Wednesday, October 07, 2009

A SMATTERING OF THOUGHTS & A PHOTOGRAPHIC LOOK BACK TO THE WILLIS SLOT CANYON IN UTAH

 DSC_0066MAX BLENDS RIGHT IN WITH THE ROCKS  (Click on photos to enlarge them)

DSC_0067All photos plus the album below are from our  November 17th 2007 hike in Willis Canyon near Cannonville, Utah.

DSC_0003THE GUYS ARE ALL LOADED UP & READY TO HEAD OUT FOR WILLIS CANYON:)) (Not much room for Mom to squeeze in....Checkers is in the back seat)

It's 5 in the morning & I'm in my big comfy recliner with my Toshiba laptop on one lap & the sleeping little Motormouse on the other.  Soothing ambient music on the stereo with only soft light from dials casting a pale glow into the darkened living room.  We have high winds this morning & I have heard cracking branches so I know there will be pine limbs to pick up later this morning.  A 'crack' means a branch has come down & a 'thud' means a whole tree has come down.  Cracks, but no thuds yet this morning however.   The electricity just blinked off & on again which means re-setting all the clocks & light timers later!!  PIne trees are not strong trees & it doesn't take much to break the branches off or snap the whole top third of the tree right off.  I have seen heavy snow laden winter storms here that have brought whole trees crashing to the ground.  Hazards of living in a pine forest I guess but it sure beats the heck out of having to live in a city!!

DSC_0045WOW, WHAT AN AWESOME PLACE

My chair is situated right next to our sliding patio door & I have a hooked stick that I use to open & close the door for the furry guys without having to get up.  Our back yard is fenced in so we don't have to worry about the furry kids wandering away.  I just open the door with the stick & out they go without any worries.  Of course that is all about to change soon when we're back on the road again.  No sitting in my warm comfy chair at 5 in the morning opening & closing the door with a stick for each of them.  No, not that easy.  Each time one of the guys has to go out I have to get up, throw something remotely warm over my shoulders, slip into some kind of footwear, grab the flashlight, & out the door & down the steps we go into the darkness with doggy bag in hand.  I don't normally put their leashes on because they stay close & respond to voice commands if necessary, but I never let them out of my sight for a minute.  Especially little Cora because there are roaming coyotes at night.  Sometimes I only have to shiver in the darkness for a minute or two & other times they may make me stand around forever while they take their time exploring here & there before doing their business.  Always so nice to get back into the cozy warm motorhome but it's usually only short lived because it's not long before the next critter is crying at the door.  I do this 3 times every morning while traveling.  Not a good idea to have them all go out at once in the darkness because it's too difficult to keep track of everybody & I don't have a motion detectable 3 beamed flashlight. 

The ranch in Arizona where we are headed has a high coyote proof fence around the perimeter on the acreage of the ranch house so that does make it less stressful letting the guys out at night plus there are 2 super great ranch dogs outside who make it their business to see that no coyotes or night walkers slip into the ranch compound.  Night walkers??  The ranch is close to the Mexican border & in a high traffic area for illegal immigrants (Mexicans) coming across the border at night.  While there last winter we could sometimes here them on the nearby road at night but it's not a worry.  The last thing these people want is to be detected so they go about their nocturnal business as quietly & unnoticed as they can.

DSC_0051YES, WE HAD SOME VERY WET FEET BY THE TIME WE GOT BACK TO THE CAR...12 WET LITTLE PAWS TOO

Karen over at the BIG BACK YARD has a good description & photos of some RV renovations they did & how they repaired & put down a new hallway & bathroom floor in their motorhome.  She makes it all sound so easy but I know for me to try that it would be ohhhhhhhhh so hard:((  For sure I'd end up getting the floor tile glue on upside down & the wood screws hammered in sideways!!  Noticed her blog for to-day is about sealing their motorhome's fiberglass roof so some of you might want to have a look at how they did it & what they used.  And it sounds like ROD is having a few 'beeping' & satellite tracking problems with his new motorhome.   Check out WANDERING WILLY'S early camping years in France & if you happen to be going by GYPSY'S place maybe you can drop in with a bowl of chicken soup because I think Gypsy is down with the flu:((  And if your thinking about installing a new wireless keyboard & mouse sometime in the future just drop in & see how VERAGIRL is making out with her new  board & mouse.

DSC_0086 STOPPING FOR A REST ON OUR WAY BACK

GROANER'S CORNER:((  A little boy went up to his father and asked: 'Dad, where did all of my intelligence come from?' 
The father replied. 'Well, son, you must have got it from your mother, 'cause I still have mine.'

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.

5 comments:

  1. Oh thanks for the shout-out on my roof and flooring repairs! Seeing as I am *grounded* here for a few days ...no camping... I might do up a few blog pages of other modifications we have done to our rig. Will see. I just LOVED that Willis Slot canyon in your pics. Have to mark that for future places to see on our Bucket List!

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  2. Al, those Willis Slot Canyon pictures are spectacular! I've got to find that place for sure! I also have the night doggie patrol while we're camping!!

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  3. That's where we three Amigos differ - we don't have dog or dogs. We do have an oragutan and a moose, but they are stuffed and don't have to go out.

    Doncha just love slot canyons? Willis looks as if Suzy could get into the trip too!. She didn't go with me to Antelope Canyon last year, but would love to see one up close and personal. Thanks for sharing.

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  4. That canyon looks scary. No good for somebody with claustrophobia but it sure looks pretty majestic. I would love to see it. Great pictures

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  5. Hey Birthday Day Boy! Was your mouth full of cake? You know mine was full of dental tools.....Hope you had a good one.

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