Issue #29 -- Between The Rallys

David drives half the day and I'll drive the other half.

After leaving the Thor Rally in Indiana, we headed in the direction of Las Vegas for the All Inclusive Motorhome Club (AIM) rally.  The AIM rally doesn't start until October 19th so instead of going straight to Las Vegas we're going to Stansbury Park, Utah.  We have good friends, Jerry & Stacy to spend some time with, whether Jerry wants to, or not!

My turn!

We started our trip from Indiana October 5th, and planned to arrive in Utah by October 7th or 8th. Should be no problem, right? We scoped the route planning for overnight stops, then glide into Utah.  The first couple of nights were not too bad.  The first night we did an overnight at a Walmart in Iowa, and then a night at the Country View Campground in Ogallala, Nebraska. So far no problems other than some rain and winds. The wind and rain were not a problem, but then the yellow "Check Engine" lights starting coming. When the first one came on, we didn't worry too much because we have previously checked with Freightliner and they've told us it is usually due to moisture in the emissions system that will cause it to come on.  This is all good until you get a second "Check Engine" light with a "!" symbol, right in the middle that you start thinking it's got to be more than just moisture.  While I was driving David did some checking and found a Freightliner located in Rock Springs, Wyoming, which happened to be the area for our next overnight stop. So we arrived in Rock Springs and checked into the KOA campground.  The KOA is easy to get to ... it's right off the freeway. It's a small park, but it's clean and has nice size sites.  The view of the surrounding mountains, just lovely. As we checked in, though, snow began to fall.

We settled in for the night and planned to go to Jack's Freightliner in the morning. The next morning there was a lot more snow on the ground and the snow was coming down almost at the level of a blizzard. After unhooking the tow vehicle we headed over to Jack's Freightliner which was just the other side of the freeway. Jack's was not going to able to work on our rig until Wednesday the 10th. It was the 7th. If we stayed we'd be snowed in for more than just a few days.  When the freeway gets closed due to snow, it can be closed for as much as two weeks.

The staff at Jack's was able to refer us to the Rock Springs Cummins back on the other side of the freeway.  We headed to Cummins and found the staff to be friendly, able to diagnose the problem and told us we'd be back on the road within 2 hours.  Cummins replaced TWO fuel filters, and back on the road we went, trying to beat the snow out of Wyoming.  Thank you Rock Springs Cummins, a great job and excellent, quick service.

The scenery in snow covered areas is just beautiful.  You know you're driving through snow country when you see the snow fencing that's used to help block snow drifts from the freeway. The nice part of this portion of our trip is that if you can make it to the valley area of Utah, there's less snow.

Well, we made it to Utah and found Jerry & Stacy's home in Stansbury.  They were kind enough to allow us to stay at their place, and hook up to water and electric. They live in a nice little community with a pond just outside their back door.

Jerry & Stacy live a short distance from Salt Lake City and among the 12 Best Things To Do in Salt Lake City, Utah the first is to visit Temple Square, the official headquarters of the Mormon Church. You can easily spend a day walking the grounds, and touring the buildings.

              

 

               

Jerry did a nice job showing us around Salt Lake City, and even took us to one of his favorite little hole-in-the-wall places for lunch.

Stacy and Jerry are exceptional hosts, Stacy is also a great cook. She not only made supper, she also made some fantastic breakfasts. So that Stacy didn't have to cook our entire visit, we went out to eat a couple of times.  The Red Iguana, a family owned and operated Mexican food restaurant, as they would describe it, is "Killer Mexican Food That's Worth the Wait."  Because of their popularity they now have a second location The Red Iguana 2. The food was true to its name. So good, we forgot to get photos of our ordered food. Sorry!

During our stay we took a day trip to Jerry & Stacy's summer cabin.  It's a little bit of a drive, but Jerry needed to do some things to close it up for the winter.  The scenery both to the cabin and back was well worth the time on the road.  Their dog, Buster, went along as well, and was great company for me in the back seat.

           

Stacy's "She" Shed

Buster likes being at the cabin, but he spends most of his time looking for Stacy.  When he can't find her he sits outside the door of her "She" Shed.










As for me, I took the time to take photos inside the cabin, and outside, as I enjoyed the beauty all around.

After a short stop for lunch, we headed back to Stansbury. The ride back was just as nice as the ride over.  Buster took the opportunity to get another "short" nap in.

 

We had a wonderful time visiting both Jerry & Stacy.  Thank you both.







Our plans were to get to Las Vegas a couple of days in advance of the rally.  Before arriving in Las Vegas we spent a couple of nights in Beaver, Utah. Because there was a Senior Olympic event in St. George, Utah, our original destination, we were not able to get into any of their RV Resorts, but we were able to fine this quaint little campground, the Beaver Canyon Campground. The grounds are like entering a old time Mexican Village.  The campground is family owned and operated.  And they offer the Passport-America discount every day of your stay.

 We stayed here for three nights and did not unhook the tow vehicle.  We just wanted to relax a few days prior to getting into Las Vegas.  The campground has a wonderful Mexican food restaurant which is run by another member of the same family that owns the campground. Locals in Beaver come for supper because it is the best Mexican food in the area. Maria's is open seven days a week, but only for supper. We were more than pleased with the food, the service and the price.

If you're in this area, we would have no problem recommending the campground and the restaurant. It was a wonderful place to stay, eat and relax. 

 As we left the campground, a couple of deer crossed the road in front of us. I guess they like Mexican food too.

Next stop, Las Vegas

David's Buddy Stops: