Leaving Denver for Wyoming

We did not even spend a night in Denver. Since we met the early morning appointment for the tires, we got the sheep skins in the early afternoon and got out of Denver before rush hour traffic. Back up I-25 toward Broomfield and parts north. We had another possible stop. 

The stop was supposed to be for a road worthy item we researched, the Airtab. These are devices attached to to the rear outline of any kind of trailer or RV to increase aerodynamics http://www.airtab.com/what.html. The Airtabs create a vortex of air behind the vehicle in order to reduce wind resistance. We were really sold on these until we started the drive to Alaska. With the trailer fully loaded, our speed was so diminished that we could not believe anything would improve our gas mileage (except a truck that could carry us the whole way!) Through the Airtab website, we found a dealer in the Denver area and had contacted him for a meeting. Unfortunately for the distributor, we did not follow through with that meeting. Due to our laden trailer, our speed was much reduced in order to attempt to maintain reasonable gas mileage. The Airtabs would have taken several trips of our magnitude to pay themselves off, the expense was not one we felt we could make at the time. We were destined to drive slow. 

In the phone conversation with the distributor, when he heard we would be in the area, he recommended a stop at Johnson’s Corner for their world famous cinnamon rolls. As a nice treat for the beginning of our next leg of driving, we could not pass up the prospect of delicious cinnamon rolls. We stopped at Johnson’s Corner just before sunset http://www.johnsonscorner.com/ . This is definitely a world famous truck stop. It was opened by an insightful entrepreneur who knew the impending highway development destined him to be highly successful. As for the cinnamon rolls, I would not exactly say they were worth the stop. This review is for my culinary friends and foodies. Saying these were good cinnamon rolls is like saying Taco Bell has good Mexican food. Yes, the rolls were as big as a plate, but size will not make up for lack of taste, texture, or satisfaction. Johnson’s Corner is a must stop for historical measures and classic comfort food dining spot once you are out of Denver. A big plus is the business is open 24/7, a luxury for road-trippers. But for the cinnamon rolls, I think not. 

With our bellies full, we were then off to Cheyenne. Being evening, we did not want to try to find a place to stay too late at night. We stopped in Fort Collins which would enable us to hit the city early in the morning. Ken had luck in the past with Motel 6’s being affordable and decent. Our fist few choices of them were rather lackluster. Motel 6 has been renovating their motels in the past few years and we did find a nice one last month on our trip to Corpus Christi. However, the selection in Fort Collins was disappointing. The first clue was the night clerk being behind bullet proof glass. Then the room, omg it was nasty and still not worth the low price. We checked the GPS for others in the area and found a La Quinta close by running a special. It was well worth it, a few dollars more but much nicer room. Usually on road trips, I would stop at every motel to ask prices. Here we learned to call ahead, and in the case of Motel 6, to ask if the rooms had been renovated. One point in the Magellan plus column-still not outweighing the closed businesses it took me to in Wichita (which had been closed well over two years).

Heading into Denver

Our fist stop was planned for Denver, Colorado where we could purchase snow tires for the rig. I purchased the car in Austin, Texas and fat chance trying to find foul weather tires in central Texas. The original plan was to try and find them in Wichita, Kansas–being a state that experiences extremes in weather. Well, tires are expensive as we all know. Tires that have to be ordered are usually a bit more expensive. We were unable to find the tire of our choice without ordering it in Wichita. So, we looked ahead to the next possible source. 

We approached Denver as the sun was rising, it was a beautiful morning. I-70 turns in due west giving us a clear vista of the Colorado plains flowing up to the Rocky Mountains. The mountains had the first dusting of snow on the ridges which appeared close enough to touch due to the sparkling clear sky. The atmosphere was beautiful rich pink gradating to blue higher in the sky due to the low morning sun. It looked like a reverse sunset with the color to the west as opposed to east for sunrise. Seeing a sharp change in elevation was such a treat for us after living in the flatness of Kansas for our interim period. 

Denver, being a large city and in another state known for snow, had the tires we wanted. Ken researched the model most recommended and even referred to the testing of tires in Consumer Reports. Great resource for testing! http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/index.htm Ken is an avid fan. He arranged for purchase of the selected all weather Michelin tires from Costco. We scheduled installation for Friday the 4th and arrived when the store opened. Thanks dad for financing this purchase!

I know a lot of you are thinking one of two things: 1) wow, they are driving a Lexus, is it four wheel drive? or 2) wow, they are driving a Lexus, built-in GPS and seat heaters? The answer to 1 is, no, it is not four wheel drive and it is not necessary. Actually, the front wheel drive is better for our condition. As for number 2, no built in GPS, we are using a Magellen which does not always have the right answers, best route, and leads us to closed down businesses. Now on to my next winter purchase, sheep skin seat covers since no, my Lexus does not have heated seats. 

I figured that Colorado being a cold state and Denver being a big city, there should be a great selection of sheep skin seat covers. I had searched the internet and around Wichita of course. Again, this is an item that could have been ordered, however, we did not know how long we were going to stay in Wichita. No problem, I figured the more we drove north, the more opportunities I would have to find sheep skin. How lucky is this that in the first city we stop, there is a great custom sheep skin store that crafts seat covers, shoes, pelts, baby items and more. The Sheep Skin Factory was a wonderful find http://www.sheepskinfactory.com/index.cfm Not only did they have covers to fit my seats, but the Factory would custom install them too, WHILE I WAITED! How awesome this was. Installation in my car was not the easiest due to the electric seats but the task was done while Ken and I walked across the street to have lunch. I was so pleased with the fit and color and really great price. The covers where considerably less than prices online. With the additional complication of install, I was very happy! Before these, I was sitting on a beach towel because to me the leather seats are hot in the summer and cold in winter. Now my behind will be happy in the Alaska hinterlands!

Departure Day, out of Transition, into Transport

Actual date: November 3, 2010

With no more reasons to delay our move to Alaska, other than that cute baby boy, Ken and I decided November 3 was the day to leave. We had ruled out looking for any more gear in Wichita, we had exhausted all resources. We had shipped, and shipped, and shipped boxes even up to the day before. We had packed and repacked boxes and belongings to leave in the basement. I had been careful to put plastic boxes or as much on the tops of shelves as possible that could handle a water line break if something should occur. I also positioned plastic boxes on the floor should the basement leak due to heavy rain. It was not all perfect, but the best I could do. 

The paperwork we purged was burned with the brush burn pile on non-windy days (few and far between in Kansas). The car and trailer had been driven around town, tested, leveled, weighed, and retested. It needed the long trip for real testing now. 

It was a hard decision to leave my sister’s home in Wichita. I love my sister and her family, but Wichita is not where Ken and I want to settle right now. (Besides, we hope they will move to Alaska in the future too!) Deciding on which day of the week to leave was even hard. We had made several deadlines in the past to leave, but three or four came and went and we remained stuck. So my sister had become jaded to our really leaving. I said goodbye to her every day as if it were real. Tonight it would be. She works the second shift, going in at 3pm. We should have been on the road in the morning, and ideally that is what any smart road tripper would do. But sometimes you just have to leave when you are ready. Today that meant tonight. 

Curtis was so nice and fatherly. He approved of our massive equalizing hitch for a 3,000 pound load. He gave us an extra set of tire chains he was not using since they did not fit any of his vehicles. They were brand new too!!! Thanks Curtis. And best of all he made us dinner, he said he could not let us go on an empty stomach. Yum! Baby Andrew ate with us, oh he is a cutie pie! Can you tell I love this baby! We really tried to stash him in the trailer, or leave on a day both parents were gone, but I know my sister would have hunted us down and hurt us. wha! 

After dinner, we cleaned up and started up the car. It was dusk, but we figured we had 4 or 5 good hours in us. On the way out of town, one more stop at a truck stop to weigh the final load. We came in about 500 pounds under the total limit the car gave us. We could definitely feel the trailer was heavier than on previous trips. So far, though, flat road ahead. 

Above, I tried to get a photo of Cessna as we left. My sister and her husband both work there in really cool jobs. We are so excited to be moving to Alaska where the Cessna 150, 172, and 182 are standard transport in the bush! Airplane aficionados, check out the current planes and Cessna history here http://www.cessna.com/