Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

Pictures will never do it justice! 

Little man said he was cold so I gave him my sherpa. 

Then he turned into a monk. 

Never trust a toddler near a ledge. 

Yep, I went in there. Yep, it was a sheer ledge on the other side. And yep, it was terrifying. 

Sleepy boy. 

I call this one, Time Out Rock. Mason had a hard time listening so he got to sit on that rock for time-out. Most scenic time-out yet! 

We stayed for two nights in this campground and it was nice but we had zero cell signal! 



The trees were too close for a hammock but that wasn’t stopping me! 





Also, I found this web of caterpillars 🐛 

Day 7: Are you okay, bro?

Onward to New Mexico! 

We left Elk City around 9:30am and quickly ran into winds blowing at 17mph and gusting at 35 😳

We drove in that for about an hour and found a “safety stop” rest area to pull into to check on the tires. We have some bad experiences with tires and driving in Oklahoma winds so we weren’t taking any chances. (See previous blog posts from 2014). 

While Tim was checking tire pressures, I went inside to use the restroom.  

The walk was a little windy

Also saw this fun little warning on my way: 

🐍 

The lobby area in the building with the restrooms was basically a dedication to wind. There were plaques that said “What is wind?” And “Who can see wind?” And in the middle of the room was a full size weathervane. First the warning about rattlesnakes and now this? Hands down the most interesting rest stop I’ve ever seen. 8/10.

 

We arrived in Raton, NM around 4pm. There were a few other RVs waiting to check in as well so we stayed in the truck to wait our turn. I look to my right and see the one and only employee over by the propane filling station helping someone out. I made a comment to Tim about how I hope he wasn’t feeling overwhelmed since there were so many people waiting. He finished filling their propane and walked as fast as he could without breaking into a jog. He walked around the building where he thought no one could see him, bent over and vomited. Then proceeded to walk back to the front, unlock the lobby doors, and began helping people like he didn’t just throw up in the bushes. 

Uhhh... 

It was finally my turn to check in. I walked in and he seemed like he felt fine! He kept hiccuping throughout my time registering for the night. He brought out the map to show me where we’d be parking. “So you’re here in site 20. You’ll come down this way and pull straight in. When you want to leave in the morn-..... excuse me one second.” 

He walks away and vomits again! Like, are you gonna be okay!? We can figure out how to get out tomorrow if you need to go!? 

He comes back, apologizes, and finishes our check in. 

What is this life. 

Day 6: Elk City, OK

Photo dump from our time in Elk City!

Also, I found these giant fire ants. 0/10, would not recommend. 

Day 5: Welcome to Oklahoma, Here’s Your Complimentary Tornado Bunker

The drive was going well, mostly uneventful, Mason was happily coloring in the back and the dogs were relaxed. It was quiet. Too quiet. I should have known. 

Welp.

 

We wrapped up the day of driving in Sallisaw, Oklahoma! 

This site also had “waterfront views”. 

Mason got a bath in his pool, I made spaghetti for dinner, and then he was off to bed! 

I took Athena for a walk in the woods while Tim made a campfire. 

Also, I found these tadpoles in some tire tracks

 

Day 4: Finding Our Groove?

Our campsite for the night had a waterfront view. Well actually the whole spot was flooded but Tim is an optimist. 

The drive to Memphis was (thankfully) uneventful. We have found that driving roughly 350 miles a day with one potty break halfway through is best for the mental health of the adults and keeps the attitude level for the 3 year old low. 

Low, but never none. 

We got more wind and rain that night but nothing crazy. 

Here’s Ava beat-bopping around the campsite 

Day 3: May the (Tornado) Force (Not) Be With You

We were by Crossville

Calm before the storm. 

  We went to bed Monday night and were woken up around 1:30am by large raindrops hitting the top of the camper and strong wind rocking us. I’m someone who genuinely loves storms. The more severe, the better. I swear I should have been a storm chaser. However, I don’t particularly love them when I’m currently living in a tissue box. The storm escalated pretty quickly and all of a sudden we were listening to quarter size hail hitting the camper. In turn, Mason woke up absolutely terrified and we all hunkered down in his room. The hail stopped after about 15 minutes and gave way to more heavy rain and wind. 

This was the first system just after it passed over us so we were directly in the red. 

We all fell asleep in Mason’s room and woke up to cloudy skies but no more rain. That didn’t last long as we looked at the radar and saw another strong line of storms headed our way. And then we got the alert on our phones:

👀 

Let’s do this. 

Behind our camper, there was a cinder block building that had a laundry room and a few bathrooms. We started seeing people driving their vehicles to the building and parking there. The weather was really starting to get bad so we made the decision to bring the slide in, jump in the truck, and park by the building as well. It was go time. Tim grabbed Mason, put him in his seat, came back, and I handed him Ava because there was no way in hell that I was leaving the pups behind. The wind was so bad that it almost ripped the door out of my hand as I ran out with Athena. Her and I ran to the building while Tim drove around and parked. Tim got out and picked Athena’s 90lb self up and put her in the crate in the back seat of the truck. And there we waited. 

Hunkered down! 

This is where we were going to go in if we had to. 

Eventually the wind died down and the rain slowly subsided. We drove back to the camper and packed everything up to head towards Memphis. 

Also, I found a worm 🪱 

A Bridge, 7 Hours On The Road, and a Trip To The ER Vet: A Saga

  On our way out, we stopped and saw the Natural Bridge. I definitely use the word “awesome” for things that aren’t truly awesome, but Natural Bridge really was awesome!!!! Such a beautiful area and so cool to walk through! 

Next, we hopped in the truck to head towards Knoxville, TN. What was supposed to be a 5 hour drive turned into 7 due to bad weather, traffic, and emergency potty stops for Ava. She started to make me nervous for her health again during that trip, so I began researching vets in the area we were stopping for the night. I found one and called to make sure they could get us in. They were so nice and while there wasn’t much they could do, I did get piece of mind that she no longer has pancreatitis. We got her a supplement to help her liver, more anti-nausea meds, and some food.

Photo of the stinker waiting outside. 

Back again... 

♥️🐾

Back at camp, we ate leftovers and went to bed.

At least for a little bit.......

(To be continued)