Hans Returns

We were happy to see our German friends return to the States. We first met Hans last year while we were on our fall motorhome trip with Dana and Cathie. We stored their motorhome for a few months anticipating his return in March.

Hans arrived with his girlfriend Silke. They stayed with us for a few days as we all got ready for a camping trip in the desert. On our way to the Gassaway's for dinner, we stopped at the Carlsbad outlets for some shopping. Along the way we had to let Hans get his feet wet in the cold Pacific Ocean. You can't keep him out of the water!

Yes, it's very cold in February!

What a nice looking couple!





Cathie, Dana, Hans, and Silke after dinner.
We will soon be off to Arroyo Salado to relax and have some fun together in the desert.

Arroyo Salado, March 2010

After our fall trip last year together, we reunited with our German friends with a camping trip to Arroyo Salado
on March 2nd, 2010. Dana, Cathie, Hans, Silke, Gary and I enjoyed some jeeping, hiking, sharing stories, and eating. We went into Borrego one day, so our German friends could experience dining in a Mexican restaurant with margaritas.
Dana led us on some of the desert trails in the area.






















Our first drive was to 17 Palms. Dana and Silke
checking the tree mail.

Silke writing a German note for the tree mail.
On our way back to the jeep, I decided to take a fall
and twist my ankle--ouch. Yes, it was swollen and
all black and blue. Gary is still trying to talk me into
wearing hiking boats!

Silke, Hans, and Gary in the "Pumpkin Patch".

Dana led us on a short walk to see the petrified wood.

Everyone checking out the "drop off".

We have to say goodbye to our friends, Hans and Silke. They are continuing their trip across the states the next several weeks and will be shipping their motorhome back to Germany. Gary and I hope to see them again when we go visit them in Germany! We had lots of fun telling our stories around the campfire.

Six Weeks........

Gary and I have been on our RV trip for 6 weeks and now are returning home. We're not sure why, but felt the need to go home. We have thoroughly enjoyed our time on the road with our friends Dana and Cathie leading the way. We enjoyed seeing all the state and national parks along the way and actually doing some hiking. We never missed a happy hour together and celebrated my 60th birthday and Dana's 61st while at our first stop in Twin Lakes. We look forward to many more long and adventurous trips in the future.

Canyonlands in Moab, Utah

We arrived in Moab, Utah on October 1 and plan to stay here a week. There are so many things to see and do here especially hiking and jeeeping. In Moab, there are two National Parks: Canyonlands and Arches. One day we drove through the section of Canyonlands called Island in the Sky. The park sits atop a massive 1500 foot mesa with the most spectacular views in southeastern Utah.

Cortez, Colorado

Silverton Train

We just returned from a day long drive that took us from Cortez, CO over to Dolores, up through the mountains near Telluride with stops at Ouray and Silverton. We weren't able to get reservations on the Silverton Train, but did get some pictures when it came to town. We had lunch in town, did a little shopping, and then continued our drive through Durango and back to the RV park in Cortez. Maggie was quite happy to see us. We part company tomorrow, as we begin our trek toward home, and Dana and Cathy head on into New Mexico, which is currently undergoing severe weather.

San Juan River

The last four days we camped right on the San Juan River near Bluff, Utah at Sand Island B.L.M. campground. It was a nice place, but without utilities. There was a launch ramp in the campground, and we saw several rafters floating down the river. The weather was great--a little chilly at night, and we had some nice campfires. The campers next to us were from the Black Forest area of Germany, and had a German-made Mercedes R.V. that was very impressive!
I'm not sure what Dana and Gary are doing, but it looks as if they are carrying away a big red rock. This is on a drive through the Valley of the Gods. There were many rock formations.

We hiked one day to this Indian ruin called House of Fire. In real life, you really couldn't see the "flames" that appear to be coming from the top in the photo. We continued our hike to see other ruins but many were hidden and we were unable to get up close and personal. Gary and Dana continued on to seek out more ruins. Cathie and I returned to the truck to take a break.

The next day, Dana and Gary went on a strenuous, frightening hike to a 32 room Indian ruin said to be the best in the area, called The Moon House. Dana's fear of heights slowed him down a little, but Gary was fearless (or so he said). See Dana's blog (www.gassawaysadventures.blogspot.com) for a detailed, and humorous, coverage of this ruin. I think at this point of our trip, Gary and I have hiked enough. Our boots are now under the bed. I'm sure Dana and Cathie will continue on!

Delicate Arch

We are now ending our visit to the Canyon Lands and Arches National Parks in the Moab, Utah area. We made our last hike yesterday, this time to the Delicate Arch in hopes of seeing the arch at sunset. We left late afternoon and hiked the 3 mile, open, slick-rock trail with some exposure all the way to the arch. We made it to the top, but clouds covered the sunset. There was some steep climbing and awesome sights were the reward. We returned to a brief "happy hour" and a delicious crock pot of beef stew. Tired, full, and happy, everyone slept well. We depart for Bluff, Utah Wednesday morning, where we hope to find two open campsites adjacent to the river at the Sand Island B.L.M. campground.

Capitol Reef and Bryce Canyon, Utah

We are now spending some time just outside Capitol Reef National Park in Utah. The weather has turned much cooler at night so we now have the heat on in the motorhome! Gary and I spent our first day driving around the area seeing more magnificent mountain formations and doing a little hiking on our own. The next day, Dana took us on an all day scenic drive of the area which included hiking into two "slots"--these are deep canyons. Our feet are a little sore, but trying to build up our stamina to keep up with Dana and Cathie. The aspens are beginning to show their fall colors.

That's Diane standing inside one of the slots we hiked too. It's huge!

We are almost in our 4th week of travels, and spent five days camping in the Kodachrome

State campground just outside of Bryce Canyon. We hiked along the edge of the canyon, while Dana and Cathie hiked down inside the canyon--a little too strenuous for us! We also jeeped around the area taking in a few hikes and enjoying the beautiful scenery. The pictures just don't do justice to the area.
Bryce Canyon behind us.

Fall, 2009--Eastern Sierras

We have begun an extended motorhome trip beginning in the Eastern Sierras with our friends, Dana and Cathie. We left September 8th and began the first part of our trip in Bridgeport. We camped at Robinson Creek for almost two weeks. The river ran through the campground and we had many roaming deer. Gary and Dana fished in the stream and we also rented a boat for one day on the lower Twin Lake. These deer came up to our door and begged for a dog biscuit! They loved the biscuits but Maggie didn't like the idea of sharing. Now we can't get rid of them.

We have now moved on to Carson City, NV for a couple of days of recharging, laundry, and grocery shopping. Thank goodness for Walmart and Costco--just like home. We are now heading to Elko, NV. We each have some relatives to visit nearby. Cathie has her cousins here and we will travel on to Sandy, Utah to see Gary's cousin for a couple of days. We will meet back up with Dana and Cathie at the end of the week in Bryce Canyon.