Posted on by Phil Strawn

Travels Without Charley


A few weeks back, MoMo and I traded our Honda CRV for a Honda Ridgeline pickup truck. I know, the looks I get from the boys in the Cummins Diesel and the giant GMCs. We would have bought a larger truck but neither of us can climb a ladder to get into the darn thing. They can laugh all they want, we are comfortable. The reason for the truck is to pull an RV trailer and visit our American National Parks. There are so many in Texas, that it will take at least a few years. Terlingua in the Big Bend, Marfa, and Fort Stockton are just a few calling our name. John Steinbeck wrote “Travels With Charley” back in the sixties. He and his poodle crisscrossed America in a pickup with a camper over the bed. He wanted to see his country as it was before it changed into something he feared was coming. The book is a masterpiece, and MoMo and I will be taking a cue from Mr. Stienbeck, but without Charley.

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12 Replies to “Travels Without Charley”

  2. B ig Bend is freaking amazing. There is this coolest little campground in it you have to have a pretty small rig. Gorgeous views. Sits in this little valley with mountains all around. Has a restaurant in it. Look it up. One of my favorite parks overall. We were hoping to do more traveling in our trailer but just one shorter trip for a few years until we pay off our apartments or sell them. Have a great time!

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  3. We did that sort of thing a couple of years ago. It didn’t work out for us – and it isn’t for everyone. Our first attempt was a motor home, and we ventured quite far on our first jaunt. The only thing was that we developed cabin fever during a prolonged rainstorm. We didn’t pull our personal vehicle behind us like some do, and that was a mistake that led us to transform the motor home into a fifth wheel. That didn’t work out, either.

    We still travel but prefer the roadside motel to the aggravation of dragging our covered wagon behind us – and it’s probably cheaper, too (in both time and money). But we hope you both enjoy your travels. Two of our favorite places were Alpine, TX, and Fort Davis. The lady/curator at Fort Stockton was a Comanche … she was obsessed with ghost stories, and, truth be known, she was probably crazier than a bat, but she and the fort made the stop worth its while.

    Stop by the Fort Stockton museum, too. You’ll find the desk once belonging to Sheriff Bud Frazer, whose blood stains can be readily seen in the drawer, where he fell after being shotgunned, some say by his former deputy, Preacher Jim Miller. My wife and I made a comment to the curator about how we both remember the day John Kennedy was shot (they had a nook dedicated to JFK’s memory), and the young lady looked at us strangely and said, “Gosh, how old are you, anyway?”

    “Old enough, I expect.”

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  7. You can see Rocinante, Steinbeck’s original camper, lovingly restore at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas California. There is a plaque that says Work done by Gene Cochetti Auto Body Shop in Salinas.’ I’m grateful Gene broke out the craftsmen for this.

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  8. No, but speaking of Sag Harbor, I read that the Orca II can be visited in Martha’s Vineyard, and one would think that it really should be in SAG harbor also, since Roy Scheider love in Sag Harbor. As they say in the business “Location Location, Location.

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    1. Ahhh, the Vin-yaad. Never got the chance to experience that. My son wanted to visit Steinbecks home in Sag when he was in New York state last month, but ran out of time. I think Roy Scheider was a darn good actor, as was the shark.

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