2023: Solace in the Desert

It’s been a minute since I’ve written in this journal.  We’ve been on plenty of adventures and trips.  But the spark wasn’t there to write.  Life.  Life is complicated. It has been full of the highest of highs and the lowest of lows.  I don’t know what changed in the last few years but the lows have been dominating.  I hate losing to my demons, but they’ve been dominating my time and it is getting old.  I’ve refocused on myself recently.  Started a workout regime.  Incorporated meditation before bed.  Boy do I suck at mediation.  But falling isn’t an option.  There is too much to be grateful for.  Too much to look forward to.  

In the midst of a spiral, we went away.  It was the best medicine.  We’ve been building vehicles non-stop since 2016.  Racing.  Vacationing.  In 2018 we bought a RV project.  In 2020, we sold the teardrop. In 2021, we sold the RV project.  In 2022, we decided to build out our Scout for a camping rig.  2023 has been consumed with that project.  But its not done.  So FB marketplace to the rescue, and we put the RTT for the Scout onto the Powerwagon and left.  

Mike planned the trip.  We started in Petrified National Forest.  Neither of us had high expectations of the place.  Those expectations were shattered.  I’m a rock nerd.  Love them.  Collect them.  Obsess over colors and patterns.  Mike was a geology major.  This place was incredible.  We spent far more time there than we expected.  The weather was just cool enough to walk the dogs on a few trails. 

After the park, we motored north to Valley of the Gods.  This place owns my soul.  We go almost every year.  We ate burgers at sunset, watched the stars at moonrise and slept until dawn.  

Up before the sun, we packed up, ate breakfast and headed north.  

We stopped to survey the San Juan river in Mexican Hat before leaving to see if that would be a viable camping spot but the river was full of sediment from the hurricane that soaked the desert just prior.  Yes a hurricane.  We might not have shorelines, but hurricane remnants routinely traverse north through the desert, providing much needed water.

This Isn't Iceland: Why Go Home?

Today marked the last day of our vacation.  We woke to heavy frost, zoomed into town for chai and breakfast and hoped the rising sun would dry off our awning.  Thankfully it did.  But sadly, that meant we were starting our journey back south.  

It's always bittersweet to end a vacation.  We desperately needed this vacation.  Not only were our bucket list international plans dashed, but we worked our tails off to finish two Ford F100 projects this year, on top of our day jobs.  

Not wanting it to end, we stopped for the night back along the river in Mexican Hat.  This time we were early enough to enjoy a soak in the river in the full sun.  And were greeted by a mountain goat dining along the shore.  

We stayed up late into the evening, enjoying the solitude and watching the moon set and stars rise.  

One last sunrise along the river - then home.

Obligatory Monument Valley shot:

This Isn't Iceland: Utah

 Just like everyone else, 2020 royally ruined loads of plans for us.  One of those was to spend our 10 year anniversary in Iceland.  We had tickets purchased, a 4x4 camper truck rented and were ready to go when the pandemic hit hardest in early May.  With everything refunded, we held out hope that maybe the world would "normalize" later in the year.  With that not happening, and in desperate need of a vacation, we opted to go camping.

We left mid-morning on a Friday to miss the weekend-escape-the-heat traffic and landed in Mexican Hat, Utah just before dinner.  We scored a sweet camp spot along the banks of the San Juan River, just behind the famous Hat.  With rafting campers flanking us, we all settled in to listen to the river and watch the bats hunt after the sun set.  

The next morning, we sipped coffee while the sun crept into the gorge.  Packed up, waved at the rafters on the opposite bank and slogged our way towards Valley of the Gods.  We do not miss an opportunity to drive through the Valley if we're up here.  It is my favorite place on the planet.  Since we purchased a DJI Mavic drone specifically for Iceland, we got it up and going to hone our piloting and post-editing skills.  

After a leisurely drive through the Valley, we hit slab and pushed north.  While the desert temperatures are icy compared to southern Arizona this time of year, we had better plans: cool fall temps of Colorado.  

Revcon Trailblazer Roadtrip

Day 3 continued: Bryce Canyon

Realizing that we were passing by Bryce Canyon prior to the snow melt, we knew we wanted to see the red towers covered in snow.  We made it into the park as the sun was setting and were delighted to see how beautiful it was.

We closed yet another  restaurant, The Pines,  and somehow made it all the way to Page, AZ in the dark with only one headlight. 

Day 4: Page, AZ to home

Thankfully our last day home was fairly uneventful.  We had to make a small airbag repair in Page but were able to motor the remaining miles without incident.

Now the real journey is ahead.  It'll be a very long and slow journey but we're determined to get this old beast restored and ready for many adventures to come.

See below for a video walk-through of the mess we bought:

Revcon Trailblazer Roadtrip

Day 2: Oregon to Idaho

On our way back to Discount Tire, we stopped by 4 Wheel Parts to get air fittings to resurrect our airbag system.  Riding around without them was.....uncomfortable.  They didn't have parts to sell, but graciously offered us a piece from a display for free.  They saved the day.  Big time. 

Discount Tire had our wheels installed as soon as well arrived, and after a bit more tweaking on the airbags, we grabbed lunch and finally got on the road.

Oregon is beautiful.  It was our first time there and sadly, we just didn't have the time or confidence in the Revcon to adventure off the highway.

Which was a good call because about 250 miles from Portland, we realized the fuel lines on the rear tank gave up the ghost.  At Deadman's Pass, of all places.

Thankfully, the Revcon has two fuel tanks.  Sadly, the larger tank was now unusable.  Which meant stopping for fuel every 100 miles.....on a 1500 mile trip.  Ugh.

We pushed long into the night.  Almost ran out of gas in Idaho and finally called it in Yampa, ID. 

Day 3:  Idaho to Arizona

We woke early, thanks to the freight trains.  Got on the road and were impressed with the snow covered mountains clear into Arizona.

Idaho

Utah

Dinosaur with a dinosaur

Utah brought us into a snow storm.  Nothing terrible, but we were glad to have the new Cooper's under it.