Last Day - We're now home

Mileage Today: 424
Total Mileage: 4467

We got up early this morning, ate a pretty decent, free breakfast at the motel and hit the road. We made the 424 miles from Elko in an even 6 hours including all stops. You can really make the miles crusing along at 80 mph.

In the next few days, I'll be going through our photos and gps track so check back to see the evidence of where we've been.

Linda and I both enjoyed our little drive, but we're both glad to be home.

Fifteenth Day - Final Post

Mileage Kalispell to Hamilton - 170

Mileage Hamilton to Missoula to Hamilton - 204

Mileage Today: 505
Total Mileage: 4043

We're on our way home. First thing this morning, we headed south out of the Bitterroot Valley on Highway 93, the shortest route home. We made it to Elko, NV within easy striking distance of home.

Although we've had a great trip, Linda and I are both ready to be home.

Today's drive was uneventful. The weather was perfect and the highways were surprisingly good. We ran into only one short delay due to highway construction.

I can't count the number of times I've driven or ridden this road and Linda has been along most of my trips. We've taken so many photos along the way that this time we documented only crossing the state lines.

Tomorrow night we'll be sleeping in our own bed - I'm really looking forward to it.

Fourteenth Day - Only Post

We spent the night with Ken and Sharon, slept in, ate a hearty, home cooked breakfast and drove back down to the Bitterroot to spend our last day in Montana. The Printz clan met up for lunch - it was the biggest collection of hermits to show up in one place so far. Paul & Jean, Jay, Sandi & Pete, Dan, Rod, and Linda & me. After a great lunch we all split up and headed our separate directions - Linda and I said our good-byes to everyone but Jay and Rod.

Rod, Linda, and I went down to Discovery Care and had a very good visit with Dad. He was in good spirits and even cracked a couple of jokes that had us laughing out loud.

When we left, Rod started on his homeward journey to Wyoming - he has to work tomorrow AM.

Linda and I then went over to Jay's house and were again treated to another home cooked meal - thanks Jay, who would have known.

Tomorrow we head for home.

Thirteenth Day - Only Post

Mr. & Mrs. Brandon Printz..

The ceremony was beautiful, there was a good turnout from both families, plenty of tears were shed, and there was a lot of smiling, eating, dancing, and carrying on.   A great day!

Location : 1017 Grizzly Mountain Rd, Missoula, Mt 59808,

Twelfth Day - Only Post

Went to Brandon and Mehgan's wedding rehersal. Finally met the bride and some of her people. Ate waaay too much food. I can't believe I didn't get a single photo.

Dan and Rod are here and it is good to see them. It was also a treat to see Jessica and Tyler.

We're spending the next couple of nights with Ken and Sharon. When we arrived at Ken and Sharon's tonight, Nicole and Riley were here - a pleasant surprise.

Location : 20300-20838 Grizzly Mountain Rd, Missoula, Mt 59808,

Eleventh Day - Last Post

Hanging out with Jay.  Paul came over and we shared a meal and some conversation.  No photos.

Location : Cameron, Mt 59720,

Flathead Lake

Driving down the east side of the lake, headed for Hamilton.

Location : Address not available

Tenth Day - Only Post

Mileage Today: 317
Total Mileage: 3164

Today, we drove the long way to Kalispell from Livingston. We went over to Three forks on the freeway, through Townsend and Helena on Hwy 287, Hwy 12 to Avon, Hwy 141 to Hwy 200 to Hwy 83. We especially enjoyed the drive north on Hwy 83 through Seeley Lake, Swan Lake and up to Kalispell.

View from MACDONALD Summit west of Helena on Hwy 12

Things didn't look too good when we got up this morning. After nine straight days of clear, blue skies with temperatures in the 80s, we were shocked to walk outside in spitting rain, 40 degree temperatures and gray, overcast skies. We felt much better after a hearty breakfast of bacon and eggs prepared just like Linda would have done it herself. By the time we finished eating, threats of rain had disappeared.

Salmon Lake on Hwy 83

A view of Swan Peak from Hwy 83

Skies stayed overcast much of the day with the sun finally peeking through as we drove north on Hwy 83.

Tomorrow we'll arrive in Hamilton. We'll spend the next four days between Hamilton and Missoula visiting with Dad, Paul, Jay & Janie, Sandi & Pete, Ken & Sharon. And of course, the woman and man of the hour, the bride and groom, Mehgan and Brandon.

Ninth Day - Final Post

Mileage Today: 247
Total Mileage: 2847

We passed through Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park today. We saw lots of scenery and took many photographs.

It was another perfect day weatherwise. It was much cooler than we're used to, however. We saw some frost on the sidewalks as we walked to breakfast - the bank said it was 40. About the highest temperature we saw was 75.

We were lucky to get a parking place near "Old Faithful" and after about a 30 minute wait, she blew as advertised - about 5 minutes late. There were many, many, people and none of them was disappointed.

We then drove along the north shore of Yellowstone Lake, headed for the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Unfortunately, when we got to the turnoff, we found the road was closed due to a fire. That left us only a drive to Mammoth Hot Springs on our way out through the north entrance.

Along the way we saw some deer, some elk, and a whole lot of buffalo. All in all, a very pleasant day.

We stopped in Livingston for the night and our room at the local Super 8 is just like the reviewers said it would be - nothing fancy, but it has all the amenities one needs. It's certainly up to our standards - our First Lady, Michele, however, would probably feel a little disappointed.

Tomorrow, we're planning to drive up through Helena, Ovando, and Seeley Lake on our way to Kalispell. On Thursday, we'll drift on down to Hamilton.

Grand Tetons

More great scenery.

Location : Address not available

Grand Tetons

 

It's a very scenic drive from Jackson to Yellowstone Park.

Location : Address not available

Eighth Day - Only Post

Mileage Today: 343
Total Mileage: 2600

The view north out of Rawlins is more high plains and continues to be wide open, lightly populated and windy. There are lots of nice, little towns - but what happens around here in the winter time at 7,000+ feet? We see lots of snow fences all around and it's hard to imagine what it must be like with low temperatures, snow, and this wind.

As we started to get nearer Jackson, WY the mountains started appearing and soon we were looking at the Grand Tetons themselves. It was late in the afternoon and the sun prevented us from getting any good photos. This one was shot from inside Cunningham Cabin north of Jackson.

We're staying in Jackson, WY tonight. This place is wall to wall people - every parking place has a car in it and the sidewalks are full of people walking to and fro. Linda and I walked to a hamburger place for dinner and it was hard to move around without bumping into someone.

For a GREAT burger, try "Billy's Burgers" in Jackson.

Tomorrow we plan to spend the entire day in Yellowstone Park - after looking around here for a little bit.

After a less than stellar motel last night, we decided to use our 'Droids to read the reviews - I don't know why that didn't occur to us before. Tonight's motel is living up to its review and we have high hopes for the room we've reserved in Livingston, MT for tomorrow night.

Seventh Day - Only Post

Mileage Today: 361
Total Mileage: 2257

Not much to report today. We slept in, ate a leisurely breakfast and finally hit the road about 11:30 AM local time.

Traffic from Colorado Springs, around the west side of Denver and all the way until we took Hwy 40 north, was very heavy - way too many cars for this California boy.

We bagged another 10,000+ foot pass today - Berthoud at 11,307 feet.

The fall colors continued to add their glory to the views.

Once north of Berthoud pass, traffic thinned out nicely and driving was much more pleasant. We attempted to take Hwy 125 north, but the road was closed due to a fire. The flagman told us we could proceed to Rabbit Ears, then take Hwy 14 north. We followed his directions and everything worked out perfectly.

The high plains country of northern Colorado and southern Wyoming has its own special charm. Very few people, wide open spaces, lots of antelope ----- lots of dirt roads. It looks like a place I'd like to bring my BMW and do some exploring.

Tonight we're staying in Rawlins, WY in an entirely unremarkable Days Inn.

Sixth Day - Final Post

Mileage Today: 393
Total Mileage: 1896

We spent a lot of time in rarefied air today. In addition to the three summits higher than 10,000 feet we crossed between Durango, CO and Montrose, CO, we crossed Monarch Pass at an elevation of 11,312 feet. We then reached our goal for the day - the top of Pike's Peak at 14,110 feet.

It was quite a climb for our little Toyota - much of the time I was in 1st gear pulling 4,000 rpm at about 25 mph.

The views were a little hazy due to smoke from some fires in Colorado and Utah. We didn't take many "view" shots from the top.

Fall has arrived in Colorado's high country and the colors enhance the already spectacular views.

Tonight is laundry night and Linda just came back to the room after completing a couple of hours of drudgery. I'm doing my own drudgery on the computer with a piss poor internet connection which turns fun into work.

It's going to be late before we call it a day and I think we'll get a late start tomorrow. We don't have a plan for the rest of the trip so we'll just head north and see how it goes.

High Country

We crossed three summits higher than 10,000 ft between Durango and Montrose

Location : 3598-16217 Woodgate Rd, Montrose, CO 81401,

Fifth Day - Only Post

Mileage Today: 125
Total Mileage: 1503

We slept in this morning, had a late breakfast and spent the entire rest of the day at Mesa Verde. There's not much to be said ................. you have to see it to believe it. Although I took a quick spin through the park in 2006, I had no idea how many of these cliff dwelling are in the area. We must have seen a dozen today and I'm guessing we didn't even scratch the surface.

We took the guided tour of Cliff Palace, the largest of these cliff dwellings. We had a great tour guide and his explanations of these people, their way of life, and their fate made much more sense than the explanations I heard in 2006. Nowadays they seem much more willing to admit that they really don't know much about the cliff dwellers and likely never will.

The rest of the day we spent driving the canyon rim, looking at all the lessor, but just as fascinating dwellings nestled into the little pockets on the sides of the cliffs.

This photo shows one of the canyons in the background. The size of these canyons just won't be captured on film.

When we tried to reserve a room tonight in Durango, the Comfort Inn we booked for last night had only one room left - a King Suite. They made us a good deal and tonight we're really roughing it - separate lounge area, two large flat screen TVs, and of course, a king size bed. Life is tough.

Bright and early tomorrow morning we're heading for Pike's Peak.

Fourth Day - Only Post

Mileage Today: 417
Total Mileage: 1378

There was no posting with the 'Droid from out on the road today - no 3G service or wireless networks the entire way.

We spent so much time exploring the National Bridges National Monument and a couple of ancient villages in the Canyons of the Ancients that we didn't make it to Mesa Verde in time to visit there. We will take the entire day tomorrow to explore Mesa Verde.

We are staying in Durango, CO tonight and will return after visiting Mesa Verde tomorrow. Saturday we will head north to Pike's Peak.

It's a little ironic in that we planned this trip for after Labor Day in hopes of having to deal with fewer tourists. Kids are back in school, after all, and you'd think few people would be out and about. WRONG! The past couple of nights we've had to deal with "No Vacancy" issues. From now on we're going to reserve our rooms a day or so ahead of time. This, of course, closely resembles planning - which we also hoped to avoid.

Third Day, Last Post

Mileage Today: 194
Total Mileage: 961

Capitol Reef and Goblin Valley - WOW!

We didn't spend any time looking out our motel window. We DID, however, sleep in before starting to explore.

You have to see this area to believe it. Photos do not do it justice. We found that we really enjoyed taking in the sights by car, but it was nothing compared to getting out of the car and experiencing the feel or vibes or whatever you'd care to call the spirit of the area. Linda and I both felt it and it was both humbling and inspiring.

We plan to come back next spring and spend a week or more out in this land. We plan to find an isolated location, set up a base camp, and make little day trips from there. We plan to do a lot of hiking. We also plan to do a lot of just sitting and absorbing whatever is being emitted.

Tomorrow we're off for Mesa Verde.

Enjoying the Torrey area

We decided to stay over and explore the Capitol Reef Park and Goblin State Park at our leisure. There's much too much to see just passing through.

Our motel is in such a scenic location that we could just sit and look out the window all day.

Location : Loa, UT,

Second Day, Last Post

Mileage Today: 448
Total Mileage: 767

Linda was back to her old self when she woke up this morning and I think she enjoyed the drive today.

We stopped for the night in Torrey, UT, at the doorstep of Capitol Reef National Park. The photo was taken from the door of our room at the local Howard Johnson motel.

The weather today was great - clear, blue skies with temps in the 80s. A little windy at times, but in a car that doesn't seem to matter much.

We spotted a huge fire in the Beaver, UT area. Its boiling smoke looked like a hydrogen bomb had gone off. We headed east before getting a real good look at it - we'll be checking the local news tonight.

We spent a good part of the day driving the Extra Terrestrial Highway across Nevada. We were glad to be in our Toyota, getting 38 mpg.

Tomorrow, we're going to do a little exploring of Capitol Reef National Park before continuing on to Mesa Verde and Durango, CO. We should have time to check out Mesa Verde before stopping in Durango, CO tomorrow night.

Extra Terrestrial Highway

Linda socializing with some aliens in Rachel.

Location : 201-399 N 1000 W, Cedar City, UT 84721,

Extra Terrestrial Highway

160 miles between gas stations out here.  This little widespot is called Rachel.

Location : 201-399 N 1000 W, Cedar City, UT 84721,

First Day, Last Post

Mileage Today: 319
Total Mileage: 319

We stopped for the day at Tonapah, NV. Despite a late start, and a lot of stopping to explore the potential of our 'Droids, we actually covered quite a few miles.

Linda hasn't been feeling well since a couple of hours after breakfast - she thinks that something she ate is fighting back. She's always a soldier and she hasn't complained all day - she is, however, very quiet, and not smiling much. We're both hoping a good night's sleep will perk her up.

I was a little surpised to find out that our 'Droids can't navigate when out of the 3G service area. Although it seems to know our location and could geocode photos, it doesn't know where anything else is. I'm guessing it has a "real" GPS, but not GPS mapping, which it pulls down on the fly. I'll have to check it out when I get back home - I hate being so ignorant.

I was also surprised, this time in a pleasant way, about how much 3G coverage we had - we were in business across much of the void east of Benton. In Tonapah, however, we have only 'normal' cell phone service which pretty much renders the 'Droid a single function cell phone. Internet access is possible if you can stand the sloooooow downloading. Strangely, I can't seem to send email although I can read it.






A shot of Mono Lake is obligatory.








Highway 50 has nothing over Hwy 6 as far as being the lonliest road in America. From Benton, CA to Tonapah, NV is about 80 miles with no sign of civilization anywhere to be seen.



PS - I'm cheating by posting this with my laptop. It's much easier than with the 'Droid and I can do a few more things - like post more than one photo.

Bridgeport

I hope we don't see much higher than this.

Location : 453 Main St, Bridgeport, CA 93517,

Caples Lake

This little jewel is on Hwy 88 at nearly 8000 elevation, there is snow all year around.

Can't throw my GPS away yet. 'Droid can't navigate if no cell service.

Location : 453 Main St, Bridgeport, CA 93517,

Getting Ready

Originally, Linda and I planned to drive over 10,000 miles around the entire perimeter of the lower 48. As the time drew near, however, neither of us could get in the mood for such a long trip and we decided to shorten it considerably.

The current plan is to leave El Dorado Hills on September 13, travel to Montana for Brandon's wedding via Mesa Verde, Pike's Peak, Yellowstone Park, et al, and return home. Three weeks or so seems much more reasonable than two months.