Day 49 - June 23, 2019
Today was a mostly sunny day – maybe we left the rain behind – as we left from west of Indianapolis driving east. As we drove through Ohio, it started to be a little drier in the fields, but we could still see some fields that had standing water but not to the degree of the Midwest. We thought we ha...
Day 48 - June 22, 2019
It was another cloudy/rainy day in the Midwest. Luckily, we didn’t have to drive through too much actual rain, just the spray from all the recent rain on the highway. As we drove through Missouri, there were lots of farms and corn fields. Unfortunately, many of the fields were flooded if they were b...
Day 47 - June 21, 2019
Happy first day of summer! Yesterday was a nice day while Bill was sick, so of course today we had an early morning thunderstorm pass through before 9:00. We were getting ready to head for Historic Independence when there was a weather alert for a severe thunderstorm warning and flash flooding on it...
Day 46 - June 20, 2019
New plan for today….no ball game. Bill had an upset stomach last night and during the day today. He slept most of the day and didn’t leave the hotel room. He thinks it might have been the egg he ate with dinner last night. I drove to the Midwest Genealogy Center in Independence for several hours of...
Day 45 - June 19, 2019
This morning, it was a cloudy, cool morning at 65 degrees…but it wasn’t raining as we headed into St. Joseph for the Pony Express Museum. The Pony Express Museum is housed in the original St. Joseph stables. On April 3, 1860, Johnny Fry left on horseback with mail placed in saddlebags (mochilas) and...
Day 44 - June 18, 2019
Today we had upstate New York weather. It was cool, cloudy, and rainy ALL day! We headed east from Kearney, Nebraska to Omaha. We had planned on doing several things outside, but the weather didn’t permit that. We were going to walk some of the Lewis & Clark trail by the Missouri River, see the Lew...
Day 43 - June 17, 2019
We left Sterling, Colorado heading east to Nebraska. The land was very flat with lots of agriculture, and ranches with red and black Angus cattle. There were some small calves as well. A little way inside of Nebraska, the time changed to Central Time, so we lost an hour today and now are only one ho...
Day 42 - June 16, 2019
This morning, it was about 70 degrees as we left Longmont, CO for Rocky Mountain National Park. At Estes Park, we entered at the Fall River Visitor Center (8,242’ elevation) on the Trail Ridge Road and drove through the Roosevelt National Forest. At 47 miles long, this road is the highest continuous...
Day 41 - June 15, 2019
Today, we headed back to Red Rocks Park & Amphitheater as it was only about 20 minutes south of where we stayed. We are glad we did, because we got to see the entire amphitheater (it seats 10,000) this time and it was quite impressive. The Civilian Conservation Corps had helped to create this site i...
Day 40 - June 14, 2019
Today, best reminds me of the book by Judith Viorst, “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.” I was also thinking about Noah – how he and his wife were on the ark for 40 days and 40 nights during the biblical flood. There was a lot of rough patches, but the day also had some re...
Day 39 - June 13, 2019
This morning, we decided to rest in the hotel room before meeting at the Gray Line Tour office in Colorado Springs for our 1:00 departure for Pike's Peak. We had a great driver/tour guide for the 4 hour tour. As we traveled the 19-mile road to the peak, Tom told us about the different biomes we woul...
Day 38 - June 12, 2019
It was been getting a little cooler as we move east. This morning it was 55 degrees in South Fork, CO, yet still sunny. We drove about an hour and a half to get to the Great Sand Dunes National Park in south central Colorado. Still a very rural area, with lots of ranches and only a few houses in the...
Day 37 - June 11, 2019
Another sunny morning – 70 degrees to start our day. It was a short fifteen-minute drive to Mesa Verde National Park. The Spanish translation is “green table” with the top of the mesa (1,800 to 2,000’ above the valley floor) forested with juniper and pinyon trees. With more than 52,000 acres, the pa...
Day 36 - June 10, 2019
This morning, we left the hotel at 10:30, at least an hour later than usual. I had fallen behind on editing my pictures and posting to my travel blog. After all, it is hard to go to three national parks in two days! It was already a warm and sunny day at 75 degrees. That’s something we don’t get to...
Day 35 - June 9, 2019
This morning we headed to Arches National Park. There was a line of cars waiting to get in. This was the only line we have encountered so far and were concerned that the park would be too busy and congested. Although Arches National Park has the largest number of natural stone arches in the country,...
Day 34 - June 8, 2019
This morning, it was a sunny, cool 46 degrees when we left our hotel. We continued on Scenic Route 12 through the remainder of Bryce Canyon stopping at several points along the way. At Mossy Creek, we took a walk following the creek to a waterfall. We stopped at the Grand Staircase-Escalante Nation...
Day 33 - June 7, 2019
It was a very comfortable morning at 72 degrees. We continued on Route 9 east through the remainder of Zion before turning on Scenic Route 12 towards Bryce Canyon. We arrived at the Red Canyon area, again with more construction and one lane of traffic. We also went through the Dixie National Forest...
Day 32 - June 6, 2019
Today, heading east we lost an hour as we moved to Rocky Mountain Time at the Utah border. We topped in Hurricane, Utah for a quick Wendy’s lunch, including 50 cent Frostys. We climbed through the Virgin River Gorge between Arizona and Utah. That was slow going with one lane of traffic closed and t...
Day 31 - June 5, 2019
It was nice to sleep in today. We left our room around 11:30 to walk “the strip.” It was about 96 degrees. We walked from Harrah’s to Caesar’s and explored inside the hotel, marveling at all the statues, pools, and the circular escalator. At the Venetian, we saw gondoliers on their Grand Canal. Of c...
Day 30 - June 4, 2019
I did some research and found a walk-in clinic in Henderson, Nevada that was located inside a Walgreen’s drug store and it was on our way for our day’s plans to take a boat cruise on Lake Mead and stop to see the Hoover Dam. It did take some coaxing to have Bill agree to stop there to be seen by a n...
Day 29 - June 3, 2019
Today we filled up our gas tank before heading through the very desolate area between Ridgecrest and Death Valley – no houses, stores, or people. As we came into Searles Valley, an area where the mineral basalt is mined, the temperature was 85 degrees and it was early morning. As we climbed through...
Day 28 - June 2, 2019
This morning in Richmond it was a cloudy, foggy 60 degrees when we left my cousin Jim’s townhouse. As we left the Oakland area, it was nice to get back into a rural area with rolling hills, and red and black Angus ranches, and lots of groves and orchards. I think many of the trees were almonds and/o...
Day 27 - June 1 2019
Today we drove north through the Salinas Valley where we saw lots of vegetable and fruit crops in huge fields. There were groups of people picking the produce – maybe lettuce or cabbages. We did pass many produce trucks loaded for market – one of the trucks I noticed that the loaded boxes said “lett...
Day 26 - May 31, 2019
This morning we went to Mission San Luis Obispo de Toulosa. This mission was built in 1772, the 5th mission founded by Father Junipero Serra. It was named after Saint Louis of Toulouse, France. Early on this mission suffered much damage the burning arrows of the Indian attacks. The roofs were chang...
Day 25 - May 30, 2019
Today, we left the L.A. area headed west to the coast and then north. We drove through the Santa Monica Mountains before dropping down into farmland and a large orange grove. The California 101 freeway is the historic El Camino Real and it was hazy as we drove north with views of the Pacific Ocean o...
Day 24 - May 29, 2019
Today we left the hotel at 11:30 for a 1:30 tour of SONY Pictures Studio in Culver City – about 20 miles away. We arrived at about 12:15 and ate our lunch in the car before the tour. The tour lasted 2 hours and we saw several of the sound stages on the 45 acre lot. We watched a film about the histor...
Day 23 - May 28, 2019
This morning we drove to Hollywood and parked in a large underground parking garage. When we saw the light of day again, we purchased tickets for the Starline Hop on, Hop off tour of Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Santa Monica Beach. It was such a busy area, that we were glad we were not driving as i...
Day 22 - May 27, 2019
Happy Memorial Day! This morning we finished seeing parts of the Queen Mary, notably the bridge, the captain's area, the chart room and the wireless (radio) room. We walked out onto the bow before going back inside to watch the 2nd 4-D movie about the Queen Mary. We departed by 11:30 and took the sh...
Day 21 - May 26, 2019
Today it was forecast for clouds, wind, and rain with temps in the 50's. Because Bill still has a bit of his cold and I was starting to feel worse, with sinus pressure and headache, it felt good to sleep in this morning. Our agenda today was to explore the ship, take a harbor cruise and go to the be...
Day 20 - May 25, 2019
Today , we woke up to about 62 degrees as we headed north to San Juan Capistrano to see the famous mission there. As we were driving north on Route 5, we could see that the southbound lanes were extremely busy and almost not moving at times. We could just wonder if people from the L.A. area were hea...
Day 19 - May 24, 2019
We decided not to go to the San Diego Zoo today. We didn't think we wanted another day with lots of walking. Instead we headed to Balboa Park in San Diego. This was the previous site of the Panama-California Exposition in 1915 and 1916 and also for the California Pacific International Exposition in...
Day 18 - May 23, 2019
This morning it was cool so we left with long sleeves to the light rail station. Because it wasn't a baseball game, we were able to drive to the Old Town parking lot by the trolley station. We decided to go back to Petco Park because Bill left his baseball hat there. However lost and found at the st...
Day 17 - May 22, 2019
We traveled about an hour from Temecula to San Diego. We were still dropping in elevation and driving on 5 lanes of traffic coming into the city. We arrived at our hotel and were shuttled to the light rail trolley to go to Petco Park. We got our tickets in the second level in left field under some c...
Day 16 - May 21, 2019
If you get a chance, check out some of my postings again as I have finished them after not having Internet service for a few days. This morning, we relaxed in the hotel an extra hour before getting "on the 10" to drive to Joshua Tree National Park. We entered the South section first and drove throug...
Day 15 - May 20, 2019
This morning we had breakfast at IHOP with my cousin Joe in Mesa, AZ. We headed north about a half hour to Scottsdale to Taliesin West to tour the winter home (camp) of Frank Lloyd Wright. Because we didn't make a reservation, we had to wait an hour and a half for the 90 minute tour. We were glad we...
Day 14 - May 19, 2019
This morning it was a chilly 48 degrees when we left Barb and Pete's summer house in the mountains (6,600 ' elevation) to drive to Mesa, AZ (1,200 ' of elevation) where several of my cousins live. We drove through the largest stand of ponderosa pine trees in the United States. We dropped down about...
Day 13 - May18, 2019
Today we drove through the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest. It was very beautiful to see all the different colors in the desert. Each layered color depends on the sediment of minerals during that time period. The views were extensive and seemed to go on forever. The Petrified Forest had lots mor...
Day 12 - May 17, 2019
Today, Bill woke with a cold - he seems to get a cold, cough, and chest congestion every May. We drove to the Petroglyph National Monument just outside Alburqueque. It was sunny and 75 degrees. We watched an informative film at the visitor center before heading to the Boca Negra Canyon area to walk...
Day - May 17, 2019
Petroglyph National Monument Drive historic Route 66 Stay at Wigwam Hotel - Holbrook, AZ
Day 11 - May 16, 2019
This morning we headed to Old Town in Albuqueque to explore. We strolled around the Plaza, shopped, visited San Felipe de Neri Church, and had lunch looking out into the Plaza. It was an overcast day but still in the 70's when we were there. After lunch, we decided to head for the hills - quite lite...
Day 10 - May 15, 2019
This morning, my body was very sore. My calves were still sore from climbing 106 steps in Austin to see the view from Mt. Bonnell. Yesterday's trip to Bandelier included at least a 2 mile hike and climbing stairs and ladders into kivas. My thighs were aching this morning and it was hard to walk. Alt...
Day 9 - May 14, 2019
This morning, Carole drove us about an hour north of Santa Fe to the Los Alamos area to visit the Bandelier National Monument. The view was breathtaking as we traveled up in elevation through the canyon. Here an ancestral puebloan community was established 700-800 years ago. We walked about 2 miles...
Day 8 - May 13, 2019
We traveled 325 miles today from Lubbock, TX to Santa Fe, NM. From Lubbock north, there was lots of flat land, farming, and cows.. Many of the cows were dairy cows affixed to outside stanchions. The weather here allows them to be outside and not inside barns. There were lots and lots of grain elevat...
Day 7 - May 12, 2019
We headed northwest out of Austin into the hill and canyon area of Texas. I enjoyed the roads with its pretty wildflowers, no tractor trailer traffic, and quite often the 75 mph speed limit. Gradually the terrain flattened out and we saw ranch land and cattle. Lots of the ranches have fancy gates in...
Day 5 & 6 - May 10 & 11, 2019
We stayed at Bill's sister (Diane) house in South Austin for 3 nights. She went into work for half a day on Friday and we were glad for the down time to relax. We headed to Terry Black's BBQ for a nice Texas BBQ dinner, then headed to downtown Austin to do what tourists do - wait for the bats to eme...
Day 4 - May 9, 2019
We left Texarkana with cloudy skies but in the upper 60's and NO RAIN! We headed West towards Dallas, seeing lots of flat farm and cattle lands in East Texas. Some corn was almost knee high. We passed George Bush Blvd just east of Dallas. On I-35 South, there were lots of Texas wildflowers along the...
Day 3 - May 8, 2019
The two words that best express today's travels are TRUCKS and WEATHER! We left Dickson, TN this morning heading southwest towards Memphis on Interstate 40. The road, in both directions, was loaded with trucks making driving harder to manage. We would be moving right along then come up on trucks try...
Day 2- May 7, 2019
I'm tired this evening, so this will be a quick update that I hope to add to later. Today, we also went further than planned and even made a stop that wasn't on our agenda. We are in Dickson, TN - just west of Nashville. In Louisville, we stopped at the Louisville Slugger factory and museum. The are...
Day 1 - May 6, 2019
Day 1 went well. Bill did all the driving today. We packed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and ate at a conservation area near Orchard Beach in North East Township, PA on Lake Erie. The sun was out and we were able to walk the path back to see the lake. We did a good job of stopping often to stre...
Trip preparations
There is SO much planning that has gone into this trip. This trip was originally planned for 2017, but we didn't know then that we would be buying a new house instead and moving 60 miles away to be closer to our children and grandchildren when the trip was planned. 2018 brought us a chance to tour H...