Region One Rally - Burlington, VT

We only experienced a few sprinkles all weekend, but this rainbow found our pot of gold (silver?)

How do you spell relief? WBCCI!! The Region One rally provided a reason to break away from the ordeal of managing our water damaged home. The rally was held in Essex Junction, Vermont which is just outside of Burlington on the shore of beautiful Lake Champlain. 

As usual, we decided to avoid highways even though doing so would add an hour to the trip. Most of the route is very familiar because it was the course we traveled when my father and I drove to Chelsea, Vermont to hunt deer. It has been many years since I traveled this route and I was happy to see all the familiar towns. Mostly, there is evidence of increased prosperity. It seems there are fewer dilapidated buildings and many more show evidence or gentrification. Sadly, the absence of cows on the hillsides was disappointing. Forty years ago it was true that there were more cows than people in the Green Mountain State. We saw a few farms that still had cattle, but they were not dairy cattle. We didn't see a single dairy cow while we were driving in Vermont.

Despite the lack of cows in the pastures, we enjoyed the vernal foliage. It glistened as the fog in the Connecticut River valley lifted and allowed the light to reflect and refract from each sliver of fresh greenery. 

We arrived at the Champlain Valley Exposition Center early in the afternoon. Tye and Mary greeted us at the gate and ushered us on to the field where we joined dozens of other Airstreams already established on their campsites. At 4PM we gathered for happy hour where we renewed friendships with fellow Cape Cod Unit members and made new acquaintances with other Region One members.

Everyone enjoyed a communal breakfast on Friday morning followed by a short meeting to conduct the business of the WBCCI Cape Cod Unit. After the breakfast meeting everyone dispersed to explore the attractions of this scenic area. Sarah and I chose to visit the Shelburne Museum.

Shaker barn at the Shelburne Museum, Burlington, VT

Like so many who live in a place to which tourists flock, we had never visited the Shelburne Museum. We were put off by the price of admission, but we realized we might not be here again so we bit the bullet. We were rewarded when we paid our admission when we learned that the price included readmission the next day. That was a good thing since after five hours on the first day we had not even seen half of the museum. Returning the next day, we spent another six hours taking in the remaining parts of the museum.

The beautifully landscaped grounds hint at what one can expect inside the buildings that house the many collections of art and memorabilia

The museum has something for everyone. There are exhibits of fine art by Monet, Degas and Wyeth. Then there are the eclectic collections; quilts, hooked rugs, tin toys, pewter, horse drawn carriages and buggies to name a few. The collections are housed in 18th and 19th century buildings that were brought to the grounds and restored to near original condition. 

"The Last Drop" by Charles Marion Russell. One of the many exquisite bronze "Western" sculptures on display.

Hooked rug by Patty Yoder

One of the most pleasant things about touring the museum in early June was that the lilacs were in bloom. There are over 700 lilac bushes on the grounds. It seemed that each of the more than 80 varieties had its own particularly fragrant perfume. 

Sarah and I both enjoyed the lilac scented air that permeated the grounds of the museum

The city of Burlington was hosting a jazz festival and we eagerly made the short trip from the exposition grounds to enjoy the music. The pedestrian streets were alive with thousands of people, food vendors and multiple stages whereupon many musicians provided nonstop entertainment. In addition, many cafes presented music on their stages. 

Fine music on the streets of Burlington, Vermont

As usual, the camaraderie of fellow Airstreamers made for a memorable weekend. We look forward to our next WBCCI rally.

Stay tuned.

Safford Arizona, Southern Utah and Homeward Bound

Sedona Red Rocks

The blog has been sadly neglected due to the nearly overwhelming destruction to our house that we faced on our return. We are now back in Massachusetts. We decided to accelerate our return yet still try to enjoy the trip back to our home base. This entry covers the remaining time on our 2014 southwest adventure.

While the northeast experienced a severe winter, the southwest was enjoying an early spring. This allowed us to travel a more northerly route than would normally be possible. With the experience and knowledge that our Airstream could cope with sub-freezing temperatures, we confidently visited places we would previously have avoided due to the risk of subfreezing temperatures. The days were unfailingly warm but the nights, especially at higher altitudes, were often in the upper teens or lower twenties. Fifteen degrees was the lowest overnight temperature we experienced and our Airstream handled it well. Not once did we experience a frozen water pipe. Wish I could say the same about our house.

Traveling west on SR260 from Show Low, Arizona kept us in the national forest all the way to Sedona, where we arrived with only a vague idea of where we might stay. Due to the unusually warm weather, the Forest Service opened one of its campgrounds early. The Pine Flat campground had opened just a couple days before. We arrived and took our pick of one of about a dozen vacant campsites. The Pine Flats campground was pleasant enough, but it is tucked tightly into the narrow Oak Creek Canyon about 20 minutes north of town. The campsites are very close to the road resulting in a lot of road noise during the day. Thankfully, there is very little traffic at night. A small stream runs along the west side of the campground and many sites back up to it. There is also a fine spring at the northern end where there is a constant coming and going of people filling water containers.

Hiking opportunities abound in the Sedona area. For our first hike we chose the Thomas Point trail that is just a couple miles south of the campground. We had the trail to ourselves and enjoyed the warm spring morning. The trail ascends steeply up the east side of Oak Creek Canyon and rewarded us fine views to the south and to the north with a beautiful siting of snow capped Humphrey's Peak, the highest mountain in Arizona. After reaching the top of the canyon we hiked along the canyon rim for about a mile for even more expansive views. There was no trail, but the forest was not too dense allowing us to explore without getting lost. On the way down we remarked at how many spring wildflowers had opened to full bloom in just the few hours it had been since we passed them on the way up.

View of Humphrey's Peak from Thomas Point above Oak Creek Canyon
Sedona Arizona

Sarah on Thomas Point
Overlooking Oak Creek Canyon

Sarah on Cathedral Rock

After two nights at Pine Flat, we moved to a fine boondocking site just ten minutes south of Sedona. In addition to being free, it was conveniently located for exploring Sedona and the historic towns of Cottonwood and Jerome, only short drive south and west of Sedona. The site we found was at the parking lot of the trail head that is a couple hundred yards east of Rt89A on Angel Valley Road. We were one of six RVs at this spot. There were other campers scattered further along the road among the trees. 

Boondocking just off 89A

On the way to Sedona Sarah and I decided we would take a flight in a hot air balloon. We made reservations with Northern Light Balloon Expeditions. However, we experienced only one of a handful of days  each year that they could not fly due to uncooperative winds so that we had to postpone our flight until the next day. I was happy with that because it was a cloudy day when we cancelled but we had a glorious sunrise the next day for our flight.

Getting ready

Heating the air inside the balloon

Up and Away
(sister ship still loading passengers)

Sunrise at Sedona
(Humphrey's Peak on horizon)

We flew very close to the Mary Joan at our boondocking site

While visiting Sedona, a trip to Jerome should be part of anyone's itinerary. It is a pleasant 45 minute drive through the charming town of Cottonwood to Jerome, a formerly abandoned mining town with a very colorful history. Today there are art galleries and vintners offering tastings from local vineyards. A highlight of our day was discovering that one of our favorite singer/songwriter, David Bromberg, was performing that evening at Old Town Center For The Arts in Cottonwood and we were able to secure a couple of tickets for his show in this very intimate venue. Such community arts centers are a rarity now a day.

Jerome Arizona

The next day, with new David Bromberg music playing in the TV, we headed north on US89A with our sites set on Page, Arizona where we hoped to explore Antelope Canyon Slot. However, we missed whatever road sign should have alerted us to the fact that US 89 to Page, was closed 50 miles ahead. At that fifty mile point we saw a small sign simply announcing that the road was closed. We had no option but to travel northwest on US 89A where we rejoined US 89 at Kanab, Utah. Our maps indicated that there were NFS campgrounds ahead, but they were all closed. At this altitude in the Kaibab National Forest spring had not yet arrived so we found a well maintained forest road and a comfortable spot to boondock for the night. While setting up camp, I discovered that one of the tires on the trailer was flat. Despite being tired from more time behind the wheel than usual, I changed the tire that evening rather than waiting until morning. That was a wise decision because that night was the coldest we have recorded with the Mary Joan. At 14 degrees the next morning, changing a tire would not have been pleasant.

Why didn't I think of this?

The campground at Bryce Canyon National Park is open year round and it was on our way so a stop here was mandatory. We visited Bryce with the kids many years ago, but couldn't explore it as we would have liked because the kids were too small to enjoy long miles of hiking. But, Sarah and I both needed a place to get out and do some hiking and Bryce was a perfect place at a perfect time. Snow was still on the ground but the days were warmer, although a bit windy.  

Our campsite at Bryce with remnants of the hard winter.

Clear skies and warm weather at Bryce Canyon National Park

Just a short drive from Bryce is Capital Reef National Park where we spent a couple days experiencing the wonder of multi-colored layers of sedimentary rock that make up the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. We did some short day hikes from the Fruita Campground. The campground is located on the grounds of a well maintained former fruit farm. We arrived while the apricot trees were in full bloom. We drove the Scenic Drive to explore Capital Gorge and South Draw. While in Capital Gorge, we hiked to the top of Cassidy Arch, a strenuous hike that granted us the opportunity to stand on a magnificent natural bridge.

View from Fruita Campground, Capital Reef National Park

Cassidy Arch in Capital Reef National Park

The Mary Joan III at Fruita Campground
Capital Reef National Park

Abandoned Ranch
South Draw, Capital Reef National Park

Petroglyphs in Capital Reef National Park

Another days drive found us at Arches National Park. As usual we arrived expecting to find a campsite available. However, this park is so popular that all campsites are available by reservation only, all year round. The ranger at the gate suggested we try one of the campsites outside the park along the Colorado river on SR 128. We found a campground just a couple miles outside of Moab on the river. We actually found this to be more convenient since the campground inside the park would have meant a forty-five minute drive in or out of the park. This worked out well since we had local knowledge of a fine restaurant, Buck's Grill House on the northern edge of town. We enjoyed our first dinner there so much that we returned the next night to try other dishes on the menu that struck our fancy. 

In the park, we spent the better part of one day slowly driving the main road, stopping frequently to view the many rock formations and arches. The next day we drove west on SR279 that follows the Colorado River to reach the trail that took us to Corona Arch. Along this road are marvelous cliffs popular with rock climbers, well preserved petroglyphs and fossilized dinosaur footprints . Everyone knows how much Sarah loves petroglyphs, now I know how excited she is to see dinosaur fossils. 

Dinosaur Tracks

Petroglyphs near Moab

Corona Arch near Arches National park

After Arches National Park we transitioned from travel and explore mode to time to get home attitude. That's not to say we didn't enjoy the trip, but we knew it would not be possible to linger long at any one place. We were quite far north. While the weather report was good we knew an early spring storm could strand us. 

Friends of ours have built a summer home on the Rio Grande River near the scenic town of Creede, Colorado. Surprisingly, the river seems as large here as it is at Big Bend, Texas. Creede is less than twenty miles from the road on which we came over the continental divide so we decided that we could stop there for one night and park in their driveway. Creede is a small mining town popular with people who have built summer homes there and with visiting tourists. We enjoyed an evening drive into the mountains high above the town that afforded us fine views of the valley below and the mountains beyond.

Rio Grande River
near Creede Colorado

From Creede, we crossed the high plains of Eastern Colorado. But, before leaving the Rockies, we visited Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve to see the largest sand dunes in North America. We continued on and rested for the night at John Martin Reservoir State Park in eastern Colorado. This huge park on a man-made reservoir was nearly empty. But, it was a perfect place to stop for the night.

The magnificent dunes in Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve

Finding public lands for camping in Kansas is difficult. It has the least amount of public lands (as a percentage of acreage) than any other state. We set our sites on the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, hoping to boondock for one night. But, for the first time in our travels, I neglected to pay attention to our fuel level. When we were 15 miles from our destination I noticed we had only about 25 miles of diesel left in our tank. Great Bend, Kansas was 18 miles to the north, the only place within fifty miles to buy fuel. We limped into town, filled our tank and chose to rest our weary bodies by making camp in the Walmart parking lot. We shared our 'campground' with four semi-trailers, a motorhome and a pick-up camper. Despite the all night commerce and blinding parking lot lights, we spent a comfortable night.

The next day brought us to Lawrence, Kansas at Clinton Lake State Park. This convenient to town location allowed us to spend a day visiting a college classmate and his wife before moving just up the road to Paola, Kansas where we stayed the night in the driveway of another college friend. 

Our final night of this travel season was spent at Ramsey Lake State Park, just east of St. Louis, Missouri. Once again, we were stop at Jackson Center, Ohio to leave the Mary Joan for more minor warranty repairs.

The drive to Jackson Center, Ohio could be done in one morning provided we got an early start. We arrived at the Airstream factory shortly after noon. We completed the paperwork necessary to affect the repairs required then spent a few hours preparing the trailer to be left unattended. Draining the water, dumping the holding tanks and securing the water lines with antifreeze took just a little over an hour. By 3 PM we were back on the road in order to be able to reach Massachusetts the next day.

We stopped for the night just east of Akron, Ohio and reached Massachusetts late the next afternoon. We returned to Ohio a few weeks later to retrieve the Mary Joan. We are now living in the Airstream while we supervise the repairs to our house.

Stay tuned

Lost Dutchman State Park and Rockhounding near Safford, AZ

Superstition Mountains as seen from Lost Dutchman State Park
The colors change daily and are especially dramatic at sunset

Our original plan was to stop in Superior on Saturday allowing us to arrive at Apache Junction, just east of Phoenix, on Sunday so that we would stand a good chance of getting a site in the overflow section of Lost Dutchman State Park being vacated that day. But, the campground we stayed in last year at Superior was closed forcing us to push on to Apache Junction. We drove into Lost Dutchman and were not surprised to see the sign announcing that all campsites, including the overflow were full. But, when the ranger approached he told us that the people using the group campground had left early and that we could camp there. The group campground is essentially a parking lot, but it suited our purposes for the night. The next morning I was able to succeed with the original plan of obtaining a site in the overflow campground.

None of the sites in the overflow section have electricity or water, but we were prepared to dry camp. Except for the microwave/convection oven, we could operate all systems on internal power and storage tanks. With bright sunshine everyday, our two solar panels had no problem keeping the batteries charged. At one time I saw 150 watts flowing into the batteries.

We had one rainy day, the Superstitions looked all that more mysterious

We had an appointment for 8AM on Monday with Gene's RV Repair in Mesa (http://genesrv.com/) to deal with our nonfunctioning refrigerator. Gene's is a family business. Gene's son, Mike, diagnosed our problem. We told him that we had read the warranty on the Dometic refrigerator that limited the warranty to the original purchaser and were prepared to pay for the repairs. When he found out that the previous owner had never used the trailer and had owned it for such a short time, Mike said he thought he could get the repair covered under warranty. Later that day, he called to say that Dometic would honor the warranty and a new cooling unit had been ordered, but that it was coming from the factory and would not arrive for a week. Our pleasure of having the repair covered by the warranty easily wiped out our disappointment of not having use of the refrigerator for that long.

When Mike learned we were using coolers and bags of ice to keep our food, he suggested using dry ice instead. Having never used dry ice or seen it for sale in stores I was surprised when he told me that Fry's, a local grocery chain, sold dry ice. We immediately went to Fry's, bought fifteen pounds of dry ice, put it on the top shelf of the refrigerator and placed the food on the lower shelves. The next morning we discovered frozen vegetables and ice crystals in the orange juice. We then wrapped the dry ice in a towel and when we needed to replace it, we used only one five pound block at a time. The dry ice was so much easier to use than regular ice because we didn't get food soaking wet as the ice melted and didn't have to deal with digging through the cooler to find what we needed or having emptying the melt water.

Another trailer chore was to visit an Airstream dealer, Desert Autoplex (http://www.desertautoplex.com/), that would inspect our trailer in order to transfer the remaining warranty to us. After filling out the paperwork and submitting the VIN number, the service agent returned to tell us that Airstream had already completed the transfer when we were at the factory for repairs the previous fall. As we were turning around to leave, he told us that our trailer brake and turn signals weren't working. He checked the electrical jack on the hitch and determined there was no power there. We then found that the fuse was blown. He went into the shop but returned saying he didn't have that fuse, but he would run down the street and get one. I objected, saying I could do that. He insisted though, saying it would only take a few minutes. As he promised, he returned promptly, replaced the bad fuse and all was well. I went into the office to find out what I owed, he said not to worry, there was no charge.

As usual we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Lost Dutchman State Park. This park, just a short ride east of Phoenix is very popular with campers, hikers and horseback riders alike. At the foot of the Superstition Mountains and the southwestern entrance to the Tonto National Forest there are many hiking trails available, from the very easy to the extremely strenuous. The rangers and employees that tend to the park are very friendly and accommodating.

One evening we were treated to a special and beautiful scene in the western sky. The clouds formed a series of regularly repeating wave shaped forms on their eastern edge. This rare cloud pattern is known as the Kelvin Helmholtz waves. What we are seeing is stable moist air being lifted, condensed then sheared off as it rises into the less stable portion of the atmosphere.

Several evenings were spent listening and dancing to live music at either Filley's Road House or The Hitching Post saloons that were only a short drive from the park. Sarah and I both enjoyed the pizza at the Hitching Post. We understand why we saw so many people ordering it.

Two must do activities in Phoenix are to visit the Art Museum and the Desert Botanical Gardens. Of the several special exhibits at the art museum was a display of pins that former Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, wore while she was our Secretary of State (http://www.phxart.org/exhibition/readmypins). This large and varied collection would be interesting even without the connection to Secretary Albright. But, the show underscores how even the most seemingly unimportant details can have dramatic importance in the sphere of international diplomacy. I have always admired her intelligence and dedication to her country. This exhibit cemented that admiration.

Her choice of pin always had an underlying meaning. Can you guess what attitude was represented by the wasp?

Having received nearly two inches of rain the week before our visit, the Desert Botanical Garden was a vastly different place than it was last year. Cacti and spring flowers were in abundance. Additionally, the Garden was hosting an installation of a number of large blown glass sculptures by artist Dale Chihuly (http://www.dbg.org/events-exhibitions/chihuly).

I'm sure this hummingbird enjoyed the spring flowers as much as I did.

Flowering Palo Verde tree




Chihuly's glass installations seemed so appropriate in the Garden

After two weeks at Lost Dutchman we had reached the limit for one stay so we retraced our steps to Safford and the Bureau of Land Management rockhound site in the Black Hills northwest of the town. On SR 191 at mile marker 141.5 is a gravel road that leads west for a mile and half to a small camping area. The sign at the cattle guard by the main road warns that the road is only occasionally maintained and could be rough. We found it to be in excellent condition. While it is narrow, we decided that if the road became too rough for the Mary Joan we could back up to a turn around spot. We turned into the camping area and found it could easily accommodate our 31' length.

View of the Black Hills and the White Mountains beyond from Safford, AZ

Once we had leveled the trailer, and set up camp, we drove another quarter of a mile further on the road we had come in on where we found a sign announcing that this was the center of the area where fire agate could be found. While there were small pieces littering the ground everywhere, we were unable to find any of any significant size. It was clear that the area had been mined with a mechanical sluice. Nevertheless, we did find a few pieces Sarah thought were worth keeping.

While we didn't strike it rich in our search for fire agate, we were rewarded with a wonderful campsite with the bonus of a fabulous sunset. Earlier in the day there had been low clouds and light showers. Just before sunset the front passed, the wind picked up and the sky cleared. We prepared our dinner after the sun set and by the time we finished eating the wind had dropped and we set up our telescope to view the stars as well as Jupiter and Mars.

Boondocking on BLM land in the Black Hills north of Safford, Arizona

The next morning we returned to SR191. In our atlas it is marked as a scenic state road.  The road is designated as a state road, the type on which we have towed the Mary Joan many thousands of miles. On Google Maps it appears to be a main highway. But, just a few miles from Clifford we saw a sign prohibiting trucks over forty feet in length. I couldn't believe that this road could be any more difficult than what we experienced on SR15 between Mesa Camp in Gila National Forest and Silver City. I decided to ignore the signs and proceed, hoping I would not have to explain why I ignored the warning.

Copper and Gold Mine. Not a rare sight in Arizona

The road was indeed very steep and the hairpin turns required strict diligence. Only on a few turns was I forced to cross the center line in order to keep the trailer on the road. Admittedly, a couple were on turns where I was blinded from oncoming traffic by the rock ledge on the inside turns. Fortunately, we met only two cars traveling in the opposite direction on the most challenging sections. We averaged only about 25 miles per hour for about forty five miles of this road. We were not in any hurry and we were enthralled with the views from this road.

High Mountain Range Land, White Mountains, Arizona off SR191

This evenings destination was Show Low Lake Campground. When we arrived, we found the main gate open, but the gate into the campground locked. The web site we looked at a few days earlier stated the campground was open year round. We drove past the gate to the campground and found a parking area that was shielded from street view by a thick stand of juniper trees. We later learned that this campground is run by a private firm, Recreation Resource Management of America, under contract with the city of Show Low. It seems that while the city is within the national forest, it maintains control of the natural resources within its limits. The next morning, rather than return to the main road the way we came, our GPS suggested continuing on the same road was the shorter route to SR260, our desired course A half mile further along the road we came to what was obviously the primary site of the Show Low Lake Campground on the opposite side of the road. It did appear to be open. Oh well, we enjoyed better views and it didn't cost anything.

Hidden away in Show Low

Next stop, Sedona, Arizona. Sarah and I are both excited. Stay tuned.