Dave Barry On Aging

If you are a "senior citizen" and like Dave Barry's sense of humor, I think you will enjoy this video...

Staying Cool

Last summer when the temperature here in Las Vegas was topping out at 114 degrees F, it was a struggle to keep the interior of my RV under 90 degrees, even with two 15,000 BTU roof air conditioners and a 6,000 BTU window unit. By mid-afternoon, I wanted to go to the movies or casinos just to cool down.

This summer I have taken a couple of steps to keeping the interior cooler. First, I have covered most of my windows with reflective insulation which has reduced the amount of heat coming into the RV significantly...

Second, I purchased a personal evaporative cooler from Walmart that works surprisingly well by using the evaporation of water to produce cool air...

These small units will not cool an entire room - they need to be within a couple feet of you.

Although the temperature has only reached 106 degrees to date, the interior of the RV has been much more comfortable than last year. Hopefully, I will be able to say the same when it exceeds 110.

Update (7/28/2019): The temperature hit 112 F today and although the interior of the RV is warm, it is better than last summer. I did have to replace the living room air conditioner due to the compressor failing, so this may have been part of the problem.

Forestry Roads

I took a short drive on several forestry roads in the mountains northwest of town this morning. Looking at the map I picked up, it appears you could spend weeks driving these trails and not see them all. In the summer months, they are hard-packed dirt in good condition. However, I suspect they might be impassible when wet as that clay-like material plugs up your tire treads to the point it is like driving on ice.

Tomorrow, I head back to Las Vegas as I have an appointment for treating my macular degeneration next week. Not looking forward to the 100+ degree temperatures.

Down Day

I needed to take a day off from exploring to do laundry, run a few errands and give my old body a rest, so I have extended my stay in Escalante two more days. I have discovered there are a number of attractions in the area that require a fair amount of hiking and the ability to scramble up and down some intimidating obstacles, something that at my age I am no longer able or willing to do. Wish I had come out West 40 years ago.

This area is a postcard factory
(view from inside the Jeep)

Burr Trail & Wolverine Loop

I took the Burr Trail to the Wolverine Loop to see a petrified forest. To get to the Burr Trail from Escalante, you take Highway 12 which is one of the more scenic roads in Utah...

Then, you drive through a beautiful canyon on the Burr Trail...

At the Wolverine Petrified Wood Area trailhead, you hike about a half hour to the petrified trees...

If you were to continue east on the Burr Trail Road, you would come to the Notom-Bullfrog Road which if you head south, takes you to Lake Powell and if you head north takes you through the Capital Reef National Park to Highway 24. I did the northern route seven years ago and it was one of the most impressive drives I have experienced. Unfortunately, I did not have time today to run it again.

Hell's Backbone Road

I used a modified track from JeepTheUSA.com for today's drive. Steve and Jayne have been everywhere but the electric chair and seen everything but the wind so when they create a gpx track, you can take it to the bank.

"Hell's Backbone Road is a 38-mile gravel road that was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s, and connects the towns of Boulder, Utah and Escalante, Utah. Halfway along the road is Hell's Backbone Bridge, which is 109 feet long, and 14 feet wide. A 1,500-foot drop is on either side."

Today's photos...

Ancient cliff dwelling
(rumor is my older cousin, Chris, built this as a summer home)

Road hazard

Posey Lake

Hell's Backbone Bridge

View from the bridge
(photos do not do this justice - it is simply breathtaking)

It doesn't get much better than this

Hole-in-the-Rock Road

The Hole-in-the-Rock Road is a 62 mile (one way) rough, dirt road from Escalante to the Hole-in-the-Rock on the western shore of Lake Powell following the general route of of the original Hole-in-the-Rock Expedition. There are a number of spur roads along the way that will take you to different attractions.

One such attraction is the Devils Garden...

For you adrenaline junkies, there are Peek-A-Boo (not the one near Kanab) and Spooky Slot Canyons. After reading that Peek-A-Boo has a 12 foot climb just to enter the canyon and Spooky is only 10 inches wide in some spots, I decided to forgo the experience.

At the end of the road is the famous Hole-in-the-Rock that the early Mormons called a "short cut"...

Escalante, Utah

I have wanted to visit the Escalante area of Utah for a while now as it is centrally located to some of the most beautiful National Parks, Monuments and Forests in the country. I have scheduled three days to explore but after leaving the visitor's center, realized that may not be enough time.

They grow them big in Utah

Peek A Boo Slot Canyon

If you have a high clearance, 4 wheel drive vehicle and are ever in the Kanab, UT area, I would highly recommend visiting Peek A Book Slot Canyon (there are also guided tours available in Kanab). It is simply stunning. Hopefully, the following video and photos will give you some idea of what to expect...

Note how the sandstone turns different colors depending on how the sunlight hits it...

White Pocket

White Pocket is an attractive alternative to The Wave which requires a BLM permit and allows only 20 visitors a day. The only requirement for White Pocket is a high clearance, 4 wheel drive vehicle. A GPS track or unerring sense of direction would be handy as there are not a lot of signs pointing the way.

I would not recommend hiking here in the summer months as the hot air and heat radiating from the rock makes dehydration a real threat (carry lots of water). What makes these areas along with most of southern Utah so unique are the colorful rock formations...

Trail into White Pocket

Sand Caves

5.8 miles north of Kanab on Highway 89 are the Sand Caves, man-made structures from an old mining operation. I intended to take photos in the late afternoon when the caves are supposedly "lit up". However, when I got there, I realized it involved a much steeper climb than I felt comfortable attempting (will live to photograph another day). Click here to see the photos I would like to have taken.

View from the base of the cliff

North Rim Grand Canyon

For a place that is literally out in the middle of nowhere, the north side of the canyon was quite busy today. Unfortunately, the road up to Cape Royal was closed (I'm guessing snow was the culprit as the road into the park did not open until May 15th). This was disappointing as I consider Angels Window one of the most impressive parts of the park. 

Today's photos...

Back In Kanab

The temperature in Las Vegas is 100+ degrees this week so I thought I would head north to cooler climes. Given the problems I have had with the Thor Axis, I did not want to go more than a day's drive from the dealership just in case something fails again.

With this in mind I decided to go back to Kanab, UT where I spent a week last summer. Unfortunately, it was so hot that I did not get to see as many attractions as I would have liked so I am back to give it another go.

Tomorrow, I plan to drive down to the north rim of the Grand Canyon. I was there in 2011 and found it to be much less crowded than the south rim along with some spectacular views of the canyon.

Peek A Boo Slot Canyon, Sand Caves and White Pocket are on my "to do" list. The RV Park where I am staying only had a site available for four nights so depending on how much more I want to see, I will either find another park in the area or head north to see something new. As I once told Willie Nelson, "it's good to be back on the road again".