Well, we didn't freeze, the coldest we saw was 21 at 6:30 this morning, but it was 48 inside the camper. It was cold, but sunny and still for a change. It actually felt warmer than yesterday even though it was 10 degrees colder, but without the wind. We sent Bob and Gena on ahead while we broke camp, agreeing to meet at Desert View. The Canyon was spectacular this morning under clear, bright skies. The Canyon vistas were the clearest we've ever seen. It was a beautiful morning at the Grand Canyon. We headed east toward Cameron, then north to [View Full Entry]

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This morning was cold and snowy. We had a little rain last night and we could hear the winds roaring in the tops of the trees, but it was calm enough down in the campground. Bob and Gena had battery problems which kept their heater from working properly. Bob had to get up in the middle of the night and run the car to keep the battery charged enough to run the heater fan. He managed to get a spot for tonight in the campground with hookups. We drove along the canyon road, stopping at a lot of rim sites in [View Full Entry]

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We had a great visit with Skip and Mary; lots of good food, good laughs and even a visit from Mary's father, sister and niece. Thanks again, Merle, for the fruitcake. We left Phoenix heading north towards the Grand Canyon in sunny, warm weather. The nearer we got to the Canyon, the cooler, windier and cloudier it became. The forecast was for high winds again, even gusting to 60 mph, which made us pretty nervous. Once we got to the campground, however, we were relieved to find we were pretty well sheltered from the winds. We drove into the Grand Canyon [View Full Entry]

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We left the campground early and headed for Gray's Petrified Wood Co, where we spent a pleasurable hour browsing and buying souvenirs. They sure have a lot of neat stuff in that place. Again the winds picked up as we headed west and, by the time we reached Meteor Crater, it was howling and the wind chill was down around freezing. We watched the movie and listened to a brief talk before heading outside into the wind to climb to the highest vantage point and take pictures. I shot a little video and the sounds of the wind roaring is quite [View Full Entry]

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The winds this morning were nothing like yesterday's as we drove west from Albuquerque through the mesas of western New Mexico with their shades of red, brown and green. Once we reached Petrified Forest National Park, though, the winds began to pick up again. It didn't keep us from enjoying the beauty of the Painted Desert or wonder at the size of some of the petrified logs. The colors were amazing and varied from reds to pinks to browns, blues and whites. It's quite a wonderful place. Early on it was a little overcast and the colors showed better than they [View Full Entry]

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Last night we stayed in a little campground on old Route 66. The wind died early in the evening and didn't pick up again until this morning. We fought strong headwinds all day, cutting our gas mileage by 25%. We drove through the high plains of the Texas panhandle with the winds roaring. We stopped outside Amarillo at the Cadillac Ranch so Gena and I could take pictures. The winds nearly blew us away, but we got our pics and Gena even added a bit of graffiti of her own. Every time we stopped we had to fight the winds, getting [View Full Entry]

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Well, folks, we made it through Oklahoma with its horrible roads, and are in the panhandle of Texas, Shamrock to be precise. It's a long drive across OK, but the weather was fine and it got pretty warm this afternoon. Clouds are moving in, but I don't think rain is predicted as much as wind. It's supposed to get quite gusty tomorrow. We were a bit put out last night at the KOA in Alma, AR. They advertise free WIFI, but in fact only give you 30 minutes free, which isn't time to do much. That's the second KOA this month [View Full Entry]

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Woohoo! We're back to our unfortunately-cut-short trip out west. We left this morning from our house under sunny skies and the temp around 34 with a strong north wind. Bob and Gena are with us again in their new-to-them high-low camper. We've stopped for the night in Alma, Arkansas and it is still sunny, but 59 and the wind is not nearly as biting. We had a nice, uneventful day, but took no pictures worth posting. Just wanted to let you know we're on the road again. Will post more tomorrow night. [View Full Entry]

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Dear ones, We got a call late last night from my brother telling me that our father has died. So after debating options last night and talking to my brothers this morning, we have decided against flying to Miami and are, instead, high tailing to Miami with the camper. We hope to continue this trip at a later date, but until then, the trip and the blog are postponed indefinitely. The funeral is planned for Tuesday at First Baptist Church of Hialeah, 1:00 visitation for family, 1:30 visitation for friends, service at 2:00 and interment to follow. Love to all, Charlie [View Full Entry]

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Hello, all. We've been without wifi for the last 3 nights, so I'll try to catch you up without being too wordy and without too many pictures, though it's hard to choose just a few. Sunday, 25 January, 2009 As we head west the landscape is becoming drier, with more cactus and fewer trees. At Amistad National Recreation Area, near Del Rio, we set up our campers at Governors Landing campground. It's a beautiful spot overlooking the water, and we shared a campsite. Bob, Gena, Kerry and I got in the van and headed for the Amistad Dam which straddles [View Full Entry]

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