Lake Tahoe

Our time in Neveda

Lake Tahoe (our favorite!) 

It was nice to drive around the lake, we loved the Emerald Bay State Park....amazing views.

Vikingsholm Mansion 

Bob and I took the steep mile long trail down to this mansion that was built in 1929 as a summer home.  Lora J. Knight loved travel in Norway and Sweden and wanted to create a lakeside house with Scandinavian design. The stone work, hand carved wood, sod roof, hand forged hardware are all elements of the design.  It sits right on the lake and it was ultimately donated to the California State Park system.

RENO.....somewhat sad.....certainly not Vegas. Although I lost my $20 in both places just as easily.  

GENOA (gen-OH-ah):  The first town and first "Thirst Parlor" in Nevada.  A city on the Pony Express route and a stop on the Mormon Trail.

Then the Big Drive on I-80.....Reno to Salt Lake City.

• MANY miles of "open road". 
• History of the Westward Expansion Trails (I say it again, I could never have been a pioneer!)
• Miles without services and rest stops with only pit toilets (YUCK!) 
• Northwestern Utah:  The HUGE Great Salt Lake Desert that includes the Utah Test and Training Range for Military testing and training  (we didn't see any action). A landscape covered by salt, salt ponds, and then you finally reach Great Salt Lake.

Eureka and Lassen National Park

We finished up our time in Northern California with a short stay in Eureka and a trip to Lassen.

Eureka CA

A port city in Northern California with Victorian homes and hotels (the Carson Mansion is amazing). They have a cute downtown, many murals around town, water front bike trail, and tons of seals swimming in the harbor. 

On 9/1  we took Hwy 299 from the coast to Redding CA on our way to Lassen.....this road goes right through the Carr Wildfire area (that was that crazy big wildfire that started on 7/23 and wasn't 100% contained until 8/30, it burned 229,651 acres and 8 people lost their lives).  It was sobering to drive through. 

Lassen Volcanic National Park is not one of the most popular National Parks but it was very interesting and very pretty.  There are 4 different types of volcano in the park...who even knew there were 4 different types of volcano (and if you were really wondering: plug dome, shield, cinder cone, strato  ....right, I didn't think so). Lassen Peak last erupted in 1917 with widespread devastation.  There is still lots of geothermal activity (steaming sulfer vents, gurgling mud pots and boiling springs)....and it's the most likely peak to erupt in the next 100 years. 

Nevada, here we come!

.....from the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream Waters, this Land was Made for You and Me.

How many times can you sing this song in the car?    Hmmmmm, just ask Bob. 
The Redwood trees are the tallest trees in the world and just so majestic.  You can't fathom the size of them...of course until you see Richele trying to hug one, Sam peeing on one, or Bob hiding in one! These coastal Redwoods can be 2,000 years old....now that's old.

Celebrating your birthday among the Redwoods makes you feel so young!  And Bob thinks of everything....he hid a piece of cake in the back of the fridge to surprise me!

We saw ELK...it was so great!  We usually only see the warning signs...but not today... we saw a heard.  Bob was all over these facts:   Bulls weigh up to 1,100 pounds, Fall is mating season and the bulls aggressively guard their harems! Seriously!?!? I wonder who named them harems.

And then of course we had to stop at some of the touristy stuff!  We HAD to drive through a tree (even though it's terrible to cut through the base of a tree),  and Paul Bunyon is 50 feet and Babe is 35 feet tall to chop down those 380 foot Redwood trees!

OK, Our road into this part of California was nerve racking.  Really narrow and winding road with no shoulder, drivers on your tail (cursing at the RV) and fast driving trucks.  You can just picture it.....Richele was in the co-pilot seat and Bob did NOT appreciate the tips and suggestion for driving and the pretend stamping on the breaks from the co-pilot....oops...everyone needed a time out after that!

I think the road out of here is just as bad and Bob said I have to drive.  Payback I guess.

Crater Lake National Park

We are back on the road and everyone (and everything on the RV) is healthy........We had a beautiful day to visit Crater Lake National Park as our last hurrah in Oregon. The smoke cleared, it cooled off and it was a gorgeous day to see this park!  The blue, blue water is amazing.   
The Facts:  Crater Lake was created after a massive volcanic eruption 7,700 years ago.  The mountain peak that was once there, fell in on itself and created a crater (a Caldera in geological terms).  Centuries of snow and rain filled the lake.  It's 1,943 feet deep - and is the deepest lake in the US.

Crater Lake Lodge would be the place to stay.....but I think you have to book about a year in advance.

Oregon was Beautiful!  However, we have one other issue.....Bob was denied access to the Junior Ranger Beaver Program.  He JUST missed the age limit!

Off to the California Coast and the Redwood Forest!

More Challenges.....

The highlights...or should we say LOWLIGHTS from Junction City, OR

Our little Sam

• Sam was vomiting and had diarrhea for 3 days (poor guy)
  • As a result, we had to do lots of laundry (poor Richele)
• We went to the vet: he had to get fluids, blood work, and meds (poor pocket book).
• We needed a urine sample from Sam.....picture this....Bob in his buffalo pajama pants, walking the dog, with a ladle trying to get a sample!  I laughed my head off!
• Thank goodness Sam is finally feeling better!  

The Ole Money Pit

• We came to the Guaranty RV Service Center for a recall repair that couldn't be repaired due to a delay in parts....we would have had to wait here for 4 weeks. NOT.
• We had a few other issues and some more maintenance work.
  • A hot water heater issue....yes Richele was in the MIDDLE of her shower when that went out - Not Good!  
  • Water pooling at the bottom of the freezer and then freezing the door shut.  Of course the fridge is bolted into the RV so it's a big production to work on it!
  • The propane detector needed to be replaced after we had to take it out of the wall when it wouldn't stop going off. 
• After that invoice, Bob was ready to sell the RV back to the dealer and just drive our car home!  This is where we bought the RV. 

I think Bob is feeling a little better today but I think we are going to need a few days!

The Oregon Coast

We spent the last 5 days on the Oregon Coast.  Our site at the RV park in Newport had an ocean view.  We had a fair amount of marine fog and smoke and only a few clear days but it was still beautiful.  We walked on the beach, saw tons of whales, visited state parks and towns along the coast.  It was great few days!!

Newport 

The Harbor Seals were our favorite and they serenaded us during our dinner on the dock.

The view from our RV Park

The Scenic Coast

Cannon Beach, Arch Cape, Cape Mears, Depoe Bay (this is the whale watching capital, they have resident gray whales that live in the area all year long), Cape Foulweather, The Devil's Punchbowl, Yaquina Point, Nye Beach, Newport Harbor, Seal Rock, and Yachats.

Walks on the Beach

Lighthouses at Yaquina Point, Cape Mears and Yaquina Bay

The Tilamook Creamery (est. 1909)

A fun stop on our way up the coast. This is a huge dairy co-op on the Oregon Coast.  They make lots of cheese, ice cream, butter, and yogurt.   There is a great tour of the plant with free cheese samples.  The line for ice cream was crazy long, we opted for their famous grilled cheese sandwich for lunch instead. 

Bob's quest for the best Clam Chowder went on for the entire week.  Luna Sea Fish House in Yachacts was the winner!

On the Road Again!

Thank you for all the prayers and well wishes!!!!  THEY HELPED!!!

We are back on the road.
We waited all day yesterday for the completion of the service work.
They were really nice, BUT we had to call EVERY 2 hours to keep it moving. 
We FINALLY got the OK from the quality control team at 6pm.
Luckily, we only had to drive about an hour to our RV park....but it was dark when we arrived and someone was in our assigned spot.  We had to find our own spot and the park owners were not very happy in the morning.  SIGH.   

Our plan was to sleep in....but our propane detector thought differently.  At 3:30 am the alarm started sounding (think smoke detector shriek).  Sam went nuts and we were all up. Luckily, no propane leak.

When we finally woke up and got oriented.......off to McMinnville.  

Brewery for lunch, wine tasting in the afternoon, and farmers market next!  A REALLY GREAT DAY!!!

We're Back!!!!

#@%&^#%@...........

Here is the thumbnail sketch of that horrible afternoon: 

• The back end of the RV went in a hole and all this red fluid started leaking out.
• We lost power steering so we couldn't drive the RV.
• We were sitting on the ROAD (and partially on the property of our friend Helen's yard) so our "ROADside assistance" company said they couldn't help us because we were partially on private property.  WHAT????  We were on the "ROAD" too!  I went crazy!!!!  There will be a fight over this one. 
• After calling about 5 companies, I finally got A and B tow company scheduled.  It was going to be a 2 hour wait.  I called to check-in after 90 minutes and they said "Oh Gee, we aren't going to be able to come, someone more important called for a tow"  WHAT???????? 
• I finally found a towing company (AutoHaus towing) who pulled out all the stops to help us - the owner of the company even came out.  He said the reason we had so many problems finding a tow is because it's a lot of work to tow these BIG rigs!
• We were blocking one lane, of a two lane country road, so Bob spent 3 hours directing traffic in the hot sun.  He was not happy.
• We  had to empty the fridge and freezer to save the food.  Who just went to Costco?....It's amazing how much food we cart around.  UGH!
• We just heard from the Freightliner service center and here is the problem..... the power steering line pulled away from the reservoir which holds 8 gallons of fluid!  Guess what - this is a very labor intensive repair$$$$$$$. We now have the part, but are waiting for a service slot!
• We had planned to stay with our friend Helen for 2 days, while we were visiting her.....WELLLLL the house guests (Bob, Richele AND Sam) and  here....Uh, Oh!!  Helen has been so gracious to let the "Griswalds" stay a few extra days.  We hope she will still talk to us after all this!!!  WE LOVE YOU HELEN!!!

Columbia River Gorge

We decided to take a little day trip driving up the Columbia River Gorge on the Washington and Oregon border.  Visibility was pretty bad because of the all the smoke from area wildfires, but it was still beautiful. 
This is a place we need to revisit when we are in a better frame of mind (and not worrying about the RV) and the smoke clears!

Multnomah Falls

We had a black and white Multnomah Falls print in our Chicago house for years....it's so much more beautiful in person!

Had lunch at at a fun Brewery.

hmmmm....wonder why?

WISH US LUCK!!!!  It's a nightmare.    

More Washington National Parks

Olympic National Park

This park is the size of Rhode Island with multiple entrances around the perimeter.  No roads go through the park.  There are 3 distinct areas: the rugged coast, Olympic mountains, and rain forests.

I wanted to see all 3 areas, so we packed our rain gear, maps, snacks, waters and the dog and went exploring.  It ended up being 8 hours of mostly driving in the car to get to these spots.....not everyone was very happy with me.  It was a long, long day.  

The Rugged Coast:  We went to Cape Flattery which is the furthest northwest point in the lower 48 states.   It was a very long and winding drive and a very muddy walk down lots of wooden walkways and stairs to get to the point.  It was pretty once we got there, but Sam was a muddy dark brown dog at the end of that hike.

The HOH Rain Forest.  Bob just couldn't stop teasing me about how LUCKY we were that we had our rain gear! OK, I guess It doesn't rain in the rain forest in the summer.  We drove a very long way to see the dried moss on the Hall of Mosses trail. I thought it was still pretty cool - even though not everyone else (Bob) thought so.

Hurricaine Ridge.  There was construction at the start of the drive, which slowed the ride down quite a bit, but the Olympic mountains are beautiful.

The extent of our animal sightings are still slim....we did have a buck run right by us at Mt. Rainier, cute chipmunk at Mt. Olympus, a stuffed beaver in the visitor center.  Oh, and I did see a whale spout in the distance off Cape Flattery - no really!

This 670 year old Douglas Fir tree started to grow in 1293 and was cut down in 1963.  Based on everything we've seen, the rest of the tree was probably loaded on a speeding log truck.  

Seattle Fun

Space Needle and Pikes Place Market

We weren't going to do the touristy thing in Seattle but I really wanted to visit the Dale Chihuly Garden and Glass Art Museum after hearing so much about it.  It was a beautiful Sunday morning so we decided we would also visit the Space Needle and walk to Pikes Place Market.
The Space Needle just reopened with a new rotating glass floor.  Bob was the crazy one to stand on it and look down.  I'm not sure when I became so fearful of heights, but I don't do glass bottom floors and I stay close to the inside edge!

Dale Chihuly Garden and Glass

The photos don't do these sculptures justice.  These pieces are displayed in very large rooms, hanging from ceilings, or sitting on giant reflective stages.  They are truly something to see.  We have been to a number of Chihuly installations, but this is amazing.

Visiting my Niece
Taylor and her boyfriend Devin live in the very cute Fremont neighborhood north of the city - but hills in the neighborhood are just the hills in San Francisco (I got a workout walking around.)  Fremont is home to the giant silver eyed troll under the Aurora Ave bridge.  Taylor then showed me around the University of Washington campus (where she is getting her PhD).  Just as we were touring the campus, we had a flyover by the Blue Angels who were performing at the SeaFair Airshow.

Blackberries and Starbucks

1.  There are blackberry bushes EVERYWHERE! We just go out and pick a bag every day. Delicious!
2. When we went to the Pikes Place Market we wanted to see the original Starbucks Store (since it's Bob's favorite)....BUT the line to get into the store was at least 50 people long...I didn't want to burst anyone's bubble who was in line, but THE COFFEE IS THE SAME!!  Needless to say, we just walked by. 

North Cascades and Vancouver Island!

Vancouver Island....Sidney and Victoria with friends

We took the ferry from Anacortes WA, through the San Juan Islands and into the town of Sidney on Vancouver Island.  We left the RV in Washington and stayed with Lori and Dave (more wonderful Arizona friends)....Thank you Lori and Dave, we had such a special time.  We toured Victoria's harbor area including the British Columbia Parliament Building, the Empress Hotel and fisherman's wharf (with very cute house boats), had great meals together and even got to play tennis.  

Butchart Gardens - a gardener's dream.

This is a National Historic site in Canada.  A limestone quarry transformed into a BEAUTIFUL garden.  This was Jennie Butchart vision in 1909 after her husbands quarry was exhausted.   She started filling it with top soil....and creating the design! There is the sunken garden, woodland gardens, the rose garden (so fragrant), the Japanese garden, and the Italian Garden which is connected to the original house.  

Winthrop, WA

There are not too many places to stay when you visit the North Cascades National Park  (unless of course you want to camp, camp). Our RV park was about 30 miles east of the park.....there is a little old western town with boardwalk sidewalks.  It is the home to the oldest legal saloon in the state.

The log trucks

I was freaked out by these trucks....they were always speeding and I was sure logs were going to fly out and come barreling through the RV windshield.  

Beautiful Wine Country!

The Valley runs north and south along Lake Okanagan (which is 83 miles long).  There are rolling hills, lake views, orchards and grape vines everywhere. There are 182 wineries here and great bike trails! The south end of this valley is an extension of the Sonoran Desert - so we felt at home with the cactus, quails, rattlesnakes and hot temperatures.  

Vernon

Sylvia and Glen, our neighbors in Arizona, were our guides and hosts. 
  -  We pulled the RV into their lake house driveway for a few nights -  that was a first for us.
  -  We spent time boating on Lake Okanagan
  -  If your looking for a great Spa getaway - check out the Sparkling Hill Resort
  -  Fun wineries in the area

Penticton

This is a great little town on the south end of Lake Okanagan. 
  -  The beautiful beach and waterfront
  -  You can float down the Penticton River Channel - SO many people and fun floaties
        -  It's the floatie capital of the world.....I wanted that Pink Flamingo
  -  The Saturday Market was lots of fun with farmers and artists
             -  and of course the deep fried spiral potato thing.

Oliver

A great location for exploring.  We saw big horn sheep while driving into town.  The Tinhorn Creek Winery with it's amazing restaurant Miradoro, had beautiful views and an evening concert venue.  We had a wonderful night with special friends!

Osoyoos

This is the last town before the US border.  It's also the area that is Sonoran Desert.  Because of the climate, this is the area that grows most of the red wine.  This was our last day of wine tasting.  The wineries and views from each one is more beautiful than the next.  Many have restaurants and some have guest houses. Lots of great wine....our livers need a rest. 

 We're movin' on!

The Amazing Canadian Rockies

The Columbia River Valley

Dave and Cathy Wilson joined us again when our paths crossed in the Columbia River Valley.  We stayed in Fairmont Hot Springs at the base of the Canadian Rockies.   Beautiful views with every turn and lots of fun.

Richele went to the top of Hoodos with Cathy and then Kayaking with Cathy and Dave.  (Bob hates Kayaking - another revelation!)

Glacier National Park - Canada

The drive through the park is BEAUTIFUL.  There are lots of snow sheds (which we thought were tunnels).  These sheds are built to divert the avalanche snow! Don't need those in AZ.
We had a sunny day for the drive to our RV Park near Glacier, but when we went back the next day to hike....we got poured on in the mountains. so we missed a few things.

Revelstoke National Park and the town of Revelstoke 

- The Giant Cedars boardwalk hike was beautiful..
- We could only do a portion of the Meadows in the Sky Parkway because a grizzly was captured and was being tagged and relocated.
- The cute town of Revelstoke sits at the base of Mt. Begbie and in a valley on the Columbia River.  A great brewery, a nice place for lunch and the ONLY grocery store and gas for miles.

Lots of Flora but still no Fauna sightings for us. 

Noah's Ark RV Park....hmmmmm.

We've had some "unique" RV Park experiences.  Today we are at the Noah's Ark RV Park, which has it's own giant, partially finished Ark (a little weird.)   I guess Noah retired.  When we arrived, there was a bear sighting at the campsite next to us - so lots of people were honking their horns and clanging garbage can lids (we didn't get to see the bear.)  We did find some bear fur (and I'm certain it's bear fur) by our campsite so Sam and I are on the lookout!

The Dairy in Sicamous 

We stopped at a local dairy with lots of new baby calves!  Awwww.  Great Cheese too. 

More British Columbia adventures to come. 

No Potatoes!

I'm not sure WHAT Bob was expecting, but he was pretty disappointed that there weren't a lot of Potato stands or extravagant potato dishes in the restaurants.  He thinks were duped again!

We spent a few days in Northern Idaho.  Our RV park was a top rated RV park, but in the middle of nowhere.  We had to drive 45 minutes to get to anything interesting so that was a bummer.

Coeur d'Alene, ID

The town is on Lake Coeur D'Alene which is a dam controlled lake (25 miles long and 1-3 miles wide).  The lakeside City Park and Beach, McEuen Park and a great shopping district are right in town.  Bob went for a boat ride and I went shopping....a perfect day! 

Sandpoint

A lovely artsy town on beautiful Lake Pend Oreille (pronounced pondouray) which is Idaho's largest and most beautiful lakes. The Sandpoint City Beach is so pristine.  We ate lunch at Trinity which overlooks the beach

The Canadian Geese haven't made it to Canada ....and the plastic coyotes aren't doing much good to keep them off the city beach in Sandpoint.

Logging trucks and piles of logs everywhere!!!  Know where your lumber comes from.

Canada - Here we come!

Richele's big bike adventure

After talking to someone we met in Montana......I got a bee in my bonnet (uh oh!) to bike the Ride the Hiawatha Scenic Rail to Trail on our way to Idaho. 

• This required some special logistics:  We had to drive to the rest stop by the  Montana/Idaho border and unhook the car. Bob and Sam left for our campground in Idaho (without me, so I wasn't quite sure they would be there when arrived this evening), and I took off in the car to the trail.

• This trail is the old Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, Pacific (Milwaukee Road) Railroad line. 
  • Train service to the Pacific began in 1909.  The last passenger train traveled in 1961, and the last freight train was in 1980 before the railroad was abandoned.  
  • The Hiawathas were the name of the fancy passenger cars that ran on the rail.
• The bike trail opened in 1998
  • 15 miles long, gradually downhill (yippee....but you still have to pedal!)
  • There are 10 train tunnels and 7 cool trestles.
    • The first tunnel is 1.6 miles long. OK, you really have to have a good bike light because it is pitch black!!!!!!!!  I had 2 lights that weren't bright enough.  Thank goodness my Dad gave me the (free) Harbor Freight light - It was the best one I had.  With the water dripping in the tunnel and all the kids howling and making animal noises.  I was pretty freaked out. 
  • The  pine trees were beautiful, and they smelled amazing.
  • The trail was rocky/bumpy (why didn't I wear my bike shorts????)
  • Once you finish the 15 miles, a school bus (VERY OLD school bus!) transports you and your bike back to the parking lot.

Before we left Montana, we visited the Kerr Dam on the Flathead River.  So beautiful.  The vertical drop is higher than Niagara Falls. 

AND Sam's got a beef....

He was barking out the car window like crazy at this huge steer.  Many of you know he is allergic to chicken.  My dad says all he sees is burgers and beef bones to eat!  Not sure the steer sees it that way.

On to Idaho!

We LOVE Montana - it truly is the Big Sky state!!

We are in Montana and LOVING IT!  The mountains, lakes, great views and Glacier National Park are AMAZING!  It's just been beautiful here.  We loved Bozeman, Flathead Lake, Glacier National Park, and Whitefish.  That, and the ability to spend it with friends!

Glacier National Park - BREATHTAKING!

What a beautiful National Park....you gotta see it.  We spent 3 nights here and should have spent more.  Lake McDonald, McDonald Falls, the drive on the Going-to-the-Sun-Road to Logan Pass, the hike in the snow to Hidden Lake, St. Mary's and Virginia waterfalls.   

Who let the goats out?

Bah, Bah, Bah, Bah

Wildlife Abounds (even though the pics don't show it all!)

Our closest encounter was with a Mountain Goat that was 15 feet away  (a bit closer than the recommended 25 yards).  Here's what else we saw:  a charging Marmot looking for food, a crazy chipmunk AND (even though we don't have pics...) Big Horn Sheep, Moose, Deer, Weasel, and tons of Columbia Ground Squirrels.

• Dave and Cathy saw bears....but they DIDN'T have to use the $29.99 Bear Spray!  We never even heard of Bear Spray:  FYI - you don't spray yourself (like it was bug spray), it's like pepper spray for attacking Bears.  See Dave sporting the big canister.  

A Great Time with Great Friends from Arizona!!!!

• Dave and Cathy overlapped our visit in Glacier National Park.  
• Henry and Linda live in Polson, on beautiful Flathead Lake.  This lake is bigger than Lake Tahoe and is nestled at the base of mountains (still with snow.) We loved the town of Big Fork and drinks and dinner on the lake.
• Sonja and Tom who live in Whitefish, MT (very near Glacier National Park).   What a cute town at the base of a beautiful ski mountain.  There was a great farmers market and music in town on the day we visited. What a wonderful time with friends.

Did someone say Whitewater Rafting??

Who specifically agreed to the rafting "thrill seeker" package (Cathy and Bob???)  This would be Richele's first time whitewater rafting and she didn't know she was on the "thrill seeker" adventure until it was too late!

Some of our other favorite things....

Our quaint campground in Bozeman, the Bozeman ice cream shop in the old RV, beautiful flowers everywhere, the latest in bike "gear", our KOA in Glacier, and burritos at the Wandering Gringo.

The pits for us......the latest and BIGGEST chip on the windshield.  We hope it won't crack before we can make it home.

Let the Adventures continue!

An "udderly" great day in ND!

Salem Sue

The world's largest Holstein Cow in New Salem ND. The RV was too big for this little side trip so Richele rode (and walked) her bike up this steep hill to see her! Sue was getting a paint job and I mentioned I thought the udders might be more realistic flesh colored....RIGHT?  Well the painters didn't see it that way.  

Uh Oh.....A run-in with the long arm of the law....and a nasty dog! 

 SOMEONE got pulled over yesterday (BOB!!).  The North Dakota State Trooper said that Bob had time to pull into the left lane to avoid the flashing lights. Bob politely disagreed and explained that "he was trying to get over, but by the time the beige car passed him on the left he was past the flashing lights".  He got off with a warning (even though Sam tried to nip at the trooper when Bob handed over his License).  OOPS!

Medora, ND

Home of the Theodore Roosevelt National Park.  It's a very pretty park with their own Badlands, wild horses, Bison, and prairie dogs. 

• Sooo.....we have to say that we liked South Dakota better and we saw more animals.
• There is lots of history about Teddy Roosevelt that Bob wants to share, but he is asleep, so I'll just share an interesting fact:  Teddy Roosevelt lost his wife and mother on the same day, within hours of each other, in the same house in New York in 1884.  He went back to his ranch near Medora ND to grieve...it was a very peaceful place for him (and we can see why.) 

The Medora Musical

This is the 60th year for this 2,900 seat open air amphitheater built into the side of the mountain.  Its a beautiful venue under the stars for this cute rootin' tootin' musical about the Spirit of the West (they even have horses on stage.)  Not Broadway, but worth the visit.

Only fitting for the end of a great day.....Bob's new Buffalo pajama pants!

Happy 4th of July!!!

Sam hates fireworks...so we're staying at an out of the way RV park to avoid them!

Our Travels!!

• Leaving the brutal heat and humidity in Chicago for more heat, humidity, thunderstorms and terrible construction traffic) through Wisconsin. UGH!
• Spending time with dear friends in Minneapolis:  Thanks Deb and Steve - we love Lake Minnetonka and your new home!!  Thanks Paul and Cathy - it was great to reconnect and we loved the Halibut!  

North Dakota

• Richele's first visit to ND!
• Bob was stationed at the Grand Forks AFB from 1969 to 1972  - He doesn't have fond memories of the cold winters in North Dakota (but he was willingly? to make the trip).

• Did you know Jamestown, ND is the home of the World's Largest Buffalo?  

  •  60 tons of concrete.  26 feet high x 46 feet long!

Oh, the places we'll go (next)!

Sweet Home Chicago

Our time in Chicago is always packed with family and friends. 

Memorial Day at the Lake

All the kids and grandkids!

Graduation Celebrations

Richele's nephew Tim Soja graduated from Junior High and Gavin Faitz graduated from Kindergarten with 125 other graduates.  (FYI, you can read 125 names, give out 125 awards and sing 6 songs in less than a hour!  phew!). Liam's school didn't have a graduation but we had another kindergarten graduate!

Our Brave Rock Star!

Lennox is 4 years old and had major shoulder blade re-positioning surgery on June 8.  Everyone is so grateful that she is doing so well!!  Her recovery is ahead of the anticipated schedule and she will be able to start physical therapy in 2 weeks.    Go Lennox!!!

We'll be here another 2 weeks with family and friends. 
Back on the Road June 30.

A quick trip through Iowa on our way to Chicago!

The Bridges of Madison County

Yep, this was Richele's pick.  How did you guess?

Winterset, Iowa

This ended up being a really nice surprise town.  It's the county seat for Madison County.  A beautiful county building and cute town square. A fun little winery.  It's John Wayne's birthplace (he never kept any connection with the town - but they love him),  It's also George L Stout's birthplace (he was an art conservation specialist - one of the Monuments Men in WWII.)

Le Claire, Iowa is the home of the American Pickers!!

We love Mike, Frank, Danielle and Robbie on the show.  Antique Archaeology is their original shop.