Chances

Nine days have passed since my last post, and you have my sincere apology for the downtime. It has not been as easy period. The perverbial diarrhetic cow crapping in front of the fan blowing in the window... that’s what’s happened. More on that later.

Earlier this month, we were near Moab doing a day of errands; dropping the bike off at a shop, seeking advice for upgrades and repairs on the Liberty, when we made a last minute decision to drive around instead of going back to a easy-bake RV. We saw a sign for the Canyonlands Overlooks and without knowing what the views or trail would be like, we proceded to find out. The dirt path lulls you into thinking it’s easy with a somewhat smooth first section, however as it is a level 5/10 trail, we learned on the last stretch how it earned it’s rating, proving to be more audacious than we originally thought.

Tom decided to air down the tires to give us a smoother ride and have less wear and tear on the Liberty. While he was doing that, a newer Wrangler pulled up behind us with two men from Grand Junction out exploring like us. We decided to caravan, guiding each other along the trail if needed. Letting the air out worked, softening out some of the roughness, and greatly helping us grip the slickrock we would have to climb later. We dropped off some ledges that were at least two feet, and we scraped the skid plates a couple of times, but didn’t sustain any damage. There was a section where we went across some slickrock with large pothole indentations, and by large, I mean they would certainly be wading pools when it rains, but today they were bone dry. The cairns marking the edge of the trail were widely spaced, making it difficult to follow. We had to back track several times to resume the trail.

When we arrived at each of the overlooks, splendid views of the red-rocked canyon, the Colorado River, spires, buttes and potash ponds greeted us. Some of the formations can only be seen by walking to the very edge; not for those fearing heights. In my opinion, it was well worth the bumpy ride, and photos don’t do it justice.

Considering it was an unplanned route, think of what we would have missed. We saw the amazing views, met new people, and learned we can do a level 5 trail. Lesson learned is that we ought to take chances, be spontaneous, and let curiosity be our guide.

Back to what we’ve been dealing with lately... We had to replace the rear upper control arm on the Liberty, which still needs front struts and wheel bearing/hubs too, though not as dire. The motorhome was chugging some on the way here, so we replaced the fuel filter hoping that helps, otherwise we will be looking at replacing the fuel pump. I got sick with a UTI and some other crud with fever, headaches and sore legs, making me a miserable curmudgeon for Tom to deal with, along with all the other crap. Things are looking up and we are now getting back on track. Tomorrow is moving day to a still undecided location.

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