Winslow, AZ to Sedona, AZ
Showers are everything I’ve decided. Free coffee doesn’t hurt either. We woke and split the jobs for the morning. I walked the pups while Jason put the laundry in and took the first shower. I was happy to oblige this because I was trying to FaceTime my mom to see if my nieces were all still celebrating birthdays together. Unfortunately I missed them but was able to talk to my mom for awhile when the dogs “walked” in the dog park. Patch looked back at the camper the whole time and Bear laid down. Sigh.
We went back and I made a real breakfast. I needed to fix the energy and the attitude I had from midday yesterday. This wasn’t serving me or us right now. I made a Just egg sandwich for myself and Jason’s breakfast. He came back looking like a new person. Large glass showers he said. He had switched the laundry and he told me to take my time. Oh sweet shower, how I’ve missed you so.
Showered, laundry done and folded, and with a plan in hand, we got ready to leave. A nice man walking his beautiful Akitas came to talk to us about camping life. He and his wife had met at an RV park 50 years earlier. They’ve been camping together ever since in everything under the sun. They have a huge 5th wheel now but he reminisced about having a small one like ours. It is a great reminder that this is for the long haul for us. We love camping and I made the commitment to this camper because I wanted this in our lives. Here we are more than 2 weeks into our trip and over two thousand miles of travel under our belts.
Dump Station was the last stop and we are truly pros at this now. Quick and easy and on the road. We only had 75 minutes of driving today. It felt like nothing. With a full tank of gas, we were on the road.
Now today we were trying something different for us. Dispersed camping. This is where there are sites… but no campground. No camp host. Park rangers come around as a safety moreso to ensure you aren’t making fires or anything stupid. You have no hook ups here. No bathroom besides Mother Nature (or your self contained unit). Having spent the time in Madrid off grid we knew we could handle this. We have a propane tank that runs our stove and our fridge. And we have two 12V batteries in sync with each other that will run our lights and water pump. That’s all we need. We had bought a solar panel but returned it due to its size and the fact we were so new at this we didn’t know if we would really need it. We had been offered one for cheap on the road in Tennessee too by one of the airstream owners but we declined. This is the type of camping we ultimately want to be doing. We cannot run the AC on propane or battery, so some people buy a generator. They are loud, expensive, and really weren’t in our budget this time around. But in these areas, we wouldn’t need AC. The nightly temps get down to the 50’s. Open the windows and let the cool air in.
We had 4 places to look at between Flagstaff and Sedona. We stopped at the first location in Coconino Forest, 535. It was a fun little ride in and we saw some places, but there was rain only hours away so we needed to find a spot that was as dry as possible and as level as possible. We were nestled under ponderosa pine trees and crept up past the second switchback in the road. We saw a few great sites that we couldn’t get to due to water so continued on. We felt good about this place though. Lots of people camping here but pretty spaced out.
We finally found a spot and it looked perfect besides a slight drop in the road to get in. We just needed to be sure that the pipes or jacks didn’t hit the ground. Jason went nice and easy, through some mud, but got us in! He nestled us behind some bushes for privacy and we had fun unhooking and trying to get this puppy level. 😳
With all tasks at hand complete, we watched the skies light up with a storm. Rain poured down and we watched little streams form all around the camper. I had wanted to go to Sedona today but that was out of the question.
We enjoyed some quiet time reading books and looking at places to go and see the next few days. I had very much wanted a massage on this trip but the places I tried were either not open yet due to Covid or booked out. Jason wanted to hike and take pictures so that was easy.
For whatever meal we actually ate today I just finished the leftovers from the night before. Jason, not ever looking at pasta sauce the same way again, decided to make a vegan ham and cheese melt. I had a bite and it was delicious!
Today was a much better day than yesterday. I went to the truck and got out the emergency charger we brought with us because I was out of phone battery. Since we didn’t drive to Sedona I didn’t get a chance to charge it in the car. Sleep came fast under the cool night sky. Arizona is looking up.
Vegan On the Rhode 