New Mexico Day 1

Road Trippin!

There is not much to report on today as it was largely a day of driving. We loaded up the RV last night and went to bed early. Then we arrived at the Alders at a little before 8 am. We wanted to roll out by 8 o'clock if possible. As usually happens, we spent time shuffling cars and hooking up the truck, and it was about 8:40 when we hit the road. Still, we made good time and had lunch at the Moab Diner by 12:15. It is a bit of an adventure to park a 40 foot motorhome pretty much anywhere, and it's worse when it is towing a full-sized truck, but we made due.

The boys loved the mobility on this trip. They could walk around or play games.
But they still made sure they sat up front with Glen.

We didn't really wear the seatbelts much, but we made sure the boys were sitting down  while the vehicle was in motion (most of the time).

We towed the truck, which really helped us get around, but that's 58 feet of vehicle!

The motorhome is really comfortable inside. We hope we can go on another trip in style someday!

Seth has been looking forward to a trip in Laurie's motorhome since before she bought it!

Dax was supposed to ride up front and keep Glen from falling asleep. Fail!

After swinging by the Monticello Temple, we headed to Mesa Verde, our first stop. We made it before 4 o'clock and got tickets for the Cliff Palace tour, which everyone wanted to do. We also got tickets tomorrow for Balcony House for Mom, Dad, Mark, and Dax. Seth will stay with Laurie and Glen in the RV. We were sad that we wouldn't be able to fit in Long House, and Spruce House is closed, but we have a long way to go and a lot to do.

Moab Diner is our favorite restaurant in Grand County.

Mark dramatically lost a tooth along the way.

We parked the motorhome at the campground in the best spot we could find quickly and drove out to Chapin Mesa for the tour. Cliff Palace is really nice, and the hike isn't too bad. Seth did great with the ladders, and the climb out didn't seem so steep (except to Laurie). The tour in front of us had a lady that had an emergency, but it wasn't any of us, so we counted our blessings. We'll see how we do tomorrow at Balcony House.

The boys were tired of the camera by day one. They particularly hate looking into the sun.

The overlook at Cliff Palace.

Dax loved this trip!

Glen took a lot of pictures, too. This is us on the Cliff Palace tour.

Cliff Palace is a pretty nice ruin.

The park wasn't too busy, so we actually got some nice pictures.

The boys certainly know what a kiva is after this trip.

Seth had no problem with the ladders.

We got back to camp late and made a quick taco dinner. The kids didn't get to bed until 10 pm, which is getting more typical on these vacations, but at least they can sleep pretty easily tomorrow.

The boys played pretty well together, which was lucky since they'd be spending 10 days in a 9 x 40 foot space!