Our original plan was to head south to Florida for the holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas) after leaving Tennessee. We have family and friends there that we would like to visit and I have always wanted to see the Florida Keys. However, my tolerance for living in humidity was all used up. I could not do it any longer. I had enough of this moldy lifestyle, I had to go west. The I-40 runs directly from Knoxville, TN to Flagstaff, AZ. Stopping in a different state each night we made our way across the southern US on I-40.
The first day we powered through the rest of Tennessee, crossed the Mississippi river into Arkansas and camped along the Mississippi in West Memphis, Arkansas at a place called Tom Sawyer RV Park. There were barges going down the river all night long. It was an interesting experience.
Next night was at a KOA in Oklahoma, then on to Texas where we stayed in a campground that was also a rest area. When I got up in the morning and headed to the restroom there was an 18-wheeler parked there with its engine running. There was a historical marker in this rest area with a story of Bonnie and Clyde crashing into the nearby river as they were speeding out of the state.
The next night we were in New Mexico at Santa Rosa Lake State Park. It felt so good to be back in the Southwest, back in the desert, finally! Where the humidity is low and the camping is cheap. Only $14 with showers and flush toilets. In the campground we met a guy who trains hawks to hunt with him. On to Albuquerque where we meet up with a former coworker and I got the scoop on the situation at the old job.
Okay we are finally dry, now what? Still exhausted, we made the decision that living in a van full-time is not going to work for us. I have always loved Colorado, Boulder in particular, so we decide to head that way and check it out to see if we could possibly live there. Keep in mind it is now November and winter comes early to Colorado. It is getting cold and campgrounds are shutting down. I am having hard time finding anywhere to stay that is still open. Finally, we find St. Vrain State Park in Firestone which is north of Denver. It is still open and they are supposed to have flush toilets and everything. On the way we meetup with Tim’s brother and his girlfriend in Colorado Springs. Good to keep in touch with family. Traffic going through Denver was a nightmare but we finally make it to the park. The lady at the entrance wants to put us very far away from the bathrooms and I ask specifically to be closer. She then gives us a site closer and we head to the camping area and park it. Later, I go into the restroom building and there are three doors – Women, Men, and Handicap. I pull the door handle to the Women’s room – locked, Men’s room – locked, Handicap – opens into a single room with one toilet, sink and shower. Really???? ONE toilet for the entire campground??? The lady at the entrance could have said something when I asked specifically about the bathroom. This pushed me over the edge, I told Tim I am ready to get an apartment in the city where I can have my own bathroom. The next day we start heading back to Phoenix with a stopover in Durango, another Colorado favorite, where we stayed in hotel that we have stayed in several times in the past. We even know how to walk to the brewery. Something familiar at last!
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