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Date Posted |
Forum
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RE: Southeast Colorado Dry Dispersed Camp Sites (RV)
Are you sure you mean "southeast" instead of "southwest"?
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Clattertruck
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05/24/12 03:43pm |
RV Parks, National Parks, State Campgrounds & More
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RE: Guy's eastern sierra fishing trip
As an old trout fisherman, your pictures really make me get the urge to go to my river. I use a Parachte Adams a lot because I can see it.
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Clattertruck
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05/19/12 09:53am |
Truck Campers
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RE: First trip report - Part 1, Valley of the Gods, Utah
Great trip, too bad you had to suffer the tire episode, but it added to the adventure.
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Clattertruck
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05/18/12 10:41am |
Truck Campers
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RE: Returning to Canyon De Chelly
The canyon is a bit of a shrine of sorts to what happened there in 1864:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Canyon_de_Chelly
To get more of a full story, check this book:
http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Thunder-Carson-Conquest-
American/dp/1400031109/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337176214&sr=8-1
http://cd.pbsstatic.com/l/76/7776/9780385507776.jpg
:)
Lynn
Lynn,
As a western history buff, I find Hampton Sides book top notch. Another that I treasure is David Lavender's "One Mans West.", which has a great chapter about Al Scorup the famous Mormon cattleman. Frank McNitt books are excellent. "Richard Wetherill: Anasazi Pioneer Explorer of Southwestern Ruins" is a favorite of mine.
Ron
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Clattertruck
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05/17/12 07:46am |
Truck Campers
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Returning to Canyon De Chelly
Returning to Canyon De Chelly
Retuning to the places of great attraction to us is some thing we relish doing.
We got our first truck camper in 1966. We have been to a lot of places and we liked all the trips. Certain of the "grand views" strike an emotional note that sings in our memories. We return to these places to see more, find different light, maybe experience the "Magic Moment" of atmospherics and light that happens so rarely. You have to be out a lot to see these moments and be ready to capture the scene with your camera or just your mind. By returning to a great place, you have a good idea when the time of day is best.
I am fortunate that my wife of 58 years has patience to wait with me for the right photographic light and not ask, "when are you going to be finished".
Not all the return trips have a pleasant outcome. The secret places have been discovered by herds of people or new "developments" have poisoned the atmosphere. Maybe the weather does not favor you.
On May 5th we started a reprise trip to Canyon De Chelly in northeastern Arizona. We have been there four or five times beginning in the spring of 1967 during our kid's spring break. The last time was 2006 when we took friends on the truck trip up the canyon bottom. As I thought about it, it had been a long time since I photographed the overlooks on the rim. That was to be the main purpose of the visit. Much of my original film had faded with time before it could be scanned.
Canyon De Chelly (pronounced d'Shay) has been lived in for about 5000 years by different peoples. The Navajo are the latest and have been there for 300 years.. The Anasazi built the stone structures for which the canyon is famous.
We had a pleasant drive to Bloomfield, NM from Colorado.
Our first night was spent at The Desert Rose RV Resort listening to a barking dog that cracked the night slumber until four o'clock in the morning. I kept waiting for a gunshot to silence the beast. Management must be deaf or the wretched cur was not on their property. Either way, we wont be back.
An interesting feature of the "Resort" was the largest cottonwood we have ever seen.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC8250c600.jpg
We estimate it is some 30 feet in circumference.
RVers have a lot of worries about leaky roofs. Here is a solution:
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC8254c600.jpg
I wonder what this does to fuel mileage,
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC8262CE600.jpg
Going west on Hwy 64 we enter the Navajo Reservation, and off to the south is famous Ship Rock near the town of Shiprock.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC8269c600.jpg
We notice the usual vast numbers of lost items decorating the highway.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1068c600.jpg
Not everyone on the reservation approves of the glittering roadside.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1055cCE640.jpg
Just past Mexican Water AZ we turned south on Hwy 191. We are back in the wonderful red sandstone country. It is about 65 miles to Chinle as the road follows the Chinle Wash most of the way.
We stopped at the Canyon De Chelly National Monument Visitor Center where we look down on Cottonwood Campground. The camp offers lots of shade.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1072CE600.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC8288c600.jpg
We find a nice level spot and reminisce about old times.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/1966CanyonDeChellycamp.jpg
Our second time at De Chelly was in 1967. Our first TC was an Open Road on a 1966 F250. Margot, baby John, Martha and Sarah (who will be 55 yrs this June).
After we found our site we headed up the North Rim Drive.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC8302CE600.jpg
Mummy Cave Overlook.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/DSC_0160CE.jpg
Mummy Cave
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1074CE600.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1097CE640.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1108AntelopCE600.jpg
Antelope house Overlook
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1115c600.jpg
Margot facing a heavy wind.
We went back to camp for some "adult beverages" and dinner. The night delightfully quiet with nary a bark. It is a dry campground which is just fine with TCers. We "don't need no stinking hookups".
At morning light we vectored to the South Rim. I hoped to get some images before the clouds became disruptive. A few clouds are a good thing, but heavy unmoving blotters turn the landscape flat, reducing the appearance of form.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1128cCE600.jpg
The South Rim Drive. The first stop was Tunnel Overlook
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1200CE600.jpg
Tsegi Overlook
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1161CE600.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1147c600.jpg
I wait for the light at Spider Rock.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1269CE600.jpg
Spider Rock Overlook
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1307CE600.jpg
Spider Rock 2012
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/1967CanyonDeChellySpiderRock72i.jpg
1967 Spider Rock. John must have been sleeping in the camper. He wasn't much for walking at 6 months old.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC8335c600.jpg
2012, Margot studies the scene.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1325CE600.jpg
We moved to the White House Overlook, and the clouds have move in.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1365CE600.jpg
A closer view show the white wall to the rear, thus the name White House.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC1371CE600.jpg
Looking up stream from White House Ruin.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/_DSC8320cSharpShinned600.jpg
This guy came to see use. It is either a Sharp Shinned hawk or a Peregrine Falcon. Not being a "birder" I'm not certain.
In years past we have taken the truck trip up the canyon bottom with Navajo guides. It is a superlative ride. We highly recommend it.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/1968CanyonDeChellytrucktrip72.jpg
1968 , John does not remember it.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/1974NavajoWomanc600.jpg
The wisdom of a different culture lined the face of this wonderful Navajo woman.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/Ourtruck72ppi-1.jpg
2006 We came with friends. The same old military trucks were still being used. Interestingly the truck run in a low gear without brakes. They simply shut down the engine to stop. The brakes had to be removed because the daily running in sand ate them up.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/1974CanyonDeChelly6c8x10HPCESkyt.jpg
1974 Spider Rock from the bottom.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/1974DeChelly162cCE600.jpg
1974 White House Ruin
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/DSC_0125CE.jpg
Calm green against the fiery sandstone.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/DSC_0144CE600.jpg
2006
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/DSC_0154CE7x10.jpg
2006
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Canyon%20De%20Chelly/1967CanyonDeChelly8x10cHP.jpg
1967 we hiked to the White House from the rim trail. This is the only place you can go without a guide. Margot carried John, I carried 40 lbs of camera gear, and the girls carried food and water.
Our children grew up traveling and camping. Our grandchildren are doing the same with their parents. They are all good people.
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Clattertruck
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05/16/12 06:32am |
Truck Campers
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RE: The Whazoo's trip of many colors...Or...Brokefoot Mountain
Did you see that in the recent Mexican 1000 that Malcolm Smith was third at 71 years old. IMO he has been the greatest all around moto rider we have ever seen.
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Clattertruck
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05/03/12 06:45pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: The Whazoo's trip of many colors...Or...Brokefoot Mountain
Whazoo,
You broke your foot playing with a dirt bike, it happens. In a previous life when I was young I had a 1968 Yamaha DT1 Enduro. The vicious machine was great fun, however it got my right foot torn up. The foot was never fixed right and it bothers me still. I was 36 in 1969, and now I'm 79.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/1969-Desert--Ron-with-hat600T.jpg
How about the riding uniform. Ah, the memories of seeing sky and tank as you do an incomplete loop.
Ron
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Clattertruck
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05/03/12 04:04pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: The Whazoo's trip of many colors...Or...Brokefoot Mountain
As usual, really great stuff. You are still the champ!
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Clattertruck
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05/02/12 03:57pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Outfitter exterior wrinkles/creases only cosmetic?
I would away unless the price is very good.
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Clattertruck
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04/27/12 03:22pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: rv parks near denver colo
Chatfield State Park on the southwest side is the best. We live about 10 mles from it and have used it for fiends visting the area,
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Clattertruck
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04/25/12 05:15pm |
RV Parks, National Parks, State Campgrounds & More
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RE: Ford & Continental Tires
My 2008 F450 came with 19.5 Continentals. they have not worn well. The fronts were done at 18,000 and the rears are close to replacement at 36,000 miles.
Idon't know what to next. Michelins used to be the best, but recently they don't sound good.
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Clattertruck
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04/24/12 07:37am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Older Diesel vs Newer Gas - Which to buy?
Ditto on the gasser. The 7.3 was a great engine, but chassis may be pretty well used up. The trans of that era was not the best.
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Clattertruck
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04/24/12 07:24am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: deep cycle batteries and deisel trucks
The charge coming from an alternator does not care what power source runs the alternator. Who ever said that about diesel power is a complete fool having terminal stupidity.
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Clattertruck
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04/18/12 01:10pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: Quality TC
Ditto on the Northstar campers. Before I wanted a slide I owned two of them. They have excelent build quality and fine factory support.
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Clattertruck
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04/13/12 03:11pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Sego Canyon and Thompson, Utah
Here are a few photos of our trip into the Book Cliffs:
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/2011%20San%20Rafael%20Swell/_DSC6079ThomsonRockArt640.jpg
Rock art
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/2011%20San%20Rafael%20Swell/_DSC6091OvenThompson640-2.jpg
Oven at the cow camp in Thompson
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/2011%20San%20Rafael%20Swell/_DSC6107sego640.jpg
Sego old general store
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/2011%20San%20Rafael%20Swell/_DSC6110SegoRd640.jpg
Sego road
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/2011%20San%20Rafael%20Swell/_DSC6124cFloyWashjRd640.jpg
Floy Wash Road
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/2011%20San%20Rafael%20Swell/_DSC6133FloyWashT640.jpg
Floy Wash
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/2011%20San%20Rafael%20Swell/_DSC6093c640.jpg
Our group
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Clattertruck
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04/08/12 04:32pm |
RV Parks, National Parks, State Campgrounds & More
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RE: Sego Canyon and Thompson, Utah
Last May we went up Sego and Thompson canyons and came down Floy Wash. the roads were good, Floy was dusty but had a great view of the Monti La Sal mountains. Sego stops at the Indian Reservation and you are not allowed to go past the marker.
We like using the Green river KOA.
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Clattertruck
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04/08/12 04:16pm |
RV Parks, National Parks, State Campgrounds & More
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RE: CO camping near Aspen or Marble
yj bill,
There are two national forest campgrounds in the area that are very nice.
Redstone is about a mile east of the town of Redstone. It has two sections one with no hookups and one with water and electric.We have stayed there several times and really like it. Also the town of Redstone is aneat place. Down the road toward Marble is Bogan Flats NF campground, it is no hookups but a very nice campground with sevaral sites on the river. Also the fishing in the river is usually pretty good. Hope this helps.
Kenneth
I would recommend reservations at either campground during the summer.
2x
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Clattertruck
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03/31/12 04:16pm |
RV Parks, National Parks, State Campgrounds & More
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RE: Arch Canyon.... Utah.......
Thanks Clattertruck, I see that you have a trials tire on the DT. Would you recommend that over a knobby for the area. I find trials tires are great for rocks and roots, but not so good in sand.
My son tells me that most of riders in the desert prefer trails tires. There is both rock and sand. He says you have to be careful when in the transition from sand to slickrock. Too much power will cause trouble.
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Clattertruck
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03/20/12 04:57pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Arch Canyon.... Utah.......
I will be down in Utah this July - Spending 3 weeks exploring the national parks and would like to also do some exploring on my dual sport motorcycle (WR250R) - it is licensed. Any suggestions for boon docking and exploring with the motor bike.
Southeast Utah has a bazillion places to ride your moto. There are a few places in Nation Park where ATVs and Motos are limited, but overall there are many wonderful trails and roads. I suggest you look at the Adventure Riders forum in the Rocky Mountain section, which covers Utah.
http://www.advrider.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=28
I rode a lot of the areas with a 1968 Yamaha DT1 Enduro in the late 1960s and 1970s. My son is now a dual sport rider at 46 years old. You 250 is great for single tracking if you into that.
I switched to 4x4s after I kept getting injured riding over my abilities.
1968 riding gear.(I was 35 yrs) ready to go over the handle bars into the sand.
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u164/Clattertruck/Mitchell%20Campers/1969-Desert--Ron-with-hatCE640.jpg
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Clattertruck
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03/19/12 05:07pm |
Truck Campers
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RE: Arch Canyon.... Utah.......
Bad ATV rider driving off the trail, That is why they are tring to close all our trails and you post a picture of it for all to see.
The trail crosses the stream 22 times, so being in the water is not driving off the route. In fact, the stream bed is the least damaging aspect of the trail. I have jeeped the canyon about 10 times since 1968.
The worst damage to the area came several years ago when a 4X4 group took over 100 vehicles into Arch and caused so much damage that the federals almost closed it forever. Looking at the canyon beauty is one thing and going to just test your 4X4 is another. Driving up soft hills making big ruts is what will kill access.
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Clattertruck
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03/19/12 06:25am |
Truck Campers
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