Tuesday, Oct. 10: Balloons take off

Today we planned to sleep in but at 6:00 am this morning, Flo was banging on our rig................."get up, get up, it is a beautiful and morning and something is going to happen!!!". So we hurried and threw on some clothes and grabbed coffee and out we went to see the balloons. Sure enough, the sky was clear, we could see the stars and there was no wind. We stood outside and waited.

AND THEN THEY CAME!!!

October 8-9: Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

On Sunday when we woke up in Espanola, it was pouring. And this was the day we were to leave for the Balloon Fiesta. That means we would have to disconnect all hoses and electrical cords in the rain and then hitch up the car in the rain. An experience we try not to have happen but sometimes nature takes charge of our lives.

In addition, we checked the weather and it was supposed to rain for the next several days which was not real encouraging for the flight of the balloons.

But off we went, driving in the rain and arriving in Albuquerque by eleven in the morning. We set up, which means we unhooked the car. No set up for the motorhome since we would be dry camping for the next week. No hook ups to electricity or water.

Sunday and Monday were very disappointing since it did rain all day on both days and all balloon activities were cancelled. We continued to hope that the weather would clear by Tuesday.

By the way, for those of you who do not know, this balloon fiesta in Albuquerque is the largest in the country. There will be 700-800 balloons here and in the mornings when they have a mass ascension, all of them will go up. In addition the camping area where we park our rigs is directly across the street from the launching and landing areas for the balloons. We have been told that the balloons float right over our rigs! What an experience that will be.

So back to our rained out days................On Sunday evening it seemed that the rain had stopped and that the balloon glow would happen. But it didn't. The winds were so strong that they were concerned about putting the balloons up so they did what they called a "candle lighting".




They shot the flames in the air without the balloons. It was really a neat effect.




































After that there were fireworks.












Since it was raining on Monday, we went to the casino. In our package for registration there were two $10 coupons for a casino, so in the rain we all trouped over to the casino. Had fun playing there. Barb played poker at the tables and I used the two $10 coupons to play video poker. And I earned enough points to get a balloon fiesta sweatshirt. Since we were Seniors we had dinner there for $5.00 each at the buffet. Great buffet and of course we ate too much, much too much.

We drove back to rig in the rain and wind and projected that Tuesday would be clear and calm and sunny.

Love to all of you.

Oct 5-7: Espanola, NM

So here we are in Espanola, NM. You may ask why we are here. Well, if you saw this campground, you would really wonder why we are here. It was one of the campgrounds on our membership parks and all of us, (yes, there are still 3 rigs traveling together) had the same membership park. So, as I said, here we are. No, you do not get to see a picture of this campground.

The advantage of Espanola is that it is between Taos and Santa Fe. So on Thursday, we spent the day in Taos and on Friday we spent the day in Santa Fe.

Pictures from Taos.............







































While in Santa Fe, we spent money and boy did we do that well. We went to the Teseque Pueblo flea market and Barb bought me an African Drum for my birthday. It is really a great looking drum and according to the vendor, it comes from Ghana. Whether that is so or not, I am excited with it and plan to again join the drumming group while in Apache Junction. We each purchased earrings while there and I found a Mexican pewter serving tray.

After shopping at the flea market, we went to the Plaza in Santa Fe, had lunch at The Shed and then browsed among the Native American vendors in front of the Governer's Palace. There we purchased a beautiful sterling silver bracelet with turquoise inlaid stones. This will be our Chanukah present to each other and we will share wearing the bracelet.

So we did okay shopping. Today we are staying home and just relaxing. Barb did laundry, cleaned the coach and I drained the tanks and worked on the blog. We also both watched the final day of the World Series of Poker.

Tomorrow we leave for the balloon fest in Albuquerque. We will stay there a week. This is the largest balloon fest in the country; they are expecting 700-800 balloons. So hopefully, my next posting will have pictures of hot air balloons.

Love to all of you

We would love to hear from you.

Just in case you have any comments to make, I thought I would encourage you to do so. You will notice the comment button on the side of the blog. If you click on it, you can enter your comments anonymously; that is, you do not have to identify your personal info. Just sign your name (first only is fine). I have a privacy guard on the comments so they will not get posted right away. I will read them and see who they are from and then decide if I want to accept and post the comments. So be nice!

Oct: 3: Zapata Falls

On the road to the sand dunes, we saw a sign to the Zapata Falls. So we thought it would be a good idea to try to find them. The ranger from the visitor center at the Dunes told us that we would have to first drive up a dirt road for 3 miles and then hike 1/2 mile to get back to the falls. She said that even if we did not hike, the drive to the top was worth the ride. And yes it was.

Our friends arrived to the state park the day after we did, so they spent their first morning going to the Dunes. Then in the afternoon we met them to go to the falls. We drove up the mountain side almost to the snow line.......temperature dropped about 20 degrees. By this time we were at 7400'. When we got there we discovered the hike was uphill over what looked like must have previously been a river bed. So it was a very long 1/2 mile.......but Barb and I had our walking sticks and we made it. And so did everyone else. Low and behold, now we had to walk into the riverbed for another 1/4 mile with fast flowing water and hike into a cave to see the waterfalls. The rocks were slippery and water was cold. Did not seem too safe, so we just stopped there and admired the views.





We all had fun taking pictures and posing for pictures.























When we left the falls, we headed to two wildlife preserves where there was a possibility of seeing sandhill cranes. The cranes are migrating at this time to locations in the south, mainly in the Texas area. But during October and early November they can be seen in the area of the Sand Dunes. At the first spot we went to, we could hear them, but they were so far away in the high grass that we could not see them. Fortunately, at the second preserve, we saw many of them out in the open.

Upon returning to the campground, we were treated with another wonderful sunset. Because it was cloudy, the colors were not as vivid but the contrast of light and shadows was magnificient.




On Wednesday, Oct 4, we left to drive to Espanola, NM. It is located between Taos and Santa Fe. So touring this area will be the next adventure.

Love to all of you.

Oct. 1-5: San Luis Lake State Park and The Great Sand Dunes

We drove from Canon City to the Great Sand dunes, a distance of about 130 miles, and it only took us about 4 hours. A large part of the drive was along the Rio Grande and like our driving loop of the previous week, the color of the trees were awesome. So we made several stops for photographic opportunities. I wish I could upload all of the pictures onto this blog, but the connections are so slow, that if I can get several on, I feel grateful.



The campsite we stayed at was the San Luis Lake State park. From our campsite, we had a wonderful view of the lake with the dunes and the mountains behind that. On first arriving to the park, we realized that because the season was really over, there were few campers there. Not a problem! Until we tried to fill the motorhome with water, that is. All of the water spigots were on the wrong side of the coach, so we first off had turn around to go down the one way road the wrong way........okay we did that. You do realize that turning around a 40' motorhome actually requires some ingenuity. So we got ourselves set up facing the right way for the water but the wrong way for the road. Even with that we were too far away from the spigot, so we had to get out the extra hoses. Okay fine, no problem. Just as we were ready to screw in the hoses, the campground host came by to say the spigot was turned off for the season...............we then had to drive to another loop in the campground, go down that road the wrong way and finally got connected up to get water.


All that effort finally paid off when we drove into our campsite and looked out the front window. The view of the lake, dunes and mountains was stupendous..........maybe even better than that. So we made a campfire and sat down to relax.






And then the sunset began. And I do mean began...............it lasted about an hour and covered the entire sky. The colors of red, orange and bluish-purple reflected off of the water and the mountains............WOW!



[Double click on pictures to enlarge.]

I know this picture is dark but look closely and you can see the motorhome in the forefront, then the pink of the lake and the mountains in the background.


The Great Sand Dunes were a huge surprise to us in terms of their vastness and height. We thought we would just go to the dunes and take a walk to the top. Ha! The highest peak is 750 feet and by the time we walked through the sand to get to the first dune, we were exhausted. We did manage to climb a mini-dune and then had to sit and rest to admire our effort and the view.



This day was also Yom Kippur and we knew that there would be no synogogue in the area. So our plan was to spend the day on the dunes and meditate. It was a very peaceful and calming way to spend the holiday and we feel that being in nature helped us appreciate the solemnity of the day and be thankful for all that we have been given. We want to wish all of our family and friends a very healthy, happy and peaceful new year. We love you all and miss you.

Sept. 25-30: Last few days in Canon City

We are just about ready to leave Canon City and head on to new adventures. During this week before we left, we spent a day and took a scenic drive and followed a loop to Salida, Buena Vista and then back to Canon City. The views were spectacular; the trees along the banks of the Rio Grande were turning yellow. The drive took the entire day since we had to stop every few minutes to take pictures.






We also celebrated September/October birthdays. Susan's was the weekend we were leaving and mine will be in a few weeks. So we had a wonderful meal, just like all the others we cooked during this time and then cake and ice cream...........and hats! Mine, of course, is a tiara.












We leave Canon City on Oct. 1 and head for the Great Sand Dunes. We have never been there. Apparently these are the largest dunes in North America and they are at the base of the mountains. No ocean in sight! The dunes are formed from the winds and the runoff of the snow from the mountains. Not sure how that all happens but we are very anxious to see them. We will be camping at the state park near by.

Love to all of you.

Sept. 17-24: Busy Days in Canon City

Sun-- Barb, Co, Flo, Susan and Ann went to Cripple Creek to try their luck and have some fun. They had a great time and Barb loved playing poker, as you all know. While they were gone, I spent the day organizing our Alaska pictures........all 1500+ of them. I also fixed stew for dinner for everyone. After dinner we went to see the Al Gore movie about global warming and the effects it is having on our planet. It was really frightening to know what we are doing to our world.......his facts seem to document that we are heading in the wrong direction but that if we and our government would make some changes, we could change the direction we are heading.

Monday--Today was a work day............Barb used the huge 8' ladder and waxed the top section of one side of the motorhome. I was very helpful........I would hand her the wax bottle when she dropped it and help her move the ladder. I worked on cleaning and polishing the wheels and cleaning the tires.......By the end of the day we were both sore and stiff ...... so we just stood there and admired our work. She will need another two days to finish the whole motorhome. By the way, we waxed the lower section without ladders several weeks ago.

Tuesday-- Another project day. Barb went grocery shopping and I worked on cleaning the windows and screens in the motorhome. We fixed a new recipe that we got from a restuarant that we visited while in Colorado City. The recipe was for Stuffed Green Pepper Soup. It was really very good!

After dinner we played Mexican Train;
Flo and Co had prizes and medals for the winners. Barb came in 4th place, Susan was 3rd place, I came in 2nd, and Dorie was in 1st place.

Wednesday--Breakfast at the Waffle House and off to Cripple Creek again, via Guffey. Dorie gave us a tour of Guffey where she lived and constructed homes. And in Cripple Creek, Linda hit a Royal Flush on the nickel poker machines.........won $200. And I still have it...................

Thursday--Tested out new gizmo we got from Camping World for draining the tanks and decided the old system works better. Spent rest of day doing laundry, appointments and shopping.

Friday and Saturday--We spent the day preparing for Rosh Hoshana. Barb and I prepared a traditional dinner of Matzo Ball soup, gefilte fish, roasted chicken, potatoes, carrots, squash, applesauce, and apples and honey with macaroons for desert. On Saturday, since we did not know of any temple near by, we spent the day meditating and taking a walk along the Arkansas River. It was nice and peaceful day. We wish all of you a very Happy, Peaceful and Healthy New Year.

Sunday--Worked all day on our video of Alaska and finished it. We will show it to the group here on Monday evening.

Scenic views from Alaska

Gradually I have been going over all of the pictures from Alaska. Thought I would post a few of the great scenic views, including the shot we got of Mt. McKinley, also called Denali by the Native Alaskans.


[doubleclick on pictures to see enlarged size]



From what many people have told us it is very rare to see Denali since it is so high and is usually covered with clouds.


Some of the views from the ship. The mornings were sometimes overcast and so the lighting produced some great shadows for pictures.

















Love and hugs to all of you.

Sept 11-16: We are still in Canon City

I am spending today catching up on pictures from Alaska and from the past several days. I have not even had a chance to go through all 800+ pictures we took in Alaska. My plan is to organize them into sections of the trip and then put them on video with music..........for us there will probably be 3-4 CD's, over an hour worth of watching. Now don't get nervous...............I will also make a CD video of about 12-15 minutes of the best or most interesting pictures to show you. I will also post a few more on this blog for you to see.

In addition, I have pictures from the past several days ........ we have been "playing" tourist in the Canon City area (The Royal Gorge) and Colorado Springs area (Seven Falls, Cheyenne Canyon and Garden of the Gods).

Yes, we are still here and will be here until the end of the month. There are still 4 rigs and eight people here with Susan and Anne returning from Vermont.



If you double click on the picture and look closely behind our rig, you can see all four rigs.

Dorie and Anne's house is located in a great area just outside of the main section of Canon City. The entire back area that you can see is partial flood area and protected area that cannot be built on. Our site (#1) and Anne's site (#2) are the sites with a view; Flo and Co just behind us are in site #3, which is the site with the patio and Ann and Susan have the garden site (#4). Anyone else who arrives gets site #5, which is the driveway site.

We have continued to spend the days working on the rigs........cleaning, waxing, shining and polishing and of course, making repairs. And the most fun is sharing products............Anne has this great rug cleaner product. So one day, while Barb was helping Anne wax her rig, I cleaned our carpet. Wow, was it easy and now we have a clean carpet. It is just a powder that you sprinkle on the carpet, let it sit and vacuum. All of the black spots and grayish dirt colors are now gone and we have a clean carpet. Co and Flo have a polish for the aluminum wheels and they have used it on their rig and on Anne's........shine is so bright that we can really, really see our reflections in the wheels. We cannot use it on our wheels since we have a protective shield on the wheels. All we can use is soap and water. No polish, rubbing and buffing for us. Awwww, what a shame !
And I put together a water pressure controller for Anne's rig that increases the volume of water so that showers in the rig are like showers at home. Those of you who are not rv'ers do not understand the grandeur of this..........but basically, water pressure in rv's is low and showers often are just sprinkles of water. I made one of these contraptions for us and it really works great..............so we get high volume showers........yeah!

It also seems like we are also running into town for something. First Flo goes into town, checks with everyone first, then we realize we forgot something, and then either Barb or I or both of us go into town. Guess that is the life of leisure and small town living. And then at the magic hour of 5:00 pm, we all gather on the patio for drinks, food and great conversation. And a great dinner. Today while everyone is gone, I will be fixing dinner....................

More later. Love to all of you.

Pictures from Royal Gorge, Seven Falls and Garden of the Gods

September 15th

• Royal Gorge

Rafters at the bottom of the gorge.





We are on the cog train at the bottom of the gorge, waiting for the cog to return to the top. Can you see the top way up there?
[double click on picture to enlarge size]






September 16thSeven Falls (September 16th

Sept. 5-10 Canon City, CO

We are in Canon City visiting with friends, Dorie and Anne. We are parked in their backyard with 3 other rigs. They have put gravel in their yard and also have installed hookups for Rv's. So there is our rig, Co and Flo's rig, Dorie and Anne's rig, of course, and last night JoAnne and Anne, popped in for the night on their way to Gunnison, CO. So we had quite a fun night telling stories about traveling and camping.......Dorie's story about opening her tent flap and shining a flashlight right into the eyes of a bear is priceless........funny now but not then!

We have named Dorie and Anne's place the Million Star RV resort.............and it certainly feels that way. Not only do we all have hookups, but we are sharing doing the cooking and every night is a gourmet meal. WOW!!! We have started each evening with cocktails and smoked salmon from Alaska, complements of Cheryl and MaryAnne, and then dinners that range from pasta with pesto and shrimp, roasted beef with a wonderful horseradish sauce to last night I prepared my "famous" pork roast, marinated in SoyVay......a marinade developed by a Jewish man and a Chinese woman. Quite good.

While here we have all spent the days doing projects, mainly cleaning and shining the motorhomes. We have been sharing ideas for cleaning products and sometimes it feels like being at a rally where vendors are showing you new products to try. Have learned alot about how to clean and now have a new product for shining the aluminum wheels. Will work on it sometime next week.

Yesterday was Senior Health Fair Day in Canon City. So we all went. It felt like Halloween for old people. There were probably 50 booths and all of them had candy, cookies and free giveaways. We came away with pens of all shapes and sizes, pill containers, a measuring tape with levelers, many types of vitamin and eye pills, and many, many cards and info leaflets. But even better, there were drawings for prizes and we won. I won a really nice backpack that also had wheels. Barb won a decorative bowl with blue rocks and candles, which we gave to Dorie and Anne for their house here in Canon City. The colors were perfect for the kitchen. Co won a huge floral display and Flo won a "peace" statue. Of course we also did the routine testing for blood pressure, glaucome, etc.

Had a great day!!!

Today is breakfast of Anne's famous eggs and then we are off for haircuts.

Love to all of you.

Pictures from Alaska

(Double click on picture to enlarge size.)



Here we are in Denali. Notice the jackets, sweatshirts, caps but most important, notice the beautiful scenery. The valley below is called a twisted river or pretzel river; the shape and direction changes seasonally based on the run off from the mountains. The snow on the mountain was a result of the first snow of the season and we got to be there for it. Actually we started the drive into the back country of Denali, got 3 hours in, snow started, the mountain pass froze and we had to turn around and go back 3 hours. And then, once we got back, the sun came out, the ice melted and we got back onto the bus and drove the entire 6 hour drive. So we made 3 trips into Denali, two half way and two the entire way. Saw Denali in the snow and in the sunshine. We spent one night in the cabins in the back country, right on the river. Then the next day we returned with another 6 hour drive out of Denali. We saw everything.........caribou, bear, wolves (4 of them playing on the side of the road), moose (cow foraging for food in the bottom of a lake by dunking her head all the way in and coming out with a mouthful of green stuff). And because it was sunny on our second trip in we were able to see the north peak of Mt. McKinley. So the Denali trip was quite successful and exciting.


Caribou in Denali.

Our ship was able to get up very close to the glaciers. I never realized that the glaciers had a blue color due to the compression of the ice. We actually did see this glacier calve several times. The breaking of the ice sounded like gun shots.

Black bear in Hyder. We were able to view the beginning of the salmon run. The river was filled with salmon and this guy here had just finish eating one.

This brown bear just crossed the road in front of us. I think he looked back at the bus we were in to say, "You just try and continue on the this road while I am crossing it." He looked at us for a few minutes and then just went on his way.

Fluke of humpback whale.

Orcas.

Love to all of you.