DOWN and OUT

Thanks to Verner and the folks at Verner’s Volkswagen in Boulder, the Old Lady chugged smoothly through multiple mountain passes, started on command, and rattled and hummed her way home on last week’s Boulder-Moab-Boulder roadtrip. There once was a time when I would have been surprised if a month went by without needing to get towed somewhere, but perhaps this stretch of mechanical soundness is a good omen for future travels.Anyone who has been reading “Down and Out” will know that getting this van going has been a massive joy and pain. Yeah—it’s amazing to hear that purr of an old VW and to feel the wind blowing through your hair, but when I had this vehicle towed out of a storage shed in Limon, Colorado in August, it was full of mice crap. It had a flat tire. It wouldn’t start. In the meantime, I could have probably paid rent or purchased two new pairs of skis with the amount of money I spent on repairs (front brake hub, steering column, multiple engine adjustments, and one other thing that was so expensive I’ve mentally blocked what it was called…). But after finally having the chance to take this vehicle out into the wide-open, I have no complaints.So. Some images from the road. Instead of pure landscape shots here, I’ve decided to share some “vanscape” photos. Vanscape is a new genre for me (and for anyone else?? Did I just make up this word??), so I’m trying it out.First—the Old Lady in Cisco, Utah. Cisco is a real-live ghost town. Located along Utah’s SR-128, Cisco’s a pretty dilapidated place. If you stay on I-70, you’ll miss it. Next time you’re headed to Moab from the east, I highly suggest taking the Cisco exit OFF of I-70 so that you can check it out.

Then, hop on Utah’s SR-128 and take it all the way to Moab. You’ll wind through red rock canyons on the way and catch sight of the Fisher towers (Castleton tower, too, poking up just barely on the far right of this photo):

So. Anyone else out there been on a good road trip lately? Leave a comment to tempt me somewhere new…