jpg

Just outside of Wisdom, I took a right turn on state rd 278. This was another fantastic drive, and I stopped by the Wisdom Airport. There wasn't much there: just a grass strip, an outhouse, and an old hanger in the background. I love this area!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3266.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3271.jpg

278 followed the valley for a bit, and I hit some rain at the southeast end of the valley.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3286.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3291.jpg

After heading over a seven thousand something foot pass, I ended up on I15. I took I15 north a couple miles and stayed overnight in Dillon, MT. What a fantastic day!

[Robinhood4x4]

I hope you got Al and Mary's email address, because you're going to be sad when you don't see them again. You guys can swap pictures and stories.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 21: Yellowstone, Part 1

After staying overnight in Dillon, Montana, I headed down I15 for a few miles before picking up a dirt road in Modina, Montana. Modina was a fairly big dot on my map, and, not knowing the condition of the 40 mile long dirt road I was about to take, my original plan was to fuel up in Modina. Before I left Dillon, I changed my mind at the last minute and decided to fuel up there. I'm so glad I did! Modina was practically a ghost town, with only 1 or 2 inhabited houses. This shouldn't even be a dot on the map!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3293.jpg

So, after taking a couple pictures in Modina, I headed east on this dirt road. Looking at my map, this was the most direct route to Yellowstone. There were no paved roads for probably 50 miles in either direction. Not knowing the condition of the road, I texted my route to seanzorz so somebody knew where I was going to be. The road turned out to be pretty good, and pretty scenic.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3319.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3300.jpg

After driving for nearly 40 miles on this dirt road, I came to a "T". I don't know who decided to put the "T" in the road, because, according to my map, it isn't supposed to be there. This is supposed to be a straight road. So, eeny meeny miney mo, and off to the right I go. After driving about 20 miles or so and passing a few dead cows along the road, I arrived to Hwy 20.

I hopped on Hwy 20 for a bit, and finally arrived in Yellowstone. Woohoo! I stayed overnight in a Yellowstone campground, and the next day I headed up to Mammoth.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3410.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3391.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3344.jpg

I also took some terrible wildlife picture:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3490.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3459.jpg

Yellowstone is a great park!

[4x4mike]

Great pictures once again. You're seeing some great sites and will no doubt have stories to tell for a long time.

Thanks for sharing.

[DHC6twinotter]

I hope you got Al and Mary's email address, because you're going to be sad when you don't see them again. You guys can swap pictures and stories.

lol...yeah I should have gotten their address. We split directions after Sandpoint. They were continuing west to Seattle, and I turned south to head back to Yellowstone. Never know though, if they decide to take a more southern route back to Michigan, I may run into them. Sure would be crazy!



Great pictures once again. You're seeing some great sites and will no doubt have stories to tell for a long time.

Thanks for sharing.


Thanks! I'm really thankful that I've gotten the chance to do this. It's been really neat seeing all the different places. I would love to do a trip like this again once I get married and have some kids.

I'm itching to do the Pan American Highway now...

[Seanz0rz]

such an amazing trip! you are an inspiration to us all dan!

the pictures and writeup are top notch, and really make me want to travel. staring at a credit card bill cures that pretty quickly though!

[DHC6twinotter]

such an amazing trip! you are an inspiration to us all dan!

the pictures and writeup are top notch, and really make me want to travel. staring at a credit card bill cures that pretty quickly though!


Thanks! I'm getting lots of airline miles with my credit card. :hillbill:

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 22: Beartooth Pass

Right now, I'm in Prescott, AZ. It was a dark when I arrived, but from what I've seen, Prescott is a really nice area. I'm still farther behind with my updates than I'd like, but hopefully I can get a bit more caught up over the next week.

Anyway, after staying in Yellowstone for a day, I headed out Yellowstone's northeast entrance and took a drive up the Beartooth Pass. My original plan was to spend a few hours on the pass, but the area was so fantastic that I ended up spending a day and a half in the area.

The landscape was amazing, and this is probably one of my favorite drives I've been on. The weeds were in bloom, and added some really nice color.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3535.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3679.jpg

The Beartooth Pass is only open for about 5 months a year, but snow storms may occur during the summer. The road curves its way along the Montana/Wyoming boarder and climbs to nearly 11,000'. My favorite part of the road was this portion with switchbacks.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3658.jpg

The view from the top of the pass is fantastic!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3606.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3579.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3712.jpg

I camped overnight in the Island Lake Campground, which was about 10 miles west of the beartooth pass. This campground was really nice, and the vault toilets were spotless. The elevation here was about 9,000' and some of the campsites had a nice view of the lake:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3688.jpg

The next day, I headed a bit further west and picked up the Chief Joseph Highway. I didn't know anything about this road, but I had several people recommend the drive, so I figured I would check it out. The first 10 miles or so were unimpressive, but after that, the views became impressive.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3735.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3748.jpg

And I stopped at Beartooth Lake for some pictures.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3700.jpg

Beartooth Pass is a fantastic drive, and it's one of my favorite roads. It's definitely a drive that any visitor to Yellowstone should take.

I'll post part 2 of Yellowstone in my next update.

[Bob98SR5]

great pics, dan

[DHC6twinotter]

Thanks, Bob! I'm slowly figuring out my camera. :hillbill:

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 23: Yellowstone, Part 2

From Beartooth Pass, I headed back to Yellowstone via the northeast entrance. Just before entering Yellowstone, I had lunch at the Beds N Buns, which is a small restaurant/motel. The building was an old log structure, and the kitchen was out back under a tent. They had a really good beef brisket bbq sandwich.

Once I entered Yellowstone, I drove a few miles and stopped to take a picture of a large herd of buffalo.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3522.jpg

And after driving a bit farther, I spotted a huge crowd on the side of the road. I managed to find a spot to park, and headed over to see what everyone was gawking at.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3788.jpg

Turns out a single wolf had taken down a young elk. Apparently, it's a bit rare to see the wolves in the park, and it was really neat to see them.

After watching the wolves for an hour or so, I headed south to find a campground. As it turns out, all of the campgrounds on the southeast side of Yellowstone were already full. The only campgrounds with space left were Norris and Mammoth, both of which were back in the northwest side of the park. Of course, by the time I got to Norris, it had filled up. I headed back north to stay at the Mammoth, but by the time I made it there, it too was full. So, I headed up Yellowstone's north entrance and set up camp in a national forest campground. It was a fiasco, and I went to bed a bit frustrated about the lack of campsites and all the extra driving around.

The next day, I retraced my route and headed towards the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. On my way, I was able to spot a moose and a black bear. I really wished I had a better zoom lens!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3494.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3497.jpg

The bear and moose were in the same field, and after watching them for a bit, I continued south to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4058.jpg

I took a hike down to Lower Falls.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4100.jpg

The hike back up was long and steep. It really pooped me out.

After visiting Lower Falls, I decided to find a campsite before they were all taken up. But, of course, they were all full. Most of the campsites had filled up by 10:00am. So, once again, the camping situation left me frustrated, and I headed out the east entrance to find a national forest campground.

The next morning, I headed back to the park and, on the way, I stopped at the Pahaska Tepee for breakfast. I had seen the place the day before, and the guy at the gas station said they had an awesome breakfast menu. He wasn't lying! The food was great!

So, with a full stomach and a new day, I was rethinking the frustrating camping experience I've had at Yellowstone. I realized that I've driven through every entrance to Yellowstone. Had it not been for the frustrating camping experience, I would have missed out on a lot of the wildlife and scenery that Yellowstone had to offer. In my opinion, the entrance roads offer better scenery, so, as I thought about it, I was really thankful for the opportunity to see all the entrances. When visiting Yellowstone, most people stick to the figure 8 loop that makes up the park. They miss so much amazing scenery!

And so, I continued the drive along the east entrance. The scenery along Yellowstone Lake was really beautiful.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3998.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4022.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3886.jpg

I stopped at West Thumb for some pictures of the geyser basin. This was a really cool part of Yellowstone and probably one of my favorite parts of the park.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4165.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3928.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_3917.jpg

Last buy not least, I stopped by Old Faithful.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4204.jpg

And that concludes my trip to Yellowstone. What a great park!

[Robinhood4x4]

Pretty cool. So you're in Prescott now (or were), what's next?

[DHC6twinotter]

Yeah, I stayed one night in Prescott. Pretty cool area. I then drove up through Sedona, and I'm now in Flagstaff. I'll be in the Flagstaff area till probably Friday or Saturday, and during that time, I'll make a trip over to the petrified forest, the south side of the Grand Canyon, and maybe back down to Sedona for a day.

I'm leaving Saturday for a flight back to NC to see my family for Labor day, so I'll be back down in Phoenix to catch my flight out. I'll be back in AZ on Thursday, then I'll make a trip up to Utah for a week or so before heading through Nevada to southern California.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 24: Yellowstone to Dinosaur

From Yellowstone, I headed south through the Grand Tetons. Smoke from the fires in California and Idaho has made its way into the area by blowing into Canada before being brought into the Tetons by the jetstream. In the morning, the mountains were barely visible from the road, but it did clear up enough for some ok pictures.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4216.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4234.jpg

I was ready for a shower and wifi, so the plan was to camp at a KOA somewhere around the Jackson Hole area. But, once again, finding a campground would be a fiasco. The info I got from the Yellowstone Visitor Center said there were two KOA campground in the Jackson Hole area. I drove around trying to find these campgrounds, but as it would turn out, both of the KOA campgrounds no longer exist. I did find a third KOA, but they didn't allow car camping. After a few hours, I did find an overpriced campground just outside of Jackson Hole.

To make things more frustrating, while I was driving around trying to find a campsite, I found out my insurance company had accidentally taken the insurance off my 4Runner. They were supposed to just remove my old '90 4Runner from the policy, but they accidentally removed both 4Runners. Turns out I've driven 2 months without insurance. D'oh!

The next day, I headed south on Hwy 89 from the Jackson Hole to Montpelier, Idaho. This section of Hwy 89 follows part of the Snake River, and part of the road curves it's way into the mountains. The scenery was fantastic!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4242.jpg

I stayed on Hwy 89 until I reached Montpelier, Idaho. There I picked Hwy 30 and stayed on that to Kemmerer, WY. This was another great stretch of road!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4251.jpg

In Kemmerer, I picked up Hwy 189 heading south to Evanston. In Evanston, I hopped on I80 east for short bit before arriving at the KOA in Lyman, WY.

The KOA in Lyman is probably one of my favorites. It's small, and the campsite I had was under a big shade tree with a great view of the sunsets.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4256.jpg

I ended up staying here an extra day, which game me a chance to finish writing an article for a LEGO magazine.

I spotted this sign in Lyman.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4269.jpg

After spending a couple nights in Lyman, I headed south on some county roads. The plan was to drive through the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area on my way to Dinosaur National Monument.

There were signs in Lyman that pointed in the direction of the Flaming Gorge, so I figured I'd just follow the signs. The view was great, but the drive seemed to be taking longer than expected. After driving a while, I arrived in Green River. This was odd, because Green River was a few miles east of Lyman on I80. I wondered why would the signs take me through some back roads when I could have just taken I80 instead? I got out my map, and somehow, I missed a turn I was supposed to take by about 45 miles. No wonder why the drive seemed to take longer than it should! I took advantage of my unplanned stop in Green River to grab some lunch, and I headed down the east side of the Flaming Gorge.

Most of you have probably figured out by now that I'm navigating the old-school way with paper maps. No GPS. I do have a GPS receiver and some map software on my laptop, but it has been useless, and long ago, I gave up trying to use it. At about 75 miles out of my way, my missed turn at the Flaming Gorge would be my most costly navigational error so far.

Anyway, the view along the east side of the gorge was really great, and I took a side trip down a dirt road for some better pictures.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4350.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4317.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4310.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4308.jpg

At the south end of the Flaming Gorge is a hydroelectric dam along the Green River. I've never been inside of a dam, so I took advantage of their free tours.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4332.jpg

Generators with an old turbine on display:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4336.jpg

The Flaming Gorge is a really cool area. Despite missing my turn and almost running over a cow in the road, I'm really glad I visited the area. Next stop, Dinosaur National Monument.

[DHC6twinotter]

Yeah, I stayed one night in Prescott. Pretty cool area. I then drove up through Sedona, and I'm now in Flagstaff. I'll be in the Flagstaff area till probably Friday or Saturday, and during that time, I'll make a trip over to the petrified forest, the south side of the Grand Canyon, and maybe back down to Sedona for a day.

I'm leaving Saturday for a flight back to NC to see my family for Labor day, so I'll be back down in Phoenix to catch my flight out. I'll be back in AZ on Thursday, then I'll make a trip up to Utah for a week or so before heading through Nevada to southern California.


Change of plans from what I wrote there. I went to the Petrified Forest, but after looking at the map, I figured I'd just work my way back to Phoenix from there. I stayed in Show Low last night, and I'll be the Pheonix area tonight and tomorrow before catching my flight out on Saturday. When I get back from NC, I'll head over to Sedona and the Grand Canyon since it's on the way to Utah. :D

Arizona is amazing! Love it!

[corax]

On your way out to the Petrified Forest, did you get to stand on a corner in Winslow Arizona (http://www.standinonthecorner.com/)? I've heard it's such a fine site to see ;)

[Robinhood4x4]

When you head to Utah, I suggest you do these things.

http://www.ultimateyota.com/index.php?option=com_smf&Itemid=26&topic=8287.0

[DHC6twinotter]

On your way out to the Petrified Forest, did you get to stand on a corner in Winslow Arizona (http://www.standinonthecorner.com/)? I've heard it's such a fine site to see ;)



I drove right through that town, but I didn't realize there was anything significant about the place, so I didn't stop anywhere. Bummer.



When you head to Utah, I suggest you do these things.

http://www.ultimateyota.com/index.php?option=com_smf&Itemid=26&topic=8287.0


Lake Powell looks really interesting. I'll for sure have to stop. Not sure I have enough time to do that hike, even though it looks really awesome.


I've got about a week and a half to see Utah, so unfortunately, I'll be rushing through everything. Goal is to be in socal by the 14th or 15th.

[corax]

Since I can't remember if I already sent you this, and at this moment I'm too lazy too see if I did . . . check out the google map (https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=212423985330484984648.0004bb7804624fb54eac 1&msa=0) I made for the PNW based off this awesome site (http://www.brian894x4.com/INSEARCHOFHISTORY.html)

[DHC6twinotter]

Awesome! Thanks Keith! It's looking more and more likely that I'll get to run up the west coast, so I should be able to check some of that out. Woohoo!

I'll leave cali sometime after Pismo (maybe directly from Pismo), and head up the coast to Seattle for a LEGO convention. Sean suggested I take 395 back down, so I'll probably do that. The run up the west coast will give me the chance to visit some of the National Parks in the area too.

I've added "see every national park in the United States" to my bucket list. I think by the time I'm done with this trip, I would have seen every national park in the western half of the lower 48. I'm going to have to make a big east coast trip someday to hit all those national parks. :D

[4x4mike]

Let me know if you want to caravan north from Pismo. I'll take 101N to the 5. Staying on 101 will give better scenery but there are no National Parks. 395 has much more to offer but is out of my way.

[DHC6twinotter]

Post 25: Dinosaur National Monument

From the Flaming Gorge, I headed south on Hwy 191 before catching Hwy 40 east to Dinosaur National Monument. Dinosaur National Monument lies on the Utah/Colorado border, with the dinosaur fossil part of the park being on the Utah side.

I left Lyman, WY earlier in the day, and with my stop at the Flaming Gorge, It was nearly dark when I arrived at Dinosaur National Monument. The monument had a fairly nice campground along the Green River, and I decided to crash there.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4398.jpg

The next day, I headed over to the fossil area of the park. I was too lazy to go on any of the hikes, so I just visited the enclosed fossil quarry area and took some pictures.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4436.jpg

And I took a couple pictures of the surrounding area.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4443.jpg

There wasn't much to see in the west side of the park (where all the bones are), so I headed over to the east side of the park.

The east, or Colorado side, doesn't have any fossils, but it does have a really neat canyon. There are paved road that run to some scenic overlooks over the canyon, but I decided to take a 13 mile dirt road that runs down the canyon wall to the Echo Park Campground. Echo Park Campground lies at the convergence of the Green and Yampa Rivers, and the Steamboat Rock formation overlooks the campground.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4556.jpg

Most of the road to the campground was in ok shape, but there were some areas, especially on the switchbacks up the canyon wall, that were a bit worse. The park recommends high ground clearance and 4wd vehicles for this road, although I only found 4wd useful on the washboard sections and necessary while driving through a mud pit later on.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4543.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4516.jpg

Just south of the camp, there is an old ranch.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4548.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4553.jpg

After setting up camp, I headed off down the Yampa River Road. This was another dirt road that was in worse condition than the first. The road runs for about 20 miles or so, but my plan was just to drive down 8 miles or so to some overlooks before turning around and heading back to camp. The road was ok, but did have some sections that ran through some soft sand and another section that ran through a mud pit. Picture of an easy section:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4523.jpg

The overlooks offer a nice view of the canyon.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4525.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4496.jpg

After visiting the overlooks, I headed back to camp. When I arrived at camp, I noticed my shackle had unscrewed itself and fallen off somewhere. There was a pretty bad washboard section about 1/2 mile out of camp, and I suspected it fell off there. I backtracked to the washboard section of the road, and sure enough, there was my shackle and bolt laying in the road. Somehow the bolt had worked loose on all the rough roads. After putting the shackle and bolt back on, I headed off to camp for the night.

The next morning, I awoke to heavy cloud cover. I had to get out of camp quick! The road down to the camp has many washes over it, and the road is impassible when it rains. Several park rangers told me if it rains, I could be stuck in camp for several days. I ate a quick breakfast, and headed out. Just in time too! It started to rain about 15 minutes after I hit the pavement at the top of the canyon rim.

I had a lot of fun in Dinosaur National Monument. The miles of dirt roads they have are a blast.

[DHC6twinotter]

Let me know if you want to caravan north from Pismo. I'll take 101N to the 5. Staying on 101 will give better scenery but there are no National Parks. 395 has much more to offer but is out of my way.


Sounds good, Mike. I'll let you know. Right now it looks like I'll be heading back down to Redlands after Pismo for a few days before heading up to Seattle.

[Crinale]

When are you planning to get into Cali Dan?

[DHC6twinotter]

When are you planning to get into Cali Dan?


I'd like to be there by Friday night, but I don't think that will happen. Most likely Sunday or Monday night.

Right now I'm in Moab. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll really have time to hit any trails, unless I find something quick and easy. Definitely a really cool area though, and I would love to come back some day with some other people and do some trails. I've spent the last couple days in Canyonlands and Arches National Parks. Tomorrow, I'll head back to Arches for some morning shots, then head over to Capital Reef National Park. I'll probably stay there overnight, then visit Bryce Canyon on Thursday, then Zion on Friday. Saturday I hope to make it to Great Basin National Park in Nevada before dropping down Hwy 93 to Vegas/Hoover dam. I'll stay somewhere around there that night, then over Cali on Monday.

If I can consolidate a couple of the parks into one day, then I may make it there Sunday night, but we'll just have to see what there is to see in the parks.

I'll have another update up later tonight.

[Seanz0rz]

cool! like you, we are behind a few days as well.

[Obi..]

Offer still stands if ya need any tools to use and a spot to park if passing through the 408 or 510.

[DHC6twinotter]

Thanks Shane.

I'm not going to be able to post an update tonight like I wanted. The internet at the campground I'm at is horrible. The bandwidth is severely limited, and it wouldn't even let me upload 4 pictures to photobucket. Frustrating. :confused:

Finding reliable internet has been more difficult than I anticipated, but hopefully I can do another update in a few days.

[Obi..]

:D Almost forgot, new cell #. PM sent.

[DHC6twinotter]

Time for another update! Woohoo! Right now I'm in California staying with some friends (Sean and Alexus), and their internet is awesome.

I've been on the road for over 3 months now, and I'm still having a blast. I've put over 14,000 miles on my car, which is more than I expected. I get depressed whenever I look at my odometer, so I just keep it set to trip mode instead. :hillbill:


Colorado: Part 1

From Dinosaur National Monument, I headed east on Hwy 40 towards Rocky Mountain National Park. After a long climb just east of Steamboat Springs, I turned east on Hwy 34 and arrived at Rocky Mountain National Park.

As it turns out, the campgrounds in the park are pretty pricey, but I did find a nice primitive campsite just off of county rd 4 east of the park.

The next day, I headed back to the park and headed up Trail Ridge Rd. The road climbs to over 12,000 feet, and it's the highest continuous paved road in the United States. The views are awesome!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4664_zps71309e10.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4652_zpsf52ff2ea.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4697_zps99e46972.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4690_zpsfcc34715.jpg

There was also some wildlife along the road:
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4721_zps722ef057.jpg

I took a side trip down the Old Falls River Road, which is a dirt road that meets Trail Ridge Road at the Fall River Pass (close to the highest point of the road).

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4717_zps9b8f8a64.jpg

I spent a lot of time driving around Colorado, so the next few updates with be from CO as well.

[Obi..]

This thread needs more LEGO content!

:D
LEGO Great Ball Contraption (GBC) Layout 2012.9 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUtS52lqL5w&feature=g-logo-xit#ws)

[DHC6twinotter]

Shane, sorry I missed your post. The guy who built that GBC layout is a mechanical genius. I've been following his work for a while now. Aside from the robotic arm at the end of the video, all of his modules are mechanically timed. There are no servos or programed modules (aside from the arm at the end). The module in the first 45 seconds is one of my all-time favorite LEGO builds. That module with the rotating buckets and the bucket lifter is driven off of one motor. That guy builds some way cool stuff.

[DHC6twinotter]

I'm way behind on my updates, but I thought I'd try to post another one or two before I fly out to the Philippines on Monday.


Colorado: Part 2

So, from Rocky Mountain National Park, I headed down to Estes Park, CO. I stopped at the information center to try and bum some internet, but it was down while I was there. Pulling out of the information center, and got a bit turned around and couldn't remember which way to go. They did have this sign though:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4727_zpse3bd1780.jpg

The sign wasn't very helpful at all, but after a few wrong turns, I figured out where I was trying to go. I picked up state road 7 and headed south a bit. Along the way, I passed this really cool old Catholic Church perched on some rocks:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4730.jpg

That night, I set up camp in a National Forest Campground off of 7. Worst campground I've ever been to. There were no pit-toilets, but porta-potties instead, and they hadn't been cleaned or emptied in a while. They were nearly overflowing. The campground was pretty difficult to negotiate as well.

Anyways, the next day, I continued south on 7 and then picked up state road 119 in Nederland. Along the way, I noticed this sign, which wasn't very reassuring:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4747.jpg

And, I also passed by an old mine:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4738.jpg

Once In Nederland, they had this awesome old steam shovel on display:
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4746.jpg

This steam shovel is a 1923 Bucybus Model 50-B, and is the last remaining steam shovel that was used to help dig the Panama Canal. The 50-B was the first heavy duty tracked shovel with 350 degree rotation. Also, notice how there are no hydraulics. All the movements were controlled by engaging and disengaging gears driven by the steam engine.

Once I picked up state road 118 in Nederland, I continued east to Boulder and after bumming some internet from the Boulder Library, I continued east to Denver. As an aviation and architectural nerd, I've always thought the Denver Airport was a really neat design, so I thought I'd make the drive over to check it out. Impressive indeed, but I didn't take any pictures.

So, after checking out the airport and stopping by the Denver LEGO store (best I've seen), I headed back west via I70 and drove through the Eisenhower Tunnel:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4749.jpg

Shortly after going through the tunnel, I headed south on Hwy 24. I stayed overnight at a KOA campground in Buena Vista, CO. The next morning, I headed up towards Aspen via the state road 82, which runs through Independence Pass at around 12,000 ft.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4799.jpg

Parts of the road were pretty narrow.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4817.jpg

Aspen gets my vote for dumbest drivers. On my way to Aspen, somebody was tail-gating me super close. Ordinarily, when somebody is tail-gating me, I like to just down shift so I get the sudden slow down without my brake lights coming on. This person was way to close for that though, so I just hit the brakes extra hard in one particular corner. They got the point and backed off a bit.

Once in Aspen, I was fueling up at a gas station when this lady flew through the gas station and almost got her VW Cabriolet crushed by a backing dump truck. I don't know how she didn't see the dump truck backing up, but maybe her giant, floppy pink hat was blocking her view.

I managed to snap a quick picture at the Aspen airport. I don't think I've ever seen this many Gulfstreams parked in one area, along with a few other jets:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_4816.jpg

Anyway, while I was in Aspen, I realized that I had wanted to check out Pikes Peak. I knew it was outside of Colorado Springs, but I totally forgot about stopping by. After some thought, I decided to drive over to Colorado Springs to check it out. So, I backtracked back down the 82 and following Hwy 24 down to Colorado Springs. Once I got there, however, I found out the Pikes Peak Hill Climb was that weekend, and I didn't get a chance to make the drive up. Oh well. I thought about watching the race, but I didn't want to spend $40 for a ticket or wake up at 4:00 in the morning to find a good parking spot. So, I just hung around Colorado Springs for a few days. It was a nice area, and I took a break there for a few days.

After spending a few days in Colorado Springs, I headed back to Buena Vista on 24 and picked up Hwy 285 south to state road 17. Next destination is Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado.

[4x4mike]

I really like Colorado Springs. I spent a month there about 10 years ago and loved it. It pretty much had everything I like to do with that small town feel. How was it after the fires they had this year? I know most of the hills burned but the lower city seemed to be protected.

[Crinale]

I love your trip Dan.. Someday I'll have money for something like this.

[04 Rocko Taco]

Dan have I mentioned I am totally jealous?
While Dan is off visiting folks - you can check out this cool thread 4 states in an open top FJ40, not nearly as cool as this thread, but a decent stop gap while we wait for Dan's updates.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/toyota-land-cruiser/1095591-4-states-3k-miles-1-fj40.html

[slosurfer]

I had the pleasure of having Dan stay at our place for an evening. Jack was super stoked about Dan's legos and technics stuff. Dan even put together his Piper Cub so Jack could see it. Here's a short vid from my phone, that doesn't show nearly everything it does. It would be impressive if it was built from a kit, but the fact that he designed it and built it from scratch is amazing.

Dan's Lego Technics Super Piper Cub (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YH41WDM2dyY&feature=g-upl#ws)

[DHC6twinotter]

Well, right now I'm in the Philippines. I've spent the last few days watching my nieces and nephew while my sister and bro-in-law are looking for a place to rent. They plan on staying for at least 4 years. I've had the chance to venture out a bit, and I love it here. If I found a job here, I would seriously consider moving here. The people are really genuine, and the food is fantastic!

Lots of Hilux pickups and Foretuner SUV's. The Foretuner is a Toyota body-on-frame SUV roughly the size of a 3rd gen 4Runner, maybe slightly larger. Diesel engine of course. They are nice. :drool:

Anyways, I'm sure I'll make a post about my side-trip here at a later date.



I really like Colorado Springs. I spent a month there about 10 years ago and loved it. It pretty much had everything I like to do with that small town feel. How was it after the fires they had this year? I know most of the hills burned but the lower city seemed to be protected.


I totally forgot to post pictures of the fire area! Yeah, the damage is pretty bad. There was a really popular old ranch called "Circle K" (iirc) that burned down. I'm not sure exactly what it was, but I think they had some kind of restaurant/bar there. The news was constantly talking about it. The ranch was off-limits, but I did get some pictures from the surrounding neighborhoods. I'll post some pics once I get back to the states.

I really liked Colorado Springs. My first couple days there, I stayed out by the airport. I drove around that whole area a bit, and it was a dump. I couldn't figure out why everyone liked Colorado Springs so much. However, my last few days there I spent up on the Northwest side of town, which was really nice. Now I know why people like it here! I'd definitely consider moving there.



I love your trip Dan.. Someday I'll have money for something like this.


Thanks! It's lots of fun, and I'm really blessed to have had this opportunity.



Dan have I mentioned I am totally jealous?
While Dan is off visiting folks - you can check out this cool thread 4 states in an open top FJ40, not nearly as cool as this thread, but a decent stop gap while we wait for Dan's updates.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/toyota-land-cruiser/1095591-4-states-3k-miles-1-fj40.html


Awesome! The hotel I'm staying at here in the Philippines has had a few armored J-40s (not sure if it's a BJ or HJ or what) stop by to drop off money for the hotel. I haven't had my camera ready the two times I've seen it, but hopefully, I can get a picture of it before I leave.



I had the pleasure of having Dan stay at our place for an evening. Jack was super stoked about Dan's legos and technics stuff. Dan even put together his Piper Cub so Jack could see it. Here's a short vid from my phone, that doesn't show nearly everything it does. It would be impressive if it was built from a kit, but the fact that he designed it and built it from scratch is amazing.


It was great to see you guys again, and thanks for letting me stop by last minute! You all are awesome.


While making my run up the west coast, I stopped by to see Kieth and Liz in Portland. It was really nice to see them, and they took me out for dinner at an old school that had been converted to a restaurant. We ate down in the boiler room. Coolest restaurant I've ever been to.

I'll cover more about my run up the west coast at a later date as well.

Internet here is ok for browsing and such, but so far, I haven't been able to upload any pictures. Any further updates may have to wait till I get back to the states in mid November.

[Crinale]

How was your couple weeks overseas Dan? Have a good time with family?

[04 Rocko Taco]

Got back stateside today. Waiting (im)patiently for more updates!

[DHC6twinotter]

How was your couple weeks overseas Dan? Have a good time with family?


Yup, just got back last night. Time went by FAST! I love the Philippines, and I would seriously consider moving there if I was offered a job. If you all are interested, I can do a separate trip report for my trip there. I promise not to drag it out as much as this one. :hillbill:

I'll have an update to this thread up in an hour or so...

[DHC6twinotter]

Colorado, Part 3: Great Sand Dunes National Park

Time for another update! Woohoo!

As I mentioned in my last update, I spent a few days in Colorado Springs. I forgot to post some pictures from the fire that went through the area, so I'll go ahead and do that here:

The fire was pretty devastating, and entire neighborhoods were completely wiped out.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4858-1.jpg

Even in neighborhoods that were nearly wiped out, there were some homes that held up remarkably well. It's amazing how an entire block of homes were burned to the ground, but right in the middle would be a house that would be seemingly unscathed.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4855.jpg

While in Colorado Springs, I also drove through the Garden of the Gods. Pretty neat little park.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4839.jpg

After spending a few days in Colorado Springs, I decided to head over to Great Sand Dunes National Park. I headed back to Buena Vista on 24 and picked up Hwy 285 south to state road 17 and followed 17 to the park.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4887.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4871.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4886.jpg

The wind was pretty strong, and the distant sky was filled with a cloud of sand.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4867.jpg

The Prairie Sunflowers were in bloom:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4885.jpg

It was getting pretty dark once I arrived to the Great Sand Dunes National Park. The campground was nearly full, but I managed to get one of the last remaining spots. The campground was really nice, and I can see why it was so popular.

The next day, I drove around the park a bit. They don't allow driving on the dunes here, but there is a road that runs along the backside of the dunes and up and over one of the nearby ridges. I wasn't planing on going all the way over the ridge, but I did want to check out the road. After airing down the tires to 15psi (the signs said it was mandatory, but I dunno), I headed down the first stretch or trail.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4907-1.jpg

The first stretch runs along the backside of the dunes and has some pretty soft sand.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4900.jpg

After a short distance, the trail enters a more wooded area. Turns out there are some pretty nice looking primitive camp sites back here. I kinda wish I had known that ahead of time, but I'll just have to remember that for my next visit. Anyways, there were a few water crossing as well:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4896.jpg

After 2 or 3 water crossings, I came up to another water crossing that had a pretty steep and rocky descent into the water. Looking back, I probably would have been ok going through, but at the time, I didn't feel comfortable making the crossing, so I turned around and headed back.

So, after driving around on the trail for a bit, I headed out of the park.

Next stop: Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

[Crinale]

Yup, just got back last night. Time went by FAST! I love the Philippines, and I would seriously consider moving there if I was offered a job. If you all are interested, I can do a separate trip report for my trip there. I promise not to drag it out as much as this one. :hillbill:

I'll have an update to this thread up in an hour or so...
I would be interested in reading it.

[DHC6twinotter]

I would be interested in reading it.


I'll post a thread up in a bit. First, I'll do another update to this thread.

[Robinhood4x4]

Tapping foot...

[DHC6twinotter]

Colorado Part 4

From the Great Sand Dunes National Park, I headed down to Hwy 160 and took that west to State Road 149. I followed 149 a bit and headed up the 11,530 ft Slumgullion Pass. With a 9% grade, it's supposed to be the steepest continuous paved road in CO.

Right around the general area of the pass (can't remember if it's before or after), I stopped and took some pictures of the Uncompahgre Wilderness. Uncompahgre Peak is in the middle of the picture:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4926.jpg

I stayed overnight in a BLM campground just off of 149. The campsite was right off the road, and it was surrounded by some really neat rock formations and the Lake Fork River which flowed right behind camp.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_4960.jpg

The next day, I continued up 149 and stopped at the Lake City Information Center to get some info on the Alpine Loop, which I planned to run in the next few days. From Lake City, I continued up 149 to and then turned west on Hwy 50.

I drove down Hwy 50 for a few miles, and then headed north on State Road 347 to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

I stayed at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park for a day. The rocks are layered with lighter streaks, which makes for some amazing scenery. Unfortunately, there was a bit of haze, and my pictures didn't turn out very well, but here are a few:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5035.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5028.jpg

The Gunnison River flows through the bottom of the canyon:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5018.jpg

While in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, I took the East Portal Road (16% grade) down to the river. At the bottom of the road is the remains of the Town of East Portal. In the 1800's, a 12 mile long tunnel was dug through the sides of the canyon to carry water to the Uncompahgre Valley. I snapped a picture of the tunnel gate and equipment house.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5097.jpg

I hung around the park for a day before continuing west on Hwy 50. I stopped for some food in Montrose, and caught a picture of this classy old Bently:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5112.jpg

From Montrose, I picked up Hwy 550 south. 550, also known as the million dollar highway, is an amazing drive, and is definitely on my list of favorite roads.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5245.jpg

I stayed overnight in a free National Forest Campground just south of Silverton.

Next stop, Alpine Loop. :D

[DHC6twinotter]

Colorado Part 5: Alpine Loop

After staying in a National Forest campground south of Silverton, I headed up county road 2 to the Alpine Loop. I talked to several people before making the trip up, and most people suggested I do the loop in a clockwise loop, starting up Engineer Pass and looping around through Cinnamon Pass.

Right away, I ran across all kinds of neat mining stuff along the way.
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5123.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5127.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5130.jpg

Climbing up the Alpine Loop towards Engineer Pass.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5134.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5139.jpg

Some of the roads were a bit freaky with their narrow width and steep drop-offs:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5144.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5145.jpg

After several miles of crazy switchbacks, I came up to Oh! Point. The elevation here was just under 12,800ft. Oh! Point was a short spur off of the Alpine Loop, and the views are spectacular:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5155.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5154.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5213.jpg

As I was taking in the view, I noticed the road ahead did a crazy climb up this mountain. Yikes!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5146.jpg

After taking in the awesome views at Oh! Point, I headed towards this freaky looking climb. I know people do this trail all the time, so I figured the trail must not be as bad as it looked.

Just before reaching the crazy climb, there was junction and a road that veered off to the right. Turns out the road I had seen earlier was just an old mining road, and it's now closed to through traffic. What a relief! Right at the junction is Engineer Pass, with an elevation of 12,800ft:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5157.jpg

There were some great views from Engineer Pass as well:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5158.jpg

I continued on the Alpine Loop and passed some neat old mines:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5165.jpg

Along the way I passed a waterfall and drove alongside a river for a bit:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5170.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5183.jpg

As I drove closer to Lake City, which is about the half-way point, I passed several old mines:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5190.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5188.jpg

After lunch in Lake City, I headed south on State Road 149 for a few miles before picking up the south side of the Alpine Loop.

The headed up to American Basin. During the early summer, this area is full of flowers, and, supposedly, this is one of the most photographed areas in Colorado. The road to the center of the Basin was a spur off of the main loop, and this water crossing was probably the toughest section I encountered on the whole loop. It wasn't bad, but I dragged my spare tire and hitch pretty good:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5208.jpg

The views were awesome!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5206.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5201.jpg

After checking out the American Basin, I headed back to the main road and continued on to Cinnamon Pass. There was some great scenery along the way:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5209.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5216.jpg

And I arrived at Cinnamon Pass:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5219.jpg

From Cinnamon Pass, I continued down towards Silverton:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5220.jpg

Along the way, I passed one more really cool waterfall:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5231.jpg

And, after a long day on the road, I finally arrived back to Silverton:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5247-1.jpg

The Alpine Loop is amazing, and it's definitely one of the highlights of my trip.

[Crinale]

Colorado looks awesome! One of the states I would love to live in at some point

[corax]

Awesome pics Dan, now I'm a bit sorry me and the wife didn't get to stay in this area for spring/summer. We only ever made it up to Silverton once, and it looked a lot different in winter. One day . . . .

[fenrisx]

Beautiful pictures D!

[DHC6twinotter]

Thanks guys!

Kieth, I kinda wish I would have driven through this area a little earlier. Snow on the mountains always make for a better view, imho. Not having to drive through snow was nice though. :hillbill:

Kevin, Colorado is definitely awesome! I wouldn't mind living there either!

[DHC6twinotter]

Colorado, Part 6: Mesa Verde National Park

This will be my last post about Colorado. Colorado is an awesome state with some fantastic scenery! I've had a blast spending nearly 3 weeks in the state!

After completing the Alpine Loop, I stayed overnight in a free National Forest campground just south of Silverton. The next morning, I headed up to Silverton for some last minute pictures before heading on to my next destination.

Silverton is a neat town with some really colorful buildings:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5118.jpg

There were some interesting vehicles too, like this modified 4wd Checker Cab and WWII Half-track.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5114.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5113.jpg

After hanging out in Silverton for a bit, I headed north on Hwy 550. The day before, I drove down this way, but it was getting dark and I didn't get any pictures. This stretch of road is amazing, and I wanted to retrace my route for some better pictures. The section of Hwy 550 between Ouray and Silverton is known as the Million Dollar Highway. The Million Dollar Highway was completed in 1924 after renovating some existing 1880s era toll roads that were used primarily for mining. This section of road is amazing, and is definitely on my list of favorite roads.

There are a few more mines visible from 550:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5239.jpg

And the scenery is fantastic!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5236.jpg

I followed Hwy 550 down to Durango, and stayed overnight at a KOA there. I think I mentioned this already, but one of the reasons I try to stay at a KOA every 4 or 5 days is so I can wash laundry. I arrived a bit late, but I still needed to do some laundry. It was dark as I headed over to the laundry building, which was surrounded by other tent campers. The laundry room had some large windows around it, and, since it was late, I didn't want to turn on the florescent lights and wake the surrounding campers. I didn't have any change on me for the washers, but the dim exterior lights provided enough light for me to barely make out a change machine in the corner of the room. I threw my laundry and soap in washer, and went over to the change machine for some quarters. But as it turns out, the change machine was really a soap dispenser. Bummer! I peered through the darkness to see if I could spot a change machine, but there was nothing. I remembered seeing a Coke machine outside, so I went out to try to get some change from the Coke machine. Now, my experience with soft drink machines has taught me that if I put in a dollar and press the change return, I get some quarters back. Back in school, my favorite snack machine always suffered from a broken bill acceptor, and I always used the Coke machine next to it for change. It always worked great. Anyways, I put my dollar in Coke machine and pushed the coin return. Nothing. Bummer. Sometimes these drink machines will automatically return the change after waiting a minute or so. So, I waited a couple minutes. Nothing. Bummer. I did have a bag of quarters in my car somewhere, but the last time I did laundry, I couldn't find the bag of quarters. I figured I'd take another look. After digging through the 4Runner and all my bags for a while, I gave up. I must have left my quarters behind somewhere. It's late, I have no change, the front office is closed, the Coke machine ate my dollar, and my soap covered clothes were sitting in the washer. I never would have thought it would be so much work just to start a washer! Not a good night. However, while digging through my bag for quarters, I did find a pocket knife. Woohoo! I didn't recognize it, but I must have thrown it in as I was packing. It sure would have come in handy a while back while cutting that tomato! Anyways, I went to bed a bit frustrated and my laundry sitting in the washer.

The next morning, I got some change from the front office, and washed my clothes. After a late start, I hit the road once again. From Durango, I picked up Hwy 160 once again (I was on this several days ago after leaving Great Sand Dunes National Park). I followed Hwy 160 west to Mesa Verde National Park.


Mesa Verde National Park

Mesa Verde National Park was an amazing place. It definitely deserves a spot on my list of favorite parks. The main entrance road is pretty long and has a nice tunnel (if you haven't noticed, I'm kinda a tunnel nut). I stayed overnight at a really nice campground in the National Park. The price was a bit steep, but it did include free use of some nice showers.

After staying overnight in the campground, I headed out to check out more of the park. Whenever possible, I try to make the Visitor Center my first stop at whatever park I'm visiting. I usually check out the maps and get updates on road condition/closures. After a stop at the Visitor Center, I headed down to Chapin Mesa. Most of the interesting stuff is consolidated in fairly small areas at the end of Chapin Mesa, and to a smaller extent, Wetherill Mesa.

Fist stop was at the Spruce Tree House. Most of the dwelling at Mesa Verde require a separate $3.00 tour fee. However, Spruce Tree House is self-guided and doesn't require a tour fee.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5270.jpg

Next, I visited the Square Tower House:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5278.jpg

From the Square Tower House, I headed over to Cliff Palace for more pictures:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5298.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5293.jpg

After checking out the sights on the Chapin Mesa, I headed over to the Wetherill Mesa. This was a much less crowded portion of the park, and it seems most people just stuck to the Chapin Mesa section. Maybe that has something to do with the limited access of the Wetherill Mesa. Most of the sights there are only accessible by tram or by hiking in. I parked the 4Runner, and after a short wait, hopped on the tram and headed over to the Long House.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5347.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5345.jpg

And I also took the tram over to Kodak House:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5339.jpg

The cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde are the main draw, but the surrounding scenery is really beautiful as well.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5312.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5316.jpg

So, that's Mesa Verde in a nutshell. It's a fantastic park, and I'm really glad I was able to visit.

And, that sort of concludes my travels through Colorado. I'll cover New Mexico and Texas in my next post.

[Seanz0rz]

I LOVE that half track!

awesome pictures as always!

[Crinale]

Ok, I think you have solidified my wanting to move to Colorado at some point.. lol

[DHC6twinotter]

Four Corners and New Mexico

After staying overnight again in Mesa Verde, I continued west on Hwy 160 towards the Four Corners Monument. The Four Corners Monument marks the point where Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado meet.

For some reason, I thought the Four Corners Monument was an actual National Monument, but it turns out the monument is maintained by the Navajo Nations Parks and Recreations Department. Because of this, my National Parks Pass I have wouldn't let me get in for free, and I had to cough up the $3.00 to get in.

I wanted to snap some pictures of the bronze plate that marks the corner of the 4 states, but a family with about a million kids beat me to it. Of course, each kid wanted to pose over the bronze plate, and they wanted to pose with one limb on each state. They could have simply leaned over and place their hands and feet in each state, but nooooo....they had to get all fancy and lean over backwards to do it. And, since none of the kids were contortionists, they required the help of sibling to achieve such a painful looking pose. It was pretty entertaining to watch actually, and to add to the entertainment, there was a pretty good comedian performing under a large tent nearby. After waiting an eternity for a chance to get some pictures, I was finally able to snap a few:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5351.jpg

In the center of the monument is a small bronze plate that marks the intersection of Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado. Newer surveys have marked the actual spot of the intersection a bit over 1,800 ft to the east, but the Supreme Court thought it was close enough and ruled the bronze plate at the monument the legal boundary between the 4 states.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5352.jpg

I took a quick walk around the bronze plate. I can now tell people that I hiked in the desert through Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona. Those folks who are geographically challenged would probably find it amazing that a fat guy like me could achieve such a feat.

From the Four Corners Monument, I continued west on Hwy 160 to the town of Teec Nos Pos. This brought be briefly though Arizona. From there I picked up Hwy 64 east and stayed on 64 back into New Mexico. This stretch of road had the ugliest scenery I've seen on my trip thus far. It was all desert, and there was nothing there. Normally, I find most deserts have a unique beauty to them, and I like seeing the various desert vegetation. But, this area seemed deprived of everything. It was horrible. After driving a bit, I passed through Farmington, New Mexico. Farmington is kind of an oasis in the desert and sits at the junction of the Animas and San Juan Rivers. Despite the little bit of greenery in the city, this town would have to go on my list of places I would never want to live in. It's not at the top of my list, but certainly in the top 15.

Anyways, a bit after passing through Farmington, I picked up Hwy 550 once again and headed south. The desolate scenery I drove through earlier gave way to some really beautiful landscapes.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5353.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5365.jpg

It started to rain as I continued south on Hwy 550 and I stopped in Cuba, New Mexico for some fuel. As I was pumping my gas, several police cars went buy and blocked the road. Turns out that south of town, a propane truck had been in an accident and caught fire. All four lanes of 550 were shut down. I asked to cop if there were any alternate routes, and he said they were re-routing everybody down state roads 126 and 4.

So, I backtracked a bit and picked up state road 126. At the start of the road, there was a sign that read, "Road impassible in inclement weather". Did I mention it was raining pretty heavy? I debated whether or not to take the road, but I figured it would be funner than waiting several hours for 550 to reopen. So, I headed up 126. The first part of 126 was a pretty easy drive, but pretty soon, it became a narrow dirt road as it wound its way up into the mountains.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5354.jpg

The road was super slick, and I was looking forward to the chance of pulling people out of the ditches. But, despite the heavy traffic on these narrow, slick roads, I never saw anybody stuck. I still really enjoyed this detour, and the drive along the wet 126 was really fun. Because 550 was shut down both directions, we also had to navigate around oncoming cars and campers.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5355.jpg

After following 126 south a bit, I headed south on state road 4. The detour set me back quite a bit, but I was able to find a really nice national forest campground just as the rain ceased. Despite the detour setting me back a bit time wise, I was really grateful for the chance to make this detour through some really nice wooded mountains. The scenery was really beautiful. Anyways, I set up camp, and the next morning, I picked up state road 4 once again. The wooded areas gave way to more of a the amazing desert setting:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5361.jpg

I headed south on 4 before picking up 550 once again. After staying on 550 for a bit, I hoped on I-25 south. As I mentioned before, I try to avoid interstates as much as possible, but I have friends in El Paso, TX waiting on me, and I need to make up time. So, I cruzed down I-25 through Albuquerque and Las Cruses. Las Cruses was another beautiful area, but unfortunately, I didn't get any more pictures.

Next stop, Texas!

[DHC6twinotter]

Texas

After my fun drive through New Mexico, I stopped in El Paso, Texas for a few days to visit some family friends. Our family has known the Lee family for years, and they are cool people. It was great to have the chance to hang out with them for a bit.

While in El Paso, we made a hiking trip to Hueco Tanks State Park. This is a really beautiful area known worldwide for its rock climbing/bouldering opportunities.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5371.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5366.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5375.jpg

Hueco Tanks gets its name from these rock depressions that hold water.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5379.jpg

We had a blast hiking up there, and a huge thanks to the Lee family for letting me stay for a few days!

While in El Paso, I made a side trip to Carlsbad Caverns National Park, which was a couple hours east of El Paso. I wasn't sure what to expect in Carlsbad Caverns, but I was thoroughly impressed with the size of the caves.

After descending a ways, the elevator opens up to a large cavern containing a restaurant, gift shop, and restrooms. I was amazed that all this stuff was constructed in the cave:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5412.jpg

And the rest of the cave was really impressive as well:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5484.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5479.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5441.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5426.jpg

I left Carlsbad Caverns and headed back towards El Paso. Along the way, I stopped at Guadalupe Mountains National Park. This is another beautiful area with an amazingly diverse variety of vegetation. I wish I had a bit more time to explore the area, but It was getting dark. I did manage a few pictures though:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5522.jpg

After taking a handful of pictures, I continued towards El Paso, with a few more picture stops:

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http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5516.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5498.jpg

I also stopped at this awesome abandoned hotel for some pictures:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5531.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5533.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5538.jpg

I really enjoyed my short time in Texas. It was great to spend time with friends and it was great to see the fantastic scenery that this part of Texas had to offer.

From Texas I headed west to Arizona, where I spent nearly 3 weeks driving around the state. I'll start to cover that portion of the trip in my next post.

[Robinhood4x4]

Four corners is a bit of a tourist trap, but I figure for $3, might as well go see what all the hubub is all about.

Never been to carsbad caverns, but it's on the list of things to do. I don't know if you made it to the Kartchner Caverns that we have in AZ, but it's a cool little place to see too.

[DHC6twinotter]

Yeah, Four Corners is a tourist trap. It's nice to say I've been there, but it's a long way from anything, and I don't think I'll ever go back. Not really a whole lot there.

One thing that I missed at Carlsbad Caverns was the nightly bat flight. Every night millions of bats leave the caves for their nightly feeding. I would have liked to see this, but I needed to get on the road before dark.

I never made it Kartchner Cavers. I drove past the area on I10 and saw the signs, but I wasn't sure if it was worth the time to stop. Sounds like I should have stopped.

I'll cover more of my trip through southern Arizona in my next trip update.

[DHC6twinotter]

Arizona, Part 1

While I was in El Paso, my friends there suggested I make a southern loop through Arizona and visit Bisbee, AZ. So, I left El Paso and headed west on I-10 into Arizona. Shortly after crossing into Arizona, I picked up state road 80 and headed south.80 is a loop that starts and ends on I-10 but loops south through the towns of Douglas (very close to the Mexican border), Bisbee, and Tombstone.

The first town I drove through was Douglas, which was close to the border with Mexico. There wasn't really anything especially special about the place, so continued on through without much fanfare or pictures.

Somewhere out here is the border between the US and Mexico:
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5539.jpg

State Road 80 was a really neat ride, and pretty soon I arrived at the town of Bisbee. Bisbee was an old mining town that had its peak in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Over the last 20 years or so, it has grown as a tourist destination, and has become a bit of a artists' colony.

On the way into Bisbee, I found a side street (Erie St.), that led through what used to be the Lowell township. Many of the buildings in this old downtown area were boarded up, but the remaining buildings seemed to have been bought by gearheads. The street had several old cars, taxis, trucks, and even an old bus. The old vehicles, combined with all the old signs hanging on the buildings, made it feel like a trip back in time.


http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5561.jpg

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Between Lowell (which is now part of Bisbee) and the rest of Bisbee is an old mine:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5552.jpg

Bisbee was built in a small valley, and most of the town is built on the steep hillside. Much of "Old Bisbee" was built before automobiles were invented, and most of the roads are very narrow. The narrow steets were really fun to drive around on, but it was also easy to get lost on the narrow, one way, zig-zag streets.

Unfortunately, I didn't get very many good pictures of the narrow streets, but I did manage this picture below:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5570.jpg

And a section of Bisbee with wider streets:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5567.jpg

From Bisbee, I headed through an unexpected tunnel (woohoo!) on the west side of town, and continued on to Tombstone. Tombstone is an old mining town made famous by the Gunfight at O.K. Corral. Tombstone was a Wild West tourist trap with some gun-tote'n folks dressed in old garb and some neat old stage coaches.

I was a bit surprised by the lack of tourists around, but maybe people just didn't want to venture out to this geographical oddity in the middle of nowhere during the late summer days. I walked around a bit and found the neat old plank sidewalks to be the most amusing thing there.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5572-1.jpg

From Tombstone, I continued up to 80 to I-10. I picked up I-10 west and headed to Tucson. There were several things I wanted to see in Tucson, including the Pima Air and Space Museum and Saguaro National Park.

My first stop was Saguaro National Park, whose name comes from the many Saguaro cactus.

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http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5597.jpg

My plan was to camp at the park, but come to find out, the park has no camping facilities. After looking at my map, I decided to drive up to the Santa Catalina Natural Area and hopefully find a campground in the area. I was a bit bummed at my inability to camp at Saguaro, but I headed to the north side of Tucson and up the General Hitchcock/Catlina/Mt Lemmon Hwy. As it turns out, this was a fantastic drive, and the nigh views from this road were really great!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5614.jpg

I stayed overnight in a campground I found in the Santa Catalina Natural Area, and the next day I headed back down to Tucson for a visit to the Pima Air and Space Museum.

I'll cover Pima in my next post.

[Robinhood4x4]

Bump. :D

There might not be many replies, but we're all still watching with anticipation!

[DHC6twinotter]

:laugh: Sorry, I've been slacking.

My hard drive crapped out on me this morning, but for some reason it is working again. It's still under warranty, so Dell is going to send out a tech to replace the hard drive and LCD screen in the next few days.

Anyways, if the computer holds up, I'll throw up an update tonight or tomorrow.

[DHC6twinotter]

Arizona, Part 2: Pima Air and Space Museum

Alright, time for another update. I didn't realize it has been nearly 3 weeks since my last update. Sorry for the delay!

After spending the night up in Santa Catalina Natural Area, I headed back into Tucson for a visit to the Pima Air and Space Museum. This is one of the largest privately owned air and space museums in the world. The number of aircraft on display was amazing, and this is a really fantastic museum to visit.

The first plane that caught my interest was this Martin PBM-5A Mariner. I've never seen one of these, and as it turns out, this is only remaining Mariner.

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The Mariner had several interesting features. The landing gear retracted into the sides of the fuselage, which left room behind each engine for a bomb bays. The bomb bays could be used for a variety of applications, which included holding bombs or auxiliary fuel tanks. I thought this was a pretty neat idea, and it's the only aircraft that I can think of that has wing mounted bomb bays. Other interesting bits include a set of retracting doors in the nose to cover the bombsight, gull-wing shaped wings, and twin tails. It's a very neat looking airplane.

Next up was a TBM Avenger. These seem to be pretty popular aircraft, but as many times as I've seen these planes, I always find the hinge assembly in the wings fascinating. The wings rotate as they fold back, but the designers figured out a way to design this feature with just a single hinge point. It's a brilliant design that saves a lot of space on carriers decks.

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The museum consists of several large buildings and hangers, as well as a large outdoor exhibit area. Despite the super hot weather, I wondered around the outdoor exhibit a bit.

One of the first aircraft to catch my eye outside was this Boeing YC-14:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5665.jpg

The YC-14 was a twin jet prototype aircraft, which along with the quad jet McDonnell Douglas YC-15, was designed as a replacement to the C-130 aircraft. The program was scrapped, but the McDonnell Douglas YC-15 formed the bases for the larger C-17 that is in wide use today. The C-130 continues to fly today, with new "J" version being released a few years ago.

One of my all-time favorite bombers is the B-36 bomber. I saw one of these back in Nebraska, but I was thrilled to be able to see another here at Pima. The sheer size of the plane combined with the six 28 cylinder engines with pusher props and 4 turbojet engines make for a really unique bomber.

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Other aircraft on display include the majestic Lockheed Constellation:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5669.jpg

The Martin B-57 Canberra:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5685.jpg

And the Beech Starship. The Starship used carbon fiber throughout, including the airframe. Beech only sold a handfull of these aircraft, and it was great to see one on display at Pima.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5671.jpg

There were several strategic bombers as well, including this EB-47 Stratojet:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5683.jpg

And the Convair B-58 Hustler:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5686.jpg

While I was at the Pima Air and Space Museum, I opted to take the AMARG Boneyard tour. This is a bus tour of the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group's Boneyard located on Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. The amount of spare parts is amazing, but there were also some interesting aircraft on the tour.

Probably the most interesting aircraft on display in the boneyard was the Boeing YAL-L Airborne Laser Testbed. This aircraft is a Boeing 747-400F modified with a laser turret in the nose. The laser was used to shoot down missiles. The program was canceled a few years ago, and the plane was put in storage here at AMARG.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5667.jpg

And lastly, below is a mystery plane. Can anybody identify it?

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5675.jpg

It looks like a variant of the C-130 or L-100, but so far I haven't figured out exactly what it is. It looks like a stretched C-130A, but I haven't found anything suggesting there was ever a stretched "A" model. My next thought was that it might be a L-100-30, but from what I can tell, all those aircraft had 4 blade props. My guess is this must be some sort of prototype, but I can't find any info. Any guesses?

Pima definitely lived up to all the hype! There were a ton of aircraft on display and the number of rare aircraft really made this museum unique. Definitely worth a visit!

[DHC6twinotter]

Found out what the mystery plane was, but lets see if anybody else figures it out.

[4x4mike]

If I had to guess I'd say that's a C-133B.

[4x4mike]

I'd have a field day at the museum. As an adult I'm too distracted with other things to enjoy aircraft like I did when I was a kid. Must be because I get daily reports about a co-workers RV12 build. Growing up I lived near an AFB that saw a lot of traffic. From our house we could see all kinds of aircraft coming and leaving even though the base was at least 10 miles away.

I'd always day dream about planes, what they did and I had a pretty big collection of books. I have never been into drawing but I remember countless nights sitting on the floor drawing jets and helicopters. At another near-by base (both of which are closed now) we had family friends that lived on base. The husband worked and toured with the Thunderbirds and was always hooking me up with swag. I feel like I went to more air shows than family vacations.

BTW the C-133B came up right away in a google search of "USAF 0527". I'm much better at the internet than identifying planes.

[DHC6twinotter]

I'd have a field day at the museum. As an adult I'm too distracted with other things to enjoy aircraft like I did when I was a kid. Must be because I get daily reports about a co-workers RV12 build. Growing up I lived near an AFB that saw a lot of traffic. From our house we could see all kinds of aircraft coming and leaving even though the base was at least 10 miles away.

I'd always day dream about planes, what they did and I had a pretty big collection of books. I have never been into drawing but I remember countless nights sitting on the floor drawing jets and helicopters. At another near-by base (both of which are closed now) we had family friends that lived on base. The husband worked and toured with the Thunderbirds and was always hooking me up with swag. I feel like I went to more air shows than family vacations.

BTW the C-133B came up right away in a google search of "USAF 0527". I'm much better at the internet than identifying planes.


I think I'm just an all-around nerd. Aviation is another one of my nerdy interests. Like you, I also sat around and sketched airplanes when I was a kid. Having a friend in the Thunderbirds must have been awesome! It's been a few years since I've been to an airshow (Oshkosh in 2010). I really need to get to another one.

And right you are about the plane! It's one of 50 Douglas C-133s. It took me nearly 30 minutes of searching to figure that out. I never thought about just doing a search of "USAF 0527". :bangdesk:

[Robinhood4x4]

Did you make it to the Titan Missile museum?

[DHC6twinotter]

Arizona, Part 3

Onward! After hanging out at Pima Air and Space Museum for a day, I spent one more night in the Santa Catalina Natural Area. The next day, I picked up I10 and headed north towards Phoenix. I didn't really hang out too long in Phoenix, but I did make a quick stop at the LEGO store in Glendale.

After a stop at the LEGO store, I headed out of town on Hwy 60. I eventually wound up on state road 89 and made my way towards Prescott. As I drove up 89, the desert gave way to mountains and a greener landscape.

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Our family drove through the Phoenix area during our four years on the road, but I was younger and all I remembered was the desert area surrounding the city. I knew there were some forests around Flagstaff in the Northern part of AZ, but this much green just north of Phoenix surprised me.

The sun was low as I made my way through Peeples Valley. This area was dotted with white-fenced horse farms and lush landscape. It was amazingly beautiful. Despite the fantastic scenery, I drove through Peeples Valley without a single picture (bummer!). Shortly after driving through Peeples Valley, I hit another curvy section of 89. 89 was much more curvy than I had anticipated, and I wasn't making very good time. There was nowhere that I really needed to be by any certain time, but I was trying to make it to Prescott by dark. I failed. Miserably.

Nearly an hour after darkness crept in, I finished the last section of curves and pulled into Prescott. I crashed overnight in a hotel (3rd time on my trip I think?), and the next morning, I continued on 89 out of Prescott. Prescott lies in a bit of geological oddity. The south side of town is surrounded by forests, the north side of town has some fantastic rock formations, and Prescott Valley lies in a bit more of a deserty landscape (technically Prescott Valley is a separate town, but I lump it in with Prescott).

In the aforementioned rock formation section of Prescott was this housing development set amidst the rocks:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5710.jpg

I was a bit curious as to where the actual homes were supposed to be built, especially after seeing this particular lot:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5712.jpg

As it turns out, the homes are supposed to built atop the rocks. Aside from the model home, none were built yet.

So, shortly after passing through Prescott Valley on 89, I turned off onto 89A.

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After going through another section of fantastic, twisty roads I came upon the old mining town of Jerome.

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I ventured into one of the stores, which ended up being a sort of flea market type of thing. One of the stalls had these neat old signs:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5727.jpg

And I spotted this sign on the side of a building:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5721.jpg

Note the part of the sign that says, "Ladies Rest Room". I guess that means the men needed to go elsewhere, like a nearby tree. I dunno.

Anyway, the town of Jerome sits above a valley, and the views are really great:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5725.jpg

Jerome is a really neat town, and is probably one of my favorite towns I've driven through.

And, that is all for now.

[DHC6twinotter]

Did you make it to the Titan Missile museum?


Nope. I didn't know about it until a couple days ago when I was trying to figure out what the mystery plane was. To be honest though, I had already paid for museum entrance fee and the boneyard tour, and I don't think I would have spent any more on a missile tour. Sounds like it would have been really cool though!

[Crinale]

Your trip never ceases to amaze Dan

[DHC6twinotter]

Your trip never ceases to amaze Dan


Thanks! I'm really far behind in my updates, and I have a bunch more posts coming!

[DHC6twinotter]

Arizona, Part 4: Painted Desert and Petrified Forest

From Jerome, AZ, I continued north on state road 89A. Shortly after Jerome, I drove down into the valley below, passing through the town of Cottonwood on my way to Sedona. As I got closer to Sedona, the landscape started to change dramatically.

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But, more about Sedona later. My goal was to arrive in Flagstaff by dark, so I continued through Sedona without taking many pictures. However, my plans had me driving back through Sedona in a few weeks, so I'll cover a bit more of the area then. I'll have more pictures to post then too.

After driving through Sedona, I continued north on 89A, heading to Flagstaff. The section of 89A between Sedona and Flagstaff is another great stretch of road, which some nice curvy sections. As I gained altitude, the scenery went through a dramatic change once again, and the rock formations around Sedona gave way to forested hills. The scenery around Flagstaff reminded me more of Colorado than the rest of Arizona.

I stayed in Flagstaff for nearly a week. Even though I only averaged about 150-180 miles a day, I was ready for a break from spending days on the road. For the first time on my trip, I set up my tent and cot. The break from days on the road was really nice.

For some reason, I didn't take any pictures of the landscape surrounding Flagstaff, but I did manage this picture of a sign in the campground showers. The sometimes graphic stick figure pictures used on warning and caution signs can be pretty hilarious I think. This one is no exception:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_3841.jpg


After my stay in Flagstaff, I headed east on I40 and made my way to the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest National Park.

Some pictures of the Painted Desert:
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This old car marks a spot where old route 66 passed through:
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5758.jpg

Petrified Forest National Park:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5778.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5790.jpg

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http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5814.jpg

So far, Arizona has been a spectacular state, and is probably one of my favorite states I've been to. I'll continue to cover more of Arizona in the next few posts.

[DHC6twinotter]

Arizona, Part 5

The plan was to go from the Petrified Forest National Park and make my way back down to Phoenix. I'll be flying back home to NC for a week or so. My sister and her husband and their three young kids (2,5, and 7) are moving to the Philippines. They, along with myself, and my brother and his wife, are getting together with my parents for the last time in a while. My original plan was to backtrack to Flagstaff, go see the Grand Canyon, and then drive down to Phoenix to catch my flight out. However, instead of doing that, I decided to head straight to Phoenix from the petrified forest. This will save some miles, and it'll give me the chance to see the eastern part of Arizona.

So, from the Petrified Forest National Park, I headed west on I40 and backtracked to the town of Holbrook. Once in Holbrook, I picked up state road 77 and headed south. As I headed south, the scenery changed from a desert landscape to an amazing area covered in Juniper and Pinyon forest. As I got closer to the town of Show Low, the Juniper and Pinyon forests gave way to Ponderosa Pines. I find the continuous change of landscapes here in AZ completely fascinating.

I stayed overnight in the town of Show Low. I found a campsite along the Fool Hollow Lake in the Fool Hollow State Park. This campground was super nice--almost too nice. Each campsite had a large cement area to park and pitch a tent, as well as a cement area around the fire pit. The whole campsite was large and overlooked the lake.

Anyways, the next day, I picked up state road 77/Hwy 60 (Hwy 60 merges with SR77 in Show Low) once again and headed south. The area south of Show Low reminded me quite a bit of Flagstaff:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5818-Copy.jpg

After driving a bit further, 77/60 started running alongside this canyon:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5830-Copy.jpg

But after a while, that small canyon turned into this:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5831-Copy.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5837-Copy.jpg

Turns out this is the Salt River Canyon. It was awesome. Totally unexpected too. I love it when I bump into unexpected stuff like this. Some of the most amazing places I've been on this trip have been total surprises. I guess that's part of what makes these places so amazing! I don't know why this place isn't a National Monument or something, but I thought it was pretty rad.

Anyways, after continued on 77/60 south, I filled up with fuel in Globe, AZ. State road 77 and Hwy 60 split in Globe, and I took the 60 split west for a few miles before getting on state road 188. I took 188 to Theodore Roosevelt Lake:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5847-Copy.jpg

At the Theodore Roosevelt Lake Dam, I headed south on 88. Unbeknownst to me, state road 88 includes 28 miles of dirt roads. Woohoo! Also unbeknownst to me, this route was known as the Apache Trail, which was an old stagecoach route originally used by the Apache Indians to traverse the Superstition Mountains.

The road was pretty well maintained, although sections were probably narrower and steeper than some folks would probably feel comfortable with. The scenery was spectacular though:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5848-Copy.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5850-Copy.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5856.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5857.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5862.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5864.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5867.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5871.jpg

And I spotted this bit of graffiti on one of the few barriers:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/IMG_5868.jpg

I don't know why, but it cracked me up.

My original plan was to camp in a campground by Tortilla Flats, but that was closed. So, after consulting my map, I continued on to Lost Dutchman State Park, just outside of Apache Junction, AZ, which is part of the Phoenix metropolitan area.

My earlier change of plans meant that I had a couple extra days in the Phoenix area before my flight out to NC, so I stayed a couple nights in the Lost Dutchman State Park. This was a nice campground, and pretty empty as well. It was really hot though, which I guess accounts for the emptiness. I had a whole day to do nothing, so I made another trip to the LEGO store, did some plane spotting at the PHX airport, and worked on my blog from the Apache Junction Library (which is the only library thus far to make me pay for a temporary card to use their wifi).

And after a couple days camping, I caught my flight back to NC. And, in case you're wondering, the campground I was at had some pretty nice showers, so, no, my fellow passengers on the plane didn't have to put up with a stinky neighbor.

Next up, I've got a couple more posts about AZ before moving on to UT.

[DHC6twinotter]

Arizona, Part 6

Now that the site is up and running again, I should probably continue with my updates.

After a great time with the family in NC, I flew back to Pheonix, AZ. As the Boeing 757-200 made its approach into PHX, people started pointing out the left side of the plane. Turns out a massive dust storm was about to hit the airport. I have never experienced a dust storm before, and the long and high dust cloud was really impressive! Just after we touched down and made our way to the terminal, the dust cloud engulfed the airport. As it turns out, we were the last flight to land before the dust storm hit. It was a pretty awesome experience.

After picking up my car at the airport, I headed back to the Lost Dutchman State Park for one more night at this campground. The next morning, I headed north on State Road 87 and began to make my way back to Flagstaff once again. 87 was another scenic drive, much like parts of 89. Shortly after fueled up in Payson, I headed west on state road 260. This took me to I17, which I took northbound for a few miles before taking an exit towards the Montezuma Castle National Monument.

Montezuma Castle National Monument was a pretty neat place. It's a small park, but the ruins are pretty neat.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5894.jpg

From Montezume Castle National Monument, I headed north on I17 for a few more miles and picked up state road 179 to Sedona.

The drive along 179 was amazing, especially as I got closer to Sedona. This area has some pretty fantastic scenery:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5917.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5912.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5903.jpg

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5906.jpg

I also stopped at the Church of the Holy Cross for some pictures of this church built atop the rocks:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5934.jpg

Sedona isn't a place I would want to live, but the scenery surrounding the area is beautiful. The pictures I took aren't that great and don't to this place justice.

From Sedona, I headed back up 89A to Flagstaff and, once again, stayed overnight at the KOA in Flagstaff. The next morning, I started out towards the Grand Canyon. However, as I drove through Flagstaff to pick up Highway 180, I noticed a classic car show had closed most of the downtown streets. Never one to pass up a good car show, I stopped and checked out some of the cars. Below are some of my favorites:

VW bus:
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5959-1.jpg

Early 50's Pontiac (my favorite car at the show):
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5955-1.jpg

I love the old Pontiacs, especially the late 40's and early 50s models. They boast some pretty awesome chrome trim. The car above sits a bit lower than I would have liked, but otherwise, I really like it.

Back To The Future Delorean:
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5952.jpg

FJ-40
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5948-1.jpg

An awesome early 50's Chevy truck with all the period accessories:
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5938.jpg

And a custom bus (with real old people hanging out inside)
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm233/DHC6twinotter/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5945-1.jpg

That unexpected car show was a nice surprise. Next stop, the Grand Canyon.

[Robinhood4x4]

Yeah, sedona is a funny place. It's a really cool place to hike, but you could be walking down the trail thinking you're in the middle of nowhere, and then turn a corner and find yourself in the middle of a bunch of mansions.

Except for all the hippy crap, the wife and I really like it.

[DHC6twinotter]

Except for all the hippy crap, the wife and I really like it.

Yeah, that's why I wouldn't want to live there. Otherwise, it's a neat place.

[DHC6twinotter]

Arizona, Part 7: The Grand Canyon

From the car show in Flagstaff, I headed north on highway 180. I circled around Humphreys Peak (highest point in AZ) and continued on to the road's end in Grand Canyon Village. Driving around Grand Canyon Village reminded me of a trip our family made to the Grand Canyon around '92 or so. The horn on our '84 Buick Century started going off and wouldn't shut up. I felt like we were the attraction of the week as we drove around Grand Canyon Village with the horn blaring. It was a bit embarrassing, and I was happy when the horn finally blew itself out. This was the 2nd time the horn broke on our trip out West, with the first time being in front of the Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood. That 4 years our family spent on the road was awesome.

Anyway, I drove around Grand Canyon Village a bit, and took a few pictures.

El Tovar Lodge:
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_5978_zpsd1f4fb38.jpg

And I took some pictures from the area surrounding the Grand Canyon Visitor Center:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon2_zpsff30a62d.jpg

I planned to camp at the Desert View Campground, so after lunch at the Yavapai Cafeteria, I headed east on the Desert View Drive. After my poor camping experience at Yellowstone, I wanted to save my camp spot early. Along the way, I stopped for a couple of pictures; here's one of them:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon9_zps6d508d63.jpg

After a bit of a drive, I arrived at the Desert View Campground. It was mid-afternoon by now, but even so, the campsite was surprisingly full. I paid my $12 at a super nifty computerized site reservation thing, put my reservation tag on the campsite post, and left my camp chair at the site to make it extra obvious that I claimed the camp spot.

Once the campsite was reserved, I made the short drive to the Desert View Watchtower:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon10_zps20f77aa2.jpg

And a few pictures from the tower:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon11_zps091188e7.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon14_zpsb8cc7586.jpg

I then made back west on the Desert View Drive. The sun was getting low, and I figured the drive back to the Grand Canyon Visitor Center would make for some nice photo opportunities:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon17_zps41ee9f5f.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon17_zps82c1975d.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon18_zps4fbfe4e7.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon19_zpsab1bca1c.jpg

I eventually made it back to Yavapai Point and picked a spot to watch the sunset.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon27_zps246f2eb1.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon26_zps9680d1d9.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon23_zps4eb2aecf.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon29_zps80f927f6.jpg

And my camera battery died. D'oh! The Yavapai Point and Geology Museum was about 20ft from me, so I headed over for a quick battery charge. They were closing in 15 minutes, but the nice lady there let me charge the battery up to the point they had to lock the doors.

After the quick battery charge, I made the hour or so drive back to the Desert View Campground. I found my campsite, but after pulling into my spot, I realized my camp chair was gone. Thinking I may have backed over my chair, the first place I checked was under the 4Runner. Nothing there. Next I checked the trees. I thought maybe somebody was playing some kind of practical joke on me and hung my chair in a tree. Nothing there. Looks like somebody took my chair. I went to bed a bit frustrated that somebody took my chair. Bummer!

While eating breakfast the next morning, I reflected on the dire circumstances from the night before. Why would somebody take my chair? Maybe they thought I didn't want it anymore and that I was giving it away. I dunno. Anyways, after breakfast, I headed back to the Desert View Watchtower for some morning pictures. Here's one of them:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/GrandCanyon31_zpsdfa5ce7a.jpg

The Grand Canyon is amazing. After the pictures at the Desert View Watchtower, I headed out of the park and started to make my way towards Utah. More of that in my next post...

[Robinhood4x4]

People suck, thus the reason I hate people. It's probably because you're at a national park which attracts more of the dishonest city people. Anyway, nice pictures.

[paddlenbike]

Hey Dan,
I have greatly enjoyed reading your travel blog and seeing your photos. I was really worried when the forum went down that it was gone forever, I am so glad that is not the case. Honestly, you've got the best thing going on the web. :)

I would like to hear a little about how you do your trip planning. Do you have a general idea where you're going and what you want to see along the way, or do you have it all planned out with each town, attraction and scenic spot identified in advance? And how about your overnight stays, it seems like you just wing it and hope you can get a campsite? Just curious.

Ken

[DHC6twinotter]

People suck, thus the reason I hate people. It's probably because you're at a national park which attracts more of the dishonest city people. Anyway, nice pictures.

It was a bummer, but thankfully, it was only a $10.00 chair from Wal-Mart. It still frustrated me that somebody would steal my chair, but I dunno, maybe they just thought I left it out because I didn't want it anymore. I dunno.


Hey Dan,
I have greatly enjoyed reading your travel blog and seeing your photos. I was really worried when the forum went down that it was gone forever, I am so glad that is not the case. Honestly, you've got the best thing going on the web. :)

I would like to hear a little about how you do your trip planning. Do you have a general idea where you're going and what you want to see along the way, or do you have it all planned out with each town, attraction and scenic spot identified in advance? And how about your overnight stays, it seems like you just wing it and hope you can get a campsite? Just curious.

Ken

Thanks Ken! I was pretty happy to find that my thread was still here when the forum came back online. I have a blog that I've been posting on as well, so if this trip thread was lost, I still would have had the trip report backed up there. I do plan on copying everything over to a Word document too, just for addition backup. Several people have told me I should write a book about my trip too, although I think it would be a pretty boring book for most folks. Having everything in Word would help me see how much content I actually have. My book would read something like this, "I took state road 198 to hwy 34, then headed through Timbuktu where I took a bunch of pictures. Then I drove down Interstate 26 state road 34. There were trees and mountains and I took more pictures..." lol. I just don't know how interesting a book would be.

Route Planning
As far as trip planning goes, I pretty much just winged everything. Before I left on my trip, I had a general idea of where I wanted to go and a few things I wanted to see, but not really sure where I would stay. I'm a bit of a geography buff (I have a degree in Geographic Information Systems), and over the years I've studied maps just for the fun of it. I even had a map sitting next the toilet. There were certain national parks I knew I wanted to see again, and I also wanted to drive the Alpine Loop, visit Sandpoint, ID (mainly because that's where the Quest Kodiak bush plane is built), drive the Beartooth Highway (my favorite road so far), and explore some of the high altitude roads in CO.

My plans did change a few times, and my trip up to North Dakota was a last minute change. Also, my idea to see every national park in the U.S. (well, at least in the lower 48) didn't occur to me until I had already made my way to the Dakotas, or perhaps even Montana. I realized my travels would be taking me close to most of the parks, so I decided to try and see every national park. It's a bummer I hadn't thought of this sooner, because I drove pretty close to a couple of parks while I was further east.

I had a few events I had to schedule around as well. I left NC in June, and I knew I needed to be in Chicago for the LEGO convention, 2 weeks later in Lincoln, NE for a small family reunion, and I wanted to make it to California in time for Pismo.

Weather also played a role in my trip planning. I wanted to make it to Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and Colorado during the summer when there was less of a chance to hit snow in the higher elevations. I also wanted to avoid the heat in the southwest, and my plans had my going through that area in October and September. As far as weather goes, the planing came out almost perfect. I was able to drive through the high altitude passes that I wanted to hit, and didn't have too much cold or extreme heat to deal with. The weather was pretty much perfect through the entire trip, although I did have a couple of cold nights later on, and 3 or 4 uncomfortably hot nights in North Dakota and Tucson, AZ.

I winged pretty much everything else. Unless I had an exact route I wanted to drive down (like Beartooth Highway or the PCH), my exact route was usually figured out a day or two ahead of time. I would also take suggestions from friends, family, or fellow travelers that I met along the way. The Needles Highway, Pioneer Museum, PCH, and the Devil's Tower were all suggestions from other people.

I was rarely 100% sure where I would be the next day, so all my overnight stays were last minute. My original plan was to stay in as much free camping as possible (primitive National Forest sites or BLM land), and while I did do some of this, I found that I preferred camping in designated camping areas. Most of the time, I stayed in National Forest campgrounds, and I tried to stay at a KOA every 4 or 5 days; mainly for a shower, internet, and chance to wash clothes. I stayed in a hotel, I think, 4 times before I made my run up the west coast. It was already later in the season once I made my run up the west coast, so many of the campgrounds were closed, and I stayed in motels a bit more frequently on that trip.

I have a Rand McNally Map that I used for pretty much everything (I don't have a GPS) and it lists national forest campgrounds. Most of the time, using this map worked pretty good for finding campsites, but every now and then, I would arrive at the campground only to find it had been closed. Otherwise, the Rand McNally was pretty good. Once in a while I'd use Google maps to review a route, and once I used my Delorme Map software to get find a forest road (more on that later).

The entire trip up the west coast and back was last minute. I had hoped to have a job ready for me by the time I made to AZ or CA, but since that wasn't the case, I decided to make the run up from CA to WA and back.

Part of me enjoyed making a trip that wasn't all planned out. There are places like Wisdom, MT, the Salt River Canyon, the Apache Trail, or Monument Valley that I may have not seen otherwise. But, there are also times that I wished I had done more planning. The Titan Missile Museum in AZ, the Wright-Patterson National Museum of the Air force in OH, the upside-down waterfall in Riffle, CO, or Cuyahoga Valley National Park in OH are all places I wished I had stopped at.

Food:
Breakfasts were almost always milk and cereal. I almost always had fruit as well, usually a cup of diced peaches and a banana. Once in a while I would grab breakfast at a restaurant.
Lunches were done on the road. I often ate a late lunch around 2 or so, and most of the time it was at a restaurant.
I didn't always eat dinner, especially if I had a late lunch. If I did eat dinner, I'd make my taco salad (which I covered a while back), or just pop open a can of something. I did bring my two burner camp stove with me, but I never used it, except for at Pismo.

Fuel:
Also, one last thing to add: I rarely let my fuel get much below half a tank. Fuel stations are a bit more scarce out west than they are on the east coast, and I wanted to make sure I wouldn't run out of fuel. I averaged about 160 miles or so a day, so I would add a bit over 1/2 tank of fuel once a day. My trip up the west coast was a bit more rushed, so I used quite a bit more fuel on that trip.


Overall I've been super happy with how my trip has gone thus far. The trip report and blog is about 5 months behind though, which I feel bad about. I've now put 27k on the 4Runner since I left home in June, and while the main part of my trip is done, I still have plenty of exploring to do. I don't think my "North American Journey" will ever come to a complete end.

Sorry for the long-winded reply. :D

[paddlenbike]

I just don't know how interesting a book would be.


The content would not be fitting of a non-fiction novel as you would want something to incorporate photos and maps. Something along the lines of my "Backcountry Adventures" book would be perfect though. For each area of interest there is a general background section, history, how to get there, photos and map and/or driving instruction with GPS waypoints.



As far as trip planning goes, I pretty much just winged everything.

That's awesome. I find that doesn't work super well in California's over-populated campgrounds, particularly if you travel on holidays and weekends like I do, but midweek travel is probably fine. I'm also impressed you don't use GPS. I still have maps in my truck but I can't remember the last time I looked at them, perhaps I should. I do still occasionally use paper maps for trip planning though.


and explore some of the high altitude roads in CO.

2-3 weeks in Colorado is high on my list. I want to see Imogene pass, Black Bear Pass, Engineer Pass, etc. 2014? Let's go Dan!


Part of me enjoyed making a trip that wasn't all planned out.

I do like to leave wiggle room in my plans so I can spend more time in places I really like. Sounds like you had tons of flexibility.


Breakfasts were almost always milk and cereal. I almost always had fruit as well, usually a cup of diced peaches and a banana. Once in a while I would grab breakfast at a restaurant.
Lunches were done on the road.

Do you have a powered refrigerator or did you bring along an ice chest? Just curious.


Overall I've been super happy with how my trip has gone thus far. The trip report and blog is about 5 months behind though, which I feel bad about. I've now put 27k on the 4Runner since I left home in June, and while the main part of my trip is done, I still have plenty of exploring to do. I don't think my "North American Journey" will ever come to a complete end.

That's great, just what the 4Runner was made for. Keep it up Dan, and thanks for taking the time to reply! I have more to say but that will have to come later.
ken

[DHC6twinotter]

The content would not be fitting of a non-fiction novel as you would want something to incorporate photos and maps. Something along the lines of my "Backcountry Adventures" book would be perfect though. For each area of interest there is a general background section, history, how to get there, photos and map and/or driving instruction with GPS waypoints.

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. With all the tourists coming over and renting RVs, I've thought about making a type of travel guide. I've thought about doing another shorter road trip and creating a 4 week travel guide for all the tourists that come over. It would basically be turn-by-turn directions with GPS coordinates, pictures, etc.

Looking back, I kinda wish I would have invested in a bit of camera equipment and done a whole youtube series about my trip.



That's awesome. I find that doesn't work super well in California's over-populated campgrounds, particularly if you travel on holidays and weekends like I do, but midweek travel is probably fine. I'm also impressed you don't use GPS. I still have maps in my truck but I can't remember the last time I looked at them, perhaps I should. I do still occasionally use paper maps for trip planning though.

I have an inherit miss-trust of GPS devices. That being said though, there were a few times that a GPS would have been nice, and I do wish I could have plotted my route and marked waypoints.



2-3 weeks in Colorado is high on my list. I want to see Imogene pass, Black Bear Pass, Engineer Pass, etc. 2014? Let's go Dan!


I would love to do another trip to CO! Maybe even hit some of the trails in Moab along the way. A friend and I have been discussing a desire to do something like this.



I do like to leave wiggle room in my plans so I can spend more time in places I really like. Sounds like you had tons of flexibility.


Yup, I like my flexibility. :D It's funny though, even though I've been on the road since June and have had quite a bit of flexibility, it seemed like there was always an event or something that I had to rush to. :laugh:



Do you have a powered refrigerator or did you bring along an ice chest? Just curious.


Just a small ice chest that I keep behind the driver's seat. I also have a box of food that I keep behind the driver's seat. One of these days I'll post some pictures about my vehicle setup. Can't believe I haven't done that yet.



That's great, just what the 4Runner was made for. Keep it up Dan, and thanks for taking the time to reply! I have more to say but that will have to come later.
ken

Thanks, Ken! The 4Runner has been great!

[DHC6twinotter]

Arizona, Part 8: Lake Powell

By now, I suppose most of you that are reading this have figured out that my posts are pretty far behind. In fact, they're about 5 or 6 months behind. Sorry about that. Lately, I've been trying to post an update every week or two, and I think over the next month or two, we should be a little more caught up. Maybe. Anyway, I mention this because my loop through Utah was a bit rushed. I only had a few weeks to make it to Pismo Beach, California in time for the Pismo Jamboree. Even though I was a bit rushed, I was able to cover quite a bit of ground in Utah, but I didn't get to see everything I wanted to.

But, before we get to Utah, I thought I'd just post a few more pictures of the drive through Arizona, from the Grand Canyon to Lake Powell on the AZ/UT border.

When I left the Grand Canyon, I headed up state road 64. 64 runs along the Little Colorado River, which also flows through a nice canyon. I turned off on a short dirt road and hiked down to an overlook.

Next to the dirt road were these buildings:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6226_zpse871b0d0.jpg

And a view of the canyon:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6225_zps34986c3c.jpg

After some pictures of the canyon, I continued east on 64. Along the way, I noticed these neat looking contrails (I'm a bit of an aviation geek too):

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6227_zps4026ee70.jpg

I continued on 64 to Hwy 89, and took Hwy 89 north towards the town of Page and Lake Powell. This section of Hwy 89 goes through the Navajo Indian Reservation, and the scenery is pretty fantastic.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6231_zpsa178c6d6.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6239_zpsdf071e90.jpg

I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but back when I had my clutch replaced in Nebraska, one of the mechanics must have bumped my USB thumb drive that was plugged into my stereo. The thumb drive was cracked, and any effort I made to fix it proved futile. Other than a couple of worn out CDs and whatever I can pick up on the radio, this thumb drive was my only source of music. Now it's broke. Needless to say, during the thousands of miles I've driven, I've relied on my two CDs, the sound of my tires on the pavement, the lovely sound of my engine (I really do like it!), and whatever I can pick up on the radio. All this is to say that, while on this stretch of 89, the only signal my radio would pick up was from a Navajo radio station. Some of what was played from from this station was pretty interesting, including one particular song that was a funky mix of English rap and Navajo singing.

Anyways, as I listing to my one radio station, I made the beautiful drive up to Page. Page lies on the southern edge of Lake Powell, which was formed when a dam was built on the Colorado River.

Glen Canyon Dam:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6243_zpsb716382a.jpg

Glen Canyon Dam Bridge over the Colorado River:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6242_zpsb619c0d9.jpg

Lake Powell:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6246_zps704fd40d.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6256_zpse717e800.jpg

While in Page, I stopped at a gas station to fill up with fuel. As I pulled up next to the pump, a young couple approached me. Turns out they were Italians, and with very broken English, they asked me to help them fuel their car. They were unsure which of the four types of fuel to put into their Toyota Yaris, nor did they know how to go about paying for fuel. I showed them how to prepay with cash and told them just to use regular unleaded for their Yaris. I know what it's like being in a new country, so it was nice to be able to help them out.

I grabbed some lunch in page, and drove around a bit. I really wanted to check out Antelope Canyon, but I didn't feel like paying or waiting for one of the tour vehicles. So, I continued on. Looking back, I kinda wish had done the tour, but I'll make it back someday.

I picked up state road 98 in Page, and after a while, I headed east on Hwy 160. Along the way, I noticed this electrified railroad:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Mojave%20Road%202013/IMG_6265_zps551d3d26.jpg

I was perplexed. What is an electric train line doing out here in the middle of nowhere!? So bizarre. 98 and 160 paralleled the tracks for a while, and I was hoping to see some electric locomotives, but I never saw any trains. I spent the next few days wondering what this railroad was used for, and it wasn't until I had access to internet that I was able to research the railroad. As it turns out, the railroad is the Black Mesa and Lake Powell Railroad, which is a 78 mile long railroad that transports coal from the the Kayenta Mine to the Navajo Generating Station. The power plant can be seen in the background of an earlier picture I posted.

I continued east on 160 before heading north on Hwy 163. 163 goes through the Monument Valley, which I will cover in my next post...

[DHC6twinotter]

Utah, Part 1

Just a shorter update this time...

As I crossed the Arizona and Utah border on Hwy 163, I entered into Monument Valley. Monument Valley is one of the places that I had totally forgotten about when I decided to do the trip. While I was in Page, I really wasn't sure what route to take to Arches National Park in Utah.. I had considered taking Hwy 89 up to state road 12 and going east, but in the end, I decided to take Hwy 163 and a few other roads to Arches. As I was reviewing my map, I realized 163 would take me through Monument Valley. Awesome! I felt pretty dumb for forgetting about Monument Valley, but the drive was pretty fantastic.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6267_zpsbd47fab3.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6270_zps579f3c70.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6277_zpsff951c74.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6283_zps958ad854.jpg

After driving through Monument Valley, I picked up state road 261 and headed North. Natural Bridges National Monument was sort of on the way to Arches, so I figured I would swing by and check it out this small National Monument.

Anyway, state road 261 looked like a shortcut on the map, so I figured I'd take this road to Natural Bridges. The scenery was pretty awesome:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6293_zpscb82be03.jpg

Farther up 261, I came up to what looked like a dead end. According to my map, 261 was supposed to go all the way up to state road 95, but I was scratching my head when I saw this:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6300_zpsf197d81d.jpg

Where's the road? I was a bit perplexed, but I kept on driving. I passed a "Pavement Ends" sign, and I figured that was better than "Dead End". As it turns out, the road does some pretty awesome switchbacks up the hill:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6310_zpsca783112.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6302_zps3a5c88ac.jpg

And the 4Runner:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6303_zps3f6f12be.jpg

Eventually, I made it to the top of the hill, and the road turned back into pavement. My original plan was to camp at the Natural Bridges National Monument, but the sun was getting pretty low. I generally try not to set up camp in the dark, so I kept an eye out for a spot to camp. As it turns out, I found a pretty nice BLM campsite along 261. Free camping is nice!

I'll cover Natural Bridges, and a bit more in my next post...

[Robinhood4x4]

Very nice Dan.

[DHC6twinotter]

Utah, Part 2: Natural Bridges, Canyonlands, and Parts In Between

After staying overnight in a primitive BLM campsite, I headed north to the Natural Bridges National Monument. I arrived shortly after they opened, and it looked like I was the first in the park. The first place I stopped at was the Welcome Center, which has become my normal routine. Whenever I get to a park, my routine is to pick up a park map (which I've been collecting), check out any points of interest that may be pictured on the walls, make use of their bathroom facilities, and collect road and camping information.

Natural Bridges National Monument is pretty small, and there is a single one-way road that loops through the park. Even though the park was fairly small, I was surprised at the number of arches.

There were several smaller arches like this:
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6313_zps78451885.jpg

And a larger arch like this one:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6347_zpsafcb704a.jpg

The above arch was surprisingly large, and I believe it's been featured on the front cover of National Geographic Magazine.

Most of the arches required a short hike to get to, and while on one of these hikes, I spotted these vultures:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6323_zps1200a49b.jpg

They reminded me of the vultures from The Jungle Book:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGTWmrnPdgk

Anyway, after spending a few hours in Natural Bridges National Monument, I headed east on state road 95 before picking up US Highway 191 North towards Moab.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6360_zpsf4096797.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6368_zpsf3af2b02.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6371_zpsf82486a4.jpg

Utah has five National Parks, and my goal was to see all five. First up was the south end of Canyonlands National Park. Canyonlands has two sections, a south and north, and there are no roads within the park that links the two sections. After driving up Hwy 191 for a while, I headed west on state road 211. 211 is basically just an entrance road to the south side of Canyonlands, and the road dead-ends in the park. The drive to the park was surprisingly long, but the views were fantastic. I actually like the views along 211 better than any of the views within the south end of the park.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6374_zpsb51da073.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6380_zps9fabc138.jpg

And after a fairly long drive, I finally made it to the south end of Canyonlands National Park.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6393_zps69cbfca6.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6405_zps8c78b0f9.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6421_zpsb4833eee.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6429_zps3c3f3b87.jpg

The south end of Canyonlands was ok. If you like hiking, you will love this place. But, for non-physically fit people like myself, there isn't a whole lot the south end of the park has to offer. The views coming into the park were pretty awesome though. I managed a few short hikes while I was in the park, but after a half-day, I felt like I had seen most of what the south side had to offer. I made my way back on 211, and picked up Hwy 191 North once again. This time I'm heading towards Arches National Park...

[Good Times]

awesome trek Dan! I can't wait to go visit Canyonlands myself! :)

[DHC6twinotter]

Thanks, Lance! The south side of Canyonlands is so-so, but the north side is pretty nice and has the White Rim Trail. Due to flash flood warnings, the trail was closed when I went. I would love to go back and run the White Rim Trail.

I'll cover the north side of Canyonlands in my next post.

[DHC6twinotter]

Actually, I lied in my last post. I'll cover the north side of Canyonlands in my post after this post. I'll post about Arches National Park in this post.


Utah, Part 3: Arches National Park

From the south side of Canyonlands National Park, I headed up to Arches National Park. Arches is just north of Moab, so as I passed through Moab, I stopped by the KOA and reserved a campsite. This KOA ended up being ok, but the internet connection was terrible.

Anyways, after reserving my campsite, I headed into Arches National Park for some evening shots:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6437_zpsb220321d.jpg

Balancing Rock:
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6443_zpsc9ce77bd.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6449_zpsc1d2b61e.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6457_zpsc3d0ca50.jpg

Arches National Park isn't very large, and I was able to drive around probably about 2/3 of it in one evening. After a few pictures, I headed back to camp.

The north end of Canyonlands National Park is pretty close to Arches National Park, so the next day I bounced back and forth between the two parks. I started off in Arches to take advantage of the morning light:


http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6472_zps3d814443.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6490_zpsa2ee31c6.jpg

After a few morning pictures, I headed over to the north end of Canyonlands National Park. For the sake of consistency, I'll cover Canyonlands in my next post. So, after spending an afternoon in Canyonlands, I headed back to Arches. As I pulled into the park, I was informed that the campsite was full. Bummer, I had planned to stay in the park for the night. However, I did find out that there were quite a few campsites along the Colorado River, which was just outside of the park. So, I continued on into the park for a few more pictures:

Landscape Arch (large enough for a football field to fit underneath)
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6656_zps5cb95fdb.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6660_zps86c8bea0.jpg

It was getting late, so after the few pictures, I headed out of the park to look for a campsite. State roads 128 and 279 run along the Colorado River and there are numerous campsites along the river. The campsites were surprisingly full, but I did manage to find a campsite about 5 miles up 128. The campsites along the river are pretty fantastic and have nice views of the canyon walls on either side. I liked it.

The next day, I headed back into Arches for a few more pictures.

An '80s MAN military truck that a Dutch couple converted into an RV. It drew quite a bit of attention:
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6463_zpsbff58731.jpg

Double Arch:
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6685_zpsd1047b3a.jpg

North and South Window Arches:
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6692_zps5ac2abac.jpg

Skyline Arch:
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6714_zps6dc22fc5.jpg

Delicate Arch:
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6694_zpse38098c8.jpg

Delicate Arch is probably the most famous arch in the park. It also appears on the Utah license plates. There are several trails to view the arch from, with the best views being along a pretty long, strenuous hike. Most of the arches in the park require a bit of a hike to get to, and while I did ok with the 3 mile round trip hike to Landscape Arch, I opted to skip the long hike up to the base of Delicate Arch. There is a viewing spot pretty close to the parking lot, so I just snapped a few pictures from there.

I had a blast in the park. The views in the park are fantastic, and Arches National Park is definitely one of my favorite parks. I'd probably put it in at number 5 on my list.

That evening, I headed back to a campsite along the Colorado River.

[DHC6twinotter]

Utah, Part 4: Canyonlands, Capital Reef, and an Old Bridge

During my stay near Arches National Park, I made a side trip to the north end of Canyonlands National Park. The turnoff to the north section of Canyonlands is only a few miles from the entrance to Arches, and it is definitely worth a drive to the park. However, like the south side of the park, it's a fairly long drive from the main highway turnoff to the visitor center.

The north side of Canyonlands National Park is also known as the Island In The Sky part of the park. The road on this side of the park is at a much higher elevation and offers excellent views of the canyon below. In contrast, the roads in the south side of the park pretty much follow the canyon floor. That may sound pretty neat, but I liked the north side of the park much better.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6517_zpsb0189eee.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6577_zps8fabe221.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6584_zps1cace1c9.jpg

While in the park, I stopped by Mesa Arch:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6612_zpsf4648ee8.jpg

Does anybody recognize the spot in the above picture? If you have Windows 7 on your computer, there is a picture taken from this exact location. The picture below is a little more like the one in Windows 7, although the Windows version has better lighting:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6602_zpsf7d8862f.jpg

This probably sounds pretty dumb, but one of my goals was to find some of the Windows 7 picture locations, so I was pretty thrilled when I discovered the arch. Anyway, the arch is much, much larger than it looks in the pictures above. What you see in the pictures above is probably only the top quarter of the arch. The base of the arch is much further down the face of the cliff.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6606_zps3af5198e.jpg

On my way out of the park, I stopped and took some pictures of the White Rim Trail:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6617_zpse37a000b.jpg

I really wanted to make a drive down the trail, but the trail was closed due to flash flood warnings. I also didn't have enough fuel to run the whole trail (I believe it's nearly 60 miles round trip just from the start of the trail to the nearest fuel station). One day, I will return and run the trail.

Canyonlands National Park is pretty fantastic. I wouldn't say it's one of my favorites, but definitely worth a visit. If you like to hike, this park offers many, many miles of hiking trails. One of the more popular hikes seems to be to the convergence of the Green and Colorado Rivers.

After my visit to the Canyonlands, I fueled up in Moab and headed back to camp along the Colorado River.

The next morning, I decided to make my way to Capital Reef National Park. On my way out, I decided to follow the road that ran past my campsite, state road 128. It was a bit out of the way, but I wanted to explore more of the canyon I was camped in.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6720_zps6910c28e.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6723_zps78427b73.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6727_zps803048a2.jpg

After driving down 128 for a few miles, I was surprised to see this old bridge:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6740_zps63542961.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6737_zps61b34a81.jpg

This is the Dewey Bridge that was built in 1916. The bridge crosses the Colorado River and creates a link between southeastern Utah and Colorado. When constructed, it was the 2nd longest suspension bridge west of the Mississippi, and it is currently both the longest suspension bridge and the longest clear span bridge in Utah.

I continued up 128 and picked up I70 west for nearly 60 miles or so. I topped up with fuel once again, and headed south on state road 24.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6756_zpsaa6ef7b6.jpg

Just before reaching Capital Reef, the scenery changed dramatically:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6768_zps32ea80f7.jpg

The monochromatic landscape was so weird! I felt like I was on the moon! (Disclaimer: I've never been to the moon, so don't take this as an accurate representation of the landscape)

The black and white scenery didn't last very long, and shortly after, I arrived in Capital Reef National Park.

To be continued....

[4x4mike]

Great pictures. Canyonlands and Arches is a wonderful place. So much to see and take in. When we were there we had one of those Vortex maps that point out where there was a vortex of spirit, energy, etc. I think it was just a tourist map but it took us to all the neat arches and views.

It's been 10 years now but I rode the White Rim Trail on a mountain bike. It's definitely worth the effort.

[Good Times]

great pic of Dewey Bridge! lovin the report!

[DHC6twinotter]

...continued:


I wasn't sure what to expect from Capital Reef National Park. It's not a park that is talked about much, and I didn't even know it existed until I was looking at my map. The park was along my route, and I figured I might as well check it out. It is one of the 5 National Parks that make up Utah's "Mighty Five".

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6772_zps39dde270.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6786_zps51710d9d.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6787_zpsb55a78ad.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6790_zps9f3617b9.jpg

The picture below shows part of the 75 mile long "reef" that runs north/south through the park:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6794_zps90fb15e2.jpg

In the north end of the park lies the settlement of Fruita. Fruita is located on the Fremont River, which provides water to the surprisingly lush landscape. This part of the park has perfectly manicured orchards and a fantastic looking campground.

There are a few remaining structures too, like the Fruita schoolhouse:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6799_zpsb0fa249e.jpg

The greenery provides some nice contrast to the rocks above:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6798_zps76c743dd.jpg

I had really hoped to explore more of the park, but heavy rains had shut down some of the dirt roads that venture further into the park. I was pretty happy with what I did see though, so I continued west on state road 24.

After a short drive down 24, I picked up state road 12 and headed south. This part of 12 climbs into some mountains and runs along the Fishlake and Dixie National Forests. The sun was getting low, so I started looking for a spot to camp. I found an awesome campground that offered some nice views of Capital Reef National Park.

Sunrise:
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6805_zpse0219f0f.jpg

The sky was super dark at this campground, and the view of the starts was pretty incredible. Also, this campground had some pretty neat hybrid flush/pit toilets. It was a pit with a flushing toilet! Cool! I don't know how that worked...maybe they installed an actual septic tank somewhere else and just built the toilets on top of the old pit toilet. I dunno....but it was neat!

Anyways, that morning I continued south on 24. Just a few miles south of the campground, I stopped for some pictures:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6809_zps3439fb22.jpg

The trees were starting to change color:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6815_zpsb52e4075.jpg

State road 12 has some pretty impressive scenery, and this road has earned its place on my list of favorite roads.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6816_zps3220bf97.jpg

After a bit of a drive, I entered a small section of Grand Staircase Escalante-National Monument. 12 runs along the north edge of the monument, and the landscape is pretty impressive.

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6823_zpsebcff805.jpg

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6827_zpsb6f95011.jpg

If you look in the center of the picture below, you can see how there is a steep drop-off on either sides of the road:

http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/o712/avro200/Road%20Trip%20Favorites/IMG_6819_zpsbc988a9b.jpg

Fun drive! As I was making my way down one particular hill, I noticed an old 1970s Toyota Hilux RV trying to make its way up the hill. Just behind the RV was a guy on a bike, and he was able to keep up with the RV quite nicely!

Utah really has some spectacular scenery to offer. And, I've still got a few more spots to check out! Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks coming up in my next post.

[DHC6twinotter]

Great pictures. Canyonlands and Arches is a wonderful place. So much to see and take in. When we were there we had one of those Vortex maps that point out where there was a vortex of spirit, energy, etc. I think it was just a tourist map but it took us to all the neat arches and views.

It's been 10 years now but I rode the White Rim Trail on a mountain bike. It's definitely worth the effort.


great pic of Dewey Bridge! lovin the report!

Thanks guys!

Mike, that sounds pretty tiresome. How long did it take you to do the White Rime Trail on a bike?

[4x4mike]

Like you said I think it's around 60 miles. I was with a group that knew guys that were leading a group. We did our own ride but they hauled our stuff. There are week long trips all around the state that guide the area. They are all inclusive but very expensive. We only had one night camping and two days riding.

[DHC6twinotter]

Utah, Part 5: Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks

I can't believe it's been 3 weeks since my last update! Sorry!

Utah has been a really fantastic state. I've ventured into Utah three times on this road trip, and the wide range of scenery and geographical features have been pretty amazing. I think Arizona and, perhaps, California are the only other states that have such a diverse landscape.

Anyways, after passing through Grand Staircase-Escalente National Monument on 12, I continued on to Bryce Canyon National Park.

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There is pretty much only one road in and out of Bryce Canyon, with multiple pull-offs on the sides. Portions of the road run along the top of a ridge, and the views can be pretty nice. The road gives a nice view from above, and there is an extensive network of trails that offer good views of the hoodoos (the rock formations) from within.

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I had eaten a greasy burger earlier in the day, and I was now paying the consequences, so I opted not to hike any of the trails (I like to blame things like greasy burgers for my inadequate hiking abilities--it makes me feel better, although greasy stuff does bother me. Too much info probably.)

After spending a half day or so at Bryce Canyon, I continued on 12 to Hwy 89 once again.

Just a side note here: Hwy 89 has got to be one of the most scenic highways in the U.S. It starts near Glacier National Park and runs south through Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, it crosses the Rockies, runs through Salt Lake City, runs between Bryce and Zion, crosses the Colorado River next to the Glen Canyon Dam, and ends up just south of the Grand Canyon. One of these days, I'd like to drive the length of Hwy 89.

Anyways, I followed Hwy 89 south for several miles before picking up state road 9 west to Zion National Park. Zion is similar to parts of the Capital Reef National Park, although I would say Zion is much more beautiful...and crowded than Capital Reef.

The sun was getting pretty low as I arrived at Zion National Park. I did a quick drive through and snapped a picture:

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The campground was full, of course, but I didn't really feel like camping, so I continued through the park on 9. I knew there were a few towns on the west side of Zion National Park, and I figured I could find a hotel. Generally, when I'm in the mood for a hotel, I'll find a place that offers wifi (usually McDonalds) and search for a reasonably priced room to stay at. I ended up finding a place down in St. George, and stayed over night there.

The next day, I made my way back to Zion National Park.

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Part of the park is closed to vehicular traffic during the peak tourist season, so for this part of the park, I had the choice of hiking or taking a shuttle bus. I chose the bus, of course! The bus runs by the more popular areas of the park.

The Three Patriarchs:
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The entrance to The Narrows:
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River along the trail to The Narrows:
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More pics from the park:
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The main drive through the park is state road 9, also known as the Zion-Mt. Carmel Hwy. This is a fantastic drive, but the best part is the mile long tunnel. The tunnel runs behind the arch in the picture below and brings vehicles down to the valley:

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When finished, the tunnel was the longest non-urban tunnel in the United States. The ceiling of the tunnel has low clearance on the sides, so whenever a bus or RV needs to go through, opposing traffic is stopped, and the vehicle progresses down the center of the tunnel. Traffic can get a bit backed up at times.

Once out the east end of the tunnel, the landscape changes a bit. Many of the rock formations are much smoother, and some have this checkerboard pattern on them:

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Zion National Park really impressed me. The scenery was amazing, and the tunnel was the icing on the cake! This park definitely goes on my list of favorite parks. And, if you like to hike, this park has much to offer.

That night, I stayed overnight in Cedar City. In my quest to see every National Park, I decided to make my way to Great Basin National Park in Nevada. More on that in my next post.

[paddlenbike]

As always Dan, excellent write up. This is easily my favorite thread on the internet.

I have never been to Zion, Arches, Bryce, Canyonlands, etc., but hope to see parts of them later this year on my way to Albuquerque from CA.

[Good Times]

Hey Dan, like what Ken said awesome write up! I was wondering since you are/were doing this trip solo (driving and navigating), were you ever worried about getting stuck out there in the remote parts alone if something broke down? Such a brave feat to cover so much ground on this awesome expedition!

:)

[paddlenbike]

I will answer on Dan's behalf. Nope, he wasn't worried, he drives a 4runner. :-)

[DHC6twinotter]

As always Dan, excellent write up. This is easily my favorite thread on the internet.

I have never been to Zion, Arches, Bryce, Canyonlands, etc., but hope to see parts of them later this year on my way to Albuquerque from CA.

Thanks Ken! Going through Utah on the way to Albuquerque would be awesome! I highly recommend taking state roads 9 and 12. There is so much amazing scenery to see along the way.


Hey Dan, like what Ken said awesome write up! I was wondering since you are/were doing this trip solo (driving and navigating), were you ever worried about getting stuck out there in the remote parts alone if something broke down? Such a brave feat to cover so much ground on this awesome expedition!

:)

Thanks, Lance! There were a few times where I was a bit worried about braking down, but most of driving was on U.S. highways or state roads. Most of these roads were traveled well enough that I could probably wave somebody down, but a few of these roads were fairly empty. If I ventured out on a trail or dirt road, I tried not to go more than 3 or 4 miles from a more traveled road, although National Parks or Monuments were an exception to this. I felt a bit more comfortable taking back roads in parks since those were patrolled by park rangers on a somewhat regular bases.

I always have plenty of water with me, and I rarely let my fuel get below 1/3 (and usually no less than 1/2). I also keep an extra gallon of water for radiator use, and I have a battery jump box thingy that I carry, along with jumper cables. All my interior lights were kept off unless needed (no door settings used). With my 4Runner being a manual, I also have the option of pop starting, if there were a hill close enough for me to push it to.

I have all my tools with me, and a role of duct tape. I also have a tire patch kit and an air compressor with me. Thankfully, I never had to see if my mediocre mechanic skills were enough for a trail repair. I also have a first aid kit and a snake bite kit that I have in the 4Runner.

Only once have I had to make a repair on the road, and that was after driving down the Saline Valley Rd in Death Valley. The bolt on the battery tie down came out and the battery ended up on top of the alternator. The body ground was yanked out in the process. I have an electrical kit that I carry with me, but I did not have the right wire connector. So I walked to a ACE Hardware about 50 feet from where I was and bought a connector. If I were out on the trail, I could have made due with what I had, but I figured I was close enough to a store that I wanted to do it a little more properly. I stole a bolt from one of my horns to use on the battery tie down (which reminds me...I need to replace that bolt! One 4runner horn sounds even dumber than two!)

[Good Times]

Ken, you sly dog you! haha

It's good to hear that you were prepared but what about first aid? I had my fair share of solo treks and thankfully nothing happened but I did fear getting hurt (physical injury) that requires a second hand or even immediate attention. Of course that never stopped me but I guess as I reflect back on the past I do think that I was a bit ambitious on some of the adventures I did.

[DHC6twinotter]

I will answer on Dan's behalf. Nope, he wasn't worried, he drives a 4runner. :-)

lol...true! The 4runner has been really good. My biggest concerns were poking a hole in the radiator (factory skid plate was missing when I purchased it), or having a ball-joint failure on some of the rough roads. I was begging my ball-joints not to break while in DV. :D I do have some minor issues that have crept up during the last few outings, those being a low idle that comes and goes, and a leaking axle seal. I hope to fix both of those, along with my seat bolt in the next week or two.


Ken, you sly dog you! haha

It's good to hear that you were prepared but what about first aid? I had my fair share of solo treks and thankfully nothing happened but I did fear getting hurt (physical injury) that requires a second hand or even immediate attention. Of course that never stopped me but I guess as I reflect back on the past I do think that I was a bit ambitious on some of the adventures I did.

I have a small first aid kit, as well as a snake bite kit. I remember looking at one of those red smoke things at the store too, but I don't remember whether or not I bought it. I'll have to check. I also have a SPOT that I got for a pretty good deal, but I never opened the box.

All my hikes were fairly short, and I think all were on heavily used trails in National Parks. If I was in an area known to have bears, I would try to hike close to another group of hikers. I think the furthest I hiked was about 3-4 miles round trip. My back usually starts to bother me after about 1.5 miles, so 3-4 miles is about all I can do. I won't hike that far unless there's something cool to see, in which case I'll put up with the pain.

[Robinhood4x4]

Good question Lance. I'm always worried about breaking down or getting stuck out in the middle of nowhere. Less so about breaking down with the 07 4runner but more so about getting stuck.

[DHC6twinotter]

Steve, sorry I missed your reply. Most of the roads I traveled on were in good enough shape that I wasn't too concerned about getting stuck, but there were a few spots. First was while on the Alpine Loop. I took a small detour to American Basin and there is a small water crossing along the way. The water wasn't deep, but I was a bit worried about getting hung up on the sides of the stream. This area was pretty popular though, so if I did get stuck, I'm sure somebody would have been along shortly to help out.

The worse mud was on the road detour through New Mexico. The mud wasn't deep, but it was super slick. Plenty of cars were sliding around. Another mud spot was in a fairly remote section of Dinosaur National Monument. Getting stuck in that mud pit would have meant waiting for, potentially, several days for another traveler or ranger to show up.

I also encountered some soft sand in Dinosaur National Monument, Death Valley, Pismo, and Great Sand Dunes National Park. Some of these spots were well traveled, but getting stuck in some of the other spots would have meant waiting a while for somebody.

[DHC6twinotter]

Nevada

After staying overnight in Cedar City, I decided to head up to Great Basin National Park in Nevada. It was several hours out of the way and really didn't look that interesting, but since I added "See every National Park" to my bucket list, I figured I needed to go see it.

I filled up with fuel in Cedar City and headed north state road 130. In Minersville, I picked up state road 21, and the plan was to stay on this all the way to Hwy 50 at the Nevada border. Somehow, that didn't happen. I made it to Hwy 50, but as soon as I turned on to 50, a sign said I still had over 100 miles to go. What? According to my map, I was only supposed to drive for 5 or 6 miles on Hwy 50. I don't think I've ever had such a profound feeling of confusion in my life, but I continued driving west on 50. For the next several miles, I was completely perplexed and feeling a bit frustrated. I finally pulled off the road, and after a few minutes of consultation with Rand McNally, I figured out my wrongdoing. State Road 21 made a left turn about 70 miles back, and the road I thought was 21, was actually 257. That was an 80 mile mistake and beat my previous mistake record by approximately 5 miles!

Anyway, that wrong turn did provide me with the opportunity to take some pictures of Sevier Lake:

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And, eventually I did make it to Nevada and the Great Basin National Park. The main features of the park are Wheelers Peak (13,063ft) and Lehman Caves. I didn't make it in time to see the caves, but I did make a drive up Wheelers Peak.

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The road to top reaches an altitude of 10,000 feet and offers great views of the surrounding area:

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I really didn't stay around the park very long. Aside from the cave and great views, the park doesn't really have much to offer. Just outside of the park, I noticed some of the local decor:

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The alien lounging on the chair was out of this world, but I really got a kick out of the horse skeleton driving the car.

I headed west on 50 for a few miles. Along the way, I spotted this neat spotted hill:

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Shortly after, I started my drive south on Hwy 93 in Nevada.

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I thought the contrails in this picture were pretty neat:

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I continued south on 93 and stopped for fuel in Pioche. My original plan was to set up camp in Cathedral Gorge State Park located off of 93, but upon arrival, I found the campground was packed with amateur astronomers. Some of the telescopes were massive and built on their own dedicated trailers.

Once again, I continued south on 93 and found a nice campground in Kershaw-Ryan State Park. I grabbed a great dinner at the Knotty Pine Restaurant in Caliente, which was just a mile or so from the campground.

The next morning, I headed back to Knotty Pine for breakfast, and then made my way down 93 towards Las Vegas and the Hoover Dam. I made a drive through Las Vegas and found the filming locations of American Restoration, Counts Kustoms, and Pawn Stars.

American Restoration:
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After one trip through Vegas, I had enough. Despite it being early afternoon, there was too much traffic and too many people. I don't care if I ever go back.

I made my way over to Hoover Dam:

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While at the dam, I noticed this crane thingy:

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I don't really know what it's for, but my first thought was that it's a remnant from the construction process. I don't think this is correct though, and my best guess is that the crane system is used for moving parts (like new turbines or generators) from the road to the power house below.

Below is a picture of the Mike O'Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge next to the Hoover Dam. This bridge is really impressive, and it's the highest and widest concrete arch bridge in the world.

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The Hoover Dam is definitely an impressive structure!