And we’re off for another round!
Our original plan of 6 months long behind us, we headed off towards the west to complete our goal of seeing all of the contiguous 48 states. We did a bit of work on the van over Christmas to give us a bit more sitting room and better bug protection.
Our first leg took us over Rabbit Ears Pass, in which we ran into quite a bit of weather. The mountain roads were quite clear, but it definitely felt like we were on an involved journey again!
Maker:S,Date:2017-9-22,Ver:6,Lens:Kan03,Act:Lar02,E-ve
We slept in a state park near steamboat and had the place to ourselves, so Harper was able to run around fetching frozen balls for a bit.
Our plans were to meet Marci, Jeff, and Klay for a quick visit on our way south. We had a few days to poke along, and stayed in the National Forest off of I-70. It was quite cold and we were already busting out the new tire chains, which worked amazingly well with all the weight in the back.
Maker:S,Date:2017-9-22,Ver:6,Lens:Kan03,Act:Lar02,E-ve
Maker:S,Date:2017-9-22,Ver:6,Lens:Kan03,Act:Lar02,E-ve
Maker:S,Date:2017-9-22,Ver:6,Lens:Kan03,Act:Lar02,E-ve
We had a great visit with the family, then hit up the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, which was a great little National Park. Underrated, in our opinion! We had a little trouble starting the van and I managed to flood it. With a little glimpse of internet, we were able to learn that flooding fuel injected vehicles is solved by flooring the gas and trying to star it (unlike the carbonated motors I was more familiar with). It worked!
After that we headed southways over the gorgeous Million Dollar Highway. One that we never get tire of driving. It’s long and remote, but short enough to not be tedious.
Maker:S,Date:2017-9-22,Ver:6,Lens:Kan03,Act:Lar02,E-ve
Maker:S,Date:2017-9-22,Ver:6,Lens:Kan03,Act:Lar02,E-ve
Which brought us to Arizona. We set up camp first near Flagstaff in the snow, and then worked our way down near Sedona to the beautiful red desert. Perfect timing to remind us of the parts we missed about the state.
Maker:S,Date:2017-9-22,Ver:6,Lens:Kan03,Act:Lar02,E-ve
We spent a good week in Arizona visiting friends, doing some maintenance (wheel bearings) and putting in a little work at Pivot HQ. Kate was antsy after so much down time so we didn’t overstay our welcome, and were off to start our adventure through the southwest.
Maker:S,Date:2017-9-22,Ver:6,Lens:Kan03,Act:Lar02,E-ve
