We leave for Alaska tomorrow

The time has finally arrived for our trip to Alaska. We have been planning this trip for a year and is our 20th anniversary present to ourselves. We have been in Canon City for the past 3 days with our motorhome parked in Dorie and Ann's backyard. We will leave it here while we are gone. They will take us to the Denver airport tomorrow and then pick us up on Sept. 5 when we return.

We have been packing and repacking and repacking for the past few days. Originally we thought we would each need 2 suitcases and a carry on. But believe it or not, we have cut down to one suitcase each and a backpack on the plane. And with the heightened security for getting on the plane, the backpack will have only our books, tickets, binoculars and camera. Now for the biggest shock............I am leaving my laptop at home. I will go through withdrawal, but this will be a test to see if I can do without it. Actually, the idea of carrying it on and off of planes, trains and buses, and cruise ships, just seemed like it would just provide one more item to be concerned with. So no laptop for me!!!

I will be using the hotel computers plus the cruise ship has computers at outrageous rates................so expect maybe a brief update on the blog and/or brief e-mail note.

As far as today goes, the motorhome is filled with plastic ziplock bags. There are the bags for each of my 5 pills/vitamins and each of Barb's 3 vitamins. Then there are the bags with shampoo, toothpaste, etc. and the bags with cords and jump drives for the camera and bags with the tissue products and bags for the disinfection cleaners and bags for each of the over the counter meds..........like pepcid, advil, etc, and then bags for , oh, I don't know what.........but we have bags.

Briefly to let you know our schedule:
Tomorrow we fly to Anchorage, stay over night and then take the train to Denali National Park. We are part of a Wilderness package in Denali. We spend one day at the Denali cabins, then the2nd day we take the bus to the Katishna Lodge about 3 hours into the park, take hikes and tour Wonder Lake; 3rd day we drive back to Denali Lodges, and spend the night there. All meals are provided and we have been told they are gourmet. Hopefully we will see the mountain and many forms of wildlife.

We leave Denali on the 4th day, take the bus back to Anchorage, stay a night, and the fly to Ketchikan, where we pick up our cruise. We will be on the CruiseWest cruise line and will tour the Inner Passage. What we are most excited about is that this is a small boat, holding a maximum of 105 passengers. It is able to go into the coves and bays and get up close to the glaciers that the larger vessels cannot do. It will be very exciting!!!! We will be on the ship for 8 days.

When we dock in Juneau, we stay overnight and then fly to Sitka. Our friends, Cherly and MaryAnn, have invited us to spend Labor Day weekend with them. So we will get our own personal tour of Sitka and have a chance to visit with friends we have not seen for a while.

We leave Sitka on Sept 5 and fly back to Denver. Dorie and Ann will pick us up at the airport and bring us back to their home in Canon City. We will be here for the rest of Sept. and spend the time touring Colorado.

I will try to send bried updates on this blog of our trip.

Our love to all of you.

August 11-14: Monument, CO

Well, it has finally happened. I am writing about where we are now and what we are doing. We came to Monument, which is just a few miles north of Colorado Springs, as a layover before going to Canon City. Our friends, Dorie and Anne, have a home in Canon City and have invited us to stay there until we leave for Alaska. They have a pad for a motorhome with all of the hookups. (For you non-RV'ers, that means water, electric and even sewer.) We will be able to leave our motorhome with them while we are gone.


Yesterday and today have been catch-up and clean-up days. I worked on getting all of my pictures in order by making the videos of our travels and by bringing all the blogs up to date. I believe have everything up to date now. I have been staring at this screen for 8 hours yesterday and now 8 hours today. Writing the blogs is not difficult; the difficulty is downloading the pictures. I am in an internet area where I have service but it is very slow. As the pictures download, they sometimes get lost in internet space..........and so, after 15 minutes of waiting and hoping, I find out they got lost and I have to start over again. But the rewards are great. We are both enjoying them and we have the journal we have been wanting. And we hope you are enjoying it with us.

Barb worked on cleaning and on the laundry ........ugh! Obviously, I think I got the better deal. She has been getting into all of those corners and crevices. Traveling as we do means that all kinds of dust gets accumulated inside and we do not often do a thorough cleaning as she has done for these two days. The motorhome is shining, the woodwork in polished, the corian shines and the carpets are cleaned. Just like a brand new motorhome.

And then the most wonderful event occurred................Barb prepared breakfast for us for two days in a row. She used the fresh farm eggs and bacon from Karen and Terri and we had a feast. She is really a very good cook!!!!!! What a treat!!!

We are at a great location at this campground, the Colorado Heights RV Resort. We are on the upper level, the one with out the trees, but (1)we have level sites, (2)we can get satellite reception.....and that is most important!, and (3) we have a view of Pikes Peak. We do have tall Pine trees behind us that give us a nice ambience.

So here are our views:

Looking out the front window................ we see Pikes Peak.

And from the side window, we see this mountain range.



And these are the huge Pine trees behind us..........




Tomorrow we leave for Dorie and Anne's; they will take us to the Denver airport on August 18 for our Alaska trip. In summary, we fly into Anchorage, take a train to Denali for 3 nights, and then a coach back to Anchorage. Then we fly to Ketchikan for our cruise of the inner passage; 8 nights on a small ship that only holds 105 persons max. Shipline is called CruiseWest. Cruise ends in Juneau and then we fly to Sitka for 4 days to visit our friends, Cheryl and MaryAnn. On Sept 5, we fly back to Denver. We are really looking forward to this trip!

Our love to all of you!!!!

August 1-11: Visiting cousins Sue and Deb in Colorado

On August 1 we drove to Boyd Lake State Park in Loveland, CO. To our amazement this lake was in the middle of suburbia. Looking around and talking with people we found out that the housing around here has sprung up within the last five years. So five years ago, Boyd Lake State Park was out in the middle of farm land and now it is suburbia. Ah well, times they do change.

Loveland is about 20 miles from Greeley, Co. We spent a week with Sue and Deb before their trip to Europe. We spent a couple of days with them siteseeing but, truth be told, we spent more time shopping. Barb and I are starting to get ready for our Alaska trip and we realized that there were several things we did not have...............like rain gear and warm clothing. Our T-shirts and shorts and sandals just would not make it in Alaska. Sue and Deb had been to Alaska and advised us as to what we would need. So REI and Sportsmans Warehouse saw a lot of the four of us during these few days.

We did do some great siteseeing too. Loveland calls itself the sculpture capital of the world, or some such title like that. Anyway, there are sculptures all over town from the parks to corners to banks to roundabouts to everywhere. We went to the sculpture park and were amazed at how wonderful it was. Below are just a few examples.





We also took a drive into the mountains towards Estes Park. It was a beautiful day, the sky was clear and rivers were flowing. We stopped to take pictures several places and then had lunch at this lodge at the end of a dead end road, high in the hills overlooking Estes Park. Bald Pate Inn is one of Sue and Deb's favorite restuarants and we can understand why. They have exceptional homemade foods consisting of salads and soups...........and of course deserts. The owner of Bald Pate Inn collects keys from all over the world going back many years. He has a whole room displaying these keys with tags identifying who gave them to him and where they were from. It was fascinating to look around to see them.








We spent some time visiting other family members. Barb's cousins Bob and Mary and Opal Faye live in the area and we went to visit them also.

Bob and Mary prepared a wonderful dinner for us.




















After Sue and Deb left, we decided to do some of our own searching for sculptures. There were two we had read about that were in off the beaten path locations and one in particular that had been written up in the New York Times. Apparently the civic minded citizens of Loveland were very distressed about the nudity in this one sculpture. The directions for finding it were written in the newspaper and when we followed the directions we ended up at a dead end...........guess they really did not want us to find it. But we perservered and found an alternate route that went around the dead end. And we found it! And then we had to figure out how to take a picture.........you see, it was in the center of a roundabout.....and there was no place to pull over and traffic was heavy. So you wonder what Linda did...........she first just kept driving around the roundabout and took pictures as she was driving. But that was not good enough, so she just stopped in the middle of the road around the roundabout and figured the cars could go around her too. They were not happy and some folks were waving a finger at us; wonder what that meant! And so we got some good pictures. The intention of putting a controversial sculpture in such a place might have been meant to discourage photos, but that was a ridiculous idea. And that is my political statement of the day!!!! See what you think of the sculpture.












We also went to see the less controversial sculpture that was at the recreational center of town. It was a water sculpture; if you look closely you will see water spraying out of the arms at the top as it spins around. A really great place for kids and adults alike to keep cool during this hot weather.
















Sunsets at Boyd Lake were spectacular and if you have not figured it out yet, I am into photos of sunsets.













More spectacular however was the night that the full moon came over the lake.
















We left Boyd Lake on August 11 and headed towards Monument, CO.

Love to all of you.

July 26-31: Visiting friends in Casper, WY and Torrington, WY

It was finally time to move on from Ft. Bridger. What was supposed to be an overnighter turned out to last several days and to provide an opportunity to do siteseeing as well as begin our introduction to the emigrants who traveled the various routes across the United States. Whether it was along the Oregon Trail, the Colorado Trail or the Pony Express, they all made stops in Ft. Bridger. As we traveled east to Casper and then to Torrington, we discovered other stops they made in the Casper and Torrington area.

Our travels to Casper took us through some beautiful scenic areas. And when we arrived, we discovered that antelope were everywhere, in fields along the road, on farms, just everywhere.















We went to Casper to visit our friends Terri and Karen. We met them last year in Custer, SD. They had traveled there in their motorhome, had been siteseeing all day, and had made a stop in Rochport, SD to figure out where to go for the night's rest. We were in Rochport to have lunch after biking for 15 miles. We were so proud of ourselves that we knew we deserved a great lunch. The small bar there had great hamburgers and we were leaving the bar and ran into them. We told them of the campground we were at and they showed up there that night. So we just started talking and spent the evening and next day with them. They invited us to come to Casper anytime we were in the area and so we did!

Not only did they invite us to visit, they provided a place to stay. They had just purchased a ranch just outside of Casper and their ranch in Casper was vacant.



Can you see our motorhome? Click on picture to see.
And they had a level section where we could park and get electric and water. You already know the story about our having no a/c in the 100+ weather so I will not go into that with you.

We spent much time visiting with them and seeing their new ranch. It was a whole new experience for me. However, for Barb, it brought back memories of her visiting her grandparents farm. Karen and Terri have horses, cows and chickens on their property. They gave us fresh farm eggs and bacon. We know it will make for a great breakfast. They have a beautiful home with swimming pool and we know they will enjoy it very much. Right now, however, they are overwhelmed by the the amount of work required to get it up and running the way they want it. The day before we left we celebrated Karen's birthday with her family


While in Casper we spent a day at the Historical Intrepretative Center.


The photo below is from a Sioux Indian and reflects Barb and my feelings about our travels.
Be sure to click the photo to read the statement.

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The Interpretative Center traced the routes and told the stories of the emigrants, the mountain men and the Indians. .




We got to take a virtual ride in a wagon across the Platte River and to cross the prairies in the snow and cold.



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Upon leaving Casper we went to visit Jo Bedsaul, another friend from Custer. She and her husband, Milt, camped in the site right next to us at the Big Pine Campground. Milt was the person I have told many of you about.... upon seeing us pull in to the campground, he sat down, poured himself a drink and prepared himself to laugh at us as we tried to back into this difficult site. He and Jo would spend many days watching people pull in and out, trying to get in without hitting the trees on either side. When we did it perfectly, he came over and expressed his disappointment for ruining his fun and entertainment. In exchange, he invitied us to have a drink with them over the campfire.........and you all know, we could not refuse that offer. Drinks over the fire became an evening affair. When Milt passed on, we continued corresponding with Jo and she would come to Custer from Torrington to visit us when we were there. So now we would go to Torrington to visit her. We spent an evening with her and enjoyed the visit.


Close to Torrington is Ft. Laramie and close to that are the actual ruts in the rocks made by the emigrant's wagon as they traveled across this country.

We spent a couple of hours before leaving the area viewing the ruts.


We then went to see Register Cliff where the emigrants carved their names into the rocks as a record that they were there.
All of this has been preserved and well worth seeing.





We left on August 1 to go to Boyd Lake State Park in Loveland, CO. Barb's cousin Sue and her friend Deb live in Greeley about 20 miles from Loveland.

Love to all of you.

July 23: Day trip to Flaming Gorge

While in the Ft. Bridger area, we took a day trip to the Flaming Gorge Recreational Area. It is a river gorge similar to the Grand Canyon but on a much lesser scale. The views however were spectacular.









On the way, we detoured to an area called Sheep Creek Canyon which was a
gathering spot for the mountain men as they traveled across this country.














I found a mountain man for myself and Barb found a bear. To each her own. We tried to set up a double date but they did not want to leave the museum.


















Love to all of you.

Ft. Bridger, WY Part 2

I added an addendum to the first posting about Ft. Bridger but fear that if you read it the first time you may not want to go back and read it again. So I am retelling the story of our visitor to the campground.

Sitting in our motorhome one evening, Barb and I were watching TV .............

I looked out the window and said in amazement, "Barb, there is a moose outside." She responded, "Yeah, right." And then, "Oh my goodness, you are right!" Yes, folks, a moose just walked down the road in our campground. I hurried to get the camera, while Barb ran outside to see it. I was not fast enough to get the picture but got this one from another RV'er.
WHAT AN EXCITING EXPERIENCE!!!









The rest of these pictures are from a few other visits we made to the fort ........

















Beautiful sunsets most every night!!!





Love to all of you.

Backtracking: April 19-30: Laughlin, Parker, Palm Springs

August 7: I know it has been awhile since I have written, but we have just been busy visiting family and friends in Wyoming and Colorado. More about all of that in another posting. I feel like I have so much catching up to do and decided to go back to when we left Las Vegas.

Okay, so you ask, why will I start with April when this is August! When I started this posting, I intended to do a quick review of April, May and June and then be current. Well, I did part of April in Las Vegas and have never gotten back to the rest of April, May and June and now still have to do part of July and August. Oh, the responsibilities of publishing a blog.

Okay so let's start with leaving Las Vegas on April 19th. We were heading
towards San Diego and of course had to make several stops along the way.......Laughlin, Parker, Palm Springs, and then San Diego.

We spent one night in Laughlin and drove to Parker, AZ where there was a membership park. I think I mentioned this in an earlier posting. Our only purpose was to get 4 nights free and all we had to do was listen to an 1 1/2 hour presentation. Three hours later we gave them our credit card and we were members.


Parker is about an hour from Lake Havasu so we drove there to see the London Bridge and the Lake plus one of the campgrounds that was part of the Colorado River Adventures (CRA) membership parks.














After 4 days in Parker we drove to the Palm Springs area. There we stayed in another CRA park which was about 30 miles from Palm Springs.


We visited with our friends..... Lynn, who we knew from Apache Junction, and Ethel, who moved to Palm Springs from St. Louis.



Lynn took us to the butterfly house










and to a street fair.








And Ethel took us out to eat.






We had a great time there and enjoyed seeing a few of the sights in Palm Springs. We left Palm Springs to go to the San Diego area. Stay tuned!

Love to all of you.