Goodbye Idaho, Hello Montana (Happy Birthday Mom!)

Our home in the woods

We are currently in beautiful Dillon, Montana and getting to relax!!  When we got here Sunday I told Jeff I just needed to stay in one place for a couple of days.  And what a great place to stay!  Bob, the KOA owner, is a hoot.  This is the best KOA we've stayed at on our trip.  (We are becoming experts on KOAs!)  This is a quaint little Montana town of about 4500 people and the weather is PERFECT.  We are at about 5200 ft in elevation so it's cold at night - around 50 degrees.  During the day it heats up to about 80 or so.  Locals think it's HOT but we thinks it's just right!  And there are trees here - big trees! And Eagles! I've decided I'm not a desert dweller.

We made our way from Green River, Utah up to Idaho on Saturday and stayed one night there in Lava Hot Springs.  It reminded the girls and I of Eureka Springs, Arkansas that we visited on our trip back from Iowa a few years ago.  It's located on the Portneuf River which is perfect for tubing.  The water is a bit chilly but the area also has the Lava Hot Springs which are anywhere from 102 to 112 degrees - so it's very easy to warm up.  We only stayed the one night but it's one of the places we plan to revisit on the return trip or on a future trip.

Jeff's first Brown Trout

We have been here in Dillon since Sunday.  We watched Game 5 of the NBA finals and what a game!!!  GO SPURS GO!  Tonight they play game 6 and we are hoping they win so we can head into Canada.  Otherwise, we'll have to wait to "cross over" until after the 21st:-)  Here there is a lovely heated pool with a slide that the girls have been enjoying, and the Beaverhead River "runs through it" and Jeff has had a chance to practice his fly-fishing skills.  He is out there now as I type this.  Yesterday he caught two Brown Trout - a species he's never caught before so he was thrilled.

We will head out tomorrow to the KOA in White Fish, Montana just this side of the U.S./Canadian border.  The MOST EXPENSIVE KOA on the planet. They charge extra for more than two people.  Seriously?!! $8.00 a kid.  What would they like us to do - leave them at the entrance and toss them a snack or two - geesh!  But the guy on the phone said "they will have a blast" - Jeff said they better - for the price we are paying. They better have great wifi too!  I think it will be a one nighter:-)

The Mermaids

The girls are still sleeping.  They like not moving every day too but Jade is anxious to get to Alaska and see everyone.  Mya is just happy if there is a pool.  We plan to walk into town today and maybe hit the SUBWAY for lunch.  It's only a mile from here.  Do a little exploring.  I could stay here a long time but it's time to get "on the road again".

Relaxing at the pool - Hooray!

A fabulous day at Arches National Park

There is just no way to describe the surreal beauty of Arches National Park.  It's otherworldly.  We got up early so we could be at the park entrance shortly after they open at 7:30 a.m. and there was already a line to go in.  But we scored big!!  The ranger asked me if anyone in our party was 62 or older and of course, Jeff just turned 62.  So we now have a lifetime pass to all National Parks, monuments, etc. and as long as he's with us, we all get in FREE!  She even refunded our fees for Carlsbad Caverns because we paid full price there.  So we made money:-)  

Jade loved this sign:-)  There are reminders
everywhere to drink plenty of water.

I've never taken so many pictures in my life.  The park is a wonder and the view changes as you drive along depending on the angle of the sun and what direction you are looking at things from.  Totally amazing.  We got to drive through all of the park and then at the Devil's Garden we parked and hiked.  I only wish we were more prepared.  The long hike back to some of the arches is just over 7 miles.  The best thing to have is one of those camel-back water carriers and a wide-brimmed hat.  By the time we got to the Devil's Garden it was noon and really blazing hot.  Probably the best time to visit that park would be May when it's not quite so hot.  Someday I hope to go back and spend more time hiking.  So awesome.  

"Balanced Rock" - "Chip off the Old Block"
 fell in the winter of 1975-76.

We only drove a short way from there to Green River - about 50 miles. So strange - this green oasis in the middle of the desert.  We stayed at a place called Shady Acres and it had TREES!  There were robins there!  I haven't heard a robin sing since we left Alaska.  So beautiful to hear them sing. I forgot how big they are.  Much bigger than our Texas mockingbirds.  

We had a longer driving day today.  Wanted to get out of the desert.  We are done with desert for now.  We drove on HWY 15 (freeway) so we could make better time and drove about 325 miles today.  We are in Idaho!!!  It's so green!  Jeff has been doing most of the driving but I drove today - probably drove Jeff nuts. He's so bossy when I'm driving - lol!  Sheesh!  We are in a KOA in a quaint little town called Lava Hot  Springs.  We've been for a walk tonight and decided we need to come back through here on our way home.  They have a little river that you can go tubing on and a little hot springs park.  It reminds me of Eureka Springs, the place I loved in Arkansas we visited on our way back from Iowa.  

Jeff and I have been debating which way to head north but I think we will go through Idaho Falls and into Montana but maybe cut back into Idaho.  We're not sure.  Still trying to decide if we should try driving the Cassiar Hwy.  Spoke to someone today (from Alaska!!! there were two people from Alaska in Shady Acres in Utah - go figure!) who said the road was good but no center line and very narrow roads.  So I'm going to let Jeff decide that one.  I am getting tired of moving every day though.  We need to find a nice quiet place on a lake to stay for 2 or 3 days.

This is how Mya is experiencing the good ol' US of A.  She actually
 has a great view from here out the front window!!

The girls are doing great so far.  They do have a sense of adventure and both of them take turns sitting up in the passenger seat talking to Jeff as we go along.  We are learning so much as we travel through all these places.  I LOVE Google!!!  As we travel down the highway, I look things up on my phone and read it to everyone.  Today my phone seized up and I felt like my right arm had been cut off.  Thank goodness Jeff was able to fix it!!!!  I look up the population of towns we pass through, the crops that grow in the area, the history of a place, etc.  Interesting stuff!  

We are sitting outside at the moment.  We are just off a highway so there are lots of trucks going by and their is a railroad within spitting distance of this KOA.  Reminds me of White Fish, Montana where mom and I and the girls stayed on our trip down to Texas.(Remember that Mom??)  Dang! that train was loud!!! I told Jeff the sound of the train makes me want to be a hobo -hopping trains!!!  It's supposed to get to 41 degrees tonight - yeah - no more heat!

Hope y'all are well.  If you ever get the chance to travel like this, I highly recommend it!!!

Free wifi - you get what you pay for:-)

Couldn't post last night - we had a full hookup site but no wifi.  (But even in the places that advertise free wifi, the connection is pathetic.  This post MIGHT make it!)  We were just east of Farmington, NM in a rather primitive RV park.  The guy has just started developing the area but he stands to make some money.  He's right around the corner from a horse racing track and a casino.  Wasn't elegant but at least we could run both air conditioners.

When it's too hot to go outside, what do you do?  Can you say "electronics"!

Driving long distances makes us sleepy.  At least she TRIED to read a  book!

 Ugh!  We've got to find some cooler weather.  It was only 48 when Jeff got up at 6:00 a.m. but it heats up pretty quickly.  We hit 100 degrees today.  But it's a dry heat!



Tried to get to a lake and we actually made it to Navajo Lake State Park but they don't accommodate 35ft RVs.  It's a huge lake made by damming the San Juan River.  That was a white knuckle drive on 14 mile skinny road.  Too bad we didn't know that we were too big BEFORE we drove all the way back there!!  But it was pretty - and an adventure.  When we were figuring our mileage for the day Jeff kept pointing out that we went something like 50 miles out of our way to a lake we couldn't stay at.  OOPS!  How was I supposed to know:-)  If that's the only mistake we make along the way, we'll be doing good!

Four feet in four states!

Today was great!  We made it to 4 corners.  We stood in Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, and Colorado all at the same time.  We had to pay $3 each to do this.  The site is in the middle of the Navajo Reservation.  It's kind of sad - the place is so commercialized.  The site is surrounded by vendor booths selling all kinds of jewelry and other items. Mya, of course, had to purchase something - a pretty necklace and bracelet. There are also some stands that advertise fry bread and slushies.  If you ignore all of that, the actual "monument" is pretty awesome!

We drove through Colorado for awhile and then cut back into Utah.  Oh my!  The sandstone arches and rock formations are amazing.  It's one thing to see it in pictures, it's another to see it in person. We are spending the night in a KOA 4 miles outside of Arches National Park.  We are going to get up early and be there at 7:30 a.m. when it opens.  We want to spend a few hours there and it will be too hot if we don't go early.  

Jeff has had a heck of a time driving.  The wind keeps picking up in the afternoon and today it was pretty bad.  We like it when it's behind us - we get better gas mileage!  But today it was at our left side and blowing us all over the road.  Jeff said he could see white caps on the highway!  We are taking the scenic routes most of the way and so there isn't a lot of room for error.  I'm not sure how he does it - I'm exhausted by the time we get where we're going and I'm not even driving!!  I feel like my Nana who used to pat her leg when she got nervous riding down the road.  I actually started doing that today (as a joke!) but it is nerve wracking.

We got to our campsite today and decided to go for a swim in the pool to cool off.  The wind was blowing the red sand around and we had it in our mouths by the time we got to the pool.  Wind gusts up to 28 mph so far.  Hopefully it doesn't get any worse tonight.

We had pizza for dinner tonight!  They deliver out to this KOA!!!  You just have to tell them what site you are in.

Well, that's it for today.  I had to walk up to the pool/store so I could post this.  I feel like Robin Williams in the movie RV - looking for more than 2 bars:-)  I thought about going up on the roof of the RV but the wind is blowing too hard!  'Night all.

Albuquerque or bust

Headed out from our 1-star RV park this morning around 7:15 a.m.  I woke up and looked out the window hoping to see a beautiful sunrise and saw nothing but gravel and RVs packed in tightly.  No reason to hang around.  Jade was awake because Jeff decided to trim his grizzly beard at 6:00 a.m. using an electric razor.  I hear Jade bellow, "OH MY GOD, WHAT ARE YOU DOING, WOULD YOU PLEASE STOP!!! JUST USE A BRUSH!"  She thought he was using an electric toothbrush and she didn't appreciate the noise at 6 a.m.  I laughed so hard.  I told her Dada didn't want to look like a hobo on our trip!  (From now on he is doing his "grooming" at night - ha! ha!)

UFO Museum and Research Center,
Roswell, NM

Since we are in the desert, the mornings are pretty cool.  Only 66 degrees this a.m. but it soon heats up.  As we left Carlsbad, we saw all these orchards along the highway so I Googled it and it appears they are pecan groves.  We took Hwy 285 north through Roswell.
We had planned on staying there instead of Carlsbad but we called ahead and there was "no room at the inn".  Apparently, June 12-14 is the Senior Olympics and there wasn't an RV space or hotel room to be had for miles.  We didn't see any seniors as we passed through or any aliens (the green kind with antennae).  Had lunch in Vaughn which has a population of about 436 people and is pretty much a ghost town.

Miles and Miles of NOTHING!

I thought west Texas was a long, boring drive.  Well, try US 285 through New Mexico. It's miles and miles of desert, and cows sprinkled here and there.  We did see some antelope but they looked really pathetic.  The drought here appears worse than in Texas.  When we got to the KOA in Albuquerque even the hummingbirds were drinking from the pool!!!!  Probably the only source of water for miles and miles.  It got to 107 on our RV thermometer.  The official temperature was around 102.  We are really looking forward to getting to somewhere where the highs are only in the 80s.  Maybe Idaho??

Jeff is happy tonight.  The channels all work and he can watch the Spurs.  Hoping the wind dies down and stays that way.  He had white knuckles on the drive into Albuquerque trying to keep us on the road with a 23 mph breeze hitting us sideways.  Looking for cooler temperatures and a lake we can camp beside tomorrow.

Into New Mexico

We made it to Ft. Stockton yesterday - 296 miles.  I think that will be about the longest mileage we will attempt.  We get stir crazy being in the RV too much longer than that - even with a stop.  But maybe it's the drive through west Texas - ugh!  Now I see why our Alaska friends couldn't believe we moved to Texas.  I think many people probably picture all of Texas as endless miles of flat scrub and cedar.  Thank goodness it's not like that around San Antonio.  But west Texas is a different story.  We got settled around 4 and headed to the pool since it was about 96 degrees.  The pool was FREEZING!  And then Jeff discovered we couldn't get the ABC channel the Spurs were on - disaster!!!  He finally managed to get a radio station on his phone so we listened to the game.  Pretty neat way to follow the game - radio announcers have a unique talent for describing the action.  But in the end it didn't matter- Spurs lost miserably.  Jeff IS going to make sure that where we're going tomorrow night gets the correct channel!

Today we celebrated Jeff's 62nd birthday.  We crossed into New Mexico about 10:15 a.m. and immediately got 1 hour younger crossing into mountain time:-)  What better way to spend a birthday than by exploring the Carlsbad Caverns. What an amazing experience.  We descended on foot 750 feet into the caverns past the bats.  The smell was indescribable!  Amazing to think that people built all those switchbacks and walkways so we could experience the caverns.  I had delusions of walking back out but I think it would have killed us!!  Thank goodness they have an elevator.  It takes only 60 seconds to climb the 750 feet back to the surface and the elevator uses the original elevator shaft.  Even more amazing is realizing the caverns were explored for the first time in the early 1920s.  We are always amazed at the hardiness of those early explorers.  The caverns are a constant cool 56 degrees.  When we came back out we were greeted by a blazing 100 degrees.  Made us want to go back into the caves and stay there.

We are staying the night in a 2-
star RV park here in Carlsbad but it has a pool so we are okay with that.  At least the wifi works which is more than we had last night. I didn't realize that there are only about 2 million people in all of New Mexico.  We have over 1.7 million just in San Antonio. No wonder it seems so uncrowded here.  Tomorrow we will head toward Albuquerque.  We want to go to "4 Corners" so we can say we've been to Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, AND Utah. Sweet dreams y'all.

GO!!!!

Oh my goodness.  What a day preparing to leave.  All the packing, and cleaning.  It's 9:30 p.m. Saturday and Jeff and I are both exhausted.  I think we've thought of everything.  Still working on the last of the laundry. We just need to load up our clothes and the perishable food. We plan to leave around 10:00 a.m.   Got to get to Ft. Stockton before the Spurs game starts at 7:00 p.m.!!  The girls are getting really excited about the trip.  I don't think they really realize the distance we are going.  They seem to think that Alaska is just a few days away.  I told them tonight that "it's the journey, not the destination" and we need to enjoy each day.

Here we go! 

Our neighbor Theresa took our picture before we headed out (Thank you Theresa!)  We got going at 10:15 a.m. - just about right on schedule.  Didn't have to turn around for any forgotten items either - hooray!

Set, . . .

Mya and Jade are officially done with the 2012-2013 school year!  They completed it with "flying colors!" We are so proud of both of them.

Ah, no homework.

Endless games of Animal Jam

One more day to go for me.  Jeff picked up the RV from the storage place.  He's organizing all the bins so we know where to put stuff.  Someone at work asked me "how do you pack for a trip like that?" and I said, "I have no idea!"  Truly, I don't.  But I guess we will find out.  It's not like we are going to Timbuktoo.  They have grocery stores along the way.  My biggest concern is making sure we pack clothes warm enough for Alaska. I just know I'm going to freeze.  We have become so acclimated to Texas weather.  So Saturday is packing day and we hope to head out on the road around 10 a.m. on Sunday.