Head of Tide

One of the real upsides to traveling as we do is that we are constantly in search of the unexpected. Sometimes this is good but sometimes this is bad (not going to mention the bad in this post). We do a lot of planning so we basically know what lies over that next crest in the road but we often don’t do in-depth research on the areas we are scheduled to visit. A lot of times I’ll use Google map and Street View to see what the next RV Park entrance looks like but we don’t visit a location’s chamber of commerce or visitor center website prior to arriving. As a consequence of this lackadaisical approach, we miss some things that we wish later we had visited but often we are surprised by what we discover with few regrets. For me, this experience is the epitome of our travel adventure.  Now let me pause here and say that I am easily impressed. The things we’ve found are fascinating to us but are not ‘earth-shaking’ by most accounts. Some might even call these ‘discoveries’ droll but that’s okay. 

Some examples: 

Several years ago BRV (Before Recreational Vehicle) we picked a spot in Colorado to visit for a week. What we didn’t realize is that one of the best ghost towns (at the time) was a short drive up the hill from where we were staying. Within a very short drive, we found ourselves in St. Elmo, Colorado. Great old buildings, wonderful surroundings, and interesting history (see the end of the Photos page for pics of everything mentioned). 

Another time while driving in Colorado we happened upon the Bishop Castle. A structure of amazing size and completely fabricated by the resident on a pay-as-he-could basis. He invited visitors to come inside (for donations to help pay for further construction) and look around. It was fascinating. Totally unexpected and a wonderful find. Now he has a website (but of course he does).

When our girls were in high school we attended their high school competitions. We found that we enjoyed Friday night football and watching the bands at halftime was fun so while we travel in the fall we occasionally look to see if there are any games in the area. Once while in Sweetwater, Texas, we stopped on a Friday night when the local team was having a home game. When we arrived at the field a hometown local took note of us and offered us free tickets. He invited us to sit with him and his wife in the season ticket holder section. We visited with them and all those around us, rooted for our host’s grandson and watched a good game in the Mustang Bowl. FYI, Sweetwater is the wind capital of Texas and where a lot of wind generators are made (and unfortunately where a lot of wind generator blades go to die). When the stadium was built by the WPA in the 1930s they built the field within a bowl so the wind wouldn’t affect the play. Only kickoffs and punts would be influenced by the constant wind when the ball traveled above the rim of the bowl’s protection. To get to your seats you traverse several stairs up an earthen structure to get to the rim where you then travel several more stairs down into the field to your seat. You can’t see the field from the parking lot. It is just a grassy hill. It is a clever way to deal with the elements as you don’t feel the wind. Fun night….Sweetwater lost BTW and I asked if they believed in out-of-towner’s jinks. Fortunately for us they did not and we were safe to leave.

On the way to Wyoming and Yellowstone National Park, we happened upon the Flaming Gorge Reservoir and the ‘through-arch bridge’ that crosses Cart Creek. Wow! What a beautiful structure. You come around a bend and there it is. The entire area is a jewel.

In Yellowstone, we found beautiful landscapes and a lot of wildlife but at one point along the river, I was particularly taken by an Osprey hunting along the Yellowstone River.  Fascinating.

Now I grew up in the South so winter sports were limited to watching the Winter Olympics every four years. I like sports but having not growing up around a lot of snow and ice I don’t have it within my DNA to experience these sports like others who grew up in the Deep North. Curling has always been fascinating to me and I appreciate the subtlety of it. When we were in Minnesota and driving around looking for a place to eat we happened upon a restaurant. It wasn’t until inside that we realized that it was a Curling Center. OMG! Enjoyed a Rueben and a beer while watching a family who had rented the center for an afternoon of fun and instruction.

Finally, recently we spent a month in Arizona. We found an RV park north of Phoenix in an area that we wanted to explore (the Verde Valley). One of the towns nearby was Jerome. Another great find. The former Copper Mining town was in its heyday during the early part of the last century. It declined rapidly in the 1940’s only to be revived by tourists and opportunists in the late 1990’s. If you’ve been to Switzerland or Italy to visit towns on the side of uplifts in the landscape Jerome will have no appeal but for an ole boy from the flatlands this is crazy. The town once boasted 15,000 inhabitants and they must have all been mountain goats. Jerome, Arizona, is a truly interesting place.

Serendipity is surprisingly fun!