The Blog

We left our quiet free campsite in Arizona and headed toward Carlsbad Cavern National Park in New Mexico. Craig had done a little research and it seemed like a cool place to explore. We also saw that White Sands National Monument was on the way so that was our plan for the week so far.

At this point in the trip, we are going day by day. We hadn’t researched this area like we did with Canada and Alaska. We don’t have a list of things we have to see and places we have to go. So the feel of the trip is a little bit different, it’s still fun but we are having a hard time staying in one place for too long.

We made our way to White Sands National Monument and drove the entire rig on the scenic loop drive through it. It’s quite amazing to see miles and miles of sand dunes. We have sand dunes in Silver Lake, Michigan but we don’t have mountains surrounding us there. And the fact that White Sands is actually gypsum from the mountains makes it even more amazing.

We have been trying to stay off main highways since we are just wandering. We did come across the cool little town of Cloudcroft, NM. This small town is located at 8,650 ft elevation and there was even a little snow on the ground. We had read great reviews about the Cloudcroft brewery that had just opened this past spring. We were impressed with the beer and the wood fired pizza. We also talked to another full-time RVer from Texas who said not to miss Big Bend National Park and gave us some pointers on things to see. Friends of ours also put Big Bend on our radar when they told us they would be there after Christmas. So we decided that should be on our route.

We made our way to some BLM land just north of Carlsbad Caverns. It was oddly busy for a Sunday night and we ended up right alongside the road. It ended up working out since we needed to go back into Carlsbad for fuel in both the truck and the Jeep and all of our propane tanks needed to be filled. It still gets pretty cold at night so we’re going through propane like crazy.

We came back to the same road and everyone who had camped there the night before were gone. So we slowly made our way up the rocky bumpy road and found ourselves about two miles off the road and with no one around. It was nice and quiet although a little bit windy.

We went to Carlsbad Caverns on Tuesday. We didn’t know what to expect and were pleasantly surprised with the experience. We chose to walk in through the natural entrance which takes you down 80 stories to the Big Room. It felt a little touristy and the walkways were all smooth with handrails, and there was strategically placed lighting on the formations.

We would’ve loved to explore these caverns back in the 1920’s when you had to crawl and climb on the rocks to see it. It is nice that many people get to enjoy this magnificent wonder. Once in the Big Room there is a path that takes you about an hour and a half to walk and there are so many different formations to see. When we were done, there is an elevator that zips you back up to the visitor center.

Wednesday was a short travel day and we made our way into Texas and found another free campground. We were the only ones there and we were hoping to sit outside and enjoy the sunshine. Unfortunately, it was super windy and we had to hunker down in the trailer.

We headed to Big Bend National Park on Thursday not really knowing where to stay. We went to a visitor center and they told us the only place to stay with our size rig was the Rio Grande Village. We were impressed with this $14 a night campground and found a nice little spot. We packed up the Jeep and found some off-road trails to explore.

As we drove on an off-road trail called Old Ore Road, we were warned by other travelers that the road was closed up ahead because a Unimog had flipped over…two weeks ago. What? If you don’t know what a Unimog is, it’s a pretty heavy duty off-road vehicle. Read more about it here https://expeditionportal.com/guy-flips-unimog-in-big-bend-forcing-trail-closure/

We were a little confused as to how it could flip and why it took so long to get it recovered and get the road back open. We continued about 9 miles in until we came to the road closure and were greeted by a Border Patrol Agent. He explained how he flipped it and confirmed that the trail was still closed. We were bummed we didn’t get to actually see it. It did explain the recovery trailer at the start of the trail and the John Deere Excavator we passed coming in. What an ordeal! We found ourselves another trail and road around until dark.

The park is huge and has a lot of trails to hike and off-road trails to drive on but Gus is not allowed on any of the hiking trails. So Friday we drove into the Chisos Basin and took advantage of the all you can eat salad bar at the lodge. The drive in was beautiful!

As we’ve been driving in Big Bend, we’ve noticed some creepy crawly things that in our mind were too big to be spiders…I even smooshed two of them with the Jeep tires because I didn’t realize what they were. We finally saw one and stopped to take a picture and the guy at the visitor center confirmed they are Tarantulas!!!! Ugh!! So not cool! We are always on the lookout now!

We headed down the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive to Castolon and stopped at the visitor center. There is a lot of history here. We continued on to the Santa Elena Canyon and took the short hike along the Rio Grande. It’s only half a canyon on the US side. Its south canyon wall towers above Mexico. It was awesome to see! Maybe next time we’ll canoe down the Rio Grande too.

After the hike, we knew we wanted to drive an off-road trail that would take a few hours. We got a late start and ended up returning to camp in the dark. We had to skip the “Not Maintained” Four Wheel Drive Black Gap trail. We decided we would stay one more night and run it in the morning.

When we got back to camp after dark, I took Gus on a quick walk. I saw his ears perk up and saw something running in the road in front of us. I thought it was a dog and kept walking toward it, when it started coming at us, I shined my headlamp light at it and saw that it was a coyote. Thankfully my bright light scared him and he headed the other way and we headed back to camp. We heard them howling all night long.

Saturday morning we were up and ready to hit the trails. We got to the Black Gap Trail and were a little disappointed that it wasn’t a little harder. We got to a rock climb and with the excellent spotting by Craig, I climbed up on my second try. We continued on another trail that took us right to the Rio Grande and took a few pictures, enjoyed a Big Bend IPA and laughed as Gus gulped up some fresh Rio Grande water.

For not really knowing much about Big Bend National Park we really enjoyed the few days we spent here. We drove almost all the off-road trails which was more than 100 miles of gravel.

Along with the awful tarantulas and the face off with the coyote, we saw deer, road runners, bats, a golden eagle, a Kangaroo rat and a jackrabbit. Thankfully we didn’t encounter any of the four rattlesnake species and one copperhead species that live in the park.

We are now following the Rio Grande to the Gulf. We are camped out next to 90 East just outside of Del Rio, TX. We really have no idea where we’ll be for Christmas. We might spend the day traveling or if we find a cool spot to camp, stay and hang out.

It definitely doesn’t feel like Christmas not being with our families. But it will be a Christmas we remember no matter what we end up doing.

We wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! We miss and love you all!

We got to the Parker Dam area on Friday late afternoon. We had passed a few boondocking spots but wanted to try and get closer to the trail to the desert bar. Unfortunately, we struck out and ended up driving back toward Lake Havasu but at this point it was really dark and we couldn’t see where any of the spots were. We finally found what looked like a big gravel lot and called it good enough. In the morning we were happy that we were at least at the entrance of the boondocking area so we found a better spot and then took off for the desert bar.

The Nellie E. Saloon aka The Desert Bar to the locals, is located off the beaten path south of Parker Dam. We found the moderate rated trail early and I was a little hesitant when there was a big rock hill right off the bat.

After trying a few lines, the third was the charm and we were on our way. The rest of the trail was not all that hard. We ran into two other vehicles making their way to the bar as well. We ended up showing up right after them and joined them for lunch. They were from the area and it was fun to talk about the weather and make a little fun of them for having on jackets and thinking it was cold on a beautiful 70 degree day. One of the guys even told us a story about visiting the East coast during the winter and he didn’t know what the weird brush thing was in his rental car.

The Desert Bar was really fun. It truly is out in the middle of nowhere. It’s cash only and do not ask for cheese if you order from the upstairs grill. We don’t know what that is about but they were pretty serious about it. We were there before it technically opened at noon but people steadily piled in as the hours passed. A band started playing and it was a really fun atmosphere. The bar is tucked in among some tall rocky hills and you could climb up them for a better view. Our new friends took off and we stayed to enjoy the place for a while. We ended up taking the “normal” road back and headed back to camp.

Sunday we drove south and east through Phoenix and Tucson and found a great little free campground just north of Sonoita nestled in the middle of a working cattle ranch. We settled in and enjoyed the beautiful views! The sunrises and sunsets were amazing, we heard coyotes howling at night and even had one speed across the road in front of us. And of course there were the cattle that we had to give a little space too.

Monday was my birthday!! I have always loved my birthday and that hasn’t changed. We enjoyed a nice relaxing morning and then headed into the small town of Sonoita that actually had a brewery. I was sad to learn they shut down for the night for their staff party. That was a bummer. Thankfully there was one other restaurant in town, The Steak Out Saloon. We parked ourselves at the bar and watched as it slowly filled up and our bartender ran her butt off. I ordered a steak, which was awesome and when our bartender finally slowed down for a minute, we asked if she would do a shot with us to celebrate my birthday. Her huge smile and sigh of relief was great. She chose fireball, Craig and I chose tequila. We toasted and she went on to get the bar to sing Happy Birthday to me. We had so much fun!

The next couple days we relaxed some more and took some off-road trails that were in the area. One was supposed to be easy and go through four ghost towns on the route. We only found two of them and ended up off the GPS map and wandered around on Forest Service roads. We came upon two Border Patrol trucks and it looked like they were consolidating and getting into one truck, leaving one behind. They quickly took off and we lost track of them. We continued exploring and came to the US/Mexico border, which felt kind of weird. There was just a fence and a road that ran next to it on the US side. We drove it for a little while and then swung back north before we ended up getting stopped by border patrol or who knows who else. There were signs about smuggling and illegal immigration so we definitely didn’t want to run into any problems.

We were on a road that we thought would spit us out onto the main road to Nogales when we passed a couple from Northern California. They said border patrol had just sped passed them and that there was even a helicopter in the air, something was definitely going down. As we continued in the same direction we could hear the helicopter. We climbed up a mountain road and came upon three empty border patrol trucks.

We sat for a minute not sure if they were blocking the road when the helicopter came pretty close to us. We weren’t sure if they were checking us out or what but it moved away quickly. We realized the road wasn’t blocked and continued on only to find it dead ended. We turned back around and went all the way back to where we got on the trail in the first place.

We made our way back to Sonoita and were happy that the Copper Brothel Brewery was open. The beer and food were both excellent and I even got free sopapillas for my birthday since they felt bad they were closed on my actual birthday. If you don’t know, a sopapilla is a sweet dough, fried and tossed in cinnamon sugar and served with honey and it’s warm. So delicious!

We went on another trail the next day that  started just north of our campground. There are border patrol checkpoints everywhere and we ended up going through two with no problems. I guess they figure we can’t smuggle anyone in the little black Jeep. They did have a K9 working and he had contact with every single car that went through. Busy dog!

We followed the trail and found ourselves down in a wash and then at the turn we were supposed to take the trail was closed. Bummer. We continued west on the main road and enjoyed the scenery. We popped out in Green Valley and headed south to Tubac. We had talked to Craig’s Aunt Karen & Uncle Roger and they told us it was a cool town. It was a very interesting artsy little town. Lots of beautiful pottery for sale. We went to Jack’s Saloon and grabbed a quick lunch.

We then headed back north to get to the start of another trail that would take us back through the Santa Rita mountains and end up south of Sonoita. The trail wasn’t too hard. We wound our way up and over the mountains, dodging cows and finding weird cacti. We came upon some adobe ruins which were neat to see as well.

Today we relaxed in camp. It’s nice and quiet and there are not many other campers around. Gus has been enjoying being off leash and the weather has been pretty good for the most part. We will pack up tomorrow and head east and eventually set up camp near Carlsbad Cavern National Park, NM.

Off to the caverns…

After five wonderfully busy days back in Michigan, I made my way home to Craig and Gus. I flew into Vegas around 9 pm,  and was happy to see the little black Jeep among all the vehicles in the passenger pickup lanes. And because Craig really knows me, he had a bag of Jimmie John’s waiting for me with a #4 and vinegar & salt potato chips. Best husband ever!

We made our way east out of Vegas to Lake Mead where Craig had set up camp on BLM land. Our camp was actually in Arizona and we didn’t realize the time changed between the two states. I couldn’t see anything on the way in but didn’t care. I was tired and just happy to be home.

Monday we needed propane so we headed into Boulder City, NV to run a few errands. We then went into the Lake Mead Recreational Area where our America the Beautiful pass saved us $25. We are so happy we purchased this pass, it has saved us a ton of money. Lake Mead is huge! We drove around part of it and turned around and went back to camp. At this point, my exhaustion hit me. We turned in early and I slept all night.

We woke up to severe cold winds Tuesday morning. The camper and trailer were swaying and if not for the big rocks Craig put on our mats, they would’ve been long gone. Because I was still feeling the effects from my trip home, I was fine with hunkering down and streaming some movies while Craig read.

Early in the morning on Wednesday, we woke up to find a puddle of throw up next to Gus. We got that cleaned up and went back to bed, only to have him do it again. He proceeded to throw up 5 more times  throughout the day. We had no idea what was going on as we hadn’t given him any bits in the last few days besides a little egg. And the last few times he got sick, he pretty much had nothing left in his stomach anyway. Poor guy. We had planned to tour around in the Jeep but decided to stay in camp and let him rest. He didn’t eat or drink much all day and finally fell asleep after some restlessness.

Thursday Gus seemed to be feeling much better. He still isn’t eating much but he wanted to take a walk and was super excited when we started packing the Jeep. We headed to the Hoover Dam. We walked the Memorial Bridge and read all about it’s construction. Then we drove on top of the Hoover Dam and saw the lake behind it. What an amazing feat of engineering.

After that we had more errands to run; laundry, replace the nozzle on our water hose, groceries, ice and gas. We unloaded it all back at camp and wanted to use the last remaining hours of light we had to drive a few trails close to our camp.

The first one dead-ended which wasn’t fun. But the second one, North Mine trail, was a ridge trail that took us into the mountains and gave us some really beautiful sights. We ended up at an old mine at dusk and were able to get a few pictures. As we drove back, we saw a cool cloudy sunset and were then left with the light pollution from Vegas behind the mountain.

Today we are packing up and moving south toward the Lake Havasu and Parker, AZ area. There is a place called the Desert Bar in the middle of nowhere and has a cool backway in that is supposed to be quite challenging that we want to take.

Off to the Desert Bar…

After 2 weeks of great company, comfy couches, movies, walks, and stories, we finally left the Grimmer Rancherito. It was so nice to have a place to reset and it was really hard to leave.

We hit the road and headed for Las Vegas. We had a good traveling day and made our way to Red Rock Canyon campground. We found the circle of big RVs and tucked ourselves in and called it a night.

Tuesday we drove into Red Rocks Canyon National Park and started driving the 13 mile scenic loop drive. We found a rocky trail off the beaten path. It was a beautiful drive and even got a little technical for me half-way through. Craig guided me through and little black Jeep sustained no damage. I think I’m slowly becoming a better driver.

We ended up on the highway south of the park and found a place for a quick lunch. We then found the vintage Las Vegas sign and drove the strip. It was busy, colorful and neat to see. We had never been to Vegas and wanted to see what the fuss what all about. I’m sure if we had parked and walked around we may have a different view of it, but driving through was enough for us. We made our way back to our quiet camp.

The week before Thanksgiving, while we were at the Grimmer’s, I started thinking about missing Thanksgiving with family and wondering if I could find cheap airfare from Vegas the week after. Craig and I talked about it and he was very supportive of me making a quick trip home. I made the plans and then contacted my Aunt Norene to help me surprise my mom. I’m glad the next two weeks were filled with such good times with friends because I was pretty excited about it once we had the plan in place.

Wednesday morning, Craig and Gus dropped me off at the McCarran airport for a 7 am flight. All my flights were great and I had a short layover in Denver. I finally landed in Grand Rapids and Aunt Norene texted that they were on their way. My aunt had asked my mom to drop her off at the airport for a surprise trip to Denver to see one of her kids. I patiently waited in the drop off area. My mom fell hook, line and sinker. I saw them drive up and made my way to the curb. I was wearing a hat so I kept my head down and stood at the curb. When they finally got to me, I looked up and waved. I saw the look of shock on her face and was hoping she didn’t crash the car. Aunt Norene captured it all on video and it makes me so happy to see the joy on her face. The planning, scheming and little white lies were all worth it.

We made our way back to Allendale, had a quick dinner and then went to my Grandpa Joe’s house. He turned 92 on Tuesday and to be able to walk in and wish him a belated Happy Birthday was also totally amazing. His face as I walked in, seeing a few tears strolling down his face and to have him say that I just made his birthday was absolutely priceless. My heart was so full!

The next few days were busy. My mom had a trip to Shipshewana planned Thursday to Friday with her friends before she knew I was coming home and I told her to go. I used the time she was gone to see as many people as I could. Aunt Norene loaned me her car so I was able to run around surprising many people. It was so fun! The shrieks, happy tears and hugs were just the coolest thing. I love how it took people a minute to register that I was actually at their doorstep, in their office or walking in the door when they thought they were video chatting me from afar!

I packed many surprises into the short time I had. I appreciate everyone that took time away from their busy schedules to spend time with me on short notice. I also appreciate everyone that helped in the planning of some of the surprises! All of the reactions were awesome and I will remember every single one.

We were able to have an impromptu Vugteveen dinner Thursday night with everyone! It was so great to see them all and give the kiddos a squeeze. It did make me miss Craig and Gus and I wished we could’ve all come home.

Saturday night was the Van De Weg Christmas party. My mom went in before I did and people asked right away where Craig and I were in the country. I know she hates to do it, but she did great and told little white lies as well. I got to walk in and again, watching everyone’s reactions were awesome!

This morning I got to spend time with my Grandpa, Aunt Norene, and cousin Kendra. We played cards and they all kicked my butt. But it was awesome to spend the morning with them and get in a few more hours before I leave. Talking with my Grandpa, telling him about our adventures, and showing him pictures made me so happy. My mom picked me up and we enjoyed a family dinner with my Uncle Herb and Aunt Karen, my cousins and their kids. And then one final goodbye at Mom and Dad Vugs.

I felt a little guilty getting to see everyone without Craig, but he had fun following the Best In The Desert Pahrump Nugget 250 which is an off-road race. He and Gus were able to see the Hall Race truck, get some cool video and Craig was even was invited to have dinner with the team. I was happy to hear he kept busy and made me feel a little better about leaving him behind.

The past 5 days have been a whirlwind. I was so happy to spend time with my mom and get in as many hugs as I could. It felt great to be here and see all the faces that make me happy. But I am ready to go home, where Craig is.

Heading home to Craig and Gus…

The craziness started and continued all week long. People started filtering to the Grimmer Rancherito (Randy & Kristen’s house in Stagecoach, NV) Sunday afternoon and continued to show up Monday and the last couple arrived Tuesday night.

Monday the group went into Virginia City. Virginia City was known as the Queen of the Comstock, the internationally famous mining district. Founded in 1859, the settlement was the focus of a gold rush and it became the region’s largest community, a status it maintained in Nevada into the 1890s.

The city has the old town feel and was fun to wander around in. We had lunch and cocktails at The Palace, got a history lesson from the bartender at the Bucket of Blood Saloon and then more drinks at The Delta where we read the history of the Suicide Table.

Tuesday was Day 180 of TheVugs180. We packed up the group and headed for a stroll in the Virginia Highlands range. All the dogs seemed to be getting along and enjoyed being outside and running off some energy. After that we headed to Fort Churchill State Park that is the preserved remains of an US Army Fort and was a way station on the Pony Express dating back to the 1860’s. We had a beautiful day to walk through and take in a little history.

Wednesday was a bit low-key. A few couples took off to Lake Tahoe, some of us napped in an effort to keep up with the rowdy group at night. We had a great dinner at Sassafras in Carson City and ended with some beers at Shoe Tree Brewing.

We celebrated Thanksgiving with food, cards, cornhole and cocktails. We had a nontraditional meal and everybody loved the Grimmer’s carne asada tacos. Add cheesy corn, spicy broccoli, rolls, pies, cookies and we had more than enough to graze on all day.

Friday we started with a sharing of Pliny the Elder after breakfast. We toasted everyone for taking the time away from their families to come out and see us. Then we headed back into Virginia City to check out a few more places and do a little shopping.

Randy says they only get about 8 inches of rain a year here, but somehow it rained for a few hours when we wanted to be touring the town. We blamed the Michiganders. After revisiting Bucket of Blood saloon and the brewery, we decided to head back to the Grimmer Rancherito.

We took on the task of polishing off as many leftovers as we could, threw some cornhole and readied ourselves to say goodbye to everyone. That made for a very late night, (or early morning) but the stories, laughter and bonding made the lack of sleep worth it.

By Saturday afternoon, everyone was on their way home. We decided to stay until Monday morning before we head to Vegas. We rehashed the week of fun and can’t believe it’s over.

With 15 people, 5 campers, 5 dogs, too many stories, lots of laughter and enough food and drinks to feed an army, we had the best Friendsgiving ever! A huge thanks to everyone for the great time. We definitely made some awesome memories. We especially cannot thank Randy and Kristen enough for having everyone invade their home and providing a place for us to catch up with everyone.

The really cool thing is that all the friendships started at JR Automation years and years ago. And even though some do not work there anymore, it felt like we hadn’t missed a beat. It’s not often your coworkers become such good friends and we appreciate each and every one!

We are headed to Vegas next week. We’ll take a couple of days to get down there and relax and recoup from the week. Randy has a race just outside of Vegas and will be there on Thursday so we’ll get to spend just a little more time with him next weekend.

Off to Vegas…

Sunday night we met the Timmers at a restaurant called Sasquatch in Verdi, NV. We had a great time and enjoyed the food, beer, and great company.

We woke up Monday morning to more frozen water lines and called it, we were done. We packed up the rig, drove to Carson City for groceries, more propane (yes we went through a tank in 3 nights) and fuel.

We then very nicely asked for an  early check-in at the Timmer Casa. They approved that and we showed up late afternoon. We very much appreciate our friendship with Randy and Kristen. These two are always so welcoming and we feel very much at home in their home. We had more laughs over “breakfast for dinner” and got settled in.

Randy had to leave early Tuesday morning and will be gone for the week so we are here to keep Kristen and the girls company. We didn’t do much Tuesday and just enjoyed our coffee on comfy couches in a nice warm living room. I decided to join Kristen at the gym for a workout in the afternoon.

Wednesday as I was remaking the bed with fresh sheets, I noticed the underside of the mattress was wet. We had significant condensation during the cold nights and didn’t realize it was under the mattress as well. So we pulled the mattress and it sat outside to dry for two days. We moved ourselves into the guest bedroom. Except for one night in a hotel and three nights sleeping in the trailer due to the truck being in the shop, we have only slept in the camper for the past six months. We really do like our bed in the camper but it was nice not to have to go outside in the cold to go to the bathroom and to just grab a book and relax on the couch in the morning. We had gotten used to going without a few creature comforts but it is a nice treat to enjoy while we are here.

Kristen and I got to the gym one more time which kind of helped to balance out our lazy mornings and happy hour afternoons. We enjoyed walks with the dogs, reading, movies, cocktails and popcorn at night.

Friday night we went into Carson City and met the McDaniels. Vaughn and Jenni have been traveling since October and are coming here for Friendsgiving as well. We hadn’t seen them in a few years so it was nice to go out to dinner and hear about their travels. We went to Shoe Tree Brewing after dinner and had some more laughs, especially when a tipsy patron wanted to join the group. He was quite entertaining but it was nice when his friends guided him away to take him home.

We were happy to use the week to get caught up on laundry, oil changes, a new radiator for the Jeep and a little relaxation. There are five couples making their way out here to spend next week with us. We are looking forward to seeing them and having a great Friendsgiving together.

Waiting for the craziness to begin…

We found a nice little spot to boondock just a mile or so west of the Big Oak Flat entrance to Yosemite. We settled in next to a small little creek with huge pine trees towering above. There was no cell service and besides the random cars that would appear and then leave across the creek, it was really peaceful.

Saturday we drove into the park and headed to Yosemite Valley along with everybody else. We cannot even imagine what this place looks like in the summer because the roadsides were lined with people and traffic was pretty constant.

We made our way to Bridal Veil falls and again were a little frustrated with tourists who think they own the sidewalk. Who walks four wide and thinks they don’t have to move for anyone? We bypassed the “Climbing on the Rocks is Dangerous” sign and made our way to the bottom of the falls, where there were fewer people. We would love to see the falls in the spring when they are surely gushing more violently than what we were seeing now in late fall.

We continued toward the valley and got our first glimpse of El Capitan! So amazing! The people who climb that huge rock face are crazy.

We were also happy that we were able to experience the colors in the park. We learned, like at other National Parks, Gus is not allowed on most trails. There were a few trails we wanted to hike but didn’t want to leave Gus behind for hours, so we found a small cafe instead, ate our packed lunch and used the Wi-fi to get caught up on a few things.

Sunday morning Gus didn’t care that we had gained an extra hour to sleep. We were up fairly early, relaxed and caught up on reading which is easy to do when you have no cell service. We eventually hopped in the Jeep and made our way to Glacier Point for the view of Half Dome.

Again, the drive up was just a line of cars heading to the same spot and a full parking lot waiting for someone to leave. We did see some of the burn area from the fire that had just occurred this past summer.

We made the walk up to the view point and had to work at getting a picture from the side to avoid the many other tourists. We are glad to be able to see this amazingly breathtaking park and it’s gorgeous views. The next time we come back we’ll get off the beaten path and see it a little differently. But for now, we were content with the couple of days we spent there.

We realize that we have traversed California in the most inefficient way. The camper rally brought us way farther south earlier than we had intended and we ended up zig zagging all over the state. When we left 5 months ago, we originally thought we’d make our way through California and then end up in Nevada for Thanksgiving with our friends. We ended up seeing California way quicker because of the heat and the traffic.

After Yosemite, we had been in contact with good friends of ours that are also traveling for a couple of months. We were estimating that we could be back in Santa Rosa the second week in November and we set up a date to meet them at the downtown Russian River Brewery. We had gone to the brand new brewery in Windsor and some of the workers had told us that the downtown pub had a more quaint feel, a different menu, and more beer. We wanted to bring some beer to share at Thanksgiving anyway so we thought this plan would work out great.

After only a few days in Yosemite, we headed back to the coast a little earlier than planned, but thought how wonderful it would be to find a spot on the water to relax and enjoy a proper California fall. What we didn’t know was how difficult it was going to be to find a place to camp that wasn’t super expensive. Everything in California is expensive. We located the boondocking spot called boat ramp on CA-1 just outside of Marshall and we were not impressed. We continued north a little farther to the next one and our gigantic rig didn’t fit. So back to the boat ramp.

Add the frustration of the traffic just to get to that point, the fact that it gets dark earlier, we hadn’t eaten dinner yet, and Gus wasn’t feeling well… we were done. But the fun wasn’t over yet, I ended up getting up with Gus about 4 times. He was panting like crazy and acting out of sorts and struggled to go to the bathroom. I did not know exactly what was going on in his little doggy head and I was worried and frustrated. He’s doing fine now and whatever was the problem has taken care of itself hopefully. He’s back to his good old self again.

The next day, after searching again for a better place to stay and having no luck, we decided staying on the coast was just not what we wanted. We contacted our friends and told them we were headed back to the mountains. They were very understanding stating they weren’t exactly looking forward to heading in to the city either. Our kind of people.

Tuesday we parked the rig behind a Best Buy in Santa Rosa and drove the Jeep downtown to Russian River Brewery. We arrived just before lunch and had no problem finding a seat. This is different from the stories we heard about two hour lines out the door. The new brewery was helping to alleviate the crowds which was great for us. We were able to chat with our bartender about hikes and traveling and had a really great time. We got our coveted Pliny the Elder (a really excellent beer ) and decided we needed to hit the road before rush hour.

We had decided to go to Lake Tahoe. It was a few hours away and we had researched more than enough options for boondocking should we strike out again. We immediately hit traffic just east of San Francisco. Google maps told us it was a car crash but we never saw it. Then as we neared Sacramento, we hit full on rush hour. How people deal with that kind of traffic every day is beyond us.

We crawled through it and finally found ourselves away from the city and needed to stop for fuel. We’ve struck out once or twice using the app Gasbuddy, finding the place is tiny or the price not as listed. We pulled into this gas station well after we usually are snuggled into a campsite for the night, frustrated, tired, and hungry. Thankfully it was one of the hugest gas stations we’ve been in and it was super clean, had cheap diesel as listed, and good cheap coffee that we needed to help us function the last couple hours as we drove into the mountains. As we continued on, we watched the temp drop significantly. It had been in the mid 70’s in Santa Rosa, it was 29 by the time we stopped for the night.

The next day we decided we’d just explore the area in the Jeep and drive around the lake and then figure out where exactly we wanted to go. The place we spent the night wasn’t ideal so we wanted to check out a few other spots on the east side of the lake. Those brought us onto Hwy 50 toward Carson City. The sites were located on a narrow gravel road heading up a mountain and knew that would never work for our rig, but it looked like a fun drive in the Jeep.

So we headed up and it took us higher and higher. We eventually got to a spot with a great overlook of Carson City. Now we didn’t intend on going to Carson, but the trail spit us out there. Carson is just 30 minutes from our friends The Timmers.

We texted them for some lunch recommendations and we got a response of “Weren’t you in Santa Rosa yesterday?” Yes, we tend to put in a few hours when we want to get somewhere. After lunch, we headed back to Lake Tahoe and continued up and over the top and found a better-ish boondocking spot on the north end. We decided we’d move in the morning.

Everyone we talked to said we had to go to Emerald Bay. So Thursday morning we did. We thought we had found a trail that would lead us there without having to pay the parking fee required everywhere else, only to find out Gus wasn’t allowed on that one either. After some discussion we decided to skip it. We got some pictures from a vista point and went to move our camp.

We definitely found our cooler weather. We had bright blue skies but it was still pretty chilly and leaving Gus in the Jeep didn’t sound like a good plan. So we moved camp and settled in just south of Truckee.

We needed gas in the Jeep and like I said before, everything is expensive in California, especially gas. So we decided to make the short 30 minute drive to Reno for super cheap Costco gas. We also needed propane and had no idea finding a place to fill our tank would be so hard. We spent most of the afternoon running around Reno getting our errands done and by pure coincidence, ended up 2 miles from Revision Brewery which was highly recommended by the Timmers. We enjoyed the beer and the atmosphere and were happy we made the stop. We meandered our way back to camp and settled in for a cold night.

In the morning, it was bitter cold…pillows stuck to the inside of the camper, ice flakes cold. And then we discovered our water lines in the trailer were completely frozen, and any water not in an insulated container was frozen. Our olive oil was frozen!! After some discussion, I decided to go for a water and coffee run. No water meant no coffee and that’s no good for anyone. Gus and I hopped in the Jeep and went the few short miles to Truckee with the heat blasting. We had planned on another Jeep tour but hung out in the trailer with the propane heater going monitoring the frozen lines. Everything thawed and thankfully the pump wasn’t affected but the shower head was cracked so we’ll have to replace that soon.

Saturday morning wasn’t as cold and we had tried to insulate the lines as best we could with blankets and towels so we had no issues with freezing. We headed south in the Jeep and went to the start of the Rubicon Trail. Craig has talked about this trail for as long as I can remember. We knew we wouldn’t be able to run the entire 18+ miles with my mildly lifted Jeep with no extras besides a winch. It was a beautiful sunny 55 degree day and we just enjoyed the drive.

We made it 4.3 miles in with no issues and commented on how pretty it was and surprised that it wasn’t more difficult. We hit a big rocky section and got out and walked it. Craig pointed out how he would spot me and direct me through it and maybe this, and maybe that. Now folks, I never intended my pretty little Jeep to be a rock crawler. I’m fine with getting a few scratches here and there, a little dent in the bumper is okay, a scrape somewhere in the nether regions maybe, but this trail is a serious rock crawling trail. Even though we were not even close to those serious sections, this was a glimpse. I told Craig that if he could guide me through with no damage being done, then I would try…he hesitated. We both knew. It broke my heart because I know how much he wanted to keep going, but it doesn’t mean enough to me to say I did a hard section of the trail and end up with my dream Jeep being damaged.

So we called it a day, wandered back off the trail, and went to a really cool bar called BridgeTender in Tahoe City for an excellent lunch and followed that up with a visit to Fifity-fifty Brewery in Truckee. We are in an area that our friends know well and are trying to soak up all the good stuff they suggest.

We really are enjoying this area. We didn’t much enjoy the super hot desert and even though it’s pretty darn cold, we know how to deal with it…layers are key!

Our friend, Kristen, had mentioned one of her favorite restaurants was Sasquatch in Verdi, NV. We were not camping too far away so we asked if they wanted to make the trek up to have dinner. Our awesome friends are always up for a road trip. We are here waiting for them and excited to talk about all the fun stuff we’ve done in the area. We are headed to their house on Tuesday anyway, but Randy will be leaving for the week so it’ll be nice to catch up with them again. And who doesn’t want to go to a restaurant called Sasquatch?

The Timmers are here!

We left Twentynine Palms hoping to find a little bit cooler weather. We made our way north up 395 to the small town of Lone Pine. At the camper rally, we were told that the recreation area in Lone Pine called Alabama Hills was a cool place to check out. We found Tuttle Creek Campground and made our way there hoping it would be a good fit for us.

It turned out to be pretty amazing. There were big campsites with a lot of space in between each of them. It wasn’t very busy either which was nice. The campground is still in the desert with a small tree here and there but the views were amazing. We couldn’t pick a bad site. Each site had a view of the Inyo Mountains to the east, the Owens Dry Lake Bed to the south, the Sierra Nevada’s to the west and the Alabama Hills to the north. The view of Mt. Whitney was perfect. We were at a higher elevation, so the temperatures were very pleasant and we had a nice breeze during the day. The sunsets were breathtaking. The sky would turn a vibrant pink and orange and then it would cool right off.

We settled in, relaxed and were content to stay for a few days. Saturday we drove into town and picked up a few groceries. The Chamber of Commerce was closed for the weekend so we ended up going back there on another day. I should note, that as we left the Chamber of Commerce the second time, I waited for traffic to clear and did a U-turn to head to the Lone Pine Film History Museum in town. We decided to by-bass that and as we were waiting to pull out of the parking lot, one of California’s finest wanted to meet me and tell me that U-turns in town were illegal. What? Thankfully, I just received a warning and a “have a good trip”. Whew!

We then drove up a mountain road to the east that gave us great views of the Owens Dry Lake Bed. It was a fun winding road that lead to a campground catering to people with horses.

There are trails everywhere here. As we were walking Gus in our campground, we noticed a trail that led west toward the mountains. We had to know where that went. We meandered on a pretty well traveled dirt road, bumping over rocks and washout areas. The road led us to a trail head up in the valley. Three gentlemen were making their way down the trail to their vehicle and told us they had just returned from the stone house. We had no idea there was a stone house to hike to. They pointed to the west, way high, and we could finally spot it. We decided we’d tackle that trail the next morning.

After some research, we learned that the stone house is called the Tuttle Creek Ashram and construction was first started in 1928. The building took 20 years of hard manual labor and was never completely finished because the wife of the builder became sick.  The building is high up on the side of the mountain at about 7600 feet and it is built in the shape of a balanced cross. The ashram is a 2,000 square foot structure of natural stone and concrete, with a cement floor, heavy-beam roof, and a large fireplace. The stonework of the ashram blends so well into the ridge that the building is hard to see even from a half mile away.

We got up bright and early and made our way back to the trail head. The beginning of the hike kind of kicked our butts and legs. We aren’t exactly in tip-top shape after months on the road. Gus led the way up and did pretty well but slowed down after the continued up hill climb. We finally reached the ashram after about an hour up hill climb. To think what they had to go through to get materials up there to build it is crazy!

The views from the ashram were amazing. Craig had to check out the stone fireplace and see if it was Dad Vug approved (Craig’s dad was a mason for many years). After taking many pictures and enjoying a quick snack, we headed back down to the Jeep.

We headed into the Alabama Hills recreation area and again were just in awe of what we were looking at. Huge rock formations, rocks stacked on top of rocks, all scattered in the high desert. We toured off the main gravel road onto some trails that led us high into the hills. There was nobody up there in contrast to the many RVers boondocking in the rocky sections of the rec area. We came to a dead end on one trail and then another, and then another but we had fun checking out mine shafts and traversing rocky ridges.

Tuesday we woke to a wind storm. There were huge gusts periodically shaking the entire camper. I wasn’t feeling well and thought a cold was coming on as well. So we hunkered down and relaxed for the day.

Wednesday I was feeling much better and pretty happy that I didn’t end up with a full on cold. We drove through the Alabama Hills area again but stayed in the recreation area this time. Over 400 movies have been filmed in the Alabama Hills because of the unique backdrop this area provides. We saw where they filmed the 1990 movie Tremors, The Lone Ranger, How the West Was Won, Gunga Din…there are too many to list but it was neat to see. We had gotten a map from the Chamber of Commerce and took the “technical 4WD” trails… not so technical really. It’s probably just to keep big RVers from trying to go down them to boondock.

Mobius Arch

We then drove up Whitney Portal Road. Again this was a winding mountain road that led us to a campground in the trees. It’s a really neat area with lots of hikes to do. We put this on our list of places to return to someday. A hike up Mt Whitney (14, 508 ft) may be in our future.

We finally left our quiet little campsite Thursday morning. We made our way to Bishop and stopped for lunch at the Mountain Rambler Brewery on recommendation from a few friends. The beer and food were very good. I even got a bowl of brussel sprouts! Yum!

We continued north to Highway 120 which is the highway that goes through Yosemite National Park. Google maps and I were at odds because it said that the road was closed for the season. We had done our homework and we were sure it was open. As we turned onto the road, it was indeed open but there was a yellow sign stating “Trailers not Recommended”…well… we had read a few google reviews  that said it could be done with a trailer and heck, we’ve dealt with many steep ascents and descents and winding, narrow roads before, this one couldn’t be any worse.

Craig handled it just fine although we did have to take a break to let the good old gray truck take a rest. When we got into the park, we did see why they don’t recommend trailers. It’s a pretty narrow, curvy road without shoulders. We took our time so we ended up with cars behind us and a dog that had to pee.

We were happy when we got to our boondocking spot just outside of the west entrance to the park. Our app had warned us that it but we were was a popular spot, but we were happy to see just one other tent and a nice big spot next to a creek that worked perfect for us.

We are looking forward to exploring Yosemite. The drive through the park was just absolutely amazing. Huge granite rocks, big trees, lakes, rivers, valleys…it’s all stuff we love. We talked about all of the different scenery we have seen over the last 5 months. From the Canadian Rockies, the Arctic tundra and the Alaska Mountains, to the rain forests of Washington, the Oregon coast beaches, the California desert and now the Sierra Nevada’s with trees and fall color. We are enjoying seeing all the different landscapes and experiencing all the different climates.

Off to explore Yosemite…

We made our way to the Ocotillo Wells State Recreation Area where the Four Wheel Truck camper rally was being held. It was pretty cool pulling in and seeing all the Four Wheel campers. We found our spot easily since we were in a wide open desert. The event was centered around a nice pavilion area so there was some relief from the sun.

We headed to happy hour to partake in free cocktails. Although we are pretty social on our own, Gus is always quick to gain the spotlight. We chatted with the other dog owners and Gus made some new friends.

When we left our friends in Nevada, we were happy with the warm 65 degree days and the 40 degree nights. Here, we were lucky if the temp dropped lower than 65 at night and it heated up to the mid 90’s. If there was no shade, it would’ve been pretty miserable. Others from the area did say it has been unseasonably hot so lucky us.

After breakfast, Craig went to an informal training on tire repair. He knew most of it but learned a few things and added to the list of things we should have on hand. None of it would’ve helped with our previous tire struggles just FYI. The training took a bit longer than expected so while he did that, Gus and I fought to stay in the shade of the trailer. I read a book while Gus napped.

After lunch, we all gathered together with cold drinks in hand and did a walk-about to everyone’s camper. There were 37 different campers there and they were allowing 5 minutes a piece to talk about your camper. They were scattered all out and around the central pavilion area. We went first but didn’t have much to share since we haven’t modified ours much. Many were impressed with the trailer so that was fun to show. We moved on to a few more and realized we were not going to last long in the heat. We made a beeline to the new flatbed models and talked with those owners. We were super impressed with the whole setup and once again got our wheels turning.

At dinner we met more new people and got some suggestions on places to visit here in California. It was a really great time and it was better than we expected. The food was provided as well as water, beer and wine. They had a big fire at night and everyone enjoyed sharing stories.

Sunday after another informal training, everyone packed up and headed home. We decided to stay and hang out. We relaxed the rest of the day and chatted a lot about the people we met and the things we want to do in the future.

Monday we took the Jeep out and explored the area we had camped in for two days. During those two days, many quads, bikes and side-by-sides whipped through the parking lot and off onto trails. The recreation area has more than 85,000 acres for exploration and it’s free to use. No lines to get in and no fees to camp.

We also drove toward Borrego Springs where we were told there were metal statues situated throughout the desert. Well we had to go see that. It was kind of strange but they were pretty neat. There are 130 full-sized metal sculptures that are inspired by creatures that roamed this same desert millions of years ago. Craig made the mistake of getting out to look at one closer and got attacked by a little cactus. Ouch!! We bombed around for a couple of hours and then packed up and headed east toward Joshua Tree National Park.

We found a free campground at the south end of the park only after realizing the south entrance was closed due to a storm that had come through on October 13. Many of the roads were still closed due to flooding.

We changed the game plan and drove around the east side of the park on Tuesday morning to Twenty-Nine Palms where the north entrance is located. We parked at Tortoise Rock Casino where we are allowed to camp three nights for free. We headed into the park and did the main loop with all the huge rocks and Joshua Trees. We waited for a great sunset and left out the west entrance back to camp.

The next day we found a trail off of Highway 62 that went south on BLM land and eventually went into the park. This trail was great as it wasn’t busy and we got to see things you don’t get to see from the paved road in the park. We got off the main trail and ended up climbing some rocky trails into the hills. We found a couple of old mines and lots of debris scattered from them. We made our way back to the main trail and were driving up to the main road only to see barricades.

We had been told most of the roads were open but if they were barricaded you couldn’t go down them. Thankfully there was no chain, just signs that could be moved. Just as we were getting out to do that, a park ranger pulled up and asked where we were coming from. We told him we came in from the highway and he instantly let his guard down and asked how the road was. He had no problem with us moving the barricades. We asked about another trail further south and he said he didn’t know the condition of the trail but to move the barricades and go have fun. We liked that answer!

We continued to the south end, moved more barricades, and went on the Pinkham Canyon Trail. This trail was a nice little trail through the wash. We made our way through that pretty easily and ended up on Thermal Canyon Trail and out to a service road on the south end of the park. We saw the sun set and then had to drive the 2 hours back to our camper. It was a long day but a lot of fun.

Thursday we had planned on heading north but wanted to run one more trail that Craig had read about where you can see the largest of all the Joshua Trees. We found our way to the trail and were amazed at how many huge trees there were. It was really cool to see. We headed up to Eureka Peak and loved the 360 view.

View from Eureka Peak

We got back to camp and decided we didn’t want to rush around packing up and try to get to our next spot. We relaxed, packed up a few things, I got caught up on “This is Us” episodes and we read.

Today we are heading to Lone Pine, California and the Alabama Hills area for a few days to explore up there. We are looking forward to a little bit cooler temps. We heard it’s a little chilly at home so we’re not complaining, the sunshine is really nice to see. I would just like to not sweat through my shirt at the end of October. Is that too much to ask?

Headed north to cooler temps…

Sunday morning we had one last breakfast with Mom and Dad Vug in Depoe Bay before they headed out. We went back to the house and packed up our stuff and then went to get the trailer. We headed south on the 101 planning on just getting into California.

We made it to a rest area just north of Trinidad, CA and called it for the night. As we were settling in, Craig remembered that we should have had a new RV water pump for the trailer delivered to the rental house. Ours had quit working the week before and we thought we had ordered one on Amazon along with few other items. We had multiple things delivered to the rental house but forgot all about the pump. The area we were in didn’t have good service, so we unloaded the Jeep and I drove a little ways up the road to get service to check our account. Turns out it was never put in the cart to be ordered. We were happy that it wasn’t sitting on the porch at the rental house 6 hours away, but we still need a new pump.

We got up early on Monday because we wanted to get to Russian River Brewing when they opened. They are very popular and we’d heard wait times can be up to two hours. They had just opened their new location in Windsor, CA on Oct 11 so we weren’t sure how bad it was going to be. We didn’t get there right at opening but the line wasn’t bad. We shared a flight of all their beers and had lunch. Pliny the Elder is an IPA that rivals Two Hearted for #1 IPA in the nation. It was nice to get Pliny fresh from the keg and try the other great beers too. The new building was beautiful and their beer garden was huge and dog friendly. Gus enjoyed the grass and we soaked up some California Sun.

Gus enjoyed the nice green grass

We love dog friendly beer gardens!

We had a rough time finding a place to sleep and ended up driving a little bit later than we wanted to. We finally found a pull off on the road to Woodland. We were up early again and got to a Costco before they opened and utilized the large parking lot to unload the Jeep. We went to the Four Wheel Camper headquarters to see the new models. It was nice to see the different options they have now. We are still considering our options…new camper or revamping our 2007 model. We have lots of time to figure it out.

We headed to Sacramento to get the last two trailer tires switched out. After some email arguing with the company, and the fact they sent the wrong tires out to us, they finally paid us out for the tires. The OK tire in Sacramento didn’t have the same tires we had already purchased and the marine store didn’t have a pump that wasn’t ridiculously expensive. We were a little frustrated that things weren’t working out. But maybe that was for a reason. We realized we were only 3 1/2 hours from our good friends the Timmers, and we could travel down the east side of the Sierra’s to get down to Ocotillo Wells, California by Friday. So we ordered the pump on Amazon Prime knowing it would show up at their house on Thursday, headed east over Donner Pass toward Reno, and sent them a text telling them we were coming. The Timmers are awesome hosts and always make us feel welcome.

We got to their place in Stagecoach, NV and had a great time. It’s always fun to chat over beers and catch up with them. Their dogs, Rhianna and Chloe, even seemed happy to see us again and welcomed Gus into their house.

Gus and the girls got along so well

Kristen and I took the dogs for walks in the mornings and I was happy to be able to see the wild horses in the area. It was pretty crazy to see them meandering the neighborhood and grazing in the yards. As cool as it was to see them, they do leave quite the poop trail. We had to navigate around some pretty hefty horse dumps on our walks and the dogs were busy trying to sniff them all.

Wild horses in the neighbors yard!

Nice view from the Timmer’s back yard

Randy and Kristen have a nice open yard and we pulled the entire rig in and unloaded everything. It felt great to clean it all. All interiors were wiped down and Craig was so happy to scrub the truck and trailer. After we repacked and reorganized, we ended up with a small pile of things we haven’t touched in 5 months so we’ll leave that here and hopefully be able to find a way to get it home. We have a bunch of friends coming out to the Timmer’s for Thanksgiving. We are looking forward to seeing everyone.

Cleaning house!

We went to Carson City to one of their favorite restaurants and had an excellent meal. We plan on coming back with the group to have a fun night out. Like us, the Timmers like good beer and there is a good brewery conveniently located next to their favorite restaurant.

Great beer at Shoe Tree Brewing

The pump showed up Thursday afternoon and is working as it should! With a clean, reorganized rig, we headed south. We are going to a Four Wheel Camper Rally in Ocotillo Wells for the weekend and need to be there this afternoon.

We drove until right before the California border and stayed in a pull off for the night. We got up nice and early and are enjoying the sunshine and mountain views. The weather has been great. It’s chilly at night and in the mornings and heats up nicely during the day. I think I’ll get to work on my tan this weekend and hopefully even out my flip-flop tan lines. We are looking forward to seeing a bunch of different rigs and talking with other Four Wheel camper owners.

Headed to Southern California…