Farley Heads for the Desert, Day 6: Bucket-List Item, Check

We didn't get a pic of Farley camping at Agua Fria last night before we went to sleep, with the intention of doing it in the morning.  But at 4 a.m., in fairly heavy rain, we both had the same idea:  We better move out of this area. I was worried we might get stuck in mud, Marc was worried about flash floods across the route out.  So we moved to the gravel parking lot at the trailhead, just a block from the interstate, and tried to get a little sleep as the semis rolled on by.  Funny shit Marc says:  "The roar of commerce."

That morning we stopped at a rest area where there was an old-school VW bus parked next to a Westy.  I told Marc to park by them, but he didn't want to, as we're both convinced that Farley is not as cool as those vans and we're not as cool as their drivers.  I came out of the bathroom to find a 20-something girl near Farley.  She said, "I love your Eurovan.  We were checking it out. I swear weren't creeping."  Turns out she drives the Westy and she and her tatted guy friend were on their way to go camping for the weekend.  He really wants a Eurovan because they have more power and are more reliable.  I guess it's all a matter of perspective which van you think is better!  We were just happy the cool kids talked to us.

We headed into Scottsdale and went for a short, hot mid-day hike at the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, then on to meet my Aunt Karen and Uncle Dick at Arizona Bike Week.  We got to see flat track dirt racing, stunt jumping, a big-ass Harley stunt show, and then Reverend Horton Heat and Social Distortion concerts.  Marc can now tick that one off his bucket list.

The morning after the storm.

Sure, there's some perspective here,
but this was maybe
the biggest grapefruit I'd ever seen. 
Fresh Southern citrus is so delicious.

Crazy cactus face.

Still have a thing for prickly pear!

Cactus hike selfie.

The Arizona Bike Week stunt riders were insane.

Bucket-list item:  Check.

Farley Heads for the Desert, Day 5: Who Knew Flagstaff Had Good Beer?

This morning we left camp with the intention of heading to Sedona after finding showers in Flagstaff.  After a quick detour in Williams to see Route 66, we drove on to Flagstaff (not knowing that Route 66 goes right through it). 

We worked out at Anytime Fitness and took much overdue showers, then headed to their historic downtown.  Turns out, it's really cute. 

They had several taprooms (and even a beer trail), so we asked at the visitors' center which one was best if we had time for only one beer.  The guy said he couldn't show favoritism but, if I rephrased my question, maybe he could answer it.  I asked, "How could I better ask my question to get the answer I'm looking for?"  He said maybe I could ask which was the oldest brewery.  So I did, and he recommended Flagstaff Brewing.  We headed there, where they had maybe 10 beers on their menu.  But they didn't have the wheat, nor the porter, nor the stout at the moment.  I think they had five on tap today.  So I had a crappy amber and Marc had a crappy IPA. 

We really liked the vibe of the town, so we decided to skip Sedona--we've already seen plenty of red rocks this trip, and the shops would probably be more upscale than we'd be interested in--and spend the afternoon in Flagstaff.  With the extra time, we found better beer, at Historic Barrel and Bottle House.  Next door was Proper Meats and Provisions, where we got a link of homemade sausage to grill for dinner and some homemade chorizo for Marc for breakfast.  After scouting out the rest of their very walkable downtown, we hit the interstate toward Phoenix. 

Tonight we're camping at Agua Fria National Monument, which is the place we stopped for our very first Farley night bringing him home to Montana from Tucson. We're drinking my homemade aged oak Manhattan cocktail in a jar, eating Lulu's chocolate made in Flagstaff, and listening to music while playing yet another game of cribbage.  Tomorrow we head into Scottsdale to meet up with my Aunt Karen and Uncle Dick for a day at Arizona Bike Week and the Social Distortion concert. 

Historic Route 66 in Williams, Arizona.

Awesome springy location, awful beer. 
Plus Marc's allergies kicked in.

Much better beer.

Have flask, will backpack.

Cool hipster meat market.

Farley Heads for the Desert, Day 4: Victory, 5:03 a.m. Victory Again, 7:16 a.m.

So, the mouse from the previous night apparently traveled with us from Bryce to outside Kanab, Utah.  Marc was up and down for two hours during the night trying to figure out where he was and catch him in the act.  Little Bugger averted a trap baited with a sunflower seed and again with a piece of carrot.  But third time was a charm.  He was caught and the trap thrown outside.  But apparently he brougth family because a little while later, the noise started up again.  Marc went back outside and got the trap, reset it, and caught the second mouse on the second try.  Two down, hopefully none to go.

We started out toward the Grand Canyon, with a stop at the National Staircase Escalante visitors' center dinosaur display. I may not know a pictograph from a petroglyph, but know I know the difference between archeology and paleontology. Then on past Lake Powell and into Grand Canyon National Park.  Did all the typical touristy things:  picnicked, walked the rim trail, watched a couple of ranger talks on geology and condors, and stopped by the visitors' center. 

Tonight we're holed up in the Kaibob National Forest.  Free camping but, unlike the previous two nights, this time there are lots of spur roads and lots of other campers not too far away.  And, hopefully, no mice.

Be gone, little bastards.

The grandest of canyons.

Another freebie, this time in the Kaibob National Forest.

Farley Heads for the Desert, Day 3: Hoodoo You Love?

In the middle of the night, I woke up to the rattling of a food package.  I swore we'd taken a mouse on board, but Marc looked through the cabinet--where we keep all the food except a couple of things that wouldn't fit in plastic bins--and there were no signs of invaders. A little later, Marc heard it, too, and we realized we had a new vacation partner.

It was super-cold when we got up, 24 degrees on the new outside thermometer Marc gave me for Christmas.  We bundled up and headed into Bryce Canyon National Park, where I asked one of the rangers to suggest a 5- or 6-mile hike.  She told me to try Peekaboo Loop, a "strenuous" route accessible from Bryce Point.  Apparently neither of us can read, because we mistakenly parked at Inspiration Point, which added an extra three miles round-trip along the rim to our planned hike.  Along the way, we saw an interpretive sign that said if you bring back a pic of yourself at three of the signs showing gold medallions, you'd get a prize at the visitor's center.  So, we did that, and I was awarded an "I hiked the Hoodoos" sticker afterward.

Since the hikes in Bryce are down into the amphitheater and then up, up, up to finish, we were both pretty tired.  So we decided to end our day in the park and get in a few hours' drive before nightfall.  We stopped in Kanab, Utah, home of the free Little Hollywood Museum.  In a backlot behind a big gift shop, they have several facades and buildings that were used in Western movies and TV shows shot in the area.  Gunsmoke and The Outlaw Josie Wales are a couple of them, along with Kenny Loggins video (?). 

We continued on to another free BLM campsite.  It was a few hundred yards from a river, so we wandered down, happened to find a bunch of firewood along the shores, and we had a nice fire and called it a night.  Oh, and lesson learned here:  If you walk through the sand to the river, be sure to clean your feet off before you climb up to put the sheet on the bed.  Uggh. Nature's exfoliator.

Bryce Amphitheater

Cool tree, red rocks,  blue sky.

Hoodoo you love?

Goofing around at the Little Hollywood Museum in Kanab.

Cock 'n' Bull totally owes me for the free marketing.

More free BLM camping.

Farley Heads for the Desert, Day 2: Capitol Reef National Park

Today we headed to Capitol Reef National Park.  First time visiting, and I got a National Parks passport stamp, which always makes me happy.

Turns out Mormons settlers made the valley there their home, and lived off the land, including having huge orchards.  We visited the homestead, the blacksmith barn, the meat-smoking barn, and the grade school.  Then we hiked up to Hickman Arch and also checked out the petroglyphs.  Or maybe they were pictographs.  I watched the orientation movie at the visitors' center, but I'll be damned if I can remember the difference.

Leaving there, we headed through Grand Escalante National Monument on our way to Bryce Canyon National Park.  All those mountain passes didn't agree with Farley.  His check-engine light came on, but that's nothing new.  And we've had the same transmission torque clutch-something-or-other code several times and it usually works itself out with time on a flat road.  Hopefully he'll get some tomorrow.

Tonight we're "boondocking," free camping on public land that we found on freecampsites.net.

Entering the national park.

Just a couple of miles to Hickman Arch.

Marc admiring the arch.

One lonely desert flower in bloom.

Valley view.

Wild turkeys in the cherry orchard.

Not an unusual view for a VW van driver.

Thanks, freecampsites.net!

Farley Heads for the Desert, Day 1: Bombing Through Montana, Idaho and Utah

Today we hit the road with the a goal of getting somewhere beyond Salt Lake to spend our first night.  We've been to (or past) Salt Lake enough times that there really isn't anything we wanted to see or do.  So we put in a longish day to give us more time to explore new places.

We stopped at Yuba Lake State Park for the night.

A Costco bag of baby carrots:  A necessity for a Farley road trip.

On the banks of the mighty Yuba.

Farley Gets a Fancy Bath

New wheels and tires, and a fantastic exterior detailing by Auto Trim Design here in Helena, and Farley is just about ready to hit the road tomorrow.  We plan to visit some of the national parks and monuments in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado, and then head up to Washington to see the spring Coug football scrimmage before coming home.  Three weeks on the road will be our longest trip yet!

He feels pretty, oh, so pretty.

I'll be bringing the laptop and blogging pix from the road, so stay tuned ...