A late start this year, but the chase is on to find the sun
October 20, 2011

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19-May  Wave good by to the old homestead, shadowed below the all too familiar clouds of Nerk, So we head south and end up in Cave City, KY @ Cave Country
20-May   Big, Big Traffic at Birmingham, Found short cut with the phone, at least we moved.  Landed at Burmingham South Campground  JW managed to forget mls's 70th birthday!  
21-May- Thur   Third day we arrive at Gulf Shores,  five days of fun in the sun,  shrimp and Bahama Bob's Burger
22-May   Pool days and had to remove the water heater to stop the leak, Had help from onsite maintenance man. ML had some friends stop by to watch a little TV.
26-May   Moving on- Watched the Big Muddy flood into to Lake Pontchartrain from the  Causeway. Then across the flood waters at Baton Rouge. One more stop in Louisiana at A-Plus is Sulphur LA. 

 Yipes! my home camera caught a glimpse of Big Foot looking in the window, then the image went blank, Next day all is well again. hope he was just passing through
27-May   Finally in Texas, camp at Stone Creek, great pool and Jacuzzi.  Met cowboy who flew helicopters to round up the herd.
28-May- Thur   Buckhorn Lake Resort for a few days, lots of wind, Nice camp ground  
29-May   Had to print my coupon off the net, and the printer worked perfect after a winter in the yard.  They gave me 20% off.  
2-Jun After a few days in Kerrville we pushed on to Van Horn Texas, arrive just in time for a huge wind storm, mixed with rain.  
3- Jun  Great morning @ Lordsburg KOA TX, the wind has left the air clean and a bright sun to start the
 day. Whoops, I stumble to the left, later to the right, What the hell the RV is sloping, but the ground is perfectly level.  I go outside to investigate and there it is my first flat tire in over 100,000 miles of RV'ing. So I call the AAA and within 1/2 hour A&A Repair are working on it. So we are off to find Mary's favorite Winery in Deming, NM and then points west.   We rest in Lordsburg, NM, key to the storyline in the 1939 movie "StageCoach"		  
4-Jun  Camped at Far Horizons Tucson, concerned that the weekend attendants at Voyager would leave us without internet service. Great little place, with nobody around  
5-Jun  We wake up in beautiful Tucson!  Sounds great, but someone went swimming with the phone, now we need a new phone.  (not mls)  
6-Jun  Well now, the bulletin board says that the pool will be closed for a week, so we are out of here!  Arrive at the Voyager, much of the same, no clouds, all sunshine, mildly 97 with a breeze.  Align the dish for TV, hookup the phone, debug the internet, install ad-hoc connection for the second computer and ML is off to the pool. JW  learning about the new phone, one has to learn whisper, because if the phone hears you, it will do something.
7-Jun  ML meets up with old pool friends, JW chats with Gateman, Cable Guy and has a task of watching the neighbors stuff while they go off for a few days, lets see, 4 chairs, 3 coolers, 2 bikes, 1 propane tank, 1 tent, and a kayak.  Got the top off, and hit the trail for a bike ride.  
12-Jun  Intense searching of the sky has revealed no sign of a cloud, not even a wisp, northern corner of the state and south central is on fire so that's what all the chatter is about, but here, just balmy weather, bright sunshine,   
14-Jun  Whoa, a picture from Ron & Judy's back porch, eventually had to move out for 5 days as fire passed within 2 miles.
18-Jun  Well, I keep and eye on the old homestead as new siding is placed all around. Neighbor parks in drive for a better view of final product. Congrats to     
21-Jun  Power is restored to the camera, just in time to see the beautiful skies of Newark and serve as a reminder as to why I am here, not there.
22-Jun  Well it was a boring day, so I decided to do a little light gardening about the camper.
23-Jun  Texas Bowlers! 

 Met a guy who camps from San Antonio, Texas to Reno just to Bowl, and visit friends and family. Turns out we frequent a lot of the same places, Fort Stockton, Kerrville, Van Horn, El Paso and Benson. Most interesting was discussion about Gibson's Discount Center @ 111 West Main Street, Kerrville.  He's off to dine at the Desert Rose Inn in Benson.

24-Jun  MLS has us signed up for a Hootenanny at ASU.  
27 -Jun  OK, now we are getting some serious heat, 113F in the shade, no relief for 10 days  
29-Jun  We went to Sierra Vista for dinner with the Mayhew's, and we delivered a little rain, which soaked the seats which had to be covered for a drive  back to Tucson dodging small storms but didn't get wetter.  This brought a little fresh air and a cooling effect.
2-Jul Tragedy in the Desert, Born deep in the Chihuahuan Desert , accustomed to the arid land and the deep blue skies, then transported to my mother-in-law approx 1997......this little fellow concluded his life here near Tombstone AZ, the trip back to Arizona was just too much for this little guy, perhaps it was the price of gasoline.
4-Jul
July 4 Let Freedom Sing Concert (TUCSON) Arts Express celebrates America's birthday with a concert of patriotic songs staged Centennial Hall, University of Arizona, 3 pm, free, Well we went with Nancy & Judi, general opinion was the show was lacking.  Big rain storm soaked the Jeep since the top was off.
5-Jul Spent the day drying the Jeep, then .......a big rain came and blew the hell out of everything, trees down, houses damaged, and then the Jeep got soaked again as the top blew off and was airborne for at least three RV rows. Remains of window are in the street in front of RV.  80 mph winds did some serious damage to the park too.    
Out of production!
6-Jul This if the end of our first month stay, Plans, sign up for extended stay, and dry the Jeep again! Then park at an empty house!      Taking Stock: 1st Mo.
1) Hot water tank leak.       5) Flat Tire of Jeep
2) RV Flat Tire - Van Horn    6) Repair Toilet
3) Phone into the swimming pool
4) Wind destroys the Top of the Jeep!		  
7-Jul Went to talk to Progressive, not much they could do, gave me money for a new top, quote form Phoenix Jeep, except there are none in the US, as in none, Might have one in 3 Months.  But the owner showed us around his office>>> Real Dinosaur Eggs! and lots of critters,
8-Jul MLS breaks 200!   Hoo-Rah, went to Vail Steakhouse to celebrate
9-Jul Ordered new top from Amazon.com, they promised it by the 20th. For now, hiding the Jeep in the Assisted Living garage, but the Gestapo harasses me while the Voyager offers passes begrudgingly.
14-Jul So the top sits in Atlanta...., it's in Tucson, it's on the truck, it's HERE!..... Zip-zip, tug, pull, push, redrill holes in the right place, and presto, IT'S on the JEEP
17-Jul Well now, the new top dictates some organization and house cleaning, just learned how to easily open the back window for loading,  But can't touch the top, 2nd degree burns.
19-Jul The pretty side of a little rain, the hills are burning....
23-Jul Yippee!, another flat tire, now it's on the Jeep. Just a nail, but it's time for 4 new tires, so it's off to see Stacy at Discount Tires for a matched set.  Great place, free tire maintenance for the life of the tire, like Sears used to be, See my new Booties?
25-Jul Discovered restaurant at the Triple-T Truck Stop
26-Jul More bad news, planning to buy a park-model, I confirm financing only to find out that a couple from Ohio dropped in on their way to San Diego, and made an impulse buy, Now it's gone.
29-Jul Lunch @ Vince and Jeans, beer, hot dogs, chips, and chocolate and a grand time was had by all. Pat , Susie, Sandy, Judy and others.  
30-Jul Off to Redington Pass, high in the hills of the Coronado Forest, lots of action, sportsman shooting guns, major guns!, Jeeps on the trail, and UFO's.
See the UFO?It's shinning a light on me!		 Looking into the Tucson Valley

The Valley


 Trail Blazers
4-Aug Winding down the Voyager stay, celebrate by a visit to the Casio de Sol, for dinner and a  little gaming, after hours of playing JW ends up +$5.
5-Aug So I start the day with my 2 mile brisk walk about the park, then decide I should take a 2 wheel  ride in the Desert.   yah-O,  the trail proves difficult as bike breaks through the crust on the soil and becomes beach like, very exhausting, so after about 1.5 mile, fatigue, no water, no shade, and 103F and no sign of civilization it occurs to me that I am in trouble. Unknowingly, I have missed the path to the highway and am much deeper into the desert than planned.  Cell phone won't work, it's too hot, only works for a couple of seconds after putting in my pocket to hide from the sun. I find a road under the power lines heading to the prison, so start down the road, and again it turns to sand, so I decide to walk. I dump my bike but it's going to take longer, so after finding the road to be firmer, and feeling the effects of the heat, I go back to get the bike, and with the firmer surface on road, I make it to the Highway, but my lights are going out and there is no shade. The Highway Patrol arrives and calls Paramedics, he has water and AC. The lights start to come back on,  what a trip this was! Friendly Hwy Patrol heads for class and Paramedic offers to ride me home.

We get into the voyager with no pass! and he unloads my bike from the fire truck at the RV, home again.      

Just another fun day in the Arizona Sun.
8-Aug After two cloudy days in a row, we are out of here, off to find new wonders near Kanab!  
9-Aug We pushed north into injun country, as the the market crashed on more Obama babble. Temperature drops into the 60's.  Tuba City !  Navajo quiet and green lawnmower, and they fertilize the place too!
10-Aug Big push, across the Navajo Bridge, past the Vermillion Cliffs, and over the Kiabab Mountains, and a visit to Pipe Springs where the Mormons warred with the Piautes over water. Camp at Kanab, UT.  Coral Pink Sand Dunes and the Wave. (Can't get to Wave) Kanab over look.
11-Aug Phone stops working, but we push on to Lake Powell and dry camp. 
12-Aug Push through the desert Navajo Nation to Four Corners,($) ML buys ear rings. and Cortez CO is the nights' camp.  After several more bouts with Sprint tokens, I fix the phone myself.  Now weather, maps, GPS, are available. Fees! &  Rock people applaud as we leave Navajo Nation.
13-Aug  Heading east, lunch at the Continental Divide, 10,800ft. Smart money was on the Ford E450 wouldn't make it over Wolf Pass, but we are greeted by a dust storm at San Luis State Park, near Colorado Sand Dunes. Sunrise spoiled by clouds. 
14-Aug We pound the Colorado prairie all day to  and Land in Limon, CO KOA, walk for a pizza, and back in the rain.  
15-Aug A brutal day on the flat lands of Kansas, we find Milford State Park, KS. ML meets the hosts and gets free fire wood, and build a good old fashion campfire.
16-Aug A boring day, as we push to near St. Louis, Jonesburg Gardens Campground, a ma and pa owned RV park, hit hard by Obama and his thugs. The prize was the recommendation to dine at Frumpy Joe's, 105 East Booneslick Road, who would a guessed, great meal.  
17-Aug Last night out, just past Indianapolis, The S&H Campground. We’re Heading for the Barn Now!>>>>>>>