Off on another Adventure - Alabama and back 2026

After a short week at the Desert Habitat it is time for another adventure. I have split this trip into 2 parts. Part one I will venture southeast through Texas, attending triple A and double A baseball games, the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico, golfing and some quality time with my Texas friends. Continuing east through the bayou of Louisiana all the way to Florida, ending up with some driveway camping in Pell City Alabama. Part two includes U.S. Forest Service campgrounds in North Carolina, Virginia and Kentucky. I hope to visit civil war battle grounds and exciting caverns and national monuments. This part ends up at the Rocky Mountain Star Stare (RMSS) in Colorado before returning to my desert habitat. 

I got underway on May 3rd, but instead of taking the I-10 spending six hours next to speeding 18 wheelers I took the much less traveled route through Globe/Miami and into New Mexico for an overnight at Ventran’s Park, Lordsburg NM. This is the second time that I had stayed here when starting a trip towards the east. The Park was established to commemorate those who served our country, alongside figures involved in policing, firefighting, and local copper mining. Free camping, little amenities, a perfect place for a quick overnight.  Unfortunately, the spot that I used, there was some trash left, sad that the people can’t pick up after themselves and use the dumpster provided. To my surprise, this time there was water and you can see improvement in progress. There were four other campers overnighting. It was nearly dark by the time I got settled. In the morning I took a walk around the area with my pickup stick and a plastic bag. That done, I filled up at the Circle K and  headed towards Texas.

050426 Franklin Mountains State Park Primitive Campground is primarily a day use area, but there is overnight camping. Most of the sites are for tents but I stayed in one of the 6 RV dry camping sites. Before settling up I hit the trail to find a letterbox cache near the park entrance. Nice that Texas State Parks allow geocaching. The temperature were in the 90s so I thought I would  test out my 12 volt AC running it on full with all the doors closed. Kept the van in the 70s while using minimal battery power. The solar input seemed to be enough to keep it running. I used my Starlink to get online so I could watch or listen to the Padres game and enjoy the evening. In the morning I took a nice little hike up to the top to see some of the views and then get ready to check out at noon.When I left I headed over to The Love's truckstop to dump my gray tank and take a shower before heading downtown El Paso to find a place to park during the game. I have tickets to the El Paso Chihuahuas vs the Tacoma Rainers, first pitch 1805. 

📹 Veteran's Park 

📹 Franklin Mountain 

Washoe Lake and Gemfield Road Nevada.

 

Washoe Lake 

042326 - 042426 The drive from Oregon,  through Shasta to Carson City took a little over 6 hours. I arrived at Washoe Lake State Park Campground with plenty of time to get settled  and take a walk before the sun went down. You could tell it had been raining and there were still some angry looking clouds over Mt. Rose to the west. Made for a  beautiful background for camping.  The air was crisp but the forecast said sunny 🌞, so after a nice walk and two geocaches, I decided that I would stay an extra night. 

 

Feral Horses in the camp

In the morning while I was making my breakfast a herd of horses visited the campground. They grazed their way right through my site. I was thinking that someone left the gate open, but no, turns out this is an open range and they are a wild Mustangs. A local I talked to on the beach said "they are more farel than wild." They don't mind being around you but they do not like to be approached,  

According to Gemini Ai, The Virginia Range: This 40-mile mountainous area stretches between Carson City and Reno. You can frequently spot them along the trails on the east side of Carson City, near Industrial Way, or occasionally wandering into historic spots like Virginia City.  Here is an interesting article about the BLM roundup program and local advocacy efforts to protect and preserve the wild herds.  

Gemfield Road Dispersed Camping

It was really nice to skip a day of driving and relax. Saturday I took off late morning and found a Krogers in Carson City then I headed south. Roughly 5 hours later I arrived at Gemfield Road Dispersed camping just north of Goldfield NV.  I drove in about 2 mile and found a empty site great view of the valley and surrounded by Joshua Trees. I even saw more wild mustangs.  Gemfield road continues on to Gemfield Nevada Chalcedony, renowned for harboring what is believed to be the largest deposit of gemstone-quality chalcedony in the continental US.  At almost 6000' elevation, this was a really nice boondocking spot, off the beaten path enough for privacy and not far from civilization.  Other than the wind rocking the van on occasion, I had a really nice stay and a good one to end my trip to Victoria and back.  The next day, I drove the whole 7 1/2 hours to my desert habitat.  Links to Washoe Lake and Gemfield Road shares albums.  Thanks for visiting

Forest road 108 - Kaibab National Forest

 

04022026 There is something calming about a walk in the woods. The breeze through the top of the trees and the smells of pine and dirt. This is my first stop on my journey to Victoria BC, Canada, I originally scheduled to leave on April 3rd, but I thought I would cut the first leg in ½ keeping in mind that this year, I want to slow down and spend more time camping.  So I left today and found a nice boondocking spot 35.19424, -112.2696, near Williams, AZ. I have heard that the full timers "Nomads" venture up to this area when Quartzite area get too hot. There are a lot of areas to set up camp but it's not as wide open as the desert.

I arrived in the afternoon and spent the rest of the day just wandering around the forest and enjoying the cool weather and the smell of the pines. 

The temperature dropped to almost freezing over night, but I was able to stay warm and cozy inside Vannie. 

In the morning I went to find some Geocaches, then hit the road. Next stop is Boulder Beach, Lake Mead 

here is a link to the Photos I took FR108

Quartzite Camp

121025 - 121525 Quartzite Camp 33°51'21.6"N 114°02'35.7"W 

I stayed the night at three different locations on the BLM land in the Quartzite area. First 2 nights, just south of Joshua Road in Bouse AZ where Dottie and Chief lived. I was Geocaching on my ebike when I met a full time nomad Bjarne Winkler and his Dog Ohana (means family) There was a cache near his camper and they wanted to know what I was doing. 

We talked for a good hour. I explained geocaching and Bjarne shared his wisdom about living on the desert and van life. I enjoyed hearing his stories and I asked many questions taking advantage of Bjarne's experience. 

The next day I explored some of the other boondocking areas there and round Quartzite. A area west towards California called Tom Wells Road Dispersed Camping and then the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. During this camp out I stayed up late to view the Geminid meteor shower  on Saturday 13th.  I also had some peaceful walks and plenty of ebike geocaching. 

The Quartzite area is pretty busy this time of year. There are many RV'ers and nomad campers. But there are plenty of space outside of the Quartzite town to find peaceful Isolated desert camping. 

Thanks for visiting. 

👀Photos 👀

Thanksgiving 2025

112325 - 120525 Sun City to Olympia and back again with points in between

Now that the repairs on Vannie D0T1D9 are fixed I was eager to get on the road again. Destination a thanksgiving dinner that could not be beat compliments of the Caron Family somewhere near Olympia. 

I had a good start heading NW through Las Vegas then on to highway 93 that parallels the Nevada - Utah North and South border all the way to Idaho. I pulled into Pahranagat Rest Area after dark, found a level spot and stayed the night. 

Morning was a quick bowl of oatmeal I headed north. I was going to stop at the Alien Research Center but the alien's were off for the holiday and they were closed 🙁 so I continued north. Driving conditions were very good and I made good time. My plan A, a casino campground in Jackpot at the north border of Nevada and Idaho, was a bust. I just didn't have a good feeling about Cactus Pete's Saguaro RV Park. So I continued north into Idaho and found a gem. 

Lud Drexler Park

USFS Lud Drexler Park right next to Salmon Lake Dam. High desert at 5000 feet. It was about 45°F when I parked. I was the only one there, including any Rangers, but they were open. I paid $13.50 and pick a site that had a view of the lake. I had to break out the sleeping bag because it got down to 28°F. In the morning I cooked breakfast inside on the butane stove which help warm the up the inside of the van. I walked down to the dam and around the park. Found a geocache near where I parked. So it was already after ten by the time I lwas back on the road. Highway 93 meets Interstate 84 in Twin Falls, I figured I would make it as far a La Grande in Oregon before sunset. For the third day I didn't really have a confirmed campsite because this late in the season the state USFS campgrounds are closed in the high elevations. So I figured I would stay at a rest stop. But I thought I would check out Forest Road 21 Dispersed Camping between the La Grande exit and Deadman's Pass.

Forest Road 21

It seemed fine when I pulled in and there was only one other camper. The ground was wet forest floor, not muddy. Satisfied, I found a nice spot between the trees. I checked the weather forecast that shows "wintermix", whatever that means,  starting at 2100 with accumulation of .3". It was already after dark, so I figure I was good, after all it was warmer that last night. I woke up at 0230, stepped out side for the necessary and discovered about 2.5" of wet snow! Now I know what "wintermix" is 😟 

Try as I might, I could not go back to sleep. I was worried about getting Vannie out of the snow. Front wheel drive is good, but with so much weight in the back, I'm always afraid of spinning my wheels. So I forced myself to stay in bed, knowing myself I would try to get out in the dark, and wait until sunrise. No telling when the snow might stop, best to wait until there is at least traffic on the freeway. I decided that I would try to go out the way I came in because I know that ground was somewhat level. So at about 0630, have everything packed up, forgoing breakfast for now, I made my first attempt, which was all that was needed. I did spin the front wheels, but there was plenty of traction all the way to the pavement. Feeling relieved, I stopped at Deadman'd Pass Rest Area and had my breakfast before heading out for the 5 hour drive to Glenwood Park. 

Gus

I arrived right before dinner time, I have a knack for that. We had salad and sausage rolls, a NW treat! Banjo and Fiddle-Mandolin caught me up on all the PNW news and the agenda for the weekend. This includes a nice walk with Gus each day, a Thanksgiving dinner that could not be beat, a music jam and a trip to Tacoma to see old friends.  I always feel welcomed and I'm treated more like a inhabitant than a visitor these days, just part of the big familia.  Thank you all very much!

Alas, I do eventually leave, usually before there is any serious work to be done, always with a heavy heart and anticipation for my next visit.  Sunday morning, after yet another fine Banjo breakfast, I headed south down interstate 5 with my sites set on Umpqua Lighthouse State Park on the coast of Oregon. 

Umpqua Lighthouse State Park

The weather forecast was very favorable for this time of year and there were plenty of campsites available.  I arrived way before sunset and set up in a nice back in site with electrical and water hookup, almost glamping for this trip. There was plenty to do, several geocaches to hunt and the lighthouse to visit. The park was maybe 1/2 full make for a nice and quiet visit. 

I walked around Lake Marie an found all the tiny geocaches, then rode Jagurandi down by the beach. At the lighthouse gift shop there was a real nice Letterbox geocache. I discovered all the travel bugs and swapped a pair. I visited the gift shop and got some stickers.  It was nice to have a whole day to explore and relax. My visit went by quick, next thing I knew it was time to get back on the road.  I spent some time planning my stops as I head south. 

I thought I would stay on the coast as I enter California, stay a night then jump east towards Reno area. The USFS and State campgrounds in the Redwood forest were closed, but I did find a first come first serve campground near Trinidad Ca.

Sue-Meg State Park

The drive down the 101 was beautiful with open skies and colorful transitions from forest to sea. The only traffic was through the numerous small towns along the route. I arrived Sue-Meg State Park about 1600 but didn't get parked until about 1700 because I had to drive into Trinidad to get correct change for the envelope drop pay station. I still had enough sun light to take the stairs down to the beach and take in the view. 

The campground area was nearly full so I was lucky to find a site for the evening.  I'm not complaining, but the difference of the facility up keep between Oregon and California State Parks was drastic. Maybe it was only because one is more popular than the other, still this is a nice park, just somewhat run down after the summer season.

Nevertheless, this was only an overnight stay and made the best of my time. Having filled up with water and emptied the grey tank in Oregon, there was no worry about it in the morning. After breakfast I was off again, only heading east across California, wanting to stay clear of any big metro areas. It took most the day driving the very curvy highway 299 from Trinidad to Reading through the Redwood Forest.  I took my time and arrived safely. From Reading I continued east up highway 44 towards Susanville.

Again, a lot of the campgrounds are closed this late in the year, so my choices for an overnight were thin.
Fortunately, Goumaz Campground was still open. A USFS free area with no facilities but nice level spots to camp. "Pack in pack out" rules apply! The forest road into the park was well maintained, mostly free of ruts and level except for the last part. I still had time for a nice walk around the forest, down a babbling creek, almost I wanted to try a fly. So peaceful it was kind of eerie because there was absolutely nobody else here. I defiantly needed my sleeping bag here, temperatures were in the 20's.  Maybe that was why I was the only one here. There was no waiting around in the morning for the temp to rise, so after a quick breakfast, I was off early making Tonopah BLM land for overnight before the end of the day. From here it was a 6 hour drive through Las Vegas and home. 

Here is a link to my shared photo album for this successful Thanksgiving trip. 

Thanks for reading my blog. 

 

Nevada, October 2025

100825 - 101025 

There is a lot more to discover around southeast Oregon,  but I was ready to make my way towards home. I'm finding that my travel time has been between 4.5 and 6 hours  on average which has been working out good. I have been using a trip planner called Roadtrippers with Campendium that helps me find places to camp along a route. I try always a plan B incase my first selection does not workout. I continued to take the less travel route into Nevada stopping at the Virgin Valley Dispersed Camping, yes another free camping area in the Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge.  There was quit a few campers for being in the middle of the week. The rigs range from car campers to 40' mobile homes, with everything in between.  I parked in a gravel space that was pretty clean, however there was some trash in the fire ring. I settled in and had an uneven-full evening.  

The next days destination was Kinston Campground USFS Auston Nevada, a 5 hour drive through Winnamucca, a short time on Interstate 80, then South 1/2 way to Tonopah NV. This is another free campground and being later in the season, the campground was pretty empty. I imagine it is much busier in the summer. The trip in was fine for a front wheel drive Promaster, but the narrow bridge make it difficult for a bigger rig.  7092' Elevation, beautiful fall like temperatures.  I did not have T-Mobile cell service but Starlink mini worked good. I arrived right a 1600 so I had plenty of time to get setup and settled before dark.  I know in the future I will be driving to and from Washington, so it will be likely I will stay here again. 

Right behind the van was a flowing stream and a nice place the sit and just think. This is where I was when I finally decided to go ahead with another Cochlear Implant on my right side. This got me thinking of getting home and all the things that need some of my attention.  I left for Indiana a month ago, so I was feeling it was about time for me to get home and get these life balls rolling.  

So I was off early in the morning headed south. Fueled in Tonopah and onto the 95 which goes through  Las Vegas.  My destination was Silver Hill Dispersed Camping located between Las Vegas and Kingman AZ.  The horizon started to turn dark and then it started raining.  I made it through the Vegas traffic and passed the Hover Dam and it was still raining when I stopped for gas in

White Hills AZ. This is when I realized that I'll be camping in the rain. So I got a footlong Subway tuna to have for dinner. The sun was low on the horizon when I arrived at the dispersed camp area. There was only one area that was not flooded and there was a big rig there. I pulled in and just did not have a good feeling, so I head back through the small town to the highway.  I pulled over and ate my sandwich, then took a 30 minute nap with the rain pounding on the van. My plan B was Hualapai Mountain Resort , I've had my eye on this for a while, but with the pouring rain, I was not eager to go driving in the mountains after dark and I was only a little over 3 hours away from my desert habitat (home 🌵). 

Considering game 3 of the ALCS was on the radio, I decided to
break my 6 hour driving time rule and drive all the way home. It was still raining when I pulled onto Willowbrook Dr. at 2148, but surprising enough the game was not over. I was able to watch the 18th inning on my TV!   My 30 day trip I drove 126h 22m 14s averaging 50 mph and traveled 6,334.9 miles.

👀 Nevada OCT25 👀

Here is a link to my map:

Thanks for visiting, please leave a comment if you have one. 

On the road with LT. Dan WY-MT-ID-WA

 092125 - 092425 

Shortly after leaving Devil's Tower, we were held up by a herd of cattle being moved along by some real cattle drivers. It was slow going but we were in no hurry. Yeehaw! We finally made it to Cody BLM Dispersed Camping area about 5 miles outside Cody Wy. There was very few other campers, but there was some. Parked and set up on a small promontory above a vast valley of barren land, nothing to stop the strong wind. The tossed the van back and forth all evening and through the night. The forecast called for rain in the morning and sure enough after a beautiful sunrise, it started raining hard. We got out of the BLM land before the dirt roads got too muddy and headed around Cody and north toward Montana. 

Soon we were on the interstate plowing west in the consistent rain with a million big rigs. It only seemed like a million because I was a custom to the 2 lane highway. Five hours later, we arrived at Cardwell General Store & Campground 

I book this site because they had showers and laundry facilities. We parked in the dry camping area and went for a nice walk around the grounds. There was a nice creek on the back of the property. 

After our walk, I left LT Dan in the Camper and started laundry and took a nice shower. The was 5 or 6 spots in the dry camping area. They were all full by sunset, but the rest of the sites stayed pretty empty. This was a good spot for a productive overnighter. 

Fortunately the rain was gone and it was a beautiful day with fall temperatures. Montana is a beautiful place. 

We were the last of the dry campers to leave. Took our time because we have a pretty short 4.5 hours drive on the I90 so there was no reason to rush.  We will stop at a USFS campground near Lake Coeur d'Alene in Idaho, called Beauty Creek Campground 

Lake Coeur d'Alene

LT Dan did not like this camp. We went on walks, but he was jumpy, I'm sure he smelled other critters about. I left his food outside and some critter ate it all. He does not bark much, but when a couple of bunnies came into view, he would lay in his bed and woof quietly. 

This is our last overnight, we will make it to our destination the next day.  We took off after 9 and soon we were past Spokane and making good time across eastern Washington. 

We arrived Glenwood Park in Olympia just in time for dinner. LT Dan and Gus met and were onto being fast friends. Thus concludes LT Dan's excellent adventure.

 👀 LT. Dan WY-MT-ID-WA 👀 

Thanks for visiting my blog. 

On the Road with LT. Dan (IA-ND)

 91625 - 91925 Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota 

On the road heading NW through the Chicago freeways and into Iowa. LT Dan was excited to ride shotgun but after he figured out we were not just going down the street, he relaxed and settled in for a long ride. There was some congestion around the Chicago that slowed us down a bit, so we finally pulled into Pikes Peak State Park just across the the point where the Wisconsin river meets the Mississippi river in Iowa.  Far away from the big city, the park is located atop a hill overlooking the two rivers. We arrived late, took a quick walk and settled in for the night. We were up with the dawn and made our way out to explore the park and quickly found the impressive overlook. 

The interpretation marker states: "Across this impressive gorge of the Mississippi River is the mouth of the Wisconsin River. The steeply notched valleys of both rivers are carved into sedimentary bedrock which underlies the level, plateau-like uplands and forms the abrupt, picturesque bluffs along the valley margins.. The layered rocks originated as loose sediment on sea floors 450 to 550 million years ago, and over time hardened into strata dominated by dolomite and sandstone. Fossil remains of marine life are seen in rocks throughout the area".  

After breakfast we hit the road again keeping to the quite and steady pace of the country highways stopping frequently at roadside parks and gas stations. You see LT. Dan went all day before he peed and I wanted to make sure he had plenty of opportunity to go.  Our next stop was Chippewa County Park Minnesota about 2 hours northwest of Minneapolis.  No great rivers here, just a small county park nestled between to small lakes.  We arrived early enough to enjoy long walk around the park and quiet afternoon. This is a small park with only 7 sites, there was only 3 other campers when we were there. Followed our normal routine in the morning. I was able to top off on water before we headed out on a raining drive into North Dakota.  

We stopped at Petco, cause that is where the pets go, in Fargo. I wanted the full experience of taking a dog in a pet store. LT. Dan picked out some treats and new gear. We also got a new 💩 bag holder cause I ran over the one Pete gave me. It rained pretty hard most the morning and past noon, but let up in the afternoon when we arrived at our boon-docking spot at Mckenzie Slough Wildlife Management Area. Basically a open lot next to hay fields. This area is open to public hunting and overnight parking is allowed. 

We were all by our selves and we had all this open area to walk and play ball.  It stayed cloudy and cool throughout the evening. I woke up before sunrise and there was another Van parked, but they left before the sun came up. I tried to get Dan to go out for a pee, but he does not like the dark. I discovered he is not a morning dog.  Although it was not raining it was clear that rain was on its way, so I thought we better get out of here before the dirt road got too muddy, as it was already pretty sloshy driving. 

We got out okay and stopped at a nearby rest area for the necessary and the 2 caches. That done, we headed out to the Enchanted Highway , a stretch of highway that has large metal sculptures made by Gary Greff , I heard about it from the Built to go podcast with Jeff Wagg. I saw that it was right on our way, so I put it in the route. Un fortunately and as previously mentioned, it was raining. but we were still able to enjoy seeing all the sculptures.  I was surprised that we completed the route before noon. So we stopped in town, gassed up, had a bit of a walk and made lunch, leaving enough time to make it to Wyoming and the Devil's Tower campground. This concludes this post, thanks for visiting. Leave a comment below. 

👀📸 LT.Dan On the road IA-ND 📸👀