Capitalism at its best.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
Fisherman's Wharf
Dane enjoying his crab cake, sourdough bread and clam chowder at Fisherman's Wharf.
Sailing yesterday
Sailing on the Athena in San Francisco Bay. Great day even though we had to be towed back to the marina.
Friday, July 22, 2011
In N Out
Dane's first In N Out burger. He is refusing to leave until he gets a second. It could get ugly.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
End of day 4
Drove across Trail Ridge Road in the national park today. Topped out just over 12000 feet. Saw some elk and some snow. I had never been on that road before and I am glad we did it today. A short walk at that altitude did leave me short of breath and gave me a killer headache. It was worth it though. I will post some pictures later.
Tonight we are staying in Vale. It is a little chilly for the camping gear we packed so we are staying in a hotel. Plus last night's storm really beat us up.
Doing laundry now. Tomorrow we head for Utah and Nevada. When I find a computer I will write more.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Breakfast in the mountains.
Sausage and eggs this morning. Watching mule deer grazing on the hill just up from our site. Storms were bad last night but we survived.
We are packing up as soon as everything dries.
End of day Three.
Outside the tent the thunder is rolling across the mountain. There is the lightest rain tapping on the roof and the occasional bright flash of lightning. Dane fell asleep mercifully fast. His biggest worry is bears and then coyotes. Hopefully the noise of the wind and storm will cover up the sounds of critters passing the tent in the night.
Just as I typed that the wind picked up and whipped the sides of the tent into a frenzy. I really do not want to get wet tonight.
Hail Storm
Dane and I just raced a hail storm back to the van. Ten seconds slower and we would have been toast. We were hiking when it blew up and we watched it makes its way down the mountain toward us. We are in the van now and it is a mess out there.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Sprung for the cabin...
Just had a dip in the pool. Now preparing the dinner. Hot dogs without buns.
Prairie Dog Town
See the world's largest prairie dog. We tried stopping here 18 years ago when we made the trip in high-school. It was closed then but the idea has haunted my dreams since. Today I checked it off my bucket list.
Leaving Kansas City.
Thank you Dan and Lori for the hospitality. Dane made a new friend in James.
Thank you to Chase Bank for monitoring my credit transactions and shutting off my card just in case. Actually it was an easy fix.
Heading out a little later than "planned" but well fed and in good spirits.
Does anyone know where the comma is on the HTC slide keyboard?
Saturday, July 16, 2011
On our way...
Just a quick note to say we are on the road. Breakfast with Audra and Claire followed by a day's drive to Kansas City.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Nothing New to Add
I have been resisting the temptation to dig up some of my journal entries from previous trips west. I am sure there is much forgotten wisdom in those journals, but I fear the stories may be wearing thin. I suppose all but the best stories tend to do that after a telling or two.
Audra and I are leaving for New Orleans in a couple of days. I am sure that there will be some stories to tell when we get back. Tonight, however, there is no story. Just me sitting alone at the computer, listening to music, and having one more beer. Anticipating.
Audra and I are leaving for New Orleans in a couple of days. I am sure that there will be some stories to tell when we get back. Tonight, however, there is no story. Just me sitting alone at the computer, listening to music, and having one more beer. Anticipating.
Just in case you want to read an old story...
Grand Canyon National Park January 19-20, 2003
The sun was just coming up in Grand Canyon National Park, and it was cold on the rim. Audra and I had dressed in layers, as suggested by the mule ride brochure. Rain was expected at some point that day, and we were provided thick yellow hooded parkas just in case. We had no idea what to expect from the day ahead.
The head mule skinner called us all together. He was cliché cowboy, but he got away with it because we were all kind of scared of him. He got our attention by repeatedly smacking his shins with a riding whip. This guy made Jack Palance look like Michael J. Fox. The gist of his speech was follow the rules and pay attention or get lynched. Also, he wasn't fond of Democrats.
After his speech he offered us one chance to get our money back and stay home. No one backed out at this point, and I know a few of them regretted that later. We were then assigned a mule. Audra was assigned Sugar, and I was assigned Johnson. As they placed you on the mule the staff offered a brief anecdote about the mule.
As I climbed on my mule I asked, "How old is Johnson."
"I don't know. I'm not real familiar with him. I know he's wearing Cody's saddle though."
"Great."
After a very few moments of riding instructions we were off. The ladies filed out of the corral ahead of the men, and I found myself at the end of the line just ahead of one of the guides. The first few miles of the rocky, narrow, winding, trail were covered in ice. The mule in front of me slipped just as we hit the first switchback. I was filled with confidence as I watched the mules backside smack the ground. After a few seconds of Bambi-on-ice the mule was back on all fours. The guide behind me did not comment, or even flinch. The man on the mule was silent for the next hour or so.
Johnson must have sensed my anxiety, because he began to walk the very edge of the trail. The drop-off can only be described as a drop off. According to the literature most people who fall into The Canyon do not survive the initial 300 foot drop.
"Don't worry he is only trying to intimidate you," the guide informed me.
"Great."
After a few minutes it was easier to trust the mule. I'd decided that they had done this trip enough times that they could do it blindfolded. Also, the view was so fantastic it was hard to think of falling or dying. From that point on Johnson and I had an agreement. He agreed not to walk off the edge, and I agreed with him.
Audra was coming to terms with her situation a little farther up the line. It wasn't until a few switchback later that she turned to me and mouthed, "I'm scared."
"So is the guy in front of me," I assured her.
Because the trail was so narrow we could not get off of the mules during the descent or ascent. In order for the mules to rest it was necessary at times to stop on the trail. When we did this we had to turn the mules perpendicular to the trail with their heads hanging over the edge. This was so that the mules would know exactly where the edge was, and would not accidentally step off it. A good rule in my opinion, but a little disheartening while sitting in the saddle.
It was around four miles before the trail leveled off a little. There were more than enough tight switchbacks before that point, and a handful of backpackers to boot. Audra describes that part of the trip as the scariest thing she has ever done. At four and a half miles we stopped for a bathroom break, and the riding order was rearranged to allow couples to be next to each other.
Just after leaving the camp Audra dropped her "motivator". The motivator was simply a horse whip, but it worked well as a motivator. We were encouraged to motivate our mules if they fell too far behind, and they insisted on falling too far behind. While one of the guides was busy collecting Audra's dropped motivator the party continued on. I should say most of the party continued on. Audra's mule, Sugar, seemed very unmotivated. Audra tried using her gloved hand as a motivator, but the mule seemed more amused than motivated.
As Audra's fiancé I took it upon myself to ride up behind her mule and motivate the animal for her. The chain of events which quickly followed is still not completely understood. I remember Johnson leaving the trail and heading for high-ground fast, and Audra remembers Sugar almost throwing her from the saddle.
As Johnson charged away from the trail I yanked back on the reins and screamed, "whoa, whoa, whoa." He came to a stop about fifty feet from the trail. I turned him back towards the party, who were all now looking at me wondering what in the hell just happened.
"Oh no, what is that man going to do now," one of the ladies yelled.
I rode the mule back towards the trail half expecting the head mule skinner to come sweeping down the ridge noose in hand. Johnson took his place in line, and the party moved on.
We ate lunch on a ridge overlooking The Colorado River. The view was phenomenal. We spread out on the rocks among the few backpackers who had also chosen this spot for lunch. There was not a cloud in the sky, and we'd given up on the idea of rain. The sun was warm and bright. We finished eating before feeding our apples to Sugar and Johnson.
The return trip required us to stop more often for the mules to rest. This provided wonderful views, but Audra found it a little to unnerving. As for myself, the pain had really set in at this point. Every step caused sharp, jarring, burning pain to shoot up my spine and down my legs. It was excruciating whenever Johnson found it necessary to jog a little. I really don't remember ever hurting so badly, but it was well worth the pain.
The last few miles were still iced over, and the rim was more crowded. As we approached the top a crowd had formed to watch us exit the canyon. An old woman with a child asked me, "How sure footed are those mules on the ice."
To which I could only reply, "Nobody died."
"Yet," her charming little girl added.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Greater and graver Science
“What gives value to travel is fear. It is the fact that, at a certain moment, when we are so far from our own country… we are seized by a vague fear, and the instinctive desire to go back to the protection of old habits. This is the most obvious benefit of travel. At that moment we are feverish but also porous, so that the slightest touch makes us quiver to the depths of our being… There is no pleasure in traveling, and I look upon it as an occasion for spiritual testing… Travel, which is like a greater and graver science, brings us back to ourselves.” Albert Camus, 1963
Audra and I have very different ideas about what it means to travel. She finds pleasure in the planning and ultimately wants a nice warm place to sit and relax. Planning and relaxation have never been among my strengths. I prefer a general direction and an uphill climb. Not an actual uphill climb, as anyone who has seen me lately can attest.
I have always found comfort in mileage. Specifically, the distance I can put between where I end up and where I begin. It may be west toward Phoenix for 38 hours on a whim, or south to Key West to watch the sun go down before heading back. I once drove across the country alone in a three day sprint, and drove an extra hour past my house just to see a girl.
Suddenly that was nearly ten years ago. There has been a lot of travel since that trip, and many miles. There is still something about that long straight shot west out of Indianapolis; however, that just taunts me.
Sometime last year it hit me. I have already accepted that Audra will never enjoy my preferred style of travel, but Dane is six and still very impressionable. Audra has a head start with him, thanks primarily to Disney World and Florida beaches. I decided that the best thing to do was to put him in a car and head west for a few thousand miles.
I cannot believe that I had not thought of that sooner.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Dane's New Mummy Bag
Dane is trying out his new sleeping bag for the trip. Claire gets his old one. Had to go with the 20 degree bag due to some camping in the Rockies.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Summer Road Trip - July 16th to August 3rd, 2011
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