The End of the Road

Every ending is a new beginning, but we wondered if we would actually get to the end so we could start again.

The drive from Yermo to Santa Cruz was uneventful, if long. We had hoped to perhaps stay in Paso Robles for a little wine tasting, but the temperatures were too hot to leave the dogs in the MF. So we made it home, parked MF, and didn't go back into it for about 2 days, we were that thankful to be out of it.

After a full day of unpacking and then cleaning out the dog hair, it was time to return MF. Here is its finally voyage down the road.

I had located a dump station nearby the CruiseAmerica return center, but that is when the fun began. When we arrived, there was a Class A ahead of us doing its dump of the tanks. After waiting until it was finished, the Class A wouldn't start. So he asked for a jump. After setting that up, and jumpstarting the Class A, it wouldn't stay started. Turned out he had run out of gas. So he went to get gas, then I jumped it again, but it wouldn't stay on. After about 1 hour of this, I was ready to burn it down in place, since it was apparent it wasn't going anywhere. But the dump station owners figured a way to back in MF close enough to the dump station to allow me to clean out the tanks, and I high-tailed it out of there. For all I know, that Class A is still there, rotting.

Then I went to the gas station right next to the return center to fill the tanks (they would have charged $7/gal if it wasn't full, which actually is pretty close to what gas is in CA these days ;-). But the pump would only put $85 of gas on the credit card. So tried again, and it rejected the card, so I had to use a different CC. At this point it seemed that gods were conspiring against us, and that we would never be rid of MF.

But we did get it returned, and we were free and clear.

Overall, we had a great time. There is some great scenery in the US, and everyone should get the opportunity to see it. If you can stand the driving, aren't on a time schedule, and able to deal with unforeseen circumstances, it is an experience you don't want to miss.

It also helps to have a very strong relationship with your partner and family, because there will be times it is tested. We are very fortunate to have all of these items.

Day 20 - Yermo, CA

Where in the heck is Yermo, California? Well, it's just east of Barstow, off Hwy 15. Yup, in the middle of no freakin' where.
After leaving Flagstaff, we decided to make some headway toward home. If we stopped in Needles, then we would most likely make another stop somewhere near Bakerfield. With these two exciting possibilities, both Mr. B (back in the saddle for a couple hours today) and I went for some miles today. Just over 350 miles. Our longest and roughest day yet. I-40 between Flagstaff and Barstow is far from smooth, which translated into a very noisy, tiring day.
So, here we are in Yermo. It was pretty hot when we arrived, but it pretty pleasant now with the sun down. Wifi is limited and device specific, but no matter. No pics today.
We may bypass our last stop in Paso Robles. The "plan" was to spend a few days doing some wine tasting. There are some gems in the Paso area, but temperatures are expected in the high 80's to mid 90's. It seems we've come full circle: the beginning and end of our trip are altered by temperature.
Well, it has been three weeks on the road. There is still so much to see and do, but life is calling us back home. There will probably be a couple more blog entries to wrap it all up and say farewell to Mofo.
Until then.

Day 19: Grand Canyon, AZ - Part 2

I left Mr. B today at the Flagstaff campsite and went on a tour to the Grand Canyon. I'm not much for bus-type tours, but I needed a break from driving and the "Big Ditch" was 78 miles away. I figured a van with group of 11 would be manageable. So naive I can still be.
The tour guide was extra chipper (the 64oz soda?) and extra horrible as a driver (the 64oz soda?). As a party of one, I got to sit shotgun and believe me there were times during the drive that I wish a shotgun would have put me out of my misery. She held the microphone portion of her broken headset in her left hand and would more than frequently use her right hand to point. So when she did point, guess how many hands were on the wheel of her speeding vehicle? If the scenery wasn't so compelling, I would have kept my eyes closed.
Despite the adrenaline-filled drive, the views were magnificent. Many of the vistas she took us to were less frequented, but no less beautiful.

This view is from the Yavapai point where the canyon is the widest: 18 miles between the north and south rims! The peak about 1/3 from the right is called Vishnu. To identify the canyon's features, early survey teams used names from different religions because they knew not everyone worshipped the same god. Kinda progressive thought for the late 1800's.

The green butte on the right is Temple Butte. This viewpoint is near the East entrance.

Many of the buildings were designed by Mary Colter during the 1900's-30's. She used materials gathered locally and often had Native American artists decorate the sites. One particular building is the Desert View Tower. Great views from the additional elevation. And this is a mural inside the first floor of the tower.

Sights were seen and the menu Mr. B had for dinner was icing on the cake:

• Shredded brussel sprouts sautéed with pancetta, finished with basaltic vinegar and parmesan cheese.
• Smashed potatoes
• Grilled herb-crusted pork chops
• Ice-colded Bass beer
• S'mores

A grand day of sightseeing and a grand dinner with a grand companion.

Day 19: Part 1 - Dog Daze

As Keeper of the Camp and Entertainer of the Dogs, I spent the day doing laundry, running the dogs, shopping for dinner, and then reading a trashy SF novel at the campsite.

The dogs took an intense interest in a squirrel in the other part of the park, who was wise enough to play dead until the dogs lost patience.

Dogs are kinda funny. There are two perfectly good dog beds for them to lay on, but they seem to both have to fight to stay on the favorite one.

Oh, and someone decided to bring an four wheel drive assault RV to the park. These folks are not amateurs.

Day 18: Holbrook to Flagstaff

This was just a short jaunt (about 100 miles) heading due west on Hwy 40. Even though it was a Sunday, it seemed that most of the truckers were still working, and they all were on HWY 40 heading west. We did gain about 1000ft. in elevation, as Flagstaff is about 6K ft, compared to the 5K in Holbrook. So we are expecting a bit chillier evening.

The KOA in Flagstaff is quite nice, with pine-wooded camping spots - making maneuvering a little more challenging.

Many KOAs have TeePees that you can rent out. These seemed quite spacious and nice.

Since Mrs. B wasn't feeling too well, we just took it easy around the campsite, and had a leisurely dinner of BBQ flank steak fajitas.

And here is another food post. S'mores made by Mrs. B tonight.

Day 17: Painted Desert/Petrified Forest

So, after the lovely storm, we took off early on Saturday from Cortez, heading to Holbrook, AZ. It was 136 miles due south from Cortez to Gallup, then you take a right and head directly west 'til you can't stand it anymore.
While we had been to the Painted Desert/Petrified Forest National Park about 6 years ago, we felt it was worthwhile to do it again. And it was very cool. First, you get to see the Painted Desert on the north side of Hwy 40:

Mrs. B likes to get a little closer to the edge than I do.

You then go across Hwy 40 to the south side and get into some of the other strange rock formations and some of the actual petrified wood.

So, after the park, in was back on the way to Holbrook. And in Holbrook is the probably the largest collection of petrified wood for sale in the world. The place is call Jim Gray's, and if you wanted a 2-ton piece of petrified wood, this is your place. Here is an example:

Oh, and there is an ENTIRE YARD full of it!

We stayed at the Holbrook KOA and they have a pancake breakfast every morning through the end of October, which made staying in Holbrook a bit nicer.

Tomorrow, on to Flagstaff...

Day 16: Riding the Storm Out

Yea, I don't like REO Speedwagon that much either, but it seemed appropriate. We had planned to stay in place as the weather forecast looked ominous, and it did not disappoint. At some point during the night was a hailstorm that sounded like someone was dropping a bunch of ball bearings on the roof. Then there was a parade of thunderstorms throughout the night and until about 11:00 am this morning. But thankfully it wasn't constant, and we were able to take the dogs out without getting drenched.

Here is what it looked like...

But being cooped up all morning made Mrs. B a little stir crazy, so back to Mr. Happy's for lunch, and then we hit a couple stores before going back to the camp and doing the ever-exciting laundry.

The weather is expected to go cold tonight, but at least the western sky does not look as ominous as it did last night.

And a last shot of Mesa Verde, as we move out early tomorrow for Petrified Forest/Painted Desert in AZ.