Travels With My Sister (Now Complete!)

[Persephone]

It’s May and it’s snowing in Hoosier Pass. Not a light puffy kind of snow, but the big flakes steadily coming down type of snow. We’re over 11,000 feet (3,352 m) up, making the last tight hairpin turn before the summit when our entire rig, 55-feet (17 m) of motorhome and towed vehicle, starts to slip sideways! But I’m getting ahead of myself…

My sister has been my lifelong inspiration, mentor and guide. Many years ago, when I was a pre-teen, I remember watching her as she prepared for an evening out. I still recall particular outfits and how lovely she looked in them.

We had an upcoming family event in Boulder, Colorado and my sister came up with a plan. Rather than fly from her Alabama home to Colorado, why couldn’t she fly out to L.A. and we’d do a road trip together. Since I don’t get to see my sister often enough, my spouse and I readily agreed.

There was one little elephant wandering through the plan. Since my sister lives far away she’s never really had a “need to know,” although she’s very, very smart and I was pretty sure she’d put together the pieces over the years.

But if we were going to travel together for many days I felt it was time to tell the truth. My niece, her daughter, wanted me to tell her over the phone before she came out to L.A. but I felt that was a bad idea, I wanted to tell her in person.

Needless to say, I had a jittery stomach and insomnia for several nights before she arrived.

She arrived on Saturday and while we were packing and prepping on Sunday my spouse and I sat down with her and told her about her sister that she had never really met.

She listened carefully, asked a number of questions, and, with a smile, said, “Well, whatever floats your boat!”

I love my sister!

Monday morning we headed off. Our plan was to take interstate highways and head for Boulder by the most direct route, using our return trip for more recreational travel.

Interstate 15 heading north, we drove 400 miles (644 km) through four states, California, Nevada, a bit of Arizona, and into Utah, spending our first night in Saint George, Utah, camped at Temple View RV, dinning in one of our favorites, the Black Bear Diner.

In the morning it was off to Grand Junction, Colorado, 390 miles (628 km) away. And the next day we planned to take it a bit easier, with only 255 miles (410 km) to Boulder, Colorado.

But fate had a few tricks up her sleeve. When we’d traveled the same route this past December it had pretty much been t-shirt weather all the way, with just a little snow along the sides of Interstate 70 near the Eisenhower Tunnel, 11,158 feet (3,401 m) above sea level. This time we were taking pictures of snow on the ground before we reached Aspen and Veil and it was snowing when we reached those towns.

It was starting to get dark as we approached the I-70 pass and the tunnel. The snow was falling heavily. Ahead of us were lots of flashing lights and storm-clad officers with flashlights directing us onto the exit ramp. I-70 was closed due to a combination of tunnel work, snow, and ice.

We were being directed onto a small state road, Colorado 9, a road that I knew went over the dreaded Hoosier Pass at 11,542 feet (3,518 m).

“Is the pass open?” I yelled out my window.

“Yes,” an officer shouted back, adding “it should be O.K.”

It wasn’t; at least not for us. The pass was a nightmare of twists and turns, switchbacks and hairpins. As we rounded that last tight hairpin we slid. We came to a stop, tilted sideways at a steep angle, looking down at the road below the hairpin. Fortunately, we slid into a snowbank and not onto the rocks nor the road below.

After a few moments of shaking I opened the passenger side door and nearly fell out into the snow. Treading carefully down I could see that there appeared to be no damage to our vehicles and our position seemed relatively secure, but we were neatly tucked into the snowbank with no chance of getting ourselves out. I climbed back into the tilted motorhome.

Fortunately, we had heat and we had cell service (Thank you God and Verizon)! We called for help and in a bit over an hour a massive tow truck arrived. Pulling a rig of our size is not a job for an average size tow truck, it takes a monster, one of the really big ones, the kind that pull 18-wheeler trucks, and a skilled driver to make it happen.

In a few minutes we were hooked up. The driver had me keep my vehicle running and in gear to provide extra traction, and with highway officers clearing the way we were hauled out of the snowbank and 15 miles (24 km) down the south side of the pass to the town of Fairplay.


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The tow truck pulls us out, notice the other snowbank in front of us!

We spent the night in the ice and snow covered parking area of a small truckstop.
Which all goes to show that a CD/TG/TS had better be ready for anything!

(To be continued - I will add to this thread).

[Beverley Sims]

Of the little motoring I did in Nov 2000 was through Hoosier pass.
There was snow then too.
Interesting but less of an experience for me.
Without the tow, the trip down could have been worse.
I assume it was a stiff towbar they used.

[Lorileah]

I would have stayed in Silverthorne and went to the outlets shopping...

[4mymichelle]

Persephone,
So glad that you and your family are fine from this ordeal and are able to talk about it now! I am happy to hear that it went well with telling your sister. Look forward to hearing more.
Wishing you safe travels,
Michelle

[Eryn]

I don't like driving in snow, and the prospect of doing it in a massive RV sends shivers down my spine!

It is so wonderful that your sister got to know you in your preferred gender. I know that you had a "plan B" in place in case things didn't go so well, but I'm happy that you didn't need to use it!

[Persephone]

(Continued) The weather was due to improve the next day, but at 9 a.m. the Colorado Highway Department was reporting that the next pass that we needed to cross, Kenosha Pass, 10,001 feet (3,048 m), was covered in ice and snow.

Over the next few hours we watched the report change from ice and snow covered to “icy and snowy patches” to “wet.” The parking lot around us was also melting off. At 1 p.m. the report changed to “dry” and we took off heading through Red Hill Pass (9,993 feet/3.046 m) and Kenosha Pass (10,001 feet/3,048 m) and on to the Boulder, CO area.

It is amazing that an area so filled with outdoor enthusiasts and dozens of RV sales and service places has practically no RV campgrounds. We set up camp in Saint Vrains State Park in Longmont, Colorado, a beautiful park not far from where our family events were scheduled.

The next couple of days were filled with family activities. My niece flew in from the midwest and stayed in our RV with us for a couple of nights.

I had already decided that I would be “him” for the couple of days we were with our extended family. Some might argue that it isn’t right to do that, but my feeling was that I was there for purposes other than my own and that it would not be fair to preempt the proceedings by becoming a major sideshow for a great many folks that I seldom see.

As it was, a very funny, and totally unintentional, thing happened. One of the major events was held at a retreat high in the Colorado mountains. We had to park our cars in a lower parking area and hike the trail up to the lodge, 7800 feet (2377 m) above sea level.

My sister and my spouse would have had great difficulty ascending in the thin air so I drove our Jeep up to the lodge, dropped them off, drove back down, parked, and climbed back up.

The hike at high elevation was such that I didn’t want to turn around, go down, and hike back up yet again when I discovered that I was wearing my very femme prescription sunglasses rather than my regular somewhat androgynous eyeglasses. No-one commented but I’m waiting to see the photos. Kinda ironic when I’m trying so hard to “pass” as a guy.

Sunday morning we packed up our stuff, retracted the walls of our RV, and headed back down U.S. 285 past our previous storm-shelter, the Fairplay truckstop, heading for Wolf Creek Pass on U.S. 160.

Those who know the music of C. W. McCall will instantly recognize Wolf Creek Pass as the stuff of legend.


“Me an' Earl was haulin' chickens on a flatbed out of Wiggins,
and we'd spent all night on the uphill side of thirty-seven miles of Hell
called Wolf Creek Pass, which is up on the Great Divide…”

My sister was really doing quite well, almost always using my femme name, even when referring to me on phone calls to her daughter. Pronouns seemed to be a problem and there were a few “he’s” mixed into the conversation when we were alone but she was consistently using “she” when we were in public.

We crossed the pass and headed down into Pagosa Springs where we spent the night at the Pagosa Riverside RV Park.

I had a nice time chatting with the lovely lady who runs the park. Sadly, her husband had passed away a year or so ago and she told me all about how wonderful he’d been and how badly she missed him. You never have these kinds of conversations in guy mode, so I knew I was back.

The next morning it was on to Durango!

(To be continued).

[kimdl93]

A few precarious moments, but fortunately coming out to your sister wasn't one of them! Hopefully she'll get to spend more time with Barb later on!

[Leah Lynn]

Barbara, that's an interesting story. I have done them all, including Wolf Creek Pass in an 18 wheeler, usually hauling steel or lumber. Once we took 550 from Montrose to Durango; I let my trainee drive.

Lori, back then I ALWAYS carried my flyrods in the truck. If I'd stopped at Silverthorne, I'd have hit the water.

Leah

[Persephone]

(Continued) I’d been looking forward to Durango since way before the trip began as I’d purchased tickets for the Durango-Silverton Narrow-gauge Steam Train, my first steam train ride en femme!

Tuesday morning we were up early so that all of us could get ready for the 8:30 train trip. By 8 a.m. we were gathering at the station with our fellow passengers. It was easy to feel the electric crackle of excitement in the air as everyone boarded the train. Our locomotive was #482, a K-36 2-8-2 with an incredible history.

I had originally hoped that it would be warmer and I had planned to wear a light t-shirt and a denim skirt, but the weather was rather chilly and I had to settle for jeans (sorry Karen!) and a hoodie over my t-shirt, along with a huge down coat.

The trip up the Animas Canyon, including a section of high line that clings to the side of the mountain about four hundred feet (122 m) above the Animas River, takes about 3-1/2 hours.


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There are a couple of hours for lunch and shopping in Silverton and then it is back down to Durango.

On the way up the three of us were seated in one of the enclosed cars where it was warmer. I had a lovely conversation with two women who were travelling together. They were dressed in matching blue tops with pink jackets. They told me that they are old friends, that one lives in Oklahoma, the other in Tennessee and that they get together a couple of times a year to travel. This time they were basically doing a road trip similar to ours but in the opposite direction.

On the way back my spouse and my sister remained in the enclosed car while I moved out to the open air gondola car so that I could take some video. While there I chatted with a lovely couple from the Netherlands who were enjoying a vacation in the American west.

The train trip and the visit to Silverton were enormous fun! Highly recommended!

Once the train returned to Silverton we visited the narrow-gauge museum that is across the tracks from the station. My sister and I took turns as engineer on the museum’s stationary #476, a K-28 2-8-2.


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The next morning we were back on the road, heading for Monument Valley.

Along the way we stopped at Four Corners, the spot where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah meet.

I took this picture as a tribute to Beverly Sims avatar, the one with her straddling the Prime Meridian. Four corners isn’t quite the Prime Meridian, but it is a lot closer to my home!


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While the actual Four Corners Monument appears to have been placed by others, the area surrounding it is part of the Navajo Nation, a semi-autonomous territory that covers 27,425 square miles (71,000 km), an area larger than over 100 of the world’s countries, that belongs to the Navajo people who refer to themselves as Dine (De-nay), “the people.” Within the Nation there are Navajo newspapers and radio stations. When we were there they were casting for the Navajo dubbing of the latest Star Trek movie.

Around the perimeter of the monument are Native American booths offering handmade souvenirs. We purchased a number of items from the wonderfully friendly vendors, including a sand painting for our son.

We would be spending the next few days in the Navajo Nation as Four Corners, Monument Valley, and much of the rest of the territory we were travelling through was all within it.

After our stop at Four Corners we went on to Goulding, Utah where we made camp for the night.

(To be continued).

[Persephone]

Part 4

(Continued) My spouse and I have always felt that Monument Valley, a Navajo Nation Tribal Park that is difficult to find on most maps, is one of the most beautiful and awe inspiring places on earth. So much so that we chose to spend our 30th Anniversary there several years ago. riding through the Valley at sunset on horseback.

Once, long before that, we’d first discovered this magical place when we took a wrong turn and ended up at the bottom of a dry river bed in The Valley, poised on the top of a dry waterfall in flash flood country as it started to rain.

And the fact that we almost got lost again added a certain sense of déjÃ* vu as we showed my sister The Valley. The trails, intended to be travelled with a Native American guide, are not always well marked and we became confused when a “one way” sign that appeared to head into the Valley had a guide vehicle coming out of it in the opposite direction.

After a couple of wild turnabouts in our Jeep the guide from that vehicle, a very handsome Navajo man, approached our Jeepload of three confused women. He asked if we were lost, suggested that he could provide us with a guide, and then directed us down the correct trail.

We stopped at one of the monumental rock formations known as the “Three Sisters,” positioned the camera on the hood of the Jeep, and took a picture together. At that moment we became even closer, referring to ourselves as “The Three Sisters.”


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We rode through The Valley at sunset, the most beautiful and photogenic moment of the day. Then, as shadows lengthened and The Valley turned dark, we headed back to supper in the motorhome.

The next morning we broke camp and headed down Navajo route 59 and Navajo route 7 to Canyon de Chelly National Monument. We visited Spider Rock, an incredible spire that ascends some 750 feet (229 m) from the Canyon floor. Spider Rock is the home of Spider Grandmother, the very powerful creator of the world and the sky, and the one who taught the Navajo people to weave.


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It was definitely warmer in Canyon de Chelly than it had been in the snowy mountains of Colorado, but we decided to continue to head further south in search of the mystical land of t-shirts, shorts, and capris.

The backroads of the Navajo Nation, Navajo route 15 and Navajo route 6 took us the a junction with I-40 just east of Holbrook, Arizona; the first interstate highway we’d been on since Boulder, Colorado several days before.

We drove west to just beyond Winslow, Arizona and camped for the night at the Meteor Crater RV Park.
(To be continued).

[kimdl93]

Great trip! As a devote Eagles fan, I have to ask if you stopped so you could say you were "standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona"?

[Persephone]

Great trip! As a devote Eagles fan, I have to ask if you stopped so you could say you were "standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona"?

We've definitely stood on the corner on previous visits. But it was night this time, everything was closed up in the corner area, and three women alone weren't about to go play on the corner.

Hugs,
Persephone.

[kimdl93]

Im sure that on previous occasions you were indeed such a fine sight to see!

[Persephone]

Part 5 - Finale

(Continued) After we set up we changed for dinner. Finally, a skirt and heels! After days of long-sleeves and puffy down jackets it felt so good!

Winslow is a small town, around 10,000 people, primarily made famous by the lyrics of The Eagles song “Take It Easy,”


“Well, I'm a standing on a corner
in Winslow, Arizona
and such a fine sight to see
It's a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed
Ford slowin' down to take a look at me
Come on, baby, don't say maybe
I gotta know if your sweet love is
gonna save me.”

But long before The Eagles were born there was a famous landmark in Winslow, La Posada.

La Posada was one of the jewels of the incredible Harvey House hotels and restaurants, a chain so famous that in 1946 MGM made a movie titled “The Harvey Girls (click here) (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038589/),” starring Judy Garland. If you’ve never heard of, nor read about, the Harvey Girls (click here) (http://paradise7.hubpages.com/hub/The-Harvey-Girls) and the Harvey Houses (click here) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Harvey_Company)you really should!

La Posada was designed by a famous woman architect of the early 1900’s, Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter. In addition to many facilities for the Fred Harvey Corporation, Mary Colter designed many of the buildings and structures at the Grand Canyon: the Hopi House, Hermit’s Rest, Lookout Studio, the Desert View Watchtower, Bright Angel Lodge, and the world famous Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the canyon.

Two Presidents have stayed at La Posada, as have many movie stars, The Earl of Sutherland, and
The Crown Prince of Japan.

Today, in addition to hotel facilities and an Amtrak station, La Posada has an excellent restaurant, The Turquoise Room, under the direction of Chef John Sharpe, and we had dinner reservations.

Dinner was wonderful! I had a platter of quail, elk, and bison, along with a glass of wine, my spouse enjoyed a chicken dish, and my sister had sautéed fresh local vegetables. For dessert we splurged and shared a rich chocolate lava cake.

The next morning we visited Meteor Crater, the World’s best preserved known meteor crater. Struck about 50,000 years ago by a meteorite about the size of a school bus, travelling about 26,000 miles an hour, the crater is 2.6 miles in circumference and currently more than 550 feet deep although it was probably a couple of hundred feet deeper at the impact.


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But we still wanted warmer! So we headed south another 150 miles to Mesa, Arizona where the daytime temperatures were in the 90’s F (32+ C). In ten days we’d gone from lows of 17 degrees (-8 C) to the 90’s! Like I wrote before, a girl has got to be ready for anything!

My spouse and I are frequent visitors to Mesa and we have many favorite places there. Our favorite RV park is Mesa Regal, a small “town” of over a thousand mobile home and RV sites that has its own live theater, dozens of social clubs, woodworking shop, quilting shop, lapidary, and more. We’re considering getting an annual site there.

Once parked and stabilized at Mesa Regal, we changed and took my sister to one of our favorite restaurants, Organ Stop Pizza. Organ Stop features what it claims is “The World’s Largest Wurlitzer Theater Pipe Organ” and, having seen a few of the largest Wurlitzers, I believe them. Four manuals, 23 ranks, nearly 6,000 pipes, and additional attached instruments such as xylophones, glockenspiels, drums, and pianos!

It is played nightly by a rotating set of organists including Charlie Balogh, Lew Williams, and occasionally Donna Parker. We’ve enjoyed performances by Charlie Balogh on previous visits, but this time was Lew Williams turn, and he is truly a magnificent organist!


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For the price of a pizza you can spend an entire evening enjoying the mighty Wurlitzer!

The next morning we returned to California, travelling from Mesa, AZ to Palm Springs where it was a balmy 104-degrees (40 C).

We arrived in Palm Desert about 5 p.m., parked, stabilized and hooked up the motorhome, and frantically started to get dressed as we had reservations for the fabulous Palm Springs Follies at 7 p.m. and had to pick up our tickets at will-call at 6:30, half an hour from our RV park!

Skirts, tops, curling irons, and makeup were flying through the air as three women maneuvered for sink and mirror space. At one point my sister proclaimed, “This is just like being back in the girl’s dorm in college!”

Finally the tumult subsided as we all finished dressing, raced into our towed car, and headed for The Follies!

Performed in the historic Plaza Theater in the heart of downtown Palm Springs, The Follies are an absolute hoot. A very well put together musical review with staging and costumes that can rival anything in Las Vegas.

Many of the dancers and performers are former Vegas showpeople, others are from Broadway, but The Follies has a unique twist – the youngest performers are in their 50’s and the oldest are in their 80’s!

You can see and read about the gentlemen of The Follies (click here) (http://www.psfollies.com/our-all-new-show/cast/the-gentlemen-of-the-follies/) and the incredible ladies of The Follies (click here) (http://www.psfollies.com/our-all-new-show/cast/the-long-legged-lovelies/).
It is a great, entertaining, show and a “must see” when visiting Palm Springs between September and May.

The night we were there Lesley Gore was headlining the show and I got to meet and chat with her afterwards!


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We had a casual late dinner at the Ruby’s Diner across the street from the theater.

Our trip was winding to a close. The next morning we headed back to Los Angeles, arriving in L.A. around 4:30 p.m.
We docked the motorhome in our side yard and once again went into “frantic girl’s dorm” mode at we had a final celebratory dinner scheduled for The Magic Castle at 6:30!


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A day later my sister headed back to her home. But every time we’ve talked in the past two weeks she’s raved about our wonderful adventure!

Hugs,
Persephone.

[Laura912]

You do seem to live an exciting and wonderful life. It is good that you can. The journey to this point probably was not as easy as your latest through Colorado despite the few mishaps along the way there.

[Bree Wagner]

Wow, awesome and harrowing travel Persephone! You really only get a window of July and August to be (almost) completely safe from the snow on the passes. That was quite the detour you were sent on, I'm glad you made it safely and enjoyed your Colorado adventure. So many great things to see and do here!

[Persephone]

Wow, awesome and harrowing travel Persephone! You really only get a window of July and August to be (almost) completely safe from the snow on the passes. That was quite the detour you were sent on, I'm glad you made it safely and enjoyed your Colorado adventure. So many great things to see and do here!

Colorado was magnificent! It was amazing to see the mountains, the valleys, and the people. Loved every minute of it (except the part of sliding into a snowdrift and ending up at an angle, looking out at the drop-off below)

Durango-Silverton was terrific! Would love to do some of the other narrow gauge steam trains in Colorado sometime. But I think it is going to be sometime in a month like July or August!

Hugs,
Persephone.

[BLUE ORCHID]

Hi Barbara, The Durango & Silverton RR was an awesome train ride I stayed in the open car for the whole trip
some times you couldn't see anything under the train but a couple hundred feet straight down.

I always thought the 4-corners was in the middle of town but it's just a few Indian souvenir stands.

[GaleWarning]

The night we were there Lesley Gore was headlining the show and I got to meet and chat with her afterwards!




I believe Lesley Gore passed away a few days ago.
Great singer!

[Persephone]

I believe Lesley Gore passed away a few days ago.
Great singer!

Do you have a source? Everything I just checked says she is alive and well with an upcoming concert schedule.

Hugs,
Persephone.

[GaleWarning]

Oh dear! I have goofed again! That's what happens when you don't pay attention when a DJ is waffling on.

He was interviewing Lesley (so she is definitely still with us) and she was telling him how she was offered the song "Groovy Kind of Love" but was forced to turn it down because her producer didn't want her to sing a song with the word groovy in it. And when you are a mere 16 years old it is very difficult to exert your own individuality on an adult.
(Harry Belafonte said that line)

I had her confused with the late Edeye Gorme (sp?).

But I still think Lesley Gore is a great singer.