rving – Page 3 – Twosna Travels

Blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures.
-Lovell Drachman

*Sierra del Carmen mountains in Mexico, Big Bend*

From Denver, down we went to escape the coming of winter just as fast as we could: Raton Pass and Roswell, New Mexico; Guadalupe National Park, Texas. The weather stayed in the 40’s, fog and low hanging clouds. I was excited to return to the Guadalupes and thought we’d have a picnic lunch and maybe a little hike there. It was windy and cold so we ate a quick lunch in the truck.

*Guadalupe Mountains: there’s a mountain out there somewhere!*

Then Van Horn, Marfa and Alpine, Texas. The towns kept getting smaller and the scenery by the road more beautiful. Marathon, Texas; then 39 miles to the gate of Big Bend; 26 miles from there to Panther Junction in the park; and then, finally, 20 miles more to our RV site in Rio Grande village. It took us 4 days driving an average of 200 miles to arrive. That sign looked pretty good.

*I was hoping this tunnel would be fine for our RV and luckily, it was.*

You can see the Sierra del Carmen mountains peeking over the top of tunnel on the right. A picture of them is also at the top of this post, and brown/grey is their normal color. They are at the far east of the park, and at their feet is the Rio Grande River. That means that these mountains are actually in Mexico. We were closer to the mountains in our site, and the beautiful thing about them is that the sun turns them a beautiful pink as it sets. We enjoyed this show every evening while we were there.

We took the “nature hike” at an adjoining campground for our first look at the Rio Grande.

*That’s Mexico over there behind Cal and the Rio Grande*

*A peek at the Rio with the Chisos Mountains behind*

*I discovered I really, really like to take pictures of all the various cactii*

When we returned to our RV area, there was a coyote yapping in the parking lot. I don’t know what its problem was, but then we saw a few javelinas grazing just beyond our RV. Then, walking just beyond the RV’s over to an adjoining meadow, horses grazing! We were very excited to see all the wildlife and were hopeful this would continue every evening, but that was the best show. We learned from a ranger later that the horses weren’t wild, but belong to Mexicans just over the border. They just let them wander and graze until they want them. Unfortunately, the only good picture I got was of the javelinas.

*These two javelinas posed nicely for me, although they wouldn’t stand right next to each other!*

Boquillas Canyon, in the Sierra del Carmens, was also close to us so we took a hike there.

Along the hike to Boquillas, the Mexicans across the border had items left for sale in many places. Most everything was $10, and you would leave your money in a container. Near Boquillas, you could cross the Rio Grande over to a little village called Boquillas del Carmen in a rowboat for $5. Once there you could shop for a handmade item, or have a lunch in a couple of restaurants. Sadly, this operation was shutdown for COVID when we were there, and this cut off a good source of income for these people. But they are very enterprising, so this was their way of keeping a little money coming in. This fellow let me know his wife’s tamales were very delicious, so we purchased a couple of bags. He was right, they were excellent. And I’m happy to report that the Boquillas del Carmen crossing has been reopened since we left the Big Bend area.

*I watched these guys, over in Mexico, setting up a volleyball net. I think they were surreptitiously keeping an eye on their merchandise.*

Also close to us was Hot Springs. Cal got his first experience on the Big Bend side roads in getting there.

*It was a one way loop with steep dropoffs.*

Hot Springs was actually a little resort from the 20’s to the 40’s.

*Petroglyphs on the way* *to the hot springs*

*An immense yucca tree; you can see how large it is by looking for Cal on the left.*

*Here I am, taking a soak in the hot springs. It was very hot! The resort had built a spring house around it which is gone now, but the foundation of it is good for sitting on.*

The hot springs, and the Rio Grande next to it, was a popular swimming hole and an enterprising woman over on the Mexican side was taking advantage. This was a large group of partying Americans who were suddenly hungry for tacos and tamales.

Many people who love the national parks bemoan the fact that sites which were once little-known are being publicized by influencers on social media. They are becoming more crowded and, in some places, becoming literally trampled over by excessive usage. I see this as a double-edge sword. It’s not great that we couldn’t find a parking spot just to take a hike in Rocky Mountain National Park. But necessity has led the Park Service to create a park shuttle service. The overusage in the parks is leading to some pretty creative and innovative ideas. Social media, namely a National Parks Facebook group that I am in, led me to this next spot in Big Bend. Park literature didn’t show a picture of it, only to name the trail. It is this spot: Balanced Rock, on the Grapevine Hills Trail. Once I saw a picture of it, I wanted to find it.

Cal usually obliges my curiosity about things, but heading to this trail necessitated a 7-mile drive down a dirt road in the desert which became more “washboardy” the farther down it we went. After a lot of bouncing around I was relieved when we finally arrived, since his good humor was just starting to dissipate.

The trail was 2.2 miles and very easy except the last 1/4 mile, which was straight up. We enjoyed the scenery along the way.

*Breakfast time-this deer only momentarily stopped its munching*

*I think this is a claret cup cactus, sitting way up high on the rocks*

The last 1/4 mile involved clambering up rocks with hands and knees in places. It was an accomplishment to arrive at the top!

*We had to climb up this trail, and then back down*

What a grand adventure. I will continue our exploration of the park in my next post, because there is still so much to see!

Next time: Chisos Mountains and Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend National Park

Once my husband and I started a family, we tried hard to come to Duluth at least every 18 months. One year we’d come in the summer, another year we’d come after Christmas. In between all the family visiting, we found things to see and do. The snow was a novelty in the winter, since we did not receive much snow at home in Missouri. We would snowmobile and tramp around Canal Park in negative temperatures with a cold wind blowing. Ships would come in with layers of ice piled up on them and dripping down the sides. There would be light displays and we would put on layers of clothing to go see them. In 2013 we came up after Thanksgiving for a family celebration, and got snowed in with an epic storm. Well, it was epic for us but typical for Duluth. It had never happened to us before, and we have never been Up North since, in the winter.

Duluth also has the Great Lakes Aquarium, the aforementioned Maritime Museum, a railroad museum and various rail excursions, a zoo, the William A. Irvin ore boat and the mysterious Glensheen mansion to tour, plus sightseeing cruises of the harbor and the lake, just to name a few. We’ve done all of these over the years, plus hiked and biked on various trails. We’re always on the lookout for something new. We found two new places to hike. Cal probably ran through these woods when he was a boy, although he doesn’t remember.

For our Chester park hike, it was getting ready to storm and hardly anyone was out. The woods were hushed, verdant, and damp. We had no idea where we were going, so that added to the feeling of mystery. We turned around and retraced our steps as soon as we felt the first drops hit!

*The trail followed Chester creek though some pretty waterfalls, although the water was low from an unusual summer drought.*

We also hiked Chester’s twin, Lester Park, with its aptly named Lester Creek:

*All things are possible! Climbing this rock was my little challenge for the day.*

Seeing the Lester Creek bridge did trigger a memory for Cal: one night he was in the same parking lot where we parked the truck, drinking with his buddies. A cop came by and didn’t make trouble for them, but they all had to pour out all their beer. He was really mad about the wasted beer!

In both Lester and Chester parks, we really felt away from it all. You would never know you were in the middle of Duluth. They were substantial walks and we never saw any houses.

Near Lester Creek is Seven Bridges Parkway, which really does have seven pretty little one-lane bridges. It dates back to the days when people enjoyed getting out in the horse and buggy for a Sunday afternoon ride.

At the end of the road from Seven Bridges , someone’s yard was lined with these beautiful flowers:

We also took a drive along Superior’s North Shore to the town of Two Harbors. I can’t remember ever having been to Two Harbors when it wasn’t foggy and cold. For this visit we had a beautiful day, and a picnic over looking the breakwater. We had almost finished when the Edwin Gott came into view.

Of course we had to watch it park! We sat for awhile and admired the captain’s expertise in parking such a huge ship along the ore dock. The great hopper on the left of the dock will come down and deliver the load of iron ore.

It was such a nice day, we walked on the breakwater:

From there, we could see the Two Harbors Lighthouse, which is the oldest working lighthouse in Minnesota. A pilot house from an ore ship sits in front of it.

We had seen the Edna G tugboat on the evening news, so we went to look for it. She was sitting on the other side of the ore docks. The Edna G is celebrating her 125th birthday and is now a museum ship.

Of course, it was time for some pie, and Betty’s Pies delivered. Mine was strawberry-rhubarb, and Cal’s was apple. Delicious, and too good to share just one piece! This will be a new favorite place to go.

There are a number of places for dining and treats that we always like to visit while in Duluth. Sammy’s Pizza is one, as well as Bridgeman’s for ice cream. Grandma’s down in Canal Park is good but we didn’t eat there this time. A trip to Coney Island cannot be missed.

The problem with Coney’s is that one Coney is not enough. So I tried two, and forgot that it comes with this huge plate of fries! Waaaaaay too much food, but oh so good. It’s the only place and time where I ever eat hot dogs.

Cal’s sister Jane and her husband Dan gave us the royal treatment. They showed up with breakfast in hand for our first morning at the marina. They invited us to their cabin on a lake for lunch another day. It is fun spending time with them now that all four of us are retired.

*Enjoying a ride on the lake in their pontoon boat*

*The lake level was low due to the drought, but the lakeshore was beautiful*

*What a lovely, idyllic place to come and relax. Dan is always fixing or improving things at the cabin.*

We also visited our niece Sarah, at her store – DLH Clothing – in the up and coming Lincoln Park area of Duluth, and were able to have some private shopping time even though the store was not yet open for the day. We just happened to run in to her and her husband, Mike, on the boardwalk while we were riding bikes. They were trying out some e-bikes. They let Cal give it a try, which he thought was pretty cool. I wasn’t brave enough.

Of course, here is the reason for our trip – Cal’s Mom! We had lots of time to visit, and I really appreciated the fact that now that I’m retired, we don’t have to squeeze a trip to Duluth in just a handful of days.

This blog has been longer than I would have wished, but there was so much to pack in. So many pictures, and plenty that I had to leave out. For multiple reasons, we truly are looking forward to the next visit.

Next time – Anyone’s guess…

Tag: rving

Big Bend National Park, Texas

Duluth, Minnesota: Part 2

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