MEANDERING MOOSE

     We had the best time in Louisiana!  Having never been to Louisiana, I had a lot of preconceived notions but, I really didn't know what to expect.  After we left Holly Beach, LA we headed to Betty's RV Park in Abbeville, LA as we heard it was a unique experience.  Betty's is in the heart of "cajun country" and looks like a standard, low budget RV park with gravel lots and  tight spaces for only 19 rigs.  However, it is Betty and the other residents in the park that make this a fantastic time.  The park residents consist of long term campers as well as short term, nomadic campers like us.  Everyday at 4:30 Betty hosts a BYO bottle/food happy hour which all attend.  This makes for a great experience were you get to socialize with a very eclectic group of people.  Everybody has an excellent time and the happy "hour" usually runs for 2 or 3 hours.  In addition, if you have a talent, such as music, Betty arranges for jam sessions.  One happy hour everybod

     It has taken 6 months, but we finally settled into a period of relaxation.  We now are slowing down by staying longer at one place and getting off-season or weekly rates.                      Our visit to Santa Fe was a mixed bag of RV repairs with a large dose of visiting this beautiful area.  Santa Fe was a real "highlight" town filled with adobe structures, excellent restaurants, good music, and lots of places to visit.  If you like Native American crafts, this is the place to buy them.  My favorite Santa Fe adventure was the night we "tore-up-the town."  We started the night around 5:00 at a brew pub on a second floor patio overlooking the central square in Santa Fe.  From there it was on to the "The Shed" for a superb New Mexican dinner.  Our evening was rounded out at a fun local bar, "Cowgirls," where we were treated to a Tex-Mex/Western style band.  The place was packed and we had the opportunity to mix it up with the locals.  Af

"WELL, I'M STANDIN' ON A CORNER IN WINSLOW ARIZONA AND SUCH A FINE SIGHT TO SEE" (???) "IT'S A GIRL, MY LORD, IN A FLAT-BED FORD SLOWIN' DOWN TO TAKE A LOOK AT ME" (!!!)      My apologies to Jackson Brown, Glenn Frey, & The Eagles for the use of the lyrics from their famous song "Take It Easy."  Yes, we got our kicks, on Route 66!  After leaving the Vegas area we decided to travel the Arizona portion of RT 66.  Arizona has the longest remaining continuous stretch of this legendary highway.  RT 66 was largely a desolate drive but their were a few really cool things.      Oatman, AZ was our first RT 66 stop.  On the drive into town we stopped to photograph a wild burro standing on the side of the road.  To our shock, the burro walked up to the car and stuck its head into Nancy's window.  Holy cow!  Nancy squirmed out of her seat to almost onto my lap to avoid this uncomfortably close face-to-ass encounter.  I decided to

     It was so great to be back in Connecticut for a few weeks to visit with family and friends.  There is something special about the being with family and enjoying the company of old friends who really know you.  We had a blast!      It turned out to be whirlwind as we had somebody to visit everyday.  Even still, we missed seeing several people as schedules often conflicted.  It seems that some people still work.  Our trip started at Acacia & Adam's house, or rather our old house (which they bought).  It was so weird seeing the old place transformed by Acacia and Adam's taste.  They did a great job decorating their new home.  We ended up sleeping in the back room which was Acacia's former room.  However, out of habit, I regularly turned into the master bedroom every time I had to go upstairs. Relaxing at Acacia & Adam's. Adam, Acacia, Hazel, Nancy & Bryce      We spent a lot of time with Acacia, Adam, Bryce, and, of course, Hazel, my mother.  Hazel

I took this "selfie" in Snow Canyon State Park, Utah. I knew I had been getting a lot of sun on the desert lately, but I didn't know how weathered I had become!          It seems that water is the desert's elixir of choice for sudden, dramatic change to the landscape and we witnessed this force of nature "up close and personal."  As soon as we returned to Zion National Park from dropping Bryce off at Las Vegas airport, the remnants of Hurricane Norbert let loose.  Our campsite was only 50' from the Virgin River and we watched this ankle deep trickle rise to a roaring, churring mass of mud and debris as massive trees and logs crashed their way down this torrent.  Although I continuously monitored the river level throughout the night, we were fortunate as our campsite was located along a very broad portion of river and the river never crested its banks. However, it was a different story along the Virgin River in Zion NP, Nevada and Arizona as the