Big Truck Across America - day 10

So we're really up to 10 days.  This must be what it feels like to not have to work, because entering the midpoint of the 2nd week sure feels great.

The campground we stayed at in Sedona has to be the nicest so far, with one notable exception.  The cicadas are soooo loud, it sounds like a combination of 1,000,000 maracas, Jason Voorhees's entrance music, and a Harrier engine. Luckily I was able to explain to a terrified Jordan that there was nothing to be afraid of, because although the sound may be a bit frightening, these harmless insects just look like this when you see them up close.

For those of you that understood the Bottomtooth reference when discussing the Hampton-esque pretentiousness of Sedona, you will appreciate this. The campground bathrooms were immaculately kept, even the stalls came equipped with reading material. As I started my morning, I perused their copies of Bloomberg Businessweek, The Economist, and OUT. Yep - that's what I said. No wonder the place was so clean.

After leaving the campground, we cruised into uptown Sedona to hit their shopping district. I peeled off for a bit to mail some postcards, and while I was gone Jordan got in some classic poses.

On the way out of Sedona, we followed the same Oak Creek Canyon Road discussed in yesterday's post, where certain people may or may not have exceeded the speed limit while testing the limits of their 2 wheeled mode of transport.  Not today, and as this approached on the GPS,

I finally got to experience what it might feel like to take these corners on a Harley, although the E350 may have an advantage on cornering clearance and lean angle. Here's a shot looking back at the road.



The next point of interest outside Sedona and Flagstaff was Monument Valley, and as we approached it (nestled just north of the Arizona/Utah border on AZ163) we realized that we were approaching one of the desert squalls that sometimes doesn't even reach the ground. This one did, and it provided an impressive backdrop of geology mixed with meteorology (yep - nerdometer pegged again)

Not far beyond Monument Valley is another grouping of formations known as Valley of the Gods. We settled for some drive-by pics, since I remembered going through the ~17 mile dirt road loop on my motorcycle years ago, and the Big Truck would not have fared well on the wet red pottery clay that makes up these monuments. The formations are visually stunning, and this photo does them no justice.



While we were motoring through all of these geological wonders, Jordan was plugging away on her Barbie laptop, setting up a nice little nest with her iTouch (Spongebob videos + hopelessly rearranging Daddy's apps while deleting the rest) and her Kitty plate. What did I just type, what has happened to me...

The next and most unlikely portion of the day started to take shape about an hour outside of Moab. After doing zero research other than watching 2 preseason Lions games and getting waaay too optimistic about their season (watch your TVs on Oct 10, I'll be at their first Monday Night game in 20 years - responsible behavior is sure to follow), I had my first of 3 fantasy football drafts in less than an hour.

There are wives, then there are wives that appreciate and accept you for who you are, and then there are wives that will help you pre-rank your fantasy draft while in the middle of the Utah desert in case the mobile internet connection isn't sufficient. This is the Holy Grail of those wives, in full "Why don't you take Ray Rice over Adrian Petersen, it's a point-per-reception league and Petersen will have Donovan McNabb hitting him in the back of the knees coming out of the backfield in the flat" mode:

With about 45 seconds to spare before my 2nd overall pick, we found a rest area in Podunk Utah, and things were going great until a temporary disconnection resulted in me mistakenly taking Hakeem Nicks about 3 rounds too early. After that, the ship was righted, and a sure fantasy football juggernaut was born.

After all of that, the day seemed like it was fairly productive, and that feeling was confirmed as we rounded the last bend on our approach to Moab. There aren't too many images more inviting than this after 2 hrs of shopping followed by 8+ hrs on the road, and at this point we were all too ready to be welcomed.

Day 11 will begin with a bit of indecision. Do we stay here for a day, ride a few trails and relax, or head up to Loveland/Ft Collins area and give ourselves a few more options? If these are the tough choices, sign us up for more.