Stage Three: Fort Collins, Colorado

Depart: Courtyard by Marriott, Grand Junction, Colorado
Arrive: Residence in by Marriott, Fort Collins, Colorado
Miles Traveled: 299.5

It was supposed to be an easy, stress free day.

Distance-wise it was the shortest day of the entire trip ~ but that was just the distance we traveled horizontally, and therein lies the source of the stress I felt.

You see as much as I like my car, in the final analysis it is a four-cylinder compact. As such it was never intended do things like climb the Continental Divide. At a tad under 11,500 feet in elevation my little Corolla was going too fast to follow behind the big rigs that were crawling but too slowly to pull out and pass.

Then there was the 8% grade coming down the other side.

All-in-all it was a white-knuckle day at the wheel.

I will say that once we arrived in Fort Collins we were very pleasantly surprised at how nice the community is. Three friends attended college at Colorado State University, and have always had good things to say. However, another friend ~ a super-duper good friend ~ absolutely hated it, so we weren't certain what to expect.

There was lots of shopping, plenty of golf courses, and two of the largest non-chain cycling stores I've ever seen (along with the widest, most accommodating bike lines a person on a bicycle could ever hope for).

We made quit trips to the grocery store and REI (Christine needed another pair of shoes ~ two simply was not enough), and were quite enamored with the area.

Super-duper friend's cred is may be doubt.

Next we travel to Rapid City, South Dakota ~ look for an update soon!

Stage Two: Grand Junction

Depart: Kachina Lodge, Grand Canyon National Park
Arrive: Courtyard by Marriott, Grand Junction, Colorado
Miles Traveled: 438.7

After having traveled a number of state roads through Arizona and Utah, I have decided that the thing I look forward to most on this trip is getting to drive home on Interstate 5 from San Francisco to SoCal. Ahhhh, four, sometimes five lanes! Right now it seems like a heavenly idea.

Certainly the scenery that we were able to drink in while traveling north was lovely ~ we passed through the Painted Desert (easy to see why it was given that name), and eventually came upon Monument Valley. That was amazing ~ it did not appear to be real. Here is a taste of what we saw:






So, the things we experienced were spectacular ~ but are two lanes in each direction too much to ask for? Or perhaps a serviceable shoulder? I never thought I would be so excited to see I-70 again. It's not that I've never driven on narrow, two-lane roads it's just that I do not enjoy it very much.

One other thing I learned was not to go nine hours without stopping for food. I was not that hungry, nor were the kids, but by the time we pulled into the hotel parking lot Christine was very displeased with me.

Important tip for long road trips ~ keep the spouse happy.

Saturday is another travel day, but the shortest of the entire vacation. We'll be moving from Grand Junction up to Fort Collins, as we get ourselves into position to get to Rapid City, South Dakota on Sunday.

Thanks for keeping tabs on us, another update tomorrow!

Stage One: The Grand Canyon

Depart: Hyatt Place Hotel, Ontario, California
Arrive: Kachina Lodge, Grand Canyon National Park
Miles Traveled: 451.4

Leading up to the vacation I read plenty of narratives which claimed that photographs do not do justice to the Grand Canyon, and that seeing the Canyon in person is an awe inspiring moment.

As it turns out neither photographs or promises of being amazed prepared me for what I experienced ~ the Grand Canyon was much more significant than something to look at. A few moments worth sharing:

• Christine saves the vacation: Some of you may already be aware that Erin, our daughter, is (like nearly every other fifteen year old) addicted to texting her friends ~ so much so that she managed to break her phone a few weeks ago. I managed to obtain a new phone but was unable to successfully activate it, leaving Erin very cranky. Christine managed to get that done by calling our service provider while riding through the Arizona desert. Erin's relief was palpable, and she expressed that relief by actually speaking to her parents and being nice to her brother. There is no telling how things may have gone if not for her Mother's heroics.


• All Dad wants is a little appreciation: Lots of time and money is expended by millions trying to figure out their fathers. But we had a moment when I realized what I want from my children, and it really is pretty simple.
  
  At about 9:30PM on our first night at the Kachina Lodge (i.e. Wednesday) Christine, Joseph, and I decided to go back out to do some stargazing (Erin was wrapped firmly around her newly activated phone and could not be bothered with things astronomical). For those of you who are not a part of urban sprawl might be surprised out that some of us cannot see very many stars at night; but on this night we were dazzled by all that we could see. As the three of us stood there, in a quiet moment Joseph told us "I'm really glad we came here." A thank you from one of my children and I'm good for a few more days.


• Who knew we would need so much water: With only one full day at the park (i.e. Thursday) we decided to do the easiest possible hike ~ the Rim Trail. It is a little more than nine miles from one end to the other, and quite a bit of the trail is actually paved.
  
  How hard could it be?
  
  Well, it was much harder than I ever expected, and the fatal error I made was in purchasing the water bottles I did (before leaving on the trip). I purchased 750ml bottled for Erin and Joseph, and 500ml bottles for Christine and myself. All the bottles were completely filled before heading out. We rode the free shuttle up to Hermit's Rest (the extreme west end of the Rim Trail) and started out. After about 90 minutes we were out of water and had only made it to the Abyss (a nice spot to see several thousand feet of vertical drop) ~ four miles from Hermit's Rest.
  
  Temperatures were climbing, and in the interest of personal safety we waited for the shuttle at that point and rode back down to the hotel. All of us said we could have gone further ~ of course all of us (except for Erin) also took long naps shortly after getting back to the room.
  
  But there were many sights that made even that worthwhile, one of which was a squirrel who was apparently contemplating suicide ~ take a look and decide for yourself:
  
  
  I do not have the ability to describe how close to the edge he was ~ so close that it was not clear how he intended to get away from the edge. We waited there with him for quite awhile, and after a lot of coaxing from Christine, the squirrel turned around and gave us all a look of disdain.
  
  We left the area immediately.
  
  


• Here is how a visit should end: I was awakened Friday morning to squeals of delight from my son and wife as they looked out the window of our room (I paid the extra $10 extra for a partial Canyon view room at Kachina) and saw this:
  
  
  It did not look like a deer to us (though I was still asleep), and so we ended up referring to it as a Caribou ~ or, more accurately, we referred to them as Caribous! There were actually four of these creatures (if anyone can provide positive ID let me know) along with five mountain goats grazing on freshly cut grass and nibbling on small trees/shrubs around the lodges.
  
  To say that it was worth the extra ten dollars is an understatement.

Finally, for those of you wondering what the Aubele family looks like in the wild, here is this:


I'll have a little bit on the drive from the Grand Canyon to Grand Junction later on ~ until then.

The drive was blissfully uneventful, with the most dramatic moment coming when we witnessed the obliteration of some rodent-esque animal by the car ahead of us.

We made it! The lack of an internet connection will limit posting to whatever I can send via text messaging (160 characters maximum per message).

Prelude

Depart: Huntington Beach, California
Arrive: Ontario, California
Miles Traveled: 38.2

One thing that will suck the excitement out of a roadtrip (at least the heady, early moments) is traffic; and no place has more of that than Southern California. So, thanks to our hotel connections we made arrangements to stay in Ontario the night prior to the official start of our journey. Beyond that, nothing says "vacation" like a night in Ontario.

Those who know me best know that what I really enjoy is planning these types of things ~ the actually travel is sort of a pain, though considering the amount of planning involved it is unavoidable ~ and part of that planning includes the purchase of "critical" supplies. Here are some of the toys supplies that will prove to be mission critical to our trip.

GPS
This one is something that even my wife agreed we should have; and now that we have had it for a couple of months I'm wondering how, and why, I lived without it. Of course it sometimes takes a more circuitous route than what I would do if left to my own inclinations; and in those moments I feel something like Dave Bowan standing by as the HAL 9000 comes unhinged in "2001: A Space Odyssey." However it is my fail-safe against my dreadful sense of direction, and it is a purchase that has given us all great peace of mine.


Swiss Army Rescue Tool
This is one where the wife simply shook her head and kept moving. But if you watch this video you will see the incredible value of this item. After all, one never knows when it will become necessary to cut away the windshield of the car, or bust out a passenger window.

Or open a bottle.



First Aid Kit
How many bandages, cotton balls, and other assorted items does one require when going on a trip? About 250 is the answer I came up with. The truth is I will probably use the first aid kit immediately following my first attempt to use the Swiss Army Rescue Tool.


So, having gotten the toughest thirty-eight miles out of the way, and properly supplied, we begin in earnest tomorrow morning. The goal is to be on the road by 6:30AM, but you all know how that goes. Assuming that there is some kind of internet/cellphone access at the Grand Canyon I'll be sure to let you know.

Introduction

On its face the 2009 Aubele Family Vacation seems as American as apple pie and baseball ~ a road trip.

But based upon the reaction I received from family and friends when telling them about our journey ("the kids are going to be in the car with you?"), further consideration of the personalities involved, and the sheer audacity of our plan (thirty-three days away from home, over 4,000 miles of driving in my Toyota Corolla) it has become plain to see that our trip is a very American thing ~ but it seems more related to the America of Sarah Palin and unfettered gun ownership than anything wholesome.

Beginning on the evening of July 7 (at about the same time that the BBC produced show "The Great American Roadtrip" debuts) we will embark on a journey that will take us throughout the American West ~ the Grand Canyon, through Colorado, into the Dakotas, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Oregon, and back into California. With the kids getting older, and the parents getting more set in our ways, it seems likely that this is our last, best chance to pull off our own Great American Roadtrip.

Four of us will leave together, and the question in all our minds is how many will survive until the end? This will be my digital travel diary ~ and your opportunity to ride along.