Catching up! - July, 2018 - Arizona Trip

Thank you to my nephew, Taite, for holding me accountable and encouraging me to get up-to-date on our blog.  I asked him if he felt I should post recent items and go backwards or start from where I left off and move forward to present.  So here we are - going back to July, 2018!  😊

Taite & Jax on the beach in CA

We were invited to a wedding in a most incredible place - Havasupai.  This was to be a unique wedding with most guests backpacking 10 miles down to the campground and camping out for a few nights then wrapping up with a reception in Tucson.  Great - we're in!  We had seen so many amazing photos and heard amazing stories about this special place.  We were psyched!  Unfortunately, mother nature had other plans.  A week before the wedding monsoon season struck and flooded the area.  People lost their tents, backpacks, etc. and had to be helicoptered out (thankfully nobody was hurt).  While everyone was sick about this last minute change in plans (especially the bride and groom, Audrie and Jake - our road "kids") we were all thankful we had not been there during the devastation.  The campground remained closed for approximately 6 weeks for cleanup.

Jake and Audrie quickly put together Plan B so all of their guests could still have adventure options.  We were fortunate to have a place to stay in Flagstaff (thank you Ed and Sandy) and ventured out from that home base for the week.

Sunrise at Humphrey's Peak - view from our window

Ed & Sandy's Blue Spruce Chalet 

Jake led a ramble to northern AZ and everywhere in between while Audrie worked on the details in Tucson.  We met up with the group for dinner in Flagstaff and then again later in the week for a trip to the South Rim.

The Rambling Gang - on their way north - fun gathering at Lumberyard in Flagstaff

The groom, Jake (left), and his other parents, Jim and Laura :-)

In all of our years in Arizona we never made it to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon as it's only open May through October (not the months we are in AZ).  So this gave us the opportunity to finally visit this natural wonder.

Navajo Bridge over the Colorado River - on our way to the North Rim

The Colorado River

South Rim and our favorite "secret" place - We were thrilled this tired Rambling group agreed to meet us in Cameron and head to this incredible overlook at the South Rim.

The Wedding!  Instead of at Havasu Falls the selected location became Windy Point Vista on Mount Lemmon in Tucson, where the couple had their first kiss.  Even though this was not their first choice it was so perfect!

the perfect setting!

The vows/ceremony in Tucson

What a great week in the west!
We are scheduled to hike down to Havasupai in April, 2019!

Til next time...Happy Trails!

Indonesia - Raja Ampat & Borneo

While Tom was in Pennsylvania hunting for his big buck I ventured 1/2 way around the world to meet Rita for our annual adventure.  This took us to Indonesia for a kayak/snorkel trip in Raja Ampat and a river trip in Borneo.

Raja Ampat
After 4 flights and a ferry we finally ended up in the West Papua region for the start of our kayak trip around the island of Gam (60+ miles of paddling).  Our group consisted of 3 Americans (me, Rita and Leslie), 3 Aussies (Greg, Carolyn and Di), our Canadian guide (Angela) and our local guide (Bennie).  I'm not going to lie; day 3 I wasn't sure if I could keep paddling and make it the rest of the way but somehow the muscles kicked in and I did it without a tow and without getting in the double.  I'm used to river paddling which entails a lot more floating than paddling.  Sea kayaking is completely different but a great learning experience and adventure!

Homestay - our first and last nights; we stayed in 2 others which were very similar - all built over the water like this

Breakfast before heading out for the week on the water

packing our boats with all of our supplies for the week

and we're off

beautiful views

first camp night - not too shabby

lots of blue starfish seen when snorkeling

ahhh - nothing like camping next to the beach and hearing the sound of the waves

fresh caught fish for dinner

amazing sunsets

hiked up to the lookout - our homestay below

Angela really made us pancakes for breakfast one morning!

Rita - my adventure buddy and definitely a kayaker that can kick my butt!

beautiful children in the village

last sunrise on the island

The gang - Leslie, Bennie, Greg, Carolyn, Di, Rita, me

our guides - Angela and Bennie

it wasn't always this calm!

Amazing trip!  Back to the ferry, 3 plane rides and onto Borneo to see the Orangutans.

Borneo
This has been a dream of mine since I was a little girl.  So when Rita suggested this as a side trip after Raja Ampat I was extremely excited!  I won't bore you with a million pictures of these incredible animals but just a few of my favorites.  We saw many semi-wild and 3 wild Orangutans as well as Proboscis Monkeys, Macaque Long-Tailed Monkeys, Crocodiles and many birds.  Semi-wild Orangutans are free in the jungle but have either been rehabbed and released or are the babies of one released into the wild.  They generally return each day to the feeding area to enjoy the fruit as that is 60% of their daily diet (40% being greens and some bugs).  We visited 3 feeding stations as we worked our way up the river with nights spent on the boat tied to trees along the edge of the river/jungle.   Our crew was amazing and made our adventure special.

the river heading up into the jungle

our home for 4 days/3 nights - our mattresses were put out on the deck each night with mosquito nets

They would store as many bananas in their mouth and hands before heading up the trees to enjoy

the babies were just adorable!

we planted trees in an area that had burned many years ago
I'd love to visit in another 10 years to see how my Aru tree is doing

Our crew - Adi-our guide, Ayan-boat assistant, Amat-captain, Yami-an amazing cook!

I hope to go back again one day to visit a Clinic where they take care of the babies and teach them how to return to the jungle.

The jet lag was brutal but it was so well worth it to visit such an amazing place.   Thanks again, Rita Morgan!  You're a great travel buddy and adventurous friend!

What's happening now...

Black Friday:  We will not be shopping but hitting the road to head to warmer climates.  We will take 3 leisurely days to get to Florida.  Here is our winter schedule - come visit!

Classic CoachWorks/Friend's house (Ormond Beach, FL/Spring Hill, FL) - 11/27-12/8

Peace River (TT) - Wauchula, FL - 12/8-12/21

Harbor Lakes (Encore) - Port Charlotte, FL - 12/21-1/4

Peace River (TT) - Wauchula, FL - 1/4-1/14

Travels Days - 1/14-1/18

Voyager (Encore) - Tucson, AZ - 1/18-2/1

Pilot Knob (ROD) - Winterhaven, CA (Yuma, AZ area) - 2/1-2/8

Verde Valley (TT) - Cottonwood, AZ - 2/8-5/1

Tom's huge buck harvested in archery season - he'll have deer meat all winter

Til next time...Happy Trails!