Judge Roy Bean, a Last Sunset, and a Loving Homecoming from the Bride

This is  my last post before getting back home.....left early on the 10th to head to Seminole Canyon State Park...my  favorite winding down place...took Rt 118 south out of Fort Davis...from Alpine it was east on US 90......and not many towns between their and the campsite....did have one Border Check-point....all they wanted to know is if I was a US Citizen.....that took all of a nano second...though they had a dog sniffing the Mule and the Wagon.....these folks are doing a tremendous job here in Texas and providing a safety net for all of us......

The Law West of the Pecos...Horst Kelly Photographer

Got to the park around 1300 hours and asked for my favorite spot "E029"...I've had it the last five times I've been here...mind you there is only one other camper here....not even a Camp Host yet.....and what does the Ranger tell me...that spot is taken......came in half hour ago.....it can't be...I'm sure I have earned "Squatter's Right's" to that site....can we negotiate....but it was not meant to be.......so I chose what turned out to be a great private spot and the great news...I have "coupons" that let me get a second night free.....or maybe they just felt sorry for me and gave me that second night.....no matter I was smiling all the way to a sun set.....

Since I didn't have my trout last night, I made it this evening, along with slaw, sliced tomatoes, toasted french bread...and a Guinness Beer...Mmmm, Mmmmm good! I watched the sun set.....took a short walk and called it a day....didn't feel like messing with the computer...hit the sack around 9pm...

Justice is served..Horst Kelly Photographer

Got up on the 11th around 0600...must be the time change......made my coffee..oh the smell of fresh brewed coffee...in the wild.....doesn't get any better....decided to do my usual 6 mile hike in the park...and to my surprise they have added a new trail.."The Rim Trail"...the total walk is now 7.5 miles...my ankle is feeling good so I went for it...what a great walk...the solitude and scenery is second to none...whenever I take this walk and see the 12000+ year old cave dwellings my mind wanders as my foot steps are stepping over those 12000 year old foot prints....

After my walk I went to Langtry to Judge Beans place as they have done some rehab since my last visit...it still interests me, especially the saloon/courtroom...again knowing 120 years or so ago they where passing judgements on people in this very building....got back to camp around 1600 hours....did some prep work for my departure on the 12th...decided to make my chicken stew dinner, and just sat outside as the sun dipped below the horizon and a million plus stars came to the forefront....then an added attraction of some "shooting stars"" as they crossed the horizon...couldn't have asked for a better ending  for my trip....

His Home and Opera House..Horst Kelly Photographer

Got up at 0530 on the 12th...sat outside to watch the a new day approach...had my coffee and then hitched up...departed around 0800, later then usual...but there is no hurry...another 200 miles I was  backing my rig into the driveway....and a loving greeting from my bride.....I decided not to tackle the unpacking for a day or so....its time to relax, reflect and get reacquainted...

In a couple days I will do a post and reflection of this Journey...it doesn't seem like I was gone 6 weeks, yet it also feels  a lot longer than that..Mmmmm.....More to come..I want to thank all of you that followed the Blog, especially those that took the time to comment.....Later  Horst sends

Last Sunset of my Journey.....Horst signs off

My Almost Alien Sighting....Beam me Up Scotty

Had a pretty fair storm last evening(7 Sept) but it was over in short order.....what came with it was a pleasant surprise..a temperature drop of 15 to 20 degrees.....woke up this morning with the temp. somewhere in the high 40’s....and windy....since I have only 90 or so miles to go, I was in no hurry to hitch up....did a little cleaning.....very little...and then had my first “speed bump” of the day...the frig. was off.....my tank was empty and I had forgotten to open both tanks....it was 60 degrees inside and stuff in the freezer compartment was just about defrosted......didn’t feel safe in keeping most of the stuff, except what had been in the freezer....which meant I had some cooking to do this evening....the positive side is now I know approximately how long a tank of propane lasts me for refrigerator use....ha

My Alien Landing Craft...Horst kelly photographer

Left around 1000 hours, gassed up and went south on Rt 90...not much going on that road.....only saw about half dozen cars the entire trip....only town of any size is Valentine ....about half way between Van Horn and Ft. Davis.....the landscape is flat with the mountains as a backdrop....did have 30+ MPH side wind, but with my sway bar and only going at most 50 mph..everything worked fine....

And there it was...in the middle of hundreds of acres of nondescript landscape...a “blimp”...or at least what I thought was a blimp...the closer I got, I knew it was not your regular “over the stadium” blimp.....maybe I found an alien landing site....seems to meet all the requirements of seclusion, miles of flat, open space, very little population , wow, getting a photo of an alien space craft will be right up there with my Bear Cub photos....

AF TARS Craft...Horst Kelly Photographer

My approach was the same as taking wildlife shots....start at a good distance and if I wasn’t noticed, then move closer.....this was working great...I haven’t been beamed up yet.....as it turns out it belongs to the Air Force and its called “TARS”, which stands for Tethered Aerostat Radar System, is used as a surveillance radar...there are 8 different sites around the United States.....oh, well no alien photo ops today.....there are always the Marfa mystery lights......

Got to the park around noon and decided to stay for a couple of days...got a pull through site at the end of one of the rows...nicely treed ..and the weather was perfect....went to Alpine to try to replace some of my lost frig items...by the time I got back, I put the pork loin in my toaster/convection oven...45 minutes later it was done...tender, juicy, and good...also had some pickled beets and asparagus....A great day....we’ll see what tomorrow brings..BTW, want to thank Barney (OFM Adventures)....am going up to the lodge today to get some wifi...my 3g on the smart phone is at about 0g..though my cell is working at my site...The Wilson Sleek Booster is doing a good job...so far....Happy Trails...Horst

My Camp-site Buds...Horst Kelly Photographer

 Its now 9 Sept...have not had an opportunity to go to the lodge so I thought I’d go ahead and write todays blog and get it on line all at one time...I am winding down...didn’t get up until about 0700...no early morning sunrise photo’s.....made coffee and called a friend that lived next door to us that moved here earlier this year...met for breakfast at a place called the “Drug Store”...great food and nice conversation....also went to Marfa and Alpine, just driving and some photo’s...came back and did some some reading, down loaded a couple pics...and its now time to eat...think I’ll pan fry my last trout.....may try to take some evening shots...then get my stuff together for tomorrows 200 mile trip to Seminole Canyon State Park....

My Prairie dog Buddy...Horst Kelly Photographer

Winding Down...Homeward Bound....one last Adventure

I made it to to Truth or Consequences in record time...did not unhitch.....the park sat up on a hill, no shade...and very hot.....the AC could never get below 82 degrees until early evening....the place reminded me of a Airport "tarmac"...the way  we are all parked...on the positive side, clean bathroom with shower; 24/7 use of the community room, to include tv, pool table, etc....nice, friendly host.....

Famous Hotel El Capitan, Van Horn, Tx...Horst kelly Photographer

So why the name Truth or Consequences...for you old enough to have listened to the radio in the 40's early '50's, there was a show by that name..on the 10th anniversary, the host of the show Ralph Edwards made an announcement  asking if there was a town that would like to change its name to the name of the show...whatever town won would get national publicity and the show would do a broadcast  from there...Long story short. the town of Hot Springs New Mexico won and the rest is history....

7th Sept,  got up and pulled onto I-10 around 0715 and decided to travel to Van Horn Tx, home of John Madden's favorite Mexican Restaurant...and the Tequila Lady at the RV park...well she is gone and I didn't make it to the Resturant...I did drive the Butch Cassidy look alike bike again...reference my blog last Sept/Oct.....Made beef stew for dinner and had a GREAT coversation with my bride....early night and then the wind and rain storm started...woke me up around 11pm...the rain didn't last long what the wind is still kicking around 30-40 mph...

John Madden's favorite Chow down place Van Horn Tx 

To day my goal is to go to Ft Davis State Park...only about 90 miles from here...so there is no hurry..since I probably won't have internet, the next blog will be written at my wind down site of Seminole Canyon State Park...Until then Happy Tails...Thanks for stopping my...Horst

A Teton Memory...Lake Jenny..Horst Kelly Photography

Gallup NM it was....

I really hated to leave Goose Island BLM CG...but The Homesteading Act has long passed me by....Got up about 0430 to get myself organized and also wanted to try and change out the Tongue Jack...at 0600 I started that process...thought I would try something new and read the instructions..a novel concept for me....I try and remember that the USA gave the Chinese the instructions and China then rewrote it into chinese so that their employees could grasp what to do...when finished the Chinese then took those instructions, got a first year English Major to translate it back to English....I'm thinking that something is lost in this process...and therefore take the instructions with a gain of salt....my conclusion is don't mess with this until you get to civilization...the jack was working better...no "BB" bearings where falling out...so Tim as in Allen....leave well enough alone, and I did....was all set to go by 0715, took one my last pic of the campsite and rolled down the road.....

The Colorado River, The Cliffs and the Casita...Heaven it is..

The trip was uneventful...I debated as to going to Monument Valley, Canyon de Chelly and Mexican hat...but knew I needed to head South for a bit longer...so at about 1500 hours I rolled into Gallup NM...and the USA RV Park...29.00 a nite with hookups.......doesn't have the "Wow Factor"...but had a BBQ Dinner and Ice Cream Social...whichI didn't participate in, but was a nice touch...even had a CW band....

Pulled in, didn't unhitch, got my towel, soap, etc and headed for a Loooooooooong shower...boy did that feel good......relaxed and started my mini grill and going to have the other Monster Hamburger I got at Moah....life is good...tomorrow I think its to Truth or Consequences...we'll see...Thanks for stopping by...Horst sends

Maintenance and Logistics Day...

4 Sept and the weather is hot...by 0700 it was raising to almost 80 degrees...at least at my location....decided to go to Arches a capture a shot I have always wanted to get...but when I couldn't find how to  get to the back of one of the windows arches....after what seemed like an hour I gave up..took some other photo's...and headed back into town...

Canyonlands...Horst Kelly Photographer

I have been having a slow leak in one of my tires and decided today was the day to get it fixed...mission accomplished....second was a problem with my tongue jack..it has been getting increasingly more difficult to raise and lower it...when I unhitched her, I noticed "bb" sized ballbearings dropping out of it....I found a  place that had a plate mounted manual jack...will try and get it on prior to leaving tomorrow...should be fun for spectators..as I have been called Tim Allen(Tool Time fame) more then once....
Not much else has been happening...sort of a wind down time...Rob Rupp and I are keeping in touch...he just left Glacier and is also heading south...since I have very slow internet, I haven't kept up with my favorite Blogs...have no idea where Jerry and Wanda are..or the orther folks I follow...tomorrow I plan on getting to Gallup NM and staying at a commerical CG...hopefully some better wi-fi capability...or maybe not..and just call it a day at Monument Valley or Mexican Hat...we'll see....

Tetons...a lot of haze....Horst Kelly photographer  

Tonight I plan on pan frying some trout, a salad...and maybe, just maybe a glass of wine....until tomorrow..happy Trails and Safe Travels...Good Night John Boy.......Horst sends

Two Summits and the Colorado River awaits me....

So where do I start....1 Sept sounds about right...I was going to get up early and try to find my evasive Moose and or Elk....well it rained most of the night and was looking like it wanted to start again around 0600 hours....so my plan was to forego the Moose and hitch up and head south....by 0700 I was on my way....hoping I would find something that would change my mind...... I headed south on Rt 191....Wyoming did not disappoint me...let me down easy and showed me a serene ride with either the Snake or Hoback Rivers running parallel to Rt 190....wow is all I can say...

Hoback River...Horst Kelly Photographer

The farthest point I wanted to travel was Vernal, Utah.........by around 130pm or so I came to the north end of Flaming Gorge National ReReservoir...a huge lake that is damed...I had run through a lightening storm and was pretty well beat..I pulled over at a hill top and wondered if there was a camping area on the lake... quarter mile south I was rewarded with a 5 mile trip on a "washboard" road to a COE campground on the lake...30 minutes later I backed into a  super spot...my back window looked directly onto the lake...no hookups, but I can run the Genny.....bathrooms.....what a great site.....a storm blew in, but by nine pm all was quite, so I  thought...then the icing on the cake, across the lake a "fireworks display started"...I made the decision to watch the show instead of trying to set up my camera equipment...what a neat display...then off to bed and see what tormmow brings...

Campsite at Flaming Gorge....Horst Kelly Photographer

Its now early morning on the 2nd of Sept....great looking day....I had my coffee watching the sun peek over the horizen...by 0715 I was rolling on the 5 mile washboard road unto Rt 191...about 20 minutes later  I was driving across the top of the Dam...what a site...I stopped at the visitors center, which was closed...tried to take a photo or two of the dam, but it was directly in the sun....so you'll just have to imagine what it looks like...and then the climb started...from the north side you don't get an appreciation what to expect....plus I thought I had researched enough and didn't think I was going to be tackling any major summits....was I in for a shock...what seemed like an eternity, but probably closer to 45 minutes of 3rd gear climbing...it becamed very clear that this wasn't just a "Butte".....though I wasn't able to pull over to snap a shot...let me say that I was looking at the cloud cover and it was below me.....15 switchbacks and anywhere from a 6 to 8+ degree downhill run I made it safely to Vernal, Utah....2 hours to go about 60 miles.....But now the the drive should be a breeze....I should be at Moah my early afternoon....all was going well between Vernal and Duchesne...quaint small towns, nice sceanery, cruising along at 55mph. Thought I would gas up at Duchesne, since it didn't look like there was any other towns for a while....and now I know why....
Soon after leaving the comfort of an open road, I once again started climbing, and climbing.....I was absolutly sure this was not going to be a major summit....but at 9400 feet I finally saw the other side and this time only 7 switchbacks and about 6 or so miles down to the floor...the rest of the trip was uneventful and I rolled unto main street Moab about 1530 hours....

Just another Great Sunrise....Horst Kelly photographer

I had remembered from a previous visit..several COE or BLM campgrounds along the Colorado River north of town....all appeared full or at least the entrace signs said they where...I turned around at about the 16  mile marker and concided that I woukld probably have to stay at a commerical CG at premium Labor Day rates...the first COE  CG is called Goose Island and even though it said "FULL", I decided to venture in and what do you know, a large site awaits ...what a deal...I put my 6 dollars in the enevlope, didn't unhitch as I was not sure of my plans for tomorrow...sat outside and watched the sun set...

At Moab....evening shot...Horst Kelly Photographer

and the best part is I have cell coverage and 3G...though very slow....another great day of Adventures...and it ended so well....maybe I'll float down the Colorado a bit.....Thanks for stopping by...Horst sends