Saturday, November 04, 2006

Kuwait

Serving our country






Having fun too.

Saturday, September 16, 2006

Proud to Serve

Leaving for Kuwait



I am very proud of my son serving his country. Scared but proud. He will be overseas for 7 months to a year. I am praying for his safe return. His children are missing him already.




Jay made it down to Virginia to say good bye. It sure was a nice visit.

Sunday, August 20, 2006

Yellowstone Sightings

Weird Vehicles




These RV's are from Germany. A little different from ours.


Yellowstone Winter Tour Vehicle


The front tires have ski's on them.





Touring during the winter snows made easy. Notice the tires. I guess these vehicles have no problems in the snow.


Yellowstone Animals
Please check back for more photos
We did see plenty of wild animals on this trip. On the way out of the park we saw a grizzly bear but of course it was a short sighting & I was unable to get the camera in time. This was a dissapointment for us.



I think this eagle was just waiting for us to pass by.



Look carefully and you can see 2 birds on the back of this elk. He struggled to get those birds off his back but he wasn't successful.






Every morning I watched this coyote. One morning her pups came out to play. There were 4 gray pups.






This baby was blocking traffic & then just casually walked past our motorhome. It was actually that close. This photo was not zoomed in.

This is one stubborn traffic jam.







A group of female elk.

Saturday, July 29, 2006

Grand Tetons Nat'l Park

Grand Teton
July 27,2006

The Tetons scenery consists of sagebrush flats, meadows & wetland, lakes, ponds & rivers, alpines & forests. The added bonus is the wild life. You can wake up in the morning to buffalo passing your campsite as well as moose. We've seen moose walking right past our campsite. I can't even count the number of buffalo we've seen. They cause traffic jams. They will walk right out onto the street.



As of this writing I haven't seen any elk. My last trip here we saw several large bull elk. We are still looking & will keep you updated.


The mountain range is awesome. Snow still on its peaks. The nights are cool, the days are hot. Riding the bike through the Tetons gives a different view than with the car. We are enjoying the ride.

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

The Grand Circle

Pictures to come. Please check back at at later date for photos.


The Grand Circle

We just finished the Grand Circle. We were unable to see all the circle has to offer but we tried our best. There is so much to see & enjoy in this circle of discovery. There is a variety of color & moods throughout the circle, so each person can enjoy the circle in their own style & manner.

The Grand Circle embraces America's largest concentration of National Parks, monuments, forests, state parks, historical sites & tribal land. It has the greatest collection of scenic & historic byways. The Circle also is an ancient homeland. It encompasses 4 states: Arizona, New Mexico, Utah & Colorado. This area is called the Colorado Plateau.

We started our journey through the circle at the Grand Canyon in Arizona and ended it with Dead Horse Park & the Canyonlands in Utah. The Coloroado River has carved scores of canyon through the circle making the scenery outstanding and Butch Cassidy & other outlaws found refuge in these canyons. The canyons weren't familiar areas for the lawmen & the outlaws found safety in them.

Now we will continue our journey to the Grand Tetons & Yellowstone. So much to see & so little time to see it.

Saturday, July 22, 2006

Canyonlands & Dead Horse State Park

More pictures to come soon. Please check back


Dead Horse Park

Dead Horse overlooks a magnificient view of a spectacular canyon. In the early days of western settlement, bands of wild horses roamed the plateau. Rumor has it cowboys corralled a band of horses and picked out the best ones & left the rest to die of thirst. Hense, the name Dead Horse park. The canyon is in the shape of a horseshoe. The river also loops through this horse shoe shape.



Canyonlands

The last stop on our tour of the Grand Circle is Canyonland. The plateau is separated by the Green & Colorado river. It is filled with a vast gouged-out basin of red rock, spires, cliffs & capped with white rim sandstone.

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

ARCHES NATIONAL PARK

The Arches
July 17, 2006



This park contains over 950 arches. The greatest concentration in the world. The Arches contain giant balancing rocks, spires, pinnacles, windows & slickrock domes.




Today was a tough day. The heat is tremendous. 111 degrees. We enjoyed the park anyway. Can't escape the heat in the desert. We had to take rests in any shady spot we could find.



Rocks take on many shapes. All you need is a little imagination.

Durango-Silverton Guage Train

Durango & Silverton Colorado
July 15, 2006



Today we went to Durango & hopped on an old steam engine train. It has been operating continuously for 125 years. The train takes you along the cliff of a mountain over looking the Animas River. It takes you through the San Juan National Forest. The last stop on the train is Silverton. Here we disembark for a tour of the town. When you depart from the station, you notice the dirt road in the town & the old original buildings. The town is just like it was in the 1800's. I was amazed at the way the town was. It looked like we stepped into a cowboy movie scene. The original train station is still there. The dirt road was maintained & not rugged as it must have been in the days of old. I definetly stepped back in time. The town was built in 1874 with the discovery of gold & silver in the area. It is at an elevation of 9,318 ft.



The train ride is 4 1/2 hours. It only goes 45 miles from Durango to Silverton. It was originally built to haul silver & gold ore from the San Juan Mountains, but passengers soon realized it was the view that was truly precious. It now drops off fly fishermen to a secluded area for fly fishing & people interested in soaring at a remote resort.

Half way through it must stop to add water to the train engine. A large black pipe falls down over the engine of the train & fills it up with water from the river.

Mesa Verde, Colorado

Mesa Verde National Park
July 14, 2006




This park is the most interesting for me. It is filled with multistoried dwelling, filling the cliff-rock alcoves that rise 2,000 feet above the Montezuma Valley. They have found over 600 dwellings. Each time there is a forest fire in a new area, they find another dwelling.




We had to climb up ladders & we even crawled through a tunnel on our hands & knees. It was really neat to do this. Difficult for me, but neat to do.



The dwellings were built around AD 750. The Anasazi Indians left the area around 1270. The dwellings were discovered in 1888 by cowboys passing through the canyon looking for stray cattle.

Capital Reef National Park

Capital Reef
July 10, 2006





Today we toured Capital Reef Park. Each park has its own beauty. This park is known as The Waterpocket Fold. It forms a 100 mile long backbone within the park. Early explorers called it an impassable reef.

Capital Reef is loaded with historical remnants of the Morman Pioneers and the Freemont Indians. The Mormans settled in this area leaving behind a one room school house, a one room stone house, and a farm house. The one room stone house was owned by the Behunin family. Ten members of the family lived in this one room home.




The orchards that they started are still bearing fruit. There are apple, peach, cherry, pear & apricot orchards. We picked apricots while we were there & they were delicious. All day you can see the mule deer enjoying the apricots as well as the visitors to the park.




Butch Cassidy was a regular in the canyon area. Here he hid from the law.

Sunday, July 16, 2006

Grand Staircase National Monument

The Grand Staircase
July 9,2006

We are touring the Grand Circle. The Grand Circle is in the Colorado Plateau, consisting of 4 states, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah & Colorado. The Grand Circle is truly an adventure. From the monuments of rock to the first Americans of a thousand years ago. It is truly a circle of discovery. This area is an ancient homeland where native peoples still dance & pray to the raingods.

Before we got on the road in the morning we had breakfast with 2 mule deer. I hated leaving the Bryce Canyon area. Our view of the mountains was truly amazing.


As we drove through the Grand Staircase each turn in the road led to another awesome view. Each turn more beautiful than the last. It is made up of chocolate, vermilion, white, gray and pink cliffs. It is a grand staircase of sequential cliffs & terraces. It is made up of 3 different regions: the Grand Staircase, the Kaiparowits Plateau, and the Canyons of the Escalante.

As we drove through the Staircase we saw a golden eagle. It flew right in front of our friends rv & then flew to the side of our rv. It was very exciting to see.

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

BRYCE CANYON, UTAH

Bryce Canyon, July 7,2006
Like no other place on Earth.


When you enter this park, you will feel like you are in the most beautiful place on Earth. It is famous for its erosion. The same forces that create this Canyon's scenery also destroys it. Your eyes won't believe that this spectacle of nature could actually be possible. It is filled with intricate spires & formations know as hoodoos, that will defy your imagination. Strange formations reach for the sky and make you think you are on another planet.





John & I walked among the Hoodoo's. They are pillars of rocks, usually of a fantastic shape, left by erosion. The hoodoo's seem to cast a spell on those who visit.

Thursday, July 06, 2006

Kolob Canyon

July 5, 2006

Kolob Canyon is part of Zion National park, Utah. It can be experienced from the comfort of you own vehicle. It is short scenic drive of 12 miles. There are several pull offs to enjoy soaring cliffs of red Navajo sandstone & deep pocket canyons.




The word Kolob means "star closest to heaven" and considering Kolob's serene surroundings, it just might be.





Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Zion National Park


July 3,2006

Zion is revered as a spiritual place & it is truly heaven on Earth. For those in healthy condition there is plenty of hiking to do. Rock climbing is a popular activity & you can kayack in the Virgin River. The cliffs are colorful. Pink, red, white & vermillion.

The Virgin River, runs through Zion. It drops 7800 feet, making it the fastest flowing river in the United States.


The tunnel through Zion goes right through a mountain. It was opened in 1933. It is 1.1 miles long. As you drive through the tunnel there are large arch cut outs showing awesome views of the mountains. Large vehicles can't drive through without assistance. It requires an additional cost of $15.oo & an escort to drive a large vehicle through.

Sunday, July 02, 2006

GRAND CANYON

Grand Canyon June 29, 2006




Camping in the Grand Canyon. Here we are on our way to see the canyon on the bike. What an enjoyable ride. The weather was perfect for the ride.





This 70 foot tower was opened in 1933. Inside the tower there are painted murals on the interior walls dispicting Hopi legends.

The Grand Canyon has an awe-inspiring view. You can sit there for hours enjoying & taking in the view. You can find solace from your everyday life.



Thursday, June 15, 2006

White Sands National Monument


White Sands

The white sands were formed from snow melting in the mountains. The mountains are made of gypsum rock. As the snow melts some gypsum rock flows down the mountain with the melting snow. As the sun bleaches the rock fragments it turns into sand. It is forever growing.



As you travel along the roadway you can see that plows have to go down the road just like removing snow. Sand is constantly blowing & creating new drifts. It was a mere 108 degrees. Wow was it hot!!!


The drifts can be up to 30 feet high. The vast drifts are created by the winds. You can slide down the drifts like sleigh riding. I slid down the drift without a disk & it was fun, but very exhausting trying to climb up the sand drift.



The mountains in the background make a beautiful sight to see. All that is missing is the ocean. Miles of sand & no water.

And now the journey continues.

Saturday, June 10, 2006

Carlsbad Cavern



Carlsbad New Mexico
Feels good to be back on the road. The temperature was 102 today with 15% humidity. The ride up to Carlsbad Cavern was enjoyable, but on the way back it was very hot!!! (102) It was our first time riding the bike through the mountains in the west. Looking forward to seeing & riding through some more mountains.



It was a cool 56 degrees in the cavern. (not like the 102 degrees outside) We went down 830 feet. The lowest point is 1,037 feet, but only researchers go that far down. You can fit 6 football fields inside one of the rooms, called the big room.




Now let the journey continue.