Happy Thanksgiving from Pennsylvania! High on the list of the blessings we’re counting this week are all of YOU, our friends and family — thank you for following along and supporting us in this crazy dream we’re living. We’ll catch you up on our adventures in Virginia and Pennsylvania soon, but first, what happened after New Orleans?
Oct 27 – 29
From New Orleans we headed north to Selma, Alabama. Well, to Prairie Creek State Park, actually, about 20 minutes outside the city. Great park! Kayla had to lean into some work, so we gave ourselves three days here. And, for the first time since Durango, we experience less-than-80-degree weather!
Selma was once a thriving city, but these days is mostly in ruins. At the height of slavery it was an important cotton port. In the 40’s it was home to Craig Air Force Base. It was the site of the Freedom March, and the violence that ensued. Folks we talked to in Selma told us that the Air Force Base was closed in 1977 by the U.S. Congress as punishment for those uprisings. That closure began a steady decline in Selma’s population. COVID didn’t help, and then on January 12, 2023 a terrible tornado went through the center of town, destroying much of what was left.
Here’s a graph showing Selma’s population.
Cotton is still a major crop.
Scenes from downtown Selma.
The streets are mostly empty.
Looking in to an abandoned restaurant
This is the back of the buildings in the previous photograph.
Some attempt had been made to make a park, but it seemed closed and empty.
The bridge where the Freedom Marchers were attacked.
One place that was thriving in town was the Public Library. It was staffed by so many helpful folks, and is clearly well loved and used by its citizens. Particularly inspiring was the teen/children’s section, which was a FANTASTIC room that took about a quarter of the space, and had a dedicated staff person preparing after school activities.
We spent a late afternoon at the Old Cahawba Village, which was once a functional town and the capital of Alabama during the Civil War. On a brochure it was billed as a “City of Mystery” and we thought we would see lots of old buildings, but it was mostly interpretive signage about some building that used to be there.
The old church is one of the few buildings still standing.
Still an “Old South” take on the history here.
The foundations of an old house in the foreground, and a not-so-old house in the background.
The primary residents of Old Cahawba.
Oct 30 – Nov 2
We need to hit the road, and Kayla has a noon meeting, so we head to Montgomery. Kayla sets up shop at a city park shelter, and Matthew does some exploring. Then it is all the way to Athens, GA, where Matthew lived for a spell after getting his graduate degree from Clemson. We camped at Watson’s Mill State Park (again about 20 minutes from town) where Matthew and his ex used to go to escape the heat in the summer.
Athens has grown a great deal since his time there in the mid 1990’s. So many more apartment buildings have replaced the empty factories he remembers being there. Matthew gets the feeling that the music scene has also waned from the fabled times of REM and the B-52s.
Montgomery. Can you find Kayla?
The house on Habersham where Matthew used to live.
A great new cocktail bar in Normaltown.
Watson’s Mill Bridge
Kayla works on the UGA campus.
One of the great music spots in Athens.
Inside the Georgia Theater.
We saw this band.
And then this one.
Games at the Globe
Railroad trestles in downtown Athens.
The famous 40 Watt. Nothing was happening when we were there.
Music walk of fame. Can you link the next two pictures to this band?
Nov 3
We head to Clemson. We are staying in a hotel “resort” for this leg of the journey -there aren’t any viable campgrounds near campus. It works out well since there is heavy rain in the forecast (rain: another thing we haven’t experienced since Durango). Matthew went to Clemson as an undergrad from 86-90, then came back to get his master’s in 92. Just like Athens, Clemson has grown considerably since his time there.
Nick’s Bar was MT’s favorite watering hole.
And one of the few things that hasn’t changed.
A hawk eats a squirrel on the path Matthew walked many days from dorms to classes.
Why aren’t there more pictures of Clemson, a place where Matthew spent six busy years of his life? Hmmm. Maybe because the buildings of this campus are etched in the brain by repetitive viewing? Maybe because so much of the time spent there happened in a classroom? It could also be because our weary travelers are near the end of a long run, and have become careless in the documentation of their journey…
[But first, a quick note about Process. Some of you might wonder why this blog is usually 3-4 weeks behind present day. “How hard can it be?” True, it should be as easy as picking some photos and writing a few quick reflections and stories. But on any given day, we’re also trying our darndest to live in the present, and usually there’s also some element of planning for the future. So, balancing time and space is the first hurdle. Then, we have photos on three different cameras, so those need to be reviewed and consolidated. In terms of writing – one of us will start the post and eventually the other will come in and elaborate. Then it goes back and forth a couple times to polish the photo captions or embellish the stories. And then you run into things like long travel days, or the roller coaster of daily news, or Kayla’s job gets really busy, or we’re just trying to stay on top of things like laundry and personal hygiene … and then we wonder why our top fans haven’t commented on our new post and then we realize that five days have gone by and we haven’t actually hit “Publish” on the draft yet. So, yeah. There ya have it. And now: here’s a story from three weeks ago.]
Ever since we hatched this NOLA plan many months ago, we had been holding out our trip to New Orleans – and meeting up with Grace and Charlie (Sitka friends) there – as one of the highpoints of this chapter of the adventure. It also marks an important waypoint: after New Orleans we will be heading north and beginning the last leg of our road travels for the year.
Though we certainly don’t know the city well, we’ve had the opportunity to wander beyond the French Quarter boundaries in previous trips, and were very much looking forward to getting to explore even deeper this round.
October 19 – 26: We bridge the 23 miles of Lake Pontchartrain to arrive at Grace’s nephew’s guest house in “uptown” NOLA not far off St. Charles Street. Darren and his wife own many of the classic dive bars in town, and were so generous to let all four of us stay in their wonderful guest space.
We endeavored to visit each of their bars during our week there.
The BettieMobile behind bars.
Inside the guest house.
On the back porch in the cool of the evening.
Pictures along some walks.
Old oaks vs sidewalks.
Oaks are winning.
This car is parked outside of Sandra Bullock’s house. Maybe hers?
Highways vs swamp.
We went to the City Park sculpture garden. It was the end of October and it was hot. Like, upper-80s hot.
At City Park Sculpture Gaarden
City Park – look for the beads.
We took an airboat tour. It was hot as well, unless the boat was moving, in which case we had a breeze. However, our captain was more interested in talking than boating, so we spent plenty of time drifting in the hot sun. Plus there was the time we got stuck.
On an airboat, in search of gators.
Our captain insisted that Kayla feed a marshmallow and I take a picture.
Our captain rammed the boat into a tree and it took all four guys to free us.
That blue dot is where we were airboating.
We saw a lot of stuff, consumed delicious food & drink, laughed a lot with Grace & Charlie, and had a truly wonderful time. We’ll be back, NOLA!
Legit zydeco band at Tipitina’s
One of the many dive bars owned by our host.
That’s him on the left, plus Grace and Charlie.
Lots of walking meant lots of stretching in the evening.
At Chloe’s. A great place for a cocktail.
Matthew and Kayla’s favorite locals’ restaurant. They also have a great bar.
We are at the doorstep of New Orleans! To honor the end of our seventh quarter of road travel, we made this post to you, dear reader, within days of having experienced it. When we get to the Crescent City, we’ll try to lean on Instagram for more immediate storytelling (although we’ll do a post afterwards as well!).
Oct 3 – 4
We drive across the flat part of Colorado and western Kansas. Absolute emptiness: no trees, hardly any cars. Just us and the wind. We pass so many places that were once crossroad towns but are now just dilapidated buildings. But we did take time to enjoy the Roadside Van Gogh in Goodland, KS.
Conveniently located next to the dog park.
We arrive at an unexpected gem – Lake Scott State Park, just north of Scott City. Turns out that within the flats of Kansas is one last gasp of canyonland. We spend two nights here. On our full day here we do our best to take in all that Scott and Logan counties have to offer: we enjoy a bike around Lake Scott, check out some heavily advertised pueblo ruins, and then drive to the site of Punished Woman’s Fork (the last battle between Native Americans and the US Army in Kansas). Then we continued on into Scott City and checked out the adorable Scott City Historical Museum. We’re pretty sure it’s the lifelong hobby of the guy who greeted us at the door, plus a collection of 4-H projects. But it’s amazingly informative and covers lots of ground: geology, Native history, agriculture, pioneering, etc.
We narrowly missed the Scott City Homecoming Parade (the clues were people sitting in lawn chairs on street curbs and a car full of girls wearing tiaras).
At the entrance to Lake Scott State Park.
The old pueblo.
You can rent this from a state park!
A rare tree sighting.
There’s a lot of to-do about fossils around here.
Scott Museum Barbed Wire Collection.
War on Jackrabbits!
A display at the Scott Museum.
A monument to Buffalo Bill in Oakley.
Next stop: New Jerusalem Badlands, another surprising geological formation here on the prairie, complete with fossils of clams. All this stemming from the era when this was all the floor of an ocean! We walked around a bit, but it’s pretty hot & sunny and we’re tired. Plus we’ve left the best for last: Monument Rocks! Out of nowhere, tall rock formations. We caught them close to sunset, when the light is most interesting
The canyons of Kansas.
A close up of cut stone being used as a fencepost. These are everywhere in this area.
These are made out of chalk and are dissolving.
Oct 5
Onward to Hesston! We stop for lunch at “That New Place” (which is anything but!) in the little town of Olmitz. Fantastic combo of concession stand, bar, and diner. Continuing on – it’s SO WINDY. We occasionally encounter big clouds of dust and tumbleweeds. And finally we reach the home of Bob & Cheryl, two more friends of Kayla’s from 25 years ago at Holden Village! It is entirely lovely to see them again, and we feel immediately at home with them and their enthusiastic dog pal, Sibby. We sit and chat for awhile, and then head up to Moundridge for pizza at The Hub. Excellent pizza, self-pour beer, and live music!
A small lunch stop.
The town’s main street is dirt road.
In another town, this random guy stopped us at a liquor store and said “Alaska! You need to take a picture of me and my dog!”
Oct 6
We have a big Central Kansas Extravaganza planned for today. On our drive we encounter a biker rally in Cassoday – hundreds of bikes are pouring into this small town today. Our first destination is Flint Hills Tallgrass Prairie Preserve for a nice stroll through beautiful grasslands to the Cottonwood River. Lots of opportunities for birding and seed-collecting! Then we head to Teter Rock – an old navigational aid for settlers heading west, and now the only remains of the ghost town of Teterville. Beautiful views across the rolling prairie from here. There are herds of wild horses in the area, and we see a few groups in the distance at Teter Rock and also along our drive.
The Sunday motorcycle rally.
Cheryl & Bob lead the way.
Teter Rock!
Wild horses.
Next stop: Lunch at Ad Astra, a fantastic burger joint in Strong City, followed by a tour of Spring Hill Ranch House, an impressive home built by a cattle ranching family in the mid-1800s. The local one-room school is just a short hike away, so we drop in for a visit there as well. We spot some buffalo on the horizon. Then we head back to Cottonwood Falls to check out the eponymous falls, as well as a little trickle known as Chase Lake Falls (although I just looked at some photos of these falls in early summer and/or after a heavy rain, and they are impressive!).
Spring Hill Ranch House
Pro Birders.
Sometimes this is a waterfall.
Sweet little Sibby!
Cheryl & Bob’s fridge is full of fun stuff.
Sunset on the Kansas prairie.
Once we’re back home in Hesston, Bob & Cheryl build a bonfire and we enjoy a beautiful evening outside.
Oct 7
We decide to stay in Hesston one more night. We take a quiet Monday while Bob & Cheryl go to work – we catch up on some work ourselves, do laundry, and make a nice dinner. Another wonderful evening of sharing stories and reconnecting with these lovely people. We’re so grateful for their open-armed hospitality and the awesome tour of their favorite spots in Kansas!
Oct 8-10
We head out and point toward Oklahoma. After a quick stop for provisions and a work meeting in Tulsa, we take a route that barely goes through any living towns. At one point we literally drove through a herd of cows. Our destination is a funky spot Matthew found on HipCamp: Prairie’s End Farm, near the town of Prue in Osage County. Wow, we are out in it. Prairie’s End is … well … near the end of the prairie. It’s another in a long list of places we’ve driven up to and wondered where the heck our GPS was taking us. We’re a little confused at first – we find the farm but it’s not at all clear where we’re supposed to camp. Fortunately our host sees us wandering around and come out to greet us with a freshly-baked loaf of sourdough along with her homemade pumpkin butter and apricot jam. It’s a really sweet place – we’re the only guests for these few days, so even though our campsite is basically just a mown area of prairie, we have access to her event center for a kitchen, toilet, and wifi.
We traveled many dirt roads in Kansas and Oklahoma.
And passed through so many empty towns.
Little House on the Prairie.
Kayla gets some work done in the kitchen/event area.
It’s still really hot – temps in the mid-90s. We try to explore the area a bit, but the towns are fairly depressed, and it’s even kinda hard to access water (we did spend an afternoon on the shore of Keystone Lake, but they’re in the process of draining the lake so it’s pretty shallow and somewhat algae-fied).
The sunset was pretty, though.
Oct 11-12
Onward to Arkansas! We arrive at Daisy State Park, tucked into Lake Greeson somewhere in west-central Arkansas. Well, this isn’t what we were expecting. Though the map shows our site right next to the water, we didn’t understand that that was 50 feet almost straight down. Even the picnic table is a treacherous descent. We set up camp on our wee bit of asphalt.
As things heat up the next day, we learn there also isn’t really a place to swim on the lake – this area is for folks who have boats (seen in storage lots everywhere). We take a meandering drive through rural AR then head back to camp. We’ve booked three nights here, but decide to leave early.
Oct 13
We read about the city of El Dorado, “a city that punches above its weight”and head there. But hey, it’s a Sunday and the town is quiet. Well, except for music that plays from little speakers on the lightposts throughout downtown. We tried to find an RV park that wasn’t awful, checked out five of them and no luck. But we find that another hour’s drive into Louisiana will get us to what looks like a sweet spot, and we are right! Lincoln Parish Park is a grand place to enjoy the cool of the evening. We drive through nearby Ruston, home of Louisiana Tech, for some cold beverages and strike up easy conversation. We are told not to go to New Orleans (“that pee-pee place”) but to LaFayette, where the food is.
Each space has it’s own porch.
Oct 14-16
Too bad we can’t stay at Lincoln Parish longer, but we need to make tracks to Vidalia and River’s Edge RV Park, where we have booked a “primitive” spot. Primitive in this case means apparently not having a sewer hook up (cuz we do have electric and water). The RV park is mostly nice pull-throughs, with a pool! But we are directed to a grove of trees with utility poles sporadically placed with power outlets. Each pole had a light on it, and, yep, in the evening they lit up the primitive ground like a Friday night high school football game. The next day we found a great shady spot in the tent area and were quite satisfied. This campground has really friendly hosts, and the showers are fantastic!
And on that next day…cooler weather. Finally. Since we left Durango a month ago, the temps have been in the 90’s during the day. We are hoping this seasonably cool weather holds for the remainder of our trip.
Vidalia, LA is right on the Mississippi River, directly across from Natchez, MS. On our first evening, we enjoy the nice – although rather short – bike path along the river in Vidalia, then set up our chairs in a spot overlooking the river for sunset. We also spend an afternoon/evening exploring Natchez a bit – checking out some of the incredible architecture and taking in their earnest Museum of African American History. And we visited the historic Under the Hill Saloon.
Front porch on the Mississippi.
The bridge from Vidalia to Natchez.
A meandering trail from the top bluffs of Natchez down to the river.
A+ beer and pizza.
Under The Hill bar, purported to be oldest on the river.
Some early ballooning on our departure day.
To prepare for our upcoming week in New Orleans we’ve been stretching our stomachs with some full-on Southern meals. On the way to Vidalia we had crazy good, legit BBQ at Danken Trail in Monroe, and for lunch today crazy good new-Southern cuisine at Slick Ricks in Natchez (Kayla had the “Southern BLT”: blackened chicken, fried green tomatoes, pepper jack, remoulade sauce, bacon and lettuce on Texas toast).
Oct 17-18
This whole area is a-buzz with anticipation for the upcoming hot air balloon festival, and this RV park is a hot ticket. They’re preparing for 125 check-ins today! As we emerge from our camper this morning, one hot air balloon is floating overhead and another is launching across the river. Too bad we can’t stay – sounds like it’s going to be an awesome weekend! But we need to keep moving south. Today’s destination: another funky HipCamp at Big Branch farm/apiary near Mendeville, LA, on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain. Once again, we drive backroads and end up winding through some beautiful tree-lined areas. Big Branch is amazing: just one hard-working couple plus some “WWOOF-ers” (volunteers through World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) tending to a big blueberry patch, about 100 chickens, a couple dozen chatty ducks, peacocks, sheep, a sweet mule named Gloria, and – of course – bees. Our campsite is on the other side of the blueberry patch; as they show us the way, they point out the creek where there can be snakes and alligators, and also warn us that their friend is going to park his truck near us tonight but he’ll be hiking deeper into the property to hunt wild pigs (!!!).
Greeter at the Bee Farm.
That’s our campsite
Side of a chicken coop made of bottles.
Bees on top of the chicken coop.
The farm shower.
Semi-outdoor lounge.
Some sheeps that feed among the blueberry bushes.
We spent both evenings in the nearby town of Mandeville: the first night we find a spot to catch the sunset over Lake Pontchartrain, and also happened to catch the high school homecoming parade as well! Nothing like some amped-up teenaged athletes throwing candy and beads at the crowd (yes, beads. We’re just across the lake from New Orleans!).
On Friday we spent the whole afternoon on our bikes! Turns out this farm is immediately adjacent to the Tammany Trace Bike Trail, Louisiana’s oldest Rails-to-Trails path. Within the first two miles from camp we stop into Fontainebleau State Park and tool around a bit. Then onward to Mandeville for another awesome southern lunch at the Rusty Pelican, followed by more lakefront biking. We topped it off with a beverage on the 2nd floor balcony of Barley Oak, where we could watch all the lakefront traffic and lots of people starting to enjoy their weekend.
Yay Rails to Trails!
A path in the State Park.
Spanish moss in the big oaks.
Onion ring-topped blackened fish, a catfish po-boy, and sausage gumbo.
Oct 19
Twyla has an adventure driving across water – we drove the 23-mile bridge across Lake Pontchartrain and arrived in New Orleans! It’s gonna be a great week.
Matthew’s astrological sign is Cancer, the crab. He was born at sea level in in Newport News Hospital in Virginia. All this galavanting above 8500 ft is not befitting his design. He has been especially slow to acclimate this time through the high country, often realizing as he has a dizzy spell that he hasn’t inhaled in a while. Maybe his lungs just don’t feel it is worth the trouble of inhaling since there just isn’t any bloody air up here.
It’s time to move on from Ouray towards Paonia, CO. It is less than a two hour drive north, through ranches and small towns, to our campground…in an orchard! We’ve booked three nights on “Peach Lane” at Big B’s Delicious Orchards, 5 miles outside of Paonia. We find our spot (in spite of vague maps and lack of check-in procedures) and get moved in. The only problem is that not long after we arrive a big storm front is moving in, so we decide the easiest way forward is to head to the Chrysalis Brewing Company in town to seek shelter and maybe a beverage.
We are the only two folks there (granted, it is only 3:00 pm). As we grab premium seats at the bar, the rain really sets in. Our bartender predicts that soon the place will fill up with folks from our campground, and sure enough soon the bar is packed with parents, babies, and dogs. Later on some folks play guitar, and just when we decided we might look for a place to eat, someone sets up a grill under a tent outside and we have hamburgers and another round. We played Chick-a-pig, chatted with locals, and had an all-around great time.
The campers move in.
But the locals are not displaced. (And, yes, that is the butt of a bar cat.)
Sept 22-23
Storms have passed, and we had a lovely sleep. Big B’s is quite a place! Lots of families are passing through on these beautiful fall days for the U-pick feature of Big B’s, the fun playground they have set up, and a nice lunch at their cafe.
Our campsite is by the peach grove.
Big B’s music stage.
I spy a Bettymobile in the peach trees!
Kayla at work.
Sunday is our day to explore the area, so we head out to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. It takes a few dirt roads to get us to the North Rim, and WOW what a crazy place! You’re driving along what appears to be flat open land, when all of a sudden you come upon a 2,000 ft vertical drop! This canyon is remarkable, and gives both of us the heebie-jeebies for that amount of sheer drop-off. We drive the North Rim road, take a few short walks to see the views, and then enjoy a scenic drive back to Big B’s, through more unexpected (although much wider) canyons.
It’s an easy-going couple of days, mostly enjoying the quirks of Big B’s and catching up on work and puttering projects.
Sept 24
It’s time to head to Palisade, CO to visit friend and former Sitkan Carolyn Servid. It is a short drive, so we linger at the orchard. Kayla clocks some hours, and Matthew works on the vent fan to fix a squeak. The Maxxair ventilation fan is an ubiquitous ventilation solution in the camper world. In general, if it ain’t an air conditioner bolted onto the roof of a camper, then it’s a Maxxair. They are remarkably efficient and quiet – until they get a bit of dust in them. Once that happens, it sounds like a gerbil is running on a wheel while beat-squeaking a disco song. Why, Maxxair, why do you make it so hard to service these motors? Matthew would gladly spend $50 more on the fan for you all to put a few extra parts in there to make disassembly and assembly less filled with cursing.
We had Bahn Mi sandwiches for lunch, using leftover ground pork from a delicious soup we made the other night, plus made with cucumbers and jalapenos picked at Big B’s. Fantastic!
Ramen-ish Soup and Bahn Mi Recipe Take some ground pork and massage in a generous amount of garlic and ginger, as well as some lemon grass paste, salt, and Chinese 5-spice. Grill these on skewers.
Ramen-ish: Use half the meat to add to a chicken broth that has also been doctored up with ginger and garlic, whatever vegetables are available, and some sort of noodle. That’s one meal.
Bahn-Mi: Shred some carrot, thinly slice some onion and jalapeño. Put this into a bowl and add a generous amount of rice vinegar. and some salt. Let it sit for some hours. Warm the remaining grilled pork and put on a nice toasted roll with carrot mixture and maybe some sriracha. Enjoy!
After arriving in Palisade, we had a sweet evening with Carolyn – nice walk along the river, yummy dinner, and lots of great catch-up conversation. So grateful we were able to align our schedules and get a brief time with her!
Sept 25-26
We head out to Mountain Island Ranch to catch up with our friend Kenyon (another former Sitkan) and his incredible conservation efforts on 110,000 acres of ranch land. To get to Kenyon, you first have to drive through Colorado National Monument to the unincorporated “town” of Glade Park (which is essentially a few houses, a stark trailer that serves as the Post Office, and a minimally-stocked sometimes-open “store”), then 11 miles past Glade Park, and then 4 miles of dirt road. The Monument is stunning and full of more windy cliffside roads, and then things open up a bit again … but as you drive those last four miles, you’re starting to enter more canyonlands. We were able to make a quick visit out here last year and have been itching to get back ever since — it’s such a gorgeous area, and we’re so intrigued by the work that Kenyon and his wife Mary have been doing to instill conservation and restoration practices into this traditional ranch land. During our two days here, we have the chance to ask lots of questions as we drive and hike around the ranch. If you’re curious about what they’ve been doing and have 45 minutes to learn more, Kenyon just finished a film about the work they’ve been doing over the past several years.
We get to stay in their guest yurt, share dinners on the patio, and take advantage of his high-speed Starlink connection for a couple meetings. Plus, Kenyon has a really great music studio – we unpack all the Jet Set Betties gear and have an awesome night of rock ‘n roll.
The approach to the ranch.
The guest yurt.
Dog vs Man.
Kenyon.
Canyon.
It was time to bust out the Betties drums!
And add some synth effects.
Sept 27
After a slightly hungover good-bye to Kenyon (hey, this is the Rock ‘n Roll Lifestyle) we take the winding road through CO Nat’l Monument back to Palisade to pick up the camper, then over to Highline State Park (north of Fruita) to meet our Alaskan friends Becky and John!
They are on a trek to Durango (where we just were) and onwards, but we figured out how to cross paths for two nights of catching up. We’d been to this park last year, and had fond memories of the shady, grassy sites and the wonderful lake. That lake was going to come in handy because it was HOT! But of course, the Colorado State Park Service is in the process of draining the lake to combat zebra mussels. Rats.
Sept 28
We take a bike ride around the campground, and then in the full heat of the afternoon head to nearby Fruita for their Autumn Festival. At night we try to hold conversation amidst all the campers running their generators to keep their air conditioners running. Ahh – the great outdoors. No kidding – our neighbor actually ran a vacuum outside her camper for a while to get rid of the excess dirt.
Some dusty biking.
The picnic/blast shelters of Highline SP
So fun to camp socially and share the grassy space between our spots!
Fruita Fall Festival.
So hot.
Sept 29 – 30
Boulder Bound! We knuckle down and take the interstate across Colorado. Things got a little touchy around Glenwood Springs when we got boxed in at a gas station and then couldn’t find a fast food solution for breakfast. Backed up traffic in the mountains did not add to our joy, but we made it at last. We have a nice lunch with niece Kristina (she is at UC Boulder getting a grad degree in opera) then over to nearby Longmont to stay with friends for a few days. Sonja and Kayla met at Holden Village way back in the 1900’s and it was Way Past Due to spend more time with her and get to know her delightful family. We spent our first day with Sonja in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Sonja takes us hiking!
Yeah, this really happened.
Why do they call them the “rocky” mountains?
We got to this lake right at sunset.
Oct 1-2
Back to Boulder to take a tour of the campus and take in a dinner on Pearl St. Next day Matthew gets the BettieMobile’s tires replaced and later we are treated to Sonja’s daughter’s high school band concert, plus a little family jam session afterwards.
A wealthy family of Boettchers has been very philanthropic in the Denver area, including in Kristina’s music building!
We snuck onto the stage where Kristina will be performing Hansel and Gretel. (Kristina is Gretel!)
For the first time in over three months, we point the car east. On the way out of Monte Rio we stopped at Penngrove Pub in … (wait for it) …. Penngrove! to grab a bite. That place has a cool vibe, well worth a longer visit if we are ever back in these parts. We hop on Hwy 12 to skirt Sonoma, and 121 toward Napa. So many grapes. We wind up retracing much of last year’s route. We go up a crazy high, steep, winding road into the Sierra Nevadas through Priest to find our campground in the tiny mountain town of Groveland, California. It’s a funky campground we found on Hip Camp – Farmer John fenced off a corner of his cattle pasture on top of a hill, scattered some picnic tables around, and installed a few propane-heated outdoor showers. Delightful.
Hwy 120 into Yosemite is CRAZY!
Camping in a cow pasture.
Sept 8
Today was our Yosemite drive-thru. We hope for a National Forest site on the other side of the park, but they are all ridiculously small and mostly occupied. So, we head to the nearest town of Lee Vining and settle into an RV park just as the sun sets.
That’s El Capitan in the background.
Sep 9
Early rise, a mug of coffee, and a long drive into the sun across Nevada. We pass through Benton, which is not much more than a few run down ranch buildings and the old Benton Inn and Hot Springs, which has a few campsites equipped with private hot tubs. Next time!
We drive Hwy 375, the Extraterrestrial Highway as it goes through Area 51. Didn’t see any aliens but we did notice the few tourist traps capitalizing on them.
After 7 hours we pull into Snow Canyon State Park. Even at 5:00 pm it is HOT, so we drop the trailer and head immediately into town to find some AC and a cool beverage. Turns out to not be that easy to find a bar in St. George, Utah!
Hwy 375 isn’t “the loneliest highway” but surely it takes second place…
…unless you’re counting cow population.
It IS the “Extraterrestrial Highway” though.
Apparently this tourist stop is near the entrance to Area 51
So much weird stuff that we didn’t buy
Sept 10-12
Hot hot hot. Good news (?) is that Kayla has lots of work to do, so we shelter in the St. George Library during the heat of the afternoon, then venture back to camp for a hike and dinner as the sun sets. Even in the evening you can feel the heat radiating from the rocks and asphalt well into the night. We actually forced ourselves out of bed early on two mornings for pre-heat hikes/bike rides. It’s a gorgeous canyon, and we had a really special campsite, but so intensely hot this week.
Beautiful campsite in Snow Canyon State Park!
But oh my .. this is a red flag warning one day.
Combo of smoke from fires down south and crazy heat/wind.
Sacred Datura: beautiful but poisonous. Blooms at night …
…closes during the day.
Mostly St George is housing developments that all the look the same, except where these pirates moved in.
Gorgeous slot canyon hike …
… and slippery rock scamper.
Snow Canyon is a unique mixture of black lava rock with white and orange sandstone. We’d love to spend more hours here when it’s not 100 degrees!
Sept 13-15
After four nights of hot desert in St. George we find a cute little house in Orderville that will give us a window AC unit and internet. We are in! The next day we have plans, but never leave the house. Apparently we are wiped out! On our final day we head to Kanab and spend the day at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.
Best Friends takes care of 1600+ animals on 6,000 acres of canyonland – it’s truly amazing. They have their own RV Park, which would be worth staying in the next time we are through. You can volunteer to scratch cats for the day, or even borrow a dog for a hike or to stay overnight at your camp! Their goal is to get animals very comfortable with new humans and different situations so they are adoption-ready. They have an extensive rehab program for dogs that have been so abused or neglected that they can’t handle humans.
We also four-wheel just off the property to see a pueblo ruin and a hidden lake.
Cat World at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.
This cutie stole a piece of our heart.
“Marshall’s Piggy Paradise”
“Stick library”
Pretty sweet canyon life for these horses.
Hidden Lake Recreation Area
Navajo Pueblo …
…and petroglyph.
Sept 16-18
To Page, Arizona to catch a glimpse of the Glen Canyon Dam (and for a conference call), and then a long push to get to Durango, Colorado. We divert around a big thunderstorm, but inevitably it finds us and we are in a full deluge for our first night at a HTR Durango, a sweet and remote-feeling RV Camp about 15 minutes out of downtown Durango. They have full-on streaming internet wired from outer space. No heat radiating from rocks here – at night the temperature is in the mid-30’s.
Durango
Kayla’s Durango office
Sept 19-21
We drive “The Million Dollar Highway” to Ouray, CO, elevation 7792 ft. Ouray (pronounced “you-ray”) is an old mining town nestled into a narrow canyon. The crazy thing is that our Forest Service campground, which is less than 1/2 mile from downtown as the crow flies, is almost 2000 ft higher than the town itself.
This is a town built on tourism, though it ain’t easy to get to, so these tourists are a more adventuresome stock: ice climbers, mountain bikers, long-haul hikers.
We are struck with how quickly we’ve moved from hot desert (at the “I hope we aren’t cooking our musical instruments” level hot) to the deluge of rain in Durango with near-freezing in the evening, to now having warm sunny days and feeling the air temp plummet as the sun sets beyond the canyon.
AMAZING mountain drive to Ouray…
…with quite a few hairpin curves!
Ouray, as seen from the highway.
Mr Grumpy Pants brews some fine beer. Zoom in on the door signs to understand the “grump”.
Creative camper leveling techniques
Sunset from Ampitheater Campground
We spent an entire afternoon at the Ouray Hot Springs.
Next up we’ll begin a week of visits to a procession of dear friends further north. Then we begin our “Southern Decent” from 5000 ft down to the Mississippi Delta and New Orleans! More to come!
Now that we’ve finally caught up on all those overdue quarterly reports, we can bring you up to date on more recent adventures – notably, our 3-week housesitting gig in Monte Rio, CA.
Last summer, when we envisioned what our travels would look like in 2024, we figured we’d be more focused on the east coast, given that we’d spent most of 2023 in the western states. But then, sometime in September, we got a text from Karen – the owner of the beloved alpacas and porch pig (among many others!) that we cared for last April. She wanted to know if we’d have any interest in coming back for 3-4 weeks in Aug-Sept 2024. What an honor to be invited back! But, wow, what a different plan that would be for this year. We told her we’d have to give it some careful thought … so we did.
Ultimately, we realized that this would give us a great opportunity to spend more time on the actual coast (which we really didn’t do last year – we were concentrated on points more inland), have more time with our music pals in Portland, get really serious about those McMenamin’s passport stamps, and have more time with this quirky menagerie we had grown fond of last spring.
The three weeks in coastal California were central to our entire plan this year – both in terms of destination as well as timing. We’re halfway through our 6 months on the road, and this was literally our turnaround point. When we left Monte Rio on Sept 7, we pointed the Bettiemobile east and started our 3-month return journey.
Monte Rio is a cute, TINY town on the Russian River, about halfway between Santa Rosa and the Pacific coast. The title of this post comes from the fact that all the roads in this area were routed around riverways, big redwoods, or sometimes it would seem just to add more curves.
To take a right turn on this road, one must execute a three-point (or more) turn.
Yes, it is THE Russian River familiar to wine-lovers. Our drives to and around Monte Rio took us past several wineries of note, and let me tell ya, the grapes are in season! So many heavy-laden vines!
Grapes! I’m guessing chardonnay.
We enjoyed many a bottle of the local juice, but we didn’t do any official “tastings.” To be honest, we didn’t do much exploring at all. Say what you will, chastise us all you want, but Karen’s house and backyard provided the respite we were craving. We did spend some time in the nearby towns of Guerneville, Duncans Mills, and Occidental, plus we made a quick day trip to the historic neighborhood of Santa Rosa. But mostly we enjoyed the animals, cooled down from the hot days in the unheated backyard pool (then warmed up again in the hot tub), made nice dinners, unpacked the camper and cleaned everything up, caught up on work and TV shows, and … just … chilled.
The Monte Rio Movie Theater.
Usually this beach on the river in downtown is packed…people use this as their beach day since the coast is crazy windy!
Bridge!
A tiny post office.
The Pacific Ocean is just 15 minutes downhill from Karen’s house. Look closely at the sandy point and you’ll see some sunbathing seals.
Duncans Mills is between Monte Rio and the beach. This used to be a train depot.
This conceptual wood carving of a bear is a special treat.
The backyard at our house-sit.
We had several pizza nights using this Italian wood fired oven.
Nanook!
This doggo loves his puppy ice cream cups.
And to steal the prime seating.
Rock on, Xena. Rock on.
Picasso is a very large goat, and knows it.
Oliver the porch pig passed on this year, but Matthew was still able to scratch some pigs.
This Quarter had the Betties traveling from Juneau to both coasts in the Lower 48. That’s a lot of ground! April 15 to May 15 was the last of four months in Juneau for the Legislative session; after that we returned to Michigan, where we began this year’s road travel in earnest, with a six-month plan that started with a trip to Matthew’s parents in Virginia and will bring us full circle back to Glenn, Michigan sometime in December.
Notably, the Betties advanced their music-making goals this quarter, including a real gig in Minneapolis, and wonderful jam sessions with friends in Snoqualmie, WA and Portland, OR. This quarter also featured quality family time, an epic road trip across the northern states, and a return to the Pacific coast.
Miles Travelled
5,420 in 2024 (24,256 total since January 15, 2023)
Careful readers of our posts will know that our car, Twyla Von Weinerschnitzel, developed some battery issues that needed tending in Portland. The operation was successful, and our trusty Touareg is driving fine. Unfortunately, a side effect was some mild brain damage: our trip odometer was reset to zero. So, we are forced to make some estimates as to our actual journey mileage, but this is pretty close.
Route Travelled
After six months NOT being on the road, it felt great to get back into the Bettie Mobile and start moving. We had some family stops along the way, but by June 23 we were traveling in earnest, making tracks across the Dakotas, Montana, and Idaho before arriving in more familiar territory on the Pacific Northwest.
Overnight Type
No housesitting this quarter, but we had a good sample of everything else!
People
The Betties were once again able to connect with lots of loved ones during this quarter:
Shenanigans in Juneau with Jamie
Super-fun weekend in Michigan with Kayla’s sister Iris and their nieces Hannah and Emma …
… plus also dear friends Ed & David!
Kayla’s sister Ione in MN
Enjoying Dad’s porch in Storm Lake IA
Kayla’s long-lost college bandie friend Mark in Whitefish MT!
Nephew Jon in Seattle
Music pals Mary & Terry in Snoqualmie
Diversions
Peeking at the Legislative Skits from backstage.
Visiting a sleeper shark …
…and enjoying the view in Juneau.
A little trailer work in VA.
In Michigan: A little porch rebuilding …
…and lots of beautiful Lake Michigan sunsets.
In Minnesota: a floor-laying project …
…and a Jet Set Betties gig at the Acadia!
We finally made it to the Corn Palace!
Communing with bison in ND.
The view for days whilst driving through the Dakotas and Montana.
Glacier National Park.
Great music jams with Terry & Mary in Snoqualmie! Neighbor Al shared his backyard and plied us with espresso martinis.
Big views along the Pacific Highway.
Feets back in the Pacific!
Painted Presidential Pumpkins at a funky farm and deli in Oregon.
Of note on our fifth quarter is that this is the FIRST time that the Betties stayed in a single place for the entire three months of the quarter! Actually, we stayed in Juneau for four months total (that’s the length of the Legislative session) but still within the entire reporting period.
Overview
Matthew began his work as session staff to Rep Andrew Gray. It is a job like no other. There is some honor to being a part of the process that runs a state. There are incredibly rich, long days, each one entirely unlike the next. And sometimes there are long days where there is nothing to do but wait to be asked to do something. Matthew hopes to work the session again, and will even commit to two sessions, but he’ll need to get hired by someone first.
Kayla picked up a part time job as bartender and server at a struggling downtown restaurant. Since we left Juneau the business has closed.
Miles Travelled
We had access to a car when we needed it, but mostly we got around on foot. The close proximity of Matthew and Kayla’s places of work to their residence meant most travel was limited to just a few blocks (see below).
Route Travelled
Our primary routes are in pink.
Overnight Type
Lodging for the entirely of this quarter was spent in a rented room from a dear friend in downtown Juneau.
Summary
Getting back to living Alaska, even if not to our home town, felt good after being gone for so long. The legislative session thing gives Matthew an opportunity to contribute to family finances, while also freeing him up for being the facilities manager while the Betties are on the road.
We feel it is important at this point to acknowledge just how late our Quarterly Report filings have been. Yikes. We are deeply indebted to our followers for their grace in allowing us to finally submit these reports now, some (like this one) almost six months overdue.
Overview
Our Fourth Quarter has Matthew and Kayla putting the Betty Mobile in the garage and settling in to winter on Lake Michigan, living in Kayla’s sister’s summer house in sweet Glenn. Longtime followers will know that this is where Matthew and Kayla first settled after leaving Sitka, and serves as a kind of home base between our road trips.
Matthew went back to work in the kitchen at Guardian Brewing, but also learned that the owners were putting their business (and all their hard work) for sale to take care of family. Kayla continued her work with On-Ramps, the executive search firm. During this interim, Matthew also secures an interesting job that will have big repercussions for the Betties: as a staffer for the Alaska Legislature. This is an extreme four month commitment, but it will go far to assuring that he is contributing to the Betties financial bottom line for adventures ahead.
On December 18, the Betties traveled to Chicago for two fun nights in the Windy City, then to Sitka for a brief housesitting gig and Christmas with our Sitka family, and January 6 to Juneau to begin a new adventure working for state government.
Miscellany
Way back in March 2023 as we were traveling through Redlands CA we had dinner at a sweet Thai place called Aroi Mak Mak. Matthew took a nice photo and wrote a rave-up review on Yelp. In December he received notice that his review had been read something like 100,000 times. It must be because of the picture:
Miles Traveled This Quarter:
Not Applicable: Sure we did a little traveling around. We explored Kalamazoo, Matthew made endless trips down the road to work at Guardian, and we ventured out for food. In terms of adventure traveling, in December we drove Twyla to Chicago from Glenn for two nights in the Windy City before heading Sitka.
Route Traveled
Overnight Type
Of course no camping this quarter. That small blip in the “Hotels/AirBnB/Rent” column comes from the beginning of our time in Juneau, wherein we rent a room from our friend, which will continue through the next quarter, as Matthew works for the Legislature.
Summary
As you can see, our Fourth Quarter was mostly a time of rest between major transitions. Hopefully this lends to some forgiveness for putting off the actual writing of our report. Very shortly we will submit our Fifth and Sixth Quarter reports, and endeavor from here on to submit our reports in a more timely manner. Thank you again for your indulgence.
The Bettie Mobile at rest. She needed a new suspension after 40 thousand miles on the road.
The goats that make the best cheese in Fennville.
Behind the scenes of photo shoot .
Skaters in Chicago.
One of our favorite bars in Chi-town at the Acme Hotel.
One of these doors at the Acme leads to the bathroom….
The first thing you do when returning to Sitka is get a fresh winter king. The best.
Labor Day marks an important anniversary for us. Three years ago on Labor Day we boarded a plane and left our home and community of Sitka to begin our current adventure. That is three years without a real mailing address or our own bed. Three years without the little things we gather and surround ourselves with that tell us we are “home.” I really miss my wok.
We have happily exchanged that life for the one we are living now – one that feels more borrowed than owned. The price of this adventure is learning to live without roots, and missing the day-to-day of Sitka and our friends and neighbors there. The rewards, as you know, are chronicled in this blog. We know we will return to our home port at some point. Yet as long the winds are favorable, we will keep sailing towards new adventures and think fondly of the things we left behind.
