Family Trip Despite COVID

Despite the COVID panic going on, my husband and I chose to go off on a road trip to see family. Though we had initial plans to head up to Yellowstone after visiting with family, we decided to hatchet that part of the plan and just concentrate on family. Most of our family is thrilled to have us visit. Since the two of us will be moving in a year or two, we started loading up the truck with some of the stuff that needs to go back to our offspring -- purging, so to speak. So the back of our truck is filled with stuff again.

I will try to include some information about COVID-19 prevention in our daily reports.

DAY 1 - HOME to RICHFIELD, UT - 604 miles, 10+ hours

What a smooth first day this was! We were out the door right at our scheduled time, truck loaded and out the driveway. We headed out to I-15 and then north. It was still dark at this time and we could see that traffic was slightly heavier heading south (for whatever reason) than it seemed to be heading north.

Cajon Pass is usually full of construction and traffic. But we summited with ease this time, pulling over in Hesperia into a parking lot to grab something out of the back end of the truck. Our next stop was just past Barstow, for breakfast. We chose Peggy Sue's 50s Diner, because it would be open for breakfast and was not a chain. It was excellent! All staff were wearing masks and gloves, and they had social distancing in place in a fun way -- every other table was "Reserved for XXX" (XXX being the name of a 50s or 60s celebrity that is long gone, such as John Wayne, James Dean). The diner barstools were all closed off in the same manner. Loved the way they did that in keeping with the theme of the restaurant.

We kept barreling through after breakfast. Both rest areas between Yermo and the NV/CA state line were open, which is almost unheard of! We utilized the second one, and most people using the rest area were wearing masks. Moving on, we flowed through Las Vegas smoothly and noticed how much less traffic there was despite the fact that some of the Strip has officially opened.

Our next stop was for fuel on the Moapa Indian Reservation. I'd called up there ahead of time so that we wouldn't be surprised by a closure, but the reason for stopping there was to avoid urban areas as well as a much better price for fuel! Once again, most folks were wearing masks, though I only went into the building to use the facilities and went right back out.

One of my favorite areas on this leg of the trip was the Virgin River Gorge in the 29.5 miles of I-15 that goes through Arizona. However, some of it was under construction, which makes it less enjoyable. It was also starting to get later in the morning so the heat was setting in. We'd already turned on the AC between Primm (CA/NV state line) and Las Vegas.

Next stop was at the Kanarraville Rest Area, where it was a bit cooler and we took a few to really stretch our bodies. Then we went on in to Richfield.

For a number of years now, we've stayed at the Quality Inn there in Richfield whenever planning to stay overnight there. We had no issues with social distancing there or anywhere that day, really. The place was super clean. The staff was behind a partition and didn't wear masks, which surprised me, but some did when they went out to a different area. We had the pool to ourselves.

Later, we walked next door to Steve's Steakhouse. We'd never eaten there, and decided to give it a try. We had to give our names and a phone number "for the health department". (When I asked why, the Health Dept insists on that so that they can track who had contact with a given person that could contract CV-19. Okay, I guess.) Everyone was wearing masks and gloves, required of food service in that county in UT. Where there were booths, every other one was taped off. Where there were tables, some were moved out. We had an excellent meal whose prices were on par for Richfield.

We crashed quite early that night.



Donna

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DonnaR57

We chose Peggy Sue's 50s Diner, because it would be open for breakfast and was not a chain. It was excellent! All staff were wearing masks and gloves, and they had social distancing in place in a fun way -- every other table was "Reserved for XXX" (XXX being the name of a 50s or 60s celebrity that is long gone, such as John Wayne, James Dean). The diner barstools were all closed off in the same manner. Loved the way they did that in keeping with the theme of the restaurant.

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This restaurant has been fabulous for a long time.

DID YOU GO INTO THE WOMAN'S BATHROOM? Visiting the women's toilet is always one of the best parts of that place!

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Originally Posted by DonnaR57

Moving on, we flowed through Las Vegas smoothly and noticed how much less traffic there was despite the fact that some of the Strip has officially opened.

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Traffic is almost back to normal...

Yes, I did use the facilities there. Hilarious! I have to admit that it took me by surprise the first time I walked into the restroom. (I visited it twice, for good measure.)

DAY 2 - RICHFIELD to AURORA, CO - 495 miles, 9-1/2+ hours

Off we went from Richfield, trying to get out of there by 6, but didn't make it due to an issue with the computer at Quality Inn (later rectified by the personnel there and emailed the receipt to us, which is fine).

We chose not to fill up the tank at Richfield, as it was about 25c per gallon cheaper down in Salina, UT. There we had to fuel up "with the big boys", the way early diesel pickup truck owners used to do, before most stations moved "auto diesel" to the front pumps. It was pretty much contact free there.

The next part of my trip was Favorite Part #1: The San Rafael Swell. I did take some photos, which I will upload when I get a chance to put them on Flickr. Lovely trip through the Swell! We stopped here and there to take in the view, but moved on to our breakfast stop in Green River. We went to a place where we'd been going for years, West Wind Restaurant (part of West Wind Petro truck stop). Food is usually good, they had all the measures in place except their health dept didn't require names & phone numbers of customers.

My husband overheard part of a conversation at one of the Swell scenic viewpoints, where one woman told another in her vehicle, "oh, it's just another hour and a half from here to Grand Junction." Obviously, somebody wasn't reading their map or they were driving faster than the 80 mph posted. (We did 75 mph and took well over 2 hrs, not including the time we took in the restaurant.)

At Grand Junction, we first stopped to take care of an issue, but didn't fuel up. On the other side of town, we saw the diesel price of $2.09/gal and decided to take advantage. (So far, we'd paid $2.29 at Moapa, $2.14 at Salina.)

Between Glenwood Springs and our exit in the Denver area, we had to slow/go for an accident, but quite a few construction areas. It was 2-way traffic through Glenwood Canyon (another favorite part of the day's ride, usually) and then some other slow/go areas where we had to merge down to one lane. We did stop at the rest area at Vail Pass -- that's a tradition! Most folks there were NOT wearing masks, perhaps because of the thin-air there. I put mine on as a courtesy when I saw an older gentleman with a cane struggling up the walkway to the restroom.

Since we go to the southeastern section of Denver, we used C-470 to get there. Nice freeway, interstate quality but not registered as a true bypass. Took that to I-25N to our exit, arriving at our daughter's home before our target time of 4 pm.

Our plans were to stay here for almost a week before continuing on. Besides calling this the Family Trip Despite COVID, I could have also called it the I-70 Family Trip, since so much of our family lives within an hour or so of I-70 across several states.


Donna

PHOTOS FROM THE FIRST TWO DAYS:

Construction in the Virgin River Gorge:

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Utah:

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Colorado River in CO:

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Still Snow Near Vail!:

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Donna

MUSINGS about Colorado during COVID

So far, no state has pulled us over due to out of state plates. Daughter read an article where folks with out of state plates have had notes left on their windshields stating something like, we love having tourists but this isn't a good year for it." But we haven't had that. Our truck has pretty much been sequestered in front of their home and we take their mom-van anywhere we go.

Retail stores are pretty much like home: folks wearing masks to shop and the workers there wearing masks and gloves. Restaurants, same. Outdoor activities? Out on the neighborhood sidewalks, people honor social distancing but no masks. We went to a local park, Cherry Creek Ecological Park and Preserve, where hikers were wearing masks when they were near others, but the folks sitting in the "wading area" for the creek, were not.

Closed vs open. We came to visit family, and while doing things as a family can be fun, perhaps this is just another stop where we do things in the local area like the parks. Many places are still closed and not opening until July. We aren't too worried about it, as we will be back again. I would have loved to have taken my grands to the North Pole place in Colorado Springs, but that had JUST opened and is experiencing a lot of visitors. No thanks, we're staying away from crowds and washing our hands a lot, as our doctor recommended.

I'll probably add more before we depart Colorado.



Donna

My son and family are in Parker,CO and he’s been very pleased with how Colorado has handled this. My DIL is a nurse in a local hospital and while she did a little bit of rotation on a Covid floor they did not need as many floors as first anticipated and now she’s back on her elective surgery floor. Since summer camp is canceled they are using this summer to go family camping. Lots of places out there.

More Musings about CO during COVID: Restaurants

Another thing we did in Colorado was to go to a restaurant for dine-in, with the family. My daughter and her family had not been out to dinner since before CV-19 hit. For several reasons, we decided to try the Olive Garden in Southlands Mall (Aurora). They were taking day-of reservations, where you call the place when they open and let them know when you want to come in. With a party of 6, that's a good idea anyway.

Olive Garden has limited their menu completely. No more laminated menus, only two-sided disposable paper with their food on one side and drinks on the other. No more "Under 600 calories" meals, but the waitress allowed me to order a lunch size entree. A lot of other things were missing, but there was a decent choice. The food was good, though the bread sticks were "below par" (all of us commented on that).

Service - instead of being shown to your table by one person, a drink order taken by another, food order by yet another, served food by a 4th -- it was contact limited to one waitress, who wore a mask and plastic gloves. She was the only person we saw other than the greeter outside who checked our party in (one person checks in while the rest wait in the car until your table is ready; no more waiting inside the restaurant), and one other at the inside check-in station. Our waitress was very forgetful.

Tables - every other table was cordoned off. We were in a back room with about a dozen tables, but only 2 tables were in use while we were there. Both were for parties of 6 or more.

Masks - masks on until you are seated. Staff were all in masks that we could see.

As for sightseeing, in the Colorado portion of the trip, we have avoided sightseeing. I stated above about the notes people are getting on their vehicles with out of state plates. When I've said something in stores about being from California, at least one said, "And you decided to travel? How brave!" Not sure that's an accurate statement, we're protecting ourselves with masks and washing hands a lot.


Donna

Day 8 - Aurora CO to Salina KS - 420 miles, 7-1/2+ Hours

We had a leisurely morning of coffee with our daughter and her family before loading up the truck for our 425 mile driving day. We left at about 9 am and headed up to I-70 via “the back roads”. This was achieved by going east on Quincy, and then north on Watkins which took us directly to the freeway with a stop at the Shell station ($1.98/gallon for diesel!) before getting on.

It was about 2-1/2 hours to Burlington, so we stopped there for a lunch at Arby's (always a favorite stop since I don't know where San Diego has Arby's any more). Back on the highway, we only stopped at rest areas. It was HOT, most places in Kansas registering between 94 and 98F, but with humidity to make it feel like “104”. Come to find out that the projected temperatures for the next day were in the 100s. Whew! Turn off the furnace, Kansas!

This was one of the latest days for checking into a hotel, than we have had in a long time. It was around 5:20-ish. Once again we had issues with their credit card processing -- not our card (our card-issuing financial institution assured us it was NOT us!) but their system.

We were first disappointed that the pool was not open here due to COVID. I don't understand closing a private pool like that, but counties and states are fussy. So rare is it to find anyone in the pool besides us. Then disappointed that Taco Bell was about the only fast food place in Salina who did not have dine-in open. So we first went to DQ and had both a sandwich and a hot fudge sundae – not exactly the best thing for the health, but a good treat like that is rare, too.

Then tried to find cheap fuel. In the Midwest everything is cheaper than in CA, diesel-wise, but $1.97 sounded good to us. However, the station that advertised that price had a swarm of bees directly over the car/pickup diesel pump. The price was $2.07 anyway for debit/credit. So we moved on across the street to a cleaner station, at $2.11. We hadn't fueled up since Watkins, that morning, so the tank was reading somewhere between ¼ and ½ tank.

Finally found my family's new place. We enjoyed a short visit, inside their living room, where it was much cooler than outside.

Headed back to the room for a glass of wine and relaxation while allowing our bodies to adjust to Central Time (we crossed over that between Goodland and Colby KS, about 12:30/1:30). We had brought our new travel wine glasses (stainless steel) and some small bottles of wine (a 4-pack of individual servings). We'd put the wine in the room's refrigerator.

Donna

Enjoying reading about your travels since we are SIP.

Day 10: Salina, KS to Lake of the Ozarks, 360 miles, 7-1/2 hrs+

Today was mostly a driving day. We tried to get out by 8 am, but once again, Choice delayed us. They tried to make us use a different card, but we held our ground. We got a later contact from the hotel saying “it's all taken care of”. This is a problem within all of Choice, obviously.

Breakfast stop in Junction City at Cracker Barrel was the reason for an earlier departure. It was an enjoyable meal.

We took I-70 to I-435, a belt loop around Kansas City, KS. We took that to I-49, but we were only on that for about 2 miles when we got off to do a little sightseeing. We went to Harry Truman's Farm in Grandview, MO. It was a mere shadow of what it had been in his time, down to 10 acres from over 600 acres. We saw the home (outside only), the chicken coop, the outhouse, a water pump, and lots of good brick “fence posts”. Took some photos. We were probably there about 20 minutes or so, then moved on. I will upload photos a little later.

We took I-49 down to Harrisonville, where we picked up MO-7 as far as Clinton. In Clinton, we took MO-13 down to Collins. Both MO-7 and MO-13 were 4-lane divided, but when we got on US-54, we were on 2-lane road.

The fuel prices were best in Camdenton, and we were over 350 miles on the tank, so our next stop (after a rest area stop) was at the gas station. It was nice to put in 22+ gallons for less than $50, for we paid $1.85/gal for diesel!

It took awhile to check in at Margaritaville because the room wasn't ready. It was 45 minute wait, then time to get the room keys and the luggage moved in. It was about dinner time by the time we got up to our daughter's.

It was a lovely family reunion. After dinner (meat loaf, mashed potatoes, broccoli), we shared all the things we'd brought for everyone. Oh, my, how the girls were appreciative!

Came back to the room to enjoy wine before bedtime.



Donna

Musings About Kansas and Missouri Travels with COVID

When we arrived in Kansas, they had just received the word that they would be going to masks requirement as of July 3rd. It was about half-and-half with masks wherever we went. Out of courtesy to others, but particularly my mom, we wore our masks. Most of the workers in the retail and travel industry were wearing masks, and in the food service. Except one: Dairy Queen workers did not wear masks or gloves, which I found surprising. Kansas had dine-in available, most of the places had limited seating.

Missouri is pretty open. There was no one else at the Truman Farm (photos to come) so we didn't bother, and it's all outdoors. (They only do tours of the inside of the home twice a year.) We found half-n-half again about wearing masks inside retail establishments and the one restaurant we went to in Osage Beach.


Donna

Here are the first three photos of the Truman Farm in Grandview, MO:

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The house as you see it as you drive in.


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The house a little closer up.


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The back of the house.


More later.

Donna

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Originally Posted by DonnaR57

Yes, I did use the facilities there. Hilarious! I have to admit that it took me by surprise the first time I walked into the restroom. (I visited it twice, for good measure.)

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Yes, it is tad surprising and generates funny comments from unsuspecting women.

Mark

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The Truman outhouse.


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The Truman chicken coop.


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One of the Truman outbuildings.



Donna

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The view out of our hotel window.


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The view out of our hotel window towards the marina.


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Looking at our hotel building (in the center) from one of the pools on the property.



Donna

The pictures of Truman’s home remind me of visiting Eisenhour’s home in Kansas, both of which remind me a lot of my childhood home, complete with out buildings, chicken coop and outhouse, in Indiana.

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Look at all those boats out on the lake for ringside seats for fireworks!


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We had a great view from our room's balcony. Our daughter, son-in-law and the two grandchildren joined us.


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This firework reminds me of the icon they use for COVID - at least on this photo.

I hope everyone had a great Fourth of July Weekend. We sure did!


Donna

Day 19 - Lake of the Ozarks, MO to Columbia, MO - 92 miles

Leaving Margaritaville was a bit sad. It had been our “home away from home” for 9 nights, and we enjoyed several days there with our extended family too.

We left there about 9:25, heading to our daughter's home for the day. We hung around there. During the morning, I took 2 short walks, and saw a mama deer with two fawns each time. I had my phone with me and could take some photos, too. (See next post).

Then about 2:30, we left for Columbia. Our daughter and granddaughters had packed up to join us in Columbia.

We stopped in Jefferson City at the Central Dairy for ice cream. We were pleasantly surprised that we1 were allowed to eat inside! Not sure what my husband got, but mine was Moose Tracks. At this rate, I'm going to be on a 2-month long weight loss program when I get home.

Got into our "Co-MO" family's home shortly after 4. We visited, then we had roast beef for dinner. After dinner, the 4 adults (other than me) went to Tropical Liqueurs. My daughter bought a large one to share with me at home. I watched the girls so that they wouldn't have to go along. Our niece was at the senior prom. Her boyfriend is stationed overseas so she went with a bunch of girls.

We were there for a few days. Visiting with family in Co-MO and the surrounding area was about all we could do. Co-MO was in a "masks everywhere" ordinance, which we complied with. The only one we didn't comply with, was the one that you were also supposed to wear masks if you were visiting with someone else in a home that you didn't always live with.


Donna

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Looking out at the lake at sunset, through a sunscreen over the window, from JB Hook's. We had an anniversary dinner there. The bridge in the foreground is the toll bridge that goes from the "Four Seasons" area of the lake, over to Sunrise Beach, Porto Cima, and points further north and west.

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Mama Deer, with fawn behind her. Many homes around the lake, particularly those on the North Shore, are surrounded by forest. Where there is forest, there are deer that come and snack on your grass and bushes. This mama deer and her two fawns chose to snack on the greenery at this one home just up the road from our daughter's.

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In this photo, you can see just how close the deer come to the homes in the area -- particularly that one home.


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One fawn, complete with spots. He (she?) and I had a staring contest. S/he was probably trying to figure out what that rectangular thing was in front of the face of "Human!" (My phone, of course.)

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While s/he and I were having this staring contest, Mama Deer and brother/sister had gallavanted back into the forest surrounding the home. Finally, the little fawn decided s/he better scoot and find Mama.


Donna

Missouri Flowers:

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Donna

Day 26 - Columbia MO to Salina KS - 305 miles, about 7 hours

We took our time this morning, readying for departure heading west. After a number of days of not doing much except visiting, reading, playing KodyKross, and shopping (usually sewing/crafting stores or the grocery store), we were ready to move on.

We took off after a teary goodbye with the Columbia AND Lake of the Ozarks families (except son-in-law, who was still down at the Lake working). After getting ice at QuikTrip, we went across the way to Cracker Barrel for breakfast. All of Columbia was practicing mask-wearing and social distancing, so wearing a mask as we went in was not unusual.

After breakfast, we drove. We stopped for fuel in Grain Valley (east of KC), then at rest areas before pulling into Salina's Comfort Inn North. We also stopped at the Russell Stover candy place – always a fun stop!

We were initially assigned to a room on the third floor. We moved in, including putting stuff in the refrigerator, then just relaxed before heading across the freeway to pick up dinner at Popeye's. Hubby had to wait for mild chicken in dark meat, so they gave him a free apple pie as a consolation. We took dinner back to our room, ate it, then discovered that the sink in the room had the sink stopper stuck in the down position.

Management came up, tried to fix it, then offered us another room, directly below the one we were on. So we had to pack up and move down one floor, including the refrigerator. The manager had to place 309 on the “inoperative” status until they can get the maintenance guy to come and fix it.

We headed out for a grocery store – Dillon's – to buy some Ziploc bags. Found the HUGE kind, 2.5 gallons, which would be perfect to place all the boxes of candy that we bought at the Russell Stover store. Then headed over to the Salina family's home, which we found right away this time.

We arrived right at 7, visited for an hour and three-quarters, then departed for the room.



Donna

Day 27 - Salina KS to Aurora, CO - 427 mi, about 8 hrs

We got up, got ready, and got on the road by 7:45 this morning. Our first stop after check-out, was about 58 miles down the road at Bunker Hill, KS, for fuel at $1.97. Our next stop was for breakfast at a very good place, Pheasant Run Pancakes in Hays, KS. The food was tasty, and just the right amount. They weren't really practicing social distancing or wearing masks, but I never felt uncomfortable.

We only really stopped for rest areas after that, until Limon, CO. The tranny seemed to be running hot, and we just needed to get out of the truck and walk a little. We also prepared our soft drinks while in a parking lot.

Trying to get fuel before getting off I-70 was a trial. We went to the same place in Watkins that we'd used a couple of weeks ago, but the price had gone up 10c a gallon from the price we'd seen on Gas Buddy that morning. They also had a couple of broken diesel pumps. We got back on I-70, heading east and went back to the Diamond Shamrock we'd seen 3 miles before, advertising $2.09. I had to report the new (better) price on Gas Buddy, for that one.

Got into our daughter's just before 3, using the “back roads” of as we did (in reverse) a couple of weeks before. Our other daughter is traveling to see her sister later in July, and she will want that better route.

Spent the evening visiting. Son-in-law grilled out for dinner!


Donna

Day 29 - Aurora, CO to Cedar City, UT - 615 mi, about 11 hrs

This was a very long driving day, 615 miles. We left our daughter's at 5:15 am, taking I-25 to I-70. We couldn't stop at Marion's of the Rockies Restaurant in Idaho Springs since they weren't going to be open until 7. Instead, we got to the Sunshine Cafe' in Silverthorne at 6:55 and just waited for them to open. The service was excellent and the food quick. Including the 5 minute wait for them to open, we only stopped 45 minutes!

We utilized the same fuel station in Grand Junction that we had on the way out. We stopped at the first rest area in the San Rafael Swell and hiked up a hill. But only after I discovered that the porta-potty chemical bottle in our camper shell had leaked and the smell permeated everything in the back. The chemical burned my eyes and made my throat raw! Later in the evening, after dinner, we opened up the back windows on the camper shell in hopes that would air things out back there.

One unusual stop was at the Quality Inn at Richfield. For some reason, our overnight payment never went through from our stay almost 4 weeks before, and had been showing up on our account as unpaid. So we paid via a check. The gal was floored.

We tried to get ice cream at Ideal Dairy in Richfield....closed....it's Sunday! Tried to call some places in Beaver for ice cream, same issue. We ran into that later for dinner, too. Most of the family-owned-and-operated restaurants were closed because it was Sunday.

Pulled into the Comfort Inn and Suites in Cedar City just before 4 pm. We checked in to our first floor room, then got to go for a swim in their indoor pool! As is usual, we were the only ones in the pool, though a dad brought his little son in as we were leaving. After a swim, we readied ourselves to go to dinner, finally deciding on Chili's. I'd been eyeing a couple of other places there in Cedar City, but both were closed because it was Sunday.

Hubby had the ribeye steak, which he said was tasty, while I had the Margarita Chicken Grill plate. Chili's was open for dine-in, but half the tables/booths were closed off.

After dinner, we drove first to a Shell station and filled up, then a little further up the street to a DQ for dessert.



Donna

Day 30 - Cedar City UT to Home, CA - 490 miles, 9 hours

We rolled out of bed at 5 am local time. Both of us were awake anyway. That leaky chemical smell was bothering my husband mentally, trying to figure out how the bottle had leaked. I just woke up at 4:45 and didn't go back to sleep because I knew the alarm would buzz on me.

We took our time departing, as we didn't know whether to stop for breakfast or not, and we didn't want to roll through Las Vegas at “Rush Hour”. So it was 6:45 before we were loaded and started to roll out of the hotel. Finally decided that a light breakfast was in order, so a quick call was made to the Cracker Barrel in St George to see if they were open for dine-in. Yes. We had a little trouble locating it, though we had been to that location a couple of years ago. Both of us ordered a kids' menu order of pancakes and that was it. After the previous night's dinner, neither of us was super hungry, but we knew we didn't want to arrive in LV too early!

The construction that had plagued us 4 weeks ago, through Virgin River Gorge, was non-existent. Our next stop was at the Moapa Chevron, off of Valley of Fire Rd. This was the most we paid on the entire trip, $2.49, but as we'd filled up in Cedar City last night, we didn't need a lot.

Stopped after that at Primm's Flying J. No fuel, just needed a short break. It was starting to get hot. The clouds had been over us until we got just past Moapa, but then the sun started to appear.

Surprise, surprise (to us!). California had moved the inspection station from its former location near Yermo, to a spot about a mile or two into California coming southbound on I-15. We were just waved through. Some boaters who had not heeded the signs to go through with the truckers, had to be pulled aside for a quick check.

Just past that, the traffic came to an extreme crawl. It seemed that a couple of huge pieces of mining equipment were struggling to make it up the hill, and every one of us behind them were also very slow. A little later, just past the spot where the old inspection station used to be at Yermo, we came to a stop again. We were stuck crawling along for at least a half hour. Finally got on the CB, channel 19, and asked what the problem was. A southbound'er replied, there were some military trucks in a convoy and one had a breakdown, and the rest stopped with them. In the meantime, everyone had to move over and go slow up that hill. We were concerned that this type of thing would continue all the way home, like it did on our 2018 trip, but it was not at issue.

Traffic was very heavy, that's for sure, all the way down Cajon Pass, but not stopped. The traffic was actually pretty thick all the way to San Diego, but it didn't do a slow-and-go or a stop-and-go.

We pulled into the house at 2:45, about 490 miles in just short of 9 clock hours. We unloaded quickly and tried to assess the chemical damage situation. Opening the windows of the camper shell had helped it tremendously, both overnight and with the wind blowing through it all the way home.

I will post photos from our last two days, and a video or two, over the next few days.


Donna

We've eaten at the Cracker Barrel in St. George before too. If we don't stop for meals we usually stop for the peppermint candy that DH loves. It use to be the last Cracker Barrel we'd see until our next trip but now there's one in Sacramento but that's too far for just a quick stop.

Sounds like a great trip. Are you happy to be home?

Utahtea

Until Cracker Barrel moved into Rialto and Victorville, the two closest ones were in Yuma AZ (along I-8) and St George UT. When making the constant runs between home and Tempe, AZ, we'd stop at the Yuma location.

We're planning to move to Missouri within the next year or two. My SIL has one within 3 or 4 miles from her home -- while we were there, we ordered "pickup" as she was not comfortable yet dining out with a large group.

As for happy to be home, yes and no. I'm ready to leave California -- about the only things I'll really miss are the weather and the lower food prices. Everything else? Like more expensive fuel and utilities, high home prices?

Pictures still to come.


Donna

Donna:

If it's not too late, you might want to do a quick edit of your "Day 30" post. Most of your text is doubled up! (Not that it isn't worth reading twice--it's a good report!)

Rick

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Photo taken when passing through Denver along I-25. Yes, it was just getting light and I loved the silhouette of the skycrapers.


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Probably the stadium where the Denver Broncos play, as the sign said Empower Field Mile High Stadium.

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Always a favorite, going through the Eisenhower Tunnel!


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Coming out of the Eisenhower Tunnel.


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Love the mountains. The air is so fresh and everything was so green this time of year.


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Going through Glenwood Canyon.

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Bair Ranch Rest Area. You can walk to the Colorado River at that point. Maybe, if you're very very lucky, or you've timed it well, you may get to see a raft trip go by. We were NOT lucky.


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Still at Bair Ranch Rest Area.


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Looking at the freeway from Bair Ranch Rest Area.

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This tunnel intrigues me because of its shape.

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Construction. Don't we just love it! (NOT!)

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Coming into Grand Junction. Between there and the start of the San Rafael Swell, the terrain isn't as interesting.

Weird, Rick. It just showed up that way. I know I didn't hit Ctrl-V twice! Thanks, it should be fixed now.


Donna

To summarize the COVID portion of our trip as a whole:

* Mask wearing. In many areas, it was required or highly suggested, and most people complied. In every place except the DQ in Salina, KS, all restaurant-hotel-store workers were wearing masks.

* Food service. Almost every place was honoring the 6-ft distance and had closed off tables or seating areas. Wait staff, cooks and hosts were wearing masks and most wore gloves. However, table items were not standard. Some restaurants had salt-pepper, bags of sugar/sweetener sitting on the table. Others had none and you'd have to request them. Some brought you the salt and pepper shakers, others gave you the take-out type salt and peppers. Some asked you how many little bags of sugar/sweetener you needed, others were more generous and brought you a bunch. Most places had reverted to the old toss-away paper menus, though Chili's and two other places had laminated menus. Chili's had one set marked "sanitized menus" and one marked "Need cleaning".

* Hotels. For our on-the-road days, we stayed in Choice properties. All 4 hotels were spotless. Two pools were open (Utah, both directions), two pools were closed (Kansas, both directions).

For our place at Lake of the Ozarks, everything was open except a few of the restaurants that they'd decided to close this summer (less tourists). The water park, which we did not go into, was only open on weekends where any other summer, Margaritaville's water park would have been open daily. The room was spotless. Housekeeping was not authorized to step foot into your room unless you requested something, and even there, they'd put it in a bag by your door instead of going in, if that's what you wanted. We had a mantra, that if a place got crowded (like the "Lakeside Pool"), we'd just leave.

* Rest areas. About usual. We used them, but I always used hand sanitizer right after I washed my hands in the rest area, especially
if I had to touch a doorknob.

* Fuel stations. About like home, you just have to fill up more often when you're driving long distances. Most of the time we went about a half a tank between stops. Hubby tried using his gloves but found them cumbersome. When he finished fueling the truck, I'd hand him an anti-bacterial wipe for his hands, the truck door handle, and the steering wheel.

* Mantras: Wash your hands often, or use hand sanitizer or hand sanitizer wipes. Stay out of crowds. Wear a mask. Don't touch your face except with clean hands.

The rest of the trip photos will be forthcoming.

Donna

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Coming into the San Rafael Swell area (after Green River, heading westbound).


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At the first San Rafael Swell Rest Area, we took a hike up a hill. This is a photo near the top.

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The formations of rock/mountain in the Swell area are beautiful.

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A 180-degree view standing at the top of that hill. It's a short video. Just click on the photo and it should take you to my public Flickr account and let you play this video.

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A 180-degree view continuing. Just click on the photo and it should take you to my public Flickr account and let you play this video.



Donna

Looks good, Donna.

It must have been a pretty strange trip, overall, traveling through territory that's so obviously familiar to you, but with so many things closed. I'm sure the big-truck traffic is somewhere close to normal, especially on the Interstates, but I'm curious: if you had to make a rough estimate, how many family-sized cars and trucks were out there on the road, when compared to a normal summertime cross-country drive? I read about road-trips being "the way to go" this summer, since so many people are leery of flying, but I can't help thinking that the vast majority of people are leery of traveling by any means right now. (Count me in with that group--the way things are going in Phoenix right now, I'm leery of making a trip to the grocery store!)

Rick

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Coming into the Virgin River Gorge, we weren't too concerned about the darker clouds on the other side. Radar was showing it too far away. Though the Virgin River can be in a flash flood stage, usually it doesn't get as high as the freeway.

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Though there was no construction evident on the freeway itself, the Cedar Pocket area of the Virgin River Gorge Recreation Area was closed. There was evidence of pending construction, but none happening that morning. So camping there is still non-existent. Considering the heat of this higher desert, it's probably a good thing.

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This was the cause of the first traffic headache, right on the top of the hill at Nipton. I didn't get a photo of the cause of the 2nd traffic headache. It was in the truck lane, and we were in the far left lane!

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I am a bit of a fabric-collector. Since this trip had no national parks or other places where we would buy souvenir t-shirts, I decided that fabric and sewing project stuff would be in order. This is the photo of what I brought home.


Donna

They have a rest area in the San Rafael Swell area now? Last time I went through, it was just a wide spot on the shoulder with a porta-potty. Any cell service on that stretch yet?

GLC, there are a few "rest areas" in that stretch...maybe 5 or so. Some have some sort of restroom facility, either a fiberglass portable unit or a cinderblock structure with an outhouse style potty in it. These can be found at mm86 (eb & wb), mm105, mm115 (eb only), mm122 (eb & wb), mm143 (eb & wb). The others are just labeled Scenic Views and "No Facilities".

As for cell service, there are some places in that 108-mile stretch where there is some cell service. Other areas are still "No Service" (Verizon). In the stretch between Grand Junction CO and Green River UT, there are a few miles of either "No Service" or "3G" service. I didn't write down where service can be found.

We figure this to be the last time going all the way across the western section of I-70, for awhile In our next long-distance trip, we'll probably go up to I-40 and then across to I-44. My husband would not want to be driving a U-Haul towing either a U-Haul trailer or a trailer with a vehicle on it, through the mountains.

Rick, we noticed that there was a definite lessening of out-of-state cars along I-70 and I-15 this trip. We didn't see nearly as many cars from the East Coast as we might have on a previous trip. When in Kansas, we'd see mostly Kansas, Colorado and Missouri plates. I'd say about as many RV's. Like U-Hauls, though, we can't go by the license plates on those.

We got home to restaurants "dine-outside or take it home" rules, closed barbershops and beauty salons (made me glad I got mine done when I did), bars and gyms closed again, and an order from the Governor that all schools in certain counties (mine included) would start the year with Distance Learning -- even if the school was 35 miles from the epicenter of COVID in the county.




Donna

Viewing the photos is as close to being on a road trip as I am likely to be this year.

Thanks for sharing them and reporting on what you found out there. I would certainly prefer that you had found 100% mask compliance out there. Just about everyday I learn about another friend with family members in ICU with Covid-19 or those who have already passed. I don't see any likely developments to aid control of this virus, in the USA, until sometime next Spring.

And, as a reminder to everyone... We practice "Good Neighbor Rules" herein. No tolerance for name-calling of any kind on these forums. That sort of stuff is fine on Facebook and other forms of social media -- but these forums are "safe zones."

But, as I said, the photos certainly brought back memories.

Mark

Just in the last week, I learned of the deaths of two of my former co-workers, including "Junior" Rodriguez, the first Hispanic Postmaster of Phoenix, a guy who worked his way up from the bottom to become a high-level executive. (In a city this size, that's a big deal.) Junior was a big, strapping bear of a man, the last person you'd expect to succumb to this disease, and that just goes to prove, to me, at least, that none of us are immune, and all of us are in significant danger until this virus has been brought to heel.

We should all be as careful as we can possibly be, and kind to one another, because we're all in this together, no matter who we are, no matter where we live, and no matter what we choose to believe. Why would anyone NOT wear a mask? And as for bars and eat-in dining and the barber shop? I can do without ALL of that until it's rendered safe once again. (Meanwhile, my hair is down to my shoulders--AGAIN--and looking quite stylish in a pony tail!) (Ha!)

Rick

We're calling off our two month RV trip with friends that was suppose to start at the end of August because we just don't feel comfortable traveling at this time even in our own motorhome! We will cancel all but the 10 days for Capitol Reef at the end of the trip and evaluate conditions as that time to see if we feel comfortable enough to just do that portion. That's 12 different campgrounds I have to call and cancel and I'm not looking forward to that job!

At this time our friends are still going to do the trip so I'll be able to live vicariously though the photos they send me! Although that could change too.



Utahtea

Can't they use your reservations?