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July 29, 2014

Tuesday

At around 8:14 PM the Rawlins drove into their driveway after a 9,204 mile trip across and back the United States. We were so blessed to have no travel problems, no sickness, or murder along the way. :)

We are proud to be Americans and have been lucky to have seen the beautiful parts of our country.

I must confess, I never thought kudzu could look so good.

Thanks for following us on our journey. I plan to post pictures later.

Love to all!!

Country Roads, Take Me Home

Monday

July 28, 2014

Monday morning we arose early and hit the road again. Riding across Kansas, we noticed the green starting to come back into the scenery. There were farms on left and right but spaced far apart. No neighbors in this neck of the woods. If you need to borrow a cup of sugar, well, get in the car.

George had two stops left for us to visit. One was the Arabia Steamship Museum. I wasn't clear at all what it was but I thought it must be a steamship museum with stories and pieces of steamships that traveled the Missouri River. No. I do believe this was one of the most interesting museums I ever visited.

The steamship Arabia was travelling up the Missouri River in 1850 loaded with 20 tons of supplies to be sold and used by pioneers out west. Also on board were wives and children who were travelling to be with their husbands. The Missouri is a hard river to navigate and the boat hit an underwater log, took on water and sank. The upperdeck was above water and people were able to be evacuated. The only casualty was a mule. The entire bottom of the boat was underwater and in that day it was nearly impossible to recover the goods. Years passed. Over 100 years and the lore of the Arabia still was in the minds of some of the locals. In the early 1980's two brothers, their father, a friend, and one other were discussing the lost Arabia. They decided to look for it. Not an easy task. It would take money, time and a lost of work.  Check this out it will tell the rest of the fascinating story.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabia_(steamboat). The museum was truly entertaining and amazing.

We also visited the Pioneer Trails Museum. It was a reminder to me that traveling west in a car for 29 days is not as bad as I thought. I sure wouldn't want to travel by wagon. The men, women, and children who expanded our country were tough, determined, and have my blessings.

We drove to Mt. Vernon, IL for the night to rest. Home is a little closer.

The Mile High City

Tuesday

July 28, 2014

Today we are going to tour Denver, CO by bus. We have two tours booked. One in the morning to see the country and surrounding areas of Denver and the afternoon ride will take us through the town of Denver.

Denver is a beautiful city. George booked our motel in an older area of Denver not realizing it was slipping into decay It's just like any city, parts of it grows and dies. We were in a nice motel but the surrounding area was a little questionable. There were homeless people, people lying on the sidewalk passed out or whatever, bars everywhere. OK, it opened the eyes of this Baptist girl that all IS NOT OK in USA. There are lots of hurting and searching people in this country. Many looking for happiness in the wrong places. I not saying all of Denver was like this however.

We rode all through the city and surrounding area and let me tell you there are a lot of healthy people there too. We saw people riding bikes everywhere, running, jogging, etc. Denver is blessed with many parks and they are well used. Hiking/walking/biking trails thread their way throughout the parks and people were out and about. We rode by the state capitol building and it had lush grounds too. People were lolling in the grass and enjoying the beautiful weather. On the other side of the capitol building we were greeted by a huge protest between Jews and Palestinians of Denver I guess. Both sides had flags and were yelling back and forth across the police barricade.

The dome of the capitol is covered in gold. In the past few years it has been regilted. Guide said that 72 ounces of gold was given to the state and it was sent to Italy to be pounded down and made into gold leaf. The end result was enough gold leaf to cover a football field.

We visited Wild Bill Cody's grave.  LOL George was telling some friends the story we had heard about his burial and the fight for his body after his death between Denver and Cody. There was an older lady there picking up coins off his grave and she promptly set the story straight that his body is interred in Denver and that all the info one is given in Cody is just for the benefit of storytelling by tour guides. LOL  She did not appreciate hearing George's story. :)

We did visit Red Rock Canyon and the amphitheater there. It was beautiful. Signs told visitors that they were setting up for a concert that night. We walked out and looked down over the seating area and it was full of people. Not sitting, however, but exercising. They were running, jumping skipping, walking up and down the bleachers. Some would step up on, do a pushup and a jumping jack, step up one more, etc., there were groups of five or more skipping in unison up the bleachers together, one group was doing a relay, a football team was there doing laps Whew! Who knew that you could use a facility like this for exercise. When we left, we saw a couple preparing for a wedding there.

We ended our day around 5 o'clock, got in the van and headed east. We spent the night in Colby, KS. It was a long and full day.

The farther east we come the sweeter home sounds.

Exercise is big in Denver

Red Rock Amphitheater

Red Rock Amphitheater

Wedding Preparations

LOL A surprise around every corner.

Colorado Capitol Building

Rocky Mountain High (No Marijuana)

Saturday

July 26, 2014

Today we woke up early and got on the road because we want to get to Pike's Peak before the predicted clouds and rain roll in this afternoon.

We had a great drive through the country. I salute George because he has picked some beautiful roads to travel on with great scenery. As we leave this morning, I am a little happy. We are facing the sun. That means we're heading back towards home. I love traveling but, I miss home, my friends, and of course Shannon and Caroline.

We did get a surprise this morning. As we topped the crest of a hill, we were greeted with a sky full of hot air balloons. What a beautiful sight.  I guess they had traveled over some of the mountain peaks and they were landing. The funny thing was that they were landing in a cow pasture and the cows didn't even seem to notice. Guess that was some good grass. I counted and there were thirteen balloons.

We made it to the top of Pike's Peak. What a drive. Nineteen miles going up with lots of switchbacks. I must admit I flinched a couple of times and the door handle got a workout. Our early departure was definitely in our favor. The sky was so clear at the top. There were a lot of people up there. Parking was at a minimum. The parking attendant was having a time getting everyone situated. We enjoyed the view and shopped around.

I must not forget to tell about the bikers. There were bicyclists going up that road. All just pedaling along at their own pace. Most looked happy. There were a few with grimaces on their faces. I don't think that they make a bike with enough gears to get me up a 14,000 mountain on 19 miles of highway. I know going down must be a lot easier.

When we left, we were met with a deluge of traffic going up the mountain. Cars, motorcycles, vans, buses, an emergency vehicle and then a ambulance. We were instructed to drive down the mountain in the lowest gear possible and not to ride the brakes. Well, we are doing just that and zoom there goes a bicyclist by us just a flying. Whew I mean he was making time. He passed two other cars and we continued down in first gear and not riding our brakes. I wonder about him. Midway down, we were stopped and the park ranger had a heat sensor gun and he checked our brakes to see if they were too hot. 300 was too hot, we were 170. Go George. Hmmm. Park Ranger did not check the temperature of my shoe on the right side. LOL

All in and all it was a great trip.

Voodoo Donuts for snack tonight and then a tour of Denver tomorrow.

Landing in the cow pasture

A morning surprise

A daffodil balloon

I'm a Yellow Bellied Chicken

Friday

July 25, 2014 (5 months till Christmas!!)

Today started out with a visit to the Colorado Monument. It is not a statue or memorial. It is actually another mountain range/cliffs/ big canyons. We enjoyed our visit and our time there. I did not go to all of the viewing points. George got out at most of them. This land feature was carved out over millions of years by time and erosion. We went for  a rim walk around the top. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. We met another couple and walked along with them for a while. They must be world travelers. They said they sorta were from California but, I think their roots are not down anywhere. They are next headed to Singapore.

Next on the agenda was the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. It is a huge granite canyon that has been carved out by the Gunnison River. This canyon was different in the fact that the walls went straight down. If you fell off here, there was nothing to catch you or to grab on to. At our last stop on the loop tour, we saw two rock climbers going up the side of the canyon across from us. These are not the first ones we have encountered. There were some at Yosemite going up El Capitan but I couldn't see them. These two were wearing a white shirt and a red shirt. Easy to spot on a dark granite wall. Oh my gosh. The canyon wall is 2000 feet from top to bottom and they were in the middle. One was in the midst of pulling himself/herself up and the other one was  perched on a small ledge. These guys/gals certainly go with a different drummer than me. I can get my exhilaration from eating M&M's.

We then made our way to Grand Junction for the night. We had to pass through the Rocky Mountains. When we hit the pass we were at 11,400+ feet. We were looking down at the tops of trees. My brakes are working on the right side of the car and there are also some new finger/claw marks on the door handle.
We saw a lot of open range signs on the road. Watch out for them cows. We never did see any but, there were cow patties on the road so the sign is for real. Why did the cow cross the road? He followed the chicken....per George.

We passed by large cattle ranches along the way with lush green grass for the cows. It was a beautiful drive and a much needed and appreciated sight of green.

The drivers out here are insane. A motorcyclist went by us and about spun us around. We were only doing a paltry 70 MPH. More power to him. He was weaving in and out of cars and no helmet.

I'm such a wimp.

A Birds' Eye View

Thursday

July 24, 2014

Today was a good day full of challenges for me!! We are going to Canyonlands National Park. To be honest, I had no idea what we were going to see and do. That's called trusting your husband. I am beginning to think at times I may have to watch out for him and his adventures.

Canyonlands National Park is divided into three section The Needles, Island in the Sky, and the Maze. We were at Island in the sky. The reason for this name is you are up so high and looking down on beautiful rock towers, fins, and the river and canyon below. It really did feel like we were on an island and I truly got a feel for what it might feel like to be a bird flying up high.

I was trying to remember I wedding vows today. I don't think it included hiking with your husband up to see a huge canyon from the rim, Upheaval Dome. There were too many steps going up a steep incline. Next, we went to Mesa Arch. This hike wasn't as bad. Lastly, we went on a 1 1/2 mile rim walk. I again thank God that he has helped me overcome my fear of heights. We were walking along looking down into a huge canyon with the Green River in the bottom.The canyon was huge. There are no words to explain its beauty. It was one of those times I felt very small again.

We were very lucky with the weather. It was cool, low 80's with a good breeze. At the end of our three hikes, the sun came out and it became hotter. I will readily admit that I was not sorry to finish the last hike. I talked to God along the way praising him for the beauty of his creation and asking Him to give me the strength to get back. I was almost running on empty.

All I say is God is good, God is my creator, and His creation never ceases to amaze me.

Lord Lift Me Up....to Higher Ground

Wednesday

July 23, 2014

Wow, I can't believe that we have been gone from home 24 days. It has been an exhilarating journey. We have seen people, places, and things that we'll never forget. Today was another day I'll never forget.

We arrived in Moab, UT last night. Our plan was to get up really early on Wednesday and go to Arches National Park. This we did. We got up at 5:30 AM, got dressed, ate some breakfast, and then headed out. One reason we left so early was to beat the heat. The other reason is that the parking lot at the head of Delicate Arch fills up quite quickly. We made the trip in good time. We arrived around 6:00AM. Plenty of parking. As for the temperature, at 6:00 it was already 89 degrees.

We get on our way. It's an easy walk at the beginning. Nice dirt trail, bridge, some switchbacks. I'm thinking this is a piece of cake. Umm-No! We started gaining some elevation and more switchbacks. Soon we are on rocky ground the whole way with cairns guiding us. Around every corner I think we will see the arch. As we gained altitude, I had to sit down and rest quite a few times on rocks along the way. I think I left my carbon butt print on quite a few boulders going up. In my mind, I'm wondering what George has gotten me in to. I have truly trusted him on every detail of this trip. We finally get to the top around 7:15 or so. We(I) did not set any speed records going up. I did talk to God a lot. Give me strength, help me, I praise you for the beauty of the sunrise.

We spent some time at Delicate Arch. It is beautiful. I am so glad i made it to the top.

We enjoyed the view for a while and talked with some other hikers. We talked with some people from Asheville, NC and a girl who graduated from Carolina.

The hike back to the car wasn't quite as bad. LOL. Gravity does help sometimes. I didn't have to rest a single time. We met so many hikers going in the opposite direction. I thought to myself, "you got a long way to go." The heat was getting oppressive. It was 95 degrees when we reached the parking lot. We also visited several other Arches and viewpoints. Unbelievably there are over 2,000 arches in the park. We did not seek out that many. We were impressed with the stone formation The Fiery Furnace. You must have a guide to go in there. Many, many columns of sandstone close together to form mazes. It was huge. It's easy to see how one would get lost in there.

Here are a few other shots from this morning's adventure.

We had some lunch when we returned. Then we slept a l l afternoon.