Hungry Like the (Quiroz) Wolfs: Cross Country Road Trip

"Never let a crisis go to waste." Coronavirus wasn't letting up, Alex had time off in between jobs (going from Bank of America to Mizuho still in Treasury), Bryson started summer break, and we had a planned trip to see my brother Rob and Holly at Lake Havesu in Arizona. Alex and I came up with a ballsy plan. How about a cross-country road trip to Havesu?

From there, Alex created an itinerary with campsites, national parks, lakes, rock climbing, hiking, glaciers, and some hotels to allow me to work remotely. We also ordered all food and supplies online to avoid any grocery shopping along the way.

And we were off!

New York => Pennsylvania => Ohio => Indiana => Illinois => Wisconsin => Minnesota => South Dakota => Wyoming => Utah => Arizona => Colorado => Nebraska => Iowa => Illinois => Indiana => Ohio

14 States
10 Camp Sites
9 National Parks
7 Lakes
6 Hotels
5 Ice creams
3 Pizza orders
2 Quick grocery stops
2 Hail storms we got caught hiking through
1 VRBO
1 Broken tent
1 Rattlesnake
and a COVID-19 test in a partridge tree!

We bought a thule and broke the key within a day. Oops! Lucky it opens up on both sides.

First stop in Indiana Dunes.

After Indiana, we drove through Illinois and stopped by Kellogg, where Alex and I first met.

Then to Wisconsin.

Devil's Lake.

Some bouldering.

Our campsite had lots of mulberry trees. Scarlet figured out how to pick mulberries without needing help.

Puppy dog went backpacking with us.

Heading to the airport with heavy baggage.

Scarlet climbed this tower by herself.

And Bryson.

Bryson's frisbee skills blossomed over the trip. Record throws in a row - 43!

Had lunch in Minnesota.

Then to South Dakota.

Big horned sheep.

Baby birds wanting mommy.

Surprisingly, Scarlet and Bryson got along really well during the trip. We went backpacking into the Badlands, and Bryson did a great job reading to his sister. Especially with a big storm that came in and broke our tent pole :(

We went hiking into the canyons. The kids loved the narrow passages from the Conata picnic area.

Needles

Sylvan Lake

Bryson swam to this small island and spent an hour jumping off the rock. He discovered he loved jumping!

Still in South Dakota, now in the Black Hills. Thank goodness Alex pushed me to take photos of signs as we headed into the park.

This campsite was pretty fancy. Had laundry and a power outlet so we were able to use the electric stove we brought. We normally had oatmeal with flax seed and nuts each morning, but this was a special morning where Alex made french toast.

South Dakota has a special Mammoth site where there are 61 mammoths which fell into a sink hole and got trapped in the Ice Age.

After the Mammoth Site, we went hiking. Scarlet insisted on bringing some books in her puppy dog backpack. During a break, she immediately sat down and pulled out a book to read.

After our hike, we ran into a bison herd.

This bison liked licking the car tire.

Then to Custer Park.

The kids hadn't had a bath for awhile, so they took a quick dip at a mini-waterfall.

Rock climbing near the park. Before getting caught in a downpour.

We headed to Crazy Horse. They finished his head, but still an impressive site.

Here's what it will look like when it is finished. The memorial commemorates the First People and the unfortunate land and resources that were taken from them.

Another rock climb. Alex on top.

Who needs a door?

Scarlet loves art. She wrote and spelled everything herself.

This is Bryson!

And then Scarlet.

Bryson and Scarlet dancing and singing, "We're going to see Uncle Rob!" They were doing a countdown - they still had 12 days to go.

Getting the Mount Rushmore required shot. Washington, Roosevelt, Lincoln, Jefferson.

Off the beaten path to the Hippie Hole. A long drive on dirt roads, then a mile hike down into the ravine to a cool swimming hole with a cliff. Perfect for Bryson.

Bryson immediately wanted to jump off the cliff. Brave Bear.

Then to Bear Safari.

Arctic wolf, white wolf, polar wolf.

Black bear.

Black bear cub.

Our broken tent.

Pactola Lake. Dancing by the kiddos.

Scarlet wrote this herself.
Twinkling
I wish I wish
With all my might
Fly with a dragon
In a land apart

Devil's Bathtub in Spearfish Canyon... pre-hail storm.

Rather than hike on the path, we used the stream.

Water slides

Then to Wyoming

Devil's Tower which is also featured in the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

We took the longer hike around to avoid the crowds.

Smores time = Bryson packing graham crackers

Sink's Canyon in the Wind River Range

Scarlet playing hide and go seek.

Bryson almost ran into this rattlesnake. Only 2 feet away from him.

Shoshone National Park

Popo Agie Falls.

Waterfall slide. Pretty tall. Brave Bear gave it a go.

Sunglass stickers.

Utah Great Salt Lake Spiral Jetty art.

Great salt lake.

So bouyant.

Where the first transcontinental railroad trains met from east to west.

Great Basin National Park.

Gray Cliffs. We scored a nice campground despite not having reservations.

Bristlecone Pine Glacier Trail. These trees are thousands of years old - a minimum of 2-3K years old.

Glacier hike.

Snow fort.

Bristlecone tree.

Sunrise.

Headed to Nevada Mount Charleston. 106 degrees and we switched plans from Red Rocks to rock climb here instead.

We made it to Havesu. Thanks to Rob for an amazing trip. His blog, photos, and write-up are awesome and way better than what I have written below. Check it out here. I included a bunch of his photos below - so if they are good, they are probably his :)

Even before we opened the front door, the kids spotted the pool and jumped in.

Up at 5:30 and out on Rob's boat.

Uncle Rob such a great teacher - we were all up within our first tries.

Hot tub - also naturally hot from the 110+ weather.

Randomly stopped by the Havesu boat police because kiddos need to wear their vests all the time. Who knew? But at least we got a nifty sticker.

Alex jumped off the top of this big guy.

Scarlet loved Mia, daughter of the Leon's (Derrick, Emily, Mia, and Jake). Really great family and neighbors of Rob and Holly in Redondo.

Derrick and Bryson

Delicious meals - Rob made vegan versions of everything. Barbecue, breakfast burritos, avocado vegetable wraps, pancakes, eggplant veggie dip. Fancy, fancy... very Rob!

Rob even made us custom shirts with each of our names on it. Wow!

Pretty proud of Scarlet for staying on the raft with Mia the whole way - even after Bryson and Jake bailed.

Last day chilling.

After Havesu, we headed to the Petrified Forest where there are petrified logs that look just like trees but are actually rock!

Commemorating Route 99.

Stopping by the Four Corners - Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico. We had meant to go to Santa Fe but New Mexico had put a mandatory quarantine of 14 days for all people coming into New Mexico. So we skipped New Mexico and instead headed to Colorado.

Mesa Verde cliff dwellings.

The kids were so used to water and swimming each day. After being in Havesu's super warm bath water, Ridgway felt a bit cold. Bryson built an archipelago which he spent a few minutes explaining to us.

He then plunged into the (cold) water to meet a challenge Alex had given him to swim all the way to the buoy.

Short hike through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Painted Rock.

In Colorado doing a hike.

In Boulder staying at the Embassy Suites where they had an outside pool. First stop!

We also checked out Boulder Falls.

May's Point. Blue skies before a storm came in - and in our tank tops, we hurriedly jogged the rest of the trail with the rain.

Scarlet loved scurrying ahead to hide and surprise us.

Turkey spotting.

Heading to the Wild Animal Sanctuary to see lions, tigers, panthers, llamas, ostriches, hyenas, and bears who were rescued. Poor animals were sold in the black market, and when their owners could not handle them, the Sanctuary came to rescue them.

There is a 1.5 mile elevated boardwalk where we walked above the huge enclosures to see the animals content.

Then to the Denver Aquarium.

The kids really wanted to touch the stingrays.

We spent a couple days in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Rock climbing + tree climbing

Lily pad hike. Nymph lake.

Scarlet spotted a turkey. She is quite the animal spotter.

Elks.

Scarlet spotted this elk as well.

A moose. We were on Trail Ridge Road.

An elk just 10 feet away.

Hike in Boulder.

Bryson did some rock climbing with Alex - they climbed the face Bryson is pointing to.

Dinner with Ms. Alesha.

Leaving Colorado and heading through Nebraska. Stopped by the Audubon for a short hike.

Bryson and Alex did some multi-pitch rock climbing.

Action shot from Alex.

Morty the Moose.

Bryson and Scarlet rock climbed this wall.

We stayed a block from Pearl St in Boulder.

Rattlesnake tail!

Scarlet at the top of a rock climb.

We stayed in Lincoln and also checked out Omaha. This is the University of Nebraska.

In Omaha at Malcolm X's Memorial. Malcolm X was an important civil rights leader. A summary o his bio: He was born in Omaha, Nebraska as Malcolm Little. Sadly, his father, a Reverend was murdered due to racial violence. Malcolm X was a bright student and was elected class president. Despite this and him wanting to be a lawyer, a teacher advised him to be a carpenter. He moved to Boston and then NYC where he ran into trouble (he was quite the dancer and dresser in zoot suits by the way) and served a 6.5 year prison sentence. It was there that he educated himself, became passionate about civil rights, and decided to join the Nation of Islam. He helped boost membership from 400 to 40,000 including having Mohammad Ali, the famous boxer, to join as well. NOI believed in casting off of racism through any means necessary including violence. A decade later Malcolm X left the organization due to NOI's leader worry that Malcolm X was gaining too much popularity, and Malcolm X's disillusionment with the NOI leader's extramarital affairs. Malcolm X then did a Hajj, a pilgrimage to Mecca, and there his mindset changed to believing in unity and peaceful resolution. Sadly, after this experience, he was murdered, likely from a NOI member due to his departure.