Day 20 - midway

We are officially past the midway point of our trip - the trip is 39 days, and so day19/20 marks the halves.  The rock formations in southern Utah are stunning especially in the earlier parts of the morning.

North of Glendale, en route to Bryce Canyon, the landscape once again becomes green and speckled with cattle ranches.

The road we are traveling, US-89 is very reminiscent of the hilly, winding roads theoughout northern and western Pennsylvania.  Conifer forests cover the Rocky Mountains here.

The sun climbs over the Rockies in Hatch, UT ay 7:50am MDT.  The size of the moutains cannot be captured accurately on my iPad camera.  

All the children are working on Junior Ranger program and as a family, we are working on Bryce Canyon NP's "I Hiked the Hoodoos!" Hiking scavenger hunt.

Ken, Abby, and Aliza rode mules down into the hoodoos.  It was a two hour ride. Abby said that she was pretty sure that this was the end or how she would end up in a full body cast as her mule and Ken's mule walked on e very edge of the cliff.  Aliza's did that occasionally, but not to the same degree.  (Photos later)

It was a long day at Bryce -8a-8p plus the hour and a half drive each way and a LOT of hiking!  At the end of the day, we went to see the Ranger about Junior Ranger badges and "I hiked the Hoodoos!" Rewards, and the Ranger asked where we are from.  The kids answered, the. The lady behind us said, "We're from West Virginia and have five kids also, do you happen to homeschool?"  As it turns out, they were parked right next to us in the parking lot in their Ford Expedition (we drive a Ford Excursion). So we chatted a couple minutes about road trip destinations and the Creation Museum.

Tunnel on Rt. 12 leaving Bryce Canyon.

(We are doing better health-wise, but I struggle with the altitude)

Sunset near Hatch, UT. (8:51p MDT)

Day 19- I think

We are mid-week 3 at this point and have racked up more than 3700 miles thus far!  Today we went to a small Baptist church here in Kanab, UT, got some lunch at a little Mexican place (it was okay - and very SLOW), then we drove 20 minutes south into Fredonia, AZ to Pipe Springs NP.  We called it an early day and came back to Crazy Horse CamPark to make some dinner (steak on the RVQ, veggies, chips, etc.) and do laundry.

Tomorrow, we plan to head to Bryce Canyon NP.  There will be a lot of preparation tonight as we want to leave early tomorrow morning (Bryce is 77mi away) and we want to pack our lunches and make sure that we have plenty of water for some hiking.  

We also stopped at a little health food shop by the Mexican resteraunt and picked up some (more) homemade lip balm and body lotion to soothe our desert-dried skin.

Day 12

At 7:49am local,

Ken found some kind of local radio station with "Native Traditional" music and all the announcements are in Navajo (?).

Ths Southwest is in a "record setting, lethal heatwave".  We are heading to Phoenix where the temperatures are around 120F and when I checked last night at 11p, it was still 101F. It isn't getting below 92f at night.  We prepared for the heat with plenty of sunscreen, hats, gel-cooled neckbands, and plenty of salty snacks, water, vitamin water, and gatorade.   

The one question we keep getting is: Are you going to the Grand Canyon?  Well, maybe.  If we do, it will be from the north rim when we camp in either Page, AZ or Kanab, UT.  We will decide that when we get there.

8:40a local, Petrified Forest NP

The landscaping is constantly changing every couple hundred feet as we drive through The Painted Desert and Petrified Forest.  Ken took photos on the Canon Rebel, but I do have a couple to share.

We didn't realize that Arizona does not switch to daylight savings, so, we are now three hours behind the East Coast!

Part of Historic Route 66 is maintained by the NPS as part of Painted Desert / Petrified Forest.

We also crossed the Santa Fe rail line.

The Agate Bridge

It was hot - 100+ hot.  It will cool by about 10-12 degrees as we head up (altitude) into Flagstaff this afternoon for the Indian cave dwellings at Walnut Canyon National Monument.  Our cool-gel neck wraps have gotten a workout today as have the "desert" hats, sunglasses, and sunscreen!

Traveling parts of Historic Route 66 has been fun.  We drove past the Teepee motel in Holbrook which inspired the Cozy Cones from the movie "Cars". Route 66 parallels I-40 most of the time - we have been traveling I-40 from somewhere east of Albuquerque and are driving by many of the towns listed in the   old Nat King Cole standard, "Get your Kicks on Route 66".

Crown Railroad Cafe on Historic Route 66 in Flagstaff, AZ is a great little All-American diner.  They have  trains running outside and model trains on a track encircling the diner's ceiling inside.  It was a fun place to refresh and renew before heading down to PHX 

Here are some sunset photos between Flagstaff and Phoenix on I-17:

Heading down into Phoenix.  Over the next 2hours, we will descend from over 7000 ft above sea level in Flagstaff to an altitude of 1000 ft in Phoenix.  The temperature will go up more than 10* in that time as well!!  Adventure is ours! (7:23p local / 10:23p Eastern)

At 8:30p local, the temperature is 107*F, about 45 minutes to our friends' house near Phoenix.

Day 9

We are in Albuquerque.  We parked our camper at my Aunt Darlene and Uncle Mike's house, then met up with my cousin Tarah and Renee and Pace at Petroglyphs National Monument.  More Junior Ranger  programs, this time with Renee.  The children are enjoying playing with cousins and Pace made fast friends with Ken (Ken was willing to hold him up to the water fountain several times). 

From the NP we can see smoke rising from the Dog Head fire to south and east of Albuquerque.  

We had dinner with Hayes and Toni Price at The Range Cafe on historic route 66 in Bernalillo, NM.  How sweet it is to be reunited with friends!  (photos later)

Tomorrow, Ken and Uncle Mike will have the SUV checked out, while the children and I visit with Aunt Dar.  Hopefully we can take about an hour and a half to head back to Petroglyphs NP for National Junior Ranger Day activities, then spend the rest of the day with Aunt Dar, Uncle Mike, Tarah and more! 

One thing I didn't pack enough of is lip balm.  I make homemade lip balm and have 20-30 tubes of lip balm at home, but only one or two made it for the road trip.  Perhaps because we use it primarily in the winter, it didn't occur to me that the desert heat would necessitate lip balm so we may end up picking some up the next time we get groceries.

We have all enjoyed the sights so far.  We are enjoying catching up with people now as well!  

Day 8

Today marks the beginning of week two.  

Chiuauan desert and Guadaloupe mountains.

Following a Gran Torino up the mountain.

Flowers and a bee in the desert.

Isaac - Junior Ranger Extraordinaire!

Entering the Visitor Center at Carlsbad Cavern NP.

Hopefully, Ken will add a photo page later.  I did not take my iPad down into the cavern, he took our "big" camera to get photos.  We hiked the Natural Entrance to descend 850 feet into the Earth to experience awe-inspiring sights.  Then we took the elevator up and down and up again (we were having user error problems in the elevator!) to have some lunch.  The Junior Ranger books sent us on a nature hike outdoors for 1 mile to identify desert plants - normally, a one mile walk is no big deal, but, the desert is brutal!  We made it back to the visitor center without finding a single placard identifying the plants.  A Ranger later explained that all the placards had been lost in a fire and handed me some papers to assist with plant identification, but we did not re-attempt the hike. 

Carlsbad Cavern is a MUST see.  As we walked through over two miles of massive domes, breathtaking stalactites and stalagmites, soda straws, and so much more.  There are not enough words to describe the granduer of the largest known cave room (Big Room Tour) The vast expanse and diversity of formations of the cavern can only be understood by experience.

After earning another Junior Ranger badge, Aliza asked the Ranger how she could become a Park Ranger.  To say that she was impressed by Carlsbad Cavern would be a tremendous understatement.

Our timing was good with regard to visiting Carlsbad Cavern NP as it will be mostly closed to the public tomorrow due to a Presidential visit to commemmorate the National Parks Centennial.  Wednesday evening, one of the Rangers had advised us to see what we want to see on Thursday because Friday would be a challenge regarding visiting the Cavern.

We finished up around 4:30pm and headed back to Carlsbad RV park for the camper then began our journed north to Roswell.  

The road to Roswell.

Regarding the SUV, it seems to be okay now, but we are going to have it checked out and an oil change (other fluids too?). My cousin, Tarah, was able to secure an early morning appointment for us at a shop in Albuquerque on Saturday - which was not easy as most shops are closed on Saturdays.  Thank you so much, Tarah!

The UFO Museum in Roswell was closed when we arrived, Annie was disappointed about the museum as she really wanted to see it, but she is okay with Ken's plan to get to ABQ sooner rather than later.   We couldn't find the Crash Landing Cafe, so we ended up at this little Mexican place (we love Mexican food!)

Tapestry on the wall in the resteraunt in Roswell - there was live music as well.

Went to Roswell, got the t-shirt, and bumper sticker. 

Day 7 - a little more

Ken worked all day 8-5 Eastern from the camper.  Then he successfully converted one of our two Honda 2000i generators over to low pressure propane so that it can run off the propane that we use for the camper fridge, grill, and stove.  

He took the tray off the front of the SUV to work on the generators and we are going to the Bat Flighht program at Carlsbad Cavern NP this evening (no photos allowed).  This will also give us a 40mi. round trip test run of our SUV as we plan to have the transmission checked out in Albuquerque in a couple days.  Albuquerque is about a 4.5 hour trip from Carlsbad.  We plan to stop for some sightseeing in Roswell on our way through.

The kids and I went swimming while Ken worked, then there was a thunder storm.  The stiff breeze and "chilly" 91F temperature was very welcomed by all of us Northeasterners.  

Driving into Carlsbad Cavern NP

Carlsbad Cavern NP - a few evening photos before the Bat Flight program.

(note: Ken checked the transmission fluid once we got to the visitor center and it appears to be overfilled - at this point we should be fine driving to ABQ with the camper in a couple days.  My cousin is helping us set up an appointment at a shop to get everything checked out and an oil and fluids change.)

Back to Carlsbad Cavern NP - the drive up the mountain was exceedingly beautiful.  The Guadaloupe Mountains look like a wasteland from a distance, but up close, they are teeming with life.  The CCNP Visitor's Center sets utop a smaller mountain.  We were shocked by the strength of the wind when we got out of the car - and bewildered by the expansive view.  Breathtaking.

The Bat Flight ampitheater was about 90% full of people, including a school bus full of high schoolers.  The Ranger gave instructions about no noise, no electronics, no cameras during the bat flight, sadly the group of school kids in front of us had decided that the "even a sneeze can affect the bats" warning did not apply to them. Thankfully, the bats put on quite a show dispite the added noise.  It was an incredible experience to witness the maternal colony of Brazilian (?)-tails circle and swarm out of the depths of the cavern into the twilight to consume 1/2-3/4 their body weight in moths and insects.  A huge black speckled highway formed to the south of the cave's natural entrance as close to half-million flying mammals went out for the hunt.  

Sunset from the Visitor Center.

As we headed back to the RV Park, we stopped for a few extraterresterial photos:

More Carlsbad Cavern NP tomorrow as we descend into the depths of the Earth, and as the children add another badge to their Junior Ranger collections.

Day 5

Mileage update

Day 1- 417mi. PA WV OH

Day 2- 383mi OH KY

Day 3- 323mi KY TN MS

Day 4- 301mi MS TN AR

~ 1400 mi so far of our projected ~7000 mi trip

Four National Parks in five days!

We are getting just over 8mpg, so it is a good thing we have a 40gal gas tank!

Last night, we stayed at Cloud 6 RV Park in Hot Springs, AR.  We got our laundry washed and everyone through the showers.  It is a Good Sam campground with water/elec/sewer/wifi for $25.  It sits on the flat top of a mountain with a nice view.  But, wow was there a thunderstorm in the night!  I was glad that it was not windy, but the thunder rolled in a magnificent symphony.  

Today we were in Hot Springs, AR.  It is absolutely charming and the NPS museum was quite a treasure, especially for someone who studies and practices natural wellness - hydrotherapy and massage therapy detailed from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  .Isaac was the only one to do the Junior Ranger here, the rest wanted a day off to just enjoy the sights.  It has rained on and off all day, we were pretty damp when we got lunch.

One of the pools of hot spring water - 143*F - yes, we stuck our hands in it.  There were also designated fountains of drinking water.  Annie filled an empty bottle with the hot springs fountain water.  We all had a drink from the fountain. 

One of the ladies' baths and the uniform of a bath attendant.

Verse on the wall near the entrance to the Bath.

Large hot bath with a lift.

One of the Park Rangers recommended eating lunch at Superior Bathhouse (on Bathhouse Row)- they are locally known for their home-brew root beer.  It was so good, we got a growler to go after lunch.

Parking was an issue in Hot Springs though, we ended up in metered street parking and having to feed two adjacent meters a few times.

When we got ready to leave, Ken decided to change our route and head through the Caddo Mountains into Oklahoma before cutting down into Texas for our next major stop at Carlsbad Cavern New Mexico.  We have a solid drive ahead this afternoon and evening, then a full day of driving tomorrow in order to get to Carlsbad on Wednesday evening or Thursday morning.

Note: Hot Springs would be a great honeymoon or anniversary spot with all of its delightful little shops and spas!  

We are currently driving through Choctaw Nation on US-70 in Oklahoma - more Trail of Tears markers. 

Once Ken gets tired, we will find a place to sleep at an RV park in OK or TX. My Next Exit book only details interstates, so we will rely on Google tonight.

We are staying at Cedars Edge RV Park near Ardmore, OK.  Again, full hookups/wifi for $25.  As a comparison, KOA and Jellystone parks run in the $50-90 range per night, so we are doing pretty well finding private campgrounds that are reasonable.