Life/work intervened and I was delayed 5 days . . . but that did give me more time to make sure the RV was "ready". It's a WIP, so I think it's probably safe to say that I'll always be working on it. Everything loaded, the RV running, I call Keisha to come and jump in the RV and she gives me one look and says "No way!" and takes off running the opposite direction. I'm not sure what she knew that I did not, but this wasn't a great stop as I spent the first 10 minutes driving around the neighborhood trying to find her and entice her to jump in with me. Eager to clear Glenwood Canyon before sunset* I had a reservation at an RV park for my first night. I wanted at least one guaranteed spot before trying my hand at boondocking, I've got some dash camera video to look through for anything interesting from this first day but as I only hit the road around noon, there wasn't any sightseeing for this stretch.
Stocking up with $200+ of groceries and kitchen basics (can opener, spatulas, paper plates, etc.) in Moab, but I started the first of many early nights and early mornings to wring as much sunlight as possible during the winter solstice.
What's with the sock? I'm an idiot and that is okay.** The first time I fuel the RV up, I lost the gas cap. After stopping at all of the auto parts stores in Moab without luck, this was my solution.
. . . . until I forgot to put the sock back in on the last day as I was leaving Zion NP. Then I got rained/snowed on and, go figure, started having engine problems in the final stretch coming into Phoenix. Water and gas don't mix.
All was well after 8 days of driving across Utah, but the last 1.5-2 hours were looooong.
* - I've hit an elk in an all night drive to Vegas along this stretch, that's a whole other story . . . some of which falls under "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas"
** - Doing stupid things is not okay, but as long as you've learned from your mistake, then there is no need to get upset. These are the things that make the best stories. Keep an eye out for more "D'oh!" moments as this is far from the only mistake I made just during this week.
As Vic and I say, "it's not an adventure unless something goes wrong." Dog running away at the start of the trip means it was an adventure from the start. Keisha is still the best wingman you could ask for.
Oh, and I guess this just adds to the list of things you can do with a sock. I guess that means I'll need to up the amount of socks I give you at Christmas.
More photos of Keisha, please.