We thought we had see the best when we hiked Zion.  Then came Bryce.  There is not better way to say “holy shit”.  Bryce is phenomenal hiking, and the views are spectacular.

From Bryce we drove to Goblin Valley where we found the campground full.  HWhen that happens, its time to find our own spot. On the way into the park I did notice a decent dirt road that we decided to check out.  I drove the RV a little bit into the canyon and walked ahead to make sure we could get in and out easily.  It ended up being the perfect spot

When night was in full, I stepped outside to a spectacular star lit sky.  There was no light pollution and the galaxy and beyond was a spectacular sight.  I called Sue out and she began to call my name.  I was five feet away and invisible to her.  It was that dark.

We are in Glenwood Springs where we spent a couple of hours in the hot springs before a wonderful Italian dinner in town.  Our next stop is a week in Lafayette, Co with #1 son and his wife and newborn son Koa Sky.  We will do some Aspen tree sightseeing in Black Hawk, Nederland and Lyons, Co.

Is there a video you may ask?   Well of course.

Hiking Bryce Canyon Utah from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

Biking Bryce Canyon from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

Zion from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

 

Sue and I spent the night in Joshua Tree National Park camping. In the morning we did three hikes in the park before settling in at the Joshua Tree Lake RV Park. A wonder day with a wonderful wife.

https://player.vimeo.com/video/233248535

Joshua Tree from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

Sue and I for once got an early start leaving the RV park in Sedona for Joshua Tree. We were going to stay two nights before moving on to Southern California.  Ninety minutes into the drive we stopped for gas and Sue noticed her cell phone was missing.  The find my phone app showed it back in the campground. We decided to return and stay another night in Sedona. We found her phone in the dumpster of all places. Naturally we blamed each other for the faux pas.
Things worked out well.  We did not have reservations at Joshua Tree, and we got to do a good hike in Sedona.  We topped off our misfortune turned fortune with a really good dinner at the Hideaway House.

Bell Rock Hike. Sedona AZ from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

 

Biking and Hiking Utah from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

A Week In Colorado in Three Minutes from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

 

I had to take the RV to the dealership again.  This is the fifth on this trip.  Loveland Ford is going to take care of the situation.  All the others told me to ignore the information lights on the dash and keep driving.  I had and 8:30 AM appointment at the shop and took my bike along.  There is a lake region a short three miles away and I took advantage of the situation.

During the ride the dealer called and said their only diesel mechanic had to take the rest of the day off.  With that, I have to drive an hour back to #1 sons, and in the morning drive again to the dealership. With my bike of course.  So I suppose we can all agree that things kind of worked out.  Another day of riding the lakes.

Lakes of Loveland Co from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

It was a hot day riding the wide open prairies of Colorado. A shortish route of 22 miles on a beater bike gave me a pretty good workout. After 7 days of driving, getting on the bike was rewarding. The route took me on the Cold River and Rock River trails and except for the occasional runner and biker, it was pretty much me and the prairie dogs. After 7 days of driving, getting on the bike for a good ride was pretty rewarding.

I’ll be doing quite a bit of riding during our week long stay in Colorado. From here we head west to California with stops in Sedona, Moab and Joshua Tree National parks.

Laffayette to Erie Co from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

One of the last items of my prep list for our road trip was to make sure Sue’s bike was in good shape.  I thought a cleaning and lube would be enough.  I was mistaken.  There  were a couple of issues that were beyond my skills.  It was much to late to bring it to a bike shop so I did the next best thing.   Have the bike shop come to me. I had worked with Mike during a couple of local events, knew of his business, but when it was time for bike repair I defaulted to the LBS.

Yesterday I was in a pinch to get the bike fixed.  I went online to Velofix.com, chose a 3 PM appointment and at 3 PM, Mike was in front of my house. The work was good, the price was fair $69 for a basic overhaul/tuneup.  My regular bike shop is $75. Close enough to call it a wash price wise.  As for service?  Who could not love a house call.

The rest of the packing for a two month road trip is crazy.  Like packing for a long distance bike tour, it’s chose stuff, think about it. Take some stuff out of the pile, put stuff in the pile.  I’m thinking I’ll be making changes till the minute we depart.