October 22, 2022
This morning we had to go to Benson Ace Hardware for a Stihl class. We were told how to start and maintain the equipment that we have here at the Lakes. We have a couple different chain saws, a pole saw, and a weed eater. It was a good class. We are off the next few days until Monday, 10/24. Then Michael, one of the managers, will meet with us to go over work schedule and projects and expectations.
October 21, 2022
This morning we had a work campers meeting. It was a great opportunity to meet several of the work campers. We also got an overview of the plans of the campground. We got the timeline on the completion of several projects.
October 20, 2022
Finally it is move in day. It took us about 15 minutes to drive the 10 miles from Benson. We are currently parked in Site 56. Once the Night Hosts sites are completed we will be moving to the front of the park. After we got set up we drove around the park. We also had an opportunity to meet several other work campers. The majority of the campground is workers and work campers.
October 19, 2022
After a little planning and some research, our plan was to ride past The Lakes at St. David to check out the campground, first thing. However, we saw a sign for Benson Donuts. I had read last night that they were rated very high. So that was our first stop. Not as good as Jerry’s Donuts in Rapid City but still very good. We did the drive by the Lakes. It looks like a nice place but still has a lot of work to go. Tombstone is only 15 minutes down the road so off we went.
We had Googled western wear shops and came up with several names and addresses. Historic Tombstone is about 2 blocks wide and only one street, Allen Street. We found The Branding Iron and after a lesson on cowboy hat materials we opted for a palm leaf hat. It’s light weight, can be moistened to keep you cool and can be easily cleaned. After our purchase we walked down one block and crossed the street and checked out the Tombstone Harley Davidson. We walked back up the street and checked out a few shops. We were getting hungry and Nancy Googled for the best restaurant. We actually were right across the street from Big Nose Kates. We could hear the wonderful music coming from inside and just had to check it out. After lunch we headed to Sierra Vista.
During our research last night we found that Fry’s actually carries Boar’s Head meats and cheeses. It turns out they also have a fuel station and a rewards system. It is owned by Kroger. There are many many familiar names on storefronts. It’s only 35 minutes from St. David. It’s nice to see all these.
October 18, 2022
Fortunately we found a site for a couple of days. We traveled all of 1 1/2 hours through Tuscon and pulled into Butterfield RV Park and Observatory in Benson. We are now only 10 miles from our winter home. This evening we rode through Benson and found a couple of stores. For a small town they have a Walmart, large one at that. An Ace Hardware, a Tractor Supply, and a Safeway. One thing I discovered is that I do not have an acceptable hat to wear to work in the Arizona sun. We stopped at Tractor Supply to see if they had an inexpensive straw cowboy hat. They did not but recommended Tombstone and the several western shops there. We Googled Benson and found a small little restaurant called Mi Casa. Dinner was very good. On to home to plan our day.
October 17, 2022
The delay continues so we were able to get an overnight spot at Catalina State Park. Very nice place. We decided that instead of staying put, we would inch our way toward St. David. We got another email, that the paving was delayed still. We are now not expected until Thursday 10/20. But this gave us a great opportunity. Braxton had only seen cacti in cartoons and thought they were funny looking and small. So we took ad vantage of the local flora and took a couple of pictures to send to him.
October 16, 2022
Today is a travel day. It will be our first camping experience in Arizona. The initial plan was to stop here in Camp Verde, AZ and then on the 17th go on down to St. David. We received an email that the entry will be delayed. The park is putting asphalt on the roads but the plant machinery broke down. Thus delaying our entry. We did stay the night at Camp Verde.
October 15, 2022
This was originally a local exploration day. During our driving and our research we discovered not too much to explore. So it was decided that since tomorrow was going to be a travel day, we would just chill and while we had some time, work on the blog. During our travels yesterday, we saw the Thunderbird Diner, home of the Ho Made Pies. Had to check it out for lunch today. Here we are in the middle of nowhere and 2 miles down the road is a resort complete with golf course and a beautiful restaurant. It is still family owned. As a matter of fact all the family works there. After waiting about 20 minute we were seated. The food was great and pie was fabulous. Even got a couple of slices to go!
October 14, 2022
As it turns out, the information Nancy gleaned yesterday was very helpful. I am not a morning person, much less an early morning person. The advice we got was to get to Zion National Park by 7:30AM. That meant we had to leave by 6:45AM. I grumbled but looking back it was the best thing to do. Zion National Park is a very popular park for tourists. I think more for hikers than anything else. Our route to the park was the Mount Carmel Junction - Zion Scenic Byway. It is Utah State Road 9. It runs over and through the mountains. There are a couple of tunnels along the way and several switchbacks. But the coolest thing was a one mile long tunnel carved through the mountain. Very cool. It even has “windows” carved in the side of the tunnel. Unfortunately you can’t stop to admire the view. Large vehicles and semis, must obtain a permit and traffic is stopped so the oversize vehicle can use both lanes to pass through.
Zion during certain months is a shuttle only park. That means you can only ride in the park on their shuttle. You can hike or ride a bicycle. There are shuttles from Springdale that takes you to the park gate and then you walk into the park or you can drive through the gate to the Visitors Center. We came in through the eastern, not the southern gate, so we parked at the Visitors Center. This early in the morning and it was almost full already. We walked to the shuttle boarding area and immediately Nancy and I thought of Disney World with the chained lines.
Once you board the shuttle you may disembark at a few different stops to hike or view the landscape. We rode the shuttle all the way to Stop 9 which is the turn around point. Everyone must get off the shuttle. However, you could walk across the street and get back on the same bus. We got to Stop 9 and there were several deer mulling around. We just crossed the street and got back on the outbound bus. Our first stop was the Temple of Sinawava. After that we stopped at Big Bend. There we had an opportunity of a lifetime. Some national park volunteers were using a high powered scope to view two California Condors. My little 200mm wasn’t going to cut it for an actual photo but we did get to see them. Very cool!! The nice thing is that the shuttles are about 5 minutes behind each other. Our final stop was the Court of the Patriarchs. We probably stayed there longer than any previous stop. We walked a short distance down toward a water pool. There was a dirt path going one way and you could see a couple of deer snacking on the local foliage. Then in the water were several wild turkeys. Also got to see some flora as well. We walked back up to the bus stop and rode the shuttle back to the Visitors Center. On the shuttle we struck up a conversation with a couple and their son. They were on a bus tour. We got off the bus and continued our conversation. They usually RV and during our talk we all enjoy watching Keep Your Daydream. We took a selfie with them and went our separate ways. It is amazing how friendly RVers are and how they help each other out.
We had a couple of postcards to mail out so we left the park through the southern gate. It put us directly into Springdale. The Post Office was just a few blocks down so we headed there. We did have to wait for someone to allow us to both enter and exit the post office parking lot. Traffic to get into Zion was backed up for at least 2 miles. Wow!! I plotted the route back home. What took us a little over 45 minutes this morning was going to be over 2 hours now. So the alternate route was to head south and then east through Arizona and then back north to Utah. That was only about 1 hour and 15 minutes. In the mountains, you have a limited number of route choices. We arrived back home by mid afternoon. Time for a nap.
October 13, 2022
Today is Bryce Canyon day. We started moving a little earlier today. We arrived at Bryce Canyon and took the shuttle. We picked up the shuttle just outside of the park. It was an easy way to see the sights and more enjoyable than driving. We went to Sunset Point, Inspiration Point, and then the Visitors Center. At the center we watched a video. The shuttle only went the first 5 miles into the park. There was still another 13 miles of park road and several lookouts to go.
At the Visitors Center we sat and watched a movie on the park. I really enjoy these movies as it gives a great overview and history of each park. We left the visitor center and found a nice place to dine, Ruby’s Inn. We walked around the General Store and then walked into the restaurant. At 4:00PM they have a buffet. We don’t usually do buffets but this one looked awesome. So we dived in. It had almost everything. It was good for a buffet. Especially if you wash it down with a local brew.
After Ruby’s Inn we decided to drive the remaining part of the park. We saw Natural Bridge and Rainbow Point, elevation 9,114 feet. What amazing views. We were actually there for sunset. While on the shuttle bus, Nancy started talking to a guy who had spent the morning in Zion. As we were going there tomorrow, she picked his brain for information. Also, while on the shuttle, we talked with a couple from Arizona, Scott and Joyce Alder. They are from Pima, AZ. They gave us their contact information and told us to contact them and they would show us around the area. They were actually heading north as we are headed south. Their trip is only a couple of weeks.
October 11, 2022
We started the day with about an hour drive to get to Arches National Park. Once we got there it was closed as it was full. The sign said come back in 3 to 4 hours. So we took the 5 mile drive to Moab. Our first stop was the Moab Information Center. We were given some great information and was able to sit in on a short video about the area. Interesting. After the Info Center we found a highly recommended local eating establishment, Milt’s Stop and Eat. Good ole fashioned cheeseburgers and onion rings and milk shakes. Yum!!
We still had some time until we could get into Arches. We traveled up the road and past Canyonlands and into Dead Horse Pointe State Park. It had some beautiful views. We visited the Visitor Center and then headed to Arches.
DEAD HORSE STATE PARK PICTURES
Our first stop at Arches was the Visitors Center. It was very busy, very warm, and we had Bree with us. I dropped Nancy off and found a parking space. When she was done, she texted me and I picked her up. Then we were on our way to drive through the park. It was very warm and we didn’t really want to walk too much. There were a lot of lookouts that we could get out for a few minutes, take some pictures and then back on our way. There was a lot to see. We focused on Balancing Rock, Sand Dune Arch, Salt Valley, Delicate Arch, Windows, Double Arch, and Turret Arch. Tomorrow is another travel day.
October 10, 2022
I found several Discount Tire stores in the area. I called one and talked to someone who could answer my questions. Having satisfied my questions I made an appointment to replace 4 tires. It was an early afternoon appointment. This was going to delay our travel by about 4 hours. We arrived at a Discount Tire store on the appropriate time. However, it was not the correct store. Who would have known that there was another Discount Tire about 1 1/2 miles down the road, on the same street, in the same city. Anyways, Discount Tire took good care of us and we were back on the road headed to our next destination. Because of the delays, we arrived after dark. I really dislike arriving after dark. That means set up is in the dark. Not a fun job.
October 9, 2022
Travel day. We left our campground in Idaho and headed south toward Utah. We had a reservation for one night at Willard Bay State Park. Along the way on I-15 we had a tire come apart. We checked the tire inflation before we left South Dakota. The tires had about 3,500 miles on them. They are only 2 years old. We use a TPMS (Tire Pressure Monitoring System). And still the tread separated from the belt. As soon as we heard the tire blow, I let off the accelerator and slowly pulled to the side of the road. After a few seconds, the TPMS did go off. Unfortunately, we were right next to a guard rail. I limped along for about 200 yards to find a wider area to change the tire.
We have a spare, an air compressor, an air impact wrench, etc. We set out the emergency triangles. Then I remembered that we have a roadside service contract. I made the call and they called back in about 5 minutes and said they had a local contact that would be at our location within 60 minutes. The young lady on the phone was very polite and courteous and concerned about our safety. The company arrived. It was Solomon’s Service. While we waited, we had to take half the things out of our basement to get to the spare. We did so while waiting. We also removed a small piece of the fender skirt that was damaged. Then we got out our camp chairs and headed about 150 feet from the RV and set up “camp”. We had a beautiful view. The weather was awesome. Even grabbed a drink out of the fridge of the outdoor kitchen.
Solomon’s arrived on time. The gentleman was also very polite. In about 10 minutes he had the tire changed. He even stowed the flat in our kitchen. And helped pick up our triangles. Since this is Sunday we will have to wait until tomorrow to get a replacement. We arrived at our overnight stop. I could then research where we were going to get tires tomorrow.
October 8, 2022
Okay, so today my darling wife wanted to go see the back side of the Grand Teton Mountains. To do this we traveled north through Idaho and then into Alta, Wyoming. We got to the turn and everything was pretty nice for the first 200 feet. It was a paved road. The next 4 or so miles were gravel, dirt, potholes (too numerous to mention) and one of the roughest roads I had ever been on. About 30 minutes later we got to the end of the road and looked at the view. We both agreed, it was not worth the jostling we took. So we turned around and spent the next 40 minutes or so praying the trip to be short. We finally got back onto the main road and proceeded with our day.
There was one place in the Tetons National Park that we did not explore yesterday so we went back today. It was Mentor’s Ferry. It was a short hike to tour several buildings and the ferry itself. Mentor started the ferry to cross the Snake River to Jackson Hole. It was neat to see how the ferry used the river’s current to go across the river.
Once we finished our tour, it was time to grab a bite to eat and check out a local brewery. We went to Jackson, WY to the Snake River Brewing. The food and beer were both good, After a relaxing dinner, we headed home to prepare for traveling the next day.
October 7, 2022
Our first stop of the day is the Craig Thomas Visitor Center. We watched a short video on the Grand Tetons. The visitor center was also constructed with large windows facing the mountains. A really cool feature was on the floor they had metal strips that had the name of the mountain and the elevation engraved on it and the strips pointed to that particular mountain. We scoped out our plan. Today we would travel north and stop at a couple of the exterior sites and then travel up to the north entrance to the park and work our way south.
The first stop is Cunningham Cabin. Most of the stops you take short trails to the site itself. This was about a .3 mile walk Not bad. The next stop is the Chapel of the Sacred Heart. It was closed but we did a drive by to get a couple of pictures. Then we started our south bound journey. First stop on our interior trip is Signal Mountain Lookout. We also packed our lunch so our view from atop Signal Mountain Lookout was spectacular while we ate. From there we traveled to see the Cathedral Group and the Teton Fault. We next visited the scenic Jenny Lake. Very peaceful to sit and look out over the water and see the mountains. The weather was ideal and a slight breeze was blowing. An ideal spot to relax in a hammock for hours. AAHHH!!
We proceeded to check out Mormon Historic Row. We couldn’t stop because it appeared that there was a wedding going on or at least wedding photos. As it was getting close to sunset we headed to Snake River Overlook to get pictures of the sunset. Once the sun set, we headed home. We had checked off most of our items of interest today. Not a whole lot for tomorrow.
October 6, 2022
Today’s agenda is to pack up and head to the Grand Tetons. Looking out the window I saw Ferdinand grazing on the lot across the street. He had moved on by the time we were ready to hitch up. Nancy decided she wanted to drive. She did a fine job. The first few pictures are of Yellowstone Lake as we were leaving. Basically you travel from the east entrance to the south entrance of Yellowstone and once you leave the park you are in the Grand Tetons. Beautiful country. When possible we were able to stop at a couple of turnouts and get some pictures Little did we know that our route was one of the two main roads to see the Tetons. She also got lucky as it was a pull through site and not a back in. Our RV spot for the next couple of days is in Victor, ID. Looking out behind our RV we saw a beautiful sunset. Since we traveled and stopped a lot today we decided to try the Big Shot BBQ in Victor. I had a sampler platter and a local beer. I enjoyed my dinner.
October 5, 2022
This is Day 3 of 3 at Yellowstone. Our plan is to travel from the bottom right of the “8” to traverse the entire upper circle. Again we saw a couple of elk cows dining along the roadside. Our first stop is Roaring Mountain. In May of 1988 a lightning strike started a small forest fire. By the end of the day it was extinguished. This is quite common. However, the summer of 1988 became very dry. This became known as the Summer of Smoke. Between June and September 50 fires had burned the forests of Yellowstone. Drought conditions, dry lightning, high winds all contributed to the destruction of Benson Peak. The fires were smothered on September 11, 1988 with a heavy snowfall and continued to smolder thru the remainder of the year.
We went on to Sheepeater Cliff. We traveled on to the main course of the day, Mammoth Hot Springs. Once we got there we started to walk the maze of boardwalks to the site. We talked to someone on the boardwalk and they recommended that we take the Upper Terrace Drive. That involves less walking and a bird’s eye view. That’s what we did. It was an awesome sight. In addition as we were coming back down the mountain we got to see Orange Spring Mound.
It was time to refuel. Just a few minutes up the road was a fuel station. A whopping $5.79 for a gallon of diesel fuel. WOW!! But it was the only game around and we were leaving in the morning. As we pulled up, there were a few park rangers and yellow banner tape up. It seems that a herd of elk just love this one spot to rest under the shade of a big tree. They cordon off the area to keep people from getting too close to the wild animals. Go figure!! After this excitement we headed toward home. However instead of taking the main road we took another side road, Blacktail Plateau Dr. It was an interesting dirt road with lots of potholes and beautiful views. There were a couple of times Nancy had to lean her head out of the window to let me know where the road was. We finally made it back home.
The plan was to rest for an hour and then go back to Hayden Valley to take a few pictures of the sunset. I went out to start the truck and Nancy was locking up the RV. I wasn’t paying any attention and walked around to the driver’s side and had to suddenly stop. About 8 feet away was a bull bison. Let’s call him Ferdinand. We had seen him the last couple of days at various times at sites not too far from us. But this time he was really close. He paid us no mind and went on eating. We waited a few minutes and Ferdinand strolled through the park to various patches of grass for dinner. Talking with a park ranger Ferdinand is a resident of the campground. So when he moved on, we headed out to Hayden Valley to get our pictures.
October 4, 2022
Day 2 of Yellowstone starts with a trip to the Continental Divide. It was on our way to the crown jewel of Yellowstone, Old Faithful. We had to wait about 30 minutes to see Old Faithful. In the visitor center they post the approximate time of the next eruption. They allow +/- 5 minutes. Our “scheduled” time was 2:19PM. It is pretty cool as there are other geysers around but Old Faithful has a large concrete sidewalk at least 3/4 of the way around. On the sidewalk are numerous metal benches. You find your seat, and wait. The time estimation was right on the money. We only had one more area we wanted to visit and travel on the rest of the figure of eight so we opted to save that for tomorrow. While it was still mid-afternoon, we decided to check out West Yellowstone, MT. West Yellowstone, MT is where we initially had reservations at another campground. It was only a short drive.
We drove through the town. We located a post office to mail out some things for the kids and grandkids. It was a cute little town. We opted to stop at a McDonald’s. We didn’t pack a lunch today. While in McDonald’s we got robbed! Check this out. We each ordered a Quarter Pounder w/cheese and a milkshake. Our total bill was $22! WTF!! I had to take a double take at the receipt. A Quarter Pounder w/cheese was $7.20 for just the burger. No fries. No drink. At home or most other places you get the entire meal for that price. Then the milkshakes were $4 each. Highway robbery. I am so happy we changed our campground. We returned home stunned and poorer.
One bright spot on this evening’s drive home was a chance to see and hear a heard of elk in a field. In addition on the opposite side of the road, up a wooded hill were two more bucks. Lots of folks stopped and took pictures.
October 3, 2022
Today is our first of three days of exploring Yellowstone. The roadway system inside Yellowstone is basically a figure of eight. We planned our trips around certain areas and what we were interested in. Today we did most of the lower portions of the figure. Our first stop was the Mud Volcano. While we had walked out on the boardwalk to see the volcano and the Dragon’s Mouth Spring we met a couple from Germany. We spoke with them for several minutes. They were very friendly. It is quite interesting for me to recognize and realize the international diversity of people visiting our national parks.
The next stop is Sulphur Springs. Definite stench in the air. Then we drove through Hayden Valley on our way to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone - Artist Point. The views were breath taking. When you stop and think how many millions of years this took to create, it is staggering. We left Artist Point and took the North Rim Drive, stopping at Lookout Point and Grand View. We found a quiet place and dined on our brown bag lunch in the truck.
Since we were in the neighborhood, we stopped at Canyon Village. The amazing thing about this place was that once we parked and I got out of the truck, two, not one but two, ravens were perched on my tailgate. They were unfazed by me. They kept sitting there staring at me. I did not want to get too close as they are a rather large bird with sharp talons and beaks. I eventually got them to fly away. We looked around the two gift shops there and came away with our usual haul; a token for my national parks token book, smashed pennies if they have a machine, postcards for the grandkids, a Christmas ornament, and a walking stick medallion.
We traveled across the middle of the figure of eight and on that road we encountered a female elk. Very large animal. She was just standing along the roadside grazing. A little further down the road we had to wait for a bison to cross. After the car in front of us passed him, he decided to lumber toward us. I wasn’t sure if he was going to hit the truck or not. Fortunately he didn’t and just walked right on by us. Shortly after we took a side road that led us to the Virginia Cascade. Really neat.
Our next stop is the Norris Geyser Basin. Then on the way back “home” we stopped at Firehole Falls, and the Grand Prismatic Spring. At Grand Prismatic Spring we saw the Midway Geyser Basin. It was getting late and we were tired. We decided on a game plan for the next two days. We journeyed home. Yellowstone is a very large park. It takes 20 to 30 minutes to get from one place to another. It was amazing.
October 2, 2022
Traveling again today. Enjoying lots of new and awesome sights. Today we even spotted some wildlife. Granted they were aways away but it looked like Pronghorn Antelope. We are actually camping in Yellowstone National Park at the newly renovated and recently opened, Fishing Bridge Campground. Most national parks do not have room for a 42 foot long fifth wheel. This one does. We actually got the last spot. They will be closing the campground on October 9th. We are here until October 6th. Since we are in the park itself, you must be self-sufficient. Things in the park like groceries are very expensive. Few restaurants are open and they are pricey.
With that said, one of our stops on our way was to Albertson’s Groceries in Cody WY. It was truly on our route. We stocked up on the necessities like lunch meat, cheese, etc. They actually carry Boars Head luncheon meats and cheeses. Our favorites. Also, thanks to our friends that were here a couple of weeks ago, they suggested that we pack our lunches as the park is huge and you won’t be able to run “home” for lunch and then back out. What a savings.
On our way we passed through Thermopolis, WY. It is home to the “World’s Largest Mineral Springs”. Was really neat to see it. One of the pictures is of Ashes, our rescue cat. He really doesn’t mind traveling. He is not allowed out of his carrier unless he is in the passenger’s arms. Most of the time he sleeps in his carrier but enjoys peaking out now and again.
Shortly after leaving Cody, WY you drive on mountain roads, go through a tunnel and then you enter into Yellowstone National Park. Once we entered at the East Gate, we still had about a 35 mile drive to the campground, which is next to Yellowstone Lake. We had to go through Sylvan Pass, a couple of switchbacks at an elevation of 8,534 feet.