Looking for a new experience, this description of a six-day getaway sounded appealing: “Paddle the tidal marshes, boreal forests and pristine estuaries of the lower Columbia River with experts as you improve your kayak technique and learn the story of this ancient region.” I’d never sat in a kayak, so I had no technique to improve! Upon further reading about…
Travels
Yosemite!
John Muir, one of the earliest advocates of the national park idea and its most eloquent spokesman, said of Yosemite: “It is by far the grandest of all the special temples of nature I was ever permitted to enter.” I found James Kaiser’s Yosemite, The Complete Guide very helpful in learning about this National Park. In the months leading up to my trip, I…
Death Valley: The (Not So) Barren Beauty
Several years ago, we lived for a time in Arizona. Going there we thought it was going to be this arid, unforgiving place. But, we found it to be alive and vibrant – especially when in bloom! Recently, when I told people I was going on a hiking trip to Death Valley National Park they looked at me as if I was…
Monterey-to-Santa Barbara and Beyond
On a trip to explore the National Parks in Utah, I met Marguerite and Diana. We hit it off almost instantly, enjoying each other’s company as we traveled and hiked Utah’s Grand Circle of Parks and Monuments. They spoke of their love of hiking in the hills around Santa Barbara and invited me to head west someday so they could show me around.…
Utah’s Grand Circle of Parks and Monuments
In 2004, Joanna and I visited Arches National Park on a trip out west to spend time with our granddaughter Megan In Phoenix. We happened on it almost by accident driving back to Denver to catch our return flight to Tampa. We stopped for the night in a small Utah town and were having dinner when we struck up a conversation with…
A Week on St. John, USVI
Joanna and I visited the US Virgin Islands in January of 1998 — spending a few days on St. Thomas, taking a day trip over to the island St. John. We finished up with several days at The Buccaneer on St. Croix. That day trip to St. John left us wanting to spend more time there. Although Joanna was no longer with me, the chance to…
From Lionel to Amtrak
My early fascination with railroad trains began when I received a Lionel train set one Christmas. Dad gave me a corner of the basement where we placed a piece of plywood on a couple of sawhorses. We set up the oval track; added a few buildings, a station, a tunnel, trees, crossing gates and a coal dispenser. There were little pills to put down the…
A Walk Back In Time
It was during a visit with my cousin Maureen in 1999 that planted the seed, resulting in this trip in 2005. Maureen had shared with us a life story, as told by my uncle Alfred. In it he described his parents emigration from Sweden and their early life in this country. As we began preparing for our 40th anniversary celebratory…