Photos on view at Yahoo!

Photos on view at Yahoo!
If you click on the link, it should take you to my Yahoo! photo album where I've posted quite a few of my pictures from SE Utah. This link will only work through August 30, 2005. Send me a private message (click on the envelope below) if you'd like to view the album after that date.
SE Utah photos

Report from Telluride

Saturday, May 28
I found her!

As I said in my last post, I went to the Telluride, CO, area partly in hopes of finding my 87 year old fulltimer friend. She was not in either of the campgrounds where I thought she might be, but then I thought maybe she was staying somewhere in the town of Telluride – and sure enough, as Jacob and I were exploring one of the side streets, there she was! We were both delighted to see one another, and are now camped at Sunshine campground in the Uncompahgre NF a few miles south of Telluride.

Telluride is an interesting town. It got its start as a mining town in 1875 and flourished from 1890 (when the railroad came) up until World War I when the mining boom ended. By the 1960’s it had gone from a population of 5000 to fewer than 600. What changed it was skiing – the first ski resort was built in the 1970’s – and a series of summer festivals, also started in the 70’s. It now has a population of 2200, and it’s clear that there is a lot of money here. All the buildings have been carefully restored, and new construction is designed to fit in with the original structures. Real estate prices rival those in Los Angeles. It’s all quite charming, and in a setting of great natural beauty, which they take advantage of with very nicely construted hiking/biking trails.

It’s very different from Moab, where new constrution is pretty clearly not controlled. Much of Moab, especially along the main road in and out of town, is a blot on the landscape. In other parts of town, yards are full of broken down cars or old trailers. A lot of the homes are manufactured housing.

If I had to choose between something like Moab and something like Telluride, I’d pick Moab.

[A hummingbird just flew up and hovered in the open door of the van for a minute before flying off.]

Sunday, May 29
After I wrote yesterday’s entry, it got very cloudy and cold. Partly because of that, and partly, I think, because I’m still adjusting to life with no permanent home except the Sportsmobile, and because my #$%&* Verizon Cell Phone Internet connection is still not working right, even though I thought I had fixed the problem – yesterday afternoon and evening were down times for me, and I was not enjoying being here. (I will send this via the library’s wifi.)

This morning, however, Jacob and I discovered a beaver pond on our pre-breakfast walk (didn’t see the beaver, just the dams and the lodge – we’ll go back this evening to see if he/she/they are out in the pond) and then I spent quite a while sitting at my campsite watching birds and saw several that are new to me: a Cassin’s Finch, the Broad-tailed Hummingbird (which is what was making that fairly high-pitched buzz/trill as it flew past – usually too fast to even look at it before it was gone), the Red-naped Sapsucker, and the Violet Green Swallow. I also discovered that one of the aspens across the little stream from my campsite has at least two nests in it, one of which is occupied by a pair of the Red-Naped Sapsuckers (I saw them do a “changing of the guard”) and the other by some small brown bird I haven’t identified.

Jacob and I took the free, pet accessible gondola from Mountain Village down to Telluride, where we are now. I’m in the library and Jacob is waiting outside in the hail which just started a few minutes ago.

Now it’s about ½ hour later. I went and moved Jacob out of the hail, and now the sun is shining. I’m going to post this and go get Jacob and take a hike.

This was taken near sunset in Indian Creek Canyon, on the way to the Needles area of Canyonlands National Park. The drive through Indian Creek Canyon is one of Utah's Scenic Byways, and you can see why. We went here on Tuesday, May 24.

Several of you have requested more pictures of me and Jacob, so here's one for you. Isn't Jacob a sweetie? This picture was taken at our campsite at Buckboard campground in the Manti-LaSal National Forest six miles west of Monticello, UT.

The last few days

Tuesday, May 24

Ahhhh! This is more like it!

It’s 3:30pm, I’m sitting in the van at Buckboard campground, in the Manti-LaSal National Forest, six miles west of Monticello, UT, and am very comfortable. I’d guess that the temperature is about 75 degrees, with a nice little breeze. Jacob and I spent a couple of hours hiking at Foy Lake around noon. There wasn’t much shade, but I was quite comfortable.

This is very different from the red rock desert; we’re camped among aspens at almost 9000 feet elevation. There’s a little stream running right by our campsite for Jacob to get muddy in, and lots of bird song.

Windwhistle campground was quite lovely and I would have stayed longer if it hadn’t been so hot. It overlooks the high mesquite and juniper desert with some buttes and mesas scattered about, and has a red rock mesa at its back. There’s a ½ mile nature trail at one end of the campground which winds through a natural red rock amphitheater. Especially around sunrise or sunset it has an almost magical feeling to it.

I was disappointed not to find Edie, the 87 year old fulltimer, there. The campground host said that she found the heat very difficult, and had left on the second day she was there.

There were lots of wildflowers in bloom – Carmine and Scarlet Gilia, the Harriman’s Yucca, Anderson’s Larkspur, Fendlerbush, Cliffrose, and a bunch I couldn’t identify.

We will probably stay here at Buckboard until early Friday, and then make our way to Price, UT, where there’s a Ford dealer. The brakes are pulling left a bit and I want to have them looked at.

From Price, my plan is to head up to Kamas, UT, and take UT Highway 150 northeast into Wyoming, aiming to get to Yellowstone by mid-June.

Wednesday, May 25

Not only is it cool here at Buckboard, I get good reception on my Verizon cell phone, and I can tune in not one, not two, but three NPR stations!

I am happy to report that even in the partial shade of the (lovely, newly leaved) aspens, my solar panels are keeping ahead of my electrical usage.

I just saw a weasel of some kind run across the campground road and into the trees. It’s the first one I’ve ever seen. They’re littler than I thought they were.

And speaking of wildlife, I neglected to put this in the blog at the time:

I saw a Collared Lizard one day on the way from the campground to Ken’s Lake. Quite a striking creature. I didn’t have my camera with me, but there’s a pretty good picture at

http://www.wildherps.com/species/C.collaris.html . Move down to the third set of pictures, which were taken at Ken’s Lake. My lizard looked pretty much like these pictures, except his body was more jade than turquoise. Mine was about 10” to 12” long, and let me get a really good look at him.

Thursday, May 26

Forget Tuesday’s projected itinerary. I have decided to go to the Telluride, CO, area for a few days, partly in hopes of finding Edie, but also because it’s supposed to be quite beautiful, and I’m less than three hours drive from there – assuming I don’t stop a lot on the way, which I probably will do.

This is the view from the nature trail looking across the campground toward one end of the mesa at the back of Windwhistle campground. It was taken at sunset and gives a little of the special feeling of this place.

Still looking for cooler weather

Windwhistle campground is lovely, but only slightly cooler than the Moab area, so I'm going to try Dalton Springs campground, in the Manti-La Sal NF west of Monticello, UT. It's over 8000 feet, in the Abajo or Blue Mountains. Not sure how long I'll stay -- possibly until Memorial Day.

My Verizon cell phone is refusing to connect to the internet, even though there's a strong cell here in Monticello, so I'm sending this from a computer in the Monticello Senior Center.

Heading for Windwhistle

Sunday, May 22

The afternoons here in Moab have been very hot – well into the 90’s. Jacob and I are leaving very soon to go to Windwhistle campground in the Canyonlands Rim Recreation Area, a few miles west of La Sal Junction, UT, where the weather should be ten to fifteen degrees cooler – and where the campground has water!

I will be sad to leave this lovely campground; I’d happily stay here another month if the weather would cooperate.

I've had an inquiry about the camera I'm using and am responding here in case others are interested. It's the Olympus Camedia C-740 Ultra Zoom. So far I'm quite pleased with the pictures it takes, and now that I'm getting a little more familiar with it, it's quite easy to use.

I’m not sure when I’ll be able to connect again, but hope to send something towards the middle of the week. If not, perhaps next weekend. Keep checking.

This is a view looking back across Castle Valley from the La Sal Mountain Loop Road after it starts its climb. The most distant ridge line is on the other side of the Colorado River.

On Friday, we drove the La Sal Mountain Loop Road, partly in hopes of finding some lower temperatures. The first place we came to was the small community of Castle Valley, a collection of homes and a Morman church. The residents are clearly individualist, and one of the ways that shows is in a wide variety of architecture. Here's one of this homes I found interesting.

Here's Jacob playing in the snow we found at the Oonah Lake campgroud; the highest point on our trip around the La Sal Mountain Loop. Both of us enjoyed the coolness, although the air temp was high enough that I was perfectly comfortable in my shorts and T-shirt. Jacob is alway delighted to play in snow; in this picture he's trying to find the snow ball I threw.

Needles clarification

I've confused more than one of you by saying that I'm heading for Needles in order to find cooler weather.

 

What I should have said is that I will be going to the Needles area of Canyonlands National Park, not to Needles, CA.  For weather information I'm relying on those who've been there, the fact that it's quite a bit higher in elevation, and weather.com's report for the nearest town, Monticello, UT.

 

I'm sending this from the Moab Library's computer; the guy using the one next to me is looking at Sportmobile's website.  Small world.

 

 

Several days worth

Sunday, May 15

Back at Ken’s Lake campground, which feels like home. It’s warm here, too, but there a definite breeze off the mountains which keeps things comfortable.

Monday, May 16

I was really wiped out yesterday; after getting to the campground about 2:00pm, and saying “hi” to the 87 year old fulltimer, I had a snack, started to read, slept until 6:00pm, fed Jacob dinner and took him for a small walk, had my dinner, played two games of Spider Solitaire on the laptop, and was asleep by 9:30pm. I think it was`partly the heat, which I don’t handle well, and perhaps partly a response to (Quaker) Meeting for Worship this morning – although I didn’t experience it as anything unusual, I’ve learned that much that’s important about what takes place for me in Meeting happens outside my conscious awareness.

I discovered during the social time following Meeting for Worship that Moab has been a full-fledged Monthly Meeting for the last two years, even though the sources I’ve looked at on the internet still show it as a Worship Group. (Those of you who are not familiar with the Religious Society of Friends and would like to know more might go to www.quaker.org .)

I woke up this morning at 6:00am much refreshed. Jacob and I walked around the lake, had breakfast, and then I spent the morning doing errands and laundry.

While I was at the grocery, I ran into the man who used my cell phone to call 911 (whose name is James) and got a hug from him and a follow-up on what happened next. Although the cops have now arrested the brother of the girl he broke up with, before they got him the brother and friends managed to steal James’s van and take everything that was in it. James has gotten the van back, but not the contents. He strikes me as a kind of sweet guy whose hard luck is probably not new.

When I got back to the campground, I talked with Edie for awhile. She’s really impressive; not only is she 87, she only has one eye (the other is a prosthesis). She mostly camps in places she’s pretty familiar with, but she’s thinking about going to the Yellowstone area this summer which she’s only visited once before. She has a miniature fox terrier, named Tally Ho, who is her travelling companion.

Tuesday, May 17

If today wants to be considered one of my good days, it’s going to have to go a fair piece in the opposite direction of what it’s done so far.

I had intended to get to town by 8:30am to get my hair cut and the van’s water supply replenished, slow process here, since I haven’t found a source of good tasting water that I can attach my hose to for easy filling of my water tank. This means I have to fill my two gallon water bottle and slowly and carefully empty it into the van’s water tank, from the inside of the van. Of course, by the time Jacob and I took our morning walk (during which he disappeared and did not come when I called him, which is worrisome; I discovered him waiting for me at the campsite when I got back to where I could see it) and I made, ate, and cleaned up from my breakfast, it was already after 9:00am. Then I got a phone call from a friend and talked with her, and then Edie came by and we chatted for a while. These were the two good parts of the day.

When I tried to take Edie’s picture, I discovered that my camera was not working. I had already discovered that my inverter (the device that lets me use 110-120 volt appliances, such as my laptop and coffee grinder, off the van’s 12 volt electrical system) had stopped working. So that was two more things on the list. Then I realized that Jacob was doing the doggy butt-scoot, so add a trip to the vet.

Jacob’s problem was just what I expected – that impacted anal gland thing that dogs are subject to, so he’s all fixed up now, to the tune of $22.00 and a 30 minute wait at the vets.

After two tries, I tracked down an inverter at Radio Shack -- $47.00 plus $6.00 for a surge protector, so that I could plug in my laptop and the charger for the camera’s rechargeable AA batteries at the same time (which I now discover makes the inverter decide that I’m using too much energy at once).

By the time I got to the hairdresser, she was leaving for lunch and wouldn’t be back for an hour and a half, so that didn’t get done.

When I filled my water tank I managed to spill a lot of water all over the van’s floor, soaking Jacob’s bed.

Then I decided to go use the Computer Doctor’s Wifi to go online to check email, maybe do a blog posting, and take care of some online business. But it wouldn’t connect. The computer doctor spent quite a while trying to figure out why, but couldn’t – leaving me to worry that I would no longer be able to take advantage of Wifi and be left with only my cell phone connection. In fact, when I stopped at another Wifi hotspot, I had no trouble connecting, but by then I was not in the mood to do anything but come back to the campground, and it was warm enough that I didn’t want to leave Jacob in the van for very long anyway.

Meanwhile, I went to the camera store with the camera to see if they could figure out what was wrong with it. Turned out to be no charge in the batteries I had just taken out of the package and put in the camera – so back to Radio Shack, where I had bought them – and where I was informed that you have to charge rechargeable batteries before you use them. (You’d think the guy at the camera store could have told me that.)

Then I realized that the van doors were automatically locking everytime I turned on the headlights, so I stopped at the Ford dealer’s to see what they had to say about it. They seemed completely baffled, so I opted to do nothing about it for now. I’ve realized since that I can no longer lock the van using the armrest buttons when the van’s ignition is off, so I probably will pursue the problem. I’m still in warantee for another month.

Oh, and when I made my next stop after the vet’s, I discovered I couldn’t find my driver’s license which I had used as ID at the vets. I stopped in there on my way home, but they didn’t have it. I’m assuming it’s somewhere in the van, but I haven’t found it yet.

So that’s how today has gone.

Still – in the mostly blue sky there are wispy ripples of clouds and the ghost of a half moon; it’s been a beautiful day when I’ve stopped to notice.

Wednesday, May 18

Well, the locks on the van are working correctly now – I can only guess that something got wet when I spilled the water while filling my tank.

I found my drivers license; it was behind the card in the slot below the one it belongs in, so things are looking up. Still haven’t got my hair cut, though.

It’s definitely heating up here. Today should only go up to the mid-eighties, but after that it will be mid to high nineties. I’d kind of like to stick around through this weekend; there’s a triathlon at Ken’s Lake and Steelbender Trail that might be fun, and I’d like to go to Meeting for Worship on Sunday, as it may be my last opportunity for quite some time – but I’m not sure I’ll be willing to put up with the heat.

Whenever I decide to leave – Sunday after Meeting at the latest – I’m going down to the Needles area for at least a couple of days. It will be cooler there, as it’s higher elevation. I’ll try to post at least once more before I leave.

Birds, rapids, and weather report

Saturday, May 14

Yesterday evening I spent quite sometime following a colorful mystery bird, until I got enough of a good look at it to identify it as the Lazuli Bunting.

 Jacob and I spent a couple of hours in the middle of the day at Rocky Rapids, watching the rafters and kayakers run the rapids.  I also spent some time watching a bird (I think a grackle) bring worms to nest in the hollow limb of the cottonwood I was sitting under.  She (I assume it was the female) would first fly to a tree about 30 feet to the right of the one with the nest; then she would fly to one about 40 feet to the left, then to a higher branch of the tree with the nest, then to one just below the nest, and then finally she would fly up to the nest, where a gaping beak would grab the worm.  She'd go back down to the lower branch and sing for a minute or two, then take off, presumably in search of another worm.  I've posted a picture below of her leaving the nest just after she fed them the worm, which was the best I could do.

 It turned quite warm this afternoon, at least 80 by the feel of it, and no breeze except for about five minutes when the wind blew quite hard and raised a lot of red dust.  At least the warm, sunny weather gave me an opportunity to try out my new solar shower.

Sunday, May 15
Weather.com says the Moab area will get even warmer the next 10 days.  I may go to the Needles area of Canyonlands NP, which is at a higher altitude, for a few days, and then will probably head north early next week.  Stay tuned.

Starling leaving nest after feeding worm to nestlings. I tried to take the picture just as she gave the worm to the nestlings; as you can see, I was a little late. She stays at the nest for a very short period, less than a second.

As some of you know, I opted to leave the porta-potti that came with my Sportsmobile behind in order to free up cupboard space. This is the portable toilet I'm using for places where there are no toilet facilities -- it's folding aluminum legs which hold the toilet seat which hold the biodegradeable bags. In this campsite, it had a nice view of a small stretch of the Colorado River -- I just had to wait until no rafts were passing by.

The "shower room" at our primitive campsite on the Colorado River.

Hittle Bottom and points beyond

Friday, May 13

We camped yesterday at Hittle Bottom and explored the area a bit.  Onion Creek is a narrow canyon that didn't do anything for me, so we checked out the next road to the SW, which was a wider canyon, and had a fun surprise – the Canyonlands Field Institute Field Camp.  Look for the picture below.  (I hope I've managed to get the pictures and this text in the right order.)

 

On our morning walk we discovered a wonderful primitive campsite on the river about a mile from Hittle Bottom.  Unfortunately, it was already occupied, but it inspired us to look for something similar; we found one almost as good, and are camped here for the next two nights.

 

I spent the morning watching rafter and kayakers come down the river and go through the little rapids here.   Jacob spent his time swimming and chasing rabbits, of which there are many.  He never catches them, but has a wonderful time trying.

The is the Canyonlands Field Institute's Professor Valley Field Camp. In addition to the teepees, each of which has four cots in it, there are two yurts, one for cooking and serving food and the other for meetings. I quite like the way the teepees look in this red rock country, even though the Indians who lived here didn't use teepees.

Me and Jacob at one of the stone picnic tables in the group site at Big Bend campground. As you can see, they're not very comfortable, but they sure are picturesque.

Me wearing the beautiful caftan Laura gave me when I visited with her and Elaine in Berkeley. I'm dressed to go to dinner at the Red Cliffs Lodge, where I at on the porch overlooking a great view of the Colorado River.

Sunset view from Hittle Bottom campground

The incredible shrinking woman!

Wednesday, May 11

I’ve just made a pleasing discovery. When I put my jeans on this morning, I noticed that they felt looser than I remembered them being, so I got out my leather belt, put it on, and found that it fits in the next smaller hole than it did a month ago. I don’t have a scales with me, so how my clothes fit it my only way to keep track of my weight. I’m sure that the difference is due more to exercise than to reduced caloric intake, though I have cut back on my consumption of cashews and peanut butter.

I’ve been on Phase III (the maintenance phase) of the South Beach diet for the last 8 months, and was planning on going back to Phase I in the near future, but now I think I’ll just wait and see for a month or so – see if I shrink any further without any special effort.

I'm posting this from an internet cafe in Moab. When I leave here, I'll go get gas and water and head up the Colorado River to Hittle Bottom campground. Talk to you sometime next week.

The latest news

Monday, May 9, 2005

Jacob and I walked over to Ken’s Lake this morning, something we do about every other day, either on our early walk or near sunset. It’s the best place to look for birds here, both on the lake and in the cottonwoods growing nearby. We’ve seen Great Blue Herons, a small flock of Canada Geese, an Osprey which was perched near the top of a fairly small cottonwood and let me get a really good look at him, the Audubon’s Yellow Rumped Warbler, a Bonaparte’s Gull, a couple of Black-billed Magpies, several Western Kingbirds, and flocks of what I’m pretty sure are the Violet-green Swallow – they’re hard to get a good look at, because their bug-chasing flight is so swift and erratic. We’ve also heard the Western Meadowlark everytime we’ve been to the lake, even though we haven’t seen it. That’s fine, since what I most like about the Meadowlark is its song.

When I say “We’ve seen...” I may be mispeaking; the only ones of this list I can be sure that Jacob has seen are the Canada Geese, since he immediately took off swimming after them. Needless to say, he didn't catch them.

Yesterday was the first time I put the van’s awning out, as it was the first time it’s been warm with little wind. After I put it out, we were visited by an 87 year old woman who is fulltiming in her camper van. She’s staying in the Moab area for a few weeks for a dog obedience class for her miniature fox terrier.

A Dramatic Happening

At about 4:30 in the afternoon I was sitting in the van, about to put the newly-purchased neoprene strap on my camera, when a pickup truck with a very flat front tire came limping up the road, stopped beside the van, and the driver called, “Hello? Hello?” When I stuck my head out the window, he asked if I had a phone and could call 911. I had my cell phone attached to its attenna magnetically mounted on the roof of the van, so he came over and used it by the van, while I listened. He’d just gotten out of jail following a six-month term for assault and driven out to Ken’s Lake with his girl friend, whom he held partly responsible for his having been sent to jail, and her brother. When he told the girl friend that he didn’t want to see her any more, she drove her car into the boulders, got it stuck, and then physically attacked him. He defended himself, her brother attacked him, sliced the tire on his truck and tried to take the truck, at which point he (the man using my cell phone) got away in the truck. He was shaken but otherwise unhurt. After the call he drove away to meet the cops.

Later on, a BLM officer stopped by and said that all parties involved were known to the local police.

How is it that some of us get to lead lives that are so much easier than others?

Tuesday, May 10

Our usual 30-60 minute morning walk turned out to be two hours this morning. We went up Flat Pass Rd., the road that goes up into the red rocks in back of the campground, intending just to walk up to diversion dam that send the water to Faux Falls and Ken’s Lake.

Once we got to the T in the road which is near the dam, however, we saw that Steelbender Trail, the 4WD drive road in the direction opposite to the way to the dam, looked really beautiful, so we walked up it instead of going directly toward the dam. Steelbender Trail follows and eventually crosses Mill Creek, with the La Sal Mountains showing in the distance up the creek valley. There were lots of wildflowers, and the swallows were feeding. I still haven’t decided whether they are Violet-green or Tree Swallows. I also saw two White-throated Swifts, one flying and one dead in the road. It’s sad to find a dead bird, but it’s also nice to be able to look at one so close up. I can certainly understand why early ornithologists shot birds in order to study them. Now, of course, they use mist nets so they can capture, study, possibly band, and release the live birds.

When we came back down Steelbender Trail we went and looked at the diversion dam. My best guess is that right now, during high water flow (the snow is melting in the mountains) somewhat less than half of the water in Mill Creek is being diverted. Then we walked the rest of the way down the short dead-end road to where it crossed Mill Creek directly below a lovely little rapid. This red rock country is so beautiful that at moments I wonder if I haven’t died and gone to heaven – though I suspect that if I were here in July or August I might think if I had gone the other way.

I didn’t take my camera on this walk, so no pictures for now; I hope to return another day and will definitely take the camera if I do.

The sky was completely clear and blue during our walk; now, at 11:00am, it’s almost completely clouded over. According to the public radio station out of Salt Lake City, there’s a high wind warning for the Moab area until 8:00pm tonight.

I’m planning on leaving Ken’s Lake campground Thursday morning and moving to Hittle Bottom campground, on the Colorado River, about 25 miles NE of Moab, for the next few days. I doubt that I will have any internet connection until I return to Moab sometime next week, so don’t expect further blog postings until then.

Editorial Comment

I've change the settings so that anyone can add a comment; just click on Comment at the bottom of the post you want to comment on.  When you get to the Comment page, you can opt to be anonymous or not -- obviously, I'd like to know "who said that," but it's up to you.

Your comments will be available for any blog reader to look at, so if you want to say something to me in private, send me email.  I'm assuming that most if not all current readers of this blog already have my email address.  I will probably create a new email address and add access to it to this blog in the future, when I have time to figure it out.

Ann

Pictures from Arches National Park

This is mostly a test to see if this method of sending multiple pictures works. The pictures were taken on two different days. I don't think the captions will come through with the pictures, so here are the descriptions:

1. Double Arch -- taken late afternoon.

2. Park Avenue -- late afternoon.

3. Balancing Rock at sunset.

4. La Sal Mountains from Arches National Park. Common Globe Mallow in the foreground.

Notice the wonderful skies in the last three pictures.

Double Arches was a short hike from the parking lot; the others were taken from the road. As I've said before, National Parks are not Jacob's favorite places, since he's not allowed on any of the trails -- so if I hike, he has to wait in the camper.

This was the view last night at sunset, after the rains. Are you jealous yet?

This picture was taken near sunset -- one of the few days that the sunset was not obsured by the clouds that often gathered right where the sun goes down. It is looking toward the La Sal mountains, which are obscured by clouds.

Editorial Comment

I still haven't figured out how to send more than one picture at a time. Theoretically, if I send messages to my blog via e-mail, I can attach as many pictures as I want and they will all be published as part of that message. However, in reality, the files turn out to be too large, and I haven't learned how to reduce the the file size of my pictures -- not to mention that about 1/2 the posts I try to send this way seem to get lost in the ether.

The other option is to post the pictures via Picassa, which resizes the files automatically, but apparently only lets me publish one picture at a time. I'll keep working on it, but may not post for the next week or so, as I expect to have little or no access to the internet.

Remember to click on the pictures for an expanded, clearer view.

A Mysterious Visitor

I had a mysterious happening Thursday night – or more acurately Friday morning. I woke up about 2:30am and couldn’t get back to sleep, so I sat up and read for awhile. At about 3:00am, I heard a strange gnawing noise coming from the front of the van. When I went up into the cab, I could hear the sound coming from the defrosting vents. I tried banging on the dashboard, but that only stopped the noise for a minute or two. I tried opening the hood and shining my flashlight around, but couldn’t see anything, so I came back in the van and really banged the dashboard, along with shining my flashlight down the defroster vents. Whatever it was that was making the noise seemed to be discouraged by this – I trust that it has gone away. When I started the van this morning, everything seemed to be in working order, but it sure sounded like some creature was industriously chewing on something in there.

Jacob has been really good so far. Unlike on our earlier camping trips, he seems content to hang around the campsite, rather than wander the campground looking for items of interest – primarily any foodscraps left behind. He only leaves if lured away by another dog, so mostly I’ve been leaving him off-leash. I think he’s maturing, now that he’s turned four. At any rate, I hope that’s the case, rather than that he’s worried or depressed about having left the only home he can remember.

Our daily routine is to get up when it starts getting light, between 6:00 and 6:30am, and go for a walk for 30 to 60 minutes, and then have breakfast. After that I generally do some tidying and organizing. I’ve been pleasantly surprised to find that I’m able to fit everything I’ve brought with me into the various storage spaces, but there sure isn’t a whole lot of room left. If I decide to buy a screen room, I may have to get rid of something, but I’m not sure what – or I may have to accept having the “living area” partly occupied with stuff while we’re on the move.

At least every other day, we spend most or all of the day in and around the campground, reading, looking at birds and wildflowers, walking around the area, writing this blog, paying bills, taking pictures, sorting/titling pictures, etc.

I’ve spent some time in town, both for things like groceries, water (there’s no water here at the campground), post office, visitor center, etc., and at free wifi hotspots where I can do e-mail and this blog. I haven’t yet spent the time to make the internet connection work with my Verizon cell phone, and when I do, I will only use it for downloading e-mail during the week (when I pay for minutes) and do internet with it on during my unlimited time on the weekends.

We’ve been twice to Arches and once to the Island in the Sky section of Canyonlands National Park, and I will post some pictures here soon.

Jacob and I both find National Parks frustrating. With rare exceptions, dogs are not allowed anywhere but in campgrounds and on paved roads and parking lots, so any hiking I do there is limited, and will be even more so when it gets hot. In addition, at both Arches and Canyonlands, the places to pull off the road and stop, even just to look at the view, are quite limited, are usually crowded, and often are not in the places I really want to stop.

The BLM lands, on the other hand, let Jacob run off leash and are just as beautiful, though they don’t have many of the famous landmarks – and they’re a lot less crowded.

Faux Falls is so-named because it was created in 1981 by diverting the water from Mill Creek, sending the water through a tunnel under Flat Pass, down the falls, via a stream about 1 or 2 miles long into Ken's Lake, a reservoir that is used for irrigation in Spanish Valley.

This picture is looking from the back of the campground towards Flat Pass and beyond. You can just barely make out Faux Falls in the center of the picture.

Editorial Comment

Travels with JacobWell, as you can see by the double entry of "Beginnings," I haven't quite figured out how to do these blog entries. Bear with me, I'll get there.

Meanwhile, if you click on the pictures, you will get a larger, clearer version.

This view is toward Moab and Arches

Beginnings -- April 20 to April 27

Travels with JacobJacob and I left our long-time home at noon on Wednesday, April 20th, to start our new lives as wanderers.

Our first stop was Buena Vista campground, an expensive Kern County campground a few miles off I-5 at the CA hwy 43 exit. At this time of the year in the middle of the week it’s a lovely peaceful place, with a view of the Tehachapis across the lake.

Then we spent three healing days in Berkeley with my dear friend Elaine and her sweetie, Laura. After I attended Strawberry Creek Meeting for Worship, we left Berkeley, headed east on I-80. At Reno, I switched to US 50.

We spent that night at Stillwater NWR, near Fallon, NV, where the “campground” consists of a gravel parking lot. Jacob thought it was just fine, however, as he could be off-leash, and there was water to swim in. A much nicer camping spot about 125 miles further would have been Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area (BLM), 24 mi. east of Austin.

The drive on US50 across Nevada and eastern Utah lives up to its name as “the loneliest road,” and to its reputation for spectactular scenery. It crosses high desert between a series of north-south mountain ranges. The weather was overcast most of the way, and we usually ran into rain as we crossed the mountain ranges. The towns of Austin and Eureka are small and most of the buildings there are older.

We spent our second night boondocking on the shores of Sevier Lake in eastern Utah, on BLM land, near an empty corral. This was a very peaceful spot.

Once we got to Delta, UT, the scenery between the mountain ranges became much more agricultural. At Salinas, UT, we took I-70 east. This freeway crosses the San Rafael Swell, and is certainly the most spectacular interstate highway I’ve been on. I recommend stopping at any and all viewpoints, and I’m planning on driving it westbound when I leave Moab.

We took I-70 to UT 128 and headed SW toward Moab. It was after 5:00pm when we left the interstate. I was tired and found the drive along the Colorado River disappointing. My expectations were based on a picture that one of the members of the Sportsmobile Owners Yahoo! Group had posted, which was a more expansive view than any of the campgrounds offered. I settled for a site at Big Bend campground, wondering if Moab had been a good choice for the beginning of my new lifestyle.

Things looked better in the morning. Jacob and I took our habitual dawn walk; I found some lovely flowers and Jacob found many exciting smells and a rabbit to chase. I decided to explore other campgrounds in the area, and by getting lost on the way to the Sand Flats area, stumbled on Ken’s Lake campground, which is where we have stayed for the last six days, and expect to stay eight more, until our 14 day maximum stay.

This campground has many virtues. It’s an easy drive to Moab, where I get mail, Wifi hotspots, water, Meeting for Worship (there’s a Worship Group here), groceries, etc. My cell phone gets good reception – although I haven’t yet gotten it set up for internet, at least I can talk to people on it. There’s NPR reception. It’s a BLM campground, in the middle of BLM land, where Jacob can run off-leash. The sites are fairly well spread out, and I’m surprised at how quiet the campground is, even over the weekend when it was filled. At least 1/3 of the campers were trail bikers or ATVer’s, but they did not fit my (admittedly ignorant) raucous, inconsiderate stereotype. The four that were in the campsite right across from me I could barely hear as they sat around their fire in the evening, and the only interaction we had with them was when they admired Jacob, and wanted to make his acquaintance.

Here are a couple of pictures:

Here we are in our new home. I'm pointing at the camera, trying to get Jacob to look in that direction.

Beginnings -- April 20 to April 27

Travels with JacobJacob and I left our long-time home at noon on Wednesday, April 20th, to start our new lives as wanderers.

Our first stop was Buena Vista campground, an expensive Kern County campground a few miles off I-5 at the CA hwy 43 exit. At this time of the year in the middle of the week it’s a lovely peaceful place, with a view of the Tehachapis across the lake.

Then we spent three healing days in Berkeley with my dear friend Elaine and her sweetie, Laura. After I attended Strawberry Creek Meeting for Worship, we left Berkeley, headed east on I-80. At Reno, I switched to US 50.

We spent that night at Stillwater NWR, near Fallon, NV, where the “campground” consists of a gravel parking lot. Jacob thought it was just fine, however, as he could be off-leash, and there was water to swim in. A much nicer camping spot about 125 miles further would have been Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area (BLM), 24 mi. east of Austin.

The drive on US50 across Nevada and eastern Utah lives up to its name as “the loneliest road,” and to its reputation for spectactular scenery. It crosses high desert between a series of north-south mountain ranges. The weather was overcast most of the way, and we usually ran into rain as we crossed the mountain ranges. The towns of Austin and Eureka are small and most of the buildings there are older.

We spent our second night boondocking on the shores of Sevier Lake in eastern Utah, on BLM land, near an empty corral. This was a very peaceful spot.

Once we got to Delta, UT, the scenery between the mountain ranges became much more agricultural. At Salinas, UT, we took I-70 east. This freeway crosses the San Rafael Swell, and is certainly the most spectacular interstate highway I’ve been on. I recommend stopping at any and all viewpoints, and I’m planning on driving it westbound when I leave Moab.

We took I-70 to UT 128 and headed SW toward Moab. It was after 5:00pm when we left the interstate. I was tired and found the drive along the Colorado River disappointing. My expectations were based on a picture that one of the members of the Sportsmobile Owners Yahoo! Group had posted, which was a more expansive view than any of the campgrounds offered. I settled for a site at Big Bend campground, wondering if Moab had been a good choice for the beginning of my new lifestyle.

Things looked better in the morning. Jacob and I took our habitual dawn walk; I found some lovely flowers and Jacob found many exciting smells and a rabbit to chase. I decided to explore other campgrounds in the area, and by getting lost on the way to the Sand Flats area, stumbled on Ken’s Lake campground, which is where we have stayed for the last six days, and expect to stay eight more, until our 14 day maximum stay.

This campground has many virtues. It’s an easy drive to Moab, where I get mail, Wifi hotspots, water, Meeting for Worship (there’s a Worship Group here), groceries, etc. My cell phone gets good reception – although I haven’t yet gotten it set up for internet, at least I can talk to people on it. There’s NPR reception. It’s a BLM campground, in the middle of BLM land, where Jacob can run off-leash. The sites are fairly well spread out, and I’m surprised at how quiet the campground is, even over the weekend when it was filled. At least 1/3 of the campers were trail bikers or ATVer’s, but they did not fit my (admittedly ignorant) raucous, inconsiderate stereotype. The four that were in the campsite right across from me I could barely hear as they sat around their fire in the evening, and the only interaction we had with them was when they admired Jacob, and wanted to make his acquaintance.

More later.