“Papa was a rollin’ stone.
Wherever he laid his head was his home.”
~ Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong
I’ve stayed in two places this week. I started out just north of Snowbowl ski resort, which itself is just northwest of Flagstaff. I had a wonderful spot, except many, many people have had that same spot since the last rain (which I’m guessing was some months ago.) With all the foot, OHV, and camper traffic, it was a dustbowl. With my tendency for hyperbole, I’m sure many of you think this is an exaggeration, but I was in about a quarter acre of what could pass for brown baby powder. With each step I (or Cosmo) took, there was a poof of brown dust. I removed my flip flops before entering the van and I tried my best to wipe down Cosmo from knee/elbow to toenails, but 6 feet coming and going multiple times a day made the dirt just unbearable. On Sunday, we took a walk and found our old meadow spot open just a couple hundred yards up the dirt road. I packed up and moved. The road was still a field of Nestle’s Quik, but we pulled off onto (mostly) grass and got settled in. It was much less dusty.
The weather was mostly nice and cool with highs in the mid-70’s and lows down in the 40’s at night. The smoke from the many nearby fires subsided and the skies were clear most nights.
(Seeing the Milky Way just never gets old for me.)
We stayed until Wednesday. I had a package to pick up in Flagstaff, so I drove into town, got my package, picked up a few staples and treated myself to Thai food from my favorite restaurant in town. I decided to switch things up and go to Marshall Lake. I’d not been there yet this season, and fresh water was along the way (although my fresh water gauge has never worked since I got my van, I knew the tank was getting very low.) After topping off my tank, I drove on in bliss knowing all my errands were done for at least a week. I was daydreaming, and when I came back to reality, I realized I’d passed Marshall Lake about 3 miles back. I drove on to Ashurst Lake. My first three preferred spots were occupied, so I pulled into the 4th spot I like to camp in. If Ashurst Lake free camping was so full, I know Marshall Lake would have been much worse. I got fully set up—put up my awning, strung my solar lights, set up table and chair, put out my solar panels and cacti, and hung my flag on my antenna (I use it as a wind indicator) and hung Frank on the side of my van as well.
It’s been a while since I’ve done the full setup. Either the wind was too much or I seemed to be moving often. It was nice to have my awning and lights set up and the awning provided some shade for Cosmo so he could be outside in the hot weather this week (into the 90’s again.)
Lessons From The Road: I still find myself trying to define “home.” Perhaps I always will. In a broad sense, if I look up at the night sky and see any stars or planets I can recognize, I feel at home. Doubly so if I can see the Milky Way. On a more narrow level, I certainly feel more “home” when I’m in a place I know, near things I am familiar with. I get “itchy feet” during the summer, staying mostly between Flagstaff and Winslow, (Winslow has been out of the realm of possibilities so far this summer due to extreme heat) and after a week or 10 days, I’m ready to move. But this summer I’m not feeling particularly in the mood to explore new places. I’m much more likely to try to decide which familiar spot is nearby and suitable for the coming week. And even within those parts of a forest, I tend to try to find a spot that I stayed in previously that felt comfy.
Even Cosmo has a sense of this. I know he recognizes previous camps. Where we are set up currently in Ashurst Lake off Forest Rd 82, he always wants to go to the spot across the dirt road where EJ and his dog stayed last summer. He sniffs around and looks up as if wanting to know where they are. Cosmo has two (at least) phrases for home: He knows “To the Van.” I taught him that when I got the van. It was initially his emergency directive. If I see a snake, coyote or off-leash dog in the area, I can shout “to the van” and he immediately runs to, and hops in the van. If we are out on a walk, I can ask if he’s ready to “go home” and he quickly turns and takes the dirt path that will get us there the quickest. Sometimes, when he is outside, under the awning or under the van for shade, he seems extremely content to observe the world around him. I think he too may understand the broader meaning of “home.”
And finally…My happy songs of the week:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ytyzsAV4pxA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niuxr0QqMSg
That’s all I’ve got.
See you down the road,