Out with Ötös

We became a caravan of two, Mom in her rented RAV4 following in the wake of Ötös the Great.

Holbrook, AZ to Roswell, NM, 431 miles and 9 hours of driving misery. This was the longest leg of our trip and so boring. The first half wasn’t too bad, we still got the red cliffs and the occasional cactus. After passing thru Albuquerque we headed south and the road got boring. The skies were blue, we didn’t have pretty clouds to distract us. It was nice that we had leftovers from the night before, we just warmed them up and went straight to bed. In the morning, Mom and I went out for donuts. Mom did a quick stop to get some alien souvenirs then we headed out.

Roswell, NX to San Angelo, TX 313 miles and about 7 hours of driving stress. Before we left, Pawd got scared and hid so well we couldn’t find her. By the time we pulled her from inside the couch, everyone was frazzled. The day did not get better. On the drive we had wind, and I mean WIND. I’ll admit, The Beast gets terrible mileage with Ötös on board but on the drive we got 7.4 miles to the gallon. The scenery did nothing to improve our mood. It was hours of dirt fields and oils drills. The sun was out again and thankfully it didn’t get too hot. By the time we got to Goodfellow AFB family camp, we were done. Driving onto the camp site, Andy and I felt a huge sigh of relief. The camp site was large with a flat concrete pad and trees for shade. It was beautiful and quiet and just what we needed. Mom brought some dinner over and then we went for a walk by the lake.

San Angelo, TX to Lake Travis, TX 196 miles and 4 hours of wildflowers. This might have been the best drive we’ve had so far. We started a bit later and the kitties had already settled for their morning nap. It was an easy transition to the truck and we were off, barely any crying. Everywhere we looked, it was lush green trees and grasses, rolling hills, and fluffy clouds. The roadside was littered with wild flowers. There were so many flowers we pulled over to take photos. We did have a bit of wind but nothing like the day before. We got to Sun Outdoors Lake Travis in early afternoon, parked and started to relax. We are here for four nights, including the day of the eclipse. A little work, a little play, and lots of relaxing.

We left clear skies in Needles and traveled the bumpy road to Holbrook. The terrain and weather was similarly spectacular on the journey. There were little flurries of snow and hail but nothing too treacherous. We got into Holbrook KOA just as a hail storm started. Andy did the hookups and unhitched the trailer all while being pelted with ice. Shortly after we got inside, it cleared up and we had a good laugh at the bad timing. That night for dinner we got take out from a local restaurant. We got a bit more hail and some thunder, but by the next morning the storm had blown thru and left clear skies.

Tuesday, was a working day. I set up on the couch and Andy got started at the table. For the first couple hours I worked on my laptop and tried to get the travel monitor to work. The travel monitor would work with Andy’s laptop but not mine, something I should have tested before we left. He was nice enough to switch set ups so I worked from the table with his monitor and he set up a desk at the couch. Not perfect, but it worked. That night we went grocery shopping and I made chicken salad for dinner.

Wednesday, my Mom joined us in Holbrook around noon. She had driven down to visit Gran and then planned to joined us for the road trip to Austin. Andy worked while I had the day off, so Mom and I headed out to visit the Petrified Forest, but first we stopped at the local quilt store, Painted Desert Quilts. The owners were very nice and they had great fabric. I was good and only spent about $60, not sure about Mom. 🙂 The Petrified Forest was great. We spent time walking around, taking pictures and admiring all the rocks. I really loved how you could see the rings and texture of the wood, but it was very clearly rock. We did buy some to take home with us, we know better than to take anything. I am not going to risk a curse at the beginning of a four week road trip. Andy was able to finish work and meet us at the Painted Desert side of the park. We drove him to our favorite spots, the Crystal Forest and Newspaper Rock. I would highly recommend a visit, be sure to pack sunscreen and a hat.

We left the house yesterday, and made our way to sunny Bakersfield. As expected, Arya and Pawdrick were not pleased with the trip. I think they knew what was happening, Arya followed me around crying all morning and Pawd hid. After an hour or so on the road they settled down. We arrived at Bakersfield KOA about 4pm and got set up. Less than 5 minutes and the girls were out exploring Ötös.

Bakersfield KOA has a nice restaurant and bar so after a quick walk around the site, we picked up some dinner and a drink. The KOA is nice, spaces are roomy with a little grass and trees. The only downside is the busy road at night drew speed racers that woke me up.

The next morning was Easter and Bakersfield Roasting company was closed. It has excellent reviews and I want to try it if we come back. Instead we went to Bread & Honey. The breakfast sandwiches, pastries and coffee were all good. I did not expect the almond croissant to have such a creamy filling, it was a bit messy, but tasty. After breakfast it was time for cleanup, and back on the road. Needles, CA is our second stop.

The drive was beautiful. The Mojave desert has cute little trees that looked alien and the scattering of rocks were so cool. The best part was the weather. The landscape is so open you could see for miles in all directions. There was a storm brewing in part of the sky all day, but never directly above us. We got the occasional rain drops but nothing bad.

We got into Needles KOA at about 4 today. Just off the freeway so it’s easy to get to. The landscape is sparse and the roads are gravel. It’s a nice compromise between campground and desert, I like it.

I made spaghetti for dinner and we had some sourdough bread from Bread & Honey. Realized the first thing I forgot for our trip, garlic salt. I have garlic and salt but no garlic salt. If that the worst of my forgotten items, this is going to be a good trip.

After dinner, a thunderstorm rolled over us. It rained for about an hour and the leak in the bedroom showed up again. Andy checked the slide-out seal on the outside to make sure it was out all the way. Looks like we’ve got one more warranty item to fix. On the plus side, an amazingly bright and vivid double rainbow showed up. Let’s hope for clear skies from now on.