Day 6: Green River to Tropic, Utah

Details:  4.75 hours travel time; 237 miles                                Total miles:  2,227


It was cold in Green River last night with temps well below freezing.  Thankfully, the gusty winds subsided and the RV stood still and steady from sunset onward.  This morning, the sun warmed the campground quickly.  (Actually, it thawed the tenters too quickly--we had to wait for showers in the bath-house.)

Before starting a third day on I-70,  we had complimentary coffee and pastry in the campground office and then strolled a block to the Green River, where John Wesley Powell began his exploration of the Colorado River.

The most stunning scenery and the most magnificent vistas in the seven states we traveled were contained in today's final 237 miles.  Don't assume they were easy miles, though.   There were  warnings about deer, elk, ice, slippery when wet road surfaces, no gas for 106 miles, gusty winds, falling rocks, steep grades.  And then there was the snow--on the mountains, along the roadside then falling from the sky.

This would be a terribly depressing saga if the destination weren't worthy of the effort to reach it.  I'm thrilled to report that this is a beautiful place, both the Stone Canyon Inn itself and its location, looking upward into Bryce Canyon.

We met the owners, Dixie and Mike, briefly before they joined four of their children and thirteen grandchildren for a belated Easter egg hunt.  We spent about an hour with Keith and Sandy, the other work-kamper couple, who arrived three weeks ago.  Everyone seems energetic, enthusiastic and very happy to be here.  It looks like this will be a great summer!







Home, for the next 4 months

Views from our campsite





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Day 5:  Strasburg, Colorado to Green River, Utah

Details:  9.75 hours travel time; 386 miles                                          Total miles:  1990

Thanks to all of you who have sent your good wishes.  We love hearing from you!

Although the Strasburg campground was nice, it was also extremely noisy, with I-70 just to the south of our site and the freight tracks to our north.  Fred was able to sleep but  I woke often worrying about the next leg of this undertaking.

Even though we set out during rush hour, I-70 traffic through Denver wasn't heavy and moved along without delays or bottlenecks.  Immediately beyond the city limits, the highway begins the ascent of the western flank of the Rockies.  Signs warning "Ice on Roadway," Watch for Wildlife on Road" and "Runaway Truck Ramp Ahead" were as unsettling as the deep snow covering the hillsides.  We crossed three passes (10,000' to 11,000' elevation) each followed by a long, steep descent.  The poor RV struggled in both directions--the engine labored uphill and the brakes strained on the downhill.  Fred did an impressive job of getting us up and over.  We decided that the Rocky Mountains are best appreciated from a distance--the narrow route is claustrophobic and the rocks and vegetation on the slopes aren't particularly attractive when seen up-close.

The AAA book warned that 'limited services' are available between Green River and Salina, Utah so we decided to buy groceries and gas in Grand Junction, Colorado.  Thank heavens we did because we saw no stores and only one gas station (regular for $4.10/gallon) after crossing the state line.  What we did find was wind.  The gusts made the RV swerve from one lane to the other and Fred had to struggle continually to keep it on course.

Tonight we're encamped at the Green River KOA and still being battered by the wind--the RV is rocking back and forth like a ship!  Hopefully the wind will subside after the sun sets.  But when it does, the temperature will plummet toward the predicted low of 26*, setting the stage for tomorrow's snow showers.  Weatherwise, late April has been a stressful time to travel this route.









Green River KOA

Saturday morning

Fred near the John Wesley Powell Museum
Saturday morning



Day 4: Russell, Kansas to Strasburg, Colorado

Details:   6.25 hours travel time; 329 miles                                      Total miles:  1604

What a lovely day!  Clear skies and sunshine--no rain, no wind, no hail, no storm warnings.  Traveling is much more enjoyable under such favorable conditions. 

We were stunned that the tornado system which missed us Tuesday night in southeastern OK swept into the south causing massive death and destruction.  Being under a tornado warning was frightening; I can't imagine how terrifying being in a tornado must be. 

We finished crossing the Northern Plains, from northwestern Kansas through northeastern Colorado,  by lunch-time.  I-70 is a good road with light traffic and gentle grades, gaining almost 3500' in elevation in about 240 miles.   We saw lots of farmland, pastureland; grain elevators, hundreds of them, dominated the landscape.  We also spotted a several patches of snow, a large cluster of immense wind turbines and very few trees and none which had leafed out.

The highlight of today's trip was my first glimpse of the Rockies.  The snow-covered peaks shimmered in the distance, seeming to float between the horizon and the sky.  Magnificent!
(They look just like the picture on the Coors label--honest.)

Thank you, electrical elves, for fixing the tail-light problem and getting the radio to work.  We were completely unaware of your clandestine visit but we certainly appreciate your kindness!
Did you siphon off some of our gas in return?  Just asking....

We're spending the night at a nicely-appointed KOA in Strasburg, 25 miles east of Denver.  AND located right beside the railroad tracks near a crossing (= extensive whistle-blowing).

 

                                                                      April 28, 2011 

  Strasburg, CO

                                                                  Rockies in background

                                                                  (look closely at horizon)

Day 3: Sallisaw, Oklahoma to Russell, Kansas

Details:  8.25 hours travel time; 429 miles                                 Total miles:  1275

Obviously we survived last night but I'll remember it as one of the scariest that I've ever spent.  A tornado touched down in Fort Smith, Arkansas--which we'd driven through a few hours earlier.  Thank heavens we decided on the campground 40 miles farther west!

We weren't totally unscathed, though.  Early this morning the sky darkened and thunder rolled over, heralding a hail storm.  For about ten minutes we were pelted with mothball-sized hail.  After it passed, we quickly unhooked the utilities, stowed our gear and got on the road about 8:00.

We'd spent Monday and Tuesday pressing west on I-40.  Today we turned north and traveled
from eastern OK into central Kansas.  As far north as Tulsa, every body of water was above normal level if not flooded.  From Tulsa northward the terrain shows a slight but constant elevation gain and occasional rolling hills.  There were no signs of massive rainfall or storm damage so perhaps this area missed what had swept through to the south.

It would be inaccurate to describe the scenery in OK and KS as 'dramatic' or even 'interesting.'  By default,  the best parts of our day's journey were:  #1 listening to Morning Edition on NPR and #2 finding a wonderful travel center with easy-in/easy-out gas pumps and an upscale McDonald's.  Really!

We're spending tonight in Russell, Kansas, whose claim to fame is being birthplace of Bob Dole.  No wonder he spent so many years in Washington!  There's a pizza-and-beer joint, an Italian buffet, a Pizza Hut, a McDonald's (definitely not upscale) and two sad RV parks.  We are staying in the one next to the historic oil rig museum.

Forecasts show that the violent storms are moving east and this region will be clear and calm for the remainder of the week.  Good weather will certainly reduce a significant amount of this trip's stress. 

The Jeep's left tail-light doesn't operate when it's attached to the RV's electrical system.  We played around with the cable and it worked briefly but shortly went 'on the blink' again.  While  bouncing along an extremely rough section of concrete highway, the radio jarred loose from its slot in the dash and stopped working completely.  I forgot to bring the can-opener.

Russell, Kansas

April 27, 2011

                                                                                                                                          

Scenic Surroundings

Day 2: Hurricane Mills, TN to Sallisaw, OK

Details:   8.25 hours travel time; 457 miles                       Total miles:  846

Last night was a noisy one.  Shortly after we went to bed, the weather radio squawked a blaring severe thunderstorm alert.  It took a while before we were able to get back to sleep.  Sometime after midnight we were awakened by heavy rain beating on the roof of the RV.  Exhaustion finally triumphed over the racket and we slept uninterrupted until about 6:30.

Gaining an hour by crossing into the Central Time Zone yesterday helped us start out early this morning.   As soon as we pulled onto I-40W we began to see the results of last night's storms:  trees sheared-off about 20 feet from the ground, large signs blown down, a tractor-trailer tossed on its side.  Every body of water we saw--creek, river, lake--was high and brown. The "Big Muddy" was just Big Mud today.

In my opinion, Arkansas is a state one goes through rather than to and the quicker one goes through it the better.  (To be fair, the section from Little Rock to the Oklahoma border is more scenic with a better road surface and less traffic than the West Memphis to Little Rock stretch.)  A woman at the Welcome Center told us a tornado hit near Little Rock last night; we learned later that 10 people had been killed. 

We reached tonight's destination, Sallisaw, OK, about 3:30 and had the RV hooked up by 4.  Since then, we've been watching local TV forecasters warn about and track approaching storms.  A line of severe thunderstorms and a tornado have already skirted this area but more clusters are moving toward us; there's a tornado warning for this county until 10 PM. 

Sallisaw, OK

April 26, 2011

        Sallisaw KOA

Day 1: Pisgah Forest to Hurricane Mills, TN

Details:             7.5 hours travel time; 389 miles                   Total miles: 389

Here's hoping the rest of the trip goes as smoothly as this first day!  We'd planned to leave home by 8 AM but the last-minute chores required to get the house ready took longer than anticipated. We got underway at 9:15.

I made three wishes for light traffic, good weather and low gas prices--and got all of them today.  We didn't encounter congestion or delays, even around Knoxville or Nashville, found gas for 15 cents less/gallon than in Brevard and had no rain or tornadoes.

The day's 'cherry on top' was getting an RV site able to accommodate the length of the motor home with the Jeep attached.  Eliminating that hitching-up step will save us time and frustration  tomorrow morning.

After extending the slide-outs and hooking up the utilities, we strolled around the campground, ate a simple dinner, took our showers in the bath-house and settled in for the night.

No excitement today (except for finally beginning the adventure we've looked forward to for so long) but that's a good thing.

Fred and our rig at the

Hurricane Mills KOA

April 25, 2011

The Journey to the Journey's Start

Sunday, April 24th

It feels as though we've been in preparation-mode for months.  Looking back, I guess we have.  We made innumerable to-do lists, checklists, shopping lists and have completed all but the 'last minute' list which can't be tackled until tomorrow morning.  Everything (that is, everything we've thought of) has been packed, stowed, cleaned, gotten rid of, mowed, painted, gassed up or otherwise attended to. 

The house is ready!  The RV is ready!  The Jeep is ready!  Not sure I'm ready, though   I'm excited  about being in Utah but apprehensive about getting to Utah--tornadoes and flooding in the midwest, snow and freezing night-time temperatures in Bryce and the price of fuel all present elements of uncertainty and concern.

The plan is to leave  tomorrow at 8 AM and spend the night west of Nashville, TN, about 390 miles for the day.  We have our fingers crossed for calm weather and light traffic.