Monday, April 8, 2024, Total Solar Eclipse, Bluff Dale, TX

Steve and I studied Google Maps and an eclipse website to find an appropriate site to view the big event. The ranch was close but at 99.98% totality, I wanted more. It would have been about a 2-hour drive to the centerline and 4+ minutes of totality, but the clouds were threatening so we might not have seen anything. That was not worth the gamble so we found a much closer location (30-minute drive) that gave us 1.5 minutes of totality. It was a large parking area outside Glenn Cemetery on the outskirts of Bluff Dale. The news led us to believe there would be wall-to-wall people everywhere for the eclipse so we were pleasantly surprised to find we were alone at our selected site.

We drove the last 3/4 mile on a dirt road. It was secluded and ideal.

The cemetery proved to be an interesting diversion while waiting for the moon and sun to align.

The parking area also provided us with some beautiful shade under a large live oak tree.

We were fortunate that the clouds cooperated and gave us clear views throughout the entirety of the eclipse. I replaced the telescope tube with my camera on the tracking mount. I mounted a mylar filter on the Sony a7iv and 600mm lens using a 3-D printed part my son, Jon designed. It was serendipitous that it fit both my telescope and the telephoto lens.

I used a remote app on the phone to control exposures on the camera and I took a lot of exposures! (700+)

I could not be more thrilled when I saw the solar prominences during totality - I was not expecting that with my basic mylar filter. Some of us simply chilled in the shade and marveled at the neat effect of the crescent solar disc imaged through the pinholes between the tree leaves.

I love the pinhole effect during an eclipse. 

Totality ended around 2:00 and we were hungry. Just a few miles down the road in Stephenville was Hard Eight BBQ, a place Steve had wanted to try. It was fantastic!

Angie treated us to great BBQ! It was memorable.

I would have to say the day could not have been more perfect.

Saturday, April 6, 2024, Steve & Angie's Ranch

It was easy to get back on the road since we left the car on the dolly. A quick stop to empty the holding tanks and we were off. The Texas winds were pretty stiff. I estimated 20 to 30 mile-per-hour gusts and, of course, they were targeting the passenger side of the coach. We filled up at a Flying J for $3.05/gal – significantly less than Arizona prices.

It is always great to see my cousin Steve and his wife Angie and this year our timing was right to see Texas in bloom. 

The salmon/orange flowers are "Indian Paintbrush (Castilleja)" 

It is the first time we have passed through while the "Texas Bluebonnets (lupinus texensis)" are in bloom! This variety only grows in Texas.

Another 195 miles east on I-20 brought us to their place near Weatherford, TX. I was beat from battling the winds so it felt good to get out and walk around. We set up at our usual spot away from the house. We determined previously it was ideal since it is level and the ground is solid enough to support the jacks.

The sunsets are always amazing at the ranch.

The "ranch" has no livestock but it is about 17 acres of Texas beautiful with a variety of wildflowers and cacti. They successfully cultivated a large stand of bluebonnets.

The sunset was colorful as it often is at the ranch. We're keeping our fingers crossed the skies remain clear for the big solar eclipse in a few days.

April 3 thru 5, 2024, On the Way to Steve and Angie's in Texas

Before leaving Deming, we filled the coach at $3.30/gal. That felt pretty good since it was $3.90 anywhere around Phoenix. It was a long and boring drive, 337 miles, to our planned overnight stop at the Ward County Safety Rest Stop along I-20 in Monahans, Texas.

Texas Safety Rest Stops are the best. Police have an office on the premises.

Along the way, we saw a blimp floating above the desert (too far away for a picture) and we spotted our first Tesla truck (I didn't give Joani enough of a heads-up for a close shot). It certainly was different looking!

The next day we drove another 154 miles to Lake Colorado City State Park, in Colorado City, Texas. Our makeshift window repair seemed to be traveling well - it did not need any attention.

This park will probably not be on our "must see again" list. It was mostly low scrub and cacti. 

The lake level was low and not exactly picturesque. We decided access was limited enough that we would not try the kayak. We did a bit of walking as we circled the park and realized we need a lot more to get in shape for a summer of hiking.

I set up the telescope - found and viewed the sun in about 10 minutes. Practice, practice, practice. I think I might be ready for the eclipse. I left the scope up to view the beautifully dark Texas night sky. After alignment, the Nexstar 4SE performed flawlessly finding a variety of open clusters, globulars, galaxies and, of course, Jupiter.

On our second night, a group of, I think, 6 dads and, I'm guessing 15 boys who all appeared to be around 8 to 10 years old, set up tents. The cold wind made them play harder and poke in the fire more. I'm sure they all had a blast! 

Tuesday, April 2, 2024, Back on the Road, move to Deming, NM

The Maritime Journey Begins

We finished the packing that started 3 days ago and headed out earlier than we expected. We will be on the road for more than six months this trip, so we made an effort to think of everything we might need. This was our first time in the motorhome since it was in the shop for warranty repairs and it will be the longest we have spent since we downsized. It will be a true test of the Greyhawk's capacity to support full-time Rving.

Today's trip was 285 miles to Dreamcatcher RV Park in Deming, NM. An hour from home, as I was thinking of lunch, we realized we had forgotten the last few things in the refrigerator including the chicken tenders and potato salad that had my mouth already watering. You always forget something, so if this was the worst of it we will be fine.

Another fun game while traveling is to guess “What was that noise?” We heard a new one this trip. It sounded like a huge cooler filled with ice and water suddenly poured out in the back. Clueless as to its source, Joani investigated and found the bedroom window had shattered scattering glass all over the bedroom.

It's funny how different our perceptions are! For me, it was a small bag of ice.

And, miraculously, no glass landed on the bed or beyond.

Thank goodness it didn't suck the lowered blind out the window!

We had no option but to push on to Deming. Joani checked the weather which said it would be clear for the next few days. It did not show the storm that was between us and Deming. Luckily, we were able to outrun the rain and stay dry.

It was a nail-biter for the last 20 miles. The rain passed through the west side of Deming, but our campground was on the east side.

Maybe we outran the rain, but we did not want to risk leaving it, so we quickly taped up the window using a rain poncho but it needed much more to hold up driving. 

It was not easy to maneuver the thin plastic of the poncho in the 30mph winds while on a ladder. Can you make out where the hood is?

A trip to the trusty Walmart yielded some heavy plastic, a backing board, and a roll of super sticky duct tape. To our relief, the rain was no longer a threat and the winds had died down. As we sealed up our window, we noticed the neighbor had a shattered window as well.

This may need to keep us dry for at least a month.

We will be working with Jayco to arrange warranty repair in Sioux Falls.

At least she had an explanation – a reckless RV driver bashed her mirror and window while pulling out of a gas station. While we were on a roll, we taped some plastic over her cardboard to keep it dry until it could be replaced.

Later, I noticed something did not feel right as I opened one of the cabinets. The cabinet trim had been replaced while in for warranty work, so the technician had to remount the cabinet doors. Each door had a specific location on the cabinet and you might think he would have randomly installed at least one of them in the correct place – but no!

Last year, there had been a mystery leak that caused some of the trim to swell at the floor.To fix this, they had to replace some of the cabinet facings.

He put the center door on the bottom, the bottom door on the top, and the top door in the middle. Maybe it's an easy fix but I will have to show the dealer the pictures so they know next time.

So our first day back on the road was a little bit of the same old thing sprinkled with some weirdness. I ended the night outside gazing at a beautifully clear, dark sky.

Sunday, March 31, 2024, What About That Missing Time?

I know there is a giant gap in this blog and I apologize. I could probably generate some rationale for the apparent oversight that might even seem plausible. I will not make excuses, however, since it is my intention to fully document all of our travels. So the period from November 2020 through this entry will be filled in as time permits. I know I should have done this before starting this year's adventure, but I did not, so this post will record that these entries are well after the fact and maybe a bit light on the details they might have had.

There will be a few entries that will cover a broad swath of time if there is nothing much to note. This will be necessary now with a park model that splits our activities between traveling in the summer months in our motorhome and snowbirding in the winter months in Arizona.

I did not want to wait until the blog was up to date before recording this year's travel which will be some of our most extensive and include new and exciting places. So for now, there might be a mix of new posts but they should all have a "posting date" that will insert them at the proper point in the timeline.

May 29 thru June 12, 2021, Eastbound to Begin Summer Travels

As Arizona heated up it was time to get the coach back on the road and travel to cooler climates or at least visit family and friends back east. Deming, NM, had become a regular stop for us on the way east or back since it is about 285 miles from Mesa - just the right distance for a good day's drive. We always find time to visit the Luna Mimbres Museum. Joani would love to find her own geode in the desert and finds inspiration in this section every time.

We drove through City of Rocks State Park a few miles north of Deming to see if it had potential as a future stop. It was interesting but probably a bit too rustic for us. 

From Deming we made our way to Monahans Sandhills State Park (353 miles). This was our third visit to this gem. We try to stop here anytime we travel along I-20 in Texas. The cloudy skies threatened rain but also gave us a colorful sunset.

The skies cleared the next day giving us some beautiful weather for exploring the dunes.

We have discovered the desert has a special kind of beauty that grows on us a bit more every time we visit.

In Weatherford, TX, (320 miles) we boondocked at my cousin's ranch. I call it a ranch because I don't have another name for 17+ acres. Steve, and his entire family, took us into town for a Memorial Day parade. They do things up big in Texas.

Sunsets are certainly colorful at the ranch.

Monday, April 26, 2021, Desert Botanical Gardens, Phoenix, AZ

Since we have passes to the Desert Botanical Gardens in Phoenix, AZ, we visit often. The flora were in full bloom and as a bonus, we spotted some fauna as well.

I needed a faster shutter to capture this guy below but maybe the blurr suggests just how fast they move their wings. 

Bishop's Cap ( Astrophytum myriostigma) is an endangered species from north-central Mexico.

One species that seemed to be missing from the gardens was the Easter Lily Cactus so we were fortunate to have a few next to our carport. This year they put on quite a show.

Elsewhere in Val Vista Villages, the Saguaro were in Bloom.