Catching Up (by Sunshine)

We’ve gone so far and done so much since we last wrote I don’t know where to begin! The time I have to write and upload is equivalent to one wash and dry at Raindance Laundry in Cedar City, UT. We’ve been without Internet for so long it feels like a precious commodity right now.

Our view driving over the mountain in
Dixie National Forest

Today is a “rest” day. We don’t take them often because there is always so much to see and do we have a hard time not filling every moment of every day hiking and exploring a new place. So why are we taking a rest day today? One reason is that we really need it. Our bodies are sore from several days of mountain hiking. Walden is tired from missing several days of naps. The other reason is that we had plans to drive National Geographic’s most scenic byway in the U.S. (second in the world), Utah’s Scenic Byway 12, and do some hiking but woke up to snow and temperatures in the 30s. We know the temperatures are in the 70s-80s only two hours away at Zion, and that is just too tempting right now. However, actually getting to the warmer weather proved to be more challenging than we expected. It required driving through the Dixie National Forest over a mountain. The temperature at the top was 28 degrees and they had gotten nearly 5 inches of snow overnight. As we climbed, rain turned to snow, then ice pellets, and visibility dropped to less than a quarter mile. Even having the confidence of driving in Wisconsin winters, being pushed down the other side of the mountain by the Burro felt a little precarious.

Walden and Daddy catching snowflakes in
Hyde State Park near Santa Fe

More on Weather – Weather does play a role in our journey as much as we’ve tried not to let it. It delayed the start of our trip because the roads were going to be too snowy to be safe. We only spent a day at Mammoth Cave rather than several like we’d hoped due to the huge snow storm they had just gotten. We enjoyed the Smoky Mountains even with the rain; hiking between storms and utilizing our rain gear. Louisiana was very windy at times so we couldn’t linger on the beach without feeling like our skin was being sand blasted. Santa Fe, well that was amazing. We checked the forecast before going and knew it would be chilly. Just how chilly we didn’t expect. We kept telling ourselves we were from Wisconsin and could handle a little cold. We planned to camp in the national forest north of the city but discovered that most of the campgrounds hadn’t opened yet for the season. The ones that were open were at the higher elevations and further from the sites we wanted to explore. We discovered Hyde Memorial State Park in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains was open and even considered getting one of the electric sites so we could use our little heater but they were all full. When we got there and saw that most of the park was still closed for the season we took the first non-electric site we could find. Cooking and burning candles gave us a little warmth until bedtime but when we awoke the windows were frosted and the temperature inside the Burro was 32. Outside it was 22! It was the coldest night we’d spent in the Burro. We were so thankful for our little home on wheels because the campers in tents nearby must have had a long night. It stayed in the 40s that day even down the mountain. The next night was a little warmer but we awoke to three inches of snow! It was so beautiful and fun to see but it was cold and we quickly drove down the mountain hoping it would be a little warmer. They had gotten snow in town too but it melted and got into the low 50s. The desert is beautiful this time of year and there aren’t too many tourists yet but it sure is cold. We aren’t letting it stop us from exploring, we’re just adding extra layers and doing lots of snuggling. The cold weather is such a change from the 80s we experienced in Louisiana. We each travel with two duffle bags; one for the clothes we wear each day and one for our extra clothes. When we got to Florida we packed away our winter gear and pulled out our shorts. At this point, my bags are in a jumble and my winter hat is stuffed on top of my bikini and my shorts are buried under long underwear.

Walden climbing out of a kiva

Santa Fe – We enjoyed our time in the Santa Fe area despite our initial feeling that the dry rocky desert landscape wasn’t our favorite type of habitat. What we did love about the city is the strong sense of place it exemplifies. They have a history and culture that they are proud of and maintain that throughout their landscaping, building design, and attractions. They know who they are and are proud of it and have done well to maintain it despite growth and development. We spent one day at Pecos National Monument exploring the ruins and learning about the way of life Pueblo peoples. Walden loved climbing down the ladders into the kivas. “Kiva” is now part of his language, which he uses for any ruins that we see.

Eating tasty treats at the Santa Fe
farmer's market

The next day we went to a farmer’s market in the Railyards near downtown Santa Fe which included a fun playground and train watching. The market was fun to explore because there were local dry beans and red chili spices that are not found at markets in Wisconsin. Walden and Jim got special treats that they enjoyed immensely, and one of the vendors gave Walden a special little tomato. That afternoon we visited the St. Francis Cathedral and walked the streets around the plaza downtown exploring the amazing “Pueblo revival style” architecture that Santa Fe is famous for. We admired the huge number of native crafts laid out on the sidewalk for sale at the Palace of Governors. We even discovered a street named Burro Alley… of course we were drawn to this one! We also visited the Loretto Chapel with its “Miraculous Stairway,” a spiral staircase to the choir loft with no visible means of support (note from Jim: Sunshine did not approve of the $6 spent to “see a staircase,” but Jim claimed it was a necessary part of his faith to see it). That afternoon, we also visited the Randall Davey Audubon Center in the Santa Fe Canyon Preserve for some much needed birdwatching (Broad-tailed Hummingbirds!) and hiking around a former reservoir now filled with wetlands and streams.

Another friendly Burro!

Exploring a slot canyon at Tent Rocks

We spent another day exploring Tent Rocks National Monument exploring a wonderland of pyramid shaped sculptures and narrow towering canyons. Walden amazed us with his ability to hike through slot canyons, over rocks, and through sand. He is becoming a great hiker on this trip! And always wants to hike… despite (or perhaps because of) the potential danger of the trail. One last hike in the mountains behind our camping area, with snow falling above and incredible views revealed between the snow clouds, concluded our Santa Fe exploration.

Walden and Daddy in front of Tent Rock formations.

Peeking out of a cavete at Bandalier

Heading West - After Santa Fe, we visited Bandelier National Monument and had a full day of hiking through amazing Pueblo ruins built in “Cavetes,” holes in the canyon walls that were enlarged by Ancient Pueblo people. Walden did so well climbing up the ladders into the caves at the start of the trail we said he could visit the final site, the Alcove House. It included climbing four ladders up 140 feet to a rock shelter perched above the canyon floor. He was fearless and made the journey with Mom or Dad right behind him watching his every step with bated breath. At the campground, we made friends with Bill and Suzi and their two labradoodles from Colorado. They were the first people we’ve seen on the trip with a little camper just like ours (a U-Haul instead of a Burro, but the exact same design). It was fun to tour one another’s trailer and discuss the ways we’ve adapted our campers to suit our individual needs.

Mommy and Walden climb a steep
ladder to Alcove House.

Fellow "small trailer" travelers, Bill and Suzi.

Sunset over the canyon at Navajo National Monument

From Bandelier, we drove to Navajo National Monument in northern Arizona as a halfway point to southern Utah. We arrived late but still had time to walk the trail to see the pueblo ruins tucked into a rocky overhang across the canyon. Sunset over the canyon was magical. We loved that the monument provided free camping with water, bathrooms, and picnic areas.

Glen Canyon dam

Mommy and Walden dinosaurs

The next day, we had planned to drive to Bryce Canyon, but came upon the Glen Canyon dam and Lake Powell and had to make a quick stop at the visitor center. Perhaps an ironic choice for Earth Day! Or perhaps it was fitting. The controversial dam built in 1966 flooded the pristine Glen Canyon and created Lake Powell (as described by Edward Abbey in Desert Solitaire). Not much further down the road was a fabulous dinosaur-themed visitor center for Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument so we explored that. They recommended a hike just down the road and it was lunch time so we had a picnic and played around the Toadstools, rock pillars created by hard rock caps. By the time we were done it was too late in the day to reach Bryce so we found a BLM camping area and dropped the Burro. We had time to visit Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park before sunset which was another one of those unplanned but incredible places. Eight miles of massive sand dunes have been created from wind blowing through a mountain pass. The color was a deep orange from the erosion of sandstone. Walden absolutely loved running through the sand, making sand angels, and climbing the biggest dune he could see. From the top, we jumped off and slid down, filling our clothes with the fine orange sand. The BLM campground put us near some of the top destinations on our “must see places to visit” for the trip – Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park. Stay tuned for our adventures in the parks…

A Toadstool!