The sun had already peeked over the mountains before I got up; however I was out walking by 7:25 so I’m pleased about that. I am striving to get back into my habit of daily walking...gotta get those steps!
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Exploring
Lincoln National Forest had been on our to-do list and today seemed as good a
day as any. However, spending the day
away from camp meant that we should really think about extending our stay
through Thursday night. We could play
today and then spend tomorrow afternoon/evening getting packed up so we could
pull out early Friday morning to get to Picacho. It’s about 400 miles away, can’t check-in at
the campground until after 1 p.m. and if we leave early enough it’s doable. We won’t be there by one but we can always do
late check-in if the office is closed.
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So today
was tagged as an adventuring day, Thursday packing day and Friday departure day.
Now that we had that all figured out we
were ready to head out. But first I
consulted with Marshal about the best route because they had done the same
thing about a month ago when they were in this area. We were heading for Bluff Springs so he told
us which route they took, some cool things along the way and what route NOT to
take back.
Marshal had warned us about the road....paved for a good portion then it
turned to dirt. But packed dirt...very
doable. And he was right it was very doable.
But what happened is that the annoying front end squeak/squeal that
developed yesterday but also went away yesterday reappeared when we got on the
dirt portion of the road. When it
happened yesterday Kim was fairly certain we had picked up a stone in the brakes
and was hopeful that it would dislodge.
There was no squealing today so it seemed he was right. Until we got onto the dirt portion of the
road to Bluff Springs, which isn’t a town but more of a pretty waterfall nature
spot way back in the forest. Anyway, soon
after the squeak reappeared so did a hot friction smell. Either of those things happening is not good
but there’s a lot more anxiety when you’re out in the middle of nowhere. Kim stopped to feel the calipers and the
right side was much hotter than it should be under normal conditions. Not good!
When
we hit pavement again the squeal disappeared but there was still an undesirable
rubbing noise coming from the right front of the truck. Soon that noise also disappeared and by the
time we stopped at The Apple Barn for a bathroom break the caliper was no
longer unusually hot. Instant relief for
both of us but we still had a problem to deal with. So we stopped and Kim made some phone calls
about repair costs, weighing that against buying the parts and doing it himself
either tonight or waiting until Picacho.
Brakes shoes and rotors were available at one shop but if a caliper
should be needed there were none in stock so Friday was a best bet scenario. Agh! Why can’t this be easy?
It
was a tough decision but Kim decided to call the shop and set up an appointment
for Friday. The shop suggested Thursday
afternoon figuring that the caliper would be delivered in time in case it was
needed. And we should still be able to leave on Friday. So yeah, today
was an adventuring day but not the kind we were expecting.
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At
about 5:30 p.m., my step count was sitting at about 9500. In an effort to get my steps in before dark I
figured a quick walk around the campground was in order. The sun was close to
sinking behind the San Andres Mountains when I headed out so I grabbed my
camera thinking it would fun to view the sunset from the same spot among the
petroglyphs as I had watched the sun rise yesterday. The petroglyph area closes at 5 but there’s no
gate preventing a visit to the rocks, just common sense about going up there in
the dark. I wasn’t going far along the
path and would be back down before long before last light so I hustled along
the path. My wrist vibrated with the
news that I reached 10,000 steps on my way there.
I’m
always amazed at how rapidly the sun can disappear from sight, whether it’s at
the horizon line at the beach or behind a mountain. One instant there’s a fiery ball that’s hard
to look and the next the ball is gone with just a reflective glow left behind. That glow is actually the sweet thing about
sunset because it spreads out and illuminates the landscape around it. From our
vantage point out here it gives an eerie look to the mountains to the east. The reverse happens during
sunrise...first there’s a glow which highlights the western mountains and then
boom! the sun is full on up and ready to do its thing.
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