How time flies!

Oh my, where has the time gone?  Life seems to be whizzing by!
  We had a great Thanksgiving with all of John's family at his son, Ian's, in Manhattan, Kansas. Ian and Meagan were great hosts and having the family together was wonderful.

  Last winter found us in southern Arizona. We visited Anna in Tucson a couple times. On a trip to Scottsdale we stopped at the Arizona Renaissance Fair location. Much to our shock we had jobs in 20 minutes!  We work 4 weekends at the fair, which was 3 too many. Experienced the festival life style and met a few interesting people.  The picture is the back drop to many hours of our labors.  Behind the "Dancing Pig Pub" is a 5,000 person Jousting Arena! The main stage for the fair, dutifully cleaned and swept by Scott and parties 3 times a day!!! Then the dust!!!

  The truly enjoyable times were south of Maricopa, AZ at Sally's 141 Ranch. Visiting and meeting her friends and being visiting by some of our Lava friends.  We even have a permanent campsite there now, the Owls Roost!  Named for the western screech owl that lives in the saguaro cactus near.

  We lived our summer 2016 back in Lava Hot Springs, ID among our wonderful friends and family.

  The summer was the busiest most folks remember here in town. Meaning more people, more traffic, more head aches, more reunions, more acquaintances and more fun!
  John had family visit in August. It turned into a gala weekend of feasting and music. Randy Granger did a house concert while they were here and had help from his friend, Joe Young and our local Tahra Waller.  Definitely, an evening remembered by all and the highlight of the summer for many!  Many thanks to Kathryn and Milan for hosting.  Thanks Randy, Joe and Tahra for creating a magical evening.

  It is always a bitter, sweet time when the end of summer comes and we head off into the sunset towards northern Idaho and Oregon.  We will miss our friends and look forward to the excitement of new adventures.      

Spring/ Summer 2015

Hello everyone!
It has been a long time since I have posted here. I have had a few problems with Google with no results so I am doing it their way.

Last you heard from us we were headed to New Mexico. First stop was Faywood Hot Springs, just south of Silver City. We met up with Carl, a friend from Maine who had moved to Las Cruses. We hadn't seen him since we left Maine 4 years ago so it was great to meet up with him. He also brought a friend of his, Randy Granger, who is a very accomplished musician. His website is www.randygranger.net . We had a wonderful afternoon soaking and catching up!
Silver City was our next stop to visit with Susan and Mark! Our visit was filled with hikes, some local and one to the Gila Cliff Dwellings, and great food.  We also got to see Mara and Ted in the new house. Wonderful place!

From Silver City we headed south to Las Cruses to meet up with Carl and Randy again. Ranger had a potluck for us. Great cooks! But on our way into town we stopped at a rest area to see the "Roadrunner". It stands maybe 30
feet tall and is made from recycled materials. The breast is old sneakers, the eye balls are car head lights, etc. Very interesting piece of sculpture.
               

It was now getting on time to start heading north for Lava. We had just agreed to come back and work for the summer and needed to be there about the middle of April. But we had a few more stops to make. One place we went to was about 60 miles east of Tucson in a town called Dragoon. There is a museum there called the Amerind. (American Indian) It was first the old Double FF Ranch, both owned by the Fulton's who got married and moved to the west early in the last century. Mr. Fulton was an archaeologist, and the Mrs. was a horse woman. He dug, and she started the American Quarter Horse Association. Some of her breeds are still the top breeds around today. He added on to the ranch one building that became a museum to hold his personal collection of artifacts. It is a wonderful space and an amazing collection.

  

 Another stop was at Sally's new place. Now, Sally is a friend we met the previous winter while in the Zion area. We all became fast friends! Well, she bought a place just south of Maricopa, AZ., for winter get-aways from Montana, and she needed some work on the place. We spent a couple of weeks putting on new roofs and getting started on the landscaping. Beautiful acreage - 7 acres of cactus, all kinds of cactus. Very cool place. We even got the cast iron tub moved out in the yard under a tree for cools soaks!

As we moved west then north we had one night at Lake Mead. I have never been there before but it was alarming, to say the least, at how low the water was. The campground we stayed in : Las Vegas Bay, was dry. Actually the nearest water was at least a mile away. In the top pic here, the islands in the foreground were underwater. 

Water is a big problem out west. It is not limited to California by any means, and there is a lot of States that are losing water as the population continues to grow,  and there is much less snow out here for the last few winters. Lava only had 3-4 inches instead of feet. How much more before our resources are maxed out? We are so close now.

After that sobering afternoon/evening with that thought we continued on in our bus that gets 7 miles to the gallon... 

Next stop was Las Vegas to meet up with some friends of John's that he hasn't seen in 20 years! Arlene and Trudy! We had a wonderful dinner out, time to catch up and then we hit the road to find a place before dark.

 We made our way steadily north with some beautiful remote camp spots along the way to Lava.

Seems Lava has become our summer home these last 3 summers. And we love it! Wonderful friends, great food - what else do you need? Well, there is work and we have had wonderful bosses the last few years!

This summer was even busier then last. We did get out and about a few times. One trip, on August 3rd, we went up into the mountains outside of town. Came through a hail storm that left 2-4 inches of hail on the ground! Off the mountain  it was still 90 degrees!

And of course our weekly Tuesday potlucks, and the Monday night jam sessions with local musicians. Politic's aside, it really is a great community.

It was almost October so off we went to Boise. But along the way was this magical hot spring. Gold Bug Hot Spring at Elk Bend, Idaho. After hiking about 1.5 miles up a canyon there is a hot spring flowing down the canyon. It has many waterfalls and pools with fabulous views. Nothing like standing under a hot waterfall!

Well, it's time to go. I will update again for fall and Thanksgiving in Kansas after Thanksgiving.  

Be well!

Scott and Johnney

On Road Again

  Hi Folks, It has been a while with all the changes with cyber-land and our "wander-filled" lives.        We left Lava Hot Springs, Idaho heading to Boise to finish work for friends and neighbors of Sue, John's sister.  Had a great time with Sue, Katy, John, Kai, Mia, Rae, Connie, Marian and all the friends of Boise. Kai and Mia especially, with soccer games...

 and holiday dress up!

  Come October we enjoyed another Halloween holiday at Chris and Missy's caring for Panda, Coco, Pete and Nit-nit. As well as the Mustang convertible and the hot tub!  Found a good restaurant with our friend Willie: the Jade.  They actually grow their own greens in front of the building.
We did make a stop back in Lava before going south. Our friend Dee was opening her own shop, Salon Deone, and we made it in time for the opening. Congrats to Dee!

Heading south with Kathryn along for the ride we headed back to Salt Lake. We got a tour with Kathryn and Milan of the Temple lights in Salt Lake.  Millions of lights on the trees, bushes, and buildings. Amazing to see. The Christmas holidays were spent with John's family  in SLC. We had a wonderful time!!

SLC was getting too cold for us, so it was time to head south. On the way through Nevada we made a quick stop in Mesquite to see Shannon, John's cousin, We made it to Rob's in Palm Springs in time for New Years and spent it in the hot tub. Thanks for the hospitality Rob!!  Had a grand time as we met many new friends and went Two Stepping! And it was WARM!

   Couldn't get that close to and not head up to Joshua Tree National Park, a favorite of ours.  While there had the good fortune to met a young couple Patricio and Natalia from Venezuela. Hiked in to 29 Palms Oasis with them and then they treated us to a traditional Venezuelan veggie dinner (they loved being able to stand up while cooking) and concert with Patricio on the hand pan and Natalia on the uke..AMAZINGLY wonderful sound. Their van is tiny compared to the bus. They travel in a 4 wheel drive mini-van. They left Venezuela (the first time) 5 years ago!! Traveling through South America, Central America, western US to British Columbia and back again.  We left them in Yucca Valley as they were heading to LA to see a hand pan maker and then on to Mexico City in hopes of flying to Spain.

  Made it through Phoenix to say hello Fran and Sam, Steve and Heidi and family and meet Fred, Bern's lucky guy.

  Picked up apart time job in Mescal, AZ doing handyman jobs on a ranch. A guy had bought a run down property and is in the process of rebuilding it.  It was the location of World University. Dr. Zitko was the founder and built many of the properties numerous buildings, all of which were in serious disrepair.  We did a lot of roofing before the dramatics of the people became overwhelming.

 

  So we returned to Anna's to repair her leaking roof, and in time for Rex Fowler's (of Aztec Two Step - remember them from Maine way back when?) house concert and viewing of his documentary "Two Hundred Cadillac s."  It is about Elvis and his generous gifts of cars, mostly Cadillac's, to friends and unknown people.  Rex, along with Anna's quartet, played and sang a number of Elvis tunes afterwards.  A really great time and thank you Anna for the hospitality, and Rex for a CD of Aztec Two Step. Another side trip while in Tucson was to Tangue Verde Falls. It is in the Saguaro National Forest. Absolutely beautiful with the big saguaro's everywhere, and many waterfalls along the river. Warm sunny days - heaven!

  As chance would have it, Dave and Alice, friends from Lava Hot Springs were staying in Tucson. They wanted to see Bisbee, AZ., so off we went to show them the funky town. Had fun touring town and tasting the culinary delights Bisbee has to offer.  Thanks to them for the camp site at Queen Mine RV right in town.  Bisbee lives up to it weirdness and wonderfulness.  Found "Whyld Ass Coffee Shop."  An organic, vegan cafe owned by a couple of super guys.  Luckily we made it on Sunday, as it was their last day in Bisbee before moving to Flagstaff to start a new and expanded restaurant! Good Luck to Keith and Ryan!!

 We are now at a campground just outside of Bisbee, heading off tomorrow for Faywood Hot Springs, New Mexico. Then on to Silver City to visit with Susan, my old office mate from Maine, and her husband Mark. Then it's back to Tucson, Maricopa, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Mesquite, Salt Lake, and Lava Hot Springs for the summer!

Til next time, our friends,
Scott and Johnney

Fall is coming!

HELLO!!!
It's been awhile since I last wrote here. Someone recently reminded me to get on the stick and update. I hadn't realized how long. It has been a very busy summer.
Working a campground is 24/7. And we had to be able to do anything, from maintenance to cleaning to solving "issues" with campers. All in a days work. A lot of work, but we met some really cool people, and canines, along the way. A stand out of the canines was Crystal. Crystal arrived in a 1958 camper that had been lovingly restored by the owners. The tail lights are adorable, and the all wood original interior are amazing. And as cute as it is, it was Crystal that did it for me. Her story: At one month old she crawled her way out of a house fire to be rescued by the firefighters. Her mother and siblings were not so lucky. She was taken to the local vet hospital where for the next 5 months she underwent many surgeries. Amazingly not once did she whimper or cry out. She was then adopted out to a wonderful couple. She is now 4 years old and loving every second of life! What a happy girl!

She even has her own blog and Facebook page!

 

         Another we met are from Salt Lake City. At 1 in the morning we helped them set up a new

[for them] pop-up trailer. That cemented our friendship for the weekend.

                                                                                                                                             

We also had a number of other really cool trailers from the 50's and 60's.

like this "Bambi" 1953 if I remember correctly...

We were also privileged to get a family of musician's just returning from a blue grass festival in Weiser known nationally for it's world class players. So Mom and Dad, and their 3 daughters played for us on their last evening at the campground. Dad played guitar and banjo, Mom played the cello, and the girls played fiddles. It was amazing! I think the youngest was 8!

And twice this summer John's nephew and family came up to Lava and put on a star show at the campground. Chris is really into his telescopes. At night we were able to see Saturn, the moons of Jupiter, and during the day we could see the sun with its spots and flares!

But the summer wasn't all fun and games. My father passed away near the end of July, after a long battle with cancer. Thankfully John is here to help [and put up with] my processing of all the emotions, wrapped in grief. And my older sister... a godsend. Thank you evryone for being there.

At the moment we are in Boise, having left Lava mid Sept. We had a job working on a house left from last summer doing some repair and paint. A few other odd jobs then we head to Salt Lake City for our annual house sit for John's nephew Chris. Always a good time!
After SLC we will head to???

We hope you are all well and happy!

Scott and Johnney

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summer time

Hello everyone!
We eventually headed north as the weather in the Zion area became very warm - like in the mid 80's to 90. Warm enough for me. But before we left...
This pic is from the Wailing Wall climbing camp spot. We were perched on a knoll with great views of the desert. The mountains were behind us.

 Dylan climbed during the day -

and at night we cooked, listened to his climbing adventures and fixed clothing. Here he had to use my grandmother's iron that we heated on the stove to fix his climbing pants.

From there John and I took off. Dylan was headed south, so we headed for the Smithsonian Butte/Gooseberry Mesa. It's over towards Zion N.P. We heard that it was a great place to mountain bike. And it was. We had great views of the mountains

 We did spend a weekend with John's nephew, wife missy, and son Ian along with Miss Marie and her son Shawn, and brother Roger with his wife, in Zion National Park before heading north. A beautiful place. John and I climbed Angel's landing with Dylan later. If you have any issue's with height think twice about this hike. Very steep and very narrow. But they do provide chains to hold on to in some places...

 At that point we were back at Kolob Terrace, enjoying the peace of camping in a beautiful spot, along a river. Weather was turning warm in the day, and cool at night. We met Sally and her dog there. She took us on a short hike one day into one edge of Zion and showed us several sites of petroglyph's that are not on any map. Very cool!

It was time to head north. Some friends of ours in Lava, Kody and his wife Andi, now own the KOA Kamp ground in Lava Hot Springs. They needed some help so off we went! We will be in Lava til mid Sept., working at the KOA Thursday through Monday. Tuesday we run a retail store and do massage in town, and Wednesday's is groceries (65-70 mile round trip) or other odd jobs that we help people with. Life is very busy to say the least! But it is great to be back among friends! Here is a pic of downtown Lava:

Very small...pop. is 420. But a real tourist destination. Hot springs, floating the river, water slide park, zip lines, and shopping of course!

Hope you all have a great summer! Keep in touch!

Scott and Johnney

Still in St George area...

Well, I thought we would be headed north by now, but the weather is still cold farther up So here we are. Dylan, John's youngest, has been keeping us entertained with his climbing stories of his day. And we continue to explore the surrounding areas around St George. Virgin River Gorge, Snow Canyon, Black and Tan Wall, Little Black Mountain Petroglyphs [the latest area].

Dylan was climbing back in the canyons at a wall called "Phalanx of Will"

At our latest stay camping in Snow Canyon we met Alan and Ziva. {Right before the Petroglyph place}

Ziva is a mixed breed and a total sweetheart. I got my much needed dog fix! Hope to meet up with them on our way through Salt Lake to say HI! And maybe get a decent pic of Ziva... Of course, at just over a year old she is not one to stay still for too long!

 

Time to go and set up camp somewhere.... Mo's I think. A bouldering place outside of town, and new for us.

Til the next stop sign,

Scott and Johnney