Suggestion for trip to desert southwest

[DWeikert]

Hello fellow TCrs,

It's been a minute. 🙂

Sadly the Northstar has been tucked safely in the carport for a few years but it's finally time to give the solar panels a little sunlight.

I had planned a variation on this trip for 2020 but then covid hit and didn't want to risk catching it a 3+ day drive from home. Then I had plans to leave last spring just as diesel prices went through the roof. So, here's hoping 3rd time's the charm.

I'm planning to leave late August and take about a month for the trip. I'm now fully retired so my only schedule issue is how badly the cat will tear up the place as I leave her alone with just the occasional visit from a friend checking the house. She doesn't travel well. This is primarily a sightseeing trip but I think my first stop will be to relieve my fishing jones at the Grand Mesa in CO where I had a great trip fishing a few years ago. My tentative stops are-

Grande Mesa, CO.
Moab/Arches National Park, UT
Canyonlands, UT
Valley of the Gods/Monument Valley, UT/AZ
Grand Canyon, AZ
Lowell Observatory, AZ
Meteor Crater, AZ
Petrified Forest, AZ
Gila Cliff Dwellings, NM
Very Large Array, NM
White Sands, NM

Now before anyone shouts that I skipped their favorite site, this is why I'm posting. Obviously I don't know what I don't know so if there's someplace worthy that I missed, now's the time to let me know. From the list you can get a pretty good idea of my interests.

For those familiar with the sites on my list, any suggestions on where to boondock while in the area would also be greatly appreciated. I've done a ton of research and have ideas but no amount of research beats actual experience.

Thanks all,
Dan

[Mike_and_Terry_]

We waited till we retired and did a spring trip to all the US deserts to seethe cactus blooms . Took part of rt 66 w and ended on coast of California. Liked the saguaro cactus the best. Travel safe

[Bedlam]

I just left Southern Utah and Nevada where temperatures are already pushing over 90 degrees, so it is only getting hotter till Fall approaches. We moved up in elevation and latitude to get into the comfortable 70's today.

[rickjo]

DWeikert wrote:

whazoo wrote:
I’m sorry Sir about the timing, not only heat but it’s monsoon season in the southwest, meaning humidity and the very real chance of flash floods. Please consider staying out of any slot canyons. 11 people died in Upper Antelope years ago, only the guide survived hanging onto the rope ladder yet having all his clothes ripped off by the water.

After that I would suggest Lee’s Ferry for a campsite from a postcard…yet the heat.

Good luck!

Thanks and appreciate the heads up. After reviewing the feedback I'm considering pushing my departure back a few weeks to mid September. After the drive and a week or so fishing in Colorado that would give me the month of October to explore the deserts.

Thumbs Up!

Rick

[DWeikert]

whazoo wrote:
I’m sorry Sir about the timing, not only heat but it’s monsoon season in the southwest, meaning humidity and the very real chance of flash floods. Please consider staying out of any slot canyons. 11 people died in Upper Antelope years ago, only the guide survived hanging onto the rope ladder yet having all his clothes ripped off by the water.

After that I would suggest Lee’s Ferry for a campsite from a postcard…yet the heat.

Good luck!

Thanks and appreciate the heads up. After reviewing the feedback I'm considering pushing my departure back a few weeks to mid September. After the drive and a week or so fishing in Colorado that would give me the month of October to explore the deserts.

[whazoo]

I’m sorry Sir about the timing, not only heat but it’s monsoon season in the southwest, meaning humidity and the very real chance of flash floods. Please consider staying out of any slot canyons. 11 people died in Upper Antelope years ago, only the guide survived hanging onto the rope ladder yet having all his clothes ripped off by the water.

After that I would suggest Lee’s Ferry for a campsite from a postcard…yet the heat.

Good luck!

[DWeikert]

Jerrybo66 wrote:
Your poor cat.. It's mentally hard for an animal to know they have been abandoned. "Occasional visit"?? No mental stimulation? Our dog gets depressed when I leave to go shopping. I would try short trips to get her used to travel.. Animals learn quick.. Take her bed with you.. Poor kitty...

I know, I do feel really bad for her. A friend will be stopping by a couple times per week and she lets him pet her which is more than she'll do with most people. I also have a pet door so she comes and goes as she pleases. She spends most of her time outdoors so there's plenty of mental stimulation but there won't be much human contact. She's borderline feral so taking her with me just isn't an option. She was almost a year old when she literally just came walking through my door one day and while I did work with her she's never been a lap cat. Just changing her flea collar is something she hates me for so putting her on a regular collar and leash isn't going to happen. Without a leash I suspect the first time the camper door opened she'd bolt and I'd never catch her. Anytime she's outside, more often than not, she runs away from me if I approach. As I see it, leaving her here and free to roam is the lesser of the evils of trying to take her with me only to bolt at the first rest stop, or putting her in a kennel.

Camper_Jeff_&_Kelli: Good info. Thanks.

[DWeikert]

rickjo wrote:

azdryheat wrote:
Check the temps before you go. Danged hot.

Double down on the heat caution. Might as well stay in Grand Mesa a bit longer. Fall in the Southwest deserts comes at least a month later than in PA. Until then, toooooo hot. Fall leaf colors are in mid to late October.

Rick

That's the reason the schedule is like it is. I'll probably be up on the Grand Mesa until at least the 2nd week of September, and I'll be monitoring temps and adjusting the schedule as I go. Again, one reason it's hard to make any reservations ahead of time.

[Jerrybo66]

Your poor cat.. It's mentally hard for an animal to know they have been abandoned. "Occasional visit"?? No mental stimulation? Our dog gets depressed when I leave to go shopping. I would try short trips to get her used to travel.. Animals learn quick.. Take her bed with you.. Poor kitty...

[Camper_Jeff___K]

I liked Meteor Crater. It has a very nice museum facility and some hiking options to the bottom. Depends how much you want to do, you could spend a full day there. I camped a few miles east of there on the freeway at the very nice new rest area, then went into Winslow to hang on the corner and get some stuff. Unfortunately Lowell Observatory was closed due to an imminent blizzard. I really enjoyed the south rim of GC and got some great pictures and video. I camped 3 days in the campground. I exited southbound out of the park but then took a left at the south end of town, and headed east into the blm land forest road. I made my wandering way through to the fire observation tower and exited back into the GCNP and exited again via the eastbound road after visiting the observation tower, Pueblo castle replica. I could have camped up in the blm area but didn't. I have not seen the north rim yet, on the list. There are so many interesting places in that area, you can't miss. If you want, you can glance through my posting history to see if there is anything in there that interests you.
On another note, we travel with our 2 cats and they do very well. They roam free throughout the truck and camper as we have a passthrough. Remember, it's much harder to get reservations or find a spot over the summer ..Take care.

[rickjo]

azdryheat wrote:
Check the temps before you go. Danged hot.

Double down on the heat caution. Might as well stay in Grand Mesa a bit longer. Fall in the Southwest deserts comes at least a month later than in PA. Until then, toooooo hot. Fall leaf colors are in mid to late October.

Rick

[deserteagle56]

DWeikert wrote:

I'll have to take my chances with the smoke. Hopefully it'll be towards the end of fire season.

I live in Nevada so all those California wildfires you've heard about, that smoke comes across Nevada first. In California "fire season" doesn't end until the winter storms put the fires out, and that's usually in November. Hopefully this year, with the huge snowpack still mostly intact in the mountains, there will be minimal wildfires.

[DWeikert]

Ranger Tim wrote:
DWeikert,

If you like dark sky you will love Canyonlands. Getting away from Moab will result in much darker sky for seeing the Milky Way in all its glory. Mesa Arch is indeed a picturesque spot. Bryce does astronomy programs with visiting telescopes. Early summer is best to avoid smoke.

Thanks again. I do enjoy the night skies out west. They remind me of the skies when I was a kid. Looking forward to some nice wide field night sky photography. I'll have to take my chances with the smoke. Hopefully it'll be towards the end of fire season.

[Ranger_Tim]

DWeikert,

If you like dark sky you will love Canyonlands. Getting away from Moab will result in much darker sky for seeing the Milky Way in all its glory. Mesa Arch is indeed a picturesque spot. Bryce does astronomy programs with visiting telescopes. Early summer is best to avoid smoke.

[TenOC]

DWeikert wrote:


greenno, I'm a space/science geek. I would forever regret it if I was that close and didn't stop to see Meteor Crater.
.

If you can go to McDonald Observatory an astronomical observatory located near Fort Davis TX on a night they have a star party. One of the best space/science experiences that I have ever had. Not only is the lecture outstanding, you get to look through the large telescopes at the planets.