Prescott to New Ulm September 2002
Click pictures to enlarge
Sept 6
Renee flew in from NZ to help with the final packing and cleaning of the Joyce's house. Joyce stayed up all night. I figured out later in day it was because she can't get up from the floor, so she didn't use the bed we made on the floor for her. She woke me half an hour earlier than I wanted - 6:30AM. I didn't know so I went through my rushed last minute jobs only to find that I then had 30 minutes to kill until it was time to take her to the depot. We left her there immediately as I had to go to U-Haul and have them fix the wiring problems. Fellow ended up taking the rear end of car apart and after getting help from his boss they decided to install a new unit. So we were delayed an hour for our start. Stopped in Williams, AZ for breakfast at a homey restaurant. Looked through an artsy shop before continuing eastward on I40. Pulled in at a reststop just as the the rain hit and for the rest of the 500 miles it was rain. So we changed our plans for camping in Moab, Utah to a motel (Budget Host Inn - biz card) in Cortez, Colorado. Time for cribbage, a bath and then bed. Heard an Exponents song on radio.
	Wind...	and rain
Sept 7
Day two and more rain; plus found out that trailers aren't allowed in Mesa Verde National Park. So we left Cortez to drive along the San Juan Skyway (one of the most beautiful drives in the country). Okay I haven't been everywhere but I doubt that it would fall in the top 25. Ne took over the driving when the rain stopped and got us to Grand Junction. We went on to Colorado National Monument (see photos). where we optimistically set up the tent. Over to Information Center where I got back a $1 note labelled "see where I've been. Track where I go next! www.wheresgeorge.com" Went to explore but only did the Window Rock trail when gathering storm clouds sent us back to camp. Sure enough Mother Nature huffed and puffed and blew the tent down. Ne was hit in back by a rock we had tied to the tent fly rope. So we decamped and drove the 23 mile RimRock Trail back to GJ and checked into the first motel we came across, Two Rivers Inn - (biz card).
Colorado	Tunnel	Aspens
Sept 8
Left Grand Junction (leaving my jacket behind) and drove east on I70 that follows the Colorado River. Below the highway closer to the river is a bicycle path being used just as there were plenty of kayakers in the river. Stopped for lunch at Glenwood Springs and Ne took over the driving - all the way through the rain and over the continental divide and to Georgetown where we checked into Georgetown Motor Inn. Checked out the artsy shops downtown (including Grizzly Creek Gallery) and had supper at the Raven Hill Mining Co. I had a buffalo (very peppery) burrito with an Ironwood merlot and Ne had a Rueben pastromi. Back at the Inn I went for a swim in the outdoor pool and soak in the spa bath. We played Skip-Bo for the first time - Ne won.
Colorado	Rocky	Mountains
Sept 9
On way to Rocky Mountain National Park at a stretch of single-lane of road works over 20 vehicles backedup behind us. But a strange thing happened at Black Hawk; they all turned off. Wonder if the five or so casinos there had something to do with it. Easy drive to Estes Park, but then 2 hours driving around looking for a cabin on Fall river. Meant backing the trailer out of a few places and Ne had to do it for the most part. Gave up and checked into Twin Owls Motor Lounge for a standard room. Into town to hit the many shops, Ne bought herself a Colorado tee shirt. I found a Goofy magnet. Got some unusal dice for David at Geppetto's Toy Factory and a few other gifts. Had a chat with clerk at Omnibus (business card) who knows someone who lived in NZ and to an Indian (India, eh?) fellow requiring directions to Idaho Springs. I had Pumpernickle Peak triple-decker sandwich and Ne had a Sprague Supreme (turkey, bacon and provlone cheese on rye) at Penelope's World Famous Burger & Fries. Back to hotel to discover that the heated pool was not so hot, the spa pool was very smelly and that we had no plug in the bathtub. The owner's wife brought a piece of rubber to cover the drain hole. Got into curry flavored pumpkin seeds.
Black Hawk, CO	Saint Malmo Chapel	Poor Man Chapel