Trail Trash

In Arizona there is public land held in trust by the state and like dispersed camping on BLM land, you are allowed to camp free for up to 14 days. Unfortunately, there are individuals who not only abuse the priviledge but leave mountains of trash behind after they leave...

This is one of the major reasons that the government closes trails to the public
(photo taken northwest of the RV park on state trust land)

Happy Halloween

Only In California

DEFCON 3

I just learned that our country has been at DEFCON 3 since June of this year. DEFCON is a U.S. military term that stands for Defense Readiness Condition. This is part of a system that indicates the level of threat the U.S. faces, or may face, from other countries and the readiness of a potential military response to such threat. DEFCON 5 is the lowest state of readiness indicating minimal threat, whereas DEFCON 1 indicates maximum threat and readiness.

DEFCON 3 indicates that select forces are ready to deploy where needed in 15 minutes. This level means that there is an increase in the readiness of U.S. forces above what would be considered normal. Such response readiness would most likely apply to relevant and necessary security forces as opposed to the military as a whole. I am surprised at how little coverage this has gotten from the media.

Lottery Winner

Ultimate RV

I think I have found the perfect motorhome for you "high rollers" out there...

Wonder how many gallons per mile this thing gets

Desert Ride

Jerry, Cindy, Maynard, Diane, Ralph, Lyn and I rode the RZRs out into the desert east of the park where we explored old mines...

Observed the local wildlife...

And rehydrated at the Tiki Bar in Queen Valley...

It sure beats playing shuffle board in Florida!

Warranty Has Expired

Babylon Bee - Fake News You Can Trust

The Babylon Bee is one of the best satirical websites on the Internet. After watching their "Californians Adjust To New Life In Texas" video, I found another one regarding the raid of the MyPillow Guy that I liked...

I think what makes their videos so enjoyable is their ability to take things that we see on a daily basis and then use satire to point out how ridiculous and ofttimes hypocritical they are.

Sneaky Cactus

This cactus thought it could tiptoe by my place without me noticing...

Californians Adjust To New Life In Texas

Tube of Terror

While looking at videos of professional eaters, I came across the Tube of Terror Challenge where you are required to eat a tube of peanuts with a Scoville rating of 13,000,000 within ten minutes and then endure a five minute afterburn. Checkout these videos of individuals who undertook the challenge.

Purchase on Amazon

Professional Eaters

While surfing the web, I discovered a number of videos featuring "professional eaters", some of which are simply amazing given the amount of food they able to consume in one sitting. Who would have thought you could make a very good living by eating large quantities of food. Here are two channels that hopefully you will find entertaining...

• BeardMeatsFood
• KatinaEatsKilos

It appears the huge football type of eaters have been replaced by smaller, leaner individuals. I believe the thinking is their stomachs are not restricted by layers of fat and have more room to expand.

Burning Man

Burning Man is back after having been cancelled the last two years due to the pandemic. If you would like to see what is going on there this year, checkout the live webcast at http://burningman.org/live-webcast.

Having followed the event on the Internet in past years, I am always amazed at the imagination and creativity of some very talented people. If I were a lot younger, I think I would enjoy the experience. However at my age, I do not think I would like the dust, the heat and the crowds.

Back Home

I cut my Utah trip short and have returned home early. The recent rain and flooding has made a lot of the trails I wanted to run either impassible or so rough as to loosen the fillings in your teeth. I will miss the spectacular scenery...

Goblin Valley

Keith and Jayne had never been to Goblin Valley State Park, so we drove down and had a picnic lunch overlooking the "goblins". Having taken a number of photos in past visits, I did not take any in the park this trip, but did take one on the way back that I liked...

Click on photos to enlarge

While stopping for gas in Green River, we met this couple that were towing a unique vehicle to Burning Man in the Black Rock Desert of northwest Nevada...

That Ford van allows them to drive around Burning Man loading/unloading passengers as they go. It has propane burners that can set the tin roof on fire which should be pretty impressive at night.

Off-road Rescue

Yesterday on our way to Fossil Point, we came across a young couple whose van was stuck out in the middle of nowhere. Even with both our Jeeps piggy-tailed together, we could not budge the van, so we took them back to town where they got a tow truck to come out. That did not work as the tow truck got stuck. Fortunately, the tow driver was able to get his brother to bring a farm tractor out and they finally got everyone out safely around 4:00 p.m. I got a nice thank you text from the couple saying they were okay and spending the night bookdocking in the San Rafael Swell.

Moab 100-Year Flood

For three weeks I monitored the weather in the Green River and Moab area looking for a good time to visit. I finally saw a forecast for sunny skies with a slight chance of rain this week. Well, the weather forecasters here must work for the Biden administration as Moab just had a 100-year flood with several feet of water running down main street. Checkout this video at https://youtu.be/qPh0TizDHJA. Clearly, this will impact our off-road exploring in the area but I am not sure to what extent. Will be extra careful and when in doubt, back out!

Update (8/25/2022): Here is a much better video of the Moab flooding - https://youtu.be/DTZEEi5Pz5E

Coal Canyon Part Deux

Keith and Jayne from the Arizonian have joined me in Green River, Utah to explore the San Rafael Swell. Today, we did Coal Canyon just east of town. I ran this trail back in 2020 and thought it would be an easy half-day ride after yesterday's long drive to get here. However, recent rains and flooding have created washouts that now require a 4 wheel drive vehicle with high clearance. Even that was not enough as near the end of the trail there was an impassible section that required us to turn around and drive back the way we came which made for a much longer trip than I had planned.

Lakeside Property

A strong thunderstorm ripped through the park yesterday afternoon, knocking out power for about an hour. The good news is there was no damage to my park model and I now have lakeside property...

Click on photo to enlarge

Postal Truck In Cemetery

It looks like they have begun delivering ballots...

Animal Cruelty

Toad Armageddon

My air conditioner creates a small pool of water as it removes humidity from the air. In as much as water is a scarce commodity here in the desert, I thought this would be a good place to setup my trail cam. When I checked the footage this morning, I was surprised and somewhat shocked at what I saw...

Here's an informative article on how desert toads are able to live in such a dry and hot environment.

Arizona Sunset

Arizona has some of the most beautiful sunsets in the country. Here's what I was able to capture yesterday evening from my front porch...

Great way to end the day

Salesman of the Year

Gavin Newsom, Governor of California, has been named "Salesman of the Year" by U-Haul...