Friday evening after our day in the mountains, we were back at the cabin. The winds and clouds were both picking up, and there was no way we could sit by a fire in that cold. We stayed indoors for supper, and made some amazing tuna sandwiches with the best ever marble rye bread from Wilbur’s (aka The Market). The kids still toasted marshmallows even with no fire – they used the propane stove!
With the prospect of very serious weather rolling through in the early hours of the morning, (such that ADOT had already announced there would be highways closed completely north of us) we decided to get up reeeeally early and see if we could beat the storm down the mountains. With the prospect of rising at 3am, we then worked on getting absolutely everything packed and ready to load before settling down in our cots for the night.
Saturday, at 300 hours, everyone got up, brushed teeth, loaded the vehicles, and we left as the blizzard was set to arrive before light.
Driving off the ranch in the dead of night was surreal. By the time we got to St. Johns big fluffy flakes were falling, and there was a sense of urgency as we stopped at Maverick only long enough to fill up Laurent’s gas tank and let Ruben dance in the falling flutter of snow before we were on our way again.
As we drove on, following behind Tom Truck, we started to smell some sort of burning, but as there were no dash lights coming on, we just kept driving.
At the same time, the snow was growing heavier and blowing straight at the windshield as we drove and we were definitely in hazardous blizzard conditions. The road itself was no longer even visible – we were basically navigating by the reflective posts on the road side. I was thankful the kids were mostly sleepy in the back and unconcerned. I just focused on praying “Lord, keep us on the road!”
A new problem cropped up when we reached Concho Valley and I confirmed that in the hustle and bustle of leaving the cabin quickly, I had forgotten my purse down on the floor beside my recliner chair. My keys, my wallet, with debit, credit, insurance, and drivers license cards, all left behind. Called Paul who was driving ahead of us to let him know the problem, and we pulled in to the dark and empty parking lot of the Family Dollar store. Paul came over to my window and we quickly determined that going back for the purse would mean just staying at the ranch and waiting out the storm. You can’t imagine how terrible I felt!
So we pulled out again, heading back toward St. Johns. That burning smell grew more intense, though, and we were starting to get really worried when ahead of us we saw an eruption of smoke come out of Tom Truck. Paul pulled to the side of the road as soon as there was space on the shoulder. He got out in the whistling wind and driving snow to look under the hood in hopes of ascertaining the problem, but it was no good.
We had to make a quick decision about what to do. Who would go, who would stay to wait with dad for the tow truck, where would we go… returning to the ranch was a non-starter now. It would be highly likely that Laurent’s little car would get stuck, and then we would have no Tom Truck to pull her out. That meant we had to forage onward to Show Low. Jordan volunteered to stay with Dad in the truck, which meant that Natalie, Alyssa, Ruben, Ellie and Efrain all piled in the back seat, with Laurent and myself in the front, and Rupert in the way-back. Was it legal? No. Did we have an option? Again, no. So off we went, praying for safety, for us on the road and Paul and Jordan who were staying behind.
It was a slow and hair raising drive for the next 30-40 miles, but finally around 10-15 miles outside of Show Low the snow began to lighten just as the sky was lightening. We were so relieved to make it to the Maverick, stretch our legs and get some breakfast. By then, the tow truck had still not reached them, so Paul said to go ahead and continue on back to the valley. We agreed to stop in at Grandma’s house on the east end and hoped for better news by the time we got there.
There were a few tough spots on the road down the mountain, but by and large we were through the worst of it. But the saving grace of the entire ordeal was when we entered the Salt River Canyon, just after sunrise, with heavy clouds still hanging low around the rocky cliffs. Laurent was more than happy to stop for me to get out and snap as many photos as I wanted, while the kids ran around and walked the dog. What an unusual view of the scenery I’ve grown to love throughout all these years of travels to and from the ranch!
I don’t remember exactly where we were when we heard from Paul that the tow truck had finally arrived – it had to be after 9-9:30 am though, as he said they waited there for 4 long, cold hours. By the time we got to Grandma’s we knew that the truck was going to take a long time to fix, and it was going to be very expensive, over 5K. Uff.
We were so grateful to have a landing spot with Grandma. Everyone was able to relax and she ordered McDonalds to be delivered for lunch. Laurent, having deposited us there, turned right around and drove back up to Show Low to pick up Dad and Jordan, then drove back down to Grandma’s for a quick stop before coming back across the valley to our end of town. What a hero she was for all of us that day!!
Meanwhile, I was able to get in touch with Jeff, who drove over and picked me up along with 3 of the kids and we were able to get back a little sooner and get the first shift of showers out of the way.
Epilogue:
Fast-forward a week: When insurance denied the claim, Paul decided he would have to sell some Garmin stock to pay the bill. However, after a very cordial conversation with the insurance company, we were able to get insurance coverage for most of the cost of the repair, leaving only a few hundred for us to pay out of pocket.
Then it was just a matter of adjusting our lifestyle to having only one vehicle. So thankful our remaining vehicle was the van – if it was the reverse we would have had to rent something. As it was, we first heard that the parts would not be available until halfway into April! That’s a long time to be juggling the driving of kids to and from school, student athletes to and from various games and practices, and who knows how many people to doctor’s appointments etc., to say nothing of Paul getting to work. Once again, we are very thankful for Garmin’s flexibility in allowing him to work from home as long as necessary. Then we heard over the weekend that the part will be here early and they will have the truck ready by this Wednesday. The Lord is indeed so very gracious! Despite the hazardous travel, we all came home safely, and at the end of this week, Paul will fly up to Show Low, pick up the truck, drive to the ranch, stay overnight, and then return to the valley.
With my purse.
