Southwest 2025-1: VanWorks, Fort Collins CO; the Loneliest Hwy in the US, John Wesley Powell

Spring 2025

    The Southwest was calling—time to get on the road again! 

Hwy 50 across Nevada, the "Loneliest Highway in America."

    But first, yesterday, May 8, we took the van to VanWorks in Fort Collins CO.

VanWorks, Fort Collins CO. Country, Chris (inside van), Doug.

    For 90 minutes, Chris and Country troubleshot electrical issues in our amazing 2019 Ram Promaster that VanWorks converted for us in 2019. They were able to get our Espar heater and Easy Start Pro controller working again, meaning warm nights.

Country.

Then they volunteered to troubleshoot, and solved, our shore power issues. A big thank you to Barry for fitting us in on short notice and with an already full schedule. Once again everyone at VanWorks was dedicated to satisfying us with their time and expertise, all with ease and good humor.

VanWorks, Fort Collins CO.

April 14-19, 2025

Pulling out the maps for trip planning.

    We'd aimed for a late March/early April departure for the Southwest, but we had some short trips to make first.

Doug kayaked with buddies in Morro Bay in early March.

    In late March, we flew to Seattle for a few days with Doug's daughter Katie, husband Javier, and 3-year-old grandson, Diego. Son Andrew and wife Devon also joined us for a day.

A visit to the Seattle Zoo: Doug & Diego.

Peacock putting on a full display 

Regal mountain goat observing humans.

Grizzly bears.

    

    The next weekend was a drive to Davis to visit Marilyn's crew.

Granddaughter Leah pitching a softball game.

Grandson Hudson catching a baseball game.

Son Andrew, grandson Hudson, bonus daughter Emily, Olive.

Son Stephen & pup Rio—unfortunately bonus daughter Jessie couldn't make it—Andrew, Hudson, Olive.

    Marilyn strongly hinted she still wasn't ready to leave, as our yard was in  full spring splendor, so we delayed departure until mid-April.

 

Bearded iris from Sutton's Iris Gardens in Meridian ID.

  

Violas (Johnny Jump-ups) from Marilyn's sister that reseed & spread each year.

   

More of Marilyn's favorites: Narcisco Capisco & Freesia.

  We didn't relish driving up California's Central Valley again, so we headed to the East Side of the Sierras, which means driving south to Bakersfield, east to Mojave, then north on 395 through the Owens Valley. Our first night camp was in the Alabama Hills, site of many a Western movie.

Off Whitney Portal Rd in Lone Pine CA.

Sunset over the Sierra Nevada Mts.

First morning, Tuttle Creek BLM Campground, Alabama Hills, Lone Pine CA.

The Alabama Hills are covered in amazing rock formations.

    After breakfast the next morning at the Lone Pine Cafe and Bakery, we continued north on 395.

Cal Tech Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) near Bishop.

    We stopped in Bishop, toured the Mammoth Lakes Scenic Loop, and took in the tufas at Mono Lake. The backroads through Gardnerville NV and up and over steep, winding Kingsley Grade took us to Hwy 50 around Lake Tahoe. We spent the night with Marilyn's sister and brother-in-law in South Lake Tahoe.

    Then we were off east on Hwy 50 across Nevada, the so-called Loneliest Hwy in the US. 

Hwy 50 runs through basins and ranges across Nevada, all of it gorgeous.

We boondocked in Austin next to Stokes Castle, a railroad magnate's granite home modeled after a Roman tower. 

View from Stokes Castle.

Bluejay enjoying the view from its perch on remains of mine.

Looking out the back of our van acros the basin to the range beyond.

Hwy 50 reeling out across Nevada.

Hills of mine tailings in Eureka NV.

Downtown Eureka, where we stopped for coffee. 

It's hard to take a bad picture in such surroundings.

320 miles east of Carson City we arrived in Ely, Nevada. 

We camped that night in Upper Lehman Campground, Great Basin National Park, Baker NV.

Water that enters the Great Basin does not find the sea but remains there. 

Great Basin rises from 6,800 to over 13,000 feet at Wheeler Peak.

Camped at 7,500 feet at Upper Lehman Campground.

Robins enjoying the sun.

Unfortunately the park road was closed at Osceala Ditch, 8,400 ft, preventing us from reaching Wheeler Peak, over 13,000 ft. Note circular fields in valley.

Was that frost on the windshield in the morning?

Nope, it was snow...

...a couple inches of the white stuff. The road to Wheeler Peak was closed at the campground entrance, but as the snow was powder it was an easy drive down to snow line.

It didn't take long to tour Baker NV, Great Basin Park Headquarters.

Baker has managed to hang on to a small store & a couple of small hotels, but not much else.

 

A sense of humor in Baker: "Museum of the Future Coming Soon."

The drive across central Utah to Green River was snowy, rainy, & windy, but...

...beautiful with colors & formations.

Sevier Lake.

Farm country.

Planted rows dusted with snow.

    All was well until, in Delta UT, Marilyn wanted to pull over to make lunch. After rejecting several suggestions from Doug, she found the perfect spot. Unfortunatley, the wide shoulder was largely rain-soaked clay that sucked in the tires.

    As we contemplated the floor mats, buried by the tires, a truck happened by. The driver yanked us out backwards and refused any remuneration, and we were off to find a car wash.

Doug's shoe & floor mat covered in clay.

Did we mention how cold it was?

    We found a car wash. With the high-powered hose, Doug clawed the clay off the floor mats and washed the van, while Marilyn toweled out the mud from the floors, returning the towels to Doug repeated for another hosing off. Last was to hose the 2 inches of mud off the bottom of our boots. Properly frozen, we continued on to Green River, with the heater at full blast.

Green River UT.

    Also known for watermelons, the primary reason for our stop in Green River was the J. W. Powell River History Museum.

    John Wesley Powell, a Civil War veteran, in 1869 navigated the Green and Colorado Rivers, beginning in Green River, Wyoming, the first to do so. He explored and mapped the region along the way. 

Green River at Green River UT.

He was also responsible for the establishment of the US Geologic Survey (USGS), in 1879.

1st stage of our 2025 trip.

Southwest 2025: 6-1/2 weeks. 6,273.5 miles. (1) Visalia CA-Green River UT.  (2) Green River-Ship Rock NM. (3) Ship Rock-Aldo Leopold Wilderness. (4) Leopold-Carrizozo. (5) Carrizozo-Taos. (6) Taos-Salida CO. (7) Salida-Green River UT. (8) Green River-Kanab. (9) Kanab-Kanab. (10) Kanab-Bridgeport CA. (11) Bridgeport-Visalia.

    Next up: Goblin Valley State Park, the Moki Dugway, Goosenecks State Park, Forest Gump Hill, and Monument Valley.