Routine and Preparation, a River, and a new Cat

Russ and I have both been getting caught up on our routine chores. I've done laundry, shopping, updated finances, and made some protective sleeves for our wine glasses. Russ had calculated our travel fuel efficiency (terrible, but normal), irrigation chores, pruning, and dishes (every night!). Russ also helped me get an account at Recreation.gov for camping reservations.

Crochet sleeves for wine glasses.

Re-laying the irrigation pipe.

It takes a team.

We drove up to Durango and walked part of the Animas River Trail at the north end of town. It is so beautiful and the city has done an amazing job of providing public access to the river. While up there, we also made time for lunch at a favorite restaurant, the Kachina Kitchen. I love the local food style of the Rio Grande Rift Valley. We ate Navajo Tacos and shared a sopapilla with honey.

Someone will always take credit for the park.

Rabbit brush at a bend in the river.

Unusually still water for the Animas. It was low.

Legos on the rail on the trail. Trail was next to the narrow gauge tracks.

Lovely river and mountains.

Lunch with hot chile and cold drinks.

Russ and I are going to bring one of the kittens home. They are actually now more like adolescent cats. One of them kept following me around when I was outside; he picked us. We've decided to call him Cedar and plan to leave him here until we return on our way back home in November. I really was hoping to have a longer cat-free period before we committed to another pet, but it is hard to resist the animal that won't take no for an answer.

Not the best picture of him, but he is premium.

We also went out to breakfast this week at Elda's. It was so good. I had huevos rancheros. I could eat here every day.

Russ chews his food.

Amazing flavor.

Sage Brush, Rabbit Brush and a Small Town Parade

We did one last stroll at Great Sand Dunes National Park on the sand sheet. There was an interpretive trail near the Visitors Center. It was long enough to enjoy and stretch out before the final drive to Russ' parents house, and short enough that we didn't arrive late.

Sand dunes at sunrise.

Rabbit brush in bloom. Turns out I'm allergic.

Sage brush and rabbit brush expanse.

Stay on the trail.

We found a good restaurant in Alamosa, Colorado called Calvillo's. I'm glad to get back to the land of spicy green chile, Rio Grande rift valley style. It's also nice to take a break from driving. We chose US 64, which was longer than the Wolf Pass route but definitely scenic.

Chips and salsa.

Green chile stew, chile rellenos.

We parked in front of the museum, but didn't go in.

I would like to say we are resting for the first few days, but we have been busy catching up with family and getting settled. I've go laundry in the washer and Russ has been working on our home firewall setup from a distance. Apparently a fire in our town shut off power for a few hours and it messed with our system. My dad went over to cycle power and get everything back up and running. We enjoyed the Aztec Homecoming Parade (Go Tigers!). Our niece participated with her soccer team. It was impressive. Floats were typically nice trucks pulling flat bed trailers. Everyone threw candy at the crowd. I wore my mask, even though we were outside, because there were a lot of people. It was great to see so many people out having a good time.

Russ and our nephew getting ready for the parade.

Local ROTC color guard.

Fire trucks and the football team.

More athletes.

Our niece is on the float.

Even the "Marching" Band was on a trailer.

We ate Sonic for dinner after the Parade.

Niece and Nephew at a local park.

There are four more kittens here, now mostly grown into cats. It seems like every time we come, I have to practice some restraint so as to not take any home with us!

Great Sand Dunes National Park

We drove into the park after completing our morning routine. It only took about five minutes to reach the entrance gate. This RV park is well located. I enjoyed watching the sunset from here last night, so much so, that I am going to add some more pictures of the event.

The sun sinks behind the San Juan Mountains.

The Dunes show their curves.

The National Park, like all the others, is the best example of it's type. Great Sand Dunes is no exception. We hiked up to the High Dune on First Ridge, but missed the high point for a slightly lower dune one over. Unusually, there are no trails here, you just make your own way across trackless sand. The high ridge is about 700 feet from the valley floor. We chose a good time, as the high temperature today only reached 78 degrees Fahrenheit. We started early enough and returned to the parking area by noon, plus the breeze kept it comfortable. According to the rangers, the sand dunes become an oven quickly. We plan to do another quick visit to the park tomorrow before we move on.

 

Dunes from the RV Park at sunrise.

Driving in to the Park.

Trackless Wilderness.

Russ climbs a dune.

Brilliant views.

From the ridgetop with views of the Sangre de Cristos.

A few folks used this route.

Grasses in an inhospitable spot.

Scheduled Road Closure and a Sand Dunes Sunset

We enjoyed our night in Fruita, and I especially enjoyed using my toaster oven and microwave for breakfast sandwiches this morning. We refreshed our holding tanks and got back on the road a bit late, at 9:30. It worked out perfectly though, since US 50 through Montrose, Colorado was closed for road work at mile marker 123 thru 127. It was only open with one way traffic from 12:30-1:30 and we got there in time to line up and eat lunch before the pilot car guided us through. It looked like they had major rock slides near the Blue Mesa Pass.

Blue Mesa Pass as we waited to go over.

Some of the construction work as we drove through.

The day was lovely for driving, and we chose a route with little traffic and major scenery. I especially loved Colorado Route 117. It wound through a narrow river valley filled with fishermen and pastoral farms. Naturally I didn't take any pictures of that section.

Sagebrush high desert with virga.

The reservoirs were all low.

Dinner in the R-Pod. Impossible burger.

Great Sand Dunes National Park at sunset.

Amazing Sunset from where we are set up for tonight.

We plan to check out the park tomorrow and stay here another night. It's nice to know I won't have to pack up the Pod and get on the road again tomorrow.

Another Winery, Friends and a new Road Traveled

Our second night away found us at the Coldsprings Winery in Hammet, Idaho. The situation was idyllic, with the buildings at the top of a hill with a commanding view of the vines extending below. The air still contained considerable wildfire smoke, so the sunset was spectacularly red. An added bonus of this site was our fellow travelers. Chris and Jenny were full time in their rig with their sweet dog, Capone. We spent a lot of time talking with them, drinking the wine we purchased, and enjoying the perfect evening.

Resting at the viewpoint just past Pendleton, OR

Hummus sandwich for lunch on the road,

God of wine?

Pesto pasta for dinner. Russ is behind and between the truck and Pod.

Sunset. Perfect ending to the day.

These sunflowers are growing along all the highways.

Our next day was another lovely drive. We took the Scenic Highway instead of the Interstate and saw some farmland along the Snake River, complete with numerous waterfalls. The river here has a high  basalt escarpment on one side. Some of the waterfalls spring directly from the rocks and are not on the land surface. Most of the highway verges have been covered with miles of sunflowers. So happy. We pulled into Holladay, Utah to driveway surf with some dear friends and enjoyed their hospitality and a bonfire.

Rows of happiness. Hundreds of miles.

The open road.

Idaho can be beautiful. Note the smoke haze.

Dinner with friends.

A perfect cappuccino. Made with care by a friend.

 

In our effort to avoid the commuter traffic in the Salt Lake City-Provo corridor, we instead took a longer, more beautiful route. We took Interstate 80 to US 189 and then US 40 to Duchesne and then US 191 to Helper. Now back on our planned route, we ate lunch at Groggs Pinnacle Brewing. We've found it before, and the food was just as good the second time. We are staying at Monument RV Park in Fruita, Colorado. It was a hot day, so it was a luxury to be on shore power and run our air conditioner.

Picture out the truck window. Enjoying views like this all day.

A random rest stop in Utah.

R-Pod at the same random Utah rest stop.

The clouds make the geology look even better.

Good food in Helper, Utah.

Mac and Cheese, and a Brisket Grilled Cheese with soup.

In Fruita, Colorado.

A distant view of the Colorado National Monument.

I'm super tired, but at least I have good signal here, so you get several days of travel pictures and commentary.