Colorado National Monument

Colorado National Monument

After staying in Grand Junction last night out of necessity, it was a pleasant surprise to find Colorado National Monument located in the same city some 10 miles from my hotel.  Did t have time to do any hikes, but the views were worth the visit. Since I visited early morning, the sun was against … Read more

Arches National Park

Arches National Park

After Capitol Reef I had a decision to make – skip some parks and start driving south, or press my luck and go for more.  Made some distance calculations with my road atlas (no cell service out here anywhere) and made the call to push onward in my adventures. Only about 100 miles or so … Read more

Capitol Reef National Park

Cold, windy night in the tent again but wore my snowboarding gear and stayed toasty warm.  First day in a while with 8 hours of sleep!  Broke down camp and was in the park before 8am but found this wasn’t ideal to photograph the rock formations.  Had to wait 30-45 minutes for more light to … Read more

Kanarra Falls

Hiking trail to Kanarra Falls in Utah

Ended up back in my favorite wilderness shack again last night.  Cheap rates, bed, heat, and showers make a very happy and rested camper!  Also very happy to be out of Nevada – not my favorite state, but some excellent geological features I wish I could have seen.  Maybe some other trip. Woke up early … Read more

Walnut Canyon National Monument

Down the highway from Sunset is the Walnut Canyon National Monument.  This site preserves the early cliff side dwellings of the Sinagua culture dating back to about 1100 CE, near the same time of Sunset’s eruption.  Can you imagine what they saw in the distant sky from their caves on that day?  Crazy to imagine. … Read more

Grand Canyon South Rim

After finding that a) temps get really cold in GCNP during fall, and b) campsites are reserved over a year in advance regardless of what the interwebs say, I had to cave in and stay at a hotel.  Upside is I slept like a baby for the first time this trip.  Howard Johnson’s beds are … Read more

Grand Canyon North Rim

Started the day by heading to the Kanab BLM center to get info on the Escalante National Monument and found the drive was more than expected.  Also I am to the point I actually need to pay attention to the date – time is going by too fast!  Alas, no Escalante on this trip.  Also … Read more

Bryce Canyon National Park

Ran into a dilemma this morning of which direction to take next.  Each way leads to a path where I miss out on major locations I wanted to see.  Ended up taking the safe route and going for a quick day trip to Bryce Canyon, and coming back to my little shack in the RV … Read more

Yellowstone National Park

Arrived at Yellowstone and the weather was very temperamental – gray skies with rain, then sun, then thunderstorms.  Drove almost the entire main circle through the park minus area just west of the southern gate.  Saw tons of bison and elk but no bears.  Saw Old Faithful and by dumb luck showed up during its … Read more

Devils Tower National Monument

Crossed into Wyoming to see the Devils Tower (aka Bear Lodge, the true / non-whitey appropriated name).  Did the 1.3 mile Tower Trail which was very peaceful.  If you ever do this yourself, find a bench and wait for all people to leave your sight.  Listen to the wind through the trees and enjoy the … Read more