Trip Out West 2010 (Week 12)

Week 12 started with us driving the winding Iron Mountain Road with tunnels through which we could see Mt.Rushmore and then an actual visit to Mt. Rushmore NP. We left by way of Needles Hwy and marveled at the rock formations, winding roads and "pigtail" bridges. We also drove to the historic town of Hill City and visited the Crazy Horse monument. The next day we stopped at the infamous Wall Drug on our way to the Badlands, NP. We pulled our little camper through the badlands and the Cherokee complained by trying to over heat. We also over heated so lunch was malts! We camped that evening near the Missouri River. The next day we visited the Corn Palace and again enjoyed seeing it and reading some of it's history. We spent a lovely relaxing afternoon in Sioux Falls before camping in Tea, SD. the rest of the week, and the rest of our trip was/will be spent traveling home with stops to see family and friends. We have enjoyed sharing our travels with you and hope you have enjoyed the narrative and pictures.

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Pictures of Week 11 are at this link

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Trip Out West 2010 (Week 11)

We spent the first 3 days of week 11 in Yellowstone National Park and had an awesome time. We saw elk, deer, bears and a bald eagle. In one instance a bear was chasing a herd of elk. What an awesome sight. And then there were all of the geological wonders - bubbling cauldrons, emerald pools, geysers, flowing mineral deposits and of course, our favorite, waterfalls! We watched Old Faithful erupt more than once. If we were to visit Yellowstone every year, there would still be something new. Our 4th day was spent in Grand Teton National Park. What awe inspiring mountains! I think Carl took pictures of them from about every angle he could imagine and they were all stunning. On the 5th day of week 11 we actually began our trip home. Leaving Yellowstone from the East side, from Pahaska to Cody, we drove through some of the most awesome canyons and rock formations we had seen on our trip. We drove through Granite Pass and Shell Canyon and stopped at the Shell falls. We also stopped at the Buffalo Bill Dam and reservoir. Our last stop that day was at Devils Tower NM. We hiked around the bottom, took numerous pictures and watched the antics of the prairie dogs. The next day we drove to Ellsworth AFB in Rapid City, SD, where we camped for 3 nights. The last day of the week we visited a few well known SD towns such as Lead, Deadwood, Sturgis and Hill City. We drove through Spearfish Canyon, Box Canyon and saw Bridal Veil Falls. It was really a busy week and we are beginning to feel the call of HOME!

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Pictures of Week 11 are at this link
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Trip Out West 2010 (Week 10)

Week 10 began with us still in Oregon. We spent most of 1 day driving the Historic Columbia River Gorge Road. On that road were several waterfalls and some awesome river overlooks along with several historic bridges. The second day of the week we left Oregon behind and camped in Yakima Sportsman CG in Washington. The next day we drove up to Mt. Rainer NP and it was so foggy and overcast all day that we never did see the top of the mountain. Luckily, in spite of the fog and quite a bit of snow on the ground, we were still able to see lots of other sights and a couple of waterfalls and we had seen the mountain several years ago. We left Washington and drove through Idaho (stopping only for gas and dinner!) and into Montana late at night where we found a free place to park the camper at the back of a casino. We spent the next 2 nights at West Shore SP on the shores of Flathead Lake in MT. During the day we drove up to Glacier NP where we were blessed to learn we could drive quite a bit more of the Going to the Sun Rd. than we had expected. A small portion was still snowed over. It was an awesome park and again, there were tons of waterfalls! The last day of week 10 we drove south to Lewis and Clark Caverns SP and visited Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS on the way.

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Pictures of Week 10 are at this link

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Trip Out West 2010 (Week 9)

We started week 9 by continuing up Rt. 1 along the CA coast. We picked up "ocean glass" along Glass Beach, drove the Avenue of Giants and saw the lovely redwood trees, visited Eureka and Humboldt Bay and marveled at the mixture of beaches and cliffs. We saw elk at Stone Lagoon, drove through Redwoods National Park and then, from Crescent City, we turned NE and followed the beautiful Smith River into Oregon.
We camped in the Valley of the Rogue SP and really enjoyed it. The second day we were there we drove the scenic route up the wild and beautiful Rogue River to Crater Lake NP. Along the way we saw Rogue Gorge, Mill Creek Falls and Natural Bridge. Crater lake it self was so beautiful and pristine and we were blessed because they had just opened the West Rim Road a couple of hours before we arrived from a recent snowfall. On our way back we took the scenic route along the equally wild and beautiful Umpqua River and stopped at 5 or 6 awesome waterfalls, a spot called Colliding Rivers and then had dinner in Roseburg. The next day we left for the coast of Oregon and started our trip up Rt. 101 in Brandon at the Coquille Lighthouse and camped at the Coquille Lighthouse SP. We spent the last 2 days of the week stopping at 6 more lighthouses, the Oregon Dunes, the Sea Lion Caves, the Devil's Punch Bowl and more scenic vistas than we could count.
We then turned inland and camped at Ainsworth SP. One thing we both agreed on at the end of the week was that we loved the Oregon SP campgrounds!

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Pictures of Week 9 are at this link

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Trip Out West 2010 (Week 8)

On the first day of week eight we moved the camper to Oakhurst,CA. We spent the next 3 days in Yosemite NP and had a wonderful time. We visited the Wawona section and the Valley section. We stood in awe at El Capitan and the Half Dome, viewed Yosemite falls from at least 20 different points, visited the Ahwahnee Lodge, ate lunch in the valley clearing, hiked to Vernal falls, got soaked by Bridal Veil falls and saw several waterfalls that only run in the spring. We hiked/walked about 12 miles but still had time to just sit a couple of times and enjoy the mountains, river, valley and waterfalls. It was such an awesome visit. From there we headed for the Coast Guard campground in Petaluma, CA with a stop in route to visit RV Pics.com friends Don and Carol in Turlock. The next day we headed for San Francisco where we walked Fisherman's Wharf, ate clam chowder from a sourdough bread bowl, strolled and watched miniature boats in Golden Gate Park, saw lots of lovely old row houses, sampled freebies at Ghiradelli's and Carl took tons of pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge trying to get the perfect combination of bridge, sun and fog! The next day we relaxed and then drove south to Tomales Bay and sampled fresh barbecued oysters. On the last day of the week we headed north on Rt. 1 along the coast and stopped every few minutes to see the cliffs and beaches and smell the fresh sea air. We camped that night in Ft. Bragg.

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Pictures of Week 8 are at this link

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Trip Out West 2010 (Week 7)

Our seventh week ended as the month of May ended. We began the week with 3 nights at Nellis AFB in Las Vegas and used some of the time to catch up with laundry and cleaning. We did get down to the Vegas strip one evening but cut the visit short and found a QUIET Taco Bell and had dinner! We second day we drove to Hoover Dam and along the way stopped several times at Lake Mead. We also visited Red Rock Canyon one evening to watch the sunset. On Friday of that week we pulled our little trailer up the mountains and down into Death Valley NP. The colors of the mountains and canyons surrounding the valley were really beautiful and walking nearly a mile out onto the salt lake was interesting. We camped that night in Ridgecrest, CA and the next day we drove to Isabel Lake and then drove north along the Kern River. There were so many people out swimming, rafting, fishing, etc. that it was hard at times to see the awesome river. We camped that night all by ourselves in a secluded spot in Sequoia NF and then moved to Oakhurst, CA from where we visited Sequoia NP and King's Canyon NP. The trees and mountains of Sequoia were awe inspiring as were the great canyons, panoramic views, water falls and rushing waters in King's Canyon. An extra bonus this week was when we saw a
California Black Bear in Sequoia NP. All in all it was another great week.

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Pictures of Week 7 are at this link

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Trip Out West 2010 (Week 6)

We had a very busy week 6 starting with an awesome scenic drive from Capitol Reef NP to Kodachrome SP. Part of that drive was over Boulder Mountain and part was through Great Staircase Escalante NM. We spent that first evening off-roading some of the trails in Kodachrome SP and seeing some amazing rock formations and a lovely sunset. The next day was spent hiking in Bryce Canyon NP and, again, the views were unbelievable. One of the trails we hiked was a .6 mile steep hike down among the "Hoodoos" and the hike back was a challenge - but so worth it! The next day we drove through Red Canyon and the two arches tunnels that are considered the gateway to Bryce Canyon. From there we took scenic route 143 West where we stopped and had lunch by the side of a sparkling mountain lake. We were going to stop at Cedar Breaks NP but it was closed due to snow covered roads. Carl waded through a snow drift to one scenic overlook and got a pretty good picture though. We returned by way of scenic route 14 and enjoyed all of the great sights along there as well. The next day we left Kodachrome SP and took the scenic route to Kanab, UT. We passed lovely lakes at the mouth of red rock caves, stark canyons, and yes, some hills Carl just had to do some 4 wheelin' on - after we unhooked the trailer of course! The fifth day we drove to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon which had only been opened for the season for 1 week. The scenic route was closed due to downed trees from winter storms but we were able to walk to Bright Angel Point and to the East Rim viewing point. We also visited the old lodge there and enjoyed that. The North Rim was much more laid back and less commercialized than the South Rim but the views of that part of the Grand Canyon formed by the Colorado just could not compare. We spent the last two days of week 6 camping, shuttling and hiking in Zion NP and it is hard to describe how beautiful it was. We hiked nearly 11 miles in 2 days and almost made it to Angel's landing. The trail was 2.5 miles UP hill and we made it about 2.2 miles rising about 1300 feet. When it got to where you were walking over a hard rocky surface and had to hold on to chains to keep you from going over the edge, we decided to have lunch with a bunch of chipmunks, head back down and call it a day. The views of the Virgin River and the rock formations from that point were fantastic enough.

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Pictures of Week 6 are at this link

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Trip Out West 2010 (Week 5)

Wow, it is hard to believe we have been gone over 5 weeks and have driven over 7000 miles! We began our 5th week by driving in a sand storm (that actually closed portions of I-40) to Monument Valley, UT. We camped there 3 nights surrounded by red rock mountains. The next day we went to Goosneck SP and saw some unbelievable views of the San Juan river and then drove a little west to the Valley of the Gods which was a rough road through a valley of beautiful rock formations. In the afternoon we visited Natural Bridges NM and then ended our day by driving the treacherous (but fun) Moki Dugway! We ended that day with a second visit to Gooseneck SP so we could see the sunset there. The following day we visited Monument Valley Park. There were some awesome rock formations but the roads were in such terrible shape it took some of the fun out of the visit. On Friday we took off for Moab and on the way saw Wilson Arch and Church Rock which are awesome rock formations that are just along the roadside. Moab was FULL of hikers, bikers, Jeeps, ATVs, Jeeps, motorcycles, Jeeps, Hummers, dirt bikes, kayaks and more Jeeps. They say they are the outdoorsman's favorite place to be. We spent the next two days touring/hiking through Canyonlands NP, Arches NP and Dead Horse Point SP and really enjoyed all of the scenery. We ended our week by camping at Capitol Reef NP and doing some hiking there. See the map below to see where we are headed next and see pictures of week 5 at this link:


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Pictures of Week 5 are at this link

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Trip Out West 2010 (Week 4)

We began our 4th week of travel by touring Mesa Verde NP and Canyon De Shelley NM and marveled at the cliff dwellings built so well from 400 - 1500 years ago. On May 6 we visited the Petrified Forest NP which included the Painted Desert, Puerco Pueblo and a monument to Historic Route 66. Again, the scenery was awesome and we enjoyed some of the sights along Route 66. On our way west to Flagstaff, AZ we stopped in Winslow, AZ (Standin' on a corner in Winslow, AZ....) and we hiked in the Walnut Canyon NM. Later that evening we drove the scenic route down to Sedona and saw some unbelievable red rock canyons and rock formations. We strolled in Sedona, ate ice cream and listened to some Blue Grass music. The next day was spent with me sick and Carl needing to do some maintenance on the trailer. Then we spent all day Mother's Day at the Grand Canyon (South Rim). We started the day by hiking 1.5 miles down the Bright Angel trail (which was a drop of just over 1100 feet) and then had to drag ourselves back out of it. Having been sick the day before it was probably a dumb thing to do but God was with me and Carl was very patient so we made it back out. We then alternately walked and took the shuttle buses to several of the Western viewing points of the South Rim. We ended the day at one of the Eastern viewing points trying to catch a good Sunset but with wind gusts of 30 - 40 mph we were nearly blown away. It was an extraordinary day. On Monday we took it easy in the morning and took a short trip in the afternoon to Sunset Crater NM and Waupatki NM. See the map below to see where we are headed next and see pictures of week 4 at this link:

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Pictures of Week 4 are at this link
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Trip Out West 2010 (Week 3)

We have now been traveling for 3 weeks and nearly 4900 miles! After we left Albuquerque we stopped at the Pecos NHP and Ft. Union NM. Both were interesting historically. We camped at Sugarite Canyon in NM just south of the CO line. The temperatures were in the 20s at night and it was extremely windy. The next day we visited Capulin Volcano NM and walked the 1 mile trail around it's rim. It is amazing to see the far reaching effects this extinct volcano had on the surrounding landscape. We then spent that night in the San Luis Lake SP in CO and it was again in the low 20s and VERY windy. The Great Sand Dunes NP was on the agenda for the next day but we were a little disappointed that we could not get out on the dunes. The spring runoff had the creek bed in front of the dunes pretty full and, unlike several others, we did not feel like wading through the COLD water to walk on them. A fresh pure creek backed by huge sand dunes and snow capped mountains made for some fantastic scenery though. We slowly pulled our little trailer up over the San Juan mountains and stopped at Treasure Falls. There was new snow up in the mountains. We left CO and camped that evening near the Aztec Ruins National Monument in NM and toured the ruins (which are not AZTEC Indian ruins at all). The next day we visited the Chaco Culture NM and learned that these Pueblo Indian Ancestral ruins are related to those at the Aztec NM, Mesa Verde NP and Canyon De Shelly NM. On May 3 we drove to Durango, CO and rode the Durango Silverton Narrow Guage Train and saw some unbelievable canyon scenery along the Animas river. See the map below to follow us on our trip and see pictures of week 3.

Pictures of Week 3 are at this link
http://community.webshots.com/user/rvburroughs5

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