Travels with Ziggy

Ziggy has been very good on this trip. She still goes crazy when another dog is around. Yes, most campgrounds are full of dogs! And she doesn't sit down (or drink) while the RV is in motion. But she has been very sweet. She doesn't mind staying in the RV while we are out touring. She is very good about her biological breaks. We are glad she's here.

I won't repeat the thoughts that Judy blogged, but I will add a few myself. The climate here is interesting. Low-mid 80s during the day and into the 40s at night with almost no humidity. But that's only part of the story. We are at 8000 feet here at Bryce Canyon. That translates into two interesting effects on the body. Although the temperature during the day is comfortable, the sun is HOT! You burn twice as fast as at sea level. And it can be almost unbearable to be out in the sun in the afternoon even with the comfortable temperatures.

The second effect is air pressure. Normal sea level pressure is about 30" of mercury (about 14.7 psi). Air pressure here is about 23" of mercury (about 11.5 psi). If you think that difference makes breathing interesting then you are right. Luckily we are coming from Santa Fe which is at 7000 feet, so we are at least partially acclimated. Some of us are affected more than others. (I never did like her very much!)

You also have to drink a LOT of water. You dry out very quickly. I started to realize this when I tried to speak and nothing came out because my mouth was so dry!

Judy's description of driving through the Navajo and Hopi reservations is woefully lacking. Unfortunately I can't do any better. A travel day which I had mentally written off (and my birthday!) turned out to be one of the most exciting and memorable days of the trip so far. I'm just glad we didn't break down out there!

It's really frustrating not having an Internet connection. Our last campground had none. This campground also doesn't have one (or TV either), but we are sometimes able to steal, er, borrow one. There may be a neighbor with a satellite connection. I don't know, but at least we seem to have received our e-mails. One good thing (or bad depending on whether you are writing or reading) is that I composed this blog offline and was able to take the time to add some more great(?) stuff.

In completing our first two weeks of travel we have realized a couple of things. First, we LOVE traveling this way. We have seen lots of interesting sights and it's great having your home with you. You learn, however, not to be in a hurry. Speed and RVs don't go together.

The second thing we realized is that RVing is not for everyone. Most of our friends, for instance, would not enjoy this mode of travel and would opt instead for a high-end tour. We have no regrets about RVing whatsoever.

We have also discovered that Interstate roads are a necessary evil. We avoid them whenever it is practical. There are so many more interesting things to see on the "blue highways." The Navajo reservation is a perfect example as is Tinkertown.

Today's entry is long enough. We'll fill you in whenever we are able. (Las Vegas on Thursday - I think we might be able to find a connection there.)