Post #7 of 7 – 2023 Summer RV Road Trip

Last leg

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Our original plans have had to be altered because number one, it was way too ambitious for our time frame. Number two, we were waaaay over on our mileage estimate. We knew before we left that Washington and Oregon were out, but we still planned on getting to Idaho before we turned south.

On our new route, we were still able to travel back roads and see parts of Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico we had never seen before.

Wyoming

To be fair, this isn’t what all of Wyoming looks like. After all, this is the state that has Yellowstone National Park and The Grand Tetons. And The Bighorn Mountains! We just happened to drive down the center of the state this time where there’s a whole lotta nothin’. But not for long.

We were still following the Bighorn River which surprised us at every turn, like the town of Thermopolis and the hot springs state park.

The Flaming Gorge Dam and Power Plant

The Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area is located in the northeast corner of Utah and the southwest corner of Wyoming.

Welcome to Utah, and Dinosaur National Monument

The Quarry Exhibit Hall is a large building hidden among the colorful rocks of the desert, where a collection of 1,500 dinosaur fossils dating back about 150 million years is displayed.

Colorado National Monument

Near Fruita and Grand Junction.

“Let’s take the quick drive through the monument before we find somewhere to camp tonight”. 😳

The ranger at the entry said sure, we could drag our rigs through the 26 mile scenic drive. We’d be fine if we stay in our lane. Too late to turn back now.

Once again thank goodness for the Harvest Host app and same day allowed hosts. Within minutes of exiting the park, we had secured a spot for the night at a little farm just 7 miles away.

OverAnnabelle Orchards, established in 2023! These great hosts are just getting started with a a peach orchard and future grapes and a winery.

They don’t have any goods to sell yet, but it was easy enough to Venmo a donation. Twenty dollars is the suggested amount. What a deal for a nice quiet spot to spend the night.

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We could feel ourselves getting closer to home. After this much time away, it’s difficult to stay in tourist mode. We needed to choose a route continuing south. Delta to Telluride? No, too many mountains to climb. Moab? No, not again! We chose State Highway 141. Good choice! Who knew? Now we do.

Driving through these red rock canyons reminded us of Lake Powell canyons.

Welcome to New Mexico

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Aztec Ruins National Monument

Excavation of these ruins in the 1900s uncovered thousands of well-preserved artifacts that provide a glimpse into the life of Ancestral Pueblo people, connecting people of the past with people and traditions of today. Many Southwestern American Indians today maintain deep spiritual ties with this ancestral site.

These Aztec ruins are “world class” and very well preserved and partially restored. But the best we were told was yet to come at our next and final stop.

Although we had a tentative route planned, we let my Passport Book guide us 50 to 100 miles off course at times. There was a lot of backtracking which is usually against the rules. We saw so many things that we never would have. And we were on some sketchy roads that we never would have chosen. It was all part of the adventure and were in no hurry. And we were still having fun! Until Chaco…..

Chaco Culture National Historic Park “World Heritage Site”

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Nothing had warned us that the road coming in from the north was washboard gravel. But then the County maintained portion ended and we were on unmaintained Reservation land with absolutely no way to turn these rigs around.

The visitor center and museum are beautiful. The place was pretty crowded for being so remote. The camp ground was even full.

We just wanted to go home. This is New Mexico. We can easily come back. So we found “main” road out to the south. Oops, it’s worse…

And hour and a half later, we made it to the pavement!

Actually 9,875 miles, 9 National Parks, 42 National Monuments in 49 days.

It was amazing!

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We’re going to have to come back to Chaco in the Jeep….look what we missed!

There’s still some blank spaces in the Passport Book. Looks like we need to go to Kansas.