Lets go to the desert and shoot some guns

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There is nothing particularly spectacular about how we know Ian and Amanda Krekelberg other than the fact that until we met them last week I had only ever spoken to Ian on the phone a few times, about 5 years ago. But to be honest in this Facebook age that’s not unique for me nor unusual generally. We have kids of similar ages (although they have way more than us, 4 with #5 on the way!) and Ian and I share a liking for post apocalyptic novels – plenty of reason to ask to meet up. Once met we all got along and we stayed, once last weekend and returning this weekend for a couple of nights.

First we zoomed around a massive lake on jet-skis. And it was fun!!! Saguaro lake was beautiful and huge. Man made by the Stewart Mountain dam on the Salt River it is a great spot for bird and wildlife watching. A friend of the Kreklebergs took us out on his boat to explore the lake shores, spot some birds with the boys and chill out while Amanda looked after Orla. Then we ate Italian food and the kids played, it was great.

Ian on a jet ski

The beautiful mountains of Arizona as seen from Lake Saguaro

After our week in Canyon Country we headed south again to Mesa for some more American adventures. We had a campfire on Friday, complete with s’mores. It seemed like a great idea until we got it lit and realised that cooking on a fire when it’s alreay 100 degrees Fahrenheit out isn’t such fun… it’s more like fiery torture, literally “hellish”! But we did it none the less and the food was great. The kids slept well and we stayed up late playing board games after a spot of scorpion hunting with a UV light, as you do of an evening in Arizona.

Amanda’s parents live nearby and happen to have a pool so we headed for an afternoon in the pool with the kids. They loved it.

Fun in the pool with giant inflatable killer whales

Early evening and we were waiting for their brother in law to arrive with a suitable off road truck to negotiate the desert sufficiently to the spot where people go “to shoot stuff up”, ya know, TV sets stuff like that.

Me aiming at a clay pigeon with a shot gun. Admittedly I’m not great with a moving target and didn’t get a single one… Rob held it well for the Deans though

Guns really are not my thing. I’ve shot a rabbit on my land before and my husband has his license so we have guns at home but it’s nothing like this. They’re tools for controlling rabbit populations and so on. We eat what we kill and it’s a heavily legislated sport in the UK. I wasn’t going to go… but I was persuaded and figured it would make a good post. Also, Amanda was looking after the kids so it was our first opportunity for a couple of hours “off” together in two and a half months – too good to turn down!

I climbed up on Robs lap as the truck was just a front cab and there were four of us squeezing in along with the various guns and ammo. Eventually we arrived at a spot littered with shot up stuff and empty cartridges and shells. We set up the clay discs as targets and had a go…

Me firing a .40 calibre hand gun

Okay it was quite fun, although I did feel quite overwhelmed most of the time. I said “Blimey” almost every shot as the power nearly took me off my feet. My shoulder bruised from the shot gun and ears ringing we headed back satisfied that I had actually not only had I hit a few clays, they had exploded in a dramatic, satisfying and quite scary display of the guns immense power.

Rob with a .22 hand gun. Cowboy style!

In a brilliant end to the day which felt like a “day off” Amanda’s parents babysat while we went to a Teppanyaki/sushi restaurant with a comedy chef who threw fake eggs at us, made continuous jokes and flicked food in our mouths.

Our hilarious Teppanyaki Chef at Got Sushi, Mesa. We’re going to take the kids to a teppenyaki place soon, they’ll love the performance!

Fabulous sushi. We are getting used to the way they box up your left overs so we enjoyed this for breakfast on Sunday.

We may not have really known Ian and Amanda before we arrived in Mesa but we left having made good friends, or as all the children found easier to comprehend and determined to use, cousins!

Canyon Country Photos

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Here are the photos from the last week travelling through Arizona and Utah’s canyon country and the Navajo Nation.

For accompanying story behind the pictures see my last post Deserts deserts everywhere.

The start of the week was in Flagstaff where we visited the Lowell Observatory

The home of the telescope that discovered Pluto and the site where dark matter was first stumbled upon by accident!

And got to witness with expert commentary the rising of Earth’s shadow in the East as the sun set in the West.

waiting for the shadow to reach the horizon. You see how there is a point in the middle where the trees have no shadows… that’s directly opposite the sun setting behind us.

Earth’s shadow nearly full before dispersing into the dark night sky.

We moved onto the Grand Canyon, one of the seven wonders of the world.

There was a slight hazy in the air thanks to pollution from the west coast cities but it was an impressive sight none the less.

Us all at the Grand Canyon

We spotted a cow elk while there, just chilling in the shade

And strangers enjoyed Patrick’s very own Grand Canyon

We moved on through the desert and driving late we got to enjoy some spectacular sunsets over the next few nights

Desert Sunset over a vast landscape

The drive to Monument Valley was fantastic… just as imagined from films (picture at top) and we passed various interesting points

Mexican Hat rock in the Navajo Nation country

Delicate desert flowers in this harsh habitat

Team Dean at Monument Valley

Wild country at Monument Valley. A 4×4 is required for the 17 mile track.

We moved onto Bryce Canyon on Thursday. Now this may be a little controversial but I, personally, think that Bryce Canyon is a little bit more spectacular and special than the Grand Canyon. Yes, the Grand Canyon is vast on an almost unimaginable scale even when stood there looking at it but Bryce… well Bryce is eye poppingly, brain frazzlingly, skin tinglingly beautiful. It’s colours are more vibrant and it’s geology more unique and interesting… Well I think anyway. On top of there there is more wildlife easy to spot with fewer people and the subsequent need for less car parking and so on and due to the extreme conditions at Bryce the plants have adapted in fascinating and incredible ways. We spotted prairie dogs and chipmunks as well as various birds and interesting flora.

Bryce Canyon

The day was perfect for viewing the Canyon and there weren’t many people around

The boys looking over the edge at Bryce Canyon. There is a fair element of stress visiting canyons with such little children… we had Orla on a lead but the boys were hard to control at times!

Check out the roots on this tree. It’s incredible how they can adapt to thrive in these challenging positions

A tree which has grown twisted on the edge of the Canyon

Grottos are an interesting feature of the canyon edges

Even the road to Bryce Canyon, through mountains and little villages, offers impressive views and magical landscapes

Deserts deserts everywhere

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I’m skipping over last weekend as we are returning to the same place this weekend in Mesa, Arizona to stay with friends so will fill in on the whole Mesa section next week… that also, rather handily, catches me up to the hear and now. Funnily enough, almost all of the places I’ll tell you about now are not firsts for me… I did a similar trip in the South West in 1992 with my parents and siblings, I was 11 years old. The places haven’t changed in the slightest but my eyes and I certainly have!

On Sunday we headed to Flagstaff, ate Mexican food (rapidly becoming our mainstay cuisine) and checked into a place with a pool as the kids have been desperate for a swim for days now. Flagstaff is a cool place! Friendly people, great atmosphere, funky shops and views of snow capped mountains amid the wild west heat. But most of all Flagstaff has the Lowell Observatory. And the staff at the Lowell Observatory who are not only knowledgeable but capable of infusing you with their knowledge on a palatable level. Delightfully quirky and odd enough to satisfy ones desire to mingle occasionally with proper, intelligent scientist… Always an interesting, humbling and highly amusing experience for average folk like us.

On Monday we went first in the morning for a talk on the history and to learn about the discovery of Pluto. We were able to view the sun through a telescope with a special filter on and we could see the flares and spots. After a chilled out afternoon we returned to the Observatory for the evening events. A talk on our solar system and galaxy, an incredible up close look at the moon and the chance to view Jupiter through their scopes. An experience we hadn’t anticipated or ever even realised was an experience to be experienced was the watching of the Earth’s shadow rise in the East as the sun sets in the West.

The astronomer who talked us through this visual spectacle also knew plenty about the geology of the area and was able to tell us about the volcanoes that had created the landscape we were witnessing and explained how the rocks the boys were playing with on the floor (Earth shadow not being quite as interesting to them) was actually the same sort of rock as on the dark patches on the moon we had just looked at in the big telescope – how cool is that?!

On Tuesday we drove to the Grand Canyon. You’ve all seen pictures of the Grand Canyon but unless you see it for real it is near on impossible to imagine or describe the sheer vastness and beauty of the ancient and unique wonder of the world. It’s quite touristy though and I was glad not to be there at the height of summer.

After that we drove… and we drove… through painted deserts and the most incredible rock formations. It took hours and with zero reception or 4G on our phones we had no idea how far was left. Hoping to reach the four corners and find lodgings we stopped about 30 minutes west of our goal and asked in a shop (A random one by the road still open yet the first sign of life we had passed for maybe an hour) if there were lodgings where we were headed. And lucky we did! No, there was nothing that way for maybe an hour or more. We should head north to Bluff (a name which didn’t instil confidence in us at that time of night, particularly as it didn’t even show up on my phone’s map… local enjoyment back home of Porthemmet sprung to mind.

Thankfully Bluff existed and although both our lodgings and organic breakfast were somewhat over priced it was a nice place with clear artistic hippy appeal. The people were friendly and there was an infectious buzz around the tiny place in the middle of the desert. After our expensive but healthy breakfast we set off for Monument Valley, having taken the very sensible decision to give up on the four corners for now. Writing this now it seems incredible that it was just this morning – we cover such vast distances and our days are so long they seem to merge together, sleeps seem like naps and we’re off again.

Our car was wholly unsuitable for the full 17 miles of off road experience across the valley. A 4X4 is required and we didn’t fancy paying for the tours available for this – we have decided to save paid tours for wildlife specific experiences. The trading post and visitor centre is excellent though and I acquired a cowboy hat, photo to follow I promise.

Lunch was in a Navajo café in the next town along the highway. We picked well amongst the Macdonalds and Taco Bells, finding just about the only independent place still open in town. Sitting down to look at the options we were approached by the native American couple at the next table offering us a trade – our cute young boys for their teen age girl. We were tempted but alas they were joking. Ensued a conversation about where we were from and the hill they live on (I say hill… they pointed to it… I mean sheer cliff in the middle of the desert) and the sheep they graze on common tribal land. They recommended the best local dishes of fried bread with beef and mutton which we went with having glanced around the room to see that literally everyone was eating it too. We all shook hands and said goodbye… well, we all shook hands except Patrick, who in attempting a high five actually just chucked his massive glass of water across the room. The food was genuine and delicious.

And again we drove… and drove, weaving back and forth between Arizona and Utah. Just as you think the desert is so vast you can’t imagine it ending, so you’re starting to feel the reverse of claustrophobia from earth curvature views and skies broken only by occasional man made aeroplane trails – the only modern intrusion in this untouched scene – just as you wonder “how much further can this possibly continue”, despite the diversity of colour and rock and sand and plant. Suddenly it ends. Green appears across the sandy ground. Albeit a shrubby dry green. The sand and rock changes colour again to one we’ve not yet seen, a deep red/brown and the horizon is no longer broken by rugged, random and precarious rocks but instead by rolling hills and more gentle protrusions. There are still sharp ledges and sudden gorges, where dried river beds eagerly await the coming rains, but they are softened by the greenness. As I took a turn driving so Rob could have his daily nap I saw a cow licking a new born calf, always a magical sight.

It’s so late now, we are in a town called Kanab. The children are asleep and we need to get up early tomorrow to set off to Bryce Canyon before a particular road closes and blocks our route until lunchtime. I haven’t got time to transfer photos to the computer and process them for this post but tomorrow night I’ll do a photo post for you of the last few days.

From East to West – The Road Trip Days, Part 2

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Oklahoma to Mesa via Santa fe

The following morning seemed to drag also, due to various mishaps such as muffin mushed into carpet and painful splinters in feet requiring two man extraction. Plus the traffic around Oklahoma slowed down our pace. But our plan for the day was to drive… and drive we did. We detoured from the interstate at Elk City to drive across the Black Kettle National Grassland. Now these were country roads… Big skies, long empty roads and stunning views stretching for miles and miles.

Open views for miles and miles

By the afternoon the sky had interesting clouds though and we were mystified by the strange mists rolling around us blocking the views… Suddenly the “clouds” closed in and smelled of smoke… we were headed straight for a wild fire. The winds were picking up and an email arrived from a friend warning us of the tornadoes building in the area. Now quite honestly I’m all for a bit of excitement and extreme weather and were I not with my three small children and beloved husband I would be well up for sticking around in the thick of the action… but with our parental instincts kicking in with full force we were driving on adrenaline to get the hell out of there!

The smoke was closing in and getting thick

A sheriff come in the opposite direction and turned us around away from the fire. Following her directions to safety we relaxed until the moment the wind made a dramatic change in direction, the smoke thickened and we realised this way was even worse… so did everyone else and trucks, cars and bikes started turning around as three fire engines with gas masked men on the front wizzed past, lights flashing and sirens blaring.

The fire engines had wizzed past and we decided to head the other way

Detouring again down dirt tracks we managed to put some distance between us and the smoke and finally came across a small town with a Subway for some sandwiches, as our picnic plans were somewhat scuppered by the extreme weather. From the car to the door was treacherous with strong winds which nearly picked feather light Patrick off the floor. We ate and we drove… and we put as much distance as we could between our children and the dangers we simply aren’t accustomed to.

We put some distance between us and the fire as quick as we could!

A beautiful sunset and clear interstate got us to New Mexico and we stopped for the night at Santa Rosa, transferring sleeping babies straight to their beds. Far more efficiently we rose, had a quick breakfast and hit the road, making it to Santa fe by mid-morning for a fantastic brunch. Santa fe is an interesting place. It’s hard to remember you’re still in America feeling far more Spanish/Mexican. Stunning art and crafts line the streets and the wealth of the area seems to seep through the side walks adding glamour to your steps.

Santa fe is a beautiful city. Even the drive to get there is stunning with the snow capped mountains of New Mexico towering over the desert

A city for hippies and artists we didn’t spend long with the children but is definitely on my list of places to return to in the future with adult only company. It’s beautiful, romantic and exciting. After the delicious food we wandered back to the car peering into the pricey shop windows wowing at the cowboy boots and massive diamonds and set off again to reach Mesa by nightfall. It was a long drive but it was fun and we made another detour once we reached Arizona.

The Painted Desert within the Petrified Forest National Park. The colours are from various geological periods with gaps from erosion between vast time frames.

The Petrified Forest National Park, an incredible desert landscape with fascinating geology spanning almost unfathomable periods of time and littered with trees so old they have turned to stone. It’s hard to get your head around the process of wood being changed into stone and yet retaining it’s fine detail, character and appearance. More than just retaining such detail it is enhanced with vibrant crystal colours and a texture which is difficult to process when your eyes see trees but your fingers feel rocks. It’s hard to picture the forest that once was in this barren, Mars like landscape but the evidence is there, fossilised and palatable and so real to the naked eye and fingers.

The Petrified Forest National Park… fossils like you’ve never seen before.

The kids have been great, looking out and discussing the landscape. Although there have been plenty of rows over toy guns and catapults, goodness knows how many toilet stops and far more hours watching films then I would ever have thought I would allow. Rob and I have been listening to the audio-book of The Earth Abides, at the start of which he completes the same road trip in reverse – it’s passed many hours and complemented the landscape with apocalyptic loneliness we both love to imagine.

From East to West – The Road Trip Days, Part 1

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Memphis to Oklahoma

From New Orleans in Louisiana to Mesa, Arizona with various detours has taken us about 2,500 miles across this vast continent. Very little time has been spare for such matters as blogging so I’ve got rather a lot to fill you in with now, from my room in Flagstaff while the other four members of Team Dean sleep quietly around me.

We bounced into Memphis and it was sooo cool! Sadly the Civil Rights Museum was just closing when we arrived but they have a fantastic interpretation display outside the incredibly persevered Lorraine Motel, where Dr Martin Luther King was assassinated. It’s a truly humbling experience and we used it as an opportunity to discuss race issues and inequality with Alfie… a little beyond him I know but good to introduce young in my view… lest we forget.

Standing in front of the Lorraine Motel is a humbling experience. An opportunity to reflect on our history, mistakes and hope for the future.

If you’re going to visit Graceland then check into the Days Inn across the street. It’s cheap and totally what you would expect from a hotel next door to Elvis’ place. With a guitar shaped pool and tacky memorabilia everywhere you get the chance to meet all the other real life pilgrims making their way to this iconic, bordering on ironic, place.

The guitar pool at Days Inn, Memphis. It was freezing but Alfie braved it and jumped in.

Graceland is unexplainable and quite honestly I don’t want to attempt it as you need to visit this place for yourself. We aren’t particular fans of Elvis, which admittedly resulted in us feeling somewhat like frauds or fakes amongst the silver haired worshippers, who needed to don their reading glasses every time we changed the number on our audio tour gadgets. The children were under stricked instructions not to ask who Elvis was whilst there. We had tested them repeatedly with the various Elvis pictures in the hotel room the night before but alas, by the morning they had forgotten and we were nervous of being caught out as intruders.

Graceland, surprisingly understated and homely.

Tickets to Graceland… keepers for the scrap book!

It really didn’t matter though. That place is spectacular! The house is uber cool with it’s mirrored ceilinged TV room, the Jungle room and the humble kitchen and sitting room. It’s a home. And it’s a reflection of the man, undoubtedly an interesting character regardless of personal favour for his music. If you do find yourself making the journey one day then definitely get the ticket to the aeroplane and car museum too… They were so fun. His private jet, bigger than many a house with it’s bedroom, dinning room, bathrooms, sitting rooms, all complete with gold plated seat belt buckles is like a dream, it doesn’t seem real, except you can walk through it and touch it and it is real. The car museum is a super fun time machine housing the most spectacular vintage vehicles from pink Cadillacs to toy snow mobiles altered to run on grass, Ferrari’s to a John Deere tractor – That man enjoyed his toys!

Inside Graceland

Elvis’s toys. His plane, Lisa-Marie and a few of his cars

We had really hoped to visit the Sun Studios but sadly children under 6 aren’t allowed in so it was off the agenda for us and by lunchtime we were crossing the Mississippi into Arkansas. A quick flick through the Rough Guide I’m increasingly relying on these days and we were detouring off the interstate down to a town called Hot Springs to visit the Fordyce Bathhouse, a Victorian spa. It was pretty fascinating to see the old tubs and it’s been impressively persevered. The town was a quirky place, long past it’s hey day when the rich and famous flocked there for it’s waters. It reminded me very much of Matlock Baths in Derbyshire, in as much as it was a Victorian holiday town struggling to maintain it’s tourism, encouraging the motorcyclists and hippies who naturally came for it’s surrounding beauty… I liked it! I didn’t like the revolting meal we attempted to eat at a little café there, ergh… shudder. That’s the last time I order Gumbo outside of New Orleans!

The gym at the spa reminded me of my days at a convent school with much of the same Victorian equipment, probably still in use now!

We decided to press on after dinner and drive as far as we could. With a film on for the kids and full tummies we made it past Fort Smith and stopped further down interstate ready for an early start the next day.

The early start didn’t seem to happen quite right though. We got up early enough and realised that we had paid as much for a room with no wifi or breakfast as we had the night before for both plus board – a rookie mistake we won’t make again. I scouted out the gas station opposite for sustainable and to improve the mood of the children but alas it was poor pickings. We packed up and headed for the Interstate, hopeful that the next junction or so would offer more appealing options. It did. We found a fantastic little diner, kitted out in true Route 66 funky glory… and then waited for what seemed like forever for the chef to cook a couple of eggs and some slices of toast! Man it took ages… by the time we set off again it was mid morning and we felt frustrated, vowing only to stay places where breakfast can be swiftly dealt with in our own time frame.

No breakfast served here!

Pressing on to Wednesday’s detour we headed North of the interstate, now in the state of Oklahoma. This beautiful dive took us closer to the Great Plains and we arrived at Woolaroc after lunch. There was a fun play park for the kids to burn some energy and there was what must surely be the most impressive museum and art gallery in this region of the States. The paintings and sculptures were utterly captivating and despite Patrick’s best efforts to ruin this little excursion (I’m sure they have an organised rota for their turns at being utter monsters) Alfie, Rob and I learned lots about the Native American history in the region from the fascinating artefacts and accompanying interpretation. If you are even vaguely near this place then detour to it.

From top left, An Indian headdress, Stone axes, a fire drill and shrunken heads – warrior trophies!

We left after ice lollies and pressed South again to the interstate, stopping my a creek to get the kids into pyjama’s and making a cup of tea on the stove so as to drive on later and make some miles up around Oklahoma City. We made it to the edge of the city to a room with Wifi and breakfast. I did a couple of hours of work and slept well.

Sugar Slaves, Swamps and Coca Cola

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“She had the idea that, as slaves were expensive, she would grow her own. She went to the market and bought five men and twenty women. Within ten years she had her first crop of young slaves.”

“If their daughter was to run the plantation as it’s president then she must be talented, accomplished and above all, beautiful. When she was 15 years old she broke out in acne. Distraught, her mother found out about a ground breaking new treatment in Paris for acne and so they sent their young daughter over seas to receive it. The marvellous French doctor injected her with the wondrous treatment – whatever it was – the single dose killed her”.

The Laura Plantation had a powerful impact on me… I’m still digesting and trying to manage my frustration and anger that in the last two hundred or so years we really haven’t progressed enough. The first story may not be common place these days although it still happens, it is thankfully considered abominable by all but the very worst sort of humans imaginable… but the later, well, it’s more common now than ever. It’s bordering on the norm in first world countries and is actively encouraged by most facets of society. Anyway, not wishing to linger on such odious topics I shall move on.

The Creole House at the Laura Plantation

The following day we had booked a swamp tour with Pearl River Eco Tours on their 6 man boat. Despite Orla’s impressive effort to absolutely ruin it we had an incredible time. Up close with alligators we had a wonderfully knowledgeable Cajun guide whose love and passion for the Louisiana swamps was both infectious and satisfying. I had hoped for better pictures but am actually very happy with these knowing full well how hard it was to take them. Not just in a swaying boat but one handed while my legs engulfed Orla, preventing her determined attempts to dive into the alligator infested waters and my other hand was continuously stuffing snacks into her unbelievably loud and aggressive mouth – jaws like a snapping turtle I swear!

An alligator silently moving through the water

A monster of an alligator lurking in a pond. They are so well camouflaged it’s amazing.

A little warbler in the swamp

This boat was carried 20 miles by hurricane Katrina before being deposited here where is it now home to a host of turtles, birds and other inhabitants. The swamps are so beautiful, peaceful and intriguing habitats. I’ve never been in a swamp before but I definitely want to explore more of them, and in greater depth in the future.

The power of Katrina, this boat was brought to rest from 20 miles away!

The swamp. An oozingly beautiful and ancient habitat with thousand year old trees dripping in lichen. Utterly still and peaceful, luckily this was the one part of the tour Orla was quiet and calm for… I’m grateful for that.

After the swamp tour and an incredible Cajun feast nearby we pressed northward again. I rapidly got bored of the interstate and frustrated that we were probably missing out on far more interesting places on the slower roads running parallel. So we detoured and ended up in the wonderful town of Vicksburg. Not only does it boast an incredible position towering over the Mississippi River but the result of it’s position means it has a rich history of Civil War battles. The old part of the town has been beautifully preserved and strolling along the sun warmed streets infused with jazz music from secret flowerbed speakers we decided interstate detours are going to be an essential part of our planning from now on!

It’s seat above the Mighty Mississippi

Interesting architecture in Vicksburg makes for a beautiful historic town

The classic American façade.

The next morning we visited the Biedenharn Coca-Cola Museum where the world best known brand was first bottled. Being the mean sort of parents that we are two of our three children had never tried Coke before and Alfie only had when he went out with someone else’s parents and got bought some! So we decided that it was time they tried some of the iconic tonic – plus we wanted some and it seemed a little too unfair not to let them have some too. Rob and I tried the original sugar cane type and the kids got the modern syrup made sort.

Coca Cola was first bottled in Vicksburg in 1894

You got to get a bottle of Coke after looking around the museum… it would be wrong not to!

Patrick trying his first bottle of Coca-Cola

Orla polished off the bottle, Patrick had most of one until a burp came out his nose, made his eyes water and shocked him into a strange fear of the fizz, and Alfie enjoyed the first few swigs but like his mother isn’t much of a soda pop fan anyway – we both passed ours over to Rob to finish off and we all burped our way back to the car for the next leg of the Journey… bouncing our way into Graceland, Graceland, Memphis Tennessee… Poor boys and pilgrims and families (that’s us), we’re all going to Graceland.

Rain in New Orleans

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Leaving Virginia on Thursday morning, we were a little sad to say goodbye to the friends we had made there but excited to move on, particularly to the warmth of the South. Eight hours of intense travel saw us leave the state of Virginia, cross right across Tennessee, cut the corner of Georgia, traverse the whole of Alabama and arrive in Mississippi in the evening. We found a decent budget hotel which exceeded expectations and slept well, although not for as long as desired due to the time zone change in Alabama meaning the kids woke an hour earlier.

After a surprisingly good breakfast included in the price we set off again for New Orleans and at this point our phones started alarming with warnings of extreme weather and flash flooding. The rain came and went but when it came it really seriously came, heavier than I think either of us have seen before. Cautiously we pressed on observing that no one around us seemed phased by the weather other than, thankfully, leaving a little longer stopping distances so for a change.

As we arrived in New Orleans the weather served to add to the apocalyptic appearance of the city outskirts. Greenery infringes everywhere and people look like they are loosing the battle, or have accepted their place and embraced the look perhaps? That changes as you get into the city centre but not a lot. It adds a fragile beauty to the man made structures which appealed to us outdoorsy types and an intriguing appeal to explore. I felt like I was walking amongst the pages of novels, although the pouring rain helped keep me in reality. We got soaked!

Lunch was at a funky restaurant in the French Quarter sampling as much local Creole cuisine as possible including Jambalaya and Gumbo along with fried alligator, crawfish and catfish. Stuffed full we wandered around the dripping wet streets, Patrick danced in giant puddles determined to get as wet as possible, and we dashed over well used tram tracks to see the great Mississippi River with it’s paddle boats heading off playing jolly tunes with a steam organ.

We had hoped to stay in New Orleans so that we could experience some Jazz and soak up the evening atmosphere but it turns out you need to book! Pretty much all year round too. There isn’t a specific event on this weekend but literally everywhere was full so we headed back to the suburbs and found a Holiday Inn with a pool for the kids, which they loved. Today we are heading to a Plantation to learn about the history of the area and it’s slave foundations. Tomorrow we have a swamp wildlife adventure planned before moving on for the 25 hours of West bound travel.

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Life in the Airstream

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We’ve had lots of requests for pictures of life in the Airstream… keen as ever to oblige my loyal readers here are some pictures of our days at Swinging Bridge Farm.

Breakfast time, having put our bed away

The view the other way

A jigsaw before bed

Bed time for the children

Our bed involves putting the table away and stretching out the sofa

Painting on a rainy day

Alfie milking Meadow the Jersey cow

A cup of tea on the campfire, with our Lazy Pond mugs and milk fresh from Meadow

Simple living

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I’ve taken to hand washing our clothes. Our host is more than happy for us to use their super giant washing machine but with the lovely weather we’ve been having and the washing line Alfie made for me in the tree outside the Airsteam I’ve been enjoying doing this basic yet essential task without modern conveniences.

It also sets a good example for the boys, letting them see that there are other ways of doing things… Alternatives which can actually be enjoyable.

A friend of mine once commented that she couldn’t understand why we would want to try using flint tools when we have modern steel knives and so on. Whereas I couldn’t understand her inability to understand… It’s what bushcraft is all about, being able to live, in relative comfort with just the natural resources we have around us.

And the boys have certainly been embracing the natural resources around us to get stuck into some bushcraft. We built a den, we dragged fallen trees from the woods for the fire, we collected kindling and tinder and all the while I heard “Ray Mears would like this den, Ray Mears would think this was a well prepared fire, Ray Mears uses his saw like this, doesn’t he mum!”

The boys collecting firewood and kindling from the woods behind the Airstream

Alfie constructing his shelter.

Not exactly rain proof but a good wind break!

A well prepared fire with tinder, kindling, larger sticks and the logs just out of view… not sure what the shovel was for or the sunglasses and wellies?

Sawing safely

Now I’m not sure we are quite at the “Den suitable for sleeping in” stage with this but for two boys aged 6 and 3, yes, Ray Mears probably would like this den. And preparing a fire properly was a key goal for Alfie who is prone to rushing to the lighting stage so he’s doing really well making sure he has it all ready first now. It’s hard for Alfie to use his saw with his left arm crossed over because his arms are still kind of short but he’s certainly practising and keen to learn the proper, safe techniques for these skills. We’ve started Patrick on “carving” sticks with a vegetable peeler which is safer for his stage and a great tip for parents wanting to get their kids into safe knife use, helping them gain control of tools and learn safety techniques like “elbows on knees”.

So our days have been full of fun, tracking deer through the forest, cooking on the campfire and spotting bald eagles… It’s amazing!

Let me paint you a picture

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Meadow wouldn’t move. It was just after 9 am and Rob and the kids were listening to Derby versus Forest, which, bizarrely, is easier to listen to in the depths in the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia than it is to pick up in Cornwall. I had collected the metal milk bucket and soapy water to wash her udder with and left them in the barn, now all I needed was Meadow to plod serenely ahead of me into the stall as she does each morning without question. This morning she wouldn’t budge. I sighed and turned around to give her minute more chewing the cud… And there they were… An adult bald eagle and a young one!

They swooped silently into my view and the adult landed on the grassy bank opposite me. Far less graceful on the ground I wondered if there was a reason for her landing there so I crept forward trying not to disturb her yet aware that she knew exactly where I was. She called out to her young eagle and he flew down next to her… They were eating! Pulling the dead creature apart into strips, I couldn’t see what it was but hoped it wasn’t one of the chickens providing our eggs at the moment.

Utterly spell bound I watched for 20 or so minutes as the adult took a seat on a high branch above the river and watched as it’s successful offspring enjoyed his new wings, flying back and forth along the river. Then in came another infant. Two baby bald eagles after a harsh winter, how wonderful! Well done you magnificent bird.

I’d been watching for a while and the Adult eagle knew I was there so I decided to try creeping through the gate in the hope of the clearest view a few feet away. From the mass of trees on the slope opposite me a second adult appears and let the first one know it was time to go, perhaps I got a little too close.

A family of four right here on the river! Tingling with the excitement of what I had just had the once in a lifetime opportunity to witness I went to milk Meadow, who happily walked with me to the barn to be relieved of the two and a half gallons of milk in her udder.

I felt like I was in my very own nature programme, living the dream.

Oh and the Bald Eagle’s Barmy Army won 5-0!

To see a short video I took of the eagles follow me on Facebook Adventures of Muma Dean