Hot August Nights 2012 - August 20 - 22

We had a pleasant drive from Moab to Gypsum on Monday. It was overcast, but not too bad. We passed Arches National Park and later some hills that appeared to have striations of copper in them. It was interesting.

Along I-70 we could see the Colorado River and knew that were were “home” to Colorado!

The solar panel came loose again, so Tobey pulled over on the shoulder on I-70 to reseal it with duct tape. As he was going out the back door, a highway patrol officer stopped and was walking to the front door to make sure we were okay. He waited behind us with his lights on until Tobey finished and we were safely on our way. Nice.

We enjoyed two nights with Tyler. We took the dogs to the pond and they all (ours, Tyler’s, and two that live on the ranch) had fun chasing balls and sticks and cooling off. It was fun looking out his living room window to see the hot air balloons in the morning. You can see the green climbing wall in the lower part of the picture which he constructed for the camp this summer.

Some cows from a neighboring ranch got into the pasture so Tobey and Tyler had to go chase them out. They thought they had come in from an open gate in the lower pasture, but when they were back later in the day. Tyler’s further investigation found a couple bad spots in the fence which he repaired. Penny tried to herd the cows away from the ranch which was pretty funny to watch!

Tuesday was a beautiful day so Tobey and I took Penny and Lucy for a 1-1/2 mile hike up Sunset Ridge and back. Both dogs were quick to find the creek and wade in it before we got back to Tyler’s. They were excited about going into the pond to chase balls again. Tobey even got Penny to jump in off the dock. In the past, she was afraid to jump, but I guess her desire to chase the ball was stronger than her fear this time.

This morning we loaded up and headed home. We stopped at Camping World to see if they had an adhesive to repair the solar panel, but they were hesitant to recommend anything until we talked with the company about warranty issues. We arrived back in Fort Collins about 1:30 and unloaded the RV. I’ve started the laundry and tomorrow will work on cleaning the inside of the RV. It was a fun trip, but good to be home.

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 19

We were up early today (for us) and took Penny for a short swim then visited with the moms before they took off for church. We finished loading up and were on the road about 9:30.

Heading north on AZ Hwy 277 we encountered more stupid drivers than we have in a long time. I find it hard to believe that driving 58 in a 65 mph zone is a big enough reason to pass in No Passing Zones. We had TWO cars do that – and we were praying when they pulled in JUST in front of us to avoid head-on collisions because of the oncoming cars. In both cases, if they had waited less than 1/2 mile, there were passing areas and no cars coming the other direction.

Just after getting on I-40 at Holbrook we heard a new noise so I got up to investigate. It sounded like something on the roof so we took the first exit and Tobey went up top to check it out. The solar panel was coming loose. I tossed the duct tape up and he taped it down, but it looks like part of the solar cell is damaged. Twenty miles down the road and it had come loose again, so Tobey went back up and added more duct tape. The roof isn’t the best surface to adhere the tape, so it will be a challenge getting home. Tobey said to watch for an RV dealer or repair shop – not likely to happen in northeastern Arizona on the Indian Reservations! Our GPS routed us north on Hwy 6 which is TINY and passes through four different Indian reservations.

About 10 miles west of Ganado, AZ we finally connected to Hwy 191 which is what we had originally planned to take – I need to really look closer to the route BEFORE we take off in the morning! We did pass through some really beautiful areas with lots of interesting rock formations, as well as areas of open range, which reminded us of our trip to Mexico!
As we came into southern Utah near Bluff, we passed Twin Rocks which was really cool.

I didn’t see the name of the rock formation below, but it was really fun to see. The colors and shape were most unique!Less than ten miles later, Tobey thought this reminded him of an Egyptian sphinx.

We stopped and climbed up Wilson’s Arch. It is named after Joe Wilson, a pioneer who had a cabin nearby in Dry Valley. The formation is entrada sandstone.

It may not look like it, but the climb up Wilson’s Arch was actually quite steep.
We enjoyed the hike up, but coming down was more difficult – I looked like a crab scrambling down on my rear!

We are camped about five miles south of Moab at Ken’s Lake, a BLM campground. I think Penny could smell the water even though it was about a half mile from our campsite! After dinner we walked over and let her swim – even though the shoreline was quite muddy. She was mostly dry by the time we walked back to the RV. It is a quiet place – only three other RVs and they are on a different loop! Tomorrow we head north and will probably try to get to Tyler’s house near Gypsum, Colorado.

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 17-18

The rain that had started on Thursday evening continued all night in Pinetop, but we woke to a nice sunny sky. The moms had to check out of their condo at 10 a.m. and couldn’t check into their new condo in Overgaard until 3 pm, so we headed to the casino to kill some time! That made Tobey’s mom really happy! Tobey and I both spent our $10 and left it there … oh well, that’s a small price for our entertainment.

Around noon we headed to the Lotus Blossom Restaurant for a Chinese lunch buffet. It was good and that made Huey really happy! After lunch, the moms and Carolyn & Huey headed over to the new condo.

Tobey and I stopped to look at RVs on the way. That made us really happy! It is always fun for us to look at what is available. I fell in love with a 36’ 5th wheel trailer – it was gorgeous and had loads of storage. It was a 2012 model and marked down to $53,999 … then we would need a truck and that’s another $45,000. It’s a good thing I really like our little motor home!

We have had a fun time here at the Bison Ranch Resort. We got permission to park in the lot so we can spend time with the moms and still have our own space. We all went to play Bingo last night and played cards tonight. There was a really nice craft fair we went to today and some fun shops here that I found some cute clothes at. (Thank you, Tobey!)

There is also a small lake about a half mile down the road and we took Penny there both yesterday and today. She had so much fun chasing tennis balls and swimming – it was hard to get her out of the water! She has slept well!

We enjoyed going in the hot tub tonight and resting our tired legs, too! When we got out, Tobey spotted this huge beetle walking across the sidewalk. I ran back to the RV to get the camera.  He is kind of cool looking – as long as he doesn’t get too close to me! Check out those horns!

Tomorrow we say goodbye to the Moms and start our trek northward into Utah.

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 16

We took Penny for a long walk before breakfast then spent time with the moms visiting. Another couple, Huey & Carolyn, who have been friends of Tobey’s family for years, are staying up here with Beverly and Ruthellen. They enjoy travelling together. We women all went on an excursion to see some quilts that another friend who summers up here made. It was fun. Tobey and Huey did the grocery store run.

We all went to the Hon-Dah Casino for lunch and put a little money in the slot machines. Tobey came out even, but I won $50 today! WOOHOO! Mom and I enjoyed taking Penny for another walk after lunch. We spent the rest of the afternoon visiting before Tobey and I fixed dinner for the crew. We played cards after dinner until 10pm! Huey was the winner, but it was a close contest.

The rain started about 8pm and it is still coming down quite steadily. When we took Penny out a while ago, we noticed these night blooming flowers. I’m not sure what they are, but the blossom is about 3” in diameter and they were pretty. They could be an evening primrose. Anyone know for sure??

Tomorrow the Moms are moving to another condo back at Overgaard, AZ, so we will go with them for at least one night.

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 14-15

It is HOT in Arizona in the summer (at least is the Phoenix area) – and don’t let ANYONE tell you that “it’s not so bad, because it’s a dry heat.” It is hot (115°F) and that’s all there is to it!

My sister & her husband live in their 5th wheel full time at the Pleasant Harbor RV Resort. We camped in the empty space next to them the last two nights which made it very convenient to visit with them. We hung out in the morning since she had some work to finish, then my brother came over for a while. It was good to see him, too. After lunch, Bette and I went shopping for upholstery fabric. She is going to recover a chair for me and the quest was on. I found a couple fabrics I like so now I just need to watch for it to go on sale! She did the measurements and I will be all set.

We went out to the White Horse Bar & Grill for dinner. Awesome burgers and a reasonable price. It had cooled down enough after dinner that we borrowed a neighbors golf cart and went down to the lake to let Penny swim. She had a blast chasing after the tennis ball and it cooled her down. She did not want to quit!

We were treated to an incredible sunset before heading back to the RV.

This morning we visited for a while before heading out to a plumbing supply store to pick up an order for our son back in Colorado. It was only a block off our route, so that was easy.

We made our way through the Valley and up Hwy. 87 to Payson on our way to Pine Top. It was totally overcast when we got up and we had a few sprinkles of rain along the way. I love the stretch of highway from Fountain Hills to Payson. While it is curvy, it is 2-lane, and has lots of saguaro and prickly pear cactus which I enjoy seeing.

After a short lunch break in Payson, we continued on to Hwy. 260 toward Pine Top. There is road construction off and on which slowed our progress, but we finally pulled into Pine Top about 4 pm. Our moms live in Scottsdale, two houses apart, but have been spending July and August in the mountains – staying out of that “dry heat” of the Valley! We plan to spend about four days with them before we journey north.

We took Penny for a nice walk, had dinner, then played cards. We are looking forward to spending time with them!

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 10 - 13

It was hot camping near Bishop, CA on Thursday – we slept with all the windows open and the fan on. We could hear the river rushing by and the smell of sage was quite strong. Toward morning it finally cooled off and it felt nice. Tobey took Penny for a morning swim so she was a happy dog.

We continued south on Hwy. 395. Death Valley National Park is on the east side of the highway and Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks are on the west side. The mountains are jagged and steep. It is interesting that several of the peaks seem to be named after universities – Mount Stanford, Mount Barnard, University Peak, and even Caltech Peak! I haven’t been to those national parks since I was about 10 years old and Tobey has never been, so we will need to plan another, longer trip this direction in order to explore more – but not in August!

We had a nice lunch stop at a city park in Ridgecrest, CA. There was a nice grassy area where we could throw the ball for Penny and some shade for the RV. Good thing, too, because it was 107°F outside!

We arrived at our friends, Daniel and Susan’s, house around 4pm. They have two Australian Shepherds so we met at a park (neutral territory) to introduce them to Penny. Penny and Daisy got along pretty well, but Biscuit and Penny both seem to be alpha dogs so there was a little “doggy trash talk” going on.




We had a great time catching up and enjoying their hospitality. We shared in a birthday party for Daniel’s sister and met Daniel’s brother and his family. We took the dogs for walks and to an outdoor concert at Chapman University, watched some of the Olympics, shared good food and adult beverages, and enjoyed the easy company of good friends we have known for a long time.

About 8:30 this morning we said our goodbyes and were on our way to Arizona. I am always amazed when we drive by the Palm Springs/Thousand Palms area and see all of the wind turbines. Good use of the wind our here!

Arriving in Arizona to 115°F+ temperatures reminded us why we don’t usually come here in the summer! We carried Penny to a grassy area because the pavement was TOO HOT! She usually hates being carried, but did not argue with us on this occasion! We finally got to the Pleasant Harbor RV Resort where my sister & her husband live about 5 pm. It is STILL HOT, but we got the electric hooked up and the air conditioning going to cool things down. Jim made yummy BBQ ribs for dinner then when the sun went down, took the dogs to the dog park for a short run. We are looking forward to a good visit and seeing my brother tomorrow.

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 9

We left the Desert Rose RV park in Fernley, NV this morning on Alt. Hwy 50 south through Silver Springs then west to Carson City. At Carson City we picked up Hwy. 395 south to Pleasant Valley County Park, about 10 miles north of Bishop, California.

While there was some road construction, Hwy 395 is quite pretty; it is one of California’s scenic byways. We stopped at the Mono Lake Vista point and could see smoke in the distance. A stop at the Visitor Center confirmed there was a forest fire which started on Wednesday by lightening. We learned that it was already up to 5000 acres. After the High Park Fire just west of Fort Collins earlier this summer, we were not too anxious to see another forest fire!

There are two large islands in the 6390 foot deep lake which were formed by volcanoes. Paoha, the larger island is white and does not look volcanic. It was formed about 300 years ago when magma rose from under the surface and pushed up the sediment from the bottom of the lake. Negit, the black island, was formed by volcanic eruptions between 300 and 1700 years ago.

We continued south from the visitor’s center, then took Hwy 120 five miles to the South Tufa Loop at Mono Lake. It is well worth the drive and we had our national parks pass, so the admission was free. There is a nice trail down to the lake with informational signs explaining the history of the lake and current day usage of water by the city of Los Angeles. Mono Lake is on the western edge of the Great Basin, and like the Salt Lake on the eastern edge, it is a salt lake. It is 2.5 times saltier than the ocean and 100 times more alkaline!

Tufa is a type of limestone made when calcium rich springs from the bottom of the lake flow up and mix with carbonates in the water, forming calcium carbonate. When the lake water levels drop, the exposed tufa stops growing.

Penny took a little walk into the water, but did NOT like the salty feeling!

After our stop at Mono Lake, we continued south past Mammoth Lakes and found our campground next to Owens River. The water is moving pretty fast, but we put the harness on and let her go swimming. She is loving it – but the mosquitos are loving me! Tobey took her for another walk and they found another area on the river for her to swim and large blue heron took off not from from them and startled Penny – but only for a minute. She had a great time and is ready to settle in for the night.

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 7 and 8

We went with friends, Dean and Eva, into Reno yesterday and today to see some of the 6000 cars registered at Hot August Nights. It is amazing to see how much time, effort, and money has been put into these cars.

Hot August Nights started in 1986 by the Reno convention bureau to fill a void in tourism in Reno during the month of August and to raise money for local charities. They had concerts and a classic car show. It has grown every year since. It is hard to pick only a few pictures of the cars, but there was everything from the 1912 roadster to the “gangster” cars of the 1930s and up to cars from 1976. My favorites are probably the 1963 – 1967 Corvettes and Thunderbirds, but it was fun to see then all. 

We went to Downtown Reno, Victorian Square, the Atlantis, the Peppermill Resort, and Grand Sierra. Tobey and I even got to try the Racing Simulator Test Drive. It was pretty fun. We even tried a little gambling … and today Tobey’s winnings on a slot machine put us about $5.00 ahead. Big time gamblers …
We enjoyed our evenings back at the RV playing cards and taking Penny for walks. Tomorrow we say farewell to our friends and head out toward California.

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 6

What a way to start the day. As we pulled onto the street it sounded like we had a flat tire. Tobey hopped out with the pressure gauge and not one, but two tires were low. We quickly checked the internet and there was a Les Schwab Tire Shop about a mile down the road so we slowly crawled our way there.  We only had to wait a few minutes before they could look at the tires. They had to pull all four of the rear tires and took the valve extensions off the inside tires. We had just gotten them replaced, but they were causing the air to leak out. One and one half hours later; fixed, and NO CHARGE! Awesome. We are so thankful it happened where and when it did and not while we were driving.

We arrived at the Desert Rose RV Park in Fernley, NV about noon and met up with friends, Dean and Eva, from Fort Collins. After lunch we went to Reno to Junkees, a combination thrift/antique store. They certainly had a huge assortment of stuff – and nothing we needed. It was a fun place to browse around for a couple hours before heading back to Fernley.

Eva made a delicious dinner, then we took Penny for a long walk. We spent the evening playing board games and tomorrow head back to Reno for the start of Hot August Nights. 

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 5

This morning we took Penny for a long walk in the dunes before the ATVers arrived. She had so much fun racing up and down the hills. She spotted a rabbit and gave it a run for its money, but in the end, the rabbit got away. She raced back to us, ears flying. By 9:30 a few cars pulling trailers loaded with ATVs were headed into the area, so we decided it was time to get on the road.
Passing by the Bonneville Salt Flats in western Wyoming reminded us a of movie we saw years ago with Anthony Hopkins, called The Indian. It was a fun movie about an older guy from Australia who had an old Indian motorcycle. He had always dreamed of racing on the salt flats and he finally made the trek to race there. Good movie – we may have to rent it again!
We took a lunch break in Wells, Nevada next to the city park. Penny got a chance to chase tennis balls for a while so she was a happy, tired dog.

The further west we drove, the worse the weather got. Strong cross winds and rain were the order of the afternoon. I was driving so I slowed down to 55 mph after we saw one trailer flipped and smashed to pieces and the tow truck and emergency vehicles just arriving. Not too far down the road, another car had rolled and was flattened. Again, several highway patrol cars and emergency vehicles were cleaning up the mess. We aren’t in any hurry, so we plan to arrive safely!

We arrived in Winnemucca about 3:30 this afternoon and are camping in the Winners Casino parking lot. They were having their version of Reno’s “Hot August Nights” called “Fifties Fever”. It is a MUCH smaller version, but still fun to see the variety of cars.

Tobey wanted to play in a poker tournament this evening, but only two people (including him) signed up, so they cancelled it. Bummer, but he will get the chance to play poker once we get to Reno. Tonight, relaxing, reading, and maybe a movie.

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 4

We were up early and hiked back to take another look at the petroglyphs. They are really well preserved and quite amazing. By 8:30 we knew we needed to get started back to Hwy 191 on that 20-mile gravel road. UGH. We had originally planned to take another gravel loop off Hwy 191 to see the wild horses, but after being jostled for an hour we decided to wait for another time – like someday in the future when they pave the road! It was so rough that the bolts that hold our scooter ramp extension to the RV came off and it bounced off the RV! Fortunately, we heard it scraping and were able to retrieve it. We stopped at a hardware store in Rock Springs and got some bolts that will have to do as a temporary fix until we get home.


We stopped at Bear River State Park in western Wyoming for lunch. There is a really nice walk along the river and Penny was sure the water was fine for swimming.

We found a side channel that wasn’t too deep, but had enough current to warrant keeping her leash on “just in case.” She had a blast chasing sticks and swimming. After 30 minutes of swimming, she was one tuckered puppy this afternoon!

Just across the main channel of the river we spotted this moose. There were lots of willows all along the river on which they feed.
The state also keeps a small herd of bison in the park.
After a brief respite, we were back on the road. We are overnighting at a BLM off-road parking area near Knolls, Utah, about 90 miles west of Salt Lake City.

Hot August Nights 2012 - August 3

We are headed to Reno, Nevada to join friends at the Hot August Nights car extravaganza which begins August 7th. The RV was loaded and we were planning to leave Fort Collins by 9:30 this morning. Well, I wasn’t quite ready, then it was 9:45 and before we even hit the highway, we ran into road construction which delayed us ANOTHER 15 minutes. THEN, as we were driving north on CO Hwy. 287, we were stopped by a Larimer County sheriff because we were – are you ready for this? – GOING TOO SLOW! 56 mph in a 65.He didn’t give us a ticket, just a little talk and said we needed to speed up and pull over when there were too many cars behind us. That slowed us down another 15 minutes. In the big scheme of things on getting to Reno, not a big deal. Today, however, we wanted to reach Laramie, Wyoming to make the 11:00 am tour at the Territorial Prison. We arrived just as the tour was starting and missed only the first five minutes!The prison is one of only three federally constructed territorial penitentiaries that still exist in the western US and has most of the original structure preserved. It was built in 1872 and for 30 years held violent and desperate outlaws, including the notorious “Butch Cassidy.”

After the tour and lunch, we were headed west on I-80 toward the White Mountain petroglyphs north of Rock Springs. If you have ever been to Wyoming you might know that the wind blows most of the time and today it was blowing straight at us - at 35 mph! It made for slow going and poor gas mileage. To top delays off,  I forgot to pack the phone chargers and when Tobey’s phone went dead we had to make another stop to buy a charger.

We finally turned north leaving Rock Springs behind about 5:30 pm. The petroglyphs are about 20 miles north of Rock Springs on a gravel road – washboard gravel. It took an hour to get here! After a quick dinner we took a short walk up to see them – and they are amazing.

Etched into the sandstone surface some 200 to 1,000 years ago, several figures appear to portray bison and elk hunts while others depict geometric forms or tiny footprints. Handprints are worn into the rock, as well.Higher up on the rock outcropping were three or four huge nest, maybe eagle nests. We will hike back in the morning for a longer look before heading out. We both miss having the “Banda” portable internet we had while traveling in Mexico – we will have to wait for a free WIFI spot before we can post!

European Vacation #11 - On to Germany

On June 25 Wendy and Amanda flew home while Tobey and I went on to Germany. We have hosted six exchange students, five from Germany, and thought it would be a good opportunity to visit since we were so close.

We picked up a car in Frankfurt and drove south to Schaffhausen, Switzerland – about an hour from Zurich, where Tom, our first student, now lives. Our second student, Stephan, is now living in Zurich also, so we also had a chance to have dinner in Zurich with both of the “boys.” They had the opportunity to meet several years ago when they both came back for a visit so they keep in touch, also.


We had fun exploring Schaffhausen and the surrounding area. It is a charming little town, complete with a castle.

Before leaving Schaffhausen, we drove to the Rhine Falls.

As we entered the parking area we noticed a sign that said “frei” which we assumed meant “free parking.” Well, you know what they say about assuming things … Anyway, we had to pass through a gate and get a ticket, but thought it was probably so they would know how many people came through the area. Well, after seeing the falls and snapping a few pictures we headed back to the parking lot. Imagine our surprise as we drove up to the exit, inserted our ticket, and the booth said to return to the payment kiosk! Guess “frei” isn’t free. Okay, we went back and the kiosk indicated we could pay in Euros or Swiss francs – no problem, we had Euros. The machine wouldn’t take them – and we tried every one we had! We set off back down the hill to the shops in hopes of getting change, but our smallest Euro bill was $50 and didn’t want $45 worth of francs since we were heading to Germany! Tobey found a park worker and attempted to explain our dilemma. He looked at our ticket and motioned for us to meet him back at the parking lot. He drove through with his truck, gave us his new ticket and we were able to exit without paying anything since we were there less than 15 minutes. Who would know that “frei” really means that it was open?

From Schaffhausen, we headed east to Munich with a stop at Paul’s, our last student. Along the way we drove through miles and miles of “green farms” where buildings, houses, and barns are covered in solar panels. It was quite impressive.

We were in Munich when Italy and Germany were playing in the Euro Cup so it was quite exciting since Paul’s mom is from Italy! We could cheer for either team and be on the winning side – but they were actually happier that Italy won in that round! We went to the BMW Museum, the Olympic Park, Scholss Nyphenburg, and had fun touring in the Englischer Garten. It was fun to see kids “surfing” on a man-made surf in the river that runs through the garden. We even had dinner in a traditional beer garten – even though neither of us drinks beer!

Another bonus in Munich was seeing Alex, our “step” student. He was here the same year as Tom, but lived with another family, and they became good friends. We have enjoyed his friendship through the years and had fun touring “old town Munich” with him.

From Munich we went west to Erbach. Stephan (#2) came from Zurich to join younger brother, Christoph (#4) and his parents for the weekend. We had a wonderful time sharing stories and friendship.

We had planned to meet Hauke (#3) in Stuttgart on our return to Frankfurt. He is now flying regional planes for Lufthansa and his schedule changed at the last minute, so we didn’t get to see him. We were really disappointed. Tobey wanted to find out if Lufthansa honored the "family members fly for free” that some airlines offer, and whether host parents qualified as family! Maybe next time.

Our week in Switzerland/Germany came to an end on July 3rd as we headed home to Colorado. It has taken me a while to get all of the posts finished, but one month later, this is it! Just in time, too, because we are heading out in the RV today for a 3-week adventure.