Summer Travel Map

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Put another log on the fire...

September 14, 2008
Show Low, AZ

We wrapped up our stay at Lake Powell and have moved to Show Low in the White Mountains of Arizona. Since things had cooled off somewhat last week at Lake Powell, we were able to pack in several of the activities there that we'd planned but deferred. It's cooler here, so we're adjusting to the "good sleeping weather"!

Last Monday, we spent a pleasant afternoon taking a 5-hour river rafting trip down the Colorado River. This was a "smooth water" trip; no rapids involved. The section of the river from the Glen Canyon Dam to Lee's Ferry (about 15 miles) is relatively calm and scenic, with the river passing under cliffs ranging from 900' at the start to over 1,300' near the end. This section of the river passes through the last portion of the Glen Canyon NRA. From Lee's Ferry on, it's all part of Grand Canyon National Park. As we were disembarking, we watched several groups getting ready to depart downriver into some serious white water rafting territory. They say that some of the rapids exceed the "Class 5" high end of the rating scale. We were fine with the smooth water, thank you very much!

There were about 60 people signed up for the trip, and it involved three motorized rafts (22 person capacity) moving downriver separately but generally within sight of each other. Probably 65% of the group was composed of European tourists, about average for what we've seen over the last month or so. Seeing the US has generally been a real bargain for Euro-based consumers this year.

So, if the cliffs are 900' high, how do you get to the rafts? You take the tunnel! When the Glen Canyon Dam was built in the late-50s/early-60s, they constructed a 2-lane tunnel that travels for about two miles from the rim to what's now the powerhouse (8 megawatts) at the base of the dam. Even though this is a secure area (we had to wait while they searched the bus and our bags before entering), the rafting company is granted access to haul people through the tunnel. It reminded me of being in the NYC subways; if you're in the first or last car, you can see what the tunnels look like.

The trip downriver was informative (the guide was reasonably good) and scenic (in addition to the cliffs and rock formations, we say a pair of ospreys and a pair of golden eagles), but not highly photogenic. There's just too much contrast between the bright sky and the dark rocks to get good shots without using some filters on the lens to help bring things into balance. Accordingly, I got plenty of what I'll call "snapshots" as opposed to "landscapes". I'll probably be able to make some adjustments using Photoshop (I know - I'm way behind in posting a series of pictures). From Lee's Ferry, it was about an hour's ride on the bus back to Page. All in all, a highly recommended tour.

Tuesday brought another adventure, a trip to Antelope Canyon on the Navajo Indian Reservation. This is a "slot canyon" carved in the relatively soft sandstone by a sporadic creek ("Antelope Creek"; go figure), and is a popular spot for photographers. In fact, we signed up for the "photography tour", paying a little extra for a longer tour during the middle of the day when the sunlight is more likely to enhance the view. This is one of those "hop in the back of a converted 4 wheel drive pickup with 11 other people" tours. There are several Navajo companies ("regulations" dictate a native guide when you're on the Reservation) operating out of storefronts in Page, and more "independents" trolling for customers at the entrance to the canyon, about 5 miles outside town.

After a blustery drive to the canyon and a very bumpy 2-3 mile trip up the sandy dry riverbed, we arrived at the designated spot, where a crack in the 50' high sandstone marked the entrance. With so many available guide companies and this being a fairly popular site, it was mobbed with about 15 truckloads of tourists. Most of the people in our group were from Germany, except for one couple from NYC.

Antelope Canyon is about as far removed from the other canyons we've visited (Glen, Grand, Bryce) as you can get. Think narrow cave, except that there's no "roof", as the water wore through the rock from the top. It's about 300' long, with multiple "rooms", some tight spaces, and interesting acoustics. It was somewhat difficult to make good photographs, with lots of people in the way and (strangely enough) similar issues with contrast to the rafting trip. I'd like to go back at a quieter time of year, find a guide for a more 1:1 tour, and bring all the gear (filters, etc.) to improve the photo opportunities. Overall, though, this was probably the highlight of our visit, tourism-wise.

After two days of tourist activities, we used our last two days at Lake Powell to clean up and get ready for travel. Geri did a few loads of laundry and prepared some pasta for a travel meal, I cleaned the bugs off the front of the coach, and we did a little shopping. I had one unscheduled maintenance activity, and re-learned an old skill in the process. I noticed that one of the awnings on the coach was starting to fray, and on further examination found that the stitching holding the seam along the edge was giving way. Geri bought the necessary sewing items and up the ladder I went with needle, thread and thimble. My grandfather had taught me how to repair sails (among other things like make custom braided ropes and swear in Swedish) when I was a kid, but I'll admit only a little of that came back. I think I did a passable job, although I'll probably need to re-visit this repair when we get back "home" and I can use the 10' ladder to get a better view of things. I'll also have to examine all the awnings, as it's unlikely that only one seam will fail.

Friday was our travel day, and we got off slightly ahead of schedule around 9:30 AM. I'd saved some of the outside packing (primarily the stoves, as we cooked outside Thursday night), did the final "dump" and checked the tire pressures and lights. We only had 266 miles to travel in a zig-zag pattern; we're only 200 miles to the southeast "as the crow flies". We headed south on US-89 to Flagstaff, then west on I-40 past Winslow to Holbrook, following the old "Route 66" path. From Holbrook, we turned south on AZ-77, passing through the little town of Snowflake (we're over 6,500 feet in elevation, and it definitely snows here in the winter) before finding our stop.

This park is using the "ownership/destination" business model: the sites are for sale ($39k-$65k for a 30' x 70' plot), there's a golf course and several man-made ponds throughout, and they're even developing an airpark (fly in and park your plane by your house) - someday. Most of the ~500 sites that are sold have "park model" RVs (they look like mini "single-wides") on them, although there are site-built houses along the golf course. It's nice, but not for us at this point, as we'd prefer to travel in the summer as opposed to "stay put".

They've designated a small number of spots for rentals to "transients", and these spaces are definitely not as well maintained as the "for sale" ones. Each site has a concrete patio, but the parking is on gravel. They've spread a thin layer of crushed lava rock (this area had a lot of volcanic activity) over the gravel, but recent rains have made the ground pretty soft. Our right front tire is sunk about 5" into the soft earth; we'll be watching to make sure that we don't settle in further. As long as we don't have more rain, we should be OK (fingers crossed).

Yesterday, we relaxed and did some grocery shopping for the week in town. The name "Show Low" apparently comes from an ownership dispute in the 1870s that was settled with a card game in which the winner was challenged to "show low and win". He did and the place name was defined. Interesting story...

There are a couple of "scenic drives" in the area that I'm thinkng about, but we may have to defer that kind of activity depending on the gas situation post "Ike". We've heard about shortages in the Phoenix area (about 135 miles southwest of us) and price hikes all over due to the refinery shut-downs in Texas and Louisiana. I'd hate to get caught short simply because we were out driving around to see the sights. Price, I can deal with (don't have to like it), but stuck, not so much.

Anyway, we're here until the 22nd, have enough diesel to get us to Santa Fe and Albuquerque in October, and the sun is shining. No worries...

No comments: