Rock Trees

Petrified Forest- rocks and ancient trees that have turned into rocks!  Anna was in rock heaven!  

Shit Show

A word about shit.

Yep the real human stuff.  We have been doing some boondocking in our travels- which at its most basic is camping not in a campground-  off of the side of a back road -legally.  This is usually on public land like Bureau of Land Management or in National Forests- similar to crown land in Canada.   We love it- we can find an out of the way spot down a forestry road and pull off.  No one around, dogs can relax and run around, kids can be loud- no noise or rules.  But the major drawback to boondocking is that humans are disgusting and apparently no one has taught most of us how to shit in the woods.   We have been in sites where there is so much human shit that we have had to tie the dogs up (they are disgusting and will eat it) and the kids can’t run around.    Toilet paper all over, piles of shit right on the surface- NASTY!  So here’s how you do it in a nutshell.  By the way our kids knew how to do this by the time they were toilet trained.    If you have a toilet in your trailer or camper- use it- that’s what it’s there for.  If not- go away from the campsite, away from a trail and away from water.  Dig a hole with a trowel, shovel, stick, rock or the heel of your boot, 6 inches deep.  Shit in that.  Wipe- wrap used toilet paper in a clean piece and set aside or put in a bag in your pocket.  DO NOT BURY, BURN, OR LEAVE TOILET PAPER!!!!   Bury the shit with the soil you dug out.  Now cover the spot with a large rock or log.  Take the toilet paper with you and burn it in your campfire or put it in the garbage.  So- not so hard.  Remember the kids’ book We all poop?  Learn to do it right and don’t inflict your remains on others.  Enough said. 

Grand Canyon Side Trip

South Rim

Only this family could make a trip to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon an afterthought....we were all pumped to go to the Petrified Forest and Greg and I realize that we are only 60 miles south of the Grand Canyon South Rim.  So we found a boondocking site just outside the park and went in exploring for the day.   It is breathtaking- but too many tourists and really it is impossible to take a photo or describe it.  The Grand Canyon is one of those places that must be experienced.    We were all inspired and loved the views and the rocks and also the tower at Desert View.  

We had a big brainstorming session about a round house and cool stairs and pictographs on the walls....we aren’t that rich.  

Funky Town

Chloride- an out of the way place off of highway 93 on the way to Kingman, AZ.  Middle of nowhere place that used to have a silver mine.  The now have funky houses, a tourist information centre a ton of local character and characters including the guy that drives this “truck”.  Yep it drives.

  At 10:30 in the morning he was already buzzed on some kind of hooch and was chatting me up at the info centre aka liquor outlet, art gallery, used bookstore and general mercantile.  I asked him if he had a friend that followed him around with shovel and the store owner started laughing and said know it all falls down into his boots!   If you are driving past- go in.  Totally.  

Death Valley

Death Valley....

Sounds forbidding- so beautiful and at the same time harsh.  There are springs here that feed life as long as it stays in balance.    

“There is no shortage of water in the desert but exactly the right amount, a perfect ratio of water to rock, water to sand.  There is no lack of water here unless you try to establish a city where no city should be.”  Edward Abbey

It feels like there is enough water here.  When we were at Red Rock and Lake Mead it felt sort of dirty to use water- knowing the water level in the reservoir and knowledge of climate change.   There shouldn’t be a city there- or so many people.   For sure not green grass, casinos and fountains.  Likely in the future it will be a surreal ghost town.

A land of extremes – low- Badwater Basin – below sea level with no diving equipment! 

  Hot- we only got to about 87 deg F but it can get to 130 F!.  It is super dry.  Water- springs, and snow and salt and a swimming pool.  Weird.  The area gets about 2 inches of rain per year!  We were there for rain! 

It does turn “dirt” to gumbo and rain to snow at the higher elevations.   Our friends from Kentucky that we met made the mistake of going up to 11,000 ft the day before it rained.  Apparently they are still (one week later) waiting for it to melt so they could get their truck and camper out.  Expensive lesson, but will make for a good story some day.  

 We drove a backcountry canyon road, rock, cliffs, up and down, switchbacks and one way through Titus Canyon- unbelievable that we were actually allowed to drive there. 

I love seeing Leland in the mirror.

Checked  out mines, views, a new rock formation at every turn.  We met an archeologist who was volunteering at the park demonstrating flint knapping and got the kids really keen to see some ancient ruins and cliff dwellings. Even saw a  real live roadrunner!  No picture though.

It's not about the easy way up.

Red Rock Canyon west of Las Vegas is one of the top rock climbing destinations in North America.  Greg has been waiting 30 years to come here.  The rock is spectacular, the climbing is amazing, the sun and temperatures are perfect.  A few too many people, but we can’t have it all.   Leland is really loving climbing.  Greg set up a top rope on this climb called Side Effects which has a difficulty of 5.10b.  Hard.  

It also has an overhang which makes for some swings when they fall off, but prevents as many scrapes.

  Anna likes it too but is more cautious.   

Greg did get up on the rock too with Leland learning to belay with me as backup.  

Rusty loves hiking to the crags and hanging out.  Tilly comes too but moans and then tries to curl up in the shade.   

Reality Check

When we left Alberta it was -32 C not including the wind chill.  Nasty.  We ended up staying in a pet friendly hotel in Helena, MT that first night so we didn’t freeze our asses off.  Within two days we were in decent temperatures above zero and now we are in Nevada – Las Vegas area with temperatures of 20 C and sun.   Rusty has been acclimatizing by blowing his coat and rolling in the dust and Tilly has been moaning and sleeping often at the same time.  Plans are for climbing and hiking and exploring.   Back in the land of the red rocks.

Reality check.   We have been struggling with the kids- particularly Leland about attitude and school and being self motivated.   Making it more their responsibility for learning than us hammering on them to learn- which never works.  We are now in Nevada where we have had two experiences that have reminded all of us, again, to be grateful for our lives and our circumstances.   We were camped at Lake Mead- near the east side of Henderson- near Vegas.   As we came back to our campsite from getting groceries, a rough looking guy asked Greg for a glass of water if it wasn’t bothering us.   We happily gave him two glasses but apparently he gets chased away by people.   Then Greg turns to me and says, “I’m going to give this guy a ride to his camp.”  Okay.  They heave his pack and sleeping bag with some stuff in the bottom into the back of the truck.  My only thought was that I hope Greg remembered which campground we were in.    Greg learns that his name is John and he left early that morning to walk (with his walker) to Henderson (about 10 miles) to get food.  He had abandoned his walker partway back and was trying to cut cross country.  He had also fallen and hurt his back more than it already was.  He had been a oil rig worker but lost his job after a couple of injuries.  A divorce and loss of his house are part of the saga too.  He was only 50 years old and looked about 75.  They find the camp- he is so grateful- Greg gives him some money and makes it back to us without getting lost.   It turns out that we can see the camp across the ravines from our campsite and with the binoculars spot his walker.  I know that Greg will obsess about this, and send him and Leland off to retrieve it and take it to John.  He waves, yells that he bought a tarp!  His last words to Leland were “Don’t be like me- go to school.”    John is having a beer with his buddy at a fire and we have a beer at ours, only a few unfortunate events apart. 

The next day an entire family of three generations moves into the site next to us.  Yelling, swearing, stomping, angry- in crisis family.  I can’t help but overhear their conversations over the next couple days and determine that they have bailed on their rental and their debts- all their possessions for seven people a dog and four cats are in a camper van and a Lincoln.  They have a ratty tent and too much stuff for their space.  It’s bad.  But there is a lighter side to their presence.   They are staring out at Lake Mead which is about half a mile away and the dad says, “When I was a kid you used to able to just walk off right here and swim.”  Daughter says, “What happened?”  Dad figures, “I think there is a leak in the dam and they are trying to fix it.”  Grandma yells, “That’s not what happened.  After they made the movie National Lampoon’s Vegas Vacation here something happened to the water.  It’s all the fault of that movie and Chevy Chase.”   Daughter- “Oh, okay.”   HOLY Shit!   So watch out Chevy Chase- when the Hoover Dam has no more water they’ll be coming to get you.