Day 49 - (09/20) Williams, AZ ... Day 2

We got a taste of the local climate last night.  It got down to 45°.  Furnace heat felt really good.

Today was full of fun.  It started with Dick being selected to participate in a shootout.  We then took a 65 mile train trip to Grand Canyon Village, spent 3½ hours enjoying canyon views, returned to the train for a ride home, survived a holdup, and had nice Mexican dinner at Pancho McGuillicuddy's.

The shootout ...

They hold a wild-west shootout just before each train departure.  There's a lot of audience interaction before and during the performance.  We talked with the gunslingers before it started and Dick ended up being selected to be a sucker card player.

Scene of the crime

Carol met a gunslinger

"Come on sucker, we're gonna play poker."

"Now these are the rules of the game."

"Looks like I've got the winning hand!"
(But, the gunslingers cheat.)

The marshal stepped in.

He had to draw to make his point

The gunslingers went down

The train ride up ...

The terrain changed from high desert to prairie, prairie to pine, and pine to canyon as we traveled to the south rim.  We saw deer and antelope (not sure they were playing).  A cowboy musician strolled through the cars singing, playing a fiddle and joking with passengers.

The marshal rode along for extra protection

The fiddler was a joker, too.

Looking back

We traveled through remote country

Grand Canyon Village ...

Arrival

El Tovar Hotel (up close) 

El Tovar Hotel (from afar)

Hopi House

Lookout Studio

There were outstanding views everywhere

Looking down on a plateau

A closer look at a structure below

And still closer
(there's a burro down there)

The ride back ...

Everything went smoothly until we were stopped by train robbers.

Mt. Humphreys (12,633ft elev)

Robbers stopped the train

They wanted cash, coins and jewels

The marshal saved the day
(but, wouldn't throw the bad guys
off the train because of litter laws)

End of the trip ...

The train engineer was a woman.  She handled the big engine beautifully.

our engine

our driver (on the left)

This steam engine has been
converted to run on vegetable oil!

Day 48 - (09/19) Williams, AZ

A lot changed today.  We moved ... from NV to AZ, the temperature dropped ... from a high on the highway of 97° to a high in Williams of 77°, we headed eastward after going west for almost 7 weeks, and Boulder City turned out to be a lot different than Dick's 2nd grade memories.

Our 220 mile trip followed CA-215S from Las Vegas to Boulder City, US-93S from Boulder City to I-40, and then I-40E to Williams, AZ.

We stopped in Boulder City for Dick to revisit his time there in the early 1950s.  The city is well maintained and appeared vibrant.  It still doesn't allow gambling.

607 Avenue "C"
(Dick's family lived here in 1951 and 1952)

This recreation center was the elementary school
(Dick attended 2nd grade here)

The Bureau of Reclamation manages water use
(they used to fine people who didn't water their grass)

Elvis and Marilyn were on display

Fun happening:  We talked with a policeman about city history.  He's from Ohio and is an avid Buckeye, Urban Meyer and Jim Tressel fan.  This is such a small world!

Lake Mead and Hoover Dam ...

US-93S takes us to Lake Mead

and over Hoover Dam via the
Mike O'Callaghan - Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge
(completed 10/19/2010)

This is how we remembered the dam

Arizona welcomed us

US-93 had some fun curves in Arizona

Colorado River (in AZ) below Hoover Dam

Carol added some zip to the trip.  She spotted Williams, AZ and recognized it as the gateway to the Grand Canyon.  The Grand Canyon Railway RV Park and the Grand Canyon Railway offered the perfect stop and launch combination.

The RV park is essentially a large, asphalt parking lot.  But, it's very nice.  They offer many amenities.  Everything is well managed and maintained.  We'll be here for two nights and travel to the Grand Canyon tomorrow ... by train.

Site #304

Day 47 - (09/18) Las Vegas, NV ... Day 3

It's another sunny, hot (97°) and dry day here.  We won't have our car before checkout time, so we extended our stay until tomorrow.

The dealer called at 11:15 to say the car was "ready".  We'll see what that means when we get it.

1pm update:  We have a car.  The brakes are serviced, the oil is changed and we've started an oil consumption test.  The oil has to be checked every 500 miles at a Chevy or GMC dealership.  Conclusion ... this is a messy way to get the car washed.

We spent the afternoon with some shopping, swimming and paperwork.

The evening turned into a gamble that paid off.  We went to dinner at the Silverton Casino Lodge.  It was close ... we could see it from the RV park.  It was huge ... it had lots of restaurant choices and amenities.  We had the buffet in the Seasons restaurant.  The food was really good, the selection was outstanding, and the price was subsidized.  We ate way too much and didn't gamble a penny.

We'll get on the road again tomorrow.

Day 46 - (09/17) Las Vegas, NV ... Day 2

Dick got the car in for service at Findlay Chevrolet by 7:15am.  It's 6.5 miles away.  They kindly provided a shuttle ride to the RV park and promised to call when they had a diagnosis and cost estimate.

We spent the day as captives of The Oasis RV Resort.  It was a pretty nice way to be confined.

You register here

This is just the registration waiting area

Our site #625 was the least expensive

They have two beautiful pools and a spa

Shaded walks

Cool cars (1949 Pontiac)

With the old window A/C and sun visor

Their restaurant serves breakfast & lunch only.  Our breakfast was quite good and very reasonably priced.

Enter here for the restaurant, store,
fitness center, ballroom, and meeting rooms.

All things considered, this is a classy place.

We did chores and waited for a Chevy dealer update.  It came a little after 3pm and it wasn't good.  

(a) The front brakes need service.  We have 94,500 miles and they're original.  This was no surprise.

(b) They haven't figured out why both low beam headlights went out for a few days, then started working again.  The bulbs and fuses tested good.

(c) They haven't figured out why the oil was 4 quarts low last Thursday and 1 quart low today after 418 miles of recent driving .  There's no indication of leaks or burning.  This is a major issue and could determine how and when we head for home.

(d)  They need more time.  We won't have wheels until tomorrow.

We ended the day with a relaxing swim.