by laura beth

Well, here we are, back in my home town of John Day, Oregon. We planned this trip back to Oregon because a good friend of mine from high school, Jennifer Holliday, is getting married in Portland on May 10th. In the meantime I found out that my recently widowed 80-something-year-old great uncle is getting remarried to a longtime family friend. I couldn't be happier for them. So we plan on sticking around for a month or two after the weddings. Fuel prices are on the rise, so we're going to save a little money and stay in my parents backyard.

by laura beth

We are heading to Oregon! We stopped in Helper, Utah to see Big John, a coal man in the style of Muffler Man. We always keep our eyes peeled for Muffler Man, Paul Bunyan, etc.


Our next stop was the Sri Sri Radha Krishna Temple in Spanish fork, Utah. According to the temple president we met there, Caru Das, this is the only temple in the U.S. purposely built to be a Krishna temple (as opposed too temple moving into an existing building). It was modeled after a famous devotional palace in India called Kusum Sarovar (temple on a lake of flowers). It is absolutely beautiful. The people were very kind and Caru Das gave us a tour and info about Krishna Consciousness. After the tour we were invited to eat with them (which we didn't) and observe their arotik ceremony (which we did). Although my spiritual beliefs differ from theirs, I was greatly impressed by the kindness, sincerity, and devotion of the people we encountered here. Beautiful temple, beautiful people, and beautiful peacocks.

We stayed that night and the next with Cassie and Ken in Kamas. We went to church with them on Sunday at Creekside Christian Fellowship in Park City. We then checked out the house they're getting ready to buy in Marion, down the road 3 miles from their current house. That afternoon Ken, Cassie, Kenny, and I all piled into Ken and Cassie's double bed to watch Return of Oz. A friend of theirs came over that evening and we had homemade pizza for dinner. I hope that wherever we end up settling down, Ken and Cassie will not be far away.

by kenny

Going from snow in Durango to hot desert in Moab can put you a little off balance, but that is all part of the RV lifestyle.

When I was younger, my parents took me to Hole N' the Rock near Moab, Utah and I still have the pendent from the gift shop. Albert Christensen dynamited and dynamited into the natural cliff face and made himself a house and restaurant. The house is 5,000 square feet with 14 rooms. The restaurant has been turned into a gift shop and the outside area has a lot of kitschy items. Albert and his wife are also buried on property in a cave that was dynamited out of the rock. We toured the fantastic house, but they won't let you take photos. Jerks.

We stayed the night in Moab and left the next to visit Ken and Cassie.

by kenny

At the Durango, Colorado visitor center we were informed about a buy one, get one free coupon for the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. We also found out that the Historic Strater Hotel offers half price appetizers during happy hour. So we went into town and booked a train ride for the next day.

We had "appetizers" at the Strater. They did have your normal appetizers, but they also had full meals they called appetizers. A huge burger or chicken meal for a few bucks. The hotel is continually being renovated and they keep public up to date with a annual open house of sorts. They also provide tours, food, and entertainment. All for free. And all the next day! We enjoyed our appetizers and Laura really enjoyed her local brew (a recent interest) and then we split to find a campground.

We went to a campground on the outskirts of Durango, but it was way too expensive for our budget, so we left and went to the other side of town. We found a campground that we were willing to pay for until we found out that their water lines had busted. So we went to the local Wal-Mart, but there were signs saying "No RV Parking", so with heavy hearts we went back to the expensive RV Park. When we got there we realized that not only was it expensive, but it wasn't even ready for business. The pool was empty, the game room had no power going to it, the grounds weren't cleaned up yet, but I suppose this is why they were able to charge full price:



The next day we left the campground, parked the moho, and boarded the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. I wanted to go on the train because I had good memories of going on the train with my family when I was younger. In the summer the train goes all the way to Silverton, but we were still in the winter season and it has a different route into Cascade Canyon. The trip was fun, really scenic, and we met a nice couple from Virginia that made the trip even more enjoyable. It even snowed on us on the trip back down the mountain. The train takes you along the Animas River, high up into the canyon, stops for a half hour break, and then heads back down for a total of about 5 hours. There are nice concessions, including a mug you buy for $6 and get free refills all day. We definitely got our money's worth of cocoa, coffee, lattes, and Dr. Pepper.

After the train we went to the Historic Strater Hotel for the annual open house and got in line for the free tour and celebration. The employees were dressed in period costumes and we were taken from room to room for about 30 minutes. One of the hotel's claims to fame is that Louis L'Amour wrote the majority of his books from room 222 overlooking the street and directly above the Diamond Belle Saloon. After the tour was over we were given coupons for free drinks at the bar and all the food we could eat. Entertainment was in the old vaudeville style with piano playing, operatic singing, and theatrical performances. If we could have stayed an extra day we could been there for the Diamond Belle saloon girl reunion, boasting at least one ex-bar girl over 80. We left and headed west for a campground that wasn't in a tourist town.

by kenny

Taos is my favorite place so far (Kenny's is Prescott, AZ). It has all the great stuff of Santa Fe, but seems more authentic, rustic-less commercialized. I know I sound like a broken record. Wonderful food, beautiful people, just an all-over good vibe. Something about the colors, textures, and feel of this place makes me want more.

We hung around the plaza, and then headed out to scope out the Earthships and Rio Grande. We just found out about earthships yesterday and the idea intrigued us enough to come out and see for ourselves. It was worth the trip as we think this form of house building will be the way we eventually build our artist community. Earthships are amazing. They are completely off grid (no utility bills!). They are passive solar, self-sustaining homes built with natural and recycled materials (tires, straw bales, tin cans, bottles, adobe, etc). The water systems are amazing. Ideally, snow & rain water is collected on the roof, filtered, used conventionally, filtered, used again to water plants, filtered, used a third time for toilets, treated, and lastly used to water outdoor plant life. Just outside of Taos lies Greater World Community, a subdivision covering several hundred acres and home to 50 or so Earthships. We were able to go to the visitor center, which is an Earthship itself. Waaaaaaay cool. Check this out. And this about the architect Mike Reynolds. And watch this documentary.




In Rancho de Taos, we visited the San Francisco de Asis Church, which is said to be the most painted (depicted) church. We also went to a great trading post to buy chile ristas and Mexican tile. My only regret is not being able to stay longer in Taos and not going to the Pueblo. Lame! Oh well, maybe next time.

We stayed at Taos Valley RV park and were going to head to Durango via highway 64, but luckily, the park host told us that the pass is still closed for the "winter". So we drove down to Espanola to stay before heading onto Durango via highway 84. It added an hour to our trip, but saved us 4 hours (does that make sense?)