HappyTrails

We will never forget!

I am repeating the photo from my last year post last year, 9/11/2009, because it is the one that says it all for me. I spent a great deal of time in these buildings visiting my clients and setting up a telecommunications network in the mid 1990's. It is beyond my comprehension that thousands died in those buildings at the hands of terrorists who came to our soil to destroy our financial system and our "FREE" society. All I can say is: No mosque at Ground Zero! 

God Bless our beautiful America! 

"This is a photo from Lori Byrd's blog.  It still gives me chills to see that devastating reality eight years ago."

Back in the U.S.A. - Land of the free because of the brave!

We had a lovely drive south down hwy 22 to 7 (at Okotoks) to Canada 2 connecting with I-15 at the Sweet Grass, MT border cross.  On 7 we drove past the Okotoks Erratic that we had been told about at the Costco in Calgary.  The Costco part isn't much of a story but when Jack was looking for his waterproof point and shoot camera he struck up a conversation with a clerk/flyfisherman and this guy had some great fishing/rock photos.  He told us about the erratic and showed us his photo.  Anyway, we drove past this huge glacier event and thought it was very interesting.

 Click the link for information on how these two enormous rocks arrived here.

As we continued on I-15 we stopped overnight at two Walmarts.  We were one of two RVs in the first one (Lethbridge, AB) and one of 20, or so (Helena, MT).  Thank you Walmart.. we stocked up on grocery items at both.  We made our way from Helena, MT on 12/287 through Three Forks, MT and Ennis to our current location in Island Park, Idaho on highway 20.  We are about 6 miles West of where we stayed with our friends at the West Yellowstone KOA.  We can highly recommend taking time to travel these red routes because they are gorgeous.  We passed forests, rivers, lakes, mountains, wildlife, earthquake creation, wildfire and bark beetle destruction.  The roads were not heavily traveled so every drive was very pleasant.  We did encounter numerous (dozens) of those very expensive taxpayer highway construction signs, roadway barriers, cones and barrels and few (very, very, very) actual projects being worked.  In fact, there were very few workers on the highways we traveled though the signs were plentiful.  Did you know each of these signs is estimated to be $10K?  No wonder the total estimated cost of highway project signs is over $200M.  It's a disappointing statistic for taxpayers.

We have investigated the area and found a good number of fishing locations for Jack. I tagged along last night while he fished the Madison River near Three Dollar Bridge.  There were a few other anglers nearby but Jack had fun....even if he didn't get any pulls.  He says he's a little rusty.

We'll be in this are for at least two weeks then headed westbound to the Ketchum/Sun Valley, ID area. I'm researching economical RV parking options.  The Escapees boondockers newsletter mentions some interesting possibilities.

Happy Trails!

Never forget Pearl Harbor

This photo is from a post by Michelle Malkin. She points out that
Americans who served our country during this horrific attack are
dwindling in numbers quickly. My father in law, who died in December
''08, remembered it all. It seems our president, a "native" of
Hawaii, was a bit confused about this important event in U S history
(see the post and his quoted remarks in Indiana in December '08).



Michellemalkin.com

Here's what "pre coffee" looks like, he he he

I mentioned in my previous post that Jack was pre coffee when we went out to photograph the balloon takeoffs. Here's what it looks like when we haven't had our morning jolt.  Actually, you can tell by the lights on the building that it was EARLY.  We know that to be out taking photos at the perfect lighting will require some sacrifice. We're working on dealing with that. 

And there's more!!

Oh, I forgot to tell you about a few of the things we enjoyed on our short trip.  We had a fabulous anniversary dinner at Bouchon, a french style bistro in Yountville.  It is one of our favorite places.
AND, we awoke to this from our room window.  I had to "encourage" Jack to hurry up and get out with his camera.  We both were "pre-coffee" so it took a few minutes for us to get oriented. I took my first 20 photos without proper settings on the camera, doh!  Here are a couple of mine:

Getting instructions and ready to go...

Ready to go...

Up....up......

and away.....

Ballooning over the Napa Valley is quite an experience. It costs quite a lot to float up over the vineyards so we haven't done it but there were lots of excited folks taking off this morning.

Oh, and we say lots of RVers on the highways too.  I guess everyone is working out their own plan to do what they want to do and adjust to the fuel costs.

Happy Trails!

Bird opportunitites

It's been quite a while since we've gotten out and joined the birds.  Yes, one of the many interests we developed as a result of our fulltime RVing lifestyle is birding.  Prior to hitting the road in our motorhome in January 2005, we lived in Humboldt County on the North Coast of California where migrating and resident birds abound.  We were too busy working and taking care of our huge garden to get out and learn about this wonderful activity.  Now we're limited to the time we can spend away from the current homebase but something exciting is coming up and I want to share it on our blog for anyone who may be nearby or planning a trip to the North Coast of California soon:

Here's a link to information about Godwit Days, a local birding event that draws serious birders from far and wide.  I hope you'll take time to investigate this terrific opportunity.  Another great site for bird enthusiasts is this one on the Redwood (because of Redwood National Forest) visitor site.  AND, if these don't keep you busy for a while here's another link about the birding ops. Here's another link one is for the Washington State area. 

Readers who know me are aware that I grew up in Pennsylvania on the Main Line, an historic suburban area running along the railway lines from Philadelphia to the West.  The original route (Rte 30) was the "wagon trail" for travelers seeking their fortunes to the West.  But I digress...I was reading birding articles on the Audubon site and found this one about raptors seen and other migrating birds in the Philadelphia area.  If you find yourself nearby and are interested in the wonderful bird opportunities you might take time to check this out.

Readers, friends and all..if you enjoyed this information and have had any opportunities to experience these, or nearby, opportunities please feel free to comment by clicking on the comment button below.  You won't be spammed!

Happy Trails!

You have to love talent

  Balancing time 
  Originally uploaded by Yankees Man.

I found this photo after reading a blog showing THIS photo.  I really wanted to see more of this beast (said lovingly now that I know a little more about him.)  Check out his other portraits.  Don't miss this one that says it all!

You might be asking yourself what this post has to do with RVing.  Well, nothing exactly.  It does kind of connect when you think of all the information we get from the web.  I was reading about the "birth" of the internet recently and I was struck by the fact that I use it for most of the communication I do now that we live in our motorhome.  I don't carry phonebooks for all the places we stay.  I read a great deal of what happens in the world, in the local area,  on the web.  I look for products or services we are considering on the web.  I do financial business on the web. I send and receive email...blog.... It would really concern my Dad if he knew how much I rely on the internet.  We don't even have the high tech "mobile" arrangements that many fulltimers have....but I bet we will in the future.

Happy Trails!

Do you want to remove logos from non-plastic surfaces?? Here's a little known tidbit....

First, let me say that I have not tried this!  You now know my little secret, I subscribe to some very unusual web sites and this one intrigued me.  I have wanted to remove unwanted advertising in the past and immediately realized the possibilities with the how-to on getting the unwanted marketing hype off PDA's and cell phones.  Good luck..

How to remove Logos from your PDA / cell phone with sugar.

Night out in Carson City

Our friend John invited us to go to a performance by the John Jorgenson Quartet in Nevada's capitol, Carson City.  It was a highlight of our visit to Reno.  Great music...great friendship.  Thank you John!  If you love good music check out the link to John Jorgenson who was influenced by the Belgian gypsy, Django Reinhardt.  He puts on a great show but you can also hear his groove on a number of excellent CD's.

 

National Naval Aviation Museum

Jack and I both have fathers who served in the U.S. Navy during WWII.  My dad didn't see much action because the war ended about the time he went into active duty.  Jack's dad served in the South Pacific, stationed on Guadalcanal.  Our earlier post about our visit to the World War II memorial in Washington, D.C. tells a bit about his service.  There are no words to properly express how proud we feel and how thankful we are to those who served their country.  Without the service of John and his many fellow servicemen we would be living in a very different world.  So, let me say that the National Naval Aviation Museum was amazing.  We spent about three hours at the museum and will be returning for a second, longer day. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays visitors can watch the Blue Angels practice.  Living in California before our retirement and embarking on the fulltime RV lifestyle we had a number of opportunities to see the Blue Angels...and the Thunderbirds.  Somehow it seems much more impressive to see their practice in their home base.  Here are some pictures of the plane exhibits that span many decades, from the Wright Brother to present day.