(On my last blog post, I was in the Valley of Fire campground after a long and issue-filled day. Issues with my lens, the low tire pressure, no power, no stove, etc. and said “I needed a break”. So today is a short day, short in the sense that I didn’t do much, and this story will be short (unlike the last 4 days haha).
I woke early as usual - nature called. It was still dark and I planned on going back to bed, I really wanted to sleep in today. But, on my way back to my ‘nest’, I peeked out the window to see if there was anything stirring about. Maybe some bighorn sheep? Maybe a mountain lion? Nope. But I could see a glow to the east. Oh boy, after seeing that, there was no going back to bed. I was up, might as well make the best of it.
Pre-dawn on the Nevada desert.
It was a chilly morning, brrrrr. I had come to realize I was becoming more and more sensitive to the cold than I used to be - Florida blood they call it - I think it’s just part of getting old lol. I grabbed my camera, tripod, and a sweatshirt and headed down the road to a clearing toward the east to capture a sunrise. It was still and quiet.
It was a pretty cloudless sky. I managed to capture a sun-star and what looked like fog on the horizon, but do deserts have fog? Perhaps it was just haze. I noticed the haze in the sky these past few days. Smog from LA? Las Vegas? Then I took some photos of some rock formations that were being bathed by the rising sun next to the road into Atlatl Campground. I kind of liked those. Too bad some bighorn sheep weren’t coming down off the mountain, that would have been REALLY cool!
The Yabba-dabba-do rocks along the road into Atlatl Campground.
Seems you can polish a turd. Beautiful sunrise light on Jezebel, the Rolling Billboard.
After returning to the RV, I made a coffee and went out for a walk. But not a leisurely stroll with my camera like last night. Oh no, I was on a mission, a mission to find an empty campsite in the RV section, or one that would soon be empty. I was NOT going another day without power. I found a few empty sites, but they still had pay stubs extending beyond today’s date. I started by looking at everyone’s pay stubs. Making mental notes at which sites were expiring today. I found one and the guy was outside. Looked like he was getting ready to head out soon. I asked him if he was leaving today, and he said he was. I then asked if I could commandeer his site-post with a new stub to occupy his site after he left, just so no one else would get the same idea as me. He said that would be ok, and that he was planning on leaving around noon. He told me to go get an envelope and stub. (I was way ahead of him.) I held up the one I already had filled out, just waiting for an empty hook-up site. I just needed to tear the stub off and deposit my money. I was READY! When I finished with the paperwork, I noticed some bighorn sheep just off to the side in another person’s campsite. I walked over, not too close, and was amazed how close they came to people. These rams and ewes were not afraid of people. Another camper said they were in that same spot every morning. Very cool, something to look forward to tomorrow.
Walking back to my RV, I felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. I was a happy girl. I made myself another coffee, had some breakfast, and surfed social media for a few hours with my remaining wifi. Today was Mom’s birthday so I texted her too. Around 11am, I started to stash stuff in sinks and on the floor for my 1/10th of a mile drive to my next campsite. It was short, but not flat. I didn’t want stuff flying all over the place again. I removed the front curtains and watched the man’s truck till I saw some movement. I jumped to action and drove over and parked next to my new site. It was only 11:30, but I wanted to be there when he pulled out. So I waited… and waited… and waited… He took an hour to leave! Sheesh - c’mon man! haahaa Finally at 12:30 the couple pulled out and I pulled right in. Site was level, and I was all set. Got out and plugged in my electric for the first time, hooked up my hose to the camp water system and grabbed my tire gauge to test my faulty tire. Yep, it was down again, at 60lbs now. Sh*t! Looks like I’m not going anywhere today. And honestly, it didn’t bother me that much. It had been a pretty fun and drama filled few days and I was ready for a day of nothing.
So, what to do?? I cleaned up the RV a bit; took out the trash and recycling. I went online and ordered a long lens from LensRentals to replace my kaput 100-400 for the rest of my trip. I scheduled it to be delivered to my campground in Kanab on Friday. And now that I had power, I plugged everything in and edited photos on my laptop all day, all while dealing with Cruise America trying to get someone out to change my tire. Between poor cell service, missed dispatch calls, and stupidity, it was an all-afternoon job. Finally, a guy from Overton came out and changed my tire. His actual shop was very near where I was when I first called Cruise America yesterday asking about the low tire pressure to begin with. Had the dispatcher sent me to this guy’s shop in the first place, it would have saved Cruise America a lot of money, and me a lot of hassle, and given me an additional day (and peace of mind) to explore. But… hindsight. I asked him to make sure the spare had enough pressure too. He assured me it did. I didn’t see him test it, but I trusted his judgement.
This was the extent of my photography this afternoon & evening. View from my work station/dining room/rest and relaxation area haha.
After all that drama, I had dinner, egg & avocado salad and a few slices of summer sausage and cheese, and edited some more photos. The wind was whipping up a storm again today, lots of dust. Good day to sit and do nothing. I went to bed early for a change. Tomorrow I’d leave Valley of Fire and head north to Arizona and then Utah, and back to Arizona and Utah again (the highway dips south into AZ after St. George before heading back north). Final destination, Kanab, Utah.