Overland Expo at Mormon Lake

It's been a long time since I've updated our travel blog with our adventures.  About time I got back to it!
This past weekend we headed up to Mormon Lake, outside of Flagstaff, Arizona for the Overland Expo, an extravaganza of extreme trucks and campers for getting to far out places. Check out the pictures!  The orange one is an Element modified for camping.

monster camper

Element with hinged roof

Jeep with overhead tent

 A gathering of the the folks from the Truck Camper forum on RV.net were there and it was a chance to met up with everyone in person.  While I socialized, Mike put in miles hiking on the Arizona Trail.  He racked up 11.75 the first day and 11.9 the second, finishing the stretch in the area except for 2 miles that were closed for repairs.

Mike at Arizona Trail Pine Grove campground

 It was very windy during the day with no campfires allowed so we sat in a circle introducing ourselves while shivering from the cold.  That's me bundled up, two over from the folks under the blanket.

RV net group around campfire (from Jefe 4x4)

Our TC was cozy and warm the whole time.  It was neat that with all the outdoor enthusiasts gathered at the event, the evenings were very quiet.  No shouting or partying, no loud music or barking dogs.  I'm guessing there were a couple thousand people there during the weekend.  In addition to the TCs, there were lots of tent campers and motorcyclists.  It was good to get away for the weekend and enjoy this great state.

Natchez Trace

We're wandering back from the East Coast and today we came through Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi covering the entire Natchez Trace, 444 miles.  One long highway enclosed in trees that roughly follows the path of those who were returning on foot from a trip down the Mississippi River.  We took a short walk to a waterfall near where we started out in Tennessee and stole some shots of the cypress swamp in Mississippi.  Life is so good.

Rainy day in Balboa Park

We woke to rain this morning and I cajoled Mike into going to Balboa Park and visiting the museums.  We snagged the free ones on Tuesdays -- The Timken, the Museum of Art and the Mingei International museum. The Timken didn't allow pictures but has a website www.timkenmuseum.org where you can see what we saw.

The Mingei had a special exhibit of African American Quilts from the 1920's to the 70's. Some were a little odd but all hand quilted and pieced.

The Museum of Art had a special exhibit of Asian /India orginal art and many paintings from Spain and Italy.  Again no pictures.  We had lunch near the Museum of Photographic Art, yummy sandwiches on foccia bread with plenty of leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

The weather has started to clear up this evening and we're going to go out to eat on our last night here.  Here's a pic from the Botanical Building.  Home soon!