Traveling with Dick, Beth, and Moe

Old Town Albuquerque

2011-10-08T12:27:00.000-07:00

We're finally in Albuquerque and settled in at the RV lot across the street from Balloon Fiesta. Great campsite, about 8 rigs came in early. Five of us decide to tour Old Town via the trolley. What a great decision. The trolley is owned and operated by 2 young guys who are natives of Albuquerque. They are knowledgeable, entertaining and just delightful as they share their information and appreciation of this city. We drove through parts of the old route 66.

This home looked like something out of Star Trek. The architect owner lives in one section and uses the other one for his art gallery.
We traveled by Museum Row, University of New Mexico, Isotope Park, the Pit, the zoo, Botanic Gardens, Tingley Beach.
After the trolley ride we toured the Chapel of our Lady of Guadalupe, the smallest church in Albuquerque constructed by Sister Giotti to commemorate the Virgin Mary's miraculous appearance to Juan Diego in 1531.
These doors are always open. Supposedly a ghost occasionally appears. We didn't see one in our visit.
San Felipe de Neri Church built in 1706 and collapsed in 1792 then rebuilt in 1793.
A wonderful day in Albuquerque. I even won a bag of popcorn for knowing how to spell this town.

Forest Lakes

2011-10-07T11:52:00.000-07:00

From Moab Utah, we traveled to Forest Lakes, AZ , a wonderful place of solitude. Thank you to our friends who own a home in this area for allowing us to stay on their property for a few days. We enjoyed margaritas on the rim one evening as we waited for sunset. A beautiful relaxing time of day.
Wax on wax off. Dick does the rubbing on our motorhome to bring up the shine. Looking good.
We've been feeding the critters which had included the humming birds, squirrels, chipmunks, and many other birds. Who knew our menagerie would include this wild horse. He seemed pretty tame until he nipped me in the arm while begging for more food.
We're enjoying grass fed beef we purchased in Wyoming. It is sooooo good.
After meeting up with about 50 of our friends at a chili cook out at Sharp Creek, I took a quick trip to Phoenix to enjoy time with my mom, children and grandchildren. Violet is nearly 3 and just a bundle of energy.

Jack, Charlie, Thomas and Violet played as the 2 youngest tried on various outfits to pick out the perfect Halloween costume. They have some very creative ideas. Didn't realize how much I miss these kiddos while we're on the road.

Special time with my daughter Laura and her youngest Lucy. Lucy kept me busy with all of her school stories and fun games on the computer.
Luke, Henry, Theo and Lucy at our favorite dinner spot, America's tacos. These kids stay busy with soccer, cross country track and swimming after school. What fun we had on this short visit. I'm trying to play catch up on the blog site. All of the activities at the Balloon Fiesta have kept us on the go. A rainy day is just what I needed.....hmmm maybe time to clean house, too.

2011-09-16T12:00:00.000-07:00

Travels to Hubbell Trading Post

Wilson Arch
Utah
Wilson Arch, with a span of 91 feet and height of 46 feet, is located about 24 miles south of Moab on US 191. The arch is visible from the road and there is a pulloff on the left. I've learned to keep my eyes open on our travels. You never know when a sight like this will present itself. (not my pic)

We enjoyed our stop at the Hubbell Trading Post. These buildings are quite well preserved. This guest hogan was used by Hubbell to take care of friends and travelers. The hogan was built in 1934 Hubbell started this trading post in the 1870's and expanded the post and ranch. Later a post office was opened. In 1883, a small pox epidemic killed thousands of local people. Hubbell opened his home as a hospital of sorts to care for the sick and dying. Trading was a common practice and soon the store became known for its handmade rugs, jewelry, carvings, baskets and pottery taken in as trade for food and other basic items. Today, the Hubbell Trading Post is a National Historic Site and is known for its excellent handmade rugs. An auction will be held this weekend. Gosh, wish we could attend. They have beautiful handmade wares.

Along side of the hogan is a small gazebo. Looking in we saw a large slate type table and benches.

The blacksmith shop still has repaired farm equipment and tools, hardware, horseshoes and the gate with the Hubbell initials.

Dick liked this bread oven. It was used to bake hundreds of loaves each week supplying bread to the family and to sell in the store. We only wish it was still functioning.....How we love bread...

Corn, squash, melons, beans, and chiles gro here. Daghaa Neezi Hubbell's gardener for over 70 years grew fruit and vegetables for the family and workers. The garden is still full of produce with a scarecrow guarding its veggies. .

On to Holbrook. No stop here just took this snapshot of the dinosaurs in town. There are quite a few of them as well as enormous amounts of petrified wood.

We're at forest lakes and relaxing for a few days. Fished at Willow Springs and got a couple bites but only caught this stick. Good thing: no cleaning tonight hmm but no fish dinner either.

Worst day of fishing is still better than the best day of work!!!!!!!

2011-09-15T22:00:00.000-07:00

Canyon de Chelly

Touring the visitor center opened another whole new canyon to our trip this year. There is evidence that people have lived in these canyons for nearly 5,000 years--longer than anyone has lived uninterrupted on the Colorado River Plateau. At the Canyons mouth near Chinle the rock walls are only 30 feet high but deeper in the canyons the walls rise until they stand over 1,000 feet. Cliffs rise straight up, overshadowing streams, cottonwoods, and small farms. The Navajo people still live in these canyons and farm the lands,

We stayed at the Canyon de Chelly cottonwoods Campground. We had wide open spaces, dump and water, and plenty of chicks, horses, and stray dogs wandering the grounds. Can't believe there is no fee for the campground although it is posted that there will be a fee in the future.

Our friendly little horses ran wild.

We did the 37 mile round trip drive through the canyon and had gorgeous views.

Deep in the canyon Tsegi Overlook provides a view of the Navajo farmlands. We saw a small herd of goats in the distance.

White House ruin was built by ancestral Puebloan people and occupied about 1,000 years ago. It is named for the long wall in the upper dwelling that is covered with white plaster.

Cairns mark our hike to the White House Ruin.

"With beauty all around me, I walk" A great quote as we hiked through this canyon

Spider Rock is an 800 foot sandstone spire that rises from the canyon floor at the junction of Canyon de Chelly and Monument Canyon. W e could see the volcanic core of Black Rock Butte and the Chuska Mountains . Another great day of discovery of our beautiful America. We must come back.

2011-09-15T21:23:00.000-07:00

Canyonlands National Park

This is Utah's largest National Park. It is a rugged high desert of rock with spectacular formations and gorges carved over the centuries by the Colorado and Greed rivers. Island in the Sky District , in the northern section of the park between the Colorado and Green Rivers, overlooking some 10,000 square miles of rugged wilderness. Thank goodness for the Cairns marking the trails.

Mesa Arch Trail. An interesting walk through an area of pinon, and juniper trees, mountain mahogany, cactus and a plant called MormonTea. The arch is made of Navajo sandstone and hangs precariously on the ridge of a 500 ft cliff, framing a spectacular view of nearby mountains.

Can never get enough views from the arch.

Fencing along the way is made from downed trees.

Dick enjoying the views.

Contemplation rock. I could have sat here for hours enjoying the views.

Grand view trail had some interesting rock formations.

The confluence of the Colorado and Green river are seen in the very distance.

This interesting hike was very quiet. Only about 6 other hikers on the trail.

Even the trees bend to look like arches.

Views were amazing. Miles and miles of this canyon creating gorgeous sights.

Our night time campfire. Quiet times to end our time at Moab.

Full moon coming up over the mountain. We are so fortunate to have had this time in Moab.

2011-09-15T19:32:00.000-07:00

Moab Utah

View of our campsite lit up by an evening light show from a raft trip. We were fortunate to get a spot at Goose Island, on BLM for $6. a night. What a treat to enjoy this light show. We did the raft trip a couple years ago so just get to relive wonderful memories.

Moe and I did a short walk each morning. The bike trail was a convenient spot for our walk and bike rides.

Dick liked this walk too, nice level ground and great views.

Can you see the sheep. It is so much fun to try to find the animals and creatures written about in the travel info.

In the middle of the petrified sand dunes sits Balanced Rock, a huge boulder weighting about 3,600 tons (how does one measure this) perched on a slowly eroding pedestal. Amazing

This amazing site. The double arches have to be one of the most photographed in all of the Park.

Can you see the climbers on this pinacle. It was so much fun to watch them scurry up this rock and then stand in awe at the top.

Just looking out and enjoying the views of a great. day.

My 3 mile excursion to delicate arch had a huge payoff. The view magnificent. This arch sits in a huge slickrock amphitheater setting. The hike was great passing the Parade of Elephants and several small caves.. Could they be arches in waiting. hmm I didn't read about the steep dropoffs along a narrow cliff. A great hike. .

I'm the miniature person standing at the base of Delicate Arch.

More good hiking into Devils Garden area. Tunnel and Pine Tree arches are on this path. This was a great day....We'll definitely revisit this area and do more of the hikes. Everywhere we look, there is another amazing view. AMAZING how many times did use this word today.

2011-09-15T19:01:00.000-07:00

Steamboat Springs

Camp Yampa outside of Steamboat. Beautiful spot with great hiking right on the river.

Walking through Steamboat, we reminisced all of our ski trips and especially Buddy's run. Great memories

Steamboat had lots of art work. We especially liked these.

President Lincoln. how I wish I could have known this man.

This moose is made out of lots of individual pieces.

Flowers everywhere. This is greenland personified. Enjoyed a glass of wine sitting by the creek. A beautiful day.
HMMM wonder if anyone else opened up their blog site to find a new format. Not quite sure what to do with it.

2011-09-07T20:36:00.000-07:00

Gillette Wyoming

Most of the Escapees have headed down the road so we are taking this time to explore the city. Right outside the CamPlex is this wonderful assortment of equipment used to extract the oil and coal from the area. Dick and I are wishing this oil rig was in our back yard.
Dump truck for coal.....Discount tire doesn't carry replacement for these wheels. Each tire weighs in at 6.5 tons and lasts for 2 years.

This engine is on the market in great condition has worked since 1975 with low speedometer mileage of 2,400,000 miles. The owner is willing to negotiate a price on it.

We went out to the coal mine viewing area and watched these huge trucks haul the coal out of the mines to this conveyor and onto the trains. We saw one train 1.4 miles long filled with coal.
This scoop holds 23 yards of coal. It seemed huge.
Dick is thinking about this tire for our motor home. Hmm only $38,000 a piece.
Coal truck at work. This was on Sunday so we're assuming they work 7 days a week hauling coal.
The coal mines are like a maze with roads going back and forth, trucks dumping huge amounts of water on the roads and gargantuan trucks hauling coal out to the trains.

The technology is amazing. Touring this area proved to be quite an education and appreciation for the source for our energy. Gillette considers itself the energy capital of the world. They produce 40% of the low sulphur coal in the US. They ship 400 million tons of coal a year by way of 83 mile plus long trains a day.

Our last night in Gillette and a sunset to celebrate. Made me think of Mother Teresa's saying:"Quiet sounds of Nature. See how nature, trees, flowers, grass grows in silence. I see the stars, the moon, the sun, how they move in silence." Perfect ending for our stay.

2011-09-07T06:52:00.000-07:00

Gillette Wyoming:

We've arrived at the Gillette Wyoming Escapade. Along with 658 other rigs, we were very efficiently greeted, parked and welcomed to this event. It was amazing how quickly people were out of their rigs and planning get togethers and happy hours. We were parked with boomers Wayne, Steve and Donna and just down the lot Judy and Luke. We attended lots of education seminars and found the ones on safety and driving to be the best.
We volunteered to serve ice cream and of course eat ice cream. Also volunteered to play hosts and keep the meeting areas clean. Both were great ways to meet other travelers. There were 1286 registered attendees and we were kept busy with seminars, vendor offerings and great evening entertainment. A donut breakfast was held to benefit CARE. Over $2100 was raised; even a $500 donut donation. Escapees are very generous people. Dick joined the Elks along with about 52 others. The Gillette lodge did a nice ceremony along with light dinner and drinks and time to spend with other Elk members . We look forward to participating in activities with our Phoenix Lodge when we return home.

Devils Tower

This massive tower rises 867 feet from its base and stands 1267 feet above the river. The area of its teardrop-shaped top is 1.5 acres and the diameter of its base is 1000 feet. An amazing structure that is either an ancient volcano or an igneous intrusion

( ok this is a quote, I'm no geologist). At least six American Indian tribes consider it sacred and still use the area for prayer offerings, vision quests and sweat lodge ceremonies.

I like the Kiowa peoples idea that the children were playing at the base when one of the children tured into a bear and frightened the seven sisters. The girls climbed a tree and as they did so it began to rise into the air. The bear tried to kill them but they were beyond its reach. It scored the bark all aroud with its claws. Thus we have Devils Tower and the 7 sisters borne into the sky became the stars of the Big Dipper.

We enjoyed hiking around the tower and watching the climbers. They are pretty amazing. Part of the 1978 movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" was filmed here. Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed Devils Tower the first national monument under the Antquities Act in 1906.

Over 5000 people climb this every year. According to the rangers there are 220 routes up the tower. Can't imagine the strength and endurance to climb like this.
Throughout the area there are ribbons and prayer bundles of hair, tobacco and sage tied to the trees representing prayer. The green and blue color ribbons represent Mother Earth and Father Sky.

Dick and I enjoyed watching the climbers but decided this was not our sport, today.
"Circle of Sacred Smoke" by Japanese sculptor Junkyu Muto is the 3rd in Muto's international peace project, Wind Circle. The 1st sculpture is at the Vatican and the 2nd is in Bodhi Gaya, India. The Circle of Sacred Smoke represents the first puff of smoke from the pipe used by tribal people to pray. Amazing view as I centered Devils Tower into this circle for this pic.
After our hike, we went to the park to enjoy a picnic lunch and we were serenaded by this cowboy poetry and music festival. One of the fun things about travel is all the unexpected activities. This was a real treat.
Our day would not be complete without a prairie dog sighting. These little guys seem to pose for the photographers and bark for attention.

2011-08-26T16:07:00.000-07:00

Custer State Park Loop

We're off to see as much of the Custer State Park area and the Peter Norbeck National Scenic Byway. The roads wind through some of the most spectacular scenery in the Black Hills and covers 1.2 million acres. .

This magnificent sculpture is made up of 100's of small sculptures and graces the entryway into the town of Hill City .
This is the only self sculpture that Gutzum Borglum did of himself and his son Lincoln. Borglum is the artist who designed and made the Mount Rushmore carvings. When Borglum past away his son finished his work.
Borglum is also known for this life size bronze work of President Lincoln.

The faces of Mount Rushmore were in view throughout our day.
Korczak Zioldowski, a New England sculture created this carving of Crazy Horse. It is 641 feet long and 563 feet high. The 90 foot face was completed in 1996. Korczak's family is now continuing the carving which is to have Crazy horse astride his horse and pointing to his ancestral lands. This is being funded through visitor admissions and donations without government support.

As we drove through these winding roads, we passed picturesque lakes, towering granite needle rock and six picture perfect tunnels.
Amazing spirals along the way.
Will we fit????? Never in the motorhome Some of these tunnels are only 9 feet wide.
Along the way we spotted antelope grazing.

The scenery never stopped amazing us. Of course Dick got to drive the hairpin turns, spiral pigtail bridges and mile high overlooks. I got to sight see.
The Bison ruled the road. I had never heard the grunt of these guys but as they passed right next to our car, we did get an earful. Nearly 1300 of these mammoth animals, one of the largest herds anywhere roam this park.

Little did we know these beggars had a plan. While many of the burros block the roadway, one or two would saunter up to our window to beg for food. Smart guys know we visitors are suckers for this smile.

Dick enjoyed feeding his friends.

And more of the big guys taking over the road. What a sight. Yes, they do have the right of way.

I couldn't capture it, but as we travel through the tunnels we could see Mount Rushmore. Can't imagine how this massive carving was accomplished during a time of national challenge and hardship..the Great Depression of 1930's. It was interesting to me how the shadows changed and the view would be totally different.
THe old bridges were amazing.
A stop in Keystone on our way home and Dick found a job combining his love of bikes with his need to do some mowing.
One near disaster this week when a rogue wind blew through the park and caught our awning. Boomer friends to the rescue. Looks like government work with 4 men watching and one doing the work. Wonder where they learned that. End result great minds came up with a plan and got us back together. On to Gillette tomorrow.

2011-08-26T15:10:00.000-07:00

Rush no More Campground, Sturgis South Dakota Great night with our camp hosts preparing a steak dinner. Yummy
Friends enjoying good eats, food, wine and stories. Judy and Luke outside couple; Becky and Lonnie inside couple.
Tables outside and in with friends busy sharing their day. Nick, Sherrie, Jack and Chuck.

Another quote that just said take me...enjoy life!
We're ready for a bike ride. The George Mickelson Trail :109 miles through bubbling streams, water falls, mines, old railroad buildings, tunnels, green pastures with cattle, area where George Custer shot a grizzly bear and amazing scenery in every direction. No, we didn't do the whole trail...just about 20 glorious miles. The trail is named for George Mickelson, a South Dakota governor who supported its beginning. The trail was a transportation route that was transformed into the Rails to Trails byways. About 100 of the old railroad trestles are still in place. All have been restored along with 4 hard rock tunnels.

Getting ready for the tunnel
The creek kept running. Gosh I learned that by observing the direction the creek was running I could tell if the path was uphill or down. Amazing discovery.
Our fearless leaders. Thank you Jan and Chuck for planning and leading this wonderful bike ride. We loved every minute....even uphill.
These tunnels were amazing. Check out the architecture.
See the land shark entering the tunnel......
Scenery continues
Little birds waiting for mom to bring dinner.
This old time fire engine is not really upside down...Its hanging from the ceiling at the Fire Engine bar in downtown Rapid City.
Dinosaur Park. Had to return...I came here as a child and have many fond memories of this park with seven life size dinosaur replicas.....wait to see the comparison from 60 years ago....I'll post when we get home and I can find the old pics.

Have to wait till I get home to have my grandsons identify the dinosaurs.

Travel is so much fun but oh I do miss you little Violet and all of my grandchildren.

2011-08-26T14:08:00.000-07:00

Roughlock Falls

Its hike day, our Boomer group is at Roughlock Falls outside of Spearfish along Spearfish Creek. An amazing wonderful area to hike. We saw clear water tumbling over limestone cliffs. Birch, Aspen and Pine trees surrounded us as well as lots of greenery and chokecherries. The final scene from Dance with Wolves was shot here. I can certainly see why this area was chosen.

I'm a sucker for quotes. Loved this one and several others that were posted on our hike.

Some of our hikers. Betty and Duane are in the middle of the group. Thank you Betty for planning this hike and giving us an opportunity to explore this gorgeous area.

Spearfish falls. Can you feel the spray cooling us.

Boomer friends give hugs, plan activities, create the best happy hours, provide yummy potlucks, tell of their adventures, share advice, lend a helping hand, and love life and so much more. . We are so fortunate to have these friends....Jan and Chuck Moore.

A special spot along the hike.

Jan and I played twins today...very patriotic twins.

2011-08-21T20:21:00.000-07:00

Mount Rushmore

No trip to South Dakota would be complete without a trip to visit Mount Rushmore. This visit brought back lots of memories of my childhood vacations to this spot.

The Avenue of Flags displays flags of all 50 states, one district and the territories and commonwealths of the US. The columns of the Borglum Court frame this colorful exhibit with the presidents in the background.

Four hundred men and women helped create Mount Rushmore. Carvers climbed 700 stairs to the top of the mountain to carve our presidents Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln. The monument stands as an internationally recognized symbol of freedom, patriotism and democracy.

These are the original models Gutzon Borglum made. His studio was quite a great display of some of the work that went into the 14 years it took to carve this mountain.

Its hard to really get a handle on the actual size of these carvings. Each face is 60 feet tall. Each eye is 11 feet wide. Washington's nose is 21 feet long. Washington's mouth is 18 feet wide.

We thoroughly enjoyed the day , the ranger talks, visit to the sculptors studio, and the museum.

Great lunch spot

Another must visit spot in South Dakota. We were here right after the big rally. Still lots of motorcycles in town so we got to hear the roar of the engines.

Time for beers in the Knuckle saloon. It was pretty quiet with most of the riders gone.

Dick enjoyed wandering through the areas filled with old time equipment .

2011-08-21T13:50:00.000-07:00

South Dakota and we're celebrating as we've added 4 more states to our map this summer: Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and North Dakota. Looks like we're going to have to travel East after this year.

Deadwood, South Dakota

In 1876, fortune seekers looking for gold in the Black Hills stumbled upon a gulch full of dead trees and creek full of gold...The Wild West town of Deadwood was born. Since then fortune seekers continued to come to Deadwood looking for good luck and a good time. Dick and I certainly had a good time in this small town.....no gambling so not sure if we can claim good luck.

Our tour of the Mount Moriah Cemetery. We hiked to the top of the mountain to where Sheriff Seth Bullock overlooks the town he helped to tame. Sheriff Bullock was the first sheriff of Deadwood, a friend of Theodore Roosevelt and a member of the Black Hill Rough Riders.

Brown Rocks Overlook . Quite a view of the town of Deadwood. The American Flag at the overlook flies 24 hours a day by act of Congress. It is one of the few spots in the country which is afforded this honor.

Wild Bill Hickok's grave is on of the most visited sites in the cemetery. Wild Bill was known for his very colorful life including service as a marshal, an Army scout and numerous other tasks that called for a fast gun. Calamity Jane is buried next to him.

Had to include this Deadwood Dick's saloon. One of the original saloons in Deadwood is now an antique store with many of the items of the goldrush days on display.

Even though we stayed right on the edge of town, we still had wild life at our door.

Deadwood at night. The town is all lit up with the many gambling establishments and saloons. Just like Vegas, you can gamble 24 hours a day.

Reenactments of the Wild West shootouts are held on Main Street several times a day. These are followed by a replaying of Wild Bill's murder and the infamous trial of his shooter Jack McCall.

2011-08-17T22:46:00.000-07:00

Lions Club City Park in Bowman North Dakota. A free park. Notice green grassy area.

We loved the wide open space. A storm blew through...we had to close the slides as the wind was just rumbling the covers.

Another great find at the Harding County Park.

Lots of history of the development of South Dakota. The horse named Tipparary was known to be the sturdiest bucking bronco in the area.

Nice break in the day to tour this park.

2011-08-17T22:26:00.000-07:00

Theodore Roosevelt Park covers 110 square miles in the North Dakota badlands. This view was alongside one of our hiking trails. When Roosevelt became President in 1901 he signed the Antiquities Act which proclaimed 18 national monuments. He established 5 national parks, 51 Federal Bird Reservations, 4 National Game Preserves and 150 National Forests. I am very thankful he had the foresight to preserve this land for our country.

Views from another hiking trail.

These huge bison were right in the roadway. Hmm traffic directors of some sort.

Might makes right so this guy had the right of

way.

Large herds could be seen in the distance as well.

This rattle snake also took control of the roadway. He WON

More traffic directors. These wild horses just took their time moseying off the road.

2011-08-17T21:48:00.000-07:00

Theodore Roosevelt's home in Medora was this small 3 room cabin It is still decorated with the vintage furniture and items of the late 1800's. Theodore Roosevelt came to North Dakota to hunt buffalo in 1883. He fell in love with the area and bought 2 ranches in the area to raise cattle.

The Theodore Roosevelt visitor center is quite well done and very informative. This wooden carving is life size. Impressive

I need one of my grandsons to identify this dinosaur. Can't remember which one it is.

We toured the Chateau de Mores State Historic site. A very well kept 1880's style 26 room Chateau built by a French nobleman, the Marquis de Mores. He named the town Medora after his wife Medora on Hoffman. This is one of the stage coaches that traveled between Deadwood and Medora.

The home and museum are filled with very unique items including many of the guns used by Theodore Roosevelt and Marquis de Mores from the 1800's.

The home had a room filled with old bottles. All of the wine, water, and other drinks were sent by train from New York. Hmm, a wine closet I would like to have.

This is one of the rooms used by the servants and the de Mores children. The dolls and furniture were all shipped by train from New York.

The tack room was complete with equipment for riding and hunting. Its said the Marquis would brag that his wife was a better marksman than he was and would frequently hunt on her own when the Marqui was busy.

2011-08-17T21:31:00.000-07:00

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Sunset at our campground. Nice. This campground is great lots of large pull through spots with great views and only $5. a night for us seniors..

We were going to stay 2 nights but stayed for 5 more because it was so relaxing. Trails to hike and bike ride.

The buffalo came into the gully right by our campground. Large herd of 30 to 40. More than I could count.

Cloudy overcast days kept us cool along with a few light rains.

We never tired of the views. Every day a new hike or bike ride.

2011-08-10T08:34:00.000-07:00

Medora, North Dakota

Our campsight right along the Little Missouri. We're less than a mile from town. Great biking and hiking route. Population is less than 100 in the winter and in the summer its in the thousands.

Many bronze sculptures are scattered through town. This one weighs nearly 2 tons and depicts the early times of this North Dakota area.

Date night. We're doing the typical tourist evening in Medora: a musical and Pitchfork Steak Fondue. We never could have guessed that this evening would take place in one of the most beautiful spots in the West and entertain us with a breathtaking extravaganza of horses and outstanding professional entertainment along with a new dining experience.

The views were amazing. Looking out from atop this bluff at the Tjaden Terrace we could see the Little Missouri and the picturesque badlands.

More views from our dining area. And I thought this would just be a tourist trap kind of evening...What a surprise.

The line up for dinner. The line moved fast as we were serenaded by cast members from the musical.

Steaks made to order well if you like them Medium rare. The chef loads steaks onto pitchforks and fondues them western style. An entertainment to watch.

Tools of the trade. Yes, all of these pitchforks were in use at the 3 huge vats for cooking our steaks.

These guys were kept busy cooking for the hundreds of hungry people.

A view of twelve elk grazing for their dinner while we enjoyed ours..

A view of the outdoor theater. We hiked to the top and then rode an escalator down to the lower level for our seats. The Burning Hills Amphitheater holds 2,852 people.

The band "Coal diggers" was great and the violinist had a personality that carried the show .

Stage setting for this Western style musical dedicated to the legacy of America's 26th President, Theodore Roosevelt, and the time he spent here in North Dakota's Badlands Each show pays tribute to American patriotism and the old-west way of life. We were thoroughly entertained.

2011-08-09T07:13:00.000-07:00

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

This Park is located in the North Dakota Badlands named for the president who is remembered as being one of America's great conservationists.

The canyons were carved out by millions of years of the natural forces of the wind , rain and waters of the Little Missouri River. We had great views from the visitor center outside the south side of the park.

Hundreds of little prairie dogs are living throughout the park. They even have a city titled Prairie Dog City. Their bark is this high pitched chirp. Really cute how they interact and protect their home from other little prairie dogs. Ok, I'm fascinated by the tiniest minutia.

The 36 mile loop trail gave us ample time to enjoy the views. We did several hikes including the Ridgeline Trail and the Boicourt Overlook.

Plan more hikes in the next few days as we'll be staying in the park in the campground.

2011-08-08T21:08:00.000-07:00

We're at the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Having trouble with blog site so pics will be out of order. Huge old bison are on the roadway. Must be herds of 40 to 50. Quite a sight.

Dick is enjoying some hiking. Lots of uphill.

This chimney is remaining from the old cattle slaughter and processing plant in downtown Medora.

The Catholic Church was built in 1910. Services are still held here every week.

Bronze sculptures are scattered throughout the town. The detail is amazing.

2011-08-08T20:20:00.000-07:00

Hazen Bay Recreation Area Hazen North Dakota

We enjoyed this camp sight right on Lake Sakakawea. This is the 3rd largest manmade lake in the United States and is filled b the Missouri River. This huge lake has more shoreline than the state of California and is about 80 miles long.

Our camp sight. yes it is this green. Lots of rain while we were here.

the water level is quite high.

Beautiful sunsets. We do enjoy this quiet time of day.

Clouds hovering just before a down pour. Got lots of use of our umbrellas.

2011-08-07T16:41:00.000-07:00

Into South Dakota and fields and fields of sunflowers in full bloom. Love to cut a huge bunch but no roadside stands in sight. Traveler did tell me they are used for human consumption, bird feed and some are sent to Asia.

Just one of those signs that sticks with you. The name is somewhat magical....

Another state. North Dakota.. South Dakota was sort of a blur as we plan on returning and spending lots of time here with fellow Escapees later this month.

We crossed the Missouri river. Lots of flooding through the area. Some farm lands could not be planted as they were under water. Detours and closed roads were the issue of the day.

Flooded by ways and markings on homes as to how high the water flowed.

Continue to be infatuated with silos and grain elevators for feed storage. We are so fortunate to get to travel through these green green fields.

2011-08-07T16:07:00.000-07:00

Valentine Nebraska... where else will you find hearts stenciled through town on the sidewalk. Small town but quite a diverse region of lakes, grassy sand hills, waterfalls, a national forest, and 2 wildlife refuges. We spent an extra day just to drive and hike around this quiet town in North Central Nebraska.

Waterfalls on the Niobrara river. We saw several of these along the river. Where oh where is my kayak. Miles and miles of gentle running river just waiting for paddlers.

More waterfalls. We were in awe as we would come around a corner and discover more water running.

We were impressed by these pads with supports to easily climb in and out of canoes or kayaks along the river.

Valentine has a 72,000 acre National Wildlife refuge. Not a lot of wild animals but every sighting delighted us.

WOW, yes we were treated to this view of 30 to 40 elk enjoying the grasses. Darn, they were spooked by our presence.

We saw this waterfall on the way to Merritt Reservoir, 11 mile long water area with 44 miles of shoreline. This is suppose to be a trophy fishery with lots of bass, perch, pike and walleye. May need to come back and fish some day.

2011-08-01T20:21:00.000-07:00

Rolling hills

Corn Fields. We're not in Kansas anymore.

Nebraska corn graces the countryside as far as the eye can see. It looks really green and healthy here.

Cousins. Gordon and Billie in North Platte. We spent a wonderful evening with my cousin Billie and her husband Monte. They treated us to a delicious home cooked meal. Such fun to catch up on old times growing up in Nebraska.

Then to visit with cousin Gordie and his wife Mary on the right and Billie and her husband Monte on the left. A delightful time sharing family memories.

30 foot tall Wild Bill Cody stands in front of the Museum.

The museum had 20,ooo miniature characters hand carved and painted by a couple over a 12 year time period. The diorama depicts the Wild Bill Cody Show and comes alive with moving parts and music.

This is a miniature chuck wagon setup complete with a layout of food.

Dick imprisoned in the Fort Cody Jail. We had fun touring the grounds. They even had a stuffed 2 headed cow on display.

Our campsite on the Middle Loop River...mud river outside of Thedford. This is in the Nebraska National Forest. All of the trees and plants were hand planted and they have a large nursery on site.

Great quiet spot for $4. a night or $5.50 with electric. We were right on the water... great biking and hiking paths.

Sunsets were beautiful and we spent 4 evenings enjoying this peace and tranquility except for the trains rumbling by.

2011-08-01T17:29:00.000-07:00

COLBY KANSAS

Another unexpected treasure. We camped right next to the Prairie Museum of Art and History. 24 acres of art and history. The outdoor exhibits reflect the lives of the pioneers that settled in Western Kansas in 1870.

Inside is a collection of glass, furniture, ceramics, toys, dolls, clocks , coin, silver and other antiques. This wedding dress and accessories represent the Midwest wedding traditions from the late 1880s to the 1980s.

These beautiful dolls were collected by Nellie McVey Kuska. She spent her entire life collecting and had them displayed at a museum in California. It took more than 3 moving vans to move 17 tons of collectables to the Pioneer museum in Colby.

These beautiful bisque dolls were collected from all over the world.

I could only imagine the fun I could have with my 2 grand daughters with these beauties.

This one room school house the Nichol School symbolizes the cultural and social importance of education to the pioneers. My mom taught in one similar to this.

The grounds were immaculate, You can ring this old school bell but no children came running.

This sod house had cactus growing on it. Sod blocks 1 foot by 2 feet by 4 inches were used to build the one room homes.

The Lone Star Presbyterian Church was built in 1915 by a group of Danish settlers.

I was fascinated by the tiny communion cups stacked up on several round dividers.

The Cooper barn was the largest barn in Kansas measuring 66' wide, 114 ft long and 48 feet high. This barn was moved to this location in one piece in 1992. Pictures of the move are astounding. It was voted one of the Eight Wonders of Kansas Architecture.

Loved this old wooden blade windmill called umbrella or morning glory. Most farms had this type of windmill in use during the early 1900's. It was surrounded by an herb and wildflower garden. The fragrance of lavender filled the air.

2011-08-01T15:07:00.000-07:00

Colorado Springs

We're ever in search of the perfect cinnamon roll and WOW we found a great bakery Wimberger's Old World Bakery complete with Poppyseed rolls, stuffed donuts and apple tarts. A yummy way to start the day and only 4 blocks from our home.

Grain elevators signal that we must be in Kansas. Memories of my sis and brother and I singing a nonstop "I see the elevator, I see the elevator, sing song 1st verse should get better but it just gets worse." We would have that chorus going until one of my parents would threaten our lives if we continued. Happy memories1

Yes, we are in Kansas. Sunflowers, cornfields and fields of prarie grass.

2011-07-26T20:32:00.000-07:00

Life is what happens when you're making a plan!!

Our plan was to travel but unfortunately while munching a carrot, I managed to dislocate my temperomandibular joint. Wow Pain. Got to spend 5 hours in the emergency room before the doc could do the simple procedure of popping my jaw back into place. Ugh.. not something I recommend.

The trip to and from the hospital took us through a wonderful section of town. Old homes and mansions graced the roadway and entertained us on our route to and from the hospital.

This was our choice of homes in the area.

2011-07-26T19:25:00.000-07:00

Our day at Pike's Peak

Traveling from Manitou Springs to the top of Pike's Peat elevation of 14, 115 feet. This is the 31st highest peak in Colorado. The Cog train has carried visitors for over 100 years starting June 30, 1891 to the top of Pike's Peak . This was a 19 mile journey through breathtaking scenery.

View from the top. We traveled through four life zones from high plains to alpine tundra. The dramatic cliffs and rock formations revealed the majestic Rocky Mountain, the Continental Divide, the cities of Denver, Manitou Springs, Colorado Springs, and Woodland Park and the historic gold camps of Cripple Creek and Victor.

Views of the mountains and rocks challenged our imagination to find rock formations of sleighs, sea lions, and goofy faces. Our conductor was full of entertaining stories. We saw forests of pine and aspen.

Views from the top. We were suppose to see 4 states but the clouds interrupted our views.

Views inspired the writing of the song America the Beautiful. One talented lady Katherine Bates who could interpret the views into song penned the words to "America the Beautiful."

We traveled the easy way by cog rail. Many others drove to the top conquering 25 % inclines and hairpin turns to reap the rewards of the view from the top.

Majestic views of our country as well as sightings of marmots, big horn sheep, mule deer, hawks and the little squirrels graced our trip.

We loved it. The high altitude was a little overwhelming but we delighted in the views of the day. Notice the tight grip on my little bag of donuts baked at 14,115 feet and covered in a delicious fudge. YUMM

Cog trains travel on special tracks. Interesting.

We passed several trains on the way up and down. Crossing close enough that we could have touched those travelers going in the opposite direction. A delightful entertaining day.

2011-07-25T18:33:00.000-07:00

Seven Falls Colorado Springs

This has been called the Grandest Mile of Scenery in Colorado. WOW 7 falls cascade 181 feet down a solid cliff of granite. Dick is waiting to take the elevator up to the top of the waterfall.

We went to see this waterfall at night so the pics aren't particularly good but the view really was spectacular.

Critters galore. We were lucky to see several of these critters as we toured the area.

Lights illuminate the falls at night in multiple colors. Again a spectacular view of this canyon. We saw 42 foot wide Pillars of Hercules with 1,000 foot cliffs above. The box canyon terminates at a 181 foot waterfall cascading down seven different steps. It really was a magical evening.

2011-07-25T18:14:00.000-07:00

United States Air Force Academy! What a patriotic feeling to tour this university and military base. The grounds cover 18,000 acres of pine forest.

The grounds were immaculate with a lot of attention to the sports fields. Touring the visitors center was quite an education and again such a patriotic feeling.

The Chapel was awesome. The chapel soars 150 feet and is an all-faith house of worship, It contains a chapel for each of 3 major religious faiths, protestant, Catholic and Jewish. We felt very fortunate to be allowed to visit this Academy.

2011-07-25T17:55:00.000-07:00

Garden of the Gods

Wow a dramatic view of 300 foot towering red sandstone rock formations against a backdrop of Pikes Peak and brilliant blue skies. A free park for all to enjoy by driving, hiking or biking the area.

Rock climbers galore, Dick and I passed on this activity but we did hike several miles through this beautiful park.

Everywhere we look...spectacular views of the red rock.

All smiles as we enjoy this

day.

Can you see the kissing camels.

2011-07-25T16:11:00.000-07:00

First night out we are in Red Rock Park outside of Gallup New Mexico. Thank you Days End for listing this sight. 640 acre park against the spectacular red cliffs of the Entrada Sandstone (formed during the Mesozoic era 205 million years ago)

My morning hike up to this beautiful rock formation. A great way to start the day.

Great finds in little unknown places. The museum was quite well done and had many wood carvings representing family.

The outer walls of the museum were decorated with these fabulous paintings.

This self pic after hiking in the mtns.

Glorious morning. And we're off for another day.

My trail. Great hike.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NZSAB-wJYs8/Ti30AELwRxI/AAAAAAAAA9U/9QCo2MCO_HY/s1600/IMG_0073.JPG

2011-07-25T15:50:00.000-07:00

On the road again. Finally after 7 weeks of delays we get to travel. My sis always says Life is what happens when you are making a plan. So during our 7 weeks, good things did happen. I got to spend a week with my Mom and Sister up in the mountains, spent a weekend visiting with my brother from Oklahoma, read 2 good books, took 7 kids and one daughter to see the circus, more time with mom and sis, learned the bus system in Flagstaff and went to several good movies. Hiked and biked in the mtns. and all around Flagstaff.

This was our parking lot for about one week of car repairs. Tag Automotive, two great guys who worked nights and weekends to get our car together and allowed us to park in their parking lot. If you're in Flagstaff and need work done, they are the guys to help you out and very reasonable, too. Even gave us a senior discount on the total bill.

This is what our car looked like with many of its parts removed. UGH!

Our car today with red ribbon on antenna. Ready for us to begin traveling. YEA!

Oregon Coast

2010-09-15T11:34:00.000-07:00

We love the Oregon Coast

Great spot to walk the beach.

Free night camped at the Casino

in Lincoln City.

Dick's trifecta dinner

Crab, clams and oysters all on the grill.

Great dinner night

More ocean along Newport.

Stayed at South Beach State Park

Just love watching the waves come in.

Winchester Bay, a great spot to watch crabbing.

Next year we'll have pots out.

Lucky 7 Casino outside of

Crescent City Northern California.

Fog, Fog, Fog

crossing the bridge.

Glad Dick was driving this time.

The ocean intrigues and keeps us

entertained.

I can't get enough...

Waves, waves, waves...

Sunset over the ocean.

Amazing colors.

CANADA TO THE STATES

2010-09-01T22:10:00.000-07:00

"The Alaska highway

winding in and winding out

Leaves a lot of serious doubt

if the lout who built the route

was going to hell or coming out."

One of our favorite sayings about

our travels....

But it was Canada that caused us troubles.

Golf ball size crack in RV window!

Side window of RV shattered

Was it a thousand pieces?

The culprit? Roadwork, gravel roads and

speeding truckers..... our challenges...

A trip back to Chetwynd.

New carving from the 2010

contest were fun to see.

Dick and the octopus...

CANADA

In to Kelowna and the Okanagan Valley.

Yes vineyards and we had to sample some

of their wines from the 17 vineyards in the

area.

Peach trees and we could smell the sweet fragrance of the fruit

ripening on the trees.

Apple trees with fruit soon to be ripe.

More fruit trees. Missed the picture of the cornfields.

The corn was candy corn sweet. Our last night in Canada.

Some of our fresh fruits: peaches, nectarines, pears,

tomatoes and black berries fresh from the field.

The moon coming up at our core of engineers campground in

Wanapum State Park. Feels good to be back in the USA

Sunrise through the trees. Great views from

our campsite.

Columbian River at our doorstep.

Trip to The Dalles very windy. Truckbed turned over on

the side of the road. We proceed with caution.

Camped on the Columbia River Gorge and enjoyed watching the windsurfers manage this windy day.

Catching??? another salmon. This ones a Chinook. Yummy dinner.

Views of Mt Hood. Spectacular snow on the mountain.

Whitehorse

2010-08-27T21:20:00.000-07:00

We were feeling well traveled. 4140 miles to Alaska and 1470 miles through Alaska. Then we met Peter and Crystal Mohr from Munich. This trip they have traveled 19 countries and 45,000 miles. They have traveled to 38 countries in their motor home including China, Europe across to South America and North to Alaska. They shared wonderful stories of their travels.

Sunset at 11 pm. Finally a clear enough day to enjoy sunset. We were hoping for Northern lights but no such luck.

We got to spend a week in Whitehorse waiting for our tow repair. Kayaking Long lake was one of my favorite activities. Might as well enjoy the area while we wait.

Moe liked it, also. A great spot to enjoy the water and a hike.

We caught up with our friends Sharon, Gary and Molly from Tennessee again. The Yukon river made for a relaxing spot for happy hour.

The Yukon river is 2000 miles long and was used by the stampeders during the goldrush to transport their goods upstream. We enjoyed a hike along the river.

This suspension bridge across miles canyon was built in 1922. Its still in use for hikers.

This was called the Grand Canyon by early gold seekers.

More gorgeous views.

The big machine in the parking lot. The trailer was nearly as long as the motor home. Dick was impressed.

Our plan was to go back into Alaska to see Steward and Hyder.

No such luck. We waited for 2 days but a fire and smoke closed the road. View of our sunshine.

Smoke hangs heavy in the air as about 80 of us waited for the Cassiar highway to open.

Buffalo are not phased by the smoke. A heard of nearly 100 were by the road.

Our campsite. Quiet spot along the Upper Liard River.

Must have one more cinnamon roll.

Ferry to Skagway

2010-08-12T14:16:00.000-07:00

We loaded our RV, jeep, Moe and ourselves onto this giant ferry to head across the water from Haines to Skagway.

Very interesting view driving onboard. Realize that both sides of the ferry are open and if I drive too far, I could go right into the ocean. Don't want to miss that first turn to park.

Loading the RV. WOW it looks big from up here.

THe view of leaving Haines. What a great quaint little town this has been. Each town in Alaska has its own personality and this one was really hometown without tourist trinkets.

Dick hanging out by the flag on the ferry.

Great views coming into port. There were 4 cruise ships in this day. You can imagine the number of visitors. Skagway was once the major Kondike gateway and still has many historic Gold Rush buildings. One of our favorite activities was the town tour offered by the National Parks rangers. Learning the history of this town, makes me appreciate all the stampeders went through to get to the Gold Rush.

The town catered to tourists. No trip could be complete with out a horse and buggy ride.

The tour cars were modeled after the original trolley cars used during the goldrush days. The town is called Alaska's Garden City. Many of the Victorian homes had beautiful gardens of wild flowers and poppies.

Dick and one of his favorite totem poles.

The town remains mostly old buildings with board walks. Walking through town was entertainment in itself . The six block historic district is well preserved.

We toured the country on the White Pass and Yukon Scenic Railway, one of the last remaining narrow-gauge trains. It was completed in 1900 and provided a route to the Klondike. It was also the main supply line for the construction of the Alaska Highway, built to defend Alaska from invasion during World War II. We traveled to White Pass Summit at 2800 ft., through 2 tunnels , by cascading waterfalls, by Buchanan Rock, and passed the gold rush cemetery. Great views for the day.

The ticket office is a replica of the original one built in 1900.
Construction of the railroad began in 1898 and the first train broght back $500,000 of Klondike gold in 1899.

Interesting to see the front of the train as it rounds the corner to go through one of the tunnels.

Our views of waterfalls and glaciers made the trip go by in a hurry.

The caboose. This is where as a child I always wanted to ride.

Haines Alaska / Bear Country

2010-08-08T22:42:00.001-07:00

Haines at sunrise:
Our travels take us into Canada and then back to Alaska to Haines, North America's longest and deepest fjord. Historic Fort William Seward is in town and was used during World War I and II as a training base for Alaska recruits. It is complete with historic homes, guard houses, barracks and fire hall and is in the process of being restored and turned into private homes and businesses.

The view from our home: Portage cove on the right and a waterfall on the left. Love hearing the ocean waves and water falling down the mountainside. Haines is home to about 200 to 400 eagles. We have seen them swooping into the water to catch their dinner. Yes, its still cool and rainey.

My poor jeep covered in sticky mud. Notice the tow plates are off. 100 miles out of Tok and again one of the plates snapped; the other was cracked. Frost heaves and damaged roads are the culprit. Dick and I are driving separate until Whitehorse where we are hopeful to get repair work complete.

We've been on bear watch and what a treat. Momma bear and her 2 cubs came out for dinner. Salmon is their specialty. Later we saw a mom and 3 cubs. Such a show. I'll try to get the video on my next blog.

Mom is intense on finding dinner.

Mom feeding her cubs.

We attended a Farmers Market held at the State fairgrounds. They have a community garden full of ripe veggies and flowers.

Its time to pick the cherries. Many trees throughout town are full of cherries ready for jam and pie.

Two girls pitting cherries in a garden in the middle of town. They dry the cherries to enjoy all year round. YUMMMM

These flower pots line the pier in downtown Haines. A beautiful site on the small boat harbor.

Our dinner. Bought crabs for $5 a piece from local fisherman. He even cleaned them for us. Just throw them in a pot for a real crab feast.

Dick enjoying crab dinner. Notice the meal is complete with newspaper table cloth.

These were delicious sweet juicy crab legs.

We enjoyed every bite.

Tomorrow we load the motorhome, jeep and ourselves onto the ferry and head to Skagway. A new adventure awaits.

Valdez, Alaska

2010-08-08T16:14:00.000-07:00

Dick fixing one of our favorite meals. Salmon on the grill. Look no winter coat. We had a day of sunshine in Valdez...This area is surrounded by the Chugach Mountains, the tallest coastal mountains in North America, rising from seal level to an elevation of 7,000 feet.

We cruise in the 55 foot LuLuBelle for a 7 hour trip through Prince William Sound, one of the most spectacular and unspoiled wildernesses in the world. Through the many fjords of the Chugach National Forest, we observed fishermen at work, the terminal of the TransAlaska Oil Pipe Line, glaciers, ice fields and many sea animals.

Valdez has 5 accessible glaciers: the Columbia, Meares, Worthington, Shoup and Valdez. This is the Columbia glacier, the second largest tidewater glacier in North America and largest in Prince William Sound. It is close to a mile wide and rises 300 ft from the waterline.

You get the picture. We're having a great time.

Average summer temp in Valdez is 53 degrees. Today, its much colder with the wind off the glacier.

Our fascination with sea otters is rewarded with this group of 23

little guys swimming together.

Can't resist one more pic.

Our boat in the middle of the icefields as as we go around Glacier Island. Glad that Captain Fred Rudolf has over 30 years of exploring these waters. He got us home safe.

These huge chunks of very blue ice surround us.

The ice fields were so thick with floating masses. Amazing trip through these waters.

Our hike to Worthington Glacier was well rewarded with beautiful views.

A researcher fires up a water drill to bore a hole into the Worthington glacier . A camera is placed in the bedrock to discover the effect of temperatures on ice slides.

Mount Drum is part of the Wrangell Mountain Range and is located between Valdez and Copper Center.

We're in Tok, Alaska. We're fortunate they have a RV repair with a welder. The plate holding our RV tow bar to our jeep broke through. Thank goodness Dick is so observant and recognized the jeep swaying and got us to a stop. Otherwise, the jeep could have beat us down the hill. All repaired and on the road again headed to Haines. Life is good.

Valdez

2010-08-01T23:28:00.000-07:00

Beautiful views on our trip to Valdez.

Wrangell Mountain Range. Mt Sanford is the tallest at 16,237 feet. Mt Wrangell is the largest active volcano. Since the 9.2 earthquake in 1964, Mt Wrangell has been warming up the ice and snow that was 160 feet deep.

Dick's view as we travel. Visibility at about 50 feet. Seemed like even less to me. This through the curvy mountain roads with many frost heaves to add a little more excitement. .

Horsetail falls. Great area with lots of falls. Many ribbon falls.

Valdez is often called a little Switzerland . One of Alaska's prettiest spots with glaciers galore, wildlife, and lots of snow covered mts.

The view from our campsite in Valdez. We haven't been in a commercial campground since Salmon Arm in Canada. Great views, again. Valdez is a large fishing village with many commercial boats at the harbor. It is also an oil town with the Alaska Pipeline terminal. We have followed this pipeline from Coldfoot above the Arctic Circle to Valdez.

More flowers..Lots of begonias in every color of the rainbow. Some as big around as a dinner plate.

Bear fun. A trip to Allison point was quite interesting. Momma bear and her 3 cubs put on a show: fishing for their dinner.

Two of the cubs playing. They must think this is great fun reaching into the stream for those swimming fish.

The next photo is a video. Press the arrow to play

Seward/Alyeska

2010-08-01T22:26:00.000-07:00

Alyeska resort. 900 + inches of snow each year. This is Alaska's largest ski area. We rode the 60 passenger tram to the top. No skis this time of year.

Horse and rider statue that reflects the history of the native Alaskan sits in front of this elegant hotel.

Beautiful flowers surround the statue and are everywhere on the grounds of the resort. Amazing colors and the size WOW. These peonies were huge.

Great views from the ridge over the ski area. Amazing amount of snow.

Lots of snow still on the ground. Enough that Dick and I could have one more snowball fight. No contest here. Dick knows my aim even at 10 feet, he was safe.

Seward/ Kenai Fjords National Park

Exit glacier. We hiked to the area but could not climb it unless we wanted to risk falling into a crevice as the glacier is considered unstable and unpredictable. .

Exit glacier is about 3 miles long. It is believed that this glacier once extended all the way to Seward

Scenic waterfall just outside of Seward. A great hike from our campsite.

All of the trash containers are painted with great artwork and memorable remarks. "Do the right thing every dog gone day"

Kenai Fjords National Park

2010-07-30T23:05:00.000-07:00

KENAI FJORDS NATIONAL PARK

We boarded the Glacier Express for a day long tour out Resurrection Bay through the Harding Gateway, the Chiswell Islands to the Holgate Glacier, Aialik Peninsula and back to the small boat harbor at Seward.

Aialik Glacier views. After so many days of rain we picked a great day to get on the water.

We saw lots of sea otters, murres, puffins, Kittlitz's murrelets and seal lions.

Stellar sea lions grow to an average 8 feet long and weigh about 1500 lbs.

Gulls circle and gather in the middle of the waters awaiting their fish feed.

Whale boil. 5 to 6 whales travel together and gather large amounts of fish. The whales surface for these amazing views.

My camera could not capture this phenomena.

Six whales surfacing.

My best whale tail.....

Glaciers galore in the 700 square mile Harding Icefield, the largest icefield located entirely within the United States.

Another great summer day in Alaska

Peaks of the Holgate Glacier.

This glacier has been receding since the ice age 800 years ago.

There is constant activity at the glacier, sounds of popping and the roar of Calving of the glacier.

Our crew picked up ice from the glacier to make these special blue margaritas. Yes the ice actually is blue.

The end of a beautiful day.

2010-07-29T23:17:00.000-07:00

Seward is located on Resurrection Bay, east coast of Kenai Peninsula. We camped at the start of the Iditarod Trail in the City Campground looking right out at this view. .

The campground is next to Small Boat Harbor. Lots of cruise ships and small boats in and out of this harbor.

The town is filled with beautiful gardens. These tiger lilies were seen in front of many of the homes.

View out our front window of these little sea otters. They float on their backs and hold their shells in their paws to crack for a tasty meal.

They are so darn cute.

The town has murals painted on many of the businesses. I loved the wildflower scenes.

Another mural . All of the trash cans in the town were also painted and had great inspiring messages. Seeing such artistry, makes you want to clean up the area.

A trip to the Seal Life Center, an ocean wildlife rescue center houses nearly 2000 invertebrates, fish, seabirds and marine mammals. These little moon jellyfish just free float.

The horned puffin is such a cutie. He dives to get fish and then keeps consuming food until he can' t fly and if he does, he may drop from the sky like a potato. They actually fly better underwater. It was fun to watch them diving for food.

2010-07-29T22:58:00.000-07:00

We spent 4 days in Sodotna on the Kenai Peninsula. The Kenai river runs right through town and has tremendous fishing spots. In this pic you can see how close the fisherman stand next to each other. Casting and snagging their lines. We were fortunate to camp at a spot just a 5 min. walk to the Kenai. Yes, another free campsite.

Hoping for the big one. Visitor Center in Soldotna. You can fish right behind the center on one of the fishwalks.

A big smile....After standing in thigh deep freezing water, I finally got my salmon.

What a thrill to land this one.

2010-07-20T19:12:00.000-07:00

Our friendly bald eagle appears out of nowhere for a visit. He just hangs around and poses for us.

A ferry trip to Seldovia a quaint little fishing village and tourist attraction. 265 residents here. Travel around town is easy on the boardwalks and hiking trails out to see the salmon swimming upstream , the puffins, and sea otters.

Beautiful glass window in the visitor center.

Loved the little houses set up on the pilings. Yes this is a real lived in home.

Dick with Sharon, pup Molly and Gary , camping neighbors and new friends at Homer Spit. 2 days of sunshine........amazing

Dick with his bud the EAGLE. Seldovia has a wood carving event each Memorial Day weekend. The carvings are displayed throughout the village.

Relaxing with my fresh catch in Soldotna on the Kenai River

Camped a night at Deep Creek. Tractors pull boats in and out of the ocean waters. There were 105 trailers on the beach, lots of work for those old John Deere tractors.

BRR.....

Our winter clothes are getting lots of use. Long Johns, hat, gloves ....all the layers to keep warm. Red boots getting lots of use.

2010-07-15T13:30:00.000-07:00

Homer Alaska

We're still here.... Great views and the resident eagle flies in to our front yard everyday. He is something special to watch.

Taken from the Skyline view. You can see the spit,

This is our home for now. Who could move from this view.

Farmers Market

Fresh peonies and lots of nice produce. We're enjoying.

Another fishing day reaps great rewards.

No comment on the bad hair day but check out the red boots. They've kept my feet dry while fishing and picking up mussels. Who knew 1/2 a bucket of mussels would take hours to clean... They are yummy, though.

We now have 51 lbs of halibut. Neighbors brought us salmon last night so we had what Dick calls his trifecta dinner: salmon, halibut and mussels. The smiles tell it all.

2010-07-12T00:14:00.000-07:00

Out on our first fishing trip at Homer.

Three ORCAS played or hunted as we

motored to our first fishing hole.

Intent on catching the big one.

3 lb weight and it felt like I already

had a fish on. Yes, it does feel like

I'm pulling up a barn door.

WOO HOO!!

Landed a big one.

The smiles tell it all.

We came home with our limit of

2 fish each and a total of 32 lbs of

filets. Our freezer is full and we've

just begun to fish.....

Our bucket of fish...

Guess what we're having for

dinner and probably breakfast

and lunch. Fresh Halibut is sooo

good.

2010-07-09T09:46:00.000-07:00

Can't believe this view. It seems more like a winter ski

picture than July. Locals tell us this is an unusual

cool summer. 52 degrees out this morning.

Dick and I were camped at Resurrection Trail Head

about 120 miles from Homer, when it felt like someone was

attempting to pick up and shake the RV. We stared at each other...checked out our surroundings and found nothing. We

found out the next day that Anchorage had an earthquake.

Another Alaska Adventure for the Millers

Docks,fisherman and halibut. My kind of

scene.

Finally today, the sun is shining. We're

getting ready to catch the big one.

Fishing from the shore is on the agenda

today and Halibut fishing early next week

Too gorgeous for words....

OCean and mtns. Great views

We're camped at Homer Spit

Public Camp Ground. $15

a night for this scenery.

we're in the front row looking at

this ocean

Dick and I celebrating 21st Wedding Anniversary.

He always wants to lead!!!!!

Anchorage campground. Looks like

Moe has chewed up on of her favorite stuffed

animals. The cotton is actually shed from the trees

Seems like they could make t shirts or something out

of this stuff.

Flowers in Anchorage are amazing.

gardens and hanging baskets bloom

everywhere. Anchorage is Alaska's largest city

located on Cook Inlet with the Chugach mountains

in the background. Quite a site.

My favorite bear....

2010-07-06T00:58:00.000-07:00

Our campground at South Rolly Lake. Small lakes everywhere. Great for kayaking and hiking. We enjoyed staying here for 5 nights over the 4th of July

Another view from our campsite. Can't tell whether its day or night. We've had overcast days and sunlight until after midnight, then a couple hours of darkness and the sun is up by 3 am. Can't get use to these long nights.

Dick and his horns at Denali. This park is amazing....

We're at Wasilla in the Walmart campground parked next to our friends Richard and Carol from Phoenix. Strangers in the night meet at Walmart...We knew they were traveling but hadn't known their schedule till the Walmart parking lot encounter. Enjoyed sharing travel experiences and plans for the coming weeks

2010-07-06T00:01:00.000-07:00

Denali National Park about 6 million acres

We took the 11 hour roundtrip bus tour in to WonderLake. What a beautiful day. Some rain and a little overcast but a great day

to see critters.

We saw 8 caribou this day. These guys must have just had lunch as they were quite lazy.

A total of 7 grizzly bears. This mom was with her two cubs

romping in the meadow.

Mr moose was one of the nine we saw throughout the day.

The old grey wolf was collared for tracking purposes. We saw 5 wolves, one mom with her 3 pups. In addition 25 doll sheep, one red fox, one loon and in excess of 150 mosquitos.

This is the view from our campsite outside Denali Park. We could watch rafters as they paddled down the river and through a set of rapids. Good entertainment.

Mt McKinley in all its glory. The highest peak in North America at 20,320 feet. Nearly a thousand people a year attempt to climb this mtn.

2010-07-05T23:26:00.000-07:00

We visited beautiful downtown Talkeetna, town of about 800

mostly vendors selling their wares to us tourists. The town is an aviation and supply base for Mount McKinley climbing expedition so we met many young hikers and climbers who were setting out

to the challenge of McKinley.

Flowers everywhere. These beautiful pansy like flowers

really caught my eye.

The Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry has

historic aircraft, railroad equipment, farm machinery and heavy equipment. We climbed all over the train and even rode in the caboose.

Dick especially liked the tractor displays. Again he's exhibiting those farm tendencies. I'm glad he didn't get out his overalls.

2010-06-25T01:06:00.000-07:00

ARCTIC CIRCLE

We made it, 550 miles roundtrip from Fairbanks to the Arctic Circle. Travel books list this drive as a dusty minefield of potholes from football size to washtub size with blind curves and technical pitches. They weren't wrong, nor did they exaggerate. It was worth every minute of the 14 hours of driving to see the enormity of this state.

View of the upcoming road and the Alaska pipeline. The pipeline is 4 feet wide and 800 miles long stretching from Prudhoe Bay on the Arctic Ocean down to Valdez carrying about 1 million barrels of crude oil a day. .

Coldfoot, town of named after greenhorns who got 'cold feet' at the thought of wintering in this North Alaska area. We only traveled this far North to get gas for our return trip to Fairbanks.

Lucky us, we were here right after the summer solstice. During winter solstice, it would be dark for 24 hours a day .

Pioneer Park, Fairbanks

Located right in the middle of Fairbanks built to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the purchase of Alaska from Russia.

Dick enjoyed the Pioneer Air Museum

Gorgeous hanging baskets of flowers were throughout the park.

Salmon so big, I had to ride it... Couldn't catch it.

Dick and his favorite bear.

2010-06-23T00:43:00.000-07:00

Fairbanks, Alaska

Took the Discovery III, a sternwheeler on a cruise on the Chena and Tanana Rivers. This paddleboat was built in Seattle and started doing tours in 1987.

Headed out to the Tanana River, the largest glacier-fed river in the world.

The Discovery II was built on the steel hull of the last freighting sternwheeler on the Tanana and Yukon Rivers.

One of our favorite homes along the river. Many of the homes are built from the native spruce trees and have 4 or 5 paned windows for the cold Alaskan Winters.

Alaskan bush pilot in action. Amazing take off and landing on the river.

Home of the late Susan Butcher the Iditarod Champion. Susan and her dog team won the 1,100 mile Dog Sled Race from Anchorage to Nome 4 times. Her husband and daughters now manage the dog kennel and continue to raise and train dogs. Great fun seeing the puppies and older dogs interact and to have an opportunity to see a 10 dog team pull an ATV around their training track.

Reindeer sighting!!

Log cabin and display of native garments

This was a spectacular coat complete with fur trim and beading indicative of the Athabascan Indians

Dick and the fish smoker. Smoking fish in the big drum and cooking the fish remains into a stew for the dogs.

Smokehouse from the Original Chena Village used to dry salmon

Salmon drying rack.

Salmon is dried and used to feed the dogs.

2010-06-22T23:41:00.000-07:00

Visiting the North Pole. Santa was taking a rest so I didn't get to visit with him. The tiny people in front are me and Moe.

A very busy spot, year round.

Santa's elves are making lots of toys.

Our campsite on Chena River outside of Fairbanks.

This is the view from our front window at 11pm.

Its a great time of night cause the mosquitoes are

sleeping.

Its very lush. White birch and spruce trees.

A day of kayaking. Unfortunately we had to go downstream

from our campsite and then the great paddle upstream to get home. Lots of fun as I finally got out and pulled Dick upstream and then attempted to walk my kayak upstream only to be stuck midcalf in muck and very cold muck at that. Lots of giggles and grand memories, The water looks so calm...little did we know.

Life doesn't get much better.....

2010-06-19T15:41:00.000-07:00

We were impressed by the efficiency of this little ferry taking all traffic from Dawson City across the Yukon River to the road to Chicken Alaska. We camped on the other side of the river so got to travel with our jeep by ferry a couple times a day.

CHICKEN ALASKA: Not a great pic but this is Chicken Alaska. Three businesses and one airport accommodates lots of travelers.

Dick was excited about crossing the line, too. ALASKA at last.

Celebrating our first night in Alaska. A champagne toast to this adventure. Dick got up and put on shorts this morning. Ahhh sunshine, that lasted about 20 minutes when we had a downpour and temp dropped to about 50. On to TOK. Hope to get some electrical repair done. Problem with circuitry or something so we're not getting power without the generator running. FUN TIMES...Life doesn't get much better.

2010-06-18T22:45:00.000-07:00

Dick enjoyed the show at Diamond tooth Gertie's saloon. Fun entertainment.

Midnight celebration at midnight dome in Dawson City. Met a group of fellow travelers celebrating the midnight. Sunset and Sunrise at nearly the same time. Can you believe it is midnight and still totally light. We can't quite figure out wen to sleep and when to play.

Looking out at the valley from the midnight dome.

Bear sighting. We do love our wild animals.

4026 miles from home. Alaska. We are finally here.

Celebrate another milestone.

2010-06-18T21:57:00.000-07:00

Dawson City: Yukon's first capital when the Yukon became a separate territory in 1898d In 1953 Whitehorse became the capital. Dawson was declare a National historic site. We camped across the Yukon river and took the ferry boat across the river. A great government campsite right on the river complete with wonderful views and mosquitos.

Historic dredge built in 1912. Largest wooden hull bucket line dredge in North America

Sludge was filtered through this system and gold was claimed. $35. an ounce. Lots of places to pan for gold and make your fortune.

Old shipwreck. We camped just down the road for an easy hike.

Glad I wan't on this sternwheeler.