...The local cowpokes apparently dislike this sign enough to shoot at it often...
...As I said, the town is a real throwback in time...
...When did you last see one of these, dear reader???
...Check out the price for regular...
...As luck would have it, we don't use gasoline in the Beast ( But at this price, I really wanted to try it...Good sense prevailed and we filled the Beast's belly with his favorite food...highway diesel, at a price of $2.55 per gallon)...
...Just as we arrived at the Grand Canyon Railway RV Park, a few desperadoes, known locally as the Cataract Creek Gang, made an apparently unauthorized withdrawal from the Citizen's Bank. (Your Curious Captain later learned that the withdrawal was unauthorized due to the fact that no one in the group actually had an ACCOUNT there!)...
...A truly salty lookin' bunch, if ever I seed one...
...The Commodorable, learning of their new-found wealth, began to charm one of the gang...
...But, alas, Leslie's new friend died of acute LEAD POISONING (.44 caliber lead, to be precise), a few minutes later. It seems there were differences of opinion regarding how to divide the proceeds of the afternoon's labor. After repeated but futile attempts to use simple (for you, at least) math to divide the loot, the man shown above applied a new math (i.e., subtracting [shooting] the other bandits dead). Problem solved...all proceeds go to the last man standing...
...Later that evening, we had a steak at one of the oldest continuously operating Steak Houses to be found on Route 66. (Rod's Steak House). The dinner was mediocre, but we were hungry, so we ate it.
...On the advice of counsel (Leslie), I decided we would take the colorful Grand Canyon Railway from the town of Williams to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. It's a two hour ride which winds through high desert growth and a few mountains. The engineer must literally stop the train periodically due to a free range cow casually sauntering down the tracks...
...We rode upstairs in the glass section of this beautifully renovated 1954 canopy car...
...There was entertainment...
...We took goofy selfies...
...and finally arrived, ready to explore at the Grand Canyon. Sounded good, but your Captain was famished, so we stopped at the El Tovar Grand Hotel to visit their elegant dining room...We had spectacular meals...the Beef Bourguignon was the best I've ever had...and I've spent years in France...
...After our tasty meal, we began, albeit timidly, to explore...
...Notice the railing? We ain't takin' no chances...
...Captain Cautious (still on the safe side of the wall). The floor of the canyon is one mile almost straight down...
...A while later...notice that there are no safety barriers???
...Still later, your intrepid Captain is deftly hiding his dread fear of heights...
...Screwing up our courage, we decided to leave the safety of the rim and proceed down into the canyon on a MULE TRAIL. (Note to self...don't do this again). We did not see any mules, but our olefactory senses told us that they were not very far ahead of us. Now, in addition to watching our every step on the narrow and rocky, steep path, we had to be alert for fresh MULE PIES as well...No Sandra, mule pies are not at all similar to your Granny's peach pies...
...Proceeding still farther down, Leslie discovered a natural tunnel along the way...
...Watch your step Darlin'...
...Clearly, she's not afraid of heights...
...We actually saw some ancient hieroglyphs...
...There, Arnold, right under that ledge yonder...
...Here, a close up might help...My Navajo is a bit rusty, but I believe it says "For a good time, call Weaves Good Blankets, But Smells Like Buffalo (Bison)" or something like that...
...The view of the El Tovar Hotel as we climbed back up...Did you know that it takes much longer to climb up a steep, scary, rocky Mule infested path than it does to walk down it??? Well, it does...
...On the train ride back...we spot another Desperado...We sipped champaigne as a shocking train robbery unfolded. We were struck by the uncanny resemblance of THESE robbers to the ones we'd seen killed earlier...
...Upon returning to the station, we ran into an old conductor who looked hauntingly familiar...
...Just can't recall where we've seen this devil...Oh well...
...As we returned to the RV park and approached the Beast, your Captain/Chief Maintenance Officer noticed that the poor Beast was hemmorraging some as yet undetermined vital fluid. Upon investigation, I determined that the fluid was none other than the $2.55/ gallon diesel which we had purchased when we first arrived in Williams, AZ. Still further investigation, (consisting of jacking up the Beast and crawling under him), revealed a tiny crack in the 150 gallon fuel tank. (This ain't good).
...A 150 gallon diesel tank...The Beast's tank is a more stylish Black one...(Black just goes with anything...)
...The next morning a call to Spartan Chassis informed your dumbstruck Captain that a new tank would cost $985.00 plus shipping from Charlotte, MI. And then there would be the matter of finding a facility capable of installing the new tank...
...An Internet search for "diesel fuel tank leaks" resulted in a much less costly alternative, namely...
...This moldable epoxy putty is magical according to its thousands of users...Might as well give it a try...
...As it turns out, Williams, AZ, population 3,023 does not have any JB Weld...none at all...
...Your Captain now must make a go/no go decision...Will the leak allow us to move on in search of the JB Weld, or will we be stranded amidst hostiles of every type on some desolate Arizona byway???
...Back under the coach...count the drops per minute...(Answer 5). That is 300 drops per hour. Assuming that we leave in 10 hours, that's 3,000 drops before we even get underway. The nearest real town, Flagstaff, is 40 miles away. ( Normally, the beast will use about 7 gallons to cover that distance). So, let's see...it takes about 15 drops to equal one teaspoon...so we'll loose 200 teaspoons full of diesel overnight. That equals about one quart of lost fuel...we have 150 gallons, since we just filled up yesterday...CONCLUSION: We'll make it to Flagstaff...Yea!!!
...The trip to Flagstaff was uneventful...i.e., The Beast didn't starve along the way...We found an O'Briens Auto Parts store which stocked the precious substance known as JB Weld. Your Captain purchased two packages of JB Weld, rubber gloves, sandpaper, cleaning solvent, etc.
...Back in the parking lot, the coach jacked up, ole McGyver...er...your Captain crawled back under the Beast and using the epoxy putty, repaired the tank in about an hour. (We won't know for a while whether or not the repair will hold until some time and miles pass...)
...Back on the road, we head northeast toward Durango, Colorado. En route to Durango...
...The road was in poor shape...
...Soon we came to our first town since Flagstaff...Tuba City, Arizona. Tuba City is the largest settlement in the Navajo Nation, and boasts a population of about 8,690 people....You'll be pleased to note that Tuba City is not named after the obnoxious sounding brass horn used by noisy high school marching bands...It is named after a Hopi tribal elder who converted to Mormanism...
...Turns out that Tuba City is famous for its uranium deposits and...get this...DINASAUR TRACKS...
...Tuba City dinosaur tracks...(One visit to Tuba City and you will understand why dinosaurs became extinct!!!)
...Proceeding from Tuba City, we passed through Tonalea, Church Rock Valley, and Teec Nos Pas ( Navajo for "Don't pick your nose"...
...From there, we proceeded to a place unique in all of the United States...The Four Corners Monument...
...This is where the boundaries of Utah, Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico intersect. It is the only place where four states actually touch!!!
...The center small disk is the surveyor's mark where the boundaries cross...therefore...
...The Captain's right foot is in four states simultaneously!!!
...And going a step further...
...Again, all four states...but enough with such silliness...we must trudge onward...
...Our posse awaits...they each peed in a different state. New Mexico was spared this time...
...
...With Colorado mountains coming into view, we came upon a terrifying sight...
...This MUST be the Navajo equivalent of Nuclear weaponry...Notice their size in relation to the telephone pole...Hell, they might have used telephone poles!!! I'm not sure I understand how the white man ever conquered these giants...
...moving on toward Cortez, Colorado...
...And then, after 9 hours of driving we arrived in Durango, Colorado at the Walmart parking lot. Here we were greeted with numerous and positively threatening signs warning of dire consequences to any RV or tractor trailer who dared stay overnight upon this hallowed asphalt...
...As it turns out, Walmart (WallyWorld) actually WELCOMES RVers...It's the town of Durango who doesn't want us here...Since it's Walmart's lot, we stayed...
...
Another great post ... sounds like maybe it's time to consider a new motor coach ... wait ... Leslie's birthday is coming up ... what a nice present that would make with a big red bow. Better put on that thinking cap and find a nice destination for her birthday dinner celebration.
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