My first trip this year is going to be a working one. Thanks to my stepson for taking his lovely wife on a trip to Sedona AZ I got the urge to check out if there were any craft shows this spring and hit the jackpot.
So I am going to Sedona for the first time and taking my crochet booth WireandWool.
Above is one of my newest coverups.
Over the years I have done different types of shows and always tried to go where I have never been, sometimes they pay for my trip, and sometimes not but I always get to see new things and meet new people.
So I will be posting on the way to Bell Rock Plaza in the Village of Oak Creek and setting up with Oak Creek Arts and Crafts show on April 15 and 16th.
And today I am making my 70th trip around the sun.
Before we met up in Farmington, NM I spent the night at Angel Peak just south of Bloomfield the campground is free and worth the drive down the gravel road.
Angel Peak
Once we met up we headed for Canyon de Chelly, what an amazing landscape.
Spider Rock
Then on to Navaho National Monument Canyon View campground which will be our home for the next few days. This is a great central location to see all the wonders of the area.
On the trailhead to view the canyon.
Next day onto Oljato-Monument Valley.
Right out of a John Ford movie.
After lunch in Mexican Hat, another drive through Valley of the Gods.
Lady in a Bath.
Grand Canyon the next day. Twenty-three years between visits.
Fires in Flagstaff made a hazy sky, but still magnificent.Laura and Andy, sis and I are not much for having our picture taken.
I love spending time with my sister we don’t get the chance more than once or twice a year but when we do we explore.
The next day they head back to Denver and I make the trip back to Las Cruces and along the way-
Four Corners National Monument.Shiprock.
I spent the night in Farmington so I could check out the Salmon Ruins this is another must-see especially the guide cat and peacock greeter. This cat stayed with me through my walk around and at the end turned around looked at me as if to say that’s it and went in the bushes.
I really enjoyed my time at High Jolly but only stayed a few days.
I didn’t any more than pull in and some guy decided he would try to bully me because I was wearing a mask. Those of you that know me personally know how that went.
As much as I adore Bob Wells and what he is doing with HOWA my ride through the RTR WRTR venue was all I did, ride through and drop off my donation, maybe next time.
Now I am hoping to meet up with sister Laura for another spring adventure.
Since the last post, I made one trip to be with my sister and go to Ghost Ranch. I enjoyed it but did not take pictures or make posts, it felt surreal in this time of covid. However, I am not getting any younger and if I am to do Quartzite and the RTR and WRTR this is going to be the year. Heading out after the holidays and I am determined not to be intimidated by crowds. I am going to enjoy Quartzite and AZ and record it all here.
I recently found information that my birth father Charles F Bruce was buried in Biloxi National Cemetary in Biloxi MS.
So off I went back to the land of humidity.
I found a death notice and where he lived and what I thought was his grave but, someone else was buried there. He had been moved six years after he was buried, as of now I still haven’t found out who moved him or where he is buried.
What makes this strange is my adopted Dad was also moved. A psychiatrist would probably tell me that I married 5 times looking for my daddy, I don’t plan to marry again but I am still looking for my daddy.
So I headed home with a freezer full of Cajun seafood.
Most of the rest of my trip was uneventful till I hit Junction TX and the Junction City Park. I planned on a nap and wound up spending the night.
Llano River
If you can get a spot near this dam sleep is easy.
And it’s free, no hook ups.
To get off I-10 I took the Sheffield Loop exit to Hwy 90 which took me through Marathon, Alpine and Marfa to Van Horn. It is a good highway and very scenic.
Sheffield Loop picnic areaValentine Texas
From Van Horn to home
Gualdalupe Peak
And more heritage. My grandmother taught school in the late 1920’s on a ranch in Orange NM and would often go down to Salt Flat Cafe and motel for entertainment. My mother had some neat pics of her in front of the motel in her flapper dress, most of the motel part is gone and the cafe is now closed.
Salt Flat Cafe and motel.
One more side trip. Hueco Tanks is a must see archological site. These pics are just a tease till I go back.
There was so much destructive graffiti that they now limit the amount of people in the park. You can make reservations at the Texas State Parks website.
Just a short trip to test out my new Jackery 500 power station and Alpicool fridge. Which I recommend highly. I kept the jackery plugged into a 12v plug that is only powered when the engine is running and then the fridge (which I set to eco/save) to the jackery. Running overnight the Jackery never went below 85%, the night was cool, so the next trip will tell if it works harder.
Night one free at Whitewater Draw in McNeal AZ. I have lived in places with a lot of birds my whole life but this blew me away and most of them had already left.
Sand Hill CranesIt’s a party.
No need for an alarm, the noise builds as the sun comes up and then they are off for breakfast.
Day and Night 2.
In 1999 I had a cerebral aneurysm while doing a show in Phoenix AZ and upon waking up my late husband Ron and I made a pledge that we would never put off seeing something along the way again. So we went to Tombstone on the way to our next show, I was kind of out of it on medication so it went on a bucket list to do again. Before he passed away he told me to finish the bucket list. I already ticked off Quartzite so Tombstone was next.
There are two lots for overnight parking behind the courthouse, cars, and vans in the second lot for $5 the first lot is car day use and RVs in the lot at the bottom of the street for $10.
Fremont Street
This shot was taken early in the morning before the crowds.
Day 3 Bisbee and Cochise Stronghold.
What a neat town and I can’t wait to return. The museum and other venues I wanted to see were not open till the weekend so I have to go back.
This is what greeted me outside the museum.
Malachite/AzuriteDowntown
The sign along I-10 for the Cochise Stronghold has always stirred the imagination.
First and foremost do not follow Google maps follow the road sign.
I had intended to stay the night at the stronghold, but a recent fire due to camper negligence reduced the camping area and I got there late so it goes back on the list and I get back on the Interstate heading home to get my jab..
Next trip next month to find my fathers grave in Mississippi.
When I quit smoking a few years ago I really had a hard time while I was driving so I started thinking about spending the lottery I would win someday. It really helped melt away the miles without a ciggy.
So now I am planning the road trip I will take when this shut down is over. And it will be over. We might have a new normal, but this will end.
However, I would love to find that van to do it in.
Does anybody have a trade? Fully functional older class A can spend time off-grid with no problems.
