2024 Spring Trip Recap

Every time I drive pass this water tower in El Centro with the sea level line I get a kick out of it. Being below sea level fascinates me.

The Spring ’24 eight week trip recap is wind, more wind, bad roads, old friends, new friends, family, mountain biking, and vultures.

The wind was relentless the entire trip, from departing San Diego to our last stop at McDowell Mountain Regional Park. We just couldn’t escape it. Obviously, the worst was being in a tornado warning. We’d be just fine never experiencing that again. One of our favorite things to do is pull out the awning and sit underneath it in the late afternoon for happy hour. We only had two calm days when we could do this.

Wow, I thought California had bad roads. They are in great shape compared to what we experienced our entire trip. I’m surprised we didn’t blow a trailer tire. We did shear some cabinet screws and popped a few rivets inside. It was normal for the couch cushions to be on the floor when we stopped. The cheapest we paid for gas was $3.02 a gallon. It got me thinking…there must be a correlation between cheap gas and bad roads.

It’s human nature to want to rank things and make comparisons. When we wrapped up our Utah trip last fall we knew it was special. We love that part of the country. The scenery was jaw dropping, especially The Wave. We experienced sensory overload. I remember my cousin, Kahl, asking me how are we going to top it. I told him we couldn’t. This trip was quite a bit different, there was beauty, but long stretches in between with miles and miles of nothing. Our initial thought when returning home was if we are going to go east of the Rockies again, we’ll just fly.

Nowadays everyone is always busy, even retired folks, so anytime with friends is to be cherished. It was great being with our old friends Laurie and Dan in Gilbert Ray, Michelle and Dom in Bentonville, and Mike and Chris in Cortez. It was really cool to see Carolina again and have her tour us around Kerrville and Flat Rock Ranch, and introduce us to some of her biking friends. It was wonderful spending six days with my cousin Eddie, seeing his son, Holden, and spending a day with cousin Lisa and her husband, Brian. We hope we get to see our new friends again that we met at Gilbert Ray, Kathy and Mike. We really hit it off with them. We also met another fabulous couple at Cortez, Patty and Bill. And I got to meet the trifecta girls. 😊

A lot of mountain biking! Ripping through saguaros in Arizona, biking a piece of the Continental Divide Trail, seeing and believing the hype about Bentonville, and visiting our old friend, Phil’s World, again. The surprise was the East Contrabando Trails in Big Bend Ranch State Park. We loved that ride. It was so unique and beautiful.

The last take away was vultures. We see Turkey Vultures often in the spring and summer in San Diego, but nothing like the numbers we saw in Texas and Arkansas. The Turkey Vultures are mixed with the Black Vultures. We saw groups of a hundred or more, perched in the morning, soaring the thermals, which is called a kettle, and then we watched them come in to roost in the evening. It was quite a display.

The Stats

• 6,317 miles
• 56 nights: 13 full hook-ups, 34 partial hook-ups, 6 nights at my cousins, 1 parking lot, 1 boondock, and 1 dry camp. Average cost per night $31.
• 28 bike rides: 401 miles
• 12 hikes: 39 miles
• Four National Parks

A Harris Hawk! While we were eating lunch before leaving Usery Mountain it just sat atop the saguaro the entire time. This is one of the times I wished I had a real camera.

Trail stickers

It’s been awhile since I had a Chick-O-Stick. This is new packaging to me.

The border influence

I ❤️ Spanglish 😊

Amelia got a kick out of this sign.

O’Briens’s in Bergheim, Texas, one of my cousin’s hangouts.

 

Ribbit

 

East Contrabando Trails

 

Another East Contrabando pic

 

Dos perros napping under a truck in Boquillas, Mexico.

How about five pounds of American cheese slices 😮. And a ten pound log of 73/27 ground beef. I’m not certain I’ve ever seen 73/27 ground beef!

 

Flat Rock Ranch

 

These type of signs always put a smile on my face and make me chuckle.

 

Arizona Desert-thorn

 

We’re still bummed the only javelina and armadillos we saw were road kill.

 

Interesting birdhouse at our Bright Star campsite

 

MTB Chick

 

Another pic of the sunset on our last night in McDowell before the big storm.

 

An appropriate ending to the trip? Right when we entered San Diego County we stopped for some gas. The key to the Airstream door snapped off in the lock.

 

This is the hardware that was removed from Amelia’s foot on May 1st!

Reroute to McDowell: April 24-27, 2024

Our fourth crested saguaro! This one is located off the Pemberton Trail in McDowell Mountain Regional Park.

Our original plan was to go to Moab then Hurricane after Cortez and be home on May 3rd. All the hardware in Amelia’s foot from her last surgery in October ’22 has been causing pain and discomfort for a long time. She finally decided enough is enough and has opted to have it removed. The surgeon had an opening on May 1st because of a cancellation, so she took it. Once we knew that, we took the shorter route home, with a stop at our old favorite, McDowell Mountain Regional Park.

Our route took us on the US 491 through the Navajo Nation. Every time we drive through Rez Land we are left with a lot of different emotions. It feels like a completely different country. I don’t know how the Native Americans feel about their land and living there, but the evident level of poverty makes us sad. The injustice of it all is heartbreaking.

If you’ve been following us this trip, this will come as no surprise, it was windy at McDowell. The wildflowers had began to fade, but the cacti bloom was going off! When we were riding the trails it was apparent that a fire had gone through the area. It started on June 27, 2023 and the park was closed for over a week. It was caused by a construction crew cutting rebar at a new building. Over 2,500 acres burned. The trails that burned had a different feel. The saguaros and cholla were charred. Tall grasses were growing. There were also many new expensive Scottsdale homes encroaching upon the trails. Once upon a time you could only view a home in the distance, now some of the trails run along backyard fences. It was much nicer before the fire and new houses.

Here’s what appears to be newer buildings in the Navajo Nation. The older structures have tires on the roofs to keep them from blowing off.

Site 71. It was the least crowded we’ve seen the campground. This particular loop closes on May 1st.

Sunrise, the famous Four Peaks is on the right.

Moonset to the right of the saguaro.

Cacti blooms galore

This was our first time seeing saguaro blooms in the wild. It was so cool!

On an early morning stroll through the campground I ran into a guy who is with the Golden Gate Basset Hound Rescue. How can you not smile when seeing a basset hound? They are such loves.

Amelia riding through a patch of Brittle Bush.

The Palo Verde was also going off.

Like a tree that falls in the mountains, this saguaro was cut up into logs after blocking the trail. The first pic shows the circular ribs in the center.

On our last night this dramatic sunset was the precursor to a violent lightning and thunderstorm that literally shook the Airstream. At first all the lightning was occurring to the north of us. A few hours later while we were in bed it was directly above us. Heavy rain pelted Opal and there was no time between the flashes and cracks of thunder. It seemed like an appropriate ending to the trip.

Cortez, Colorado: April 24-28, 2024

It was very comforting to be back in a familiar area.

It was a long haul from Palo Duro to Cortez, so we split it up by spending the night at a KOA just north of Albuquerque. Say what you will about KOA, like it’s expensive, but the one thing it has going for it is you can do laundry there. That beats the hell out of going to a laundromat.

This was our fourth visit to Cortez. After our first visit to see Mesa Verde National Park and ride Phil’s World, we have returned exclusively to ride Phil’s World. Every time I wonder if it’s going to be as good as my memory thinks it is and every time it is. It’s truly a single speeder’s paradise. When we are biking with another couple it’s a win-win. Mike and Chris came out from the Central Coast of the Golden State to spend four days camping with us. It was their first time at Phil’s World. Thankfully it lived up to my hype and they loved it.

We stayed at Bright Star Campground. It was quite a bit different than any other place we’ve stayed. It’s not so much a campground as it it a big piece of land with some structures, cabins, teepees, four RV sites, only one with water and electric (ours), a community kitchen, and an open air setting for games with picnic tables. It’s about five miles outside of town on a country road.

When we arrived, we almost reached our breaking point. The site was uneven, it was windy, a bit chilly, and we were tired, which was impacting our decision making abilities. We were having a hard time deciding exactly where to park Opal. Then, with a flip of a switch, the wind ramped up to at least 40mph. We took cover behind the Airstream as dirt started swirling. Unfortunately doors were left open on both the truck and the Airstream. A layer of fine dirt covered everything, including ourselves. If it were possible to click our heels and magically be back in San Diego, we would’ve done it.

Robin, the owner drove up to our site. She somehow knew we were struggling. Basically she said sorry, I can’t control the wind, but the storm will pass soon, hang in there. Under different circumstances I’m sure we would’ve set up camp differently. Mike and Chris arrived three hours later to just the normal wind.

On Sunday, we all went into town for beer at Wild Edge Brewing. I’m sure Sunday had something to do with it, but the place was dead. However, we had the most interesting conversation with a young couple, Frank and Gabriella. He had lived in San Diego for 13 years while serving in the Marine Corps, so he and Mike hit it off. I’m not exactly sure how the conversation took the turn, but we learned in detail the traditional Navajo way to slaughter a mutton. Gabriella is a Native American and her parents live on the Rez. They even showed us pictures on their iPhones of all the steps.

A mutton is a sheep typically over two years old, if it’s under one year it’s called lamb. Mutton is a little tougher and fattier. The highlight of the conversation was how they use the entire animal. The women and men have very specific traditional roles. Once the throat is slit they collect all the blood for blood sausage. The carcass remains hanging for the men to skin and quarter it. The skin is put wool side down on a table where the women wash the intestines in warm water repeatedly until they are clean enough to be turned inside out and stuffed with shredded potatoes. Bones are used for broth and all the organs are eaten in some way. Gabriella’s favorite is a mutton liver and fat taco. It was so interesting meeting the two of them.

Now this is a welcome sign!

Yay!

Our payoff for the hellicous wind storm we endured was this gorgeous sunset on the same day. Robin from Bright Star took this photo of us.

They call it a high desert oasis spread out over 30 acres.

Our campsite

Another pic taken by Bright Star. The girls granted permission for them to use the picture for marketing.

A new sign for the Lemonhead Trail at Phil’s World.

Sunrise

Some cool artwork at one of the new trailheads. There’s the original Phil’s World, then two newer sections. The original has the best trails.

Riding the edge

Win-win

That’s Patty following Amelia. She joined us on our last day. She and her husband Bill were camping next to us. Bill crashed and broke a bunch of ribs the day before so we invited Patty to ride with us.

Chambers’ Twinpod, these were all over providing quite the contrast against the dirt.

Amelia, Mike, Patty, and Bill. We had a nice little full moon viewing party.

Dramatic rising

I saved the best for last! A Hernandez Horned Lizard and three chicks looking at it. 😆

Palo Duro State Park: April 16-19, 2024

Westbound, put the hammer down!

My buddy, Needles, was here in January of 2018 and raved about it, so we went to it. They call it the Grand Canyon of Texas. It is 120 miles long, as much as 20 miles wide, and has a maximum depth of more than 800 feet. Its elevation at the rim is 3,500 feet above sea level. It is often claimed that Palo Duro Canyon is the second largest canyon in the United States. It was fairly impressive but nothing even close to the real Grand Canyon, or for that matter Yellowstone’s Grand Canyon, or even the Wedge at the San Rafael Swell, know as Utah’s Little Grand Canyon.

It’s a steep windy 10% grade down into the park and the first time the Tundra has been in first gear. She handled it like a champ. Amelia’s modus operandi at a new campground worked like a charm. Look for real mountain bikers by checking out their bikes then ask them about the trails and what they recommend. It’s even better when they have an Airstream! There were three guys from Dallas that gave us great riding tips for the area. We had a one day respite from the wind, then it returned with a vengeance.

We visited five Texas state parks and camped in four of them. All told we spent 25 days in Texas. 😳

I really like this pic of a defunct water tower in Britton, Oklahoma.

Goodbye Oklahoma, hello again Texas, we are getting closer to home.

Beautiful Site 79, Mesquite Loop

Here’s an early morning view of the campground. The only negative against the campground was we had zero cell reception. I had a hunch if I climbed the hill above us I might have reception. It worked the first day. The second day not at all. I blamed it on the wind.

Artsy fartsy shot from my hike down from the cell reception site the first morning.

Purple Locoweed

I’ve seen a few things in my day, but never a sunscreen dispenser at a trailhead.

 

 

We survived.

 

The riding was better than we anticipated, so that was a pleasant surprise. 🙂

And quite a bit different than the terrain at Bentonville.

The Lighthouse,  the “famous” landmark at Palo Duro. We rode our bikes then hiked up to it.

It was actually quite impressive. The couple pictured were geeking out on taking a jillion pics for Instagram.

Amelia walking towards the unseen Lighthouse in the picture, between the two rock formations.

Here it is, the last sunset in Texas. My cousin means the world to me, but I think it’ll be a long time before we are back in this state.

Overnight in Norman, Ok: April 16, 2024

The furthest east we’ve been in Opal.

Back when we were in Austin, we intentionally got on a toll road to beat the horrible traffic on the I-35. It was an electronic toll, so we’ll see how they are going to enforce payment. I’m sure we’ll get a letter. The question is will we pay the toll or just blow it off?

After we left the southwest corner of Missouri, and entered Oklahoma we got on Interstate 44. It was also a toll road, but this was old school with booths that collect cash or credit. I don’t understand how they can have a toll road on an interstate? Anyways, we went through two toll booths and had to pay $8 and then $12 for four axles. The exits were few and far between, and they all said toll refund. Finally we took an exit so I could go number one. Right as we exited there was a booth. The booth lady asked for our ticket, looked at it, then gave us a $1.75 in cash. I asked her if we could just pull forward to use our restroom in the trailer. She directed us to where we should park. Less than five minutes later we got back on the toll road, the same lady was working both sides of the booth. She said that’ll be $2.25! Basically a fifty cent fee to pee! I was laughing at the booth lady telling her it was the craziest thing I’ve ever seen. She just smiled at me. I’m still kicking myself for not taking a picture of her.

I’m not going to sugarcoat it. We are tired of the wind and can’t seem to escape it. A breeze is one thing but constant 25-40 mph is just stupid. The wind was brutal in Norman, and got worse as the night progressed. So windy you couldn’t open any of the windows. It was shaking Opal, not ideal for quality sleep. Throw in rain and a rich guy with a million dollar diesel pusher, running his loud air conditioning all night, that could’ve parked further away from us in the huge back parking lot of the aptly named Riverwind Casino, and it made for a miserable night. But it was worth it because Amelia completed the trifecta of her special friends; Corie, Melissa, and Tia.

I gave this lovely young lady the nickname Trifecta Tia. She’s the third and last of the special friends that Amelia visited this trip.

Riverwind Casino RV parking lot. It’s enormous, yet Diesel Pusher Dan had to get too close to us when he arrived in the dark.

Retired plumber guy arrived while Amelia and Tia were dining in the casino. I was laughing so hard watching him.

Cows adjacent to the parking lot

Parking lot sunrise

Gambling geese and goslings

Driving away in the morning.

Here are all four of the special friends together. The picture was taken last summer at the end of a retreat: Amelia, Corie, Melissa, and Tia.

Bentonville, Arkansas: April 10-15, 2024

Michelle and Amelia, atop the Ledger, looking down on Bentonville. The building has six stories of bikeable ramps that take you from the ground to the top floor!

Bentonville: The self proclaimed mountain biking capital of the world!

The first time I visited Bentonville was sometime in the late aughts on a business trip. I was working for Garden Fresh Restaurant Corp, the old parent company of Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes. We were trying to sell some salad kits to Sam’s Club. One of my favorite people in the world, Vinny Lucido, co-owner of Xperience Marketing, was our broker. He has a house that doubles as an office in Rogers, which is about a mile away from the Sam’s Club buying office in Bentonville. I made at least one, if not two more business trips to Bentonville. The last one was probably in 2010.

Never in a million years did I dream I’d be vacationing in Bentonville. Its was literally a nothing town where the headquarters for Walmart and Sam’s Club were located. According to the internets, the first area to be developed for mountain biking was Slaughter Pen. In 2007 there were only five miles of single track. In 2010, it grew to 17 miles, that’s it! No wonder I didn’t take notice.

Fast forward to 2024, I don’t even recognize the place. The transformation is mind-boggling. There are over 380 miles of trails in the surrounding area. The founder of WalMart’s grandkids, Tom and Steuart, are to be applauded. A passion for mountain biking and 200 million or so dollars have changed the area into a Disneyland for bikers. It is on the map! The self proclamation, advertising, and marketing has made Bentonville a destination.

And again, lucky us! Michelle, yet another MTB chick (for you non bikers, MTB is the abbreviation for mountain bike) that Amelia met on the trail, moved to Bentonville two years ago. So once again we had a guide! And as an added bonus, Dom was flying in from San Diego, staying with Michelle and her family, and we would have an overlap of two days. He’s an incredible rider and one of those guys that everyone in the San Diego MTB community knows or knows of. We met him close to 20 years ago, on a ride with Michelle. I hadn’t seen him in probably 15 years, and one day he showed up to ride with the Thursday night group I ride with. To weave the story deeper, he also bought Amelia’s old Niner Sir 9 singlespeed a couple of years ago.

We hit the Little Sugar Trail System, the famous Slaughter Pen, Coler, and The Back 40 but only scratched the surface of what each area has to offer. The trails for every skill level, jump lines, crazy features, connectivity, amenities, signage, trail art, and how quickly the mountain biking culture has been ingrained into the community is nothing short of amazing. And it’s free! Indeed, the mountain biking capital of the world! However, what’s up for debate is who has the best mountain biking. I’m sure the people and fans of Sedona, Moab, Hurricane, Tahoe area, Bend, and Whistler would beg to differ.

We stayed in the parking lot called Boiling Springs RV Park. Glamorous it wasn’t, but it was located at multiple trailheads!

The Dogwoods were blooming and the other trees were just starting to get their leaves.

Our first ride was on the Little Sugar Trails which included part of Tunnel Vision and Tweety Bird.

The trail art work was next level.

How’s this for a trail amenity? A changing station.

Oz Trails Northwest Arkansas, another name for the greater Bentonville area.

Amelia crushed the famous Bush Push! When you get to the top you kiss the rhinoceros.

I’m stating the obvious, Arkansas is not a desert.

And here’s another obvious statement, this is not a Southern California home.

Big Foot is alive and thriving. If you are paying attention he can be spotted twelve times.

On Dom’s first day we did the famous Back 40. It was a 25 mile four hour adventure.

Dom wheeling across a bridge.

All smiles

Three different sections of the Back 40.

The iconic Back 40 shot, coming and going.

Red Columbine

Dom on a feature at Coler. I want to make it publicly known, I owe him a beer.

Dom’s friend, Bob, getting massive air. The Harris’ do not do this type of stuff.

Thank you to Michelle and her family for showing us such great hospitality.

Adios Oz Trails