Peter has already covered our Buses by the Bridge weekend quite well, but I just had to add a couple of my favorite pix.

Sunset, the night we arrived:

Buses and more buses, as far as the eye could see:

For the most part, we spent the weekend alternately freezing (no hookups!) and marveling at all of the pretty V-Dubs. We hadn’t seen many Vanagons or Buses for most of our trip, so this was certainly a nice West Coast welcome.

We camped for three days in Lake Havasu City, at an event called Buses By The Bridge. A gathering of over 250 VW Buses, Vanagons, and Eurovans, plus assorted Beetles, Things, etc. Fortunately, Teri is thoroughly infected with the (excuse pun) VW bug, so she enjoyed the sights and sounds almost as much as I did.

We made a couple of friends, got stuck in the sand (Note: tire chains only make things worse on the beach), and froze our butts off. Here are some more of the vehicles we drooled over:

What a beauty:

Yes, there’s a VW bus under that Winnie shell:

This guy had the sweetest setup – he made a matching teardrop trailer and set up a whole tiki lounge:

There was a polar-bear swim…and you thought the bus-a-bago was insane?

…and finally, here’s our camp. The solar panels really came in handy, camping for three days with no hookups:

Well, we definitely have a lot of catching up to do!

When we left Santa Fe, we knew we were headed to Lake Havasu City, on the border of Arizona and California, for the Buses by the Bridge VW meet. But while passing through Arizona, we couldn’t resist spending a day at the stunning Petrified Forest National Park, in the Painted Desert.

Our vocabulary that day consisted mostly of “Wow.”

On the way (Arizona is rocky! And apparently these rocks can fall…):

Along the famous (or infamous) Route 66:

Bet you didn’t know that there are still dinosaurs in Arizona:

And finally, the Painted Desert (there are no words):

Ancient Petroglyphs (very cool, you can walk right up to them!):

Ceili waiting in the car, as usual:

The Petrified Forest (wood turned to rock, amazing and intense):

And a very inquisitive raven:

The Painted Desert and Petrified Forest in Eastern Arizona were simply amazing:

Petrified log:

Wow:

That’s a log on the ridge:

Closeup of a petrified log:

There was an old settlement there Here’s what’s known:

Some walls remain partially intac:

Here you can see the fine workmanship:

There were also some remarkably well-preserved petroglyphs:

Bad-ass birds? Symbolic? We’ll never really know:

Just a few more blog-worthy pics from our stint in Texas, that hadn’t yet made it to a post.

From Seminole Canyon State Park, Peter on the edge:

Look closely, these are actually part of the canyon’s rock formations!

The canyon at midday:

A Seminole sunset:

And lastly, on our way out of Texas, we passed through sleepy little Langtry. Loved this rusted old sign:

Just a quick post for anyone who’s wondering…

We’ve made it to California, and after a few days visiting friends and relatives out here, are now driving (slowly) up the coast. We’ve found that most of the campgrounds out here don’t tend to have wifi access, so we’re really behind in our posts.

But we’ve got some fun stories and photos to share, so are trying to get caught up!

In the meantime, keep an eye on the map in the top left corner – we’ll do our best to keep that updated (so you know where we are).

The rear latch for the sliding door had been coming loose for some time now, cracking at the weld and threatening to spill our dog and belongings on the highway. Since in the past I’ve done both – lost a sliding door while moving, and had the dog go flying out onto a busy highway – I decided to get it fixed before we left Santa Fe.

I can handle most necessary repairs with the tools stashed under the backseat – gotta love old VWs – but a welder just didn’t fit, so I posted to thesamba.com asking if anyone could recommend a welder in Santa Fe. There were a few responses, usually suggesting I visit a place called “F.A.S.T. Automotive”, a highly regarded local repair shop, but one stood out. A fellow who I “knew” from thesamba as a walking encyclopedia of VW arcana offered to weld up the catch if we felt like visiting him an hour North. I accepted. That’s where we were bound during Teri’s last post about picking up the hitchhikers.

We found our way to Abique, NM by early afternoon and met Chris at the general store. We followed him down a few miles of paved roads, then paused to install tire chains at the head of his “driveway”, a sandy, snow-covered two-track through the desert hills. Two miles of off-roading later, we reached his house, a tidy hand-built cabin surrounded by panoramic views of the hills, arroyos, buttes, mesas, and enormous sky.

Not only did he weld up the loose latch, he shared a running stream of VW and engineering knowledge that I’m still digesting, and gave us a tour of his completely off-grid home. Miles from the nearest neighbor or electric line, he lives by harvesting the energy of the sun and collecting rainwater in a huge underground cistern, and wants for nothing. Electric light, a refrigerator, a well-appointed workshop, and a composting toilet of his own design; space to garden, space to think, and a wood-heated home with all the comforts…exactly what Teri and I aspire to build some day.

We left the next day, repaired, inspired, rested, and filled with a profound sense of gratitude for the help and hospitality. Should the Pacific Northwest fail to capture us, there’s a chance our new friend might just end up being our new neighbor out in the gorgeous N.M. desert.

The past week or so has been so eventful that we haven’t had time to go through pix and write, but here’s a quickie photo-essay – What Peter Sees

Forward:

Up:

Left:

Right:

Woke up this morning all tired and cold and cranky – we had come into Santa Fe two nights ago in the middle of a big snowstorm. We started that day still in Carlsbad, in southern New Mexico, then drove north to Roswell (home of the famous UFO crash site, Area 51, and alien – little green men – fever). There seemed to be about 3 or 4 blocks filled with UFO museums and alien-themed souvenir shops, surrounded by a normal little town. We picked one of the UFO museums and went inside.

Peter at the fabled “Alien Autopsy”:

A resident alien:

After our fun little detour, we got back on the road toward Santa Fe. When we hit the snowstorm, we almost turned around and headed back to the south, but I just really wanted to see Santa Fe, so we pressed on. That first night we sprang for a hotel room – didn’t really want to spend the money, but we had convinced ourselves that it was too cold to camp outside.

We spent part of the next afternoon driving around the city, again having convinced ourselves it was too cold to get out and walk around much. It was great to see so many VW Vanagons and Buses and Beetles – we didn’t feel quite so much like freaky hippies anymore.

As it happens, we ended up parking next to another Vanagon at a Starbuck’s, and met the owner and her friend. After she informed us that she switched out her Vanagon engine for a more powerful Subaru engine herself (right on!), they told us about “Busses By the Bridge”, a mass gathering of VW addicts taking place next weekend near the Arizona-California border. We decided on the spot to make that our next destination – 3 days of camping with other VW-heads for only $25, along with parts vendors and an organized swap meet – cool!

We decided that Santa Fe had been good to us after all, and headed west to the Albuquerque KOA, knowing we’d be camping in the cold and snow, but not wanting to spend money on another hotel room. (We do have a space heater, but it tends to suck the moisture out of the already dry winter air, hence my dehydration headache and crankiness.)

We had made plans yesterday evening to drive back to Santa Fe (for a new fuel filter…again…), and then head north to meet up with someone from an online VW group who said he could do some needed welding on our car door. (We also really wanted to meet him because he’s totally “off the grid” – meaning he produces his own energy via solar power and other “alternative” means – which we are very interested in for our future fantasy log house.)

So, we fueled ourselves at Starbucks (with me still cranky), and hit the road. As we were getting back on the highway to head back toward Santa Fe, we saw a twenty-something hippy-ish couple hitching a ride. We (of course) picked them up and drove them into town.

The girl said she’s been hitchhiking for 5 years now. They had ridden a freight train into NM, and slept last night in an abandoned house. Their possessions consisted pretty much of what they were wearing and what they could carry on their backs. They did not have a portable heater, or any of the other “luxuries” that we’re carrying in the van (like a few weeks’ worth of food, refrigerator, stove, etc). And…they seemed totally chill and happy.

I suddenly realized how stupid I was for complaining and being cranky about the cold, about my headache, about anything. We have more than we could ever need right here in our van, and are having the time of our lives. How I could have been feeling anything but grateful, or even imagining that it could be “too cold” – when we have an insulated van, complete with heat, down comforter, blankets, etc – is beyond me. It was like a weight lifted right off.

We left our new friends in downtown Santa Fe, where they immediately hooked up with another member of their tribe (a twenty-something hippy type in a rainbow hat, also traveling). After chatting for a few minutes and giving them some apples and trail mix for the road, we got back in the van and headed north.

(Funny aside: We’ve been chuckling a little about some of the really huge RVs – some people seem to need to take their entire house and everything they own on the road with them. Next to them, we’re authentically “roughing it.” But, next to our hitchhikers this morning, we realized WE were the old frumpy ones, traveling around with all of our “luxuries” in our little house, not really roughing it at all!)

So here we are now: the sun is shining, the mountains are amazing, and I believe we are about to meet another incredibly cool person who will help us make some repairs to our Let’s Go, and teach us a little about alternative energy and living off of the grid. Life couldn’t be better.

Turns out, all it took to set my head back on straight was a couple of random encounters in a funky New Mexico town. And here’s the biggest and best thing I’ve learned on the road so far: that for the most part, given half a chance, most people are warm and friendly, and often incredibly generous. NYC is slowly but surely wearing off…

Thank you, Sante Fe.

Yesterday the trip here from Seminole Canyon took much longer than expected because of headwinds that held us to about 45 mph much of the time, and hills that reduced our speed even further. The weather today, on the other hand, was lovely – a high of 68, and not much wind.

We visited Living Desert State Park, which is primarily a zoo. Neither of us are overly fond of seeing wild animals cooped up in man-made environments, but it was spacious and naturalistic, and according to the brochure many of the animals were rescues who wouldn’t do well if re-released. Here are some of the residents.

Golden Eagle:

Bald Eagle:

Roadrunner – meep meep!

Peccaries – not pigs, but related:
:

I often have the same problem as this Brown Bear:

The wolves were utterly indifferent to people calling “hello, wolfie!” As if your dog suddenly realized that you’re made entirely of edible stuff…

The Mountain Lions told us in unmistakable language to get the @#$% away from them, but first we grabbed some photos:

Albino Rattlesnake:

Tonight is a different story, weather-wise. It’s 9:45, the temp has dropped into the 30s, and the van is shaking like a small boat at sea from the 30+ mph winds. The dog didn’t even want an evening walk, she just kept straining to return to the van. She looked at me as if to say “You idiot! Don’t your instincts tell you to return to the den when it’s like this?!”

We’re in a campground with electric hookups, fortunately, since we’re once again relying on our little electric space heater, which has been one of the most valuable pieces of equipment we brought. I’m really glad I installed that bubble-wrap/foil insulation! We have a cozy little nest in the middle of the raging storm, and when Teri’s finished with a bit of work she has, we’ll continue watching Battlestar Galactica DVDs, which as it turns out are basically crack in video form – last night we stayed up past 3am, something we haven’t done since leaving the city. We have a six-pack of Santa Fe pale ale (we try the local brews wherever we go) and a small bar of organic dark chocolate

Tomorrow morning, it’s time to do the shuffle (in a van this small, all your stuff lives in the back, and must be transferred to the front seats in order to fold out the bed) and once again cue up Willie Nelson’s most famous song, which at this point we sing with slightly altered lyrics:

On the road again
Holy CRAP we’re on the road again…