Summer Trek Across the US

It took me almost 2 weeks to get to my first destination.

Technically I could have done it in 4 – 5 days, but that would mean all day driving with no rest. I decided to drive to Ute Lake State Park in New Mexico as my first stop.

The goal was to leave Dallas no later than 8am and arrive during the day to enjoy my evening at the campground.  In reality I didn’t leave until almost 1pm and made it to the park after dark. I had a hard time locating my site, it was extremely dark. 

Next morning I walked Aesop and enjoyed the lake for a few minutes then hit the road. Next stop was FREE camping at McHood Park in Winslow, Arizona. I got there relatively early so I stopped at the laundromat and then grocery store. The campground was primitive but very beautiful and quiet. Here are a few pictures from our evening and then next morning walk (5:30am). 

Note: Click pictures to enlarge

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The next day was spent in Flagstaff, AZ trying to locate someone to look at my solar set up and help me configure my Victron inverter. I got lucky and found someone but they couldn’t squeeze me in until next morning. 

In the evening I drove to, ate dinner and spend the night at Cracker Barrel. If you didn’t know, Cracker Barrel has a few RV spots in the back of the restaurant and allows overnight parking for customers.

It worked out well since it was only 7 minutes from the place I needed to drop off my RV at 8am the next morning. 

The hike down was more than I bargained for. It was hot 100° in full sun with no breeze.  And I was wearing flip flops!!!   If you ever have an opportunity to hike there, bring plenty of water (at least 2 bottles per person), and proper footwear is a must. Going down the sandy stones was very slippery.  The walk is about 1.3 miles plus a little bit from the parking lot.  So let’s round it to 1.5 miles total. Give yourself an hour to complete the hike down, take a few photos and then back up.

Next we stopped at the Historic Navajo bridge. It’s a pedestrian only bridge constructed in 1927-1928. The river flows 467 feet below.  It was very windy and gusty, I almost lost my phone… TWICE! 

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Finally, we arrived at the North Rim. The campground was beautiful,  quiet and right on the rim of the Grand Canyon. There were bathrooms, water throughout the campground, coin operated showers (6 quarters for 6 minutes), laundry facilities and a general store. The gentleman who takes care of the shower/bathroom facilities takes pride in his work and it shows. the facilities were extremely clean.

Everything a camper could possibly ask for… including perfect summer weather.  

We ventured on a drive around the area to see different views of the Canyon.  It was an all day expedition.

Here are a few pictures. 

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After a few extremely pleasant days at the North Rim, it was time to head north to Zion National Park in Utah. 

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I was having multiple issues with the RV so the stress of having to find an RV mechanic on short notice took away from my stay at Zion.  With help from CoachNet I was able to get an appointment on Tuesday morning at RV ZZ in Washington, UT, about an hour away from Zion NP. 

Those guys were amazing! They fixed my awning,  replaced a leaky faucet in my bathroom and patched another leak in my kitchen sink.  I was all set to go in 2.5 hrs.  Which was great because I had a long drive ahead and wanted to arrive before dark.

My goal was to be at Twin Falls, Idaho for the night. I arrived right as it got dark and spend the night at Walmart. Not ideal, but it didn’t make sense to pay for a campsite just to sleep.  I was so tired that even the bright parking lot lights directly in my face didn’t bother me.

Early morning we hit the road for another 500+ miles in extreme heat.

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I was looking forward to cooler night at Denny Creek Campground situated near the south fork of the Snoqualmie River in Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, right off I90 .  The campground was a few miles away from the highway but I could still hear highway noise once it quieted down at night. 

The creek was accessible right from the campground and I don’t think there was a bad campsite anywhere in the CG.  It was so beautiful with tall, moss covered trees, wild flowers, picnic tables,  fire-pits and grill grates. 

The following day after taking a nice long HOT shower at Planet Fitness, (which is not something I can do in my camper – 2 minute military showers only!) and waiting (WASTING) half a day for delivery of a package from an Amazon locker, I was finally on my way to my final destination.

In rush hour traffic…

At last, I arrived at Marble Creek Campground by North Cascades National Park. To be continued…