RV Home Yet?

Welcome!

We- Alice and Jaimie - invite you to participate in our new blog. Our intention is to have lots of good information and interesting tidbits on the RV lifestyle. We'll be happy to answer your questions too. Both of us have been full-time RVers in the past, though now both travel part-time. Jaimie is an expert at RVing for dollars. She is the author of Support Your RV LIfestyle! An Insider's Guide to Working on the Road. Alice has written Taking the Mystery out of Retiring to an RV. Together we have written RV Traveling Tales: Women's Journeys on the Open Road, The Woman's Guide to Solo RVing, and Taking the Mystery out of RV Writing. We invite you to check out our website RVHometown.com  for all sorts of informative articles, recommended books and fun things for the full-time RVer. Whether you have already hit the road or are a wannabee, we have something to offer. We look forward to conversing with you on many aspects of the RV lifestyle! Jaimie and Alice

Loop detour including a 10% grade!

We had planned to do a Navajo-led all-day tour of Monument Valley but the sky was cloudy and there was a good chance of rain. The next day was supposed to be sunny so we decided to wait one day on the tour and explore a bit of Utah instead. It would be a chance for George to see some neat places I had been and wanted to show him.

We headed up Hwy 163 towards Mexican Hat. Just north we took Hwy 261. The first left at Goosenecks State Park takes you to a viewpoint that overlooks the Goosenecks of the San Juan. These entrenched meanderings are huge and we could see at least 4 the size that are shown from here.

Back on 261, we headed towards the Moki Dugway. Looking up, you can't trace the road that leads you to the top of this mesa but the sign advises you it is narrow, gravel and 10 percent grades! Here's a shot from the bottom and then looking back at the switchbacks about 3/4 of the way up. RVs and long trucks are not advised but that  doesn't stop them from using this shortcut. It saves many miles - as long as your brakes hold out. Actually my late husband Bill and I did take our Pace Arrow motorhome up and down it - in low gear. What amazes me is to see rental RVs using it. Most do not have that much experience driving steep grades with a larger vehicle.

The next day our guide at Monument Valley said that almost at the top, an 18-wheeler forced his brother off the road and his car tumbled down the side. Fortunately he was thrown free and in between two huge boulders. The car bounced on top of the boulders or he would have been killed. Scary! This road is not for someone with a fear of narrow roads and heights.

We took the first left at the top and drove to another overlook with an even more expansive view before continuing on to the Kane Gulch ranger station. We talked to the volunteer from Colorado. This whole area is known as Grand Gulch Primitive Area. There are many Anasazi ruins. A lot of backpackers hike here but there are a few daytrips.

One I was familiar with and wanted to show George was the Cave Tower ruins. We turned right on Hwy  95 towards Blanding. You have to know where to turn but here, at the head of a deep canyon were seven towers. The one pictured still has a door lentil. One other has a significant wall; the rest are piles of stone. At the head of the canyon is a cave formed by water, which lingers there after rains. Many small ruins are visible along the canyon walls on both sides if you look carefully and have binoculars. I have boondocked there in the past.

Heading to Blanding we passed Butler Wash where the canyons end. You can drive along the wash back to Hwy 163. In Blanding we went to the Edge of Cedars State Park Museum. Their collection of Anasazi artifacts is outstanding. Before the Antiquities Act was passed, pothunters scoured ruins in the Southwest for pots and other artifacts to sell to collectors. In fact, early archaeologists even did just that. Many of the national and state parks that protect the ruins have few artifacts that were found there to display. They disappeared long ago.

The museum had many pots, effigies, miniatures, plus other displays. Two turkey feather cloaks were display; one still had the soft feathers. A unique item (pictured) was an Abert squirrel pelt covered with macaw feathers. Macaws were brought to the area from Mexico. Turkeys had been domesticated even before the Anasazi and were kept for food and feathers. It is definitely worth a stop.

As we headed back dark clouds opened up. It rained all the way back to Monument Valley. Had we taken the tour this day, we'd have been soaked. It's always nice to find you've made the right decision. Jaimie Hall Bruzenak    Photos by George Bruzenak

On the road again: Landmarks

After our visit to Chaco Culture National Historical Park we left Bloomfield. First stop was to pick up our replacement tires in Farmington. The Goodyear tire shop worked quickly and we were out of there in 30-45 minutes.

Heading to Monument Valley on Highway 64 we passed Shiprock, a huge butte rising out of the plain. For Tony Hillerman fans, Shiprock is a prominent landmark. Joe Leaphorn or Jim Chee visit the town at least once in each novel. On our way to Chaco the wind was blowing and the skies pretty dimmed by all the dust. On the way back it was a little better. It was still a bit windy but a thunderstorm had cleared the air somewhat.

We did make a quick detour to Four Corners. It's the only place in the U.S. where you can stand in four  states all at once!

We turned north on Hwy 191 towards Bluff, then south on Hwy 163 towards Monument Valley. Mexican Hat, a small tourist town right on the San Juan, has a feature we had to stop to photograph - the formation that gave the town its name. Yes, a Mexican hat! We also had a little fun with it as you can see. How do you like George's new hat?! Jaimie Hall Bruzanek

Photo of the day: How do you refuel an airplane in the desert?

Answer: Fly it to the nearest gas station! At least that's what they do in Monument Valley, AZ.

The Las Vegas of the Anasazi

Some call Chaco Canyon in New Mexico the "Las Vegas" of the Anasazi. Last year I read House of Rain by Craig Childs. He visited many of the Anasazi ruins, studied literature and theories to try to piece together what happened to this culture. He hiked and climbed into ruins deep in canyons rarely visited and climbed to almost inaccessible ruins high on canyon walls throughout the southwest and even into northern Mexico. He makes a case for a constant migration of the Anasazi, moving north and south, depending on weather and growing conditions. Chaco was the cultural center for a few hundred years.

No matter what the reason, Chaco Canyon was different than the others. Chaco is centrally located amongst  thousands of sites. Here in the canyon is a collection of pueblos with massive numbers of rooms. Pueblo Bonito, the largest of the several pueblos in Chaco, when finished, was four stories high with more than 600 rooms and 40 kivas. At the same time Pueblo Bonito was being constructed so were two other large pueblos. More were added later.

Roads 30 feet wide radiated out from Chaco towards other ruins. Was this a ceremonial center? for trade? Most archaeologists now think that Chaco Canyon had a small number of people who lived here year-round but at times had thousands of people gather there. They have found macaw feathers buried in the ruins which had to come from Mexico or even further south. (pictured)

Most of the ruins we've visited have been located in protected areas- built into alcoves on canyon walls where they were not easily accessed. Look at the ones in Mesa Verde, as an example. They were defensible because an intruder would be exposed on the canyon wall - and you needed to know which foot  and hand to put in the first hand- and footholds or you could be stranded on the canyon wall. The pueblos at Chaco Canyon are located on the canyon floor.

Another difference is the size. Chaco could accommodate thousands and rooms were large compared to  rooms in other ruins. Most other ruins held at most a few families and rooms were tiny. The space in the alcove was small as well as the area to grow food to support them. Chaco ruins have not only lots of small kivas but great kivas too, which could accommocate many more people.

Many of the ruins were abandoned in the 1200s and archaelogists have been speculating about their disappearance. The Southwest had a severe drought lasting many years. That could have driven people away or they could have died of starvation. Some ruins, though, have been found centuries later (where pothunters could or did not find them) that look like the inhabitants went out for the day, planning to come back, but never did. Their bowls and other possessions are still there. Childs makes the case they migrated to other sites, mostly south, or were absorbed into other groups. The Hopi and Zuni claim ancestral ties to the Anasazi.

It is a mystery still that may never be solved. Because early archaeologists often decimated the ruins they were excavating,  today's archaeologists are much more careful. They do much less excavating and usually fill them back up when finished. Now the government obtains permission from the related native tribes, which can be hard to get, plus money for that work is not plentiful. Knowing how techniques advance, they also want to leave sites intact for future generations who may be able to get more answers with advancing technology.

As visitors to Chaco Canyon and other Anasazi sites, we can try to imagine what life was like, living in this land of little rain. What would it be like to have to spend most of your time ensuring your survival? What about those years when your corn, beans or squash did not produce enough to survive the winter? There were no grocery stores or places to buy more food. At sites I have hiked to in remote areas, tiny corn cobs still in evidence show that their corn was much different than the plump, hybrid ears of corn we have today.

Sit at places like this and listen to the silence. Imagine what it was like, it you can. If nothing else, slow down inside and enjoy the solitude.

Details

We did enjoy a ranger tour of Pueblo Bonito.  A film and ranger-led tours are offered each day. Three nights a week the park offers an astronomy program. It begins with a talk on how the Chacoans used the night sky. There is evidence of deliberately lining up openings with solstices, for example, and their pueblos were oriented on exact north/south and east/west lines. Later you have a chance to observe the night sky through telescopes- both the park's and those set up by amateur astronomers. It was cloudy so we did not stay. Bring your own lunch and dinner- it's about 30 miles back out to a convenience store. No food is sold inthe park.

The park also has a campground. They advise a 30 foot limit but a 39 foot 5th wheel had gotten into one of the spaces. Ony a few spaces accommodate larger rigs and several of those are closed while they upgrade the sewage system. The road to the park is pretty rough - read washboard - for about 13 miles with no guarantee of a site since it is first-come, first-served. There is a restroom but no showers and no hookups. Unsure of the road or availability of camping sites for our 33 foot 5th wheel, we opted to stay in Bloomfield at a park and drove down for our visit. It's about 60 miles from town to park headquarters.

After reading Child's books and others about the Anasazi, it was enlightening to actually see the differences between Chaco and other sites I've visited and to experience being in the center of their culture rather than on the periphery. The multi-storied pueblos, the great kivas, and the location of several of these pueblos in one location tell a dfferent story than a small ruin located in an alcove. It helps me see more of the overall picture and how the sites scattered through four states might be interconnected. Jaimie Hall-Bruzenak    Photos by George Bruzenak

Canyon de Chelly -view from the top

After spending the day in the canyon, the next day we drove the two rims and did the only hike into the  canyon that is allowed without a Navajo guide. It was awesome to see the same sights from the higher perspective.

There are three pulloffs (and five viewpoints) from the north rim drive. There are six or so from the south  rim drive.

The hike to White House ruins, which we had seen on our  tour, was about a mile and one-half each way with a 550 foot elevation gain. The trail was well-used and in decent condition with lots of switchbacks. Water, hats and sunscreen are advised but iInevitably we saw lots of "hikers" with no water and wearing flip flops! They made it, but.... Shown here is the view from the top. The next photo shows the swirling sandstone we passed on our hike.

Looking down you can get see the farms along the rivers. The ruins look tiny. On the south rim we looked down on Spider Rock in Canyon de Chelly, which is 800 feet tall! At this point the canyon walls are about 1000 feet high.

We stayed in the park campground. Even though our friend Lloyd had not been able to use his Aircard, we had thought we might get an Internet signal with ours because we had a strong cell phone signal plus we have an amplifier and Wilson antenna. We finally figured out that there was no data signal. We had parked in Loop #3, a little far from the Lodge which did have free Wi-Fi. Every once in a while the signal would come through, but when a lot of people were on I had to drive up to the lodge, park outside and use my computer in the truck. (I probably could have gone in the cafeteria if I had wanted to order something.)

On to Chaco Canyon. As you read, we had our third tire problem in less than a year. It didn't happen in the best of spots but the tire held long enough to get to a school yard to change it. More from Chaco. Jaimie Hall-Bruzenak    Photos by George Bruzenak

Canyon de Chelly- from the bottom

Canyon de Chelly was one of the centers of the Anasazi (ancestral Puebloans) Indians from around A.D. 750-1300. The canyon was protected as a monument in 1931 to preserve the numerous Puebloan-type ruins that are still found tucked into alcoves at all levels in the towering sandstone canyon walls. After the Anasazi disappeared, Navajos arrived in the 1700s. They have been farming this canyon ever since.

Because Canyon de Chelly National Monument is located on tribal land and Navajos still farm within the canyon during the summer, you can only go in the canyon with a native guide. (The one exception is a hike down to the White House ruins.)

We signed up for the all-day tour through Antelope Lodge in the park. The roads had just opened due to the heavy winter rains so this was only the third day the all-day tour was being given this year. Water still flowed in both canyons and this had kept vehicles out. It turns out that many tours are offered into the canyon by hotels and individuals, not just by the main lodge at the park. Our "Deuce and a half" truck held 24 people; other tours were smaller tours in jeeps or Suburbans. For a wet year like this, our tour had decided advantages. We sat way high and could go through deep water. No other tour went as deep into the canyon —at least not today.

Canyon de Chelly is actually two main canyons: Canyon del Muerte (canyon of death) and Canyon de Chelly (pronounced Canyon d’Shay). Benson, our Navajo guide and driver, told us this was the "shake ‘n bake" tour. At the end of the day we all agreed that was an apt name! We went up both canyons, stopping at ruins and petroglyphs, with Benson giving us background on them. He also told us about his life as a Navajo. He had not been interested in the stories his grandfather told and had always planned to leave the reservation and never come back. Now he’s sorry he didn’t listen to the stories and he did return.

We crisscrossed the streams in both canyons umpteen times. The cottonwood trees had that bright, vibrant green look of new leaves. Lots of Russian olive trees and tamarisk —both foreign invaders — also grew in the bottom. Everywhere there was some land between the river and the canyon walls, we would see horses grazing or hogans with fields waiting to be planted. Navajos sold their jewelry and rock art at our pit stops. Families came back in the canyon to play in the stream and pools.

The ruins were partial structures but you could make out rooms, kivas, granaries, a tower and a cistern.  Several had elaborate petroglyphs. We stopped to see Navajo Fortress, a huge red sandstone butte where Navajos hid on top from U.S. troops trying to round up them up to take them to Ft. Sumner. One group managed to outlast the soldiers. Our last stop in Canyon del Muerto was the Mummy Cave (pictured) where we had lunch. It is one of the largest ruins in the canyon. It was so named because of two mummies found by archeologists in the 1880s.

The other canyon had the large White House Ruin. We would hike down to here again the next day. We drove back as far as Spider Rock. (pictured)

Our tour turned out to be extra adventuresome. Our "Deuce and a half" lost its brakes somewhere in the first canyon. Benson used the gears to brake but when he had to shift to low-low coming out of the stream bed, it would often roll back until the gear caught and give us a jerk. We definitely got the "shake and bake" tour! Coming out of Canyon de Chelly, the truck only had two low gears and we crept along at about 5 mph. We had enough people for two trucks and the other driver was able to jerry-rig something to fix it  so we could go a bit faster. We did make it safely back.

The next day we drove along the two rims and stopped at all the overlooks. We could see many of the same ruins we saw on the tour but with a very different perspective. More about that in my next post. Jaimie Hall-Bruzenak

Photos by George Bruzenak

A Tired Tale of Three Tires

Ah, RV'ing...sitting around a campfire, reliving the travels of the day, or maybe eating s'mores, or perhaps just relaxing with your favorite libation. But, there are days when nothing satisfies. Not all RV'ing can be considered idyllic...today was one of those days.

Five days ago we left Holbrook, AZ and headed toward Petrified National Forest NP, towing our 33' trailer. The 18-mile trip was uneventful, until we turned into the park entrance. The headlights on a car behind us were frantically flashing and I pulled over and stopped. The man got out and approached, pointing to a tire. He had followed us after noticing white smoke billowing out of our trailer, unnoticed by us (probably because of the high winds). When I got out to inspect, I found that one of our Goodyear G614 trailer tires had failed, leaving a "road alligator" trailing behind us. The "alligator" was firmly stuck between the shock aborber and brake caliper on our trailer. (Our trailer is equipped with Mor-Ryde electric-over-hydraulic disc brakes and suspension). This photo shows me, trying to free the alligator.

It took over 2 hours to disentangle the alligator, involving some cuss words and the loss of not a little blood and flesh. At least the alligator ended up at a tire repair facility in Holbrook ("Future Tires"...nice guys. If you're in the area and have a problem, visit them), rather than on the road to snare someone else. The photo shows the tire, still holding air pressure, and the separated tread.

This was the second Goodyear G614 "G-rated" tire to fail in the last half year. The first was in Pennsylvania and I thought (silly me!) that one might be a one-of-a-kind failure. That one was replaced under warranty.

The Service Manager at Future Tires noted that the tires were four years old. He considered Goodyear tires at that age to be "old". We replaced that failed tire with a Chinese something-or-other, a "G" rated tire and moved on.

Fast forward four days. We left Canyon de Chelley on the Navajo Reservation (Chinle) and were driving north toward Farmington, NM, when suddenly the truck and  trailer shuddered. Yes, four days after the second tire failure, we experienced our third.  The highways on the Navajo Reservation are narrow and there are no pull-outs. We limped at 35 mph (flashers on) to a small town where we were able to pull off and find a paved area to change the tire. Luckily, the tire again held air pressure after the tread separation. We're actually getting very good at changing tires on the trailer. It only took us about 15 minutes to get back on the road. 

So, in less than one-half year, we've had three Goodyear G614's fail. Our trailer is not overweight, provable by the recent printouts from RVSEF. I also have had Pressure-Pro tire monitors installed on both the trailer and the tow truck, and keep the trailer pressures between 105 and 110 psi as recommended.

What could be the problem? Two different service managers tell me that four years is a "good" lifetime, and that if you store the trailer for a "couple" of months, a flat spot could develop which could lead to the failures we experienced. These tires have less than 20,000 miles on them and it would seem that they should certainly last longer.

We are now in Bloomfield, NM, waiting for two replacement tires. The first is to replace the one that separated today, the other to replace the only tire of the original four that has not failed, but is reaching that mystical "four-year" mark.

In a couple of days we'll continue our travels. Three of the tires will be Goodyear G614's, the other is a Chinese something-or-other. The cost difference between them is significant. The Goodyear's average about $280 per tire, the Chinese cost $129. Both are "G" rated; time will tell which performs better, and more cost-effectively. Time will tell, and we'll keep the trailer jack handy.

Travel stereotypes or - "We haven’t seen any cowboys in the West"

Yesterday at an overlook at Canyon de Chelly we overheard two younger European women talking to an older couple. Here on the Navajo reservation they had obviously seen many Indians, but they were saying how disappointed they were in not seeing cowboys!

Their picture of the West obviously included cowboys and Indians. They probably passed quite a few teepees at trading posts along I-40 but where were the cowboys riding their horses? The older man informed them that he and his wife had horses and he was a cowboy, but alas, without the hat and boots (and probably the horse), he didn’t suffice. And it’s not just foreign visitors who are expecting cowboys and Indians. Last summer at a campground potluck in the Midwest, we met an older couple who asked us if you could see Indians if you came to Arizona.

Have you ever had a picture of what an area would be like and found it to be quite different when you actually arrived? My best example is Kansas and Nebraska. I pictured one big, flat cornfield. Yet driving through I found it much more diverse and quite fascinating. At one time Kansas was the "West." Cattle drives ended here for shipping to the east. I thought this area was a place to drive through to get somewhere else. Between the sights and the history, I could spend several weeks exploring.

How about cities? Do you have a fear of them or avoid them? Los Angeles is one city most RVers would like to bypass. Yet get off the interstates and many of the areas that make up L.A. are beautiful. I could see living in some neighborhoods quite happily if I didn’t have to drive through traffic. And there is excellent hiking plus tons to do in the metropolitan area.

Our ideas about other countries and even our own country are shaped by what we have seen, heard and read. Is it any wonder that two young women were hoping to see the wild west? Jaimie Hall-Bruzenak

Hubbell Trading Post

On our way to Canyon de Chelly, we stopped off at the Hubbell Trading Post, a National Historic Site in Ganado. It was built in the 1880s after the Navajos returned from the "Long Walk" and needed the trade goods white traders brought. John Hubbell established the trading post and also helped open markets for Navajo goods.

Navajos weaved beautiful blankets, which did not sell well with Anglos. Hubbell  suggested they make them thicker so they could be sold as rugs. It was a success. In the Hubbell Trading Post we saw one rug priced at $7500! Others sell for much more. (The large one on the wall is priced at $7500.)

Y ou can take a self-guided walking tour through the grounds. A tour of the Hubbell house is available several times a day for a small fee. There is no entrance fee or fee to tour the grounds. In the visitor center is a loom where visitors can try their hand at weaving. When I visited here several years ago with my grandchildren, we each took a turn with help and supervision.

The trading post itself is open too. Snacks, gift items, jewelry and rugs can be purchased. The old trading post today looks much like it did years ago, though price tags are higher!

Trading posts were a vital part of life on the reservation, especially since the  Navajos returned from the Long Walk to find their herds decimated and fields destroyed. Jaimie Hal-Bruzenak

Photos by Gerge Bruzenak

The more things change.... Route 66

Leaving Holbrook for Canyon de Chelly, we drove I-40 along old Route 66. Route 66 goes right through Holbrook, then parallels (or is sometimes underneath) I-40 through the rest of AZ and on into the next several states.

In metropolitan areas we know the major chains of stores and chains - Wal-Mart, Cracker Barrell, and many more. Out on lonely stretches of highway like in eastern Arizona, those chains are non-existent. There are still trading posts and mom & pop businesses that have to lure you off the road. Many have free offers advertised on billboards leading up to the exit or have something unusual to see. Just like in the old Route 66 days. In fact, some could be holdovers from then.

In Holbrook, Rock City tantaizes you with a 2.7 mllion year old alligator. There's an ostrich ranch east of there. Others too  will give you something free if you just stop in. Still others have dinosaurs  and teepees within view of the interstate to spark your interest.

If nothing else, whizzing along the highway, these can be a source of entertainment. They certainly aren't the cookie cutter  billboards and signs you see for the chains. To me, that makes this drive along I-40 more interesting. Jaimie Hall-Bruzenak