Saturday, July 16, 2011
Rocky Mtn. Park.......WOW!
Rocky Mountain National Park......The GPS shows the facts folks.....well above 12,000 feet. 
Rocky Mountain National Park....Views from every 50 feet!
The mountains still have "snow".....actually they are referred to as "glaciers" on the maps of the area.
More than 50 Elk together munching grass. But no bull in sight. He is probably in the trees watching them.
The mountains paint a different view every few feet. The weather this time was marvelous. Our last time through was 2009 and we had a blizzard at the top of the mountains....80 foot visibility....
Love this place!
Duke
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Rocky Mountain National Park....Views from every 50 feet!
The mountains still have "snow".....actually they are referred to as "glaciers" on the maps of the area.
More than 50 Elk together munching grass. But no bull in sight. He is probably in the trees watching them.
The mountains paint a different view every few feet. The weather this time was marvelous. Our last time through was 2009 and we had a blizzard at the top of the mountains....80 foot visibility....
Love this place!
Duke
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Sadness Saps Us In Colorado! We Lost Our Jackie!
Today we lost a cat....Our Jackie. She managed to escape the coach alongside the Colorado River....We searched, and had help. The campground is still watching, but no sighting of her. The pic is Jackie at right and Pearl, our younger cat at left.
Jackie is a truly special cat.....She "adopted" Sandra at a pet store where Sandra saw several cats. We took her home and she was always very, very needy. Attention she demanded...and if Pearl got attention, Jackie was there to get her share as well.
She loved any form of food....and got a bit chubby as she ate more and more.
When we sat at the dinette in the coach she would come up and grab your arm with her paw as if to say, "here, I am here!" She climbed on the bed in the coach at night with what I called "klumpen-kloggin" feet which felt like she weighed 40 pounds. When she jumped down from the bed or anywhere there was a distinct "thud"....
Her voice was soft, but insistent. When she saw a bird outside she mewed and wanted at it. She would stare at you and ask for attention with a mew.
We miss our Jackie.....very much!
Duke
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Jackie is a truly special cat.....She "adopted" Sandra at a pet store where Sandra saw several cats. We took her home and she was always very, very needy. Attention she demanded...and if Pearl got attention, Jackie was there to get her share as well.
She loved any form of food....and got a bit chubby as she ate more and more.
When we sat at the dinette in the coach she would come up and grab your arm with her paw as if to say, "here, I am here!" She climbed on the bed in the coach at night with what I called "klumpen-kloggin" feet which felt like she weighed 40 pounds. When she jumped down from the bed or anywhere there was a distinct "thud"....
Her voice was soft, but insistent. When she saw a bird outside she mewed and wanted at it. She would stare at you and ask for attention with a mew.
We miss our Jackie.....very much!
Duke
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
4 by 4 - OOPS!
We could not wait....off-roading in Brutus....Now, special roads for that at Arches. This 9 mile road leads to the true 4 by 4 roads which are marked by soft-sandy steep grades, and washes. We got 3.4 miles in. Then the black clouds circled, and the warning sings about rain and washes stood out.
On the road back out it poured, and the gullys and washes were soon torrents. Smart decision Duke!
Today we'll be in Canyonlands National Park. Plotting the routes as I post.
Duke
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On the road back out it poured, and the gullys and washes were soon torrents. Smart decision Duke!
Today we'll be in Canyonlands National Park. Plotting the routes as I post.
Duke
Arches National Park
Moab, UT. View of the surrounding mountains and our campground from the dinette window. What a view!!!
Arches create....windows. There are many in the park.
This many-ton rock is balanced on its pedestal unbelievably.
The windows (arches) are caused by water erosion over millions of years. Here are a number of windows in the making.
Duke
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Arches create....windows. There are many in the park.
This many-ton rock is balanced on its pedestal unbelievably.
The windows (arches) are caused by water erosion over millions of years. Here are a number of windows in the making.
Duke
Across Utah (I-70)
A 2nd day of oohs and aahs as we drive up over the mountains from Richfield, UT to Moab, UT. Mountains, mesa, cliffs, viewpoints, and so much to see. Here is a typical winding roadway seeming to snake through the mountains.
A rest area with views unbelievable. You could just turn around 180 degrees and have another beautiful sight.
Climb, climb....even when the road semed to be level or dropping my GPS said we were climbing. We topped out here....
The colors in the rocks were so vivid, so strong. They ranged from this red to yellow, brown, green and blue as well as grey. It was a beautiful day.
The temps allowed us to run with open windows and no generator until later in the trip when we dropped back down to 4,000 feet to enter the road to Moab.
Duke
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A rest area with views unbelievable. You could just turn around 180 degrees and have another beautiful sight.
Climb, climb....even when the road semed to be level or dropping my GPS said we were climbing. We topped out here....
The colors in the rocks were so vivid, so strong. They ranged from this red to yellow, brown, green and blue as well as grey. It was a beautiful day.
The temps allowed us to run with open windows and no generator until later in the trip when we dropped back down to 4,000 feet to enter the road to Moab.
Duke
Richfield KOA was beautiful
The campground was neat, grass was putting-green quality, trees shaded entire motor home. Nice place to stay.
Most of our fare on-the-road is simple. Sometimes Duchess cooks, but tonight was "dog night" with hot dogs, potato salad, slaw and of course a nice 12 year old Glenlivet on ice to power the chef.
Great life.!
Duke
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Most of our fare on-the-road is simple. Sometimes Duchess cooks, but tonight was "dog night" with hot dogs, potato salad, slaw and of course a nice 12 year old Glenlivet on ice to power the chef.
Great life.!
Duke
Monday, July 11, 2011
Trip Through A Canyon!
Driving from Las Vegas to Richfield, UT...our stopover on the way to Moab, UT and Arches National Park/Canyonlands National Park. It appeared we were driving into a mountain.
It was a canyon through the mountains.
The drive was more than 10 miles climbing all the way from about 2,000 ft. to more than 6,000 ft. In the canyon bottom, alongside us, was the Virgin River, flowing rapidly, and filled with silt.
The view were one-after-another and beautiful. The colors surprising.
The drive was most enjoyable and we sit now in a campground of beautiful grasses and trees.
Duke
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It was a canyon through the mountains.
The drive was more than 10 miles climbing all the way from about 2,000 ft. to more than 6,000 ft. In the canyon bottom, alongside us, was the Virgin River, flowing rapidly, and filled with silt.
The view were one-after-another and beautiful. The colors surprising.
The drive was most enjoyable and we sit now in a campground of beautiful grasses and trees.
Duke
Saturday, July 09, 2011
Las Vegas!....Baby!
Here we are in the "hottest" city.....unfortunately, it is July, and it is H-O-T! This is a skyline shot from the campground....
We are at Circus Circus KOA campground....a multi-block-sized campground composed of blacktop and connections. What else does one need in Vegas?
From inside the safely-cool motor home Duchess does some banking business....It is not that difficult today to keep all your business online!
We are near the end of our LV time, and planning an escape NE to Moab, UT....then off to Estes Park, Colorado for some COOL weather.
Busy times, but we enjoy them all.
Duke
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We are at Circus Circus KOA campground....a multi-block-sized campground composed of blacktop and connections. What else does one need in Vegas?
From inside the safely-cool motor home Duchess does some banking business....It is not that difficult today to keep all your business online!
We are near the end of our LV time, and planning an escape NE to Moab, UT....then off to Estes Park, Colorado for some COOL weather.
Busy times, but we enjoy them all.
Duke
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
No Pics, But Problems.......Temporary though they might be!
We left the Grand Canyon......Duchess & I in our motor home, pulling "Brutus" the Jeep Wrangler; Bob & Lissi Little, our son-in-law's folks in their 45 foot 5th wheel pulled by a monster truck....we were headed for Las Vegas, Baby! Behind us were Daughter Teri, son-in-law Lance and two grands in their truck and trailer combo.
As we approached I-40 we would split as the kids were heading back East toward home in Dickinson, TX.
They phoned and said, "Let's do lunch at the Denny's at I-40".....Yeppers, we said OK! BIG MISTAKE. 1st, we drove all the way thru a small town trying to find the Denny's. Then as we got back close to I-40 we found our caravan on a small road leading to a golf course....Suddenly I came to a stop sign (I was leading).....Around the corner was a LOW viaduct which I knew neither my motor home nor the Little's 5th wheel could clear. We were at a corner with a gravel road, and nothing else.
What followed was a comedy (at least we will believe so after a few months). Duchess and I had to unhook Brutus so we could back up and turn around. The Little's had to await our departure before backing their 5th wheeler into the gravel and turning around. Our kids/grands did same after we all left.
No lunch; but a few hugs and waves as we split and headed to our separate destinations.
Life on the road......ya gotta love it!
Duke
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As we approached I-40 we would split as the kids were heading back East toward home in Dickinson, TX.
They phoned and said, "Let's do lunch at the Denny's at I-40".....Yeppers, we said OK! BIG MISTAKE. 1st, we drove all the way thru a small town trying to find the Denny's. Then as we got back close to I-40 we found our caravan on a small road leading to a golf course....Suddenly I came to a stop sign (I was leading).....Around the corner was a LOW viaduct which I knew neither my motor home nor the Little's 5th wheel could clear. We were at a corner with a gravel road, and nothing else.
What followed was a comedy (at least we will believe so after a few months). Duchess and I had to unhook Brutus so we could back up and turn around. The Little's had to await our departure before backing their 5th wheeler into the gravel and turning around. Our kids/grands did same after we all left.
No lunch; but a few hugs and waves as we split and headed to our separate destinations.
Life on the road......ya gotta love it!
Duke
Grand Canyon......Pictures
Great shots of the Grand Canyon.....(editor's note....I did a bit of clarity work ont he pics as the canyon in Summer is actually quite hazy-looking.) This is a view across the 10 mile chasm of the canyon.
This is a compound picture I created. Left arrow points to a small green area on what is actually Angel Creek and Canyon. The green represents "Phantom Ranch" an overnight spot for hikers and mule riders. The green items are 100 ft. tall cottonwood trees! The right arrow is a small view of the Colorado River as it winds through the canyon. The insert is of the river section as I zoomed in...including the suspension bridge you might otherwise not see.
This 3rd pic is the small pic superimposed on the last picture, shown at normal size. I hope these give you some perspective of the actual gigantic size of the Grand Canyon.
We loved looking at the canyon, and I have many, many more pics...but will let these suffice, along with postings on the Elk we saw, and other pics from the GC area.
Duke
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This is a compound picture I created. Left arrow points to a small green area on what is actually Angel Creek and Canyon. The green represents "Phantom Ranch" an overnight spot for hikers and mule riders. The green items are 100 ft. tall cottonwood trees! The right arrow is a small view of the Colorado River as it winds through the canyon. The insert is of the river section as I zoomed in...including the suspension bridge you might otherwise not see.
This 3rd pic is the small pic superimposed on the last picture, shown at normal size. I hope these give you some perspective of the actual gigantic size of the Grand Canyon.
We loved looking at the canyon, and I have many, many more pics...but will let these suffice, along with postings on the Elk we saw, and other pics from the GC area.
Duke
