McGaffs On The Fly

Garner State Park was exactly what we expected it to be, another perfect location for Little Al and a hikers paradise. Just like a lot of the parks we have visited, the CCC developed this park and made it the perfect place that it is. It is actually split into two parts, the old section developed by the CCC and the new area developed by the new kids on the block. Old Marco and Joanie prefer the older version, no surprise here.

On our second night there, Wednesday night, there was a knock on the door and Ranger Jose let us know “there is a bad storm a brewing, feel free to get in the bathroom showers if you see any funnel clouds”.

Joanie, “Did he say funnel cloud?”

Marc, “Yes he did, but are we gonna be tough campers or are we gonna run at the first sign of a little rain?”

Long story short, we hooked up Little Al in record time and headed west to “the land of the mall” running full speed ahead of the bad weather. Just an hour behind us the storm tore up the park and every city along Highway 90 with high winds and hail…I am so glad I had the intuition to leave.

We spent the last day at Big Bend enjoying our best hike yet, while here, clambering around Chisos Mountain. While keeping one eye trained on the close ledge, one eye on the path avoiding snakes, and the other two eyes scanning for bears or mountain lions we were able to get to the top in record time. Take away the constant stops for asthma breaks and low blood sugar readings I’m sure it had to be some sort of McGaff record!

Left today for quick stop in Del Rio then on to Gardner State Park to close out this adventure. What can go wrong in our remaining three nights…hang on for details?!

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When I was reading up on road trips after retirement I happened upon an article that showed a road trip over 12 months that kept you at under 65 degrees all year. That seemed like a great plan, I would never be in temperature above 80 again!

Au Contraire.

Since we arrived late in the afternoon we didn’t get the memo from Mother Nature about the heat wave in Big Bend. She reminded us about it when we were half way through our hike with a smothering 96 degree slap in the face. It…is…hot…and…dusty.

We have been in Big Bend for two days with hikes along the Rio Grande River and into the beautiful, but hot and dusty, mountains. The Park is massive in size and takes hours to get from one location to the next. Did I mention that it was hot?

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We spent all day yesterday in Marfa, more than enough time to take in and enjoy the whole city. What we thought Truth or Consequences was…Marfa is…an artsy fartsy town with plenty to enjoy. If you plan to buy anything you may want to bring your checkbook, and credit card, and cash, and a second mortgage…mucho dinero.

To cap off our city view, last night we ventured east of town to the observation site for the “Marfa Lights”. When we arrived around 8:30pm, the place was full of RVs, cars, and people all facing south to see if they could be the first to see the lights. When we left around 9:15 neither one of us, nor the older gentlemen bedside us who mentioned “that was a f*#@ing waste of time”, felt like we had seen them. Another older couple beside us, from Louisiana, was beyond thrilled they had seen them. I’m convinced they saw several trucks with headlights coming over the hill, but I wasn’t going to be the one to ruin their thrill.

On to Big Bend today but first stop in Alpine to buy a new water hose…it’s always the small things.

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After another long drive we ended up at Davis Mountains State Park, we were able to get the last spot available. Without a doubt we both agree that the best spots and pricing are state and national parks. The views and space that they provide cannot be matched by the KOA or Good Sam Boys, we just have to plan accordingly to guarantee our spots. Therefore and henceforth looks like more KOA’s in our future…blah, blah, blah.

Since we have arrived in the area, the winds have greeted us with a standing ovation of a cyclone speed breeze. It really seems to mess with Joanie’s do but it doesn’t bother mine at all, go figure. We just came from an hour long session with the sweet lady at the Visitor Center, we had a hard time getting her to open up, she guarantees that the wind will settle down tonight…we’ll see. Two nights in Marfa, hope to have a “Giant” of a time.

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We left our gracious hosts and are starting our trip back to Texas with many stops along the way, we will be back in Spring Branch on the 29th. Just as we knew it would be, making last minute reservations for RV parking on weekends creates an “opportunity” to stay at places we may have never considered…so far so good though.

We stopped south of Sedona for a couple of nights to view the sights there, beautiful area apparently but not a hidden gem, seems everyone in Arizona was there. We are now just southeast of Tucson at one of those RV stops we may have passed by…it’s, uh, ok.

Spectacular is the only way to describe the views at Zion. Since we were unable to actually go into the Canyon, the first tram tickets available were August, we took a nice hike to the overlook. Although a short mile plus hike, we were still able to see the beautiful cliffs and enjoy the near death experience of falling off one.

Since that was not enough of a hike for our guest hosts, we drove the short distance from their home to Snow Canyon State Park and took another short hike around the lava covered land. That short hike turned into a 4+ mike hike when yours truly complained about trudging through the soft sand and the detour added the extra miles. Think that will keep me from complaining…think again.

Heading back south, 5+ hour trip to Sedona before deciding on next stop before Marfa on the 20th.

We have spent the last two days in St George hanging with the Rays, they are the best tour guides to the vicinity and as an added bonus know the best local hikes. We’ve had to delay pickle ball because of high winds, Dick didn’t seem at all disappointed.

Yesterday we hiked The Lower Sand Cove Trail to the peak. The trail was a short 2 mile to the peak, although uphill, and was highlighted by a vortex at the rim. We ate lunch with the cairns and hiked back down and after picking up groceries for dinner enjoyed the best naps of our lives. Altitude = nice naps.

After we made our way into Utah we were able to find a KOA just north of Bryce Canyon National Park, it was a great location to explore the Park and wind down for a couple of days. The scenery was without a doubt the best we’ve seen so far, weather was anywhere from 35 degrees to 60 depending where you were in the park.

Our two best hikes were the Queens Garden Trail with the Navajo Loop inside the Park and the Moss Cave hike just outside the Park.

The Queens Garden Trail was an easy 3.5+ trail through the hoodoos down into a beautiful valley of trees. When I say easy, that was the down part. The climb back up along Wall Street was challenging and strenuous to my little heart and lungs, I’m thinking those around me were wondering if I was an asthmatic or a full out COVID kid.

The Moss Cave hike was a very short half mile to see a cave that, well…it has moss in it. I’m sure most speleologist would jump up and down to explain the science behind why there are icicles in the winter and moss in the summer…no need, seems pretty logical to me.

Heading to Ivins, UT to stay at our friends house, the Ray’s Spa and Retreat, the plan is to visit for 3 nights but that was the plan last time when we stayed 10 nights…we’ll see.

Our last two adventures before entering Utah was the Walnut Canyon National Monument near Flagstaff and the Horseshoe Bend on the Colorado River very close to Lake Powell. Those were Joan’s anyway, I thought the fried chicken stood out at the Bird House in Page…but eating is my hobby and good fried chicken has a place in my heart.

Walnut Canyon was an easy 1 mile hike to see the cliff dwellings of the old Sinagua tribe that lived in the mountains in the 1200’s. It was unbelievable to see how they carved into the mountains to create their homes. They even took the time to create switchbacks so they could visit their neighbors. If I was around back then I guarantee you would have to come to my house to see me, my history of missteps would not be convenient here.

Just as interesting was the Horseshoe Bend, as the sign says a superb example of entrenched meander. When I looked that up I found that it was Geology speak for “bend in the River that looks like a horseshoe”…who knew?!

Another small, but aren’t they all small, issue with the trailer. Seems the outlets won’t work so we are having to charge our devises at the RV Offices. It appears the breaker is bad because I can’t get it to reset, guess I’ll find out in St George…Little Al has an appointment with Dr. Marcus Lemonis.