SW Landscapes: Short Posts

The International Dark Sky
The National Parks in this area of Utah are designated International Dark Sky. Our first night the moon didn’t rise until early in the morning leaving the night at Dead Horse Point State Park very dark. Seeing that many stars across the sky and clearly seeing the band of our Milky Way galaxy is truly stunning. The Boundary Waters also has a truly dark sky, but several factors limit the ability to witness what we experience here. 1) The surrounding forest limits the amount of sky we can see, and 2) The two trips I took this summer brought too many mosquitoes at dusk to stay out long enough for the sky to fully darken. The sky here is very ‘big’. Wherever we might find ourselves, we can see from horizon to horizon unimpeded by any obstacles. The big sky at night becomes a horizon-to-horizon gallery of stars bearing witness to the immensity of the heavens. Truly a stellar spectacle.

Social Media Withdrawal
We’re on top of the Colorado Plateau surrounded by a wilderness of rock. While awestruck by the grandeur of the surrounding landscape, it is a wilderness, and a wilderness brings challenges to remain connected to the trappings surrounding the ubiquitous nature of wifi and cell service.  I find myself wanting to text friends and family, post our adventures on Facebook, and publish on a timely basis to this blog. But our campsite and hikes are without this technological link out of the surrounding wilderness. While a good thing, it does necessitate a bit of adjustment. Meanwhile, we’ll continue to try out an adventure or two and relish in the grandeur surrounding us.

Teardrop Solar Energy Update
Seems parking the trailer in the Utah Sun is very good for finishing the day with a 100% charge on our Lithium Iron Phosphate battery powering our trailer. October feels late in the camping season back home, but in these parks, October is one of the busy months – a chance to experience the grandeur, but not the summer heat. Even in October, the solar charge is great. I am ready to say I like the solar panels on the roof of my teardrop.

Andestuga Validation
We were hiking the Kenyata Trail to the Middle to the Upper and Middle Emerald Pools in Zion National Park. Darla commented on a passerby’s Minnesota Twins cap and engaged in conversation. Turned out they were from Rochester, Minnesota – 75 miles from our home. As we chatted another fellow hiker joined in the conversation proclaiming he was from Sweden – qualifying for “Almost Minnesota”. A delightful conversation ensued. I told him I have Swedish ancestors. He asked me if I knew any of the language. I took that as a great segue to tell him about our teardrop camper and seek to validate with an authentic Swede my interpretation of Ande Stuga: “ande” meaning breath or spirit and “stuga” meaning cottage. He validated both. So then I thought I could try out “reser” meaning traveling. I butchered the pronunciation but was close enough. On a roll, I told him my loose translation of “reser Andestuga” was a “traveling cottage to restore the soul”. He said, “That’s nice.” Yeah, those were the best two words I could imagine!

Teardrop – a Closing Thought
Our teardrop, the Andestuga 2.0, faithfully followed along throughout the length of this trip. It performed superbly in all its facets. It kept us warm and comfortable at night and provided a consistently sublime dining experience each morning and night. There is a deep satisfaction in the knowledge that this camper came to being in my own hands. “Reser Andestuga”, the traveling cottage that restores the soul did just that.

Chance Encounters
We put on some 4,000 miles and rubbed shoulders with thousands of people from around the world. Yet there always seem to be a few encounters with people that are memorable. To name a few:

• Jerry and Susan from St. Louis – We first ran into them at Arches National Park offering each to take a picture in front of the Windows Arch. Turns out their itinerary followed many of the same paths. We ran into them again on the Kenyata Trail in Zion National Park.
• Tobias and Colleen from Utah – We always notice other teardrops in campgrounds we stay in. There was one at Kodachrome Basin State Park. We weren’t able to run into them until Day 3, but had a great conversation. There is a great bond among teardrop campers. We ran into them again as we were leaving Kodachrome.
• Heather – We aren’t the slowest hikers on the upside of the South Kaibab trail, but on the slow side. Heather was standing to the side of the trail as we passed. We told her she could pass, but she chose instead to walk alongside and engaged in conversation. Eventually, we did step aside and she passed us. Watching her go ahead, it was clear she was holding back during that time she walked with us.
• The Colorado Wayside Rest guy – We stopped by a wayside rest along 285 past the Red Hill Pass. A gentleman was working on a bench as we walked in. On our walk out, we entered into a great conversation with him. He told an interesting story of his life and asked lots of questions of ours. A good guy.

Getting home
We had a phenomenal time on this trip and enjoyed each moment and aspect of the trip. This is just what retirement is designed for. Yet, there came a time when we were ready to come home. There is something so rich about turning into our driveway and being “home”. We always offer a huge thanks for safe and trouble-free travel. Life is good.

Thanks –We’d like to give a special thanks to several we found very helpful in planning and experiencing this phenomenal trip

• Bruce and Stephanie – Our dear neighbors at one time lived in Colorado and have a special love for all these lands we were planning on experiencing. They readily shared stories, books, and maps. They generated excitement and enthusiasm for our trip. A huge thanks to them for all they did.
• National Park Service interpretive placards – Throughout the park, there were interpretive signs in place providing explanation and story for what we were seeing. Each of these was highly valued and helpful
• Matt and Cheryl – We came across a couple from Utah that began a company (We’re in the Rockies) whose goal was to help tourists make the most effective time of visiting these parks. They provided sample itineraries, background information, and stories that helped us plan what we were going to do on our trip. They also included audio recordings of stories of interest for each of the areas we visited. There is a cost, but we found it very worthwhile and would highly recommend their work.

The End