KLINE'S WESTERN ADVENTURE

Home again

2011-08-07T03:41:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, we are in Indiana at a campground on our last night before heading home. Needless to say we are ready to get there after hard driving for a few days. The drive was pleasant and our we enjoyed the beautiful sights along the way. After the cool weather in Canada and Alaska, we also enjoyed the warmer temperatures heading East.
We will always remember this trip as an experience that was both exhilarating and meditative. It moved us in a way that has changed us and broadened our world. The state of Alaska has so much wilderness that it is difficult to grasp it's immensity. Southeast Alaska has deep blue fjords surrounded by steep mountains and glaciers. The interior's tree covered hills march into the distance bathed by the light of the midnight sun. The wildlife was incredible! One of our favorite experiences was our stay at Ninilchik on the beach. Also our cruise to the glaciers was unbeatable as well as our fishing trip. But most of all we enjoyed our many drives seeing the wild life and the raw wilderness that is Alaska. We will cherish these memories forever. Thank you for experiencing our trip with us. Love, the Klineswesternadventure.

Hello United States

2011-08-03T06:49:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone. After a delightful visit to Hyder, we are on our way home. We thought we could take our time, stopping to see some things we haven't seen before, but life has a way of sometimes changing plans. George's Mom isn't doing well so we are kind of hurrying home. So far it has been a good transition into the states. We crossed the border with no hassles except they came into the motorhome and looked through my refrigerator and proceeded to take my fresh peppers. Oh well, it could have been worse. We have been driving into beautiful country. The part of Washington we are driving through is all desert. What a contrast to the rainforest we just visited in British Columbia and the Artic rainforest in Hyder, AK. Warm too. 90's yesterday and 80's today in Oregon. More desert in Oregon but the Columbia River breaks it up and the mountains too. We climbed some pretty high mountains and the climb was very nerve wracking for me since I was behind the wheel. We are starting out this morning into Idaho. See you soon. Love to you all.

Hyder AK

2011-07-29T19:01:00.001-07:00

Stewart B.C. and Hyder, AK.,July 29

What a surprise we had when we got into Stewart. First of all, everything is happening in Hyder, Ak. We camped in Stewart, B.C. Then just down the road is the border for Hyder, AK. We have to pass customs every time we left Hyder to go into Stewart. Last night in Hyder we went to the bear viewing area. After 5 minutes we saw a beautiful huge grizzly bear scoping out the salmon. We were able to observe him for a long time. You will see the picture. So cool! Then we were told to go to the "Bus". A couple bought an old school bus and made a restaurant out of it. The husband catches the fish and the wife cooks it. They have a little patio in front with 2 picnic tables. They added a room in the back of the bus with a heater. It was so neat! Robin Williams and Hilary Swank ate there when they were filming a movie in Stewart. Neat, huh? The food was delicious.
Today we took the 30 mile historic dirt road to Salmon Glacier which is the 5th largest glacier in the world. It was cloudy and foggy when we left but once we drove through the clouds it cleared up a little. We passed some old deserted mines and saw a working mine. Hyder's population is only 100 but they are happy people. Hyder was settled by many of the same miners that came through the Stewart area. It was originally known as Portland city but the U.S. post office rejected the name because there were already too many Portlands in the U.S. The name was then changed to Hyder named after Frederick Hyder, a Canadian engineer working for the Juneau Gastineau Mining Co. We are a little sad to leave beautiful Alaska. But we are sure to see more beauty in Canada on our way home. Love you all.

Stewart BC & Hyder AK

2011-07-29T18:59:00.001-07:00

Cassier Hwy

2011-07-29T18:59:00.000-07:00

Cassiar Highway, British Columbia, July 26-28

Hi everybody! It has been quite a trip. Oh my goodness! As I am writing we saw a bear on the side of the road and we slowed down and took some pictures of him and he walked right up to the motorhome and checked us out. I think we could have bonded with him if a semi wasn't in back of us. That was absolutely the best bear sighting we have had on this trip! Thank God for this gift! Back to our trip. We left Skagway and started the Cassiar highway. We had read that it was much improved over the Alaskan highway but they lied. It was porpoisy and gravelly on much of it and didn't get much better until we were halfway through. But we did see a couple of neat attractions. We didn't make our turn when we were supposed to and came upon the Carcross desert. What a surprise! It is an area of sand dunes. It is composed of sandy lake-bottom material left behind by a large glacial lake. I am so glad we missed our turn. You never know what you'll find in the mountains. And it is a rainforest. I never heard of a desert in the rainforest. We turned around and made our turn and came upon Jade City. It earned it's name as a commercial outlet for jade mined from the nearby mountains. The store was just packed with beautiful pieces of different specimens of jade. These Cassiar mountains provides 92% of the worlds jade market. This was a neat place with free coffee, Wi-fi and overnight camping. This was definitely a jewel.
We stayed 2 nights at turnouts in the road when we got tired of driving. At our lunch breaks we ate and then took a power nap to re-energize us. The nights were, to say the least, cool. We woke up to 40 degree temps. We used the oven for dinner and turned on our generator in the mornings. We don't mind. We are tried and true campers. Even George hasn't complained about the cold. After all, it is Alaska and Canada. We have about 150 miles to Stewart, B.C. Where we will stay for a couple of days to recharge. See you there.

Hyder AK

2011-07-29T18:25:00.000-07:00

Skagway Ak. June 25

2011-07-25T20:47:00.000-07:00

Hi folks, We arrived in Skagway from the ferry early this afternoon. What a quaint little town! The population is only 862, but there were hundreds more visiting from cruise ships. It is located at the northernmost point on the Inside Passage in Southeast Alaska, 100 air miles north of Juneau and 112 road miles south of Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. This where the Great Klondike Gold Rush took place in 1898. Here, the stampeders piled off steamships eager to make their fortunes. This town held many temptations for these lonely men. Their were saloons, brothels and gambling. A famous thief, Soapy Smith lived here with his ruthless gang. He stole from everyone he met and ended up being shot to death here.
There is so much to do. There is gold panning, The White Pass and Yukon Route Railway to ride, and a quaint frontier town to shop and eat in. We ate in a saloon/brothel that was fun. I found some jewels on my walk in the evening. I am fond of natural food stores and I found that, along with a garden store, gift shop and glass blowing demonstrations. The third jewel was unexpected. I walked right over a beautiful bridge over Skagway River. Amazing what you can find on foot! We are getting close to finishing up our trip in Alaska. But we have lots more to see and do since we are going home on the Cassier Highway. See you soon!

Haines & Skagway

2011-07-25T19:48:00.000-07:00

Haines, Ak., July 22-24

2011-07-24T21:23:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone. What a wonderful stay we had in Valdez, but you already heard that. We started out for Haines Friday morning and drove the Richardson Highway. We passed a lot of the sights we saw on the way down and enjoyed them just as much. We stopped at a neat roadside spot around 5:30. We get pretty tired after travelling all day. We started out early Sat. morning on the Alaskan highway and went through customs into Canada again. We have to do that in order to go to Haines. If you look at a map you would see why. We went through a little bit of the Yukon Territories and then British Columbia. Then through customs again to Haines, Ak. The road to Haines was gravel for 25 miles. We now have a total of 5 windshield cracks on the motorhome and 5 on our Jeep and counting. We are a long way from home. It was beautiful driving to Haines with a mountain range that is breathtaking! A different landscape altogether. Beautiful Chilkat River was running all the way to Haines. We stopped at an Eagle Preserve which is known as the Valley of Eagles. Since time immemorial, bald eagles have gathered along the Chilkat River by the thousands. Historically, the gathering of eagles, concentrated mostly within the Council Grounds, is at its peak in mid-November when up to 3,500 or more bald eagles have been counted. We only saw a couple but I think they were all at the beach in Ninilchek when we camped on the beach. That was awesome! Haines is a quaint little fishing town. We found a camp right on the beach. It was lovely! The weather was less than desirable so we took the car and did most of our sightseeing that way. We heard about a bear sighting on the river and drove there twice but no luck. We have seen plenty of bears in Valdez. We had a nice stay in Haines, the heart of the Chilkat Valley, the historic capital of Tlingit Indian culture, the site of a frontier Gold Rush and home of Alaska's first prominent Army base. Tomorrow we headed for Skagway on the ferry. Good night loved ones.

Glacier Cruise & Bears

2011-07-24T20:40:00.000-07:00

Valdez Glacier Cruise

2011-07-24T17:44:00.000-07:00

2011-07-22T11:37:00.001-07:00

Wrangell-St. Elias National park, June 20

What a surprise! We left our campground this morning and drove a few miles and saw the park sign and we are so happy we stopped. Incredible! Number and scale loom large here, magnified by splendid location. The largest U.S. National park, it equals 6 Yellowstones, with peaks upon peaks, glaciers upon glaciers. At over 9.6 million acres, the parks designated wilderness represents nearly 10% of the entire National Wilderness Preservation System. Mt. Sanford and several other peaks can be seen from the highway. Vegetation is scarce, but the park is home to wildlife such as moose, bears, Dali sheep and other critters. Many species of birds as well as swan nest here. Many rivers, streams and rivers make it an ideal spawning ground for salmon. We couldn't possibly see it all but we visited the museum and talked to a Ranger that taught us a lot about the park.
After leaving the park we headed to Valdez. It was a beautiful drive! It seems that at every turn we saw another amazing spectacular vision. We saw more glaciers and beautiful waterfalls. We could not believe it! Our senses were absolutely overflowing! No pictures, no words can describe the beauty we witnessed. I am sure there is a lot more to come. When we got settled at camp, we explored the town of Valdez. It is the activity center for Prince William Sound. The growth and settlement of Valdez can be attributed to fur trading, salmon canning and gold and copper mining. Valdez's Prince William Sound is a premier fishing destination, offering all species of salmon and halibut. Valdez is home to the oldest fish derbies in Alaska, awarding thousands of dollars in prize money each year. There is so much here. More tomorrow.

Valdez, June 21

Where do I start? First of all, we weren't sure whether we wanted to take a cruise to the glaciers but we said what the heck! We want to experience everything so we booked a full day cruise. It was absolutely the best time of our trip, and maybe our travels to date. Does that sound crazy? Since everything we do is the highlight of our trip. Excitement is a mild word to describe. I would say more like ecstatic. Or more like orgasmic. But high fun it definitely was! We met our bus and while standing in line we met the neatest couple. Terry and Carol. We buddied with them all day. We cruised Prince William Sound and saw many beautiful mountains and glaciers. On the way we saw dozens of Sea Otters swimming and sunning themselves. Then we saw an Orca Whale and her cub feeding or was that a Humpback? We saw both in all of their glory. That was so exciting! There is nothing like witnessing whales and other sea life in their own natural habitat. Then the best part came with Meares Glacier. This was like nothing we have ever seen. It is a huge wall of ice bordering the Chugach Mountains. While we were there it calved several times. Each time it sounded like a thunder storm when the ice fell into the water. Then the waves it made! You can only imagine! We have seen glaciers on our trip, but this was a GLACIER! We got up so close we could see the crevices, holes and every little curve. It was beautiful. This was another breathtaking moment. We stayed there for at least an hour. Wow!!!!!! We left this miraculous natural phenomenon and cruised upon sea lions. Hundreds of them!!! They were next to our boat diving in the water, playing and showing off for us. Darling little sweethearts! We saw more Otters, Puffins, Seals and other amazing birds. Since Valdez is the end of the Alaskan Pipeline, the ship's captain talked about that. Well, what do you think of our day so far? It is not over yet! When we got home we stopped for a sandwich and we drove over to the Fish Hatchery because someone told us that if you go in the evening you may see bears. So we drove out there around 8:30 and just as we drove up to the hatchery we saw a group of people huddled together watching something. I ran out of the car with camera in hand and meandering across the street was a young bear with a salmon in his mouth. Oh my dear God! Was I ever excited! I got his picture with his fish and was he ever sweet! Then we observed the salmon swimming to their spawning area. That was cool! This was quite a day! A day we will never forget! Thank you God!

Valdez

2011-07-20T20:24:00.000-07:00

Matanuska Glacier

2011-07-20T10:03:00.000-07:00

Glenallen,AK

2011-07-20T09:41:00.000-07:00

Matanuska Glacier, Glenn highway, July 19

Hi folks. After leaving Seward, we drove the Glenn highway on our way to Valdez. We never know what to expect. It is just like Christmas every morning. The highway was narrow and winding but beautiful scenery. We drove upon Matanuska Glacier which is in the Chugach Mountains and trends northwest 27 miles. Some 18,000 years ago the glacier reached all the way to the Palmer area. The glacier's average width is 2 miles; at its terminus it is 4 miles wide. The glacier has remained stable for 400 years. At the glacier terminus meltwater drains into a steam which flows into the Matanuska River. How these glaciers form is so interesting! Years and years of snowfall. It is awesome!
Last night I went out on foot and explored the little town we stayed in. Very quaint and scenic. See you in Valdez.

Seward, Ak. June 18

2011-07-18T21:33:00.000-07:00

Ninilchik, AK

2011-07-18T21:19:00.000-07:00

Seward, Ak. June 18

2011-07-18T20:58:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! We miss the beautiful beach that we were lucky to find with our friend Debbie's help, but we have to move on. We drove to Seward and set up camp. After lunch, we visited the visitor's center and drove through town which is lovely. We found the Sealife Museum which was very informative and enjoyable. Then we drove to our second Nat'l park in Alaska. Kenai Fjords Nat'l is a park like we have never seen. Ice stretches as far as the eye can see, interrupted by an occasional jagged peak. This is the Harding's Ice Field. It covers over half of 669,983 acre park and conceals a mountain range under ice several thousand ft. thick. Named for Pesident Warren G. Harding, who visited Seward in 1923, the icefield is a relic from the last ice age. It gives us a glimpse of when ice covered much of N America. As the ice recedes, it uncovers glacially carved valleys that fill with sea water, creating the stunning fjords. House-sized ice masses crash from tidewater glaciers into the sea, stirring up plankton that attract hundreds of hungry seabirds. Long the coast, Earth's crustal plates collide head-on: the denser Pacific Plate slips unter the N. American Plate. This drags the Kenai Mountains into the sea and deepens the Fjords. It causes several earthquakes, too. In 1964 the Good Friday Earthquake dropped the shoreline six ft. in 3.5 minutes. Throughout the year storms drop hundreds of inches of snow on higher elevations. Snowflakes compact into dense glacial ice and feed nearly 40 glaciers that flow from the icefield. Rivers of ice, they creep downhill like giant bulldozers, carving out bowl shaped cirques and broad u-shaped valleys. We visited Exit glacier, the only part of the park reached by road. We got close enough to almost touch it. We didn't see this, but large blocks of ice frequently calve from its face without warning. We enjoyed reading about the history and walking the trail to the glacier. Fantastic!

Homer AK

2011-07-18T20:36:00.000-07:00

Halibut fishing in homer, July 15-16 We are winding down our stay here, but what a way to end our stay! Yesterday we drove into Homer and explored some pretty fantastic sights. We drove into old town which is a historic little area that is pretty and quaint along the Kachamack bay. Then we drove up skyline drive. We haven't been here that long but we haven't seen a more beautiful sight! The ice fields and the mountain range along with a view of Homer spit and all of it's loveliness took our breath away. Remember, life is not measured by how many breaths we take but the moments that take our breath away. Our fishing trip was great! But we never worked so hard in our life! Fishing for halibut is similar to fishing for grouper in the Keys. The fish hang out at the bottom and to hook them you have a 4 lb weight on. So many times you bring up your rod thinking you have a fish on. George caught eleven fish and I caught five. The limit is two a piece so when you pull up a fish you decide then if you want to keep it. The boat caught their limit so that was good. The water was rough but with Bonine it wasn't a problem. A good day was had by all! We will head to Seward tomorrow. See you there, loved ones.

2011-07-17T13:05:00.001-07:00

Halibut fishing in homer, July 15-16

We are winding down our stay here, but what a way to end our stay! Yesterday we drove into Homer and explored some pretty fantastic sights. We drove into old town which is a historic little area that is pretty and quaint along the Kachamack bay. Then we drove up skyline drive. We haven't been here that long but we haven't seen a more beautiful sight! The ice fields and the mountain range along with a view of Homer spit and all of it's loveliness took our breath away. Remember, life is not measured by how many breaths we take but the moments that take our breath away.
Our fishing trip was great! But we never worked so hard in our life! Fishing for halibut is similar to fishing for grouper in the Keys. The fish hang out at the bottom and to hook them you have a 4 lb weight on. So many times you bring up your rod thinking you have a fish on. George caught eleven fish and I caught five. The limit is two a piece so when you pull up a fish you decide then if you want to keep it. The boat caught their limit so that was good. The water was rough but with Bonine it wasn't a problem. A good day was had by all!
We will head to Seward tomorrow. See you there, loved ones.

Homer AK

2011-07-15T16:30:00.000-07:00

Homer AK., July 14

Hi everyone, I forgot to tell you that we stayed up last night until 12:30 and saw the most beautiful sunset and full moon. I cannot describe in words the beauty that was all around us with the pink sky and the bright colorful hues of the ocean. It was absolutely breathtaking!
This morning we took our Jeep out to the beach and observed the Eagles sitting watching the clammers. That was quite a sight! That was fun. Then we drove into Homer which is called the Halibut fishing capital of the world. Not only that, but it is the largest seabird refuge in the world. Homer is as far as you can go on this peninsula. So nautical with all the charter boats and huge marina. Fishing is one of the largest industries in the state and vital to the economy of Homer. We had lunch at a great restaurant overlooking the marina. The area is known as Homer spit. We booked our charter there for Saturday.
We visited the Visitor center and then the Pratt museum. We learned so much about the area's birds, sea life and the first homesteaders. It is so neat to learn about the area we are visiting. See you tomorrow!

Ninilchik AK

2011-07-15T16:24:00.000-07:00

Ninilchik, AK., July 13

Hello friends and family! We arrived at our destination around lunch time. What a place we found! Our friend Debbie told us about a camp right on the ocean. And what a place! At high tide our motorhome is inches away from the water. When the tide goes out, there is a hundred yards between our motorhome and the ocean. The tides here are 30 ft. compared to 18 inches in the Keys. Isn't that wild? It is now the full moon and that means the tides will be bigger. That phenomena brings all the clammers out in full force. And with the clammers comes the Bald Eagles looking for food. We love it here. Long walks on the beach and looking out our front window at the ocean and the beautiful mountain range. What could be better? We visited with our friend this afternoon and she clued us in about some neat places to explore tomorrow, so we will see you there.

Kenai, June 10-12

2011-07-12T21:51:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, After Anchorage, we found a wonderful campground with hook-ups. We had lots of laundry to do so we took a day to do that, but at that campground was a beautiful lodge that we were able to use. They had a spa, exercize room, lounge, restaurant and all the goodies. So that was our chill day. The next day we drove to Kenai to Russian River Campground. It is famous for their beautiful water falls. We took a nice long hike to get there and it was worth it!. The camp was quiet and serene. It is so calming to us to just listen to nature and enjoy the beautiful scenery.
Kenai is lovely. There is the mouth of the famous Kenai River, along with unlimited breathtaking views of Cook Inlet and the surrounding majestic mountain ranges. To us, that is what Alaska is. Mt. Redoubt, an active volcano, can easily be seen during salmon harvest season, along with beluga whales and bald eagles. The rich, native culture is represented by the historic Russian Church and Shrine. You will see the picture posted of the Church. The highlight of the day was when we visited Cook Inlet at the mouth of the Kenai River where we saw fishermen dip netting salmon. They were lined up in a row on the beach with five foot nets as long as 30 ft. holding them open for their catch. When they caught one, they hit it in the head with a hammer to kill it and dropped it on the sand and went back to the water for another one. Very interesting! Only the Alaskans are allowed to dip net. The weather is beautiful and sunny. Tomorrow we are heading down to Ninilchik for Halibut fishing, and to see our friend Debbie Hess, who crews for the Yankee Freedom ferry boat, in Key West, that runs to the Dry Tortugas. She lives in Ninilchik in the summertime . Love you all

Kenai

2011-07-12T20:18:00.001-07:00

Kenai

2011-07-12T20:12:00.000-07:00

2011-07-09T20:52:00.000-07:00

Alaska Native Heritage Center, July 9

2011-07-09T20:21:00.000-07:00

What an experience we had today! The one thing that the Visitor's Center advised us to observe was the Heritage Center. We saw everything from Indian dance, (George is going to put it on Utube). We had a tour of the five Indian cultures: The Athabascan tribe, Yupik and Cupik, Inupiaq and St. Lawrence Island Yupik, Unangax and Alutiiq, and the Eyak, Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian. I couldn't even begin to pronounce the names. We saw a demonstration of how each of these tribes live by visiting a reproductions of their houses. They tried to stay as original as they could with the same wood, hides they used for windows etc. So interesting! We saw a whale skeleton, (a real one), original totem poles, the art work they did and so many other things. These Indians are still living today as they did 100 years ago. Some, of course, have adapted to our lifestyle. Our favorite of the day was the singing and the dancing. So artful and inspiring! Even though we prefer more isolated surroundings, we enjoyed Anchorage very much. We try to be as remote as we can by choosing campgrounds outside of the city. We are headed to the Kenai Penninsula tomorrow. Love you

Anchorage, Ak. July 8

2011-07-08T21:38:00.000-07:00

Good evening folks! Alaska is really not so bad, you know? The temperatures are cooler than we like but it wouldn't feel like Alaska if it were too warm. We went into town today and had a nice seafood lunch at a cafe. We were outside but they had heaters around and they had 2 at our table. Hot chocolate sure tasted good! We visited the shops and picked up some gifts for the kids and I visited a shop that really took me by surprise. My knitter friends would really appreciate this! It is called Qiviut Alaskan handknits. This company harvests Musk ox, which is an Arctic animal who survived the Ice Age. Their body is compact to conserve heat and their long guard hair protects them from weather, wind and mosquitoes. In order to survive the harsh Arctic winter temps. musk ox grow a thick layer of Qiviut over their entire body. This fine under wool is shed naturally each spring when it is no longer needed. The farm in Palmer is managed by Musk Ox Development Corp. They comb off this fine fiber each spring. "Oomingmak" Musk Ox Producers Co-op purchases all the fiber harvested on the farm and has it spun into yarn. This fiber is very rare and one of the finest fibers in the world. It compares favorably with cashmere and Vicuna. Most of the members of the Co-op are Yupik. The opportunity to knit the beautiful Qiviut items by hand allows them to earn a supplementary income to enhance their mostly subsistence lifestyle. For a yearly, nominal membership fee, the Qiviut yarn is sent to them. They knit at their own pace, with no pressure from quotas or a set time frame for completion. Payment is per piece, along with a profit sharing at the years end. They live in the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta. The villages are small and isolated. The only way to travel is by air. Since there are no roads, all their supplies must be transported in the summer by barge or flown in during the rest of the year. Cost of heating fuel, electricity, groceries etc. are many times higher than Anchorage. They hunt and fish for most of their food. They also speak their native languages and follow their Native traditions such as arts, crafts, dancing and songs. I am so glad I experienced this shop. The picture you see is a decendent of one of the Yukik people. He has been knitting since he was 7 and I only dream of knitting like him.
I forgot to tell you that we saw our Venture Out friends, Leland and Alice in Denali Nat'l Park when we were boarding the bus. What a small world, huh? See you later!

Mt. Mc Kinley above the clouds

2011-07-08T20:56:00.000-07:00

Wasilla, Ak. July 6

2011-07-07T20:29:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody, We left beautiful Denali Park and found more beautiful scenery as pretty as what we saw in the park, including wild life. We drove all morning and stopped at Wasilla for the night. A funny thing happened at the Wal-mart I was shopping. I was in the check-out line and I turned around, and right there in back of me 2 inches away was no other than Sarah herself. I asked her what direction Russia was so I could view it. Ha! ha! Don't you think that was funny?
The town is beautiful and very busy. We don't care for busy on this vacation but we had to stop here on the way to Anchorage. See you there tomorrow!

Denali National Park

2011-07-05T19:54:00.000-07:00

Bus trip to Denali, July5

2011-07-05T19:37:00.000-07:00

Are we lucky or what? There is only one day of each month that Mt. McKinley is visible and guess what? We hit it on the nose! It is soooo far away and you will see a white cloud looking peak on the picture. But is so awesome! A 20,000 ft. high mountain, the highest in North America. We had a wonderful trip into the park. Of course we couldn't cover all 6 million acres, but the wilderness is beautiful! You can really feel your littleness there. It is a pure and wild place. This a habitat for large caribou, moose, and grizzly bears all of which we saw. The view of the bears were so small we could only see through the binoculars. It is amazing that these animals have long been adapted to survive in northern life. The rivers are so young and so laden with pulverized rock that they can wander across their broad, flat valleys. We were in awe the whole time we were there. This is a winner!

Denali National Park, July 4

2011-07-04T22:38:00.000-07:00

Hi folks, We left in the rain, (what else is new) and drove to Denali. Thank God it cleared up and we drove to our campsite. We left for the Park and booked a bus trip for tomorrow morning. The bus will take us 63 miles into the mountains and wilderness. We drove 15 miles today but that is as far the park will let you drive. The rest of the way, which the bus will take us, is a narrow dirt road with no guard rails. I wish I had some valium! The park is absolutely beautful! Denali, the "High One," is the name Athabascan native people gave the massive peak that crowns the 600 mile long Alaska Range. Denali is also the name of an immense national park and preserve created from the former Mount McKinley National Park. This park is 6 million acres and is larger than Massachusetts. Isn't that Amazing? I will tell you more about it when we finish our trip tomorrow. Sleep tight, dear ones. I love you.

Riverboat Discovery, Fairbanks, Ak., July 3

2011-07-04T22:22:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, We woke up to rain and cool temps. We had a reservation for the Riverboat but decided if it would rain we wouldn't go. But it did stop somewhat, drizzly yet, but since we were cooped in, we said we had better go. And are we glad we did! What an adventure! The Chena River was nothing much to look at and we were wondering about the cruise. The first surprise was a seaplane that took off right next to the boat. The narrator on the boat was wonderful! He explained everything about the people who lived there and the river itself. The Riverboat was started by the Binkley family and it is still going on for 5 generations. He explained about how Alaskans survive in a place where temperatures range from 95F. to -65F: We met Susan Butcher's husband who showed us his sled dogs and gave us a demonstration of them running. They are champion sled dogs. In case you didn't know, Susan Butcher was an internationally acclaimed athlete, four time winner of the 1,100 mile Iditarod Race. You will see her husband and I together signing his book that Susan and her husband, David Douglas wrote together before she died of leukemia. We were able to take a personalized tour of the Chena Indian Village with informative talks on their lives and how they survived. It was a great afternoon. That was the highlight of our stay in Fairbanks. See you in Denali Nat'l Park tomorrow.

Fairbanks Riverboat Cruise

2011-07-04T22:03:00.000-07:00

2011-07-02T15:48:00.000-07:00

Pioneer park, Fairbanks, July 1

Before the mosquitos carried us off, we left for our new home. George washed off the first layer of mud off our vehicles but on our way to Pioneer it started raining so it was a wasted effort. Oh well!
This was kind of a chill day catching up on computer stuff etc. The neatest thing happened this morning. We saw a salmon bake sign in front of a cave that led us through to a great park with neat cabins and huge outdoors grills, bars, salad bar, desert cabin, a coffee cabin etc. This is where the salmon bake takes place. We thought we were alone but a man appeared and introduced himself as David Luther. He is the master chef and was cutting up salmon and cod. He led us into a walk-in freezer and showed us all the fish that he cuts up every day for 400 to 800 people every day for 161 days in a row. He starts chopping wood early in the morning and works until late at night. The salmon was extraordinary! He told us he works there in the summer and goes to Laughlin, Nevada and golfs for 6 months. Interesting character! He cooks the salmon and we had beer batter cod, crab legs and prime rib. There was a wonderful salad bar, a desert bar and beverages. What a feast! It was worth the trip to eat there. Oh, i forgot, it was all you can eat. The thin man on the blog is David. So if you are ever in Fairbanks, don't forget the Salmon Bake.
I explored the area and found a lot of neat things. Amazing what you can find when you go for a walk. I found a fish hatchery, a beautiful park on the river, a curling lodge, a miner league baseball field. I also walked down to the regal cinema to see what is playing. We are staying for 2 more nights. Love to all!

Fairbanks

2011-07-01T21:02:00.000-07:00

Fairbanks

2011-07-01T21:00:00.000-07:00

North Pole

2011-07-01T18:18:00.000-07:00

Fairbanks

2011-07-01T18:13:00.000-07:00

Fairbanks AK

2011-06-30T19:04:00.001-07:00

Fairbanks,AK., June 30

Hi folks, we headed towards Fairbanks today and stopped at Chena. Lake campground. It is a beautiful secluded park nestled in the woods. We drove into Fairbanks to the North Pole and visited Santa house. Since I love Christmas, I felt right at home. We drove around and found a neat park where we will stay tomorrow right in Fairbanks. There is a lot to do right in town. We visited The University of Alaska Museum which was wonderful. So much to learn about this great state. The art work was fabulous. Fairbanks is the second most populated city in Alaska. The weather was cloudy but sunny in the afternoon with temps in the mid 60's. A great day! We feel so blessed to be able to experience the treasures that are offered here.

Tok, AK

2011-06-30T14:09:00.001-07:00

Tok, Alaska, June 28-29

Finally after driving 4000 miles, we are in Alaska . Yesterday we left Whitehorse and drove until 2:00, thinking we were just going to rest. But since it was raining and the roads were less than desirable we just stayed. We played games and watched movies for fun. I forgot to mention in previous posts that it never gets dark. All through Canada it stayed light until God knows when. We usually go to bed at 11:00 and we can still see the sun. When we get up at 6:00, it is bright. Even when the sun sets, it is still light outside. Isn't that a scream? We got up this morning and started out for Alaska. We had to drive some pretty rough roads because of the frost heaves. They are constantly working on them. That was quite an experience. Thank God that isn't the norm.
We arrived across the border at noon. We are now on Alaska time which is 4 hours behind Ohio. We stopped for fuel and the visiter's centerand drove to our spot for the night. See you tomorrow in Fairbanks

Whitehorse

2011-06-30T14:07:00.001-07:00

Whitehorse, Capitol of the Yukon, June27

Hi everyone, we had a wonderful drive getting to Whitehorse. We have such a connection with this magnificent land. Such peace and serenity we feel as we look at the clear blue lakes surrounded by majestic mountains. Wow, is all we can say. This is certainly beyond anything we expected.
Whitehorse was named after the historic rapids on the Yukon River which resembled the flowing manes of charging white horses. It was founded during theKlondike gold rush. The section of river upriver from town, Miles Canyon and White horse Rapids, was so dangerous that two rail trams were built around it. This was also the head of navigation of theYukon, a natural place for a town. And what a town it is! There is so much to do here. We didn't do a lot of the touristy things because we would rather drive around looking at everything. I did walk to town to visit some shops. We saw the S.S.Klondike which represented an age when the city of Whitehorse served a major function as the transportation hub of this entire region, taking miners, their families and those who wished to take advantage of the Gold Rush.
We are getting excited to see Alaska, but certainly our journey getting there is a treasure we'll never forget!

Watson Lake YT

2011-06-27T06:01:00.000-07:00

2011-06-26T22:40:00.000-07:00

Dawson Creek & Watson Lake

2011-06-26T20:30:00.000-07:00

Slow Internet connections

2011-06-26T20:21:00.000-07:00

Hi folks

Due to slow internet connection speeds in these desolate locations, uploading pictures can be difficult,so we will send when we can.

Dawson Creek

2011-06-26T20:06:00.003-07:00

Alaska highway, June 23-25

Hi folks, We arrived at Dawson Creek Thursday afternoon. It started raining and it didn't stop until Sat. Morning. We stayed at the Wal-Mart for 2 nights. We had a great Wi-fi signal so we caught up on our e-mails and blog. I couldn't walk outside so I walked inside Wal-Mart. I knew the store so well I started straightening shelves. We left Dawson Sat. Morning and started at mile 0 on the Alaskan highway. We drove through some more of the Canadian Rockies which do not look the same as the Rockies we drove in Alberta. Most of the mountains were covered with pine trees and they are not as high. Some were similar to the Badlands. We passed a lot of wildlife. Moose, Mountain goats and Elk. Beautiful scenic vistas took our breath away. The weather was sunny and temps were in the 70's. The days we have spent in the mountains have been beautiful and sunny. As I write this we are parked at a roadside camp with 3 other campers. We have had no trouble getting a site at any campground we have been to. Tomorrow we plan to stop at Watson Lake. See you then.

Watson lake, Yukon Territory, June 26

2011-06-26T19:59:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

We crossed the border from British Columbia into The Yukon Territory. We have driven 3400 miles so far. Watson Lake is a popular destination for Northbound travelers. Frank Watson, at the age of 14, left California and headed north with his father to seek gold in the Klondike. Now it is a key transportation, communication and distribution centre for mining and logging in the southern Yukon. It is the "Yukon's Gateway."
When we got here, we arrived at our campground and started sightseeing. The best known attraction was The Sign Post Forest. So famous, it is known and mimicked around the world. The forest was started in 1942 by a homesick U.S. army G.I. While working on the Alaskan Highway, he erected a sign pointing the way and stating the mileage to his hometown. Others followed his lead and are still doing so to this day. There are 72,000 signs posted.
We visited the Alaska Interpretive centre and saw a movie about the history of the highway. That was so interesting! We drove to Wye lake and took a nature hike around the whole lake. After dinner we visited the Northern Lights Centre and saw a show on Aurora Borealis. A busy and very interesting day. What tomorrow holds we don't have a clue! But one thing for sure is we are enjoying every moment like its our last. Love to all!

Icefields Parkway

2011-06-22T16:42:00.001-07:00

Jasper Nat'l Park, Alberta, Ca. June 22

2011-06-22T16:23:00.000-07:00

Sorry folks if the posts aren't coming every day. We are in pretty remote areas where wi-fi isn't available. Today we are eating pizza in a place that offers free internet service.
We started out this morning on The Icefields Parkway which is a 230 km. highway which in our language in around 150 miles. Beautiful, gorgeous mountain ranges the whole way. I probably took 200 pictures. What a breathtaking sight! We arrived in Jasper at noon and set up camp. After lunch we drove around and saw some pretty lakes and other mountain ranges. The town is quaint and very rustic. I read that Alberta's parks are more developed because of the Railway system that runs along the Canadian Rockies. This is our last park in Alberta and then off to Dawson Creek which is a couple of days away. That is the beginning of the Alaskan Highway, mile 0' We will then be in British Columbia. That goes through the Yukon Territories before we get to Alaska. The only downside to being here is I can't use the phone. I miss you all, family and friends. Especially my newest little Grandson, Benjamin. Give your Mommy and Daddy and sisters a hug for me. And hugs for all of the rest of you too. We love you!

Banff

2011-06-22T15:56:00.001-07:00

Alberta Canada, Banff Nat’l Park, Canadian Rockies, June 19

We are in Canada wishing you were here with us. We drove most of the day yesterday in the rain and stopped overnight in Alberta. We drove this morning into Banff Nat’l Park. What a beauty of a park! It has everything you would ever want. You would never lack for things to do. It has so many spectacular scenic vistas that you can walk, drive, gondolla, fly, however you want to go.
Banff Nat’l Park was established in 1885 and the Park has always been about preservation and enjoyment of nature. It is 6,641 sq. kms 2,564 sq mi). We visited Banff Springs Hotel which opened in 1888. Designed in the Scottish baronial style, in a nod to the town’s namesake Banffshire, Scotland, the hotel was designed a National Historic Site in 1992. We drove to the top of Tunnel Mountain where the best view is. Then we drove through the town, which resembles Jackson Hole. We will visit there tomorrow where we can spend more time. (especially Cow’s ice cream parlor). Our campground is on Tunnel Mountain. There are over 300 beautiful sites. We love it here. Thank you, Canada, for this beautiful park.

Banff & Lake Louise

2011-06-22T15:49:00.000-07:00

Lake Louise, Banff Nat’l Park, June 21, 2011

2011-06-22T15:42:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful day we had in this beautiful, scenic country! We arrived at Lake Louise Campground this morning and visited (or tried to visit) Lake Louise. There was road construction and tons of people so we turned around in the parking lot and left. We then visited Lake Moraine. Very beautiful! But nothing compares to Lake Louise. We went there after supper and what a surprise! A little history: Lake Louise showcases the main range of the Rocky Mountains. Tom Wilson, a horsepacker for The Canadian Pacific Railroad survey, heard a roar of a distant avalanche. Edwin Hunter, an Indian, told him it came from “snow mountain above the lake of little fishes”. The next day, Edwin led Tom to the Lake. Tom was the first non-native person to see it. He was so impressed by the color, he called it Emerald lake. In 1884, the lake became known as Lake Louise in honor of Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, the 4^th daughter of Queen Victoria. The color of the lake comes from minerals in the glacier rock which is ground to a fine flour called rock flour. The color reminds me of our beautiful Florida Keys. The glaciers surrounding the lake make it one of the most famous photo destinations in the country.

I know this is just a sample of the beautiful sights we are going to see. Tomorrow we are going to Jasper, another great park in Canada’s beautiful Nat’l Parks. See you then!

Banff

2011-06-20T11:08:00.000-07:00

Makoshika State Park, Montana, June 16

2011-06-16T19:02:00.000-07:00

Makoshika State Park, Montana, June 16

2011-06-16T18:41:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, I heard it said that the joy is in the journey, not the destination. So I decided to start posting early. I was going to start when we got to the Canadian Rockies, but we are having such a good time, I wanted to share it with you.
We started out on Monday and drove 2 hard days and decided to take it easy for a couple of days so here we are at Makoshika State Park.
To the Sioux Indians, Ma-ko-shi-ka meant bad earth or bad land. Today, as Montana's largest state park, the pine and juniper studded badland formations house the fossil remains of such dinosaurs as tyrannosaurus rex and triceratops. We didn't expect the badlands to be in Montana but they are so similar to the badlands in S. Dakota, we were amazed. They are more whimsical in nature with their fluted hillsides, pinnacles and caprocks. We drove the dirt roads overlooking the park and it is quite a sight! Lots of walking trails, archery range and other attractions. I can't believe we are on the road again. I think we were born to do this. We just started and I am as excited as a little girl. Love you all

New Orleans, Louisisana, Oct. 14 & l5

2010-10-14T17:17:00.000-07:00

Here we are in the Bayou having a cajun good time! We ate Beignets, gumbo, soft shelled crab, crayfish, etc. etc. etc. I don't think we will ever eat again! Ha! Ha! We stayed in Bayou Segnette State Park Campground. It is a beautiful camp that is just far enough from the city with a New Orleans flair. We love the city! We took our bikes and after pigging out on beignets, we biked all over the city. Bourbon Street was fun. We watched jazz musicians on the street, while we were biking. They are all over the place. We had beautiful weather. The next day we drove the causeway over Lake Pontchatrain This bridge is the longest bridge in the world! 30 miles each way. Lake Pontchartrain is a brackish estuary that is home to soft shells crabs. It is the second largest inland lake. We had the best time!
I am a little sad that our trip is coming to an end. We had beautiful weather and our country is breath-takingly beautiful. I say beautiful a lot, don't I? We are so fortunate that we were able to take this once in a lifetime trip! Our memories will stay with us forever! Thank you, friends and family, for joining us on our Klines Western Adventure. We love you, George and Sylvia

French Quarter

2010-10-14T16:53:00.000-07:00

San Antonio, TX Oct. 11

2010-10-11T17:34:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, We drove a long, long time through Texas yesterday and stopped at a rest area to sleep. We arrived in San Antonio this morning and drove to the River Walk downtown. What a lovely time we had! We took a river boat tour and saw the whole river walk area. Such beautiful buildings and detailed architecture. We walked and ate and had a great time. We toured the Alamo and surrounding area and found it fascinating. It is a sacred shrine that we should be proud of.
We should be going into Louisiana sometime tomorrow on our way to one of our favorite places, New Orleans. We plan on eating begniets until we burst! Love

San Antonio, TX

2010-10-11T17:13:00.000-07:00

City of Rocks, New Mexico and El Paso, Texas Oct. 8 & 9

2010-10-09T18:43:00.000-07:00

We are finally on our way home!. Of course we have to make some stops first. The first stop was a really unique State campground in N.M. Called the City of Rocks. It was quite a surprise!. We were out in the middle of the desert going into the camp, and found clusters of huge rocks. Every primitive site had a background of rocks. They were formed by volcanic ash made from lava flow that sculpted these amazing rocks. We had a beautiful view of the mountains across from our camp site. Hiking the desert was fun.
The next day we drove into El Paso, Texas and found a campground that was also in the desert with mountains in the background. We drove into El Paso and found an art festival. We went into the Art Museum and really enjoyed that. So much to do and so little time! See you soon

City of Rocks, NM

2010-10-09T18:30:00.000-07:00

Petrified Forest and Painted Desert, Oct. 7

2010-10-07T20:39:00.000-07:00

These 2 parks are the last of the National Parks we will visit on this trip. So beautiful and so very different! Everything is about climate here. This high, dry grassland was once a vast floodplain crossed by many streams. Tall conifer trees grew along the banks. The trees, fell, and swollen streams washed them into adjacent floodplains. A mix of silt, mud, and volcanic ash buried the logs. This sediment cut off oxygen and slowed the logs decay. Silica-laden groundwater seeped through the logs and replaced the original wood tissues with silica deposits. Eventually the silica crystallized into quartz, and the logs were preserved as petrified wood. Over the 225 million years since the trees lived, the continents moved to their present positions, and this region was uplifted. As a result the climate changed, and the tropical environment became today's grassland. Over time, wind and water wore away the rock layers and exposed fossilized ancient plants and animals. We found some wood that looked like jewels. They were beautiful!
The Painted Desert! What a picture! It is an area of badlands that displays a variety of hues. Covered by a soft layer of earth, the deserts colorful erosion effects were created over the eons by mineralized water flows and mineral deposits. Every color is a different mineral. It is almost as if an artist came into the lands and painted these beautiful hills. A miracle!
We have had a wonderful time in these parks! Aren't we all blessed that this country has the most beautiful parks in the world? We are on our way home and will post when we get to some fun places. Love you all, George and Sylvia

Painted Desert- Petrified Forest National Parks

2010-10-07T20:18:00.000-07:00

Joshua Tree National Park, CA Oct. 5

2010-10-05T20:09:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, We are back on the road again after our stay with son George and significant other, Kathy, whom we love and adore. We had a nice weekend, ending with a great cookout with their friends. They were a great group and we had so much food, most of which Kathy prepared and was very delicious! Georgie did some fancy Mexican meats on the grill which they ate in taco shells.
Kathy made a wonder blueberry cake we will never forget. WE LOVE YOU TWO SO MUCH!

We arrived at our campground on Monday and Tuesday we visited Joshua Tree Nat'l Park. That was quite a surprise! We expected to see lots and lots of trees, (which we did), and saw beautiful rock formations also. We found out people come from all over the world to climb these rocks. We did not climb but we did hike. You will see in 2 of the pictures, views of the valley, mountain and desert. The Colorado desert and the Mojave desert merge, but we were mainly in the Mojave. We could see Palm Springs from this view and the San Andreas Fault is there also. The Joshua tree, which is really a Yucca plant, was named after the prophet Joshua in the bible. The first settlers were Mormans and named the tree. Joshua, seeing the limbs of the tree as outstretched in supplication, guiding the travelers westward. Hence, the name Joshua. These trees mainly grow in the Mojave and some grow to be 100 years old. The Indians recognized this tree to be useful. Their tough leaves were worked into baskets and sandals, and flower buds and raw or roasted seeds made a healthy addition to their diet. The rock formations are stacked boulders which began underground eons ago as a result of volcanic activity. We really enjoyed this park and spent a lot of time here. The desert and surrounding neighborhoods are facinating. Desert life is not what I would like but there are a lot of people who love it. We will leave you and see you at the Petrified Forest.

Joshua Tree National Park, CA

2010-10-05T19:39:00.000-07:00

Our days with George jr. and Kathy in Anaheim, Ca.

2010-10-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, I can't begin to tell you how wonderful our time here has been. Lots of quiet time, lots of fun and great bonding going on here. We are sad to be leaving but we all know life has to go on and we will be leaving here in a couple of days. We have shared good meals, a baseball game, The L.A. Fair, Shushi, long walks, dog shows, delicious deserts every night, long talks, shopping, a beach day, movies etc. George and George Jr. have fixed every moving part on their R.V's plus more. They are running out of projects but they will probably come up with one before we leave. The weather here is extrordinary, a few hot days, but nice. I am furiously knitting slippers for them before we leave. Hopefully their little puppy, Lucky, won't find them. He found my knitting pattern, needles and sunglasses. No big deal. They can be replaced but our time with them is precious and a beautiful memory for all of us. Oh, great news! We are going to be Grandparents again! So, the knitting needles will be quite busy for a while. Love you all

Oct 1, 2010 California

2010-10-01T08:18:00.000-07:00

Mojave Desert, Ca. Sept 10 through 12

2010-09-13T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hi friends and family and especially our little Vernons. You will love this! We met up with George Jr. at the Jawbone Visitors Center. We drove our rigs to a deserted area in the mountains and parked our campers. It is a Bureau of Land Management area that is free and was it ever neat! We were nestled into a mountain right in the desert. George Jr. has a toy hauler camper with a quad (razor). The fun started for Dad and Son as soon as we got there. They took off for a great ride. The next day Kathy came and what a doll! We got acquainted and had a great time. Sat. morning Georgie took me for a ride. He was very conservative with me. But, what fun! When Kathy arrived, we drove our Jeep and and razor to Red Rock Canyon State Park. I thought I was in the Badlands. We walked around the rocks and saw a lot of little caves. Fun! Kathy fixed the men some Jalapeno poppers and we cooked Salmon on the grill. And of course, we had a fire and s'mores later. Great weekend!

Sequoia and King's Canyon, Sept. 8 thru 10

2010-09-13T08:38:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! We stayed in Fresno Tues. night between Yosemite and Sequoia Parks. On our way, we drove along the most beautiful mountain range. So lovely! As usual, pictures don't capture the beauty. We stayed at Azalea campground which is in King's Canyon Nat'l Park. We saw a lot of the Park the first day and saw some beautiful vistas. Just breathtaking! Both parks encompass the most rugged portions of the Sierra Nevada. Ice age glaciers carved some of the country's deepest canyons. This sawtoothed mountain range is over 400 miles long and 60 to 80 miles wide. This range exceeds the whole Alps area, French, Swiss and Italian. There are 6 peaks exceeding 14,000 ft. of elevation. Impressive? The next day we visited Sequoia Park. Sequoia is home to the largest Sequoia tree on earth. At least one tree species lives longer, one has a greater diameter, three grow taller, but none is larger. In all the world, sequoias grow naturally only on the west slope of the Sierra Nevada, most often between 5,000 and 7,000 ft. of elevation. The General Sherman tree is an estimated 2,200 years old. Its largest branch is almost seven ft. in diameter. Every year the General Sherman grows enough new wood to make a 60 ft. tall tree of usual proportions. We walked through trees, drove through trees so big, it is hard to believe they grow like that. We had a wonderful time.
More than anything, I have wanted to see a bear and today we saw three of them! Was I ever excited! They are so sweet. When they appear, the rangers noisily chase them away so as not to incite them. I loved seeing them. The parks are wonderful! We are so lucky and thank God every day for these blessings in our lives. Tomorrow we are seeing George Jr. at the Mojave Desert. Can't wait!

Yosemite Nat'l Park, Sept. 6 & 7

2010-09-08T08:41:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, We left our KOA on Monday morning and headed to Yosemite. Our trips have been somewhat of a challenge because of the hills and curves, but we are tenacious and arrived at our park in one piece. Yosemite is a 100 sq. mile park that would take a long time to see everything. We spent two days touring the park and saw some majestic and beautiful sights. We were most impressed by the granite cliffs. The summits are so high when you look up at them close by, you cannot see the tops. Awesome! Half Dome and El Captain were the most magnificent to us. There is a legend of how they came to be that I thought was interesting. American Indians tell of a woman and her husband who argued and fought. The displeased spirits changed them into stone, Half Dome and North Dome, forever to face each other across the Valley. But how these cliffs really formed has challenged geologists for over 100 years. They think the granite of Yosemite's walls solidified over five miles underground. As the overlying rock eroded away, the granites rose to their current exposed level. Nature's dynamic forces continue sculpting this exposed rock. The waterfalls have mostly dried up because of the dry summer. But we can only imagine how beautiful they are! There are giant Sequoias here also. They need fire so they can reproduce and fires they definitely have! We are so lucky to have these parks. They are ours to enjoy, hopefully, forever. John Muir said "Everyone needs beauty as well as bread, places to play and pray in, where nature may heal, cheer and give strength to the body and soul alike. Love you and we will see you in Sequoia Nat'l Park.

Yosemite

2010-09-08T08:20:00.001-07:00

Napa Valley, Sept.3 & 4

2010-09-04T20:23:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, Get ready, this may take awhile. Yesterday, our friend and Ft. Jefferson buddy, who is the Law Enforcement Ranger at the Golden Gate, met us and we had a wonderful time with her. (See picture) We drove to Sausalito and met her there. We bought lunch at Miss Mollies and took it up to the North tower overlook. The view was of the Golden Gate and San Francisco. Beautiful! We then drove to Fort Mason and Sarah met up with some of her co-workers who were investigating a case of a body that was found on shore. Sometimes bad things happen in this beautiful place. We had a wonderful view of the Golden Gate, but very foggy. We drove to the Nike Missile Site in the Marin Headlands. That was awesome! The ranger there took us on a complete tour of the Site. We never, ever thought we could go down to the magazine where they kept the missiles. When the Site was closed down, some energetic volunteers started re-furbishing the Site. And now it is open to visitors to view. Thank God we never had to fire the missiles. They had 40 kiloton nuclear warhead in one missile which was more than we dropped on Japan in World War 2.
We then drove to the Mammal Hospital which was founded in 1975. The Marine Mammal Center rescues and treats more than 500 ill and injured marine mammals along 600 miles of California coastline each year. This is a nonprofit veterinary hospital, research and educational center. We saw 6 sweet sea lions that were recuperating so they could go back to the sea. When we left Sarah, we drove around Sausalito and found a neat pizza place for dinner.
Today, we drove to Napa Valley and drove the 31 miles of beautiful grape vineyards. Amazing, that a valley between 2 mountains could be that productive. Did you know that one barrel of wine makes 20 cases, or 1200 glasses of wine? A ton of grapes equals 720 bottles of wine or 60 cases. One vine annually produces between 4 and 6 bottles of wine. Each bottle contains about 2.8 lbs. of grapes, each 5 oz. glass of wine a little over 1/2 a lb. Some wine trivia for you wine lovers. We did visit 2 wineries. We noticed that roses were planted in front of the orchards and we thought maybe they were for the bees to pollinate, but we were wrong. They plant them to attract aphids so the bugs don't eat the grapes. Interesting, huh? I thought so.

A message to my beautiful daughters who will get together tomorrow for Britt's birthday. I just want you to know how much I love you and how proud I am of you all. You are the light of my life and this trip is my legacy to you. Stay just like you are because you are perfect! Love Mom

Napa Valley

2010-09-04T19:44:00.000-07:00

San Francisco

2010-09-04T19:27:00.000-07:00

Alcatraz, Ca. Sept. 2

2010-09-02T19:54:00.000-07:00

Hi folks, I didn't know what to expect and wasn't that excited about going to Alcatraz, but what an experience! There is so much history there. The island which is in San Francisco bay was known as the "Rock". It was a maximum security federal penitentiary l934-63 that once held such notorious criminals as Al Capone, Machine Gun Kelly and Robert Stroud, the "Birdman of Alcatraz". When we got off the boat, we walked up a hill that was like climbing 13 stories. We then took a self-guided tour of the prison with ear phones and radio. We went inside the cells, the dining hall and the outside recreation area. The tour was done by former Alcatraz inmates, correctional officers and residents as they reminisce about life on Alcatraz. It was like going back in time, it was so real. It originally was a Fort but was never used for combat. After the Fort closed, many tribes of Indians came over protesting occupation of their lands by Americans. They lived there for 18 months. It ultimately saved their tribes. Rich is history, this island is a natural habitat for wildlife. A beautiful view of the city, it is an island that we are so happy we were able to see and explore.
Our friend, Sarah C. who is a ranger for the National Park Service told Ranger Owen S. that we were coming to the island and he showed us the "dungeon" which is not open to visitors. That was fun. By the way, Alcatraz belongs to the NPS.

Alcatraz

2010-09-02T18:22:00.000-07:00

San Francisco, Ca. Aug. 31 & Sept. 1

2010-09-01T20:20:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, Yesterday was one heck of a driving day. We drove the coast highway with our motor home and tow car. And what a ride! It took us 7 hours to drive 180 miles. It was slow going with all the switch backs and steep hills. We unhooked our car for awhile to get up the hills. But we made it! We always do. We rented a spot right outside of San Francisco and are sticking for 6 days. We wanted to make sure we had a place for the holiday weekend. We drove into town this morning and had a great day! We drove over the Golden Gate Bridge and that was fun. The views are spectacular! We had a good parking spot. There are lots of them and boy do you pay! We toured the Fisherman's Wharf District which was fun. We went to the famous sourdough bread factory and had lunch there. We went to Ghirardelli Square and you can see I was enjoying a hot fudge sundae with dark fudge topping. Yummmm! We took a cable car ride and saw a lot of the city. That was really fun! And last but not least, Pier 39. I was so surprised at the wonderful shops and the sea lions playing on the pier. Even though we prefer quiet places, we really enjoyed the city for a change. Tomorrow we will go tour Alcatraz. See you then

San Francisco

2010-09-01T19:52:00.000-07:00

Redwoods Nat'l Park, Ca. August 29 & 30

2010-08-31T09:29:00.000-07:00

Ocean and earth is home to a forest of giants. This Park is a nursery for the world's tallest things. They only grow here because because of the moderate, almost Mediterranean climate. They don't have to protect themselves from nature's extreme temperatures, so they can grow to enormous proportions. These Coast Redwoods grow up to 370 ft. or more. Their grow to 22 ft. in diameter and are 2000 years old. This is not the prettiest park we have seen, but it may be the most impressive. We travelled more than 180 miles out of the park and we saw Redwoods the whole way. Amazing that a giant can grow from a seed as small as a tomato seed! Recent studies suggest that rising, global temperatures are changing regional fog patterns, which are necessary for their growth. A long-term decrease in fog would severely impact the coast redwoods' ability to outlast periods of extreme drought. A single old-growth coast redwood tree consumes up to 500 gallons of water a day! From October through April, a high pressure area sitting atop the North Pacific drives a series of winter storms onshore, dumping the majority of 60-80 inches of annual rain over the region. There is more about this but I don't want to write a book. We are headed for San Francisco and will see you all there.

Redwoods

2010-08-30T20:14:00.000-07:00

Stewart State Park, OR August 27 & 28

2010-08-28T20:39:00.000-07:00

Well, this is farewell to Oregon. We had a great last 2 days here. Yesterday was a laid back, biking, walking, reading day. The weather was beautiful. Today was overcast with a few raindrops. High of 62. We explored the park and outlying area. We visited a fish hatchery where the salmon are raised to be big guys. We watched some rafters on the river freeze to death. Then for supper we found a little cafe in the park that had chicken and ribs and also a cute little country band. That was so much fun!
We saw some of the most beautiful and largest pine trees. So many different varieties. Surrounded by mountains, meadows and lakes and bordered by ocean beaches makes this one of our most memorable experiences. We will forever remember this area with profound fondness. We love you Oregon!

Stewart State Park, OR

2010-08-28T20:05:00.000-07:00

Crater Lake Nat'l Park, Oregon August 25 & 26

2010-08-28T08:40:00.000-07:00

Wow! We arrived at Diamond Lake campground which is a very popular place for boating and fishing. We did not have reservations here and were a little nervous that we wouldn't be able to get in. They had one lot left for our size rig and it was perfect! It was a big lot overlooking Diamond Lake and we fell in love with the area. The smell of pine was wonderful and we couldn't get enough of it, along with the pure spring water that everyone tried to gather in their containers. I kept filling my water bottles and took some with us. The temperature was 98 degrees when we arrived, but it was not humid so it wasn't too hot. The temp. went down to 55 degrees when we woke up the next morning and it only got to 66 for the high. We drove to Crater which was breathtakingly beautiful! We had a clear day to see the park and it was spectacular. There aren't enough poetic words in the English language to describe this lake. It is another volcanic mountain. So much mass blew out of the cone that the mountain had no support and it collapsed. As the volcanic activity subsided water began to collect. Springs, rain and snow began to fill the caldera. As the lake deepened and widened, evaporation and seepage balanced the incoming flow. The depth now varies less than three feel annually in this, the Nations deepest lake. The color is so blue, that is doesn't look real. The maximum lake depth is 2000 ft. The width is 6 miles in this lovely 183,224 acre park. We drove the rim and had a picnic overlooking one of the scenic overviews. It was a great day! Love G.&S

Sunset Bay Campground, Oregon August 24

2010-08-28T08:30:00.000-07:00

This was not one of our best days. We got up to get ready to leave and I had left the ignition on in the car and you know what that means. George charged the battery and on our way to Crater, we took a curve too fast and everything fell out of the refrigerator and last but not least, I lost the binocular case that carried my daughters expensive binoculars. Oh hell, life happens, even when you are living your dream, right? But, I would say that with everything we have seen and done on this trip, that is just a little glitch.
We arrived at the camp and saw some beautiful things. We visited a Botonical garden that was out of this world. And then we saw an island with so many seals and sea lions we couldn't believe it. If you see a picture of a big rock with black bumps on it, those are our seals. Cute, huh? This is a beautiful area. Still a little chilly, but their Fall comes early to these parts. I miss the Fall season back in Ohio, so I guess I have to come to Oregon to see Fall.

Crater Lake Nat'l Park

2010-08-28T08:06:00.000-07:00

Cape Lookout, OR August 22 & 23

2010-08-23T20:36:00.000-07:00

Hi friends and family, We drove along the Oregon Coast and what breathtaking views! We thought we would arrive at our next spot around lunch or before, but it took us hours longer because of the look-outs we just had to stop at. That was our next campground, Cape lookout. We are right on the beach overlooking the Pacific Ocean. We are wearing out the sand walking the beach. One of the highlights was our tour of the Tillamook Creamery. It is famous for their cheddar cheese, but the best part about it was the ice cream! Tim Duncan would have thought he died and went to heaven! They use 1 million gallons of milk a day to process their cheese and other cream products. Very interesting! After our tour, we went up to Cape Meares lighthouse. It is 120 years old, (almost as old as us), but last February 2 men shot out the windows and we couldn't take the tour. How devastating! The picture isn't posted yet, but we saw a large Sitka spruce tree that is shaped like an octopus. The base is 10 ft. at its base. It has no central trunk, which is uncommon for a spruce. How unique! We had a wonderful 2 days at this Cape and the last walk I had I found 2 perfect sand dollars! Love to all

Cape Lookout, OR

2010-08-23T20:20:00.000-07:00

Cape Disappointment, Washington, Aug. l9, 20, 21

2010-08-21T19:00:00.001-07:00

Hi friends, What a delightful place this is! We arrived on Thursday and explored the area. The campground is called Disappointment campground. It is on a beautiful beach which I explored extensively. I almost killed myself the first day walking everywhere. The Cape got its name Disappointment because the explorer (I can't remember his name), explored the area thoroughly and found that it was not on the mouth of the Columbia River like he thought it would be, so hence the name, Disappointment. This area is also called the graveyard of the Mississippi because of the rocks. Many ships were sunk here and they have a record of all the shipwrecks. Very interesting! We drove the whole peninsula and found little seaside towns and I especially loved the yarn store on the beach. George took the jeep on the beach because he is a little boy and loves off-roading and whenever he sees an opportunity, he takes it.
Saturday we chartered a boat with 10 other people and went salmon fishing. We caught our first North Pacific salmon. Tradition in Washington is, when you catch your first salmon, you have to have a picture kissing the fish. We had such a good time! We started out slow but the boat ended up limiting. We had most of it vacuum sealed and will have our first fresh salmon dinner tomorrow. I can't wait! Our little freezer in our motor home is stuffed with salmon. Such a problem! We had a wonderful three days in Cape Disappointment and was not disappointed at all. We loved every breathtaking moment. Love you all. See you in Oregon tomorrow.

Pacific Salmon Fishing

2010-08-21T18:47:00.000-07:00

Hoh Rain Forest, Ruby Beach, WA, Aug.17 & 18

2010-08-18T19:59:00.000-07:00

Oh boy, what a time we had! First of all, we arrived at Mora camp in the park around lunch time and who did we see? Chuck and Eloise Pratt. They are friends we met at Fort Jefferson about 5 years ago. They worked there for 11 years and just retired a couple of years ago. We were pulling in and they were right beside us. They live in Key West not too far from us which is the Southernmost point in the continental United States and we run into them at the Northernmost point. What are odds of that happening? We were able visit with them and meet their friends. We had a wonderful time.
That afternoon we went to the Hoh Rain forest which is the western part of Olympic Nat'l Park. Such a neat forest. We walked into the most dense, moss covered Hemlocks, Spruce, Sitka and Douglas fir trees. Some as high as 200ft. We had a ball hiking 2 of the trails. Drenched in over 12 ft. of rain a year, the rain forest obliterates all sense of time. Elk make their home on the riverbanks. We loved it! One of the highlights of our trip.
Before we left, we went to Rialto Beach. That was our first beach on the Pacific Coast. It was spectacular! Instead of seashells, you find stones of all colors and sizes. The sand is not the white sand you see on the Atlantic, but dark gray sand. I liked it better because it looks so rugged with all the driftwood washing up on shore. The tide was up so we did not walk that beach. When we left, we visited another beach called Ruby Beach. The tide was low, so we walked for awhile. We had a great time! We will probably see you in Oregon tomorrow. Love you all.

Hoh Rain Forest, Ruby Beach, WA

2010-08-18T19:36:00.000-07:00

Olympic Nat'l Park, Chittenton Locks

2010-08-18T19:00:00.000-07:00

Olympic Nat'l Park, August 16

2010-08-16T20:24:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention the last day in Seattle. George, who by the way, is doing such a good job navigating our trip and doing all the planning, picked a gem of a place for us to go. The Chittenton locks which are run by the Army Corps of Engineers was really interesting. We have done some lock trips and this one was unique. We followed a ranger who explained all about the lock operation and then took us to a fish ladder that we could see salmon swimming from the sea back to where they were hatched. Their sense of smell takes them back to the point in the river where they came from. We watched while they climbed this ladder on the sea side,21 feet, and once they got through, they were in fresh water. So interesting! I have never seen anything like it. Then they go back to their spawning area and lay their eggs. How about that! Amazing how they just know how to do it.
We arrived at our park this morning and it is lovely. The mountain range is incredible! Olympic is a unique park, in that it is known for its biological diversity. Isolated for ions by glacial ice, and later the waters of Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the Olympic Peninsula has developed its own distinct array of plants and animals. Eight kinds of plants and 15 kinds of animals are found on the peninsula but nowhere else on Earth. I could not believe the vast amount of wildflowers. The park is preparing for the largest dam removal in U.S. history and celebrating the "last dam summer" in the Elwha River Valley. Next summer, removal of Elwha and Glines Canyon dams on the Elwha river will begin the culminating step in a process that will free the river and allow thousands of salmon to return to over 70 miles of river and stream in a pristine and protected ecosystem.
This a park with 8 months of winter and a short Spring and Summer. We drove up to Hurricane Ridge, aptly named because they have hurricane force winds all winter. Did you know that bears do not hibernate? A little trivia. Love you

2010-08-16T08:13:00.000-07:00

Mt. Rainier and Mt. St. Helens, Aug. 13 & 14

2010-08-15T20:02:00.000-07:00

Mt. Rainier, a towering, ice-clad volcano rising 14,411 ft. is strikingly beautiful. Remember the moments that take your breath away? This is definitely one of them. The cap of glacial ice that conceals all but a few crags and ridges makes it doubly impressive. Although the mountain is currently dormant, it is not extinct. It belongs to the class of exploding volcanoes, much like recently awakened Mt St. Helens, and one day could erupt in a similar manner. There are 35 miles of glaciers and is the largest single-peak glacial system in the contiguous U.S. 26 glaciers extend down the mountainside. The forests that cover go up 5000 ft. and how beautiful they are.
We saw wildflowers and meadows and the contrast to the masses of ice was striking. We then drove to Mt. St. Helens and how impressive that is! Until May 18, 1980, Mt. St. Helens was one of Washington's snowcapped crown jewels. Spirit Lake was the primary recreation center. At 8:32 a.m. an explosion of incredible force blew the top 1,313 ft. and much of the bulging north face off Mt. Helens, shot a dense plume of smoke and ash 80,000 ft. into the air and released a mile-wide avalanche that raised Spirit Lake by more than 200ft. and laid over forests as if they had been combed. Mud and logs surged down the Toutle and Cowlitz rivers, temporarily clogging the Columbia River shipping lanes with silt. The pull of ash turned morning into midnight as it fell, halting traffic for a hundred miles and covering parts of 3 states with a fine gray powder. In spite of this cataclysmic event, the area has renewed and is as beautiful as it once was. Forests have come back and a new wildlife system has evolved. I wish I had been here before the avalanche to compare the renewed life. Subtle episodes suggest the the volcano might not yet be ready for another extended nap. Seeing these 2 beautiful mountains in one day was, indeed, a lesson we will never forget.

2010-08-15T18:11:00.000-07:00

Seattle, Washington Aug.11 & 12

2010-08-12T19:26:00.000-07:00

Hi friends and family, We left Deception Pass and arrived at Everett-Boeing around 10:00 a.m. What a place! George, being a pilot, was intensely interested in the new planes they are building. We took a tour of the plant and learned how they build and assemble them. Facinating! The building we toured is the largest structure in the world. 75 football fields would fit in it. Then we drove to our camp which is home for four days. We wanted to be close to the city. We took a little drive downtown just to get the lay of the land. The city is beautiful. In the morning we drove to Pikes Market Place. Wow! Teri, you were right! It is so much fun. I bought produce I never even heard of. If you don't about Pikes place, it is stall after stall of fresh fish, beautiful produce, more cut flowers than I every saw in my life, cheeses, baked goods, (of which we happily sampled), all kinds of handicrafts and lots of restaurants. It opened in 1907 as an experiment in bringing together local farmers and consumers. Then we walked to Chinatown and explored. We had lunch at the famous Ivar fish bar and it was delicious. We finished off the day by going up in the Space Needle. It takes you up, up, up to the top of the city. That was very exciting! What a wonderful day in the city! Tomorrow we are visiting Mt. Rainier. See you tomorrow!

2010-08-12T19:19:00.000-07:00