Category: RV Adventures

RV Adventures: A Trip Out West! Day 25 & Day 26

Tuesday, June 29, 2021

Today we were on the road by 6:30 AM. to leave Moab and head to Chapman, Kansas. This is the first of our two days to get back home. The skies were beautiful as we headed out of town.

Leaving Moab, Utah

Our drive has been uneventful today. We didn’t have any traffic delays, issues on the road or with the RV! Whew!

When we hit the mountains of Colorado the temperature fell from 90 degrees to 54 degrees! Our gas mileage wasn’t very good when we were driving in the mountains.

Colorado Mountain Peaks

Our route took us through Fruita, Colorado which had several roundabouts. The town has added sculptures to the roundabouts that we drove through.

For awhile I-70 was parallel to the Colorado River.

Colorado River

We passed several ski resorts. One was Vail.

Vail Ski Resort

We also drove by Copper Mountain Ski Resort.

Copper Mountain

Bridal Veil Falls is near downtown Idaho Springs, Colorado. The falls spills out of Soda Creek and then flows into Clear Creek.

Bridal Veil Falls

Our granddaughter did a FaceTime call with us! That was the highlight of the day!

Near Evergreen, Colorado we saw rafters on Clear Creek which runs along the freeway!

Rafters on the Clearcreek!

Our overnight was at Chapman Creek RV Park in Kansas and was located just off of I-70 which was perfect for us.

Day 26

Wednesday, June 30, 2021

We left Chapman, Kansas a little after 7:00 AM and our destination is home! The last day of our trip and it was raining. This was the only day where we had to drive through rain.

Late morning we got ahead of the rain and the sun was shining!

Wildflowers along I-70!

Our drive was going smoothly until a car motioned for Dave to pull over. Our tow dolly was smoking near the tires. Thank goodness a driver let us know before we had a fire! We sat for a little over an hour to let the wheel bearings cool down. But it turns out the issue wasn’t with the bearings but with the emergency brake that got triggered. We believe that happened because of all the bouncing on the freeway. Every time we stopped for gas, we checked the emergency brake on the tow dolly.

The rest of our drive was uneventful and there wasn’t much to see in Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, or Ohio. Our travels for the last 26 days have taken us to places in the United States that we have never visited and were overwhelmed by the beauty of our country. We put over 2,000 miles on the Prius, and over 9,000 miles on the RV. It was a trip to remember!

“A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.” -Oliver Wendell Holmes

RV Adventures: A Trip Out West! Day 24

Monday, June 28, 2021

We were on the road before 6:00 AM to drive to Moab, Utah. The sun was rising as we left and it was a windy day.

  • Lots of watering
  • The sun was rising.

As Dave drives, I take pictures of the scenery around us! We live in such a beautiful country with such diverse landscapes!

As we got close to Moab, the landscape changed again.

We arrived in Moab around noon and headed directly to our campsite so we could unload the car and head to Arches National Park. We had read online that the park was filling up fast and by early morning they weren’t letting anymore visitors in because they were at capacity. We’re hoping we won’t have to wait to get into the park! Our campground wasn’t far from the park.

Arches National Park

We were fortunate that when we got to the park we were able to get right in! Arches National Park is filled with a landscape of contrasting colors. There are over 2,000 natural stone arches, many pinnacles, tall rock fins and giant balanced rocks. The red rock is everywhere and it changes shades with the location of the sun as it reflects off the stone.

Our views as we began our drive into the Arches National Park.

Arches National Park

We’ve included some highlights from our visit to Arches National Park. This park was worth making time to see. This post continues with A LOT of photos.

Park Avenue was so named because of the sandstone sheer walls that reminded early visitors of buildings lining a big city street!

  • Park Avenue
  • Close up of Park Avenue

Queen Nefertiti who was an Egyptian Queen is a sculpted rock formation.

Queen Nefertiti from the Park Avenue viewpoint

Sheep Rock gets its name because it looks like a sheep.

Sheep Rock

The Organ

The Organ

The Courthouse Towers

The Courthouse Towers

The Three Gossips

The Three Gossips

Parade of Elephants

Parade of Elephants

Double Arch

Double Arch

Balanced Rock

Balanced Rock

The narrow path to visit the Sand Dune Arch.

Sand Dune Arch Trail

Sand Dune Arch

Sand Dune Arch

Pine Tree Arch

Pine Tree Arch

Garden of Eden

Garden of Eden

Delicate Arch

Delicate Arch

And more pictures from Arches National Park:

  • La Sal Mountains
  • Skyline Arch

The sun was setting as we returned to our campground.

RV Adventures: A Trip Out West! Day 23

Sunday, June 27, 2021

Today we are on the road early because this is a driving day of approximately 500 miles as we head to Jerome, Idaho. Also, we will be losing an hour as we head eastward.

Leaving our campground.

On our way from the campground the road took us through the Klamath Marsh National Wildlife Refuge, which consists of 40,000 acres of wet meadows and open water wetlands. In the background is the Cascade Mountain Range.

It was a long stretch of road where we didn’t see many vehicles in either direction.

Driving along without traffic!

The following montage of photos are sites along our drive.

  • Malheur River
  • Along Christmas Valley Road
  • Sagebrush along the road
  • South Beede Reservoir
  • Snake River
On our way to Jerome, Idaho

It was a long day of riding in the RV. We were glad to get checked in around dinnertime and just relaxing at our campsite.

RV Adventures: A Trip Out West! Day 22

Saturday, June 26, 2021

We were awake at 5:00 AM and on the road by 6:30 AM to head to our next to the last national park, Crater Lake.

Early morning at the Elkton RV Park

We drove on Oregon route 138 that begins in Elkton to Crater Lake. This route runs along side the N. Umpqua River for a long way.

Route 138 has also been called the Highway of Waterfalls. We tried to see the waterfalls but there wasn’t a place to park an RV towing a car! At Clearwater Falls we turned on the road that said it was parking for RVs over 25 feet and then there wasn’t a place where you could park and then turn around. It was a fiasco getting out of there. We had to drive the car off the tow dolly, unhook the trailer and then Dave worked and worked to get us out of this tight space. We were both drenched with sweat and the mosquitos were swarming!

  • Where we turned!
  • Turned around and ready to head on down the road!

The highway is surrounded by the Umpqua National Forest. As we were driving we saw MANY acres of burned forest! It was so sad to see the destruction from fires. We found online that this area was destroyed in 2017 by dry lightning strikes and over 64,000 acres of Umpqua National Forest.

2017 Wildfire Damage!

Near Diamond Lake as we get closer to Crater Lake.

Crater Lake National Park was magnificent. What a place to visit! We entered through the North entrance which opened on May 28, 2021.

North Entrance to Crater Lake

Crater Lake is famous for its deep blue color and water clarity. We took many pictures as we went around the rim of the lake. We were lucky that we were able to drive the entire rim and stop at all of the viewpoints (8 main viewpoints and 15 turnout vista points) because the East Rim Dr. opened on June 25th, the day before we arrived! The rim drive is 33 miles and loops around the caldera. Below is our first view of Crater Lake. We were awestruck!

Crater Lake with snow on the hillside.

Cleetwood Cove Trail is the only lake shore access. It is a very steep trail but it wasn’t open when we were there because of the snow and ice conditions that still existed.

Cleetwood Cove Trail

As we drove along the Rim Drive we couldn’t believe how tall the snow poles were that measure how much snow the area received. There was still snow around the area.

Areas with snow and the poles for measuring snow.

Wizard Island was formed about 7,300 years ago when a newer volcano emerged!

  • Wizard Island in Crater Lake
  • Wizard Island Close Up
Wizard island

Phantom Ship is an island that is a natural rock formation. We walked a trail up to the viewpoints to see this island. It got its name because it resembles a ghost ship. They said if it’s foggy or not much light it really looks like its name.

Pumice Castle in the Crater is another viewpoint that we viewed. We really had to follow the map for some of the viewpoints because they are not marked and Pumice Castle was one of those. It is made of orange-brown pumice rock. Its castle shape was formed because the rock around it has eroded away.

Pumice Castle

We spent hours hiking the trails that were open. There was a slight breeze and it was a sunny day!

Crater Lake Selfie

Crater Lake is 1,943 feet deep. It is the deepest lake in the U.S. and the deepest volcanic lake in the world. The lake is fed by rain and snow!

The NPS (National Parks Service) app allows you to use your photos to make a postcard. It’s a cool feature! Here is one example.

Crater Lake Postcard

A favorite photo from Crater Lake is the one below that looks like the lake is in a frame of evergreen trees!

Crater Lake

Our campground for the night wasn’t far from the lake. In fact it was called Crater Lake Resort. Fort Creek runs through part of the park. We were informed that we were in luck because this evening a local band from Klamath Falls, OR. would be playing behind the store.

  • Crater Lake Resort
  • Our campsite
  • Where the band will perform.
  • Fort Creek runs behind our campsite.

After dinner we walked over with our chairs to the lawn to listen to the local band called “Michael Quinn & Cherry Wine”. They mainly play music from the 60s and 70s with a few other decades mixed in.

  • Michael Quinn & Cherry Wine
  • Enjoying the music
  • The band

After the band finished playing we headed in because we would be having an early start!

RV Adventures: A Trip Out West! Day 21

Friday, June 25, 2021

Dave went fishing first thing this morning. He caught a couple of bass and also broke his reel when he lost his balance in the mud along the river! He had hoped to fish this evening but not now!

  • Umpqua River
  • Baby bird waiting to be feed!
  • Mama bird.

Late morning we spent outside enjoying the beautiful scenery, listening to the flow of the river and reading our books or “resting our eyes”!

Reading???

This afternoon we drove over to Drain to go to their grocery store because the store in Elkton is very small and Drain has a local grocery that is a little bigger. Drain is a historic northwest timber town and was first settled in 1847. John Drain was the first mayor.

Drain, Oregon

While in Drain we visited Pass Creek Bridge. It was first built in 1876 and the current bridge replaced the original bridge in 1925. Pass Creek Bridge first carried stagecoaches over Pass Creek. The bridge was moved in 1987 and 1988 to a city park and was used as a pedestrian crossing. It was closed in 2014 when it became unsafe for pedestrians.

Pass Creek Covered Bridge

Not far from the bridge was a Drain covered wagon that was reconstructed to celebrate Oregon’s 100th year of statehood in 1959. It was to repeat the journey that brought pioneers to the Pacific Northwest. The wagon tried to follow the original Oregon trail from Independence, Missouri to Independence, Oregon and passed through six states (Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho, and Oregon).

Drain Covered Wagon

This evening we relaxed because tomorrow we leave Elkton, Oregon and our friends! It was so good to spend five days with them!

“Travel is better with friends!”

Our last sunset at Elkton RV Park and the Umpqua River.

Last sunset over the Umpqua river

RV Adventures: A Trip Out West! Day 20

Thursday, June 24, 2021

The four of us left in the morning for our drive to the Oregon coast. Our friends wanted to show us more of the coastal area. Winchester Bay was our first stop. It is a small sea town located at the Pacific end of the Umpqua River. It is known for its fishing, both fresh and saltwater.

Looking from Winchester Bay

We stopped at Ziolkouski Beach Park in Winchester Bay. It has a wide expanse of sandy beach. This is where you’ll find a triangle that is a jetty formation. It consists of two jetties that consist of rip-rap structures jutting out into the ocean and then they connect with each other and this forms the triangle. As we walked along the beach there was a LOT of driftwood! A family was creating a fort with the pieces of wood. In the middle of the triangle we saw the oyster pods from the Umpqua Triangle Oysters.

  • Ziolkouski Beach Park beach
  • All the driftwood
  • S. Umpqua Jetty
  • In the triangle, oyster pods
  • Umpqua Aquaculture’s Oyster Farm
Ziolkouski Beach Park
“The Triangle”

After walking along the beach and climbing over the jetty to look at the oyster pods, we drove to the Umpqua River Lighthouse. The lighthouse was originally built in 1857 near the mouth of the river and the Pacific Ocean but it was destroyed by a flood in February, 1864. The lighthouse was rebuilt at its current location in 1891 and was finished in 1894.

Umpqua River Lighthouse
Portside Restaurant, Coos Bay

Coos Bay is where we stopped for lunch. Coos bay is a city where the Coos River enters Coos Bay on the Pacific Ocean. This city is the most populated city along the coast. We had a delicious meal at the Portside Restaurant which is located along Coos Bay.

After lunch we visited Shore Acres State Park. This park was originally the summer home of Louis J. Simpson who was a lumberman and shipbuilder. It was built on a scenic bluff and then purchased by the state of Oregon in 1942 because after the crash of the Great Depression Simpson was bankrupt.

Shore Acres has a formal garden with plants and flowers from all over the world, a Japanese style garden, and the All-American rose selections. In the garden there is something blooming year-round. There is a trail that leads to an ocean cove called Simpson Beach and another trail that takes you to the cliff’s edge.