Hiking, Exploring, and Hot Tubs - a day on the road

Today was one of those days that remind me why we are on this trip.

It began with an average morning and chores.  Whether in a house or camper - there is plenty to do.

We worked on school subjects until my husband could take his lunch break.  He and I jumped in our Kawasaki Mule and road up to the Red Bull Mountain Bike Track in Virgin, Utah.  We like to hike for our daily exercise and this place had some really steep hills to help me with my backside.

He and I spent an hour climbing up and down the red, crumbly cliffs and slopes weaving through the mesas and buttes west of Zion National Park.  With the gorgeous formations in the background and no one around, it was wonderful.

We had to head on home so he could get back to work.  We pealed out in our Mule at its top speed of 23 mph.  

Later in the day, I told the kids we were going to take a ride up the mountain to Kolob Reservoir.  The kids are all almost done with a bad cold and I figured a ride in the van would be fine.  We just wouldn't let them get out and run too much.  Shae was able to go with us, thank goodness.  The road covered in  snow at the top, which he insisted on driving in the deeper parts.

I told him, "Honey!  We don't have 4 wheel drive!"

He replied, "That's what tow haul is!"  

We always joke that our 15 passenger van has turbo, can go in 4 x 4, and do just about anything my husband wants - all he has to do is push that tow haul button!

We got quite a ways up the road when we came to the road closed sign.  The park doesn't plow the snow and it was too deep past that point.  Oh well, we don't cry of the little things, so we just turned it around, attempting to avoid the deep, thick mud in the ditch behind us, and headed back down the mountain.

Shae decided to continue our adventure by going to Grafton, Utah - a ghost town nearby.  I will write more on that later, but let me tell you, it was a very interesting place to stop.

Since I had made a big breakfast and lunch, I decided to have Hanna make sandwiches for dinner.  Before that, her and I took a dip in the hot tub and then I went to a wine tasting party at the Lodge.  

Quite a day!

Heading North This Time of Year

Crazy is an adjective used to describe us for numerous reasons.  I am about to give you another...

We headed NORTH

a couple weeks ago, to stay in Wisconsin for a month or two. 

Yes, you read it right. 

We headed NORTH!

This time of year most RVers are heading south to get a spot at the quickly filling campgrounds.  There aren't a lot of places to spend a warm winter, so reservations are a good idea.

But, of course, we just couldn't do the norm.  Instead, we packed our bags, left our camper behind and made the long trip to northern Wisconsin.  You see, it has been six years since I have seen my Grandma and I decided I didn't want to wait another winter.  So we winterized our camper, left it at a friends, and headed north.  This is the first time away from our home on wheels in over two years.

After three days on the road, in motels, and with family, I told my husband,

"I am never traveling without the camper again!"

It took us sooooo long to get to our destination.  On day two we stopped almost every 45 minutes for the 4P's

PEE

POOP

PUKE

OR PLAY

We left a trail of bodily fluids from Missouri to Wisconsin.  I have children of all ages, and getting them on a potty cycle is almost impossible.  So, we decided to enjoy the trip no matter how long it would take or how gruelling it would be.

The good news is that we found a cabin to rent for a month!  It feels so weird to stay in a house again.  We actually have privacy and peace and quiet again! 

And, with visiting family comes the faithful sicknesses.  It seems when ever we visit family we get sick.  Why is that!?  So we enjoy the cabin while we are cough, snort, and wheeze!

I Really am Blonde Even Though my Hair is Getting Darker....

I know that if I am driving the van, it is my responsibility to know how to take care of it and what to do
in certain emergencies. Shae does all of the oil and maintenance, so I just rely on him for most things
to do with our vehicles. I rarely even put in gas. When I am out driving around, I have to purposely
look at the gas level, because sometimes I just forget to; I have gotten so used to Shae just filling it!

I don’t believe in blame or excuses, so I take total responsibility for what I am about to tell you. We
knew our van had an overheating problem. This was going to be my first big mountain pass to drive
over. I was hauling the flatbed with all of our toys on it. I should have researched overheating.

BUT I DID NOT

I DID NOT RESEARCH ANYTHING

Well, I know you know where this is going...

We began going up Hwy 16, from Buffalo to Ten Sleep, over Powder River Pass, in Wyoming. I hadn’t been climbing the mountain long when I noticed my water heat gauge rising. It was just a little at first. I tried to slow down a little, but that didn’t help.

I called Shae on the walkie talkie and he said to slow down
and .....what?

Oh no! We lost signal.

I hurried and tried him on the cell phone....

Oh No! No signal!

I really didn’t know what to do. I had Hanna dial Shae’s number over and over, but no answer.

The gauge kept rising.

I knew I needed to pull over. I found a spot and got off the road. My father passed away in 04’, so I
couldn’t call him,

WHO ELSE?

I tried my father-in-law. He said to turn off the air.

BIG OOPS ON MY PART!

Never turn on the air if your vehicle is over heating. My mother-in-law shouted from the background...”I just read in a travel book to turn your heat on high if you are overheating!” So, I cranked the heat.
After a few minutes, the temperature began to go down. I got back on the road and drove ahead to
where Shae had finally found a spot to pull over. He couldn’t believe I had the air on. It was pretty
dumb of me. I should have known better.

I did learn a lot that day...

•First, be prepared for what situation I am in. Shae may not be there to help me.

•Second, do not turn on the air when we are driving up a mountain.

•Third, my mother-in-law knows random facts that she doesn’t need to know living in flat Florida.

Question about towing with a van and having two vehicles while traveling full time

I am a member of a yahoo group called Families on the Road.  I am going to answer questions for them and also post them on our blog.  I just found a question about towing a camper with a 15 passenger van.  I am not an expert, but I listen to my husband.  He researches everything.  I consider him an expert when it comes to vehicles.

He drives a Dodge pick up and it pulls our 42' fifth wheel.  I drive a 15 passenger van that tows a flat bed with 4 ATVs, 3 kayaks, gear, and 7 bikes.  We make quite a caravan.  It really does work great, but can also be difficult.

I want to cover a few issues with this topic.

1. We went with a Chevy for a few reasons.  We were told that the problem with big vans like that is they roll over easier.  Now, the information I found attributed the roll overs to people that drove the van with many large adults, with all of their luggage, towing a trailer, driving it like it is a car.  Now, I know that not all of those factors are present at every roll over, but the gist of it is, don't pack it too full and drive it like a bus!  You can't go fast around corners, and definitely need lots of room to stop.  We found that Chevy has an extended wheel base so that roll overs aren't as common.   Also, our insurance would only cover Chevys, not Fords or Dodges!  Our friend who has had numerous large vans said he will only buy Chevy.
Our van has done great for us.  It did need some repairs when we first bought it, we got it used. 

2. I like having two vehicles.  My husband is an engineer, so works all week in the camper.  The kids and I go  a lot of places without him.  There were two times last year that we almost had major emergencies.  We did not have two vehicles at the time so my husband would not have been able to get to us quickly.  It was quite scary.

3. Traveling around cities and up mountains can be quite difficult with two vehicles.  We have gotten separated and caught up with each other hours later.  We have walkie talkies and cell phones, but sometimes they don't work!

4. I am going to take out the front row seat and put it in the camper every now and then.  The kids and I want to try to take a few short trips when my husband either doesn't want to or has to work.  I like to sight see a lot and he doesn't.  So, we already took out the back on and left it in our storage trailer.  I think if I can take out the front row temporarily, I could sleep on the floor with a couple kids and some could sleep on the seats and my oldest could sleep in his tent outside the door.  It would just be for short trips/overnighters.  I haven't tried it yet, I will let you know how it goes.  I really want a camper van or a Sprinter type camper van.  But, just can't afford it right now.  I think it would be perfect for us.

5. Towing and going up mountains can get hairy.  I learned the hard way to absolutely not have the air on while going up a mountain. And, if the van begins to overheat, slow down, down shift, and turn the heat on if necessary.  We have had to do this many times and even in extreme heat.  We just pretended we were in the desert.

Read another blog post that discusses my adventure with overheating in the Big Horn Mountains in Wyoming!
http://www.thelemonadedigestblog.blogspot.com/2010/06/i-really-am-blonde-even-though-my-hair.html

This is all for now on this subject.  I would be happy to answer any questions on this matter.  If I don't know, I will ask my hubby!

Changing a bad tire in the desert!

How do you spell spoiled? National Treasure Rv Resort in Pahrump Nevada. Wow, it was great! We joined a club called Passport America. We get to stay for 50% off at different campgrounds.

Passport America - Discount Camping Club

We were on our way to Beatty, NV (after Hawthorne, and one night in Goldfield, NV). The weekend we were coming to Beatty happened to be totally full for their craft show! So, we called Amargosa Valley. There was an opening there, but no grocery story. The store in Beatty was so tiny and had 2 packs of diapers neither the right size!

So, on to Pahrump. The National Treasure RV Resort was only $20 a night for 4 nights with our Passport America discount. It was incredible. We had two pools, one was heated, the other not.

There was a huge hot tub that we enjoyed. Shae and I even had a little date night in it. It was great to spend some time alone!

There is a bowling alley inside where we bowled 2 times. Shae won, then Cody, Naomi, Hanna, Me, Gabriel, and Josie. Naomi and Hanna were both better at it than me! I have the moves, just can't seem to keep it out of the gutter! We played horseshoes and shuffleboard. The restaurant was good and had good prices. Most of the workers were so friendly.

We made a trip out to Death Valley National Park from here. It was a little bit of a drive, but not bad. It is nothing like I expected. I pictured some huge, flat desert with sand dunes here and there. Instead there were huge mountains, ravines, washes, salt flats, salt sculptures, natural bridge, and that is just a few things.

We drove the 21 mule team road. It is not made for large vehicles, but that didn't stop us!

We think our van is 4 wheel drive and

can go anywhere and do anything!

We loved it. The road is now one of our favorites! Yes, I did get nervous a few times. Our van is not 4 wheel drive and is really long - it is a 15 passenger van! Shae loved that it was hard to drive. He had that fire look in his eyes when we rounded each corner and almost scraped through the rock. We stopped and the guys and Hanna climbed a big rock formation. They were up pretty high. Hanna really wanted to go, but I was not so sure about that as I watched her slip on the loose rocks on the way up. I kept yelling, "Hanna, you don't have to go!" But, she was determined and finally made it to the top. I am not sure if it was worth the trouble and all the work to get up there, but hey, they conquered yet another mountain in another National Park!

From there, we headed to a beautiful look out, something like - Zawleiski's look out. It was a breathtaking view of the mountains and rock formations. We hiked up a small hill to see the remains of what was once an underwater ocean bed. Usually by the time I get all the kids ready to get out of the van and hike to the destination, Shae and Cody are already on their way back. This time was different. Shae and Cody stayed and helped us get shoes on, diapers changed, and children carried up the walk. Just before we headed out, Shae noticed the tire on the back of our van had a huge bulge in it. He had known it would need to be replaced soon, just not in the desert! So, after enjoying the view, we headed to the gorgeous oasis resort in the middle of Death Valley. It was so beautiful as we drove through the gates and headed for a shaded spot for the guys to change the tire before it blew! The kids and I played on the playground.  Shae and Cody changed the tire. I'm not sure if we were supposed to be in there. We weren't guests of the resort, but just passing through as we switched tires in their shade. The kids had a blast feeding the birds while Tytus watched. We finally continued our journey to the lowest elevation in the western hemisphere, Badwater. It is in the middle of salt flats. We took our pictures and then headed home. We were all real tired from a long day of heat, hiking, and bad tires.

Sheri

Pulling a trailer on Needles Highway...big mistake!

DO NOT PULL A TRAILER ON NEEDLES HIGHWAY!

Do you want to know why I say this, or how I know it should not be done? Yes, we were the dumb ones on Needles Highway in the Black Hills of South Dakota last week, pulling a trailer.

We arrived in South Dakota on July 18th. It is a beautiful drive as we wound our way up the mountains. We passed through Hot Springs and then up to Wind Cave State Park. We searched for buffalo, just hoping to maybe catch a glimpse of them on a distant hill. We did, and it was very distant. Little did we know that in a couple days we would be surrounded by them. We parked at American Presidents campground. It is a great place to stay. We liked our site, I think it was 21. We had a beautiful view of the mountains from our table in the camper. I enjoyed a few mornings in a lawn chair with coffee, reading my bible, with the Black Hills as my backdrop. There was a ranch right there also, so we were able to enjoy the view of the horses all day. The campground has free mini golf, and a pool, which was too cold, and a hot tub. We hiked quite a bit around the campground. The rocks here were amazing! Shiny stones everywhere on the ground! We could pick up quartz everywhere! We found many beautiful stones right next to our camper.
We loved going to Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Custer State Park. I'll talk you later about those places, and the buffalo, and almost running out of gas, and gold panning, and 4 wheeling in the Bad Lands, and THE PLAGUE! YES, THE PLAGUE! But for now, let me finish my story about NEEDLES HIGHWAY.

There is an amazing road that leads to Mt. Rushmore from Custer. There are two sections of it. We decided to drive around by Crazy Horse. We didn't actually go in the museum/monument. We saw it from the road. There is a parking lot you can park in and look at it. We continued on to Mt. Rushmore. What a wonderful experience! It only cost $10 for our whole vehicle for a year! We hiked the President's trail that brought us closer to the monument. The history is amazing on how and why this was built. There was a great visitor's center underneath, by the ampitheater. After a wonderful afternoon there, we left and headed on the Needles Highway home. We found a little place to stop and have a picnic. The road was built by an architect specifically for beauty and to compliment Mt. Rushmore. There are piggy tail bridges built along this road. They are unique bridges built in the shape of a pig's tail. There was not enough room for switchbacks inbetween the tunnels, so the architect designed these bridges. They are pretty fun and interesting. The tunnels are carved out of the rock. They are very small and only one car can go through at a time. We didn't have any problem getting our van through. You are supposed to honk before you pull through one, incase someone is on the other side coming the opposite direction.
About a week later, we decided to go through the second part of Needles Highway and go to Sylvan Lake up higher in the mountains. We didn't look at the map, just went by memory. We drove on Custer State Park and went north on Needles Highway. There were no signs saying how small the tunnels were. Oh, by the way, we were hauling our 8' wide flat bed trailer with 4 atvs and 3 kayaks. It was easier to leave the atvs on and haul them with the kayaks, than to take them off. So, here we are, heading up a mountain, with very few places to turn around with a trailer behind us full of toys. We came to the first tunnel, and made it through ok. We noticed it seemed to be smaller than the ones from the other day. We stopped further up the hill so Shae could take a phone call. I told him I thought we should go ahead and turn around. The road was very narrow and made me a little nervous with our load and all. No, he said, we can do it. So, up we go, higher and higher. Now, the road is even smaller, the ledges on the side steeper, and I feel like our van and trailer is getting bigger and bigger! There was nowhere to turn around, and I think all of us were feeling a little nervous now! We came to the second and last tunnel and saw the sign. It read, "8' 4" wide" Yikes! Our trailer is 8' wide! That leaves us 2 inches on each side of the trailer! I said, "Shae, don't do it. We will get stuck right in the middle. We'll get wedged in and someone will have to yank us out!" Well, bad news, there is no where to turn around! We had to go through the tunnel! We all got extremely serious and held our breath as Shae started to drive through a very long and skinny tunnel. I was afraid to even look behind me at the trailer and see just how close it was. Shae inched his way through, knowing we could hit the side at any time. We kept going, and going, and going, and going, until finally, we made it! Yippee! Well, it wasn't quite over. Since we had the trailer on the back, we need to pull totally out of the tunnel before we start to turn to the right. Not gonna happen. There was a whole line of cars waiting to go through the tunnel. They were waiting right at our exit to the tunnel. Shae pulled forward oh so carefully and barely, I don't think I really want to know how barely, he turned to the right, just missing that ladies van. He leaned out our window and said to her, "Boy, that was close!"
Well, you might say we had a happy ending. I'm not quite sure I would agree. We finished the drive to the stunning lake to find a huge storm awaiting us. We couldn't even walk by the lake because the rain started right after we arrived. We hung out in the gift shop, until we realized the bad weather was there to stay. So, we jumped back in the van and saw the sign for Custer, 7 miles! We had just driven at least 16 miles through tiny tunnels, mountain passes, steep ledges, and many cars to find out we could have driven on an easy road only seven miles.
It was one of those times we just had to make the decision to laugh and not cry. It was a crazy adventure, one we will not forget. So, the moral of the story? Don't pull a trailer on Needles Highway!

This is not the van and trailer on the tight tunnel. This is us coming through the first tunnel. We were too in shock to actually get out and take pictures of us going through the really tiny tunnel!