Is A Town With Our Name A Place For Us?

8th – Days 34-50, Dec 18, 2020-Jan 3, 2021, St George, UT, Arizona, and Nevada

Friday, I drove the truck while Kevin worked from the passenger seat. This works out well for us. We left at 8:00 am because we wanted to give the sun some time to warm up the roads. It was in the 20s when we left. Glad we are going to weather in the high 60s! Kevin’s work gave everyone a 1/2 day off today since they can’t have a Christmas party. I thought that was very nice. Stopped to pick up Carl’s Jr in Beaver for lunch and ate in the truck. Picked up our trailer at the storage. All looks good. After a setting up our campsite, site #9, we drove to Ace Hardware to get some screws for the name sign Kevin made for us.

Then we went to Harmon’s Grocery Store. The traffic was pretty crazy, probably due to the weekend before xmas. Came back to camp and had hot dogs and Mac and cheese.

Saturday, we had a really fun drive. We are looking for a “home base” and Kevin found Dolan Springs in Arizona. We had decided to drive there. So, three hours south and oh it was fun. The scenery is beautiful with the rocks and desert. Las Vegas was easy to drive through. We wanted to get drinks at Boulder City but ended up driving through the whole town, which was fun. Picked up McDonalds and then took a few pictures with Lake Mead behind us.

Kevin’s input: Dolan Springs was a bust! Our thought right now is to have some land for a “home base” when we travel full time in the future. There are a lot of counties that restrict camping to so many days a year. Dolan Springs is in a county that does not have that restriction – and it shows. Although there were a few places that looked nice, the majority of them are run down. It looks like a place where mobile homes and trailers go to die. There were a lot of abandoned trailers with no windows. I am sure there are great people there, but it was not for us. With my namesake, I would have hoped for better.

That evening we got to camp around 4:00 pm. I had made French Dip in the crockpot at home and had put it in Food Saver and froze it. We had French dip sandwiches for supper and it was very good.

Sunday, we didn’t know what we wanted to do. That morning we decided to drive through Zion National Park. It was stunning! Like before but with snow at the top. The park doesn’t have the shuttles running because it is “off season”. Well, they should have…it was so full the rangers blocked off the road to all the hikes and stops! It was okay, we drove on through the tunnel and out the east side of the park. We are amazed at how the landscape changes just “down the road a little bit.” So fun to see what it looks like around the bend.

I am setting up my camera and tri-pod, ready for the outstanding photo that will blow the world away. And then…SOMEONE steps in front right at the second I press click. Does he like to have his picture taken or perhaps he just likes to bug me? 🙂

We drove to Kanab and got ice cream at a gas station. Then on through Fredona. We remember stopping at Pipe Springs with my Aunt Goldie and Uncle Jim years ago. We though it was very interesting and had lots of history. Kevin and I passed the turn off and then turned around to go get his National Park Passport stamped. On the tiny road, I remembered that the Indian Reservation is extremely high with Covid. We turned back around when we saw a sign in the middle of the road saying no visitors. On through Colorado City and Hilldale. In Apple Valley we saw a “tiny home resort” and of course had to turn around to see it. The tiny houses are literally smaller than our trailer. HAHA The road down to Hurricane is fun: drops off quit a bit. We came back to camp and just read and watched movies. Dinner was corn dogs from a food truck that came to our RV park. It wasn’t what we thought the batter would be (sweet) but it was good. We were glad to support the truck.

Monday, Kevin and I both worked. Kevin sat outside most of the day. I was out there a lot but it was so bright it was hard to see the computer. The shower head broke this morning so we went to Walmart and got a new one. Plus I got a hand held vacuum and we got some groceries.

Tuesday, same thing as yesterday. We both worked. Kevin was able to sit outside most of the day. I sat inside. I enjoyed working from here. 🙂  In the evenings we watch RV youtube videos and it is fun. We also booked flights, hotel, and rental car for Phoenix, AZ Jan 15-24. Going to check out land, houses, communities, etc. 🙂 We are excited about our plans….

Wednesday, Happy 32nd Wedding Anniversary to us!  I finished all the things for work about midday. Last month, Kevin made reservations for us at Cliffside Restaurant, here in St George. We drove up there and it was still light out, since our reservation was at 5:45 pm. We were a little early but the view was great. At 5:30 pm they texted Kevin and said they were ready for us. (This is a new way since Covid: you wait in your car.) Oh, this restaurant surpassed all expectations! We got a table by the window and the view over the city and bluffs was stunning. The food was some of the best we have ever had! The flavors were out of this world. I had chicken fried chicken and the best mashed potatoes and dipping sauce ever. I tasted rosemary. Kevin had surf and turf. We had coconut shrimp for starter. The sauce had a lovely orange taste but not overpowering and not tart. We enjoyed our evening together.

Next week… more exploring.