Oh yeah, yesterday we did Grand Canyon North Rim.
For the last week the Admiral has been complaining and asking why I had to drag her off to see some big red cliffs.
In 2003 I took my trailer there with just Sky my dog. It is quite possibly the most magnificent site I have ever seen in my entire life. I could not find words to explain this to The Admiral.
Well, it was something to watch her face as we walked from the parking lot towards the path entrance to the Angel lookout. As we rose up over the hill and approached the clearing she stopped and her face turned as white as a sheet. Then she began shaking all over and burst into tears. It took about 10 minutes to settle her down and begin walking again. Truly an incredible place. Just as before in 2003 it was like entering a church. Everyone talked in whispers.
It is the only tourist place I have every been where a crowd of several hundred tourists would walk around speaking in hushed voices.
On the way there, just before the main gate, on the left, there is a country store. I had stopped in there in 2003 and bought a coke. We decided to do this again. Little did we know that this time we would spend more than 2 hours there instead of the ten minutes I had spent there in 2003.
The first clue was that as we pulled up we saw a Newmar Dutch Star parked beside the store. I noticed it had a screen room in the front and lots of bikes etc piled up around on the side. I mused to the Admiral that this might belong to workkampers. Sure enough when we went inside, there was a couple about our age working in there. I asked them if the Newmar was theirs and sure enough they are there until Oct 31 workkamping for the summer. What a wonderful conversation we had with them.
One of the fascinating things I learned from them was all the dry camping sites available outside the main gate, but still on federal land. It is all free and you do not need a permit. Just past the country store you can either turn right on SR22 or turn left on SR119. We explored turning left on SR22 in our Taurus toad. We found many spots to pull off on the side and dry camp. The quiet and solitude is unbelievable. I must also say I now understand why not many people convert a sedan like the wagon Taurus into a toad. The road is gravel and stretches of it have ripples in it that give your suspension a real workout! ;D
I wish we could find a used Liberty Jeep or something, but no one ever seems to sell their precious 4 wheel drive toad.
At any rate, route 22 goes all the way back to Fredonia over a 90 mile stretch, almost back to Kanab. As long as you are still on Fed land you can camp anywhere off the road. The trick is to get your motorhome down that road. We saw plenty of pickups with campers, trailers, and small class Cs. But not one large motorhome.
But the couple at the Country Store say that take their 40 foot Dutch Start down the road all the time. Just drive very very slow and have the other person drive the toad ahead of you.
Next year, instead of toading all the way from Kanab to the North Rim, we will MH it to SR22, and camp just 10 mile outside the main gate. The idea of leaving our MH unattended in the wilderness does scare us a little bit, but heck, if we want the freedom and excitement of boondocking, we have to take a little risk. I have yet to hear of anyone having a problem drycamping on Federal land.
Oh and yes, the Admiral insists that we visit the North Rim again next year!!
Today it is on to Zion, a first for both of us, as we enjoy our stay here at Kanab.
