Georgia O’Keefe in Abiquiu, NM

My Rio Chama river Boondocking camp has come to an end come, I headed on to Abiquiu, which was just down the road. It was interesting seeing and watching the switchback road as I climbed up to the top of the dam. It was an easy drive to get into Abiquiu where I found Georgia O’Keeffe’s home. But I had to go onto the welcome center to arrange a tour. I was rather surprised by the surroundings, as they seem incredibly poor and dalapitaded. I was hoping for a little more of an upscale environment in an area surrounding Georgia O’Keeffe’s home. Unfortunately the timing was off and they were three days out for a tour. I asked about being on the waitlist, and I could be, for the day, but I’d have to wait around. So while looking over the exhibits, I overheard a phone call which sounded like someone had to cancel the 9 AM tour. I jumped right in and asked if I could be the wait list for the tour, and yes, I was so, whoa!!!… so within five minutes I was on the tour to Georgia O’Keeffe’s home. How lucky is that?


The one and a half hour tour was amazing with details about her life here in Abiquiu that were not readily shared at the ghost ranch. Our guide was a teacher in fine arts, for 24 years, and very knowledgeable. I didn’t know that Georgia had segwayed into clay during her 80s, when she acquired macular degeneration in her vision. I was left with chills over what was talked about with her transition to clay as well as seeing where she lived in her last years. She lived in this home during the winter and spring months, and up at Ghost Ranch in the summer and fall. Primarily because of the weather and the muddy roads at Ghost Ranch would make it impossible for travel. I’m so glad I got to take advantage of this tour and parked the Sylver Gypsy in the shade where I hoped that Jo Jo would be safe and sound. I made it to the town of Espinola for a stop at CVS to pick up prescriptions, which of course were not ready at all. However they were quite accommodating and it didn’t take long to get them. Once I got out to the RV I took Jo Jo for a quick little urban walk and couldn’t help but notice that a bracket seem to be dislodged under the RV. Yes the main bracket, almost 3 feet long was just suspended in mid air, I had lost the J bracket to support this bracket to the black tank sewer.  I wired up the support, and immediately drove to Lowe’s where, unsuccessfully, the clerk steered me down towards buying an anchor bolt, suggesting I use an anvil and torch to shape it into the J shape that I needed. That was not about to happen, but I randomly sifted  through the options, and found an eyebolt in stainless steel. I took every size gradated screwdriver and managed to open up the high eyebolt to a J so I could slip it in and connect the bracket. It seems to work as I bought not only one nut but a locking nut, double reinforced. I felt very accomplished and how sweet the people on Facebook through the Travato owners and wannabes who gave me kudos for being so good at improvising. I didn’t make it to my destination, but I was able to arrange a close by harvest host at a winery where I sat down and had a well-deserved glass of wine!































Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bryce Canyon National Park, then almost home

Image
​ A great night in the Utah desert, and a rather chilly morning, surprisingly, but I got up and hurried out of there with the intention of getting to Bryce Canyon National Park. I wondered if I would have enough time and decided it was only 20 minutes one-way, out-of-the-way as I continued on my route home. This would be my third time visiting Bryce and I’m so glad I did. As with any National Park, there are some new changes and the Ranger told me that because I’m over 20 feet I would have to park in the main parking lot and take the shuttle bus in to see the viewpoints. She gave me a tag to hang in my window. My heart sank to the bottom, since I know the shuttle buses will not except pets, and I was not willing to leave Jo Jo. However, upon examining the tag, it indicated vehicles over 23 feet to park and shuttle. My Travato is 21 feet. Hmmmm, I was annoyed. So I ignored the directions and went straight to the parking area at the sunrise amphitheater and not only did I see other campe...
Read more

At home now… from the great 2023 Alaska Road Trip!

Image
​ Jo Jo and I are home, from the trip of a lifetime! 106 days, 11,539 miles, 675 gallons of gasoline, a ton of fun, beautiful views, and amazing experiences. Other than a brief head cold, no other mishaps, except my souvenir windshield chips. The Sylver Gypsy performed wonderfully. She kept me safe and warm. My last days were drive heavy, but I managed a quick stop at Bryce Canyon National Park. My last night was in the Coconino Forest near Flagstaff, where I also made a brief stop at Sunset Crater. I’ll need a few moments to adjust being back to reality, but it’s nice to be home!
Read more

Montana to Blackfoot, Idaho

Image
​ Well, other than spending the day driving I didn’t do much else. Unless you consider the excitement of filling up my gas tank for $80.00. It’s the first time in a long time when I looked down I saw my gauge in the red and the yellow warning light came on indicating low fuel. I never do these things, but I must’ve been in “the zone” while driving. Either way, I made it to the next gas station and I also have 2 gallons as a spare mounted to my ladder. I wound up staying in the same place that I stopped in May, as I was traveling up north. It’s Rose Pond Park near the town of Blackfoot, Idaho. I even recall exactly where I stayed and it was open and available. However, there was a radio concert going on right around the corner. I wasn’t into listening to the “boom boom.” I found another spot just as a truck came with three ATV, mini bikes and kids who spent the next two hours driving around, mostly in the parking lot. I was actually concerned that they would come by too closely or lose ...
Read more