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Published: November 12th 2011
New Mexico
Me & My Seester.From the Pecos River in the heart of the Santa Fe Wilderness, then north on I-25 to Raton, New Mexico on the eastern edge of the same wilderness, and on again to Trinidad, Colorado, the terrain changed dramatically. High mountains full of pine, oak and aspen trees, to flat land with forever views and little to no trees. From Trinidad, we drove northeast to La Junta (La Hoonta), Colorado, and then straight north to Sidney, Nebraska. Sidney is the home of Cabela’s headquarters and is right on I-80. It’s like the ultimate hunter/fisherman/outdoorsman’s paradise. From there, north through the pan handle of Nebraska to Scottsbluff. Scottsbluff is a landmark that early American pioneers looked for on their way out west on the Oregon Trail. On the Nebraska quarter, there is an image of Chimney Rock. It’s not much compared to things like the Grand Canyon, Arizona or Monument Valley in Utah. But to the settlers, Chimney Rock was a reassuring sign that they were on the right track…wagon tracks, that is. Then they would go on to Scottsbluff where they could see for miles of the surrounding flat Nebraska prairie. That was Indian country then too, and some were pretty hostile.
Colorado
Conner was first into Colorado Scottsbluff was a defendable refuge from attack.
We stayed there with my Mother. She lives in a little town near Scottsbluff. Most of these little towns are dying. Big box stores in surrounding larger towns have put the little, Mom & Pop businesses out of commission. Just like Lowe’s and OSH put Andy’s Home Center out of business in Sonora…at least that’s what I have heard since we’ve been on the road for a month. Anyway, there isn’t much in her little town, and even the one grocery store is having trouble staying afloat. But the Corner Café is open and we had a nice lunch there with Mom. Kinda sad, that these little American towns are drying up.
We stayed with Grandma for 10 days. It was a great visit, and we helped her get a few things done that she needed help with. Conner cut her lawn for her and we did some handyman projects. She fed us well and we taught her how to juice fruits and vegetables to ensure she gets her daily vitamins and minerals. It even snowed on us one night. The trailer stays nice and warm with the propane furnace, even
Nebraska
Beautiful Sunset over wind farm. when it’s 20 degrees outside!
From there, we headed north to the Nebraska National Forest, over the border into South Dakota, and on to Hot Springs. Our favorite indoor water slide and hot springs pool, Evans Plunge, was closed for the winter. Conner was really bummed. When I told him we’d just keep driving another half hour to Wind Cave National Park, he was almost depressed! He said, “I thought we’d go to dinner and a movie.” I reminded him that we’d gone to two movies and several restaurants in Scottsbluff…and that wasn’t what this trip was about. He was very quiet as we pulled into Wind Cave, and came over a hill and saw BUFFALO! Boy, are these beasts huge! We got very close to them…from inside the Suburban. If you’ve never seen bison up close and personal, it is a real treat. Coming up from Nebraska, you go through Buffalo Gap National Grassland. I stopped and got out. I just sat on the wild grass, and looked out over the prairie at an endless horizon and imagined what it was like to see millions of buffalo grazing, or running across the plains. It was quite sobering, sad,
Nebraska
Grandma's House and special all at the same time. Thank God they never went extinct. To be able to have my children actually see them in the wild is something very special.
We were alone in the campsite…again. This is not tourist season, and I guess there are not a lot of people camping this time of year. Why not? Even though it gets cold at night, it is in the 50’s and 60’s and sometimes in the 70’s during the day. Beautiful weather. It did actually start snowing that night in Wind Cave NP, but it blew over quickly and nothing stuck…it all blew away! That night, I cooked us hamburgers and acorn squash for dinner, and then we watched a couple episodes of the Walton’s. Conner leaned over and said, “Dad, this is the best trip ever. Thanks so much…I love you, Dad.”
After the cave tour, we headed up to Mount Rushmore. We’d been there before, but you can never see it too many times. Pictures don’t do it justice. It’s one of the few man made things that excites me. I’d much rather see what God made, than what man has made. Maybe because it is
South Dakota
Wind Cave National Park Campground...we were all alone! made out of the solid granite which was made by God, or that those four Presidents were so great, or that it is just truly a great sculpture. We drove on to Rapid City and grabbed some Mexican food, then on over to Edgemont, South Dakota. We spent the night in the trailer at a roadside rest stop on the border of Wyoming. It was cold outside, but we were warm in our mobile house.
Breakfast in Lusk, Wyoming at the Triangle 4 Diner, and a good conversation with a school nurse there, Ellen. She moved to Lusk from the big city 20 years ago and never left. Walks everywhere…the town’s not that big. I love these little towns, so full of history and nostalgia. You just have to talk to people. Most everywhere we’ve been, people have been amazingly friendly and helpful. Like the RV business owner in Scottsbluff. He had a collection of old license plates from all over. We asked if we could have some from Colorado, Wyoming, and Nebraska. He not only did that, but as we were driving out, he came to the car and gave Conner a 1933 plate that came off his
South Dakota
As an Indian Buffalo Hunter might have seen one Dad’s ’33 Packard! He’d completely restored the car and turned it into a show piece. This is the real America. Baseball, hotdogs, apple pie, and yes, they all drive Chevrolet’s! Mostly, anyway. And the food was rib-sticking good, too.
The drive from Lusk to Cheyenne was very windy…good thing I got the speed wobbles under control! It was so windy, that our awning isn’t there anymore. It got shredded into pieces. I didn’t notice it until we got into Cheyenne and stopped at the downtown Starbucks for some coffee and an e-mail check. Conner and I climbed onto the roof to cut the rest of it off and threw it in a dumpster. Well, we don’t need it this time of year anyway. Not staying anywhere long enough to require shelter or shade outside. If we do, there’s always a Camping World somewhere to replace it.
I was born in Cheyenne in 1961. I love this town. I don’t know if I’d like 6 months of winter and wind. But I know I’d love the spring, summers and fall there. Francis E. Warren Air Force Base is here and my father worked there back then. Cheyenne is home
South Dakota
Mount Rushmoe...up close and personal with the Presidents to “Frontier Days” rodeo in the summer…I think July, and it is a big deal. This really is cowboy country. Wyoming only has 400,000 people in the whole state. If you want to move to an un-crowded state, this is it. But I’d have to get a place with some acreage, have livestock and a big garden to make a sustainable lifestyle. You’re pretty isolated and cut off from the rest civilization out here if there was ever an interruption in the supply and distribution of food, water, electricity, fuel, etc. So you’d have to be able to take care of yourself.
From Cheyenne, we drove south to Denver and Colorado Springs. We stayed at a KOA (Kampground of America) in Fountain, Colorado. Our neighbors in their 5th-wheel asked us where we were from and when we said, “Sonora, California”, they said, “No way! We’re from Sonora!” Dennis and Jennifer Anderson. She retired from Tuolumne County in 2006 and they hit the road. Her daughter, like Sherry, works at Sonora Regional in the ER, and her son works for Brad Williams Spider Monkey Landscaping! They said in five years of RV’ing, they’ve never met anyone from Sonora! Small world,
South Dakota
Rapid City is one great summer vacation destination indeed.
From there down to Pueblo, Colorado, then west to the Royal Gorge…one deeeep gorge! We checked it out, walked over the bridge, and back. Very cool and beautiful scenery. We continued our journey over this section of the Rocky Mountains to Salida at 7,000 feet, then up over Poncha Pass at over 9,000’ elevation. It was snowing in Salida, and we had to skedaddle to keep from gettin’ snowed in. We made it to Santa Fe, New Mexico and spent the night in the Wal-Mart Parking lot. You can usually stay without question in any of their parking lots. Pretty convenient when it’s dark or too late to get a spot at an RV resort. Plus…it’s free.
The next morning was my sister’s 44th birthday. She was in Santa Fe from the night before working on some art jobs. She’s a professional artist, designer, and frame maker. Her frame making skills are in high demand and she is really an amazing artist. She has her art on display at a gallery there and has sold several pieces. One day, she’ll be a famous artist, and you will be able to say, I know her brother!
We
Wyoming
My birthplace...Yippee-ki-yay! met her and took her to breakfast at the Horseman’s Haven. Then we drove down to her place in Albuquerque. We stayed there another week; doing school and helping her get some things done around her place. Her friend, Gina, from Santa Fe came to visit. Gina’s daughter, Claire, aged 6, just loved Conner. He acted like her big brother, and they played together for hours. Claire is deaf. Conner communicated with her without knowing sign language, the way only kids can. And the universal kids’ language? Laughter. He had her laughing and screaming with delight as they played tag and hide and seek. Then they sat quietly and watched cartoons together. She was a very cute and sweet girl. And I was so proud of the way Conner conducted himself with her. Very loving, patient, gentle, and protective of her. Gina was very impressed with Conner as well. And Claire just loved Conner.
Cami’s friend, Jill, is the head girls’ golf coach at University of New Mexico. They had a tournament in Austin, Texas. UNM beat Princeton among several other teams, but didn’t win overall. I didn’t realize college golf was so popular. Jill gave me a UNM
Wyoming
Cheyenne, Wyoming's Francis E. Warren AFB Lobo’s golf cap…I like it! We did some more handyman projects the second visit there as well. But mostly just did homeschool.
It would be time to move on pretty soon, as Sherry would be flying out to meet us in San Antonio on November 12 to celebrate out 26th Anniversary together. Our good friends, Jeff and Laura live there and we’d never been to visit them in Texas. I’ll add another installment when we get there to catch you all up. Here's a slide show with music that I made with all our pictures. It's 10 minutes long...but I think you'll agree it's worth the viewing:
http://tripwow.tripadvisor.com/tripwow/ta-0349-504e-96c2?ln
Also, please post comments below. Let us know you're following us, what you think about our trip, our blog, and our pictures, or just to say, "Hi!" We'd love to know who's following us and your thoughts...
I've also posted a the same video slideshow on Facebook...so if you're a Facebook friend, check it out there as well..
Until next time,
Hasta la vista, baby!
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Jim Spears
non-member comment
Very nicw and well written.
Good job again!