Our Beautiful Border (4/9/13-4/11/13)

Big Bend national park is on the southwest corner of Texas and named from the big bend in the Rio Grande that marks our national border.  I was shocked by the beauty of the desert in that area as we drove closer and closer to the park.  There were mountains on the horizon!  Woo Hoo! 

We spotted a road runner that crossed in front of our car...and just like the cartoon, hopped and ran, hopped and ran again.  Too cool! 

At 801,163 acres, Big Bend is the 8^th largest national park in the lower 48 states, and the 15^th largest in the U.S.  It wasn't even on our original list of parks to visit...but since we were so close, why not?  It was better than any surprise we could imagine.  The towering peaks of limestone were the backdrop of some fabulous photos and trails.  There were rolling hills filled with pretties beyond our imagination for this desolate area. 

We camped out for two nights.  The first night, we arrived at the park late and thought we could find camping close to the entrance.  We ended up miles into the park at the Rio Grande Village, right next to the river.  After waking up early to try to catch the sunrise on the river, we found a trail that walked us right along the river.  There's a town that you can throw a rock and it over the river.  And on the base of the US side, the people leave their crafts on rocks with empty jars to leave money in.  An interesting, and most likely illegal, form of international commerce.  We didn't partake in the buying and selling of goods, but took some photos.  Even along the trail, there were hand painted walking sticks for sale.  Quite enterprising, and I can't blame them for trying to capitalize on tourism too.  :)

One of the trails led to a fabulous hot spring right on the Rio Grande.  There was a tent set up on the Mexican side, and I bet they took advantage of the warm bath too.  It was a glorious soak, and much needed as there weren't shower facilities where we camped.  

We visited the Chisos Basin for lunch in a fancy restaurant located near the resort in the park.  After our burger fix, we explored more of the park.  When we set up camp for the second night, there wasn't a soul in sight, fabulous!  So, a nap was in order after setting up the tent.  Unfortunately we woke up to cars and voices...the cottonwood campground was filling up, booooo!  ;-)  That's ok, we had more to see and were only there to sleep. 

Ken found his spots to recreate some Ansel Adams shots.  We hiked, photographed and took in as much of this park as we could.  The owls serenaded us to sleep, and the little wild pigs woke us in the morning.  Rested up, in the morning we headed out towards the Guadalupe Mountains.

San Antonio

We skipped New Orleans as planned, due to the women's basketball final four championship being played there the exact day we were intending to stop.  Ken was a champ driving all the way from Panama City Beach to San Antonio, with a quick little nap along the way.  

Neither of us had visited San Antonio before, so we decided it would be a good place to "set up camp" for the night. By the advice of a good friend, and handy little app, we got a sweet deal on a fancy hotel room...right on the river!  Score!

Hotel Havana.  A quaint, inviting place.  It had a bit of New Orleans charm, yet its own uniqueness.  As I mentioned, it was located on the river, but not in the heart of the Riverwalk.  We were able to wander around and explore, and still be on the outskirts of the chaos of the city.

Before checking in, we visited several Missions on the trail, that lead us to the Alamo.  They were all beautiful and unique, yet similar.   San Antonio is a fun city that embraces both its past and present.

We got to our hotel early, took advantage of the hot shower and explored a little more...after a nap of course.  The restaurant downstairs fed us well, and even had my favorite...tostones! :)

It was a fabulous place to rest up before hitting the National Parks.

Next stop: Big Bend!

Chinle's amazing blowing dust

I'm sitting in the gas station / laundromat in the town of Chinle, AZ...just outside of Canyon de Chelly. It's 4/16/13, and blowing dirt like I've never seen. We knew the weather forecast was going to be windy, & we've had a few windy days to deal with so far. But a cold front is moving in creating a stream of tornadoes in our path to the north. So, we decided to wait out the storm a little south, where it's not snowing. ;-)

We hadn't showered since Carlsbad's fancy Roadway inn on the morning of 4/13, and we were both feeling ready for a good rinse. The campgrounds in de Chelly have no showers, so we asked the kid in the visitors where to find one. He suggested the aquatic center in town. We sought it out, and it looked to be in the high school complex. Ken checked out the inside, as i was convinced it was just the school's pool, and, turned out, it was also the community pool. Score! $1 showers! Of course this primitive campsite is $10/night, the most we've paid yet to camp. Kinda bummed there's no showers there for that kind of money! :-) we've been spoiled with the most beautiful campsites for free or at least under $5.

We got in just after sunset last night, but not after checking out the most northern overlook of the canyon. Man, it's impressive! Anyhow, we set up camp...by that, I mean Ken set up the tent and we loaded our stuff in it and set up our beds in the car. ;-) its quite comfy that way.

We woke up to some gusts this morning. The weather forecast called for 35mph sustained with gusts on top of that. Right now, with the lack of visibility due to the strong winds, I think they're wrong. It feels stronger than 40 sustained, & it's quite uncomfortable to breathe, see, or anything really. Needless to say, we're gonna miss out on hiking today, and Ken's missing some photo opportunities.

So, we took this opportunity to drive to some overlooks, take showers, and do laundry for the first time on our trip.

Really, I'm feeling like the only way to be comfortable is to wear a burqa, full facial cover.

Panama City Beach Stop

We started out in south Florida, and then headed north. We made our pit stop to unload and reload the car in St Pete and say our goodbyes over Easter dinners...& we can't forget Ken's awesome night of baseball at the Rays game with Uncle Pete, while I spend a super fun day with my mom exploring central Florida. And the day after, we hit the road for real.

Spending 4 years in the Panama City Beach area, I acquired friends that became as close as family. I was thrilled to introduce Ken to everyone at a party at Amvets that turned out just as planned. That same morning, we were able to borrow my fabulously generous friend's canoe to spread some of Rascal's ashes at his favorite spots on Econfina creek. We had a paddle down Holmes creek filled with frolicking of fabulous friends. I'm happy to share the part of Florida that made me fall in love with Florida, even if it is in the "redneck riveria"...can't beat fantastic friends and spring fed creeks. :-)

After spending some quick, yet quality time with friends, we rode off...heading west.

On the road again... :-D

Well, I'm behind on my posts already, oops! But we're on the road!

We decided that since we were already in Florida, why not travel from mile 0 in Key West to mile 0 in Homer?? So we headed south the last week in March. We found a free place to camp in the Keys...crazy, right? ;) we toured Key West and got our fill in 1 day.

Off to the Everglades and away from the people! We rented a canoe, paddled through the mangroves and camped backcountry, Everglades style. It was glorious! We woke up to baby dolphins playing with their breakfast. We saw giant pink birds flying overhead. We saw alligators AND crocodiles! & it was cool and windy enough to keep the bugs at bay.

What a fabulous way to start our trip, and we got back in time for two consecutive Easter dinners with our families & were able to say our goodbyes for now. :)

"How do you get to do all the stuff you do?"

We get asked quite a bit how we travel so often and so much, & do all the things we do. People think you need to win the lotto to do cool stuff. I think not.

Here was our fun outing today:
Red Sox vs Phillies spring training game - FOR FREE! We showed up late enough to not get charged for parking, we got two tickets from people leaving, @ Wawa was giving out free iced teas...one on the way in and one on the way out. We got to watch the Red Sox win sitting on the thick fluffy grass enjoying a nice iced tea and all it cost us was gas to drive 15 miles north to Clearwater! Score!

And for our fun outing yesterday:
We got to hang out with my Mom and Bob, took them Mazzaro's for a delicious lunch. (& the biggest, most delicious $5 italian sandwiches ever!) On the way out, they were doing milk tastings with the cow in tow...& gave me a 1/2 gallon of fresh milk since it was closing time, score!
Then we headed to downtown St Petersburg to see if we could see the Grand Prix. Nothing like seeing little cars zoom through your town at 200 mph! We spotted a parking garage with a bird's eye view of the track...& it was free of course. :-)

We live life on a budget, that way we can do more stuff more often, & save our pennies for the super cool stuff...like Key West next week. Woot woot!

Slimming Down

We are slimming down and having our yard sale...and man, there's some cool folks out there!  You wouldn't believe the stories we are hearing. & I thought I heard some doosies while behind the bar! 

The Moving 2 Alaska signs are working well. :)  So far, it's been a lucrative day...let's see if we can sit through another ;)

Changes...& loss

We went to the vet because Rascal had a stomach ache last Thursday.  X-Rays showed his little lungs full of cancer, looking like it started in the spline, causing all of his belly aches.  Since we knew we had a finite amount of time, we played hard.  He lasted exactly a week before his body gave up completely. 

The main reason for driving to Alaska, aside from replacement costs of our perfect vehicle, was for Rascal...he never had to fly and ride with the luggage.   Now we have to sit down to reevaluate our priorities, though we will have an excellent time on a road trip up.  We are still heading in that direction...but it's weird to think that there are other options.

Rascal has been my best buddy, my sidekick, my travel partner, my comfort when I'm sick, my entertainment, the biggest source of spending of my hard earned income...you get the idea.  He came home with me for my 20th birthday, I'll be 33 this summer. 

This was the most unexpected blow I've had to deal with in my adult life.  Every decision I've made has been based around him.  I've built my entire adult life around him.  I'm not sure how, but I know with time I'll be ok... This makes our fun in the sun time in Florida bitter sweet.

We'll be able to spread ashes in all his favorite spots on our travels...

I'll miss you buddy.
<3 Your Momma

Organizing, Packing, and Selling... Oh My

We aren't actually hitting the road until the 4th of April, but there's a lot to do before this 7,000 mile trek.  First off, we are driving with a 100 lb dog, so he needs room to be comfy in the back.  We also are completely comfortable sleeping in the Element.  Its really a great car for car camping.  I'd prefer to pitch a tent, put our stuff in the tent, fold down the back seats and curl up in there.  There's an awesome sun/moon roof window to see the stars while you're falling asleep.  :)  Anyhow, slimming down all of our worldly possessions to fit together in one car with the three of us to travel comfortably isn't the easiest challenge to tackle.  

Ken sent me this photo while I was at work the other day.  He was getting a head start...

Notice Rascal laying by his door.  He's making sure he won't miss his ride!

Now that the car is emptied out, everything is inside...now comes the fun part.  Let's see what we can live without.  We sorted piles, one for the car, one for the yard sale and to post on craigslist, and the smallest of them all...essentials/memorabilia that we may ship up.  Due to the post office ending our beloved "parcel post" option, we'll keep it down to things we can ship media mail.  We checked online the cost of shipping my seabag full of clothes and stuff, $100!  I buy most of my clothes at thrift stores and wouldn't pay $100 for the contents of that bag, let alone that to ship it.  Ugh...so here comes the challenge of slimming down our belongings to fit inside the car.  

The first box with the green hat on it is yard sale stuff...the rest, is fitting in the car.  & you can't even see my full seabag in this pile.  

Our goal is to get everything in order, so after my last day of work on the 19th, we can actually enjoy some Florida time and some family time before taking off.  

Should we drive south to Key West and go from Mile Marker 0 to Mile Marker 0 in Alaska??

I have a hard time...

I find, the most difficult part of having a blog, is blogging.  So, I'll so my best to keep up with it.  We've sold our iPad and old MacBook to upgrade to a new MacBook.  With that, along with my iPhone, I have no excuse to not keep up.  I'll do my best.

~N

From Rascal...

Can we please go back to Alaska?? It's the only state that doesn't make me itch.

Well, here we are. A little background...

He had me at "where's Dan?". That's right, not "hello". There was no time for chit chat. Ronan and Ken were hungry. They'd been on the road, from Skagway to Homer in record time. Dan wasn't at the bar. He and Lauren were having a baby that lovely late August day, so I was working his shift. Alice's Champagne Palace was hopping, as it usually was around dinner time. Ken came up to the bar so they didn't have to wait for a server. I poured them a couple of our fine Homer Brewery China Poot Porters, and served them each two dinners! So much hiking, they worked up quite an appetite.

I knew I was in trouble when he walked up to my bar. I'd spent months as the Florida girl in Alaska ignoring advances from the local boys. I know people are skeptical of love at first sight, and I was too...until Ken walked through the door. It was like being magnetized. I was drawn to him. & kinda nervous. I was hopping in my motorhome and heading back to Florida in a couple months. Granted, I'd fallen in love with Homer, and her people. But I had obligations, a car, a boat, a ton of stuff, all waiting for me in the panhandle of Florida. But, I'm getting ahead of myself.

So I continued about my business, working and fishing, and attending my friends' wedding the following weekend and guess who's there? Yep, Ken. Ronan ideas back in Ireland and poor Ken didn't have a date. ;-) We spent the evening dancing, drinking some Homer brews, and talking until the wee hours of the morning on Alice's back deck. I had an early fishing trip planned the following day, so finally we called it a night. He camped in his car next to my RV. So I banged on his window to wake him up the next day and say good morning before the fishing commenced.

We made some plans to do some fishing ourselves, but a couple friends said the Avett Brothers were playing at the Alaska State Fair and we decided to go to the show instead. We spent quite a bit of time together, he shared his rhubarb crisp and some rummy games... but I was still scheduled to leave. I picked up an extra week of shifts at work to cover a coworker's vacation...& postpone my departure. Still, time passed too quickly.

Ken told me he planned to head down to Charleston, SC as he'd paid rent in advance at his buddy's house. He offered me a ride to Panama City Beach, FL on his way east. How could I refuse? I'd fallen head over heels. Ken helped me winterize my RV, I put her in storage, we packed up the car, & headed south.

There's a lot to tell about our trip across country, but I'll save some material for later. I went to PCB, he went to Charleston, and we decided we didn't wanna live life apart. We are fortunate enough to have fabulous family down in St Petersburg, so we met in the middle. St Pete as a temporary home base allowed us to get some quality family time in, assess our situation, and remind us how much we missed Alaska and her people.

Now, we're slimming down, packing up, and heading north...but not before the Rays opening game on 4/2.

Choosing the name

If you're looking for a literary masterpiece, ya might wanna move on people. 

Ken and I are fabulous at many things...however, forming sentences isn't at the top of that list. Needless to say, it can make our communication interesting. That's how "F'n Words" became a regular phrase between the two of us. We try to say one thing, and something completely wrong comes out. We share a good laugh, a kiss, and just say "f'n words". It's ok, they fail us. Ya can't be good at everything, right? ;-)