We left our hearts in Colorado

On our way to CO, we stayed in Page, AZ. We'd been there before; it is a beautiful area. I include this photo only to highlight the drought and the drop in the water table there. Hopefully it has been refilled this winter by the large amounts of snow and rain that hit northern AZ. One thing left to see there is Antelope Canyon. I did not think my knees would be able to take all the climbing and didn't want to slow down other tourists. 

From Page we headed to Westview RV Resort in Dolores, CO. This would be our home base while we explored CO and the surrounding areas. First up on the list was Mesa Verde National Park. 

Next up was a trip to Monument Valley. Yes, technically this is Utah, but we left from CO so it's in this post. This was a very interesting place to go. This next picture is the highway made famous by Tom Hanks running on it as Forrest Gump in the movie of the same name. Lots of people stop to take pictures and there are signs warning people to be careful as there have been many accidents there. 

We elected to take a tour of the valley. Our guide was a Navajo Indian who had local ties to the area. He let us know of Navajo customs, as well as modern day things. On the tour you go by the "monuments". This is one of the "mitten" buttes. 

This butte is called the "Three Sisters".

On the tour we were able to see a Hogan Village. There are two types of homes (male & female) that are distinct by their shapes.  The female home is round shaped, larger so it can accomodate more people. These homes are  still used today by the elderly and for ceremonial purposes. Hogans are made of natural materials-cedar, bark, sand & water. A fire keeps them warm in winter, in summer they are 25%  cooler than the outside. 

Monument Valley is a popular place for movies to be filmed. Nearly fifty movies have used Monument Valley as a back drop for scenes. This next photo shows the place where Indiana Jones dropped through the hole to the floor below. 

Here's another butte. All in all, we really enjoyed our day in Monument Valley. 

One of the most beautiful and scenic drives (and famous!) drives in CO is the San Juan Parkway. We decided that we would take a weekend to do it and treat ourselves to an overnight stay in Telluride. This drive contains the Million Dollar Highway that goes from Durango to Silverton. There are two theories for the name - 1) it's the cost of the road to build it, and 2) it stands for the number of million dollar homes that are along the road. Regardless, the views are spectacular. 

One of the towns along the way is Ouray. We stopped here to soak in the hot springs.

Telluride is a ski town, obviously we were not there to do that. We enjoyed our hotel and again, got some great views as we were driving. I must confess, I will never get tired of seeing snow capped mountains!

San Juan Parkway, we feel, is a must if you are in CO. There is also a train ride from Durango to Silverton that is very popular, we didn't have time on this trip to fit it in. When we got to CO, we stopped in at a information center, and picked up several brochures. Looking through them, I found an article on the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, and told Andy we need to go there. Little did we know that it would come to be one of our favorite national parks!

This park is unique because you can drive all the way to the bottom of the canyon and look up (not for the faint of heart-it's a 17% downgrade on the road down), and then go back up to view the canyon from the lookouts on the top of the canyon. The Gunnison River runs through the canyon. Needless to say, the pictures won't do it justice. Andy said he thought this was more spectacular than the Grand Canyon. Due to my knee issues (you can see my brace in the pictures) I was not able to see as much as I would have liked, so this park is on the list for us to go back to. 

We were awed by the beauty of Colorado and plan on going back in 2023. From CO we headed to MN for our annual medical check-ups and the first of two knee replacements. We were in Rochester for most of the summer before we headed to Red Bay, AL for our annual maintenance, and then to Apache Junction, AZ (stopping in Austin, TX for niece Olivia's wedding on the way) for the winter. This time we will stay put for 4 months from Nov. to March. Knee #2 was supposed to be done in September, but my body said it wasn't ready so we postponed to having it done in AZ in December. At least I will have a warm climate (no snow & ice to deal with) for recuperating. So that brings us to the end of 2022. Traveling will begin again in March of 2023. 

Winter & Spring 2022 Part I

Again, I am apologizing for doing this so late. That is what happens when you get out of sync. But I am determined to make sure this is all written down for posterity. 

We had made the decision to go back to Bentsen Palms. For the most part, we enjoyed it. The winter was a bit chilly and windy, which didn't make us want to be outside very often.  I learned to play Mah Jongg. Andy worked. Since we had been in the area before, there wasn't much new to do. But, we did have a couple of excursions while we were there. 

The first was a drive over to Space X headquarters in Boca Chica, TX. It was amazing how close we could drive up and see things! (No tours.) Yes, we were on driving on that road. 

We also decided to take the Port of Brownsville boat tour. Unfortunately, we picked the coldest day of the winter to go. Dressed in warm clothes and our winter jackets we braved the cold to see the Port. 

Beginning March 1st, we started traveling again. I'm including a picture of the RV and toad so you can see what we look like going down the highway. (The hood was open on the car because we had stopped to warm up the engine and needed to turn the battery off and on.) We are about 60 feet long when we are driving.

From Mission we headed to Camp Verde, AZ. While there we made trips to the Phoenix area to see friends Tolly and Maren, and Rick. High school friend Penny & her husband Dean made the trip to Camp Verde to see us. We also checked out several RV parks for next winter. 

Catching up with relatives we met up with my cousin Mark and Uncle Dave and wife Heidi. 

We were awed by all of the different views of the desert we saw. From cacti to plants to rolling hills and mountains, the desert has it all. 

This is a picture of the pueblos at Montezuma Castle National Monument near Camp Verde. 

Of course, part of our plan was to see the south rim of the Grand Canyon. (We'd already seen it from the north rim.) 

We also explored Flagstaff and hooked up with college roomate Sue & her husband Tim-and promptly forgot to take a picture! On the way back from Flagstaff, we had to include a stop in Winslow, AZ. 

This is the obligatory picture of me standing on the corner in Winslow, AZ, such a fine sight to see, it's a girl, my Lord, in a flat bed Ford, slowin down to take a look at me....   Fun fact, that is not a complete building behind me, only one wall. 

And from here, I am going to stop. Next up is CO. We saw so much there I've decided to let it stand on it's own. 

Still here, but what happened to the last year and a half? Part Two

After getting our Covid shots, we were able to start moving on with our plans. If we are in the area, we always stop in New Orleans. Cafe DuMonde is a requirement, and we enjoy walking around the French Quarter, hearing the street musicians and appreciating the sidewalk artists. 

Street Art in the French Quarter, New Orleans 

We then headed the rest of the way to Mission, TX. By this time, most of the "winter Texans" had left. We had reservations but after seeing the campground (nothing bad, but a new one and a bit bare for us) we switched to Bentsen Palm RV Park in Mission. This is a bit older campground with a unique layout -circles of spots instead of looking like a parking lot. We also enjoyed the trees and surrounding landscape. From the campground you can see the border wall.

One of many unfinished sections of the border wall 

It is very easy to cross into Mexico from Mission. After realizing my passport had expired, Andy went by himself on the first trip. You pay $2 to park on the US side and then most people walk across the bridge. I was able to join him the next time. When you walk across the bridge, Mexicans both young and old hold up milk jugs on poles asking for money. In Mexico, there is a barrage of street vendors and dental/medical people out hawking their goods and services. 

Along the bridge into Mexico

Andy near the start of the bridge

From Mission, we started heading north for the summer. Another place we like to go is Nashville. We were able to take in an evening at the Grand Ole Opry, which was celebrating it's 50th anniversary.  If you've never been, you should go. We also took the time to take a backstage tour of the Opry, which was very interesting. 

Grand Ole Opry

Part of the Backstage Tour, Mail Boxes for Opry Members

Looking out into the audience

In Kansas City we stopped to see friend Dawn K. and her daughter Elise.  A ballon lift was being held so we took that in.  The hot air balloons are filled but do not take off. As the sun set, the balloons were lighting up the sky. Beautiful!

Balloon Lift In Kansas City 

Dawn & Elise

 

Next up was Amana, IA for a Tiffin Rally. These rallies only allow 300 coaches, and are a bit more tuned into the Tiffin Brand and specifics of each design. These are always a fun time with meeting other Tiffin owners. Entertainment is always on the schedule and we enjoyed seeing an Eagles cover band and an Elvis impersonator.

And then we are back in MN. This will be an annual summer pilgrimage for us since we have made Mayo Clinic in Rochester our medical home. Daughter Sara had finished her chemotherapy in May (yeah!!!) and was due to have her ileostomy reversed. She asked if I would come stay while she was in the hospital. I, of course, agreed, this time only leaving Andy to be a bachelor for one week.

In the midst of this week was my birthday. A big one, 70. Little did I know that Sara and the rest of the family had been planning a surprise party for me. The excuse to get me out of the house was for me to take the kids to their soccer camp, since Sara would be home but not up to taking them. No problem, I said. As we got back and I pulled onto their street, I noticed a car with the same (picture) license plate as our car. Then I saw my son's car. I had just about figured it out when I opened the garage door and everyone was there yelling SURPRISE! I truly was surprised. All of ths took place 2 days after Sara's surgery. It was very heartwarming and fun. I couldn't have asked for a better celebration of 70 years! 

BirthdayParty Family Pics

While in MN we had a family camping weekend at The Old Barn. Andy and I also took off to Austin to see the remodeled SPAM Museum. 

In front of the Spam Museum

Then it was onto Maryland to see the other half of the family. This was Vince's senior year and we wanted to see as much of his football season as we could. On the way there, we went through the Upper Penisula of MI and stopped to see Andy's brother and wife, Jack and Patty. When we went through Chicago, we stopped to see his other brother and wife, Charlie and Yvette.

#4 is our guy!

Jacob at the Frederick County Fair

Jacob 1st day of school

Side Trip to PA to see the sunflowers

We had wanted to take the train to Cumberland for awhile so did that. 

Jean with the conductor - very interesting guy!

Andy sitting in an old Barbershop Car 

After leaving MD, we headed to TN and the Great Smokey Mountains.

Standing under the Lin Cove Viaduct

Beautiful Scenery

Then, we headed to FL. We were due to meet Sara and family at Disneyworld. However, due to one of the kids getting Covid, their trip was cancelled. (Everyone was  disappointed.) I did get in  chance to have lunch with my friend (and former co-worker), Lynn. So we had one week in FL before we start heading west again. We had liked Bentsen Palm and decided this would be out "winter base" for 2021-22. 

Lynn & Jean 

After settling in there, we headed north to MN for Christmas and some medical and dental appointments. One of the things on the way (not too much out of our way) was a stop in Pawhuska, OK. Pawhuska is the home of the "Pioneer Woman", Ree Drummond. After touring the Mercantile and downtown, we headed out to their ranch for a free tour of the lodge where Ree films all of her shows. We were amazed at the access they allowed us! 

Back of the island where Ree cooks

Recognize this?

One of the things you don't see on TV, her pantry.

Who else has this many dishes? 

And that brings us to the end of 2021! A lot to cover in one posting, but I am catching up! :)