Thursday Oct 3 - This is our first time to visit Colorado, and we have chosen an excellent time to be here. Not because the tourist numbers are down, as it's sort of between seasons, meaning there are lots of people around doing the things we're doing. But not to a disturbing extent. The main reason to choose this time  of year is because of the fall colours. Despite the fact there aren't many reds in the mountain foliage, the golds and russets and rusts and greens make up for it. Mountainsides are spattered with a variety of hues, creating images my poor photo skills can't capture. But we keep trying.

The other thing you'd better like if you come here...well, two things, actually...canyons and altitude. Everywhere there's a river there's a canyon. None of these streams that meander along, creating ox-bow lakes and lazy curves and turns. Here most of the rivers we've seen so far move along quite rapidly, and have been doing so for millenia upon millenia, cutting, carving, slashing, deepening, creating amazing canyons. Some of these depths you can only see from the rims, so the government has kindly designed roads that let you wind along the top, looking down into the depths at key places.

A case in point: Black Canyon of the Gunnison. This area in south-western Colorado has been turned into a National Park, carefully managed so that people can appreciate the wonders of the canyon. They claim the erosion process here has been going on for 1 million years, which seems like a long time. But the rock that forms the canyon is really hard stuff, black in color, although striated in places with various colours because of different layers piled one on top of the other. In some places, the canyon walls are 3,000 feet high. Not kidding! Not as deep as Grand Canyon, but whereas the GC is very broad, stretching out for miles, this one is very narrow. only several hundred feet across in places.

So needless to say, it's pretty spectacular. We enjoyed every viewpoint, walking out a few hundred metres in places to look at the varying landscape. And that didn't satisfy us. Nope! We had to do a two mile hike at the end, a loop that dropped down quite a distance, then back up to the Visitor Center. Naturally, we chose to go clock-wise, and found the climb up at the end much steeper than it would have been had we gone the other way. But it was a fine hike, and left us tired but happy.

Next day we did a beautiful drive, the first part in canyon territory, the second in more open country. The colours for the canyon portion were beautiful. We took many photos, and hope we caught a bit of the flavor provided by golden patches of cottonwoods, mixed with aspens still fighting to keep their greens, and low-lying shrubs of rust. We crossed a pass that was nearly 9,000 feet up, and came to some areas where there used to be coal mining, as well as a town that used to be the center of coke production for the west. These coke ovens produced pure carbon for the production of steel, 159 of them in all, stretching along the highway as a reminder of a local industry that was so important in its time, but faded away as other methods were developed.

We ended the day by shopping in Carbondale, a lovely small city, and then went on to set up camp just outside of Glenwood Springs. Here is the largest hot pool in the world. Here there are multiple hot pools to ease your pain. Here there is a feature called the Hanging Lake. Here is the interstate that goes straight into Denver. Here we had a lovely late afternoon, surrounded by peaks, in a little hollow by the Colorado River, until 5:10, when the sun disappeared behind one of the mountains. But it remained pleasant until around 9, when the temps started to drop. By rising-up time this morning, the temp was zero. Sky a brilliant blue. September saw less than an inch of rain here. maybe less than a quarter of an inch. Not much rain at all, in other words.

Today, we headed into town to board a bus provided to get us to the Hanging Lake. As the name suggests, this lake is located way up a mountainside, just hanging there, it would seem. So it's a fascinating place to see, so much so that you have to have a reservation to do the hike (yes, it's a hike of over a mile almost straight up, the vertical rise over 1,000 feet). The bus got us there, and up we started. 75 minutes later we clambered up the last incline, walked along a lovely boardwalk, and had our breaths taken away. The lake is fed by a double waterfall, which creates the lake on a relatively flat shelf on the side of the mountain. The stream continues on down the mountain, providing the route up to the lake. It's not really a lake in our terms, more a pond, because the shelf is limited in size. But it's truly beautiful, the water a lovely green, a few fish swimming, and lovely vegetation surrounding it. I'll post a picture or two, but justice will not be done by my images.

We had lunch there, enjoying the view, then climbed further to see a spout, shooting out the torrent that produces the water falls. We had to be back to our bus by 2:00, and made it with 5 minutes to spare. The bus runs every 45 minutes, delivering people willing to take the challenge. Then home to do the laundry. See, it's not all fun and games. Mundane activities are part of the routine. Speaking of which, I have to go as it is my duty to lug the laundry home. I'll post some pictures another time. More later. Stay tuned.

Monday, Sept. 30 - We've received some pictures from friends in Western Canada. Grim. Snow, so much so early. We feel for you all, as it's far too early to get dumped on like that.

We are now in Southern Colorado, enjoying good weather  Mornings are cool, but it warms up nicely by 11:00, so jeans off, shorts on for rest of the day. Being in Colorado, we are warned that weather can change in a minute, especially at the higher altitudes. We'll be hitting some passes at 9,000 to 10,000 feet, so given that it's the first of October tomorrow, we'll be watching weather forecasts very carefully.

We've really enjoyed the scenery available in both southern Utah and here. We spent another half-day at Arches yesterday, managing to get lucky and find parking, so that we could do some hiking. Two different sites allowed us close to 4 miles of tramping...not tough terrain, but still good exercise. And today, we spent several hours driving the canyon rim in the Colorado National Monument, which provides some wonderful scenery, somewhat similar to the parks in Utah. The big difference is that you're driving around the perimeter of the canyons for 25 miles, looking into the depths while gazing out at the broad valley below. There were some fine sights to be seen.

Following the tour of the Monument, we headed south-east to Montrose, so that we can do the Black Canyon of the Gunnison tomorrow. It's reputed to be quite spectacular, with 2,000 foot walls, black and foreboding, squishing the Gunnison River fall below. Getting here took us across stark desert landscapes, with a wind howling from the west, nearly enough to blow us off the road. But it's settled down tonight, so all is calm, all is bright (lots of stars).

From here, we 'll carry on to the north, and leave the sandstone scenery behind. Rocky Mountain Park is the goal, followed by a day or two in Denver, and maybe Colorado Springs before we wend our

way east and home. We hope all are well, with sympathy to Alberta friends. A couple of pics to finish. More later. Stay tuned.
The pics: Gail standing on the edge in the Colorado National Monument Park; the Independence, a spire that challenges rock climber skills to the nth degree; Gail dressed to deal with the howling wind in Arches; one of the largest of the arches in the park.

Saturday, Sept. 28 - Today's posting will deal with contrasts. If you read my last blog, I talked about how it's possible to start the day on the road without a plan, and end up having an unexpectedly great day. That was Wednesday. On Thursday, pretty much the opposite occurred. It was a pleasant enough day, sunny and mild after the morning coolness wore off. But as my good friend Ken Marshall advised when we called to wish him a Happy Birthday, the traffic once you hit the area north of Salt Lake City gets really heavy. He was so right.

Normally I like to drive the r.v. at around 100 kph. With the press of traffic, particularly as we got closer to Salt Lake City, it was almost mandatory to up the speed to 120. The speed limit on the interstate is 80 mph, as is true in Montana and Idaho. But the traffic to the north is sparse so it's easy to cruise along at about 60. (Pardon my switching from kph to mph.) Once we hit the outskirts of SLC, there was a lot of construction going on, with altered lanes, hoards of transport trucks, and drivers who imagined themselves in a Grand Prix race. So it wasn't much fun, which is true of many of the large cities one can drive into. But we managed.

We had thought to revisit the central area of SLC, as it had been 18 years since we were last there. So in we went, following signs to Temple Square, an area of beautifully designed buildings focussing on the Mormon system of faith. Try to find parking. Try to avoid major reconstruction. There was a huge empty public parking lot near Temple Square, but after driving around it at least twice and failing to find the entry point, we contented ourselves with having seen the home of the NBA Jazz, and drove back to the freeway. So much for Salt Lake City. We found a very nice park in Provo, and called it a day. Talk about a contrast to the day before.

The contrast continues...for the better. Next day, yesterday, we drove from Provo over the mountains, peaking at Soldier Summit (7,477 feet), up onto a plateau, and then down, down, down to the lower elevation on the east side. The drive was most interesting, as there was a great variety of landscapes, high rocks enclosing the highway at times, and open desert at other times. Down we came to Arches National Park, and since it was only 2 p.m., and since we'd booked a site in Moab, only 5 miles down the road. we decided to give the park a go that very afternoon. By 6:30, we'd driven to the end of the road that runs through the park, as well as the side roads. We had a great afternoon.

The park is a wonderland of form. Most of the landscape is sandstone, and over the millenia, Mother N has done an amazing job of creating all manner of shapes and forms and configurations. Arches are the central theme, as there are more than 300 of them in the park, not all of them readily accessible by any means, but the main ones highlighted along the way. They have named some of the formations quite creatively, such as the Courthouse Towers, the Three Gossips, the Garden of Eden, BalancedRock, Pothole Arch, and Delicate Arch (the highlight of the tour). Cameras were kept busy by all who passed, including yours truly and Gail. Hard to stop clicking.

Speaking of 'all who passed', the park was very busy, as today is National Parks Open Day, meaning that entry is free. Hoards of people had therefore descended on the park for the week-end to take advantage of this deal. The result is that several of the parking lots for the highlight 'sculptures' were jammed, so getting space for an r.v. was not possible. We were told by a ranger at the Welcome Center that the national parks are being overrun, attendance way up in the last few years, to the extent that it may soon become necessary to force people to book reservations to gain entry. September and October have become especially busy.  Certainly Bryce and Zion have been considering limiting their numbers for a few years, and already restrict entry to cars and other transit by having people go in on park buses.

There was also an article in this week's local paper talking about the pressure put on nearby towns when the tourist numbers go up drastically. Infrastructure costs, availability of housing for locals, penalties of popularity that government doesn't recognize as worthy of increased transfer dollars. Sounds like the problem we're having in Prince Edward County.

Despite the crowds, however, we still saw most of the main highlights, and were in awe of the forms and shapes created by wind and water. I'll post a few pics to illustrate. Today, we are hunkered down, not going anywhere, taking a day to regroup, catch our breath, and stay away from the crowds that will no doubt be assaulting the park. A nice change. Actually sat and read a book this morning for awhile. Tomorrow, we may try one of the hikes nearby, and then dry camp in one of the local Public Lands

before heading into Colorado. So much for now. More later. Stay tuned.
The photos, by the way, are the Three Gossips,  Balanced Rock, then Pothole Arch, and finally Delicate Arch. Much to see should you ever have the opportunity.

Thursday morning, Sept 26 - A cool but sunny morning, only around plus 3 here in south-east Idaho. But it's supposed to stay sunny and go to 19 here, so that's good.

Travelling in an r.v. provides a certain  freedom. We often wake up not quite sure about where we'll end up at the end of the day. And also not quite sure about what we'll encounter as we roll along. Yesterday is a case in point. We were in southern Montana, and knew we were heading south. But not sure how far we'd get. No worries, as wherever we landed would be closer to our goal of Utah and Colorado.

Southern Montana and northern Idaho along route 15 is dry, open country, bordered by rolling hills and distant mountains. It's range land mostly, with Angus and Herefords the dominant critters to be seen. There is some farming, but only where irrigation is possible. The road is not heavily used, so one has lots of time to take in the scenery. Until you hit Idaho Falls. We stopped there for lunch, and found the highway quite a different scene when we headed further south. Lots of traffic. The landscape was also different, as irrigation has provided landowners the possibility of growing hay and other crops...probably potatos, for one thing. This is Idaho, after all.

At one point we drove through an area that took on a much different character. There were irregular mounds of what looked like lava, stretching out to the west, so we stopped at a rest area, and discovered Hell's Half Acre. A walking trail, suitable for all ages, has been built through this lava field, with lots of info boards explaining how this unusual landscape came about. An eruption was not the cause, but rather seepage of lava that took place about 4,000 years ago. The result is a harsh landscape, suitable for only a few hardy creatures and insects, as well as juniper trees and mesquite. It was a nice break, a 3/4 mile trek that gave us a little exercise.

Then we came to Blackhawk, where the Idaho Potato Museum is located. Since our good friend Ed Taylor is a major grower of more than 25 varieties of potatos, we had to stop for a tour. We found it very interesting. For example, I didn't realize that the potato came to North America only when the Irish arrived to escape the great famine that was plaguing their land. The potato had spread earlier all over the world,as the Spaniards discovered its usefulness in Peru, took it home, and from there it went everywhere, finally arriving in our part of the world in the 1800s. There was a wealth of information in the museum, all of which increased our appreciation for the plants that Eddie grows.This tour wasn't in our day's plans (because we didn't have any), so it was another neat discovery.

Finally, we checked the map and found a place called Lava Hot Springs, off highway 15 south and east of Pocatello. So we decided to go there, and found a wonderful little village built around...you guessed it...an area of hot springs. They have done a great job of making this an attractive center, with 5 pools that range from 102 to 115 degrees. We found a very nice KOA, went for a beer in a locals bar (where smoking is still allowed), and then enjoyed an hour in the pools, trying each pool to find the one with the most suitable temperature. The 105 was best for me, but Gail liked the hotter one. We may even stay here another day, as it would be nice to have a break from the highway before we head into Utah.

Another good day, none of it planned. The reward of freedom on the road. That's it for now. Happy Birthday wishes go to wonderful friends Ken Marshall and Joyce Brant. Stay tuned. More later.

Tuesday, Sept. 24 - I have good memories of spending time in Great Falls with my family when I was a mere stripling. So I was anxious to spend a little time at the shore of the Missouri River, which runs through the city. The Lewis and Clark Center seemed like a good place to start, so we found a very nice walkway along the river. A good little hike led to the Giant Spring, a bubbling pool which pumps 124,000 gallons of 64 degree water (F) all year round into the river. Part of it leaves the spring via the Roe River, which is one of the shortest rivers in North America (about a sand wedge shot long). A picture of the Missouri, the spring and the Roe is at the bottom below. The Missouri is a fine, strong, river, and claims to be the longest river in the U.S., even longer than the Mississippi. So you have right before your eyes the long and the short of it.

From Great Falls we headed through interesting but very windy country, with beautiful hills, old volcanic areas, mountains and plains, to Helena.  We went to the State Capital, where we toured the grounds and building. As with most state capitals, it is elaborate, beautifully designed, and is housed on lovely grounds. The Senate and House weren't in session, so we were able to peer in through the doors at the legislative chambers. Helena seems like a nice city, located in a big bowl surrounded by hills and mountains. A shot of the Capital is below.

In contrast to Helena, we now come to Butte. Labelled as having the richest mountain in the world (gold, copper and other precious mineral deposits), it took on the atmosphere of other get-rich-quick places, like Dawson, for example. The population swelled to 90,000 in its long-ago heyday, but although the population has dropped a lot, it is still a rough-around-the-edges busy city, as the mine is still producing, but to a much lesser degree, copper and meligdenum (sp?). The frontier aspect of the city is described best on an information panel put together by the State, which says "She (Butte) was a bold, unashamed rootin', tootin', hell-roaring camp in days gone by, and still drinks her liquor straight". Pretty interesting language from a government source. A picture of part of the open-pit mine is below.

We went on to easier driving, as we'd crossed the Continental Divide to flatter land bordered by lower hills, (although the wind was still blowing like hell), and arrived at Dillon in late afternoon sunshine. We're camped in the country on a property that has an old unused saloon as its feature oddity. Plus a pile of rocks in which is stuck a cemetery marker, which reads "Heer lies Les More, shot 4 times with a Colt 44..no Les, no More...rip". Montana humour.

Enough nonsense. It was a good day, some miles gained, the wind now gone, the evening cool but pleasant. We hope to head into Idaho tomorrow as we continue south. So stay tuned. More later.

Monday, Sept. 23 - Another week has gone by. So quickly! Now we're in Great Falls, Montana, on the last leg of this crazy journey. Summary: starting last November, 4 months on the road across the southern U.S. and up the West Coast to Pender Island; fly home; stay there for 4 months; train back to Vancouver; three days on Pender; r.v to Whitehorse and back to Edmonton; drive with the Marshalls back to Vancouver; cruise to Alaska; back to Vancouver; two days there, then drive back to Edmonton with the Marshalls; impose on them for 4 more days, then a day with friends the Dunns in Strathmore; and now on the road, heading for Utah, Colorado, and across the central U.S to home. Target: be back by October 15th.

We have to note a big thank you to Ken and Connie Marshall, who are a large part of why this venture is working. They couldn't have been more hospitable and kind while we were together, on the road, on the ship and at their home. They were no doubt glad to see the end of us; but will hopefully get even by returning to Ontario for an extended stay with us in future. We were also very happy to get to spend time with Kiera, their grand-daughter, and her parents Ashlea and Colin.

While in Vancouver, we also had another nice visit with Gail's sister Diane and her husband Dan, who always look after us so well. It was also great to have another visit with their daughter Shannon and her partner Stephen, who are expecting a child in January. They are quite excited about this change their life is about to take, which was great to see.

In Edmonton, we had a chance to visit with my cousins again, enjoying a breakfast with Terry and Mo, Wendy and Jo. It's always good to see them, to get updated on the various members of this large extended family, and especially to see Terry in such great health, not looking anything like the age she claims to be. We also had a nice dinner with old high school friends at the Jobson's, and again now feel up to date after all of the conversation of the evening. And finally, we had a lovely time visiting Rick and Diane Dunn at their home in Strathmore, just outside of Calgary. Rick and I solved many of the worlds' problems by agreeing on one thing: you can't believe anything you hear anymore, so let the chips fall where they may.

I mention these visits as a way of expressing thanks to all, and to also note how lucky Gail and I feel to have friends and family across Canada. We are truly fortunate, and treasure these relationships above any material possessions we have or could think of having.

For the past two days we have been driving across the prairies of Alberta and Montana. Having grown up in Alberta, we both have a deep-seated love of the wide open spaces out here, of the often rolling landscape (not nearly so flat as easterners visualize the prairies to be), the mountains that border Alberta, the golden and green fields, especially at this harvest time; the coulees that dip down to the stream beds that created them; the big sky with fascinating cloud formations when not totally a clear blue; the occasional old traditional grain elevators that still exist in some of the small towns that are linked along the rail lines; the farm homes and outbuildings protected by a surround of trees and hedges, wide open fields all around them; the small towns that are fighting to stay alive, populated now by retirees and the faithful few who don't want to leave; the bustling larger centers that have taken over from the small towns responsibility for supplies, equipment, medical care, personal services and entertainment.

Alberta has a proud history, but it is clearly hurting these days. The slump in the oil industry (barrel prices and pipelines) have put a dent in the economy that we Easterners really don't appreciate. We tend to think it's just spoiled Albertans crying the blues because things are a little tougher than usual. They still have no sales tax, after all, so how can it be so bad? But there are businesses struggling to keep afloat, and people looking for work who are having trouble keeping their homes afloat. No answers offered from this quarter...just a soft appeal to be aware that things are difficult here. Jason Kenney isn't the answer, although he thinks he is. Who knows where all of this will go? But the locals claim to a strong degree that the pipeline is badly needed to move the product to market, and until that happens, times will be tough. Enough said about that!

We have confirmed our plan to head for Utah, with hopes that we can visit some of the great scenic areas in the central and eastern parts of the state, particularly Arches National Park. We'll then head into Colorado for our first visit there

, to do some exploring before heading towards Kansas City, where we have also never been. Then on to St. Louis and beyond to finally get home by mid-October. A lot of country to cover in three weeks. We'll see how it goes.

That's enough for now. Will try to be more regular now that we're back on the road. Stay tuned. More later.

Sunday, Sept 15 - We're back. No internet for nearly 10 days, which in some ways was a nice break. But getting back, there were 15 pages of emails to clear. That being accomplished, here's a little update. Clearly, I can't cover the details of the trip to the north in one posting, but suffice it to say we had a great time with a lot of old friends, and thoroughly enjoyed our first time on an extended cruise.

The pictures below are just a little sample of the cruise, minus a hundred images of good times with our Lahr Reunion friends. Gail lounging on the deck was for two minutes, and was the only time she sat still for 7 days. Too many other things to do. Next is our ship, Holland America's Nieuw Amsterdam, a wonderful cruise ship with terrific service, loads of activities and no end of food.

The third shot is of the tongue of the Margery Glacier in Glacier Bay, where we got a good look at an impressive hunk of ice that is still advancing to the sea, rather than retreating the way many glaciers are. We calculated the tongue to be about 60 feet high, while the glacier extends back for 15 miles.
The fourth picture is typical of much of the scenery we saw along the route, with fine mountains and a generally quiet sea (although there were a couple of times when we were rocking fairly heavily).

In most of these frontier Alaska towns, there is a history of rough and tumble times, with brothels and bars the main businesses in the late 1800s.

Finally, we gained more appreciation of the culture and artistry of the local peoples, particularly the Tlingit (pronounces Klinkit) and Haida folks. They have a wonderful culture, matriarchal, well-ordered, generous, and with a strong drive to maintain and enhance language and customs.

We stopped in three places for shore experiences: Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan, each with its own history and highlights. We tended to avoid the tours laid on by the cruise line, choosing rather to do our own thing in each location, and that worked out well. If we were to do it again, we might choose one or two excursions, but for a first go at it, we enjoyed simply wandering the towns and taking in the history and scenery. The other highlight was the cruise into the fjord to see the glaciers, although it was a little disappointing that we didn't see much of the whales we had hoped to encounter.

The main highlight of the trip was the time spent with old friends from our DND days in Germany. Having a 7 day reunion this time allowed all kinds of time for visits and catching up, so it may well be that the idea will be repeated for the next reunion in two or three years time. Gail and I and the Garrity's will be heading up the next one, so will be looking for ideas for an eastern get-together.

That's enough for now, as I'm being called upon to do some dishes. After 7 days of doing no such thing, reality returns. More later. Stay tuned.

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