Aug 17, 2018 - Seattle to BA#0048 enroute to London

I am down to my last few hours in Seattle. My bags are packed, and by the front door. Gus ands I together in the family room. Me watching TV and Gus snoozing, occaisionally waking up and barking at the animals and bad people on the TV, before returning to his prone, sleeping position at the top of the couch. My last thing to accomplish is to take my beloved Gus to Paradise Pet Lodge and the Disney Suite, which will be his home until I return.

Aug 17, 2018 - Crossed the Continental Divide

Today we left the Albuquerque area, yes we are now all done with our doctor appointments, and hopefully with any luck at all we'll live another year. - On our 150 mile trip today we had to cross over the Continental Divide which is 7245' in elevation and it was a little on the cool side. Right before lunch time we arrived at USA RV Park in Gallup. New Mexico and it's a little warmer here at 6468' and I may even jump in the swimming pool today, it's been since late May since I've been in the water. - We're only here for one night and then...

Aug 17, 2018 - Heber City, UT to Craig, CO

August 17, 2018 We were up at 6:00 in order to drive to West Valley to the Sprinter service agent. Got there with time for breakfast in the rig and then they checked us in. We were prepared to stay for 3-4 hours in the lounge. After 15 minutes Matt told us that the mechanic had figured a way to bolt the shroud in place without having to replace the radiator. We were on our way to Craig by 9:00 with big smiles on our faces. Got gas, lunch for Bob and a few groceries in Heber City. We meandered through the Uinta and Ouray Indian Reservations...

Aug 17, 2018 - At the Foot of the Rockies

Today's trip had 3 legs. The first was from Rapid City to Alliance NE. Once I got outside of Rapid City there was only one town, Chadron, for the 150 miles or so to Alliance. Outside Alliance is Carhenge which is a bunch of cars stacked and painted gray to resemble Stonehenge in England. This is one of those quirky "roadside America" places I wanted to stop at. It was another 125 miles to I-25. Since I took a bypass around Scottsbluff NE, I did not go through another town. That's 375 miles and passed through 2 towns. Remote doesn't begin to...

Aug 17, 2018 - Georgia O’Keefee Country

We are now in Abiquiu, New Mexico otherwise nicknamed “Georgia O’Keefee Country.” Georgia O’Keefee was an American artist from the east who settled here in the 1940s. She fell in love with the colorful area and spent her lifetime painting the rusty-red landscape. Today, visitors still flock to the Georgia O’Keefee museum in Santa Fe to view her paintings, tour her adobe home in Abiquiu and take art classes at the nearby Ghost Ranch Retreat where she owned another home. We are not big art lovers so we did none of the above  Instead, we’ve...

Aug 17, 2018 - Alpine Loop Scenic Byway

Park City, UT Having driven the spectacular Guardsman Pass Scenic Drive yesterday, we tackled a couple more scenic drives today. The Alpine Loop Scenic Byway is a 27-mile journey through fantastic mountain landscapes, with sites along the way including Mount Timpanogos and Robert Redford's Sundance Resort. The road was quite interesting. There were places where it was actually 2 lanes wide with a painted middle line, guardrails, some relatively straight sections with mild curves and a speed limit of 30 mph. The more interesting sections...

Aug 17, 2018 - Chores day and Birds from dinosaurs talk

Date: August 17, 2018 Weather: sunny Temperature: start 46º High 84º Wildlife count: Year List: Birds: 349 It was a good lazy morning. Breakfast at Bubbas and then home to do laundry. We mostly rested, with a few chores. Dinner was early – a green salad, cottage cheese and BBQ ribs – steamed in the oven for an hour then grilled. However, these ribs were SO thick, that we had to return them to the grill. The evening program was a bird program, about looking beyond the things that one can see, and begin to infer things that cannot be...

Aug 17, 2018 - Texas, Part 5

On the fourth day of our trip we visited with my cousins in Tennessee. Today, we had lunch with Vivian’s cousin in Houston, Texas. Michael O’Brien is Vivian’s second cousin. The only time I met him was when he and his parents, brother and sister attended Vivian’s and my wedding 44 years ago. At the time his family lived in Gulph, Ontario, Canada. We lost touch after that. But thanks to Facebook, we reconnected with Michael about a year ago. Since we would be driving through Houston, Vivian gave him a call. Michael was thrilled to met us for...

Aug 17, 2018 - Roanke, TX

We started off the morning with breakfast at the local Waffle House. I think Jay thinks we won’t find any more on our way home, so he’s getting in all his Waffle House breakfasts while he can. Then we had a 3 hour drive to Roanoke, TX, which is just north of Fort Worth. Aside from a bit of construction, it was a pretty easy drive but the traffic is getting heavier and heavier as we go south into the Dallas/Fort Worth area. When we passed the Welcome to Texas sign, we were happy to be back in Texas. As great as our trips are, we always...

Aug 16, 2018 - Biologist day out on the Refuge

Date: August 16, 2018 Weather: sunny Temperature: start 37º High 85º Wildlife count: Pronghorn, Bison, Cow and Bull Moose Year List: 349 Birds: Sandhill Cranes, Rock Wrens We were able to spend the day with Chuck and Betty as they shared their weekly biology day. We began by climbing Miller Butte, which had concerned me, but it went very well. From there, we saw 14 Trumpeter Swans, including 6 cygnets. It was a beautiful crisp morning, and after the sun appeared, the Rock Wrens got very busy on the rocks, and we saw a bunch of them. From...

Aug 16, 2018 - Winnemucca, NV to Deer Valley, UT

August 16, 2018 Round Table out of business so we went back to the BBQ Pig and Pub where we have eaten in the past as it is within walking distance. Nothing special but Bob had Tri-tip sandwich and I had a hamburger with Ichy IPA which was good. Went to Ridley’s Family Market (somewhat like a small Safeway) to pick up freshly made coffee, scone and lunch sandwich for Bob. Very nice market with fresh food which is good to know for our return visit. Left town by 7:45 to try to beat the heat and get to SLC Sprinter service for a diagnostic. We...

Aug 16, 2018 - Texas, Part 4

The Alamo is a small adobe building in the heart of San Antonio, surrounded by shopping centers, hotels and office buildings. At first glance it seemed fairly insignificant. But it is big in the heart of every Texan, a place of pride and reverence. If you don’t know the story (perhaps you were sleeping in your high school history class) it was at the Mission San Antonio de Valero, commonly known as the Alamo, that in 1836 about 200 men held off the Mexican army of Gen. Santa Anna for 12 days. On the 13th day, the Mexican soldiers breached...