I woke up with a single agenda in my head - throw away the stupid stove! But V disagreed. He reminded me that it would refund our $53 if we returned it (including the taxes that we paid), and I agreed to tolerate it's presence till the sight of the next Walmart.
No morning coffee, no breakfast, and hence a bad start of the day for both of us.
Stopped by a Subway for breakfast as soon as we exited Bryce - less than 2 miles :)
Slow ride, nothing eventful, till we reached the Sand Dunes. It wasn't much of a ride, 85 miles or so, and V wanted to move on after we have a look at the sand dunes. I, on the other hand, wanted to stop for the day, and was in no mood for the ride (the bad start of the day, remember?) It is amazing to know how much difference one (ok, two) cup of coffee can make. The disagreement was sorted and middle ground reached, like it always is, between the two of us. Ending up in an argument, me refusing to move an inch, announcing that he could go alone if he wanted to, and V agreeing to stay after making a lot of faces. And of course, not talking to each other for the next 15 minutes.
We managed to reach the registration desk just in time to get the last available tent site (the rush owing to the start of spring holidays for schools), and V was disappointed. As soon as we moved past the entrance (and the registration desk), I realized that maybe V was right. (I so hate to admit it when I am wrong).
We were so out of place and people did give us funny glances. Everyone, I mean EVERYONE, was either riding an OHV or had one (or more) parked in their campsites. And here we were, in a Honda ST1300, with luggage mounted on the bike, camping at the Sand Dunes!!!! I was sure they were wondering what were we planning to do. And it would be fun to disappoint them :D
What the hell, might as well enjoy. We tried walking around, but it was too hot and very difficult to walk around in the sand. So we sat at the Pavilion, looking at others riding their OHVs and clicking some snaps for a while. For now, this was the best we could do. It was late afternoon and we hadn't had lunch, so it was only fair that we exit the sand dunes, and save ourselves some misery, at least for a while. Tommy said that the nearst restaurant was in Kanab, around 23 miles. We had enough time at hand, and we did make it to Kanab by around 4 pm. Too late for lunch by local standards, and too early for dinner.... so no food <sad face>. So much for driving 23 miles!
I came up with a brilliant idea that if we go to a supermarket, we could get some food in their 'deli' section. (Smart me :d), so I dragged V to 'Honey Supermarket'. Well, no deli section, no food, and on-the-verge-of-getting-angry hungry V. I had to salvage the situation.
"Let's go back, I can cook something for you"
I bit my tongue as soon as I said that. No stove, remember!!!
"Ok, let's buy a camper's stove from here. Then I can cook you a good meal" just saved .
"hmmm"
So we ended up buying another camper's stove and a propane bottle, and some quick-fix meals that I could cook easily. The only problem now was to figure out how to pack up! Reached the campground when it was getting dark. Stopped by the roadside to click some pictures of the sunset.
Fixed up a quick dinner, fed him well and put him to bed (which is the best thing to do when he is tired and hungry). We made it an early night, as V wanted to leave early morning, heading to the Grand Canyon. I did not dare argue, so I quitely agreed. We left our luggage on the picnic table, half unpacked, half messy, hoping to take care of it in the morning.
I woke up at around 3 am to the sound of tip-tap on the tent. It took me a while to realize what was happening.
"F%$k baby, it's raining" I shook V.
"Ok, good" he was fast asleep.
"What good? Wake up. We have a lot of luggage outside"
"Anything that the rain can ruin? Think and tell me names" and he turned over and slept.
"I am not playing puzzle games with you right now. GET UP and let's get some stuff in the tent"
"Too late. It's probably alerady all wet. Go back to sleep. We'll see what to do in the morning" V wouldn't budge at all. Lazy bum.
"OK fine. Suits me." there was no way I was stepping out of the tent alone at that hour! (I doubt if I would step out even with V in that darkness)
This was the 1st time that we had left our stuff outside so messily, and this was the time that it rained all night!
We woke up at 8 in the morning to realize that there was no way we could leave without drying up our stuff, including our helmets which were soaked to the bone. Spent the next 4 hours laying everything down in the sun and waiting.
By the time we finally managed to leave, it was 1 pm. Too late. We only hoped that we would make to the Grand canyon in time.
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