Crazy and enjoying it

 

The Kadizzles moved from Lost Dutchman back to Phon De Sutton on the Salt River. As we pulled in Kadizzle recognized Stan's camper made from an old manure spreader. Stan's set up is unique, and it has some virtuous you will not find in other campers. Jan the camp host had told us a couple weeks ago about Stan's adventures chasing illegals on the border.

Stan said the local sheriff and border patrol could do without his help. Stan explained to The Commander and Kadizzle that he had figured out how the drug smugglers were working their system. According to stan the people carrying the drugs over the border meet the customers on this side at a predetermined GPS point. The drugs are handed over and then the drug carrier abandons his back pack and equipment and starts walking down the highway. Before long the border patrol picks up the Mexican gives him a meal and ships him back to Mexico, since the smuggler appeared to have nothing and was harmless.

Stan was patrolling the roadside on his four wheeler checking the mile markers. It was at the mile markers where Stan was finding the backpacks and abandoned gear.

Last year Stan bought a nice BMW motorcycle that he is now selling. It caught Kadizzles eye. As Kadizzle was examining the cycle The Commander was having a conversation with Stan. Stan was explaining to The Commander that he was bipolar, had Aspergers disease, and was just generally crazy.

Stan noted that currently he was off his medication since it made him feel un human and being crazy was much more fun.

Kadizzled inquired when was the best time to buy the cycle at the cheapest price. Stan indicated you might get a better deal when he was on medication. The Commander says Kadizzle is prohibited from buying the cycle.

Kadizzle has brain replaced with green Jello

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One nice thing about being retired is the ability to think or not think as much as you want. After a little discussion with The Commander, Lord Kadizzle determined it would be best if he quit thinking altogether. The Commander agreed it would be a good decision.

A doctor's appointment was set up and The Commander took Kadizzle to a brain specialist. The specialist explained the procedure. A device similar to a mellon ball maker is inserted in the ear. All brain matter is removed. The surgeon explained that having a hollow head would drive you crazy because of the sound, so the normal procedure is to refill the brain cavity with green Jello.

Once you are a retired man and have had the green Jellow treatment thinking is no longer needed. Someone else thinks for you. In Kadizzles case it is The Commander. Most things a normal person would notice like the brake lights of a truck in front of you are no longer noticeable. The result is The Commander will say “That truck is stopping”. If you go out the door, The Commander will shout “Close the door”, before you even get halfway through it. You will be told to put your shoes on, take your shoes off, and every aspect of your life will be regulated because you are now incapable of the simplest task. This is not all bad. Someone has to make coffee for you, because now you are an idiot.

Driving is the hardest thing you can do once you have had the green Jello treatment. Now you have become totally blind. You will be told when to use the turn signal, when to turn, which lane to use, when to change lanes, and the list is endless.

The most amazing thing about the green Jello treatment is it makes you an “idiot savant”. If you don't know the term look it up, but Kadizzle will give a brief explanation. An idiot savant is the type of person who goes around bumping into things and bumbling through life, but has a special unexplained talent.

How does this apply to the green Jello treatment? Normally Kadizzle is incapable of boiling water, but when The Commander gets stuck solving a computer problem, or some mechanical device does not work, who does she call? Of course it is the idiot that had his brains removed. How can this possibly work?

As a teenager Kadizzle knew a friend who lived with his granmother. His granny was something else, but Kadizzle recalls granny Powell telling Ben, “ Don't let your little head think for your big one”. After some thought Kadizzle realized that a penis had a little brain. What granny was telling Ben was not to let that little brain get the big one in trouble. Now that Kadizzle has had the green Jellow treatment he realizes that the little brain can do more than think about sex. The little brain apparently is talented in computer science and many other things. All these years Kadizzle thought the little brain was just snoozing in his underwear it turns out, the little brain was doing a lot of homework and studying. Thank god for that extra little brain. Now, Kadizzle can sneak in some thought and decision making and The Commander will never know.

Lost Dutchman State Park, AZ

The Kadizzlites sit below the peaks of the Superstition Mountains in Lost Dutchman State Park, in AZ.  Kadizzle remembers years ago hiking up Siphon Draw.  It is one of the two nastiest hikes in the area.  Once you start up the draw you have to climb about straight up.

Years ago when we first hiked it The Commander insisted we go to the top. Kadizzle was in a fat lazy mood and told the old Commander that she could go by herself, he would wait at the bottom.  As Kadizzle sat on a rock and The Commander buzzed up the mountain and old guy 85 came along the trail. The old guy said " What are you doing here?".  Kadizzle explained he was waiting for his wife to make the hike and come back.  The old man who said he had just had open heart surgery a couple of months ago said,  " This is where all the old ladies stop".   Well Kadizzle could not accept this insult and headed up the steep incline with the old man.  Kadizzle huffed and puffed and had a hard time keeping up with the old guy.

Nearing the top with the old guy Kadizzle was amazed to see a bunch of old ladies coming down the mountain.  For the old ladies to be coming down they must have started up at six A.M.  God must have put these women on a mission to really rub it in to Kadizzle about what a slubba he was.

At the top we found The Commander and the old guy talked us into going down a way only a few knew about.  The trip down was practically vertical, but the old goat told us we would get to see the remains of a plane crash.  When we reached the point where a military jet had hit the mountain in 1979,  we found a pile of plant parts, none of which were bigger than a paper plate.

Sitting below Siphon Draw today Kadizzle reflects back on that hike and that plane crash.  It is strange that the jest should strike the mountain inside the deep canyon.  Could pilot have thought he cold fly through the canyon.

Today was an easy day??

After a tough day yesterday the Kadizzles figured today would be a moderate adventure.  Of course things never turn out as planned.  With the motorcycle loaded in the pickup just in case we needed it, we headed up the mountain to do once more an Indian site we had discovered with Ruth and Rodger last year.

The vehicles of the trail crew were at the trail head, which was about five miles up the mountain.  The trail crew was working in the vicinity of the site right along the trail.  As Kadizzle and The Commander sat at the old site, Kadizzle used the binoculars to scout for new sites.  In the distance some rocks caught his eye.  Last year Rodger and The Commander found some nice stuff in this same area. 

Kadizzle took off separately from The Commander, but they stayed in radio contact.  The Commander discovered some Indian grinding stones pretty quickly.  Kadizzle had a terrible fight through the brush, but finally emerged in the area where he had spotted stone walls earlier.  Sure enough it was a site with a nice grind stone and many pot shards.

As the trail crew worked we explored.  What was supposed to be an easy relaxing hike turned out as usual to be a pretty strong haul.  Kadizzle and The Commander have each speculated on how many early Americans lived in the area.  Kadizzle likes the figure 140,  The  Commander wants to go to 500.  You can make up any number you want.  These sites appear to be seasonal sites.  At a certain time of year the Indians probably moved up near the mountains to be cooler, and to hunt big game. There is a lot more moisture up there.  Who knows if they farmed up there, they could have, but water was scarce.

After doing real work all day the trail crew headed home.  Kadizzle and The Commander walked back with them and we all got off the mountain and headed for solar showers.

Another Adventure and another find.

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Another day another Indian adventure. Today the Kadizzlites took off to find an Indian site Faye told us about. Faye is the camp host. Faye was born around these parts and knows them well, however, Faye's ability to give directions could use a tune up.

Following Faye's instructions The Commander and Lord Kadizzle put the Yamaha in the back of the truck and took off. After the motorcycle portion of the journey was complete the search was on. Kadizzle thought the search was for a typical cliff dwelling type site. Apparently he had the wrong thought in his head, but with this in mind the adventurers started down a stream toward the Salt River. This was after a eight mile drive up Cherry Creek east of Roosevelt Lake.

As the Kadizzles got close to the Salt River the canyon got very narrow and with very steep sides. Something seemed to be wrong, and we were cut off by the complexity of the drop, with no safe way to go farther. Frustrated The Commander said it was time to turn around. Kadizzle was about tuckered out, but gave in to The Commander and we hiked up onto a Mesa. It was a tough haul up to the top, but that seemed like the only place the Indian site could be. Kadizzle skirted the edge of the Mesa hoping to find the site, but his Indian intuition told him it was probably at the highest point of the Mesa, so he sent The Commander to check it out.

To Kadizzle's amazement The Commander for once followed the “Safety Rules”. The safety rules dictate that if you are out of sight from each other for over fifteen minutes you turn on your two way radio. Of course Kadizzle obeyed the rule. Soon the Commander came on the radio saying she found the site. The site turned out to be a bit unusual. It had a wonderful view in all directions, but was very defensive in nature. It was a rare site that seemed to have a defensive wall completely surrounding it. In the middle were the dwellings. For the size of the site there was relatively little pottery.

The outer wall seemed to form a squared about 150' by 150'. Inside there looked to be about ten rooms. It was ultimately a combination of luck and good orienteering that got us to the site. The next time we get instructions from Faye there will be more detail. Our mistake was not wasted we did go into a very nice canyon and enjoyed it.

Solar Showers, and Indian sites.

Yesterday the solar shower at our campsite was so hot you could hardly stand it.  However, today it could have been warmer.  Our campground has the largest solar facility of any camp ground in the U.S.   By some magic the LED lights went out last night in the middle of a crucial moment on the thunder seat.  Left in the dark Kadizzle had to fish around the floor to find his flashlight in order to complete his office work.

Today started with an exploratory ride up the mountain on the motorcycle.  When Kadizzle returned he announced to The Commander that he had found an Indian site a short ways after the motorcycle trail ended.  So Kadizzle and The Commander headed about three miles up the mountain side to check the site out.  It looked like a watermelon and a peanut riding together.

The picture below shows some of the pot shards at the Indian Site. 

The road is treacherous and steep.  At one point The Commander had to dismount and walk.  The site had a lot of pottery shards and The Commander found a nice arrow head made from obsidian.  On the way up there was a six hundred acre area fenced in with ten foot chain link fence. Apparently it was a wildlife study area to determine how much javelina and big horn sheep eat.

Leaving the Lap of Luxery

Today the Kadizzlites hitch up and move on.  Behind we will leave hot showers for as long as you please, electricity that flows from a wire,  and water that pumps itself right into the camper. 

Our new home will be at Roosevelt Lake.  Kadizzle wants to park on the beach, but The Commander will have none of it.  Hopefully the showers there are improved since they remodeled them, but there will be no water or electricity.

On the up side there are plenty of places to explore and hike.  The biggest problem is the additional altitude.  It may be ten degrees cooler up there.  More than likely the place will be pretty vacant, but at three dollars a day you can hardly do wrong.  TV signals will be sparse or non existent.

The Earth Module was provisioned yesterday and hopefully the Kadizzlites will be well fed. The Commander just said she is making fresh squeezed orange juice for breakfast.

Yesterday a motorcycle in the back of a pickup caught the attention of Kadizzle.  Kadizzle rode his bike to check out the neighbor with a similar set up.  In no time the man came out to see what was up.  Gary came out of his camper and the conversation ensued.

It turned out Gary was on pretty much the same quest the Kadizzles have been on for the last ten years.  Gary says he has been everywhere in Arizona, Colorado, and Utah in the quest for Indian sites.   Gary does a lot of his exploring in the summer months.  This means he can go place we never could in the winter. 

One site Gary gave great acclaim was Goblin Valley.  As we drove home last year The Commander begged Kadizzle to stop there.  As you go North Goblin Valley is right before you hit the interstate west of Grand Junction.  With the horses headed to the barn there was no stopping.

Goblin Valley is so much like so many nice places.  From a distance the area appears blank and lifeless, but when you get close you discover all sorts of things.  Kadizzle remembers thinking the area was hopeless, but after talking to Gary we may hit it on the way home this year.

A Peek at the Peaks

Today the Kadizzlites went separate directions.  The Commander took off with the Canadians on an all day hike through the Superstition Mountains.  Kadizzle took his longest ride yet to the Four Peaks. That is the peaks in the background of the motorcycle.  Last year we got to the top from the other side. Cissie and Rodger just about made it to the very top.  500ft short they was just no way to go higher.

On today's ride Kadizzle hauled the Yamaha to withing twenty miles of the mountain top.  From there it was a long ride.  Almost to the top the road began to have some steep patches covered with snow.   Prudently Kadizzle had to turn back.  Shortly after he started back three young guys on dirt bikes passed him on the way.  Kadizzle stopped and shut of his cycle to see if he could hear the youngsters get through the snow.  While waiting the sheriff came down the mountain.  Kadizzle asked him if the cyclist made it all the way.  The sheriff said one took a pretty good spill in the snow, but was unhurt.  They made it, but paid the price.  Kadizzle is to old to go down in the snow and fight gravity picking up the cycle.  

Cold Feet may produce new Ten Commandments

Kadizzle does not recall the exact story of how Moses got the Ten Commandments.  Memory says he went up on a mountain and encountered a burning bush.  Kadizzle is pretty sure about the burning bush, but not the going up the mountain.

Today the Kadizzlites will go up the same mountain they have already conquered about five times this year.  Climbing the mountain is relatively simple compared to getting to the mountain. The path to the mountain is right below the Stewart Dam.  One must cross the river to begin the hike.  The river might be from six inches deep to three feet deep depending on how much water the dam is releasing.  So after we go past the palm trees and through the thickest reed bed you have ever seen that is twenty feet tall we must change into water shoes and wade the river.  Today the river will be very cold since it was down to 32 last night.  Then there is the bonus of the slippery rocks.  On the way back the water is more of a delight for hot feet.

If we do not find tablets, we may at least see some big horn sheep.  Since there has been rain in the last couple days we may get to see some very nice water features with running water.  The coolness should keep the rattlesnakes in their dens.

If we do get tablets what would the update be.  Kadizzle hopes God will clarify at least ten things.  God might address gun ownership.  God could update us on income disparity, and of course if he clarified Global Warming it would be great.  We could really use an update from God.  If God would send word about which is the correct religion it would be terrific.  So at about 11 we will be seeking knowledge from above.  Being about at the top of the mountain we should get a better connection to God's WiFi. 

Does Size Matter?

Above the complete answer to all your travel problems,  a Teardrop Camper.
 

In the current era The Kadizzles spend about half their life either on a sailboat or in our camper. Both have a lot in common. Everyone who has ever been involved with either knows there is a magic dilemma. If you get a larger camper, or sailboat you have more room and more creature comforts, but at the same time you create a proportional number of problems.

With both boats and campers the bigger they are the harder they are to maneuver. A small boat or camper will allow you to go places a big one will not. The maintenance head aches multiply exponentially with size. You can take a little camper or boat home and work on it. As your boat or camper gets bigger and you have more invested, you feel compelled to use it.

If your boat is the right size you can put it on a trailer and pick an entire new body of water. That is not practical with a large boat. Small means you can avoid the crowds, and small means you can exist independent of electricity and running water. Small means flexibility.

Like houses, once you get so big with your recreational vehicle you ask, “Now that I have all this room, what shall I do with it?”. One natural tendency is to jam everything you can think of into the big moma. That is why you see some RV's with three flat screen TV's, an outdoor grill, and every imaginable toy. It is not unusual to see a large RV pulling a large trailer. A recent dinger we ran into had a trailer behind his humongous Heffalump. In side the trailer he had room for a full size power boat, a Harley, and a professional drum set with speakers.

The poor fellow with his $500k set up ran out of his time at our campground, and the host told him he had to leave. He pleaded saying he could not “afford” to go anywhere else, and there was no place that had room for his massive collection of crap. Eventually the park police had to explain to him that his toy fatness was his problem and not the Tonto National Forest's problem. Toy chubby grumbled and left.

On the other end of the extreme of course are the people living in their car. They get the best milage for Rving, but they have to unload the car to sleep.

The teardrop camper is a unique little solution to the who travel mess. Basically you pull a doouble bed and a portable kitchen. Everything is enclosed.

Who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo?

There happens to be a town in North Dakota called Napoleon.  The people there are either total idiots, or very clever.  Years ago when Lord Kadizzle was employed at a power plant he was giving a group of students from Napoleon a power plant tour.  As the students looked over the huge scale model of the power plant Kadizzled annouced to the students.  "I will give a prize to the person who can tell me who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo".  Immediately one student replied, "Napoleon doesn't play Waterloo".   Now this was either a very clever funny comment, or the student was a complete idiot regarding history. 

Yesterday Kadizzled was wandering an art show in Gold Canyon, AZ.   Kadizzled overheard an elderly gentleman mention he was from North Dakota.  Kadizzled engaged the man in conversation and found out he was from Napoleon.  Kadizzled told the old man about the incident with the student at the power plant.  After relating the story to the man Kadizzled thought the man got the humorous part of the story, but the man asked " What sport was it, basketball or football?". 

Now the question arises, are the people in Napoleon so ignorant they have no clue that the Duke of Wellington defeated Napoleon, or do they get this question so often they each have a clever answer?  No offense to the people of Napoleon, but my guess is they have no idea of what Waterloo was.  I hope I am wrong, and if anyone from Napoleon can clear this up, let me know.

I am already in great trouble with the people from Hoople, North Dakota.  I have become found of the term Hooplehad and use it often in a derogatory way.  The HBO series Deadwood made the term popular.  The people in Hoople are not happy about it.  Now all I need to do is piss off all the people in Napoleon.

The Magic water hole

The Commander and Kadizzle have been hiking the same trail in the Superstition Mountains for years.  Along the trail is an Indian site.  One things Indians need as much as anyone else is water.  It always puzzled Kadizzle where they were getting water. The streams run sometimes, but there are  a lot of dry times.

Today The Commander insisted we take an off trail exploration hike.  The goal was to find some interesting artifacts.  That goal was not reached, but the Kadizzilites decided to take a wild route back.  As the Kadizzilites walked down a canyon they came across the pool pictured above.  Unless you came upon the pool from the exact correct direction, you would never find it.  The pool was amazing.  It appeared a little spring fed it all the time.  Other times water might gush into it. 

The most unique thing about the pool was the depth. It appeared to be perhaps 20 feet deep.  It could have held as much as 15 or 20 thousand gallons of water.   If water came in even at a trickle to keep the water somewhat fresh, it would get the local Indians through some tough times.  We have hiked withing 300feet of the pool many times, so have thousands of people, but it is doubtful more than a handful have ever seen it.  You could jump from twenty feet up into the pool on a warm day.  It would be so refreshing.

When my Morning Comes

Someday we all have to go south, meet our maker, bite the dust, or be drawn up to Jesus.  The Commander and Lord Kadizzle always kid each other on the trail when we take pictures.  Kadizzle always instructs The Commander " Get a picture for the funeral album" .   In addition to pictures for a good funeral you need some good music.

In his mind Kadizzle is always picking out funeral music.  A recent find is Iris Dement's song " When my Morning Comes".    The Commander speculates she is singing about conquering a drug problem, but Kadizzle thinks the words are about moving on to the next world.  Here are the lyrics.  Find the song on the internet and enjoy it.

When my mornin' comes around, no one else will be there
so I won't have to worry about what I'm supposed to say
and I alone will know that I climbed that great big mountain
and that's all that will matter when my mornin' comes around

When my mornin' comes around, I will look back on this valley
at these sidewalks and alleys where I lingered for so long
and this place where I now live will burn to ash and cinder
like some ghost I won't remember
When my mornin' comes around

When my mornin' comes around, from a new cup I'll be drinking
and for once I won't be thinking that there's something wrong with me
and I'll wake up and find that my faults have been forgiven
and that's when I'll start living

When my mornin' comes around

In the Heart of the Sea

Last night Kadizzle finished reading "In the Heart of the Sea".    The book chronicled the sinking of the ship Essex.  A whale struck the ship in the worst possible place in the Pacific.  Moby Dick was based on this incident.  Of the 17 people on the ship about 7 survived by resorting to cannibalism.

Most whaling ships had some black sailors.  A strange aspect of the social order on the ship was that if you really wanted someone to pray and get some results it was the black man you asked to lead prayers.  On the other hand blacks got paid poorly and were usually the first to be eaten when times got tough.  It may not have been a racial thing.  Black people have less body fat than white people so often they die more quickly in a starvation situation.

If Kadizzle with his abundant fat were in the small whaling boat with six other men it could go either way.  The nice store of fat might get him to Chile, or it might look like a wedding cake to the other starving whalers.

The book is an amazing story of survival and what humans can endure.  Kadizzle wants to start a book club like Oprah,  so this is the first book on the recommended list.

Moving up on the hill

Today we packed the Earth Module and moved to Usery Park about five miles away.  Now we have all the amenities, city water plumbed in, electricity, and hot showers.   Life is good.  Of course now we have television with the three  major channels, plus a dozen crooked preachers robbing old ladies in Spanish and English. 

Jasper Little bottom is in love with the TV.   You just cannot go wrong when Jasper watches cooking shows.

His lordship did an adventure ride to find a new road in the mountains.  After many miles the road finally showed up.  It was extremely steep and rugged.  Better judgement did not prevail and Kadizzle tested his dirt bike skills.  The cycle in the picture is at the top of the incline.  The ride down was just as difficult as the ride up.  Would not have been good to have the cycle fall over on Kadizzle in the middle of no where.

The Commander took a ride with our Canadian friends along a canal toward Mesa.   We are hoping the famous designer Cheech from New York City will come down with Dead Eys Sam. 

The Nature of the Earth Module

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The Earth Module headed South from Denver on January 16, Since then The Commander and Lord Kadizzle have been housed in a space about 8' X 21'. The Earth Module can sustain itself in the wilderness under extreme conditions for perhaps a month with careful management.

The module has two 20 gal propane tanks which will easily provide heat, cooking, hot water, and refrigeration, for a month. The module holds forty gallons of fresh water, and another twelve can be carried in the truck. The generator has available about eight gallons of fuel which would provide enough electricity to last a month if used intelligently.

Since the Earth Module was built in Canada it is insulated well and maintains heat better then most of the units of it's type. One of the nicest blessing for the module are the windows. There are plenty well placed and insulated. The bedroom in the rear is surrounded by large windows and it is a real pleasure to wake up surrounded by a spectacular view.

The most important aspect of the module is the shower. A good shower is a moral booster that is hard to beat. The module has a nice shower made from fiberglass with no seams. A decent shower takes about 1.5 gallons of water. There is a shower on the outside of the module but it has only been used once.

The refrigeration has a freezer and ice can be made to keep hiking water cold. Food supply has to be carefully managed for extended dry camping in the wilderness.

Getting into the back country requires an RV with high clearance and a degree of ruggedness. Many cheap RV's would shake the cabinets right off the walls on a pot holed gravel road. Smallness has it's virtues. The Earth Module is small enough that it can get into many places other campers dare not enter.

One thing the Earth Module does not have is solar power. It would be a nice addition and eleminate the noise of the generator. However, solar power would take very careful management of electricity. It may be in the future since it could be taken back and forth to the sailboat. One nice thing about the Earth Module is that so much of the supplies can be transferred to the boat.

With a wifi hotspot on the phone the Earth Module generally has internet access. Every morning the Kadizzlites get up to date sitting in bed, and then the day begins.

A Hefalump with a Scare Light

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In our RV neighborhood things change rapidly. It is not unusual to wake up with a different set of neighbors. Traveling for the last ten years we have met a lot of wonderful people. On the other hand there are always some real dingers that move in and drive everyone nuts. A big part of the outdoor experience is the peace and quite.

Last night the new neighbor left on his “Scare Light” all night. One great pleasure in the wilderness is the complete darkness and the view of the stars, then a dinger moves in with his own portable street light. How do you deal with dingers? When Kadizzle gets the chance today he will say to the dinger “ You must have forgotten and left your light on all night”. Since the dinger was collecting solar power during the day there should be a way to explain to him that it gets you no where if you collect power then piss it away scaring away the boogy man.

The noise offenders are the worst. There is nothing worse than some simple minded dinger that has to run a generator all day. The Kadizzles must make a confession. We have a generator. We try to use it as little as possible and do everything to keep it silent. However, The Kadizzles have seen dingers with huge Hefalump Motorhomes go off and leave their generator run all day. Must be to keep the air conditioning on. A few days back the mother of all dingers pulled into our area with a huge trailer behind his huge Hefalump. In the trailer he had a professional drum set and large speakers. With no regard for humanity he opened the trailer door turned up the speakers and blew the eardrums out of everyone. Thank ya Jesus he left.

Strangely a lot of people's idea of an outdoor adventure is to go to a nice place turn on their generator and watch television in the great outdoors. The RV population can be divided into three pretty broad groups. The purist have solar energy, do a lot of walking, biking and hiking, and usually are into birding. The purist never have the giant Hefalump RV's.

In the middle are the blenders with moderate size RV's and a blend of the good, the bad, and the ugly. The Kadizzles lean toward the purist, but in reality are in the middle.

On the extreme are the gaint Hefalump guys. The more crap they can take with them the happier they are. Some pull a trailer and a jeep behind them. They love buttons. If they can push a button and open a door, aim their antenna, or let an awning go out they are in heaven. You know you are dealing with the ultimate dinger when you see them with the TV pulled out on the side of the Hefalump and are watching TV. The Hefalump drivers love to polish. It is not unusual for a Hefalump guy to immediately start polishing when he gets out. The Hefalumpl guys always have a surprise in their trailer. Sometimes it is a huge Harley, a big ATV, or best of all some shiny sports car.

On the bottom of the universe and perhaps the happiest are the bum walkers that are simply tent camping or making it through life on a bike. The people taking it simple and slow probably soak up everything the Hefalump guys missed because they could not get ten feet from some wheels.

Life on the Salt River

A short while ago much to our discontent Ax Handle pulled up.   It looked like he was going to park to close for comfort so Lord Kadizzle told him his RV was messing up the WiFi.  It must have worked Ax Handle left. He came back, but put some distance between us.

The Commander and Lord Kadizzle mounted up the Yamaha with hiking gear and took of for the Goldfields.  We hiked about three miles and come across a spot where mountian lions apparently have been doing their kitty litter act.

A strange coincidence occurred as we walked back to the motorcycle.  The Kadizzles were discussing what they should do if they needed to stay some where for a short time between the scheduled nights we had.  We recalled an old friend who we met in previous years.  We had not seen him for about two years, but were discussing the merits of asking him if we could park our camper at his home.

Now, here were are on a very remote road in the absolute middle of nowhere, and two guys come peddling by on off road bikes.  Low and behold it is the guy we had just spoken of five minutes earlier. We yelled and he stopped, and without even asking offered to let us park our camper at his house.  Strange world.

The most evil Kaneval.

The Commander was seen flying over jumps and doing flips on her dirt bike yesterday.  Got some good pictures of wild horses and close to a coyote.  This morning a bald eagle was fishing by the river. 

Axe Handle needed some spices

People get to know each other quickly in campgrounds.  For the last couple years at the Goldfield Campground there was one lone camper known as Axe Handle.  Mr. Handle had a reputation for carrying around an axe handle to resolve any disputes that might arise.  The story was someone came into the campground with a motorcycle and annoyed Ax Handle.  Mr. Handle went after the man on the motorcycle with the axe handle and some how or other law enforcement got involved.

As Kadizzle was talking to another camper the other day Ax Handle walked up.  He looked familiar, but Kadizzle could not quite place him.  Kadizzle knew he had seen him before.  Axhandle was in search of thyme to season his chicken.  Axe did not find any at the first door and he asked me if we had any.  I sent him to see Mrs. Kadizzle and told him to let me know when the chicken was ready.  Handle told me there was only enough for him.  Good move on his part.  Anyway, shortly there after Kadizzle confirmed it was indeed Ax Handle.  Ax Handle hikes with his weapon.  Now one could make a pretty good bet Mr. Handle has some mental issues.  All things considered he is probably harmless and when he takes his medication a fine friendly guy.  Why not let those who wander around in fear carry ax handles.  For the mentally ill this would be a great alternative to giving them guns.