Homeward bound

After being frozen out of Yellowstone NP we realized that Glacier National Park likely would not be any more hospitable, at least until late July or August. We decided to head to Seattle WA to visit with family and went there via Grand Teton NP. While the weather in Teton was a little more inviting, it was cloudy the first two days so we hiked several of the great hikes. On the last day we biked a loop that included the roads through the park. We saw a lot bisons, but mostly just enjoyed the gorgeous scenery that was all around us.

While Seattle itself never seems to welcome us with sunshine it is such a beautiful city that we love it anyway and always enjoy our visits there. It could be the company we keep while we're there. We have such a wonderful time hiking with family. This year we hiked up to Domrie Peak. It was great hike with wonderful views of Mt Rainier and Lake Cle Elum.

So we reached the west! We also reached many of our goals. Along with seeing this beautiful country  another reason was to figure out our path forward for our next phase of life. But that is the Stoker's story, so I will let him tell it. For now we are heading east to St. Augustine.

Yellowstone NP and thoughts of home

I lost count of how many national parks, monuments and forests we have visited on this trip but this I know - each one is so beautiful and unique and a wonder to behold. But Yellowstone...ah Yellowstone is special. Maybe because it holds a special memory for me as I visited Yellowstone with my daughter about 12 years ago when she was just entering her teen years and I had just obtained my doctorate. It was a magical visit - just us girls. During that trip the weather was perfect, we found inexpensive lodging in the Park and Old Faithful put on an unforgettable show.

This trip things were different. It was the second week of June and freezing. We awoke to morning temperatures of 29 degrees and snow. We left with warnings by a ranger to be aware of icy roads down the steep mountain pass...'just keep it in first gear and keep it under 5 mph and you should be fine' he said as he flashed that NPS smile that has melted many a young woman's heart. But it was still beautiful.

Yellowstone is special. It has so many 'faces'. There are canyons, mountains, rivers, waterfalls, wetlands and hot springs. It is such a magical place. We saw bison (of course!), prairie dogs, mountain goats, prong horns, and .... black bears! It was with sadness - and my fleece and woolies under my pants - that we left the park - slowly -  keeping it in first gear!

Maybe it was the snow, maybe it was that we were unsure of our next destination, maybe I am tiring of wearing the same shoes each day, but as we left Yellowstone I began thinking it may be time to head home...or maybe not!

Kilroy was here!

Every baby-boomer knows Kilroy! For the various theories of who Kilroy was start with Wikipedia and go from there, but for this blog you just need to know it showed up during WWII and has since traveled the globe. At the time it was graffiti, but now it is Americana; and in another 100 years it will be historic. From our earliest  beginnings,we have wanted to leave our mark on this earth. We are drawn to carve our initials into trees, declare our love in hearts emblazoned on walls, draw paintings on buildings, or etch carvings into rock.

If these etchings or drawings are prehistoric and evidence of our nomadic ancestors we call them petroglyphs and pictographs, respectively. We create parks and monuments to preserve and protect them. Millions of people seek them out during their travels. We are intrigued by these messages from a long ago time. What do they mean? What were they trying to tell each other? There are as many theories as sites. Were they marking a trail? Showing where water could be found? Warning of a danger? Passing time? Or just leaving a mark that they passed this way?

As the explorers, pioneers and settlers made their west they also left evidence of their passage. Many engraved their names and dates alongside the petroglyphs left by prehistoric man. Inscription Rock at El Morro National Monument is the best example we have seen. On this large block of sandstone can be seen initials, names, dates, drawings and even poems from these early travelers...and a few from not so long ago.

Alongside the historic markings that we are striving to preserve are the initials and writings of modern visitors to these sites. Along the trails in the parks and monuments are signs warning us of penalties if we choose to deface these artifacts by leaving our own marks. Of course this seems fitting and right. We want to preserve our history for future generations. Clearly we should not deface or mar those markings and drawings of those came before us. But what about our travels... this era?

How old does one of our markings need to be before it is not graffiti? Is a picture or signature from the 1950s or 1983 considered old enough to no longer be defacement but worth preserving? If civilization endures for another 10,000 years will not those evidences of love everlasting be considered worthy of preservation and studied as we now study the petroglyphs? Won't monuments be built to protect them and programs funded to try to decipher their meaning? When does graffiti become historic?

The Grand Canyon - OMG!

'Nuff said!

The Grand Canyon is beyond words and beyond my photographic skills...but here are some photos anyway along with some tidbits of conversations heard along the various trails and scenic vistas.

Question asked of the Grand Canyon shuttle bus driver by tourist; bus was parked at a 'vista': 'Could you please tell me where I can see the Grand Canyon?' The rim trail and scenic outlooks provided by the Grand Canyon National Park are hard to miss. The bus driver was at a loss for words and merely pointed to the vista behind her.

While it would have been fun to 'hike through' the canyon, we are not prepared for overnight hikes and so limited ourselves to several of the phenomenal day hikes that were available. The first hike we did was called the Grand View hike and is probably the most challenging of the ones we did. It was very steep, narrow ledges, very rocky and not routinely maintained. In short - it was a blast. It was also the least traveled trail and we only came across a few other day hikers. Most of the hikers use this trail as a start for trips into the canyon and then come back a less steep and challenging trail.

Heard along the trail: Good thing I didn't miss that switchback!

The second trail we hiked was called the Bright Angel trail. This trail is used by burrows bringing hiking and river rafting gear up from the canyon bottom. While this trail can be steep, it is not narrow and generally well traveled. It is very dusty and gets hot as you climb down into the canyon with temperatures 10 to 15 degrees hotter than at the surface. This trail does have water available at 1.5 miles and 3 miles so it is a well traveled trail. We hiked a little past the 3 mile mark and then returned to the top.

Heard along the trail: It sure is harder going back up than coming down.

The last hike that took us into the canyon was called the Kaibab trail. This is also a wider trail that is used by burrows but there is no water and little shade along this trail so it is less traveled. It was quit hot the day we hiked it and we took close to the gallon of water per person that was recommended by the rangers. However, we saw several folks hiking this trail with no hats and carrying only a 650 ml bottle of water. Incredible. This past winter the Grand Canyon had received over 10 ft of snow and so we were presented with an incredible show of wild flowers.


Heard as we were approached the rim on our hike up (approaching 5 hours of hiking): 'We have been walking for over 30 minutes!'

We also hiked along the 12 mile rim trail. This is mostly paved and wheel chair accessible and offers the average visitor the most phenomenal views of the canyon along with a chance to get away from the lodges and shops.

Heard on the rim trail from a family of a young adult, father using cane and mother in a 'scooter'.
Mother: How much farther?
Son: It is 1.25 miles between sites, we have about 3/4 mile to go.
Mother: Argh... that far! I can't make it!
 Father: Huh - you are riding!

Travel On!

Grit in my teeth

Having lived in Florida for the past 11 years, I thought I knew wind as the Sunshine state is also known for its summer storm season. We have winds down in Florida. From June to October we all begin preparing for the possibility of a hurricane. We fortify our homes, buy extra supplies of water and junk food, turn on our weather radios and track any potential storms. We know that tropical storms begin with wind speeds of 39 mph and becomes a hurricane when wind speed reach 74 mph. When a tropical storm approaches, we board up our houses and if you live on a barrier beach you begin to think about evacuation. When winds speed become hurricane force we hunker down and don't come out until the storm passes. That is Florida.

Not in New Mexico. Apparently, the winds blow 40 to 60 mph very routinely every spring. If you talk to the locals - that is normal. Oh, today is nothing they tell you; after being battered around by 50  mph winds. I believe them - the other day they gusted up to 70 mph. The fine sand blows across the fields and gets into your teeth and hair; your eyes water and you realize your skin was polished clean... your daily skin dermabrasion without going to the spa! Road signs warn of 'dust-outs' as sand blows across the highways recreating what the 1930's dust bowl must have looked like. To escape the wind and sand we sought shelter by hiking the many beautiful canyons of NM, many formed from wind we were trying to escape.

Finally, I couldn't take the wind in my hair and grit in my teeth anymore and we high-tailed it for the AZ border. I thought I knew wind - but my hat's off to New Mexicans!

Kansas and Colorado

After completing the Katy Trail we took a shuttle back to our car. At the western terminus of the Katy Trail one can continue to follow the Lewis and Clark Trail - heading north, or you can pick up the Santa Fe Trail and head south west. There was still a strong NW wind blowing and heading north into colder (and possibly snowy) conditions didn't sit well with my Floridian acclimated body - so we decided to follow the Santa Fe Trail via the back roads. 

As we trundled into Kansas we were expecting flat and were happily met by some rolling hills (see the Stoker's blog, One for the Road). This Flint Hill area is simply gorgeous and we happily spent a couple of days hiking and exploring this area - especially the largest remaining section of the original prairie. It was enjoyable to stop in many of the towns that were stops along the Santa Fe Trail. Each town has done a lot to preserve much of their heritage and often have self-guided walking tours highlighting the local buildings of interest as well as providing the story of the native Americans.  Council Grove KS set the bar pretty high with a restaurant in a house dating from 1840's that serves authentic food from that period. I had the most delicious Indian bread, bison and a corn and bean salad. The restaurant is very popular, but only has two employees, a husband and wife, and so patience is the key. In fact - a lot of patience, we waited for over two hours for our meal.

As you would expect, the eastern portion of CO is high plains and in some respects resembles KS. Most of the towns along the Santa Fe rail line have fallen on hard times and much of the prairie is turned over to cattle ranching. We passed many cattle feed lots that were very harsh on all the senses - sight and smell being the main ones, and may have pushed me over the edge about whether to eat beef. Outside of La Junta CO on our way to Trinidad Co we came across a set of 'erratic' rocks that resisted erosion known as Monument City. These rocks rise 75 feet above the surrounding land and just spectacular.

Trinidad CO is a beautiful old town - one of the major stops for supplies and water along the Santa Fe Trail. In fact, main street is the old Santa Fe wagon trail and the old rail line still runs along the river. Trinidad also has a big mining history and so their was, and continues to be an interesting mix of cultures: Hispanic, Germanic and Italian. We ate dinner in an old church that was renovated and converted into an Italian restaurant. The food was excellent, but the singing staff were the hit of the evening. Each one had his own genre, so we went from opera to Elvis with some R&B in between. It was great. Next stop... New Mexico.

I would rather be a mule than a horse

A mule is the sterile offspring of a male donkey and mare. Mules are said to be stubborn and willful, while horses are thought to be easily trained or led. I never really gave this much thought and always just accepted this axiom. I knew that horses could be worked to death - you know - a real work-horse. I used to think this was a compliment - to work like a horse - to work hard - to be a go getter.

We have spent some time visiting various 'living museums' where people work at farms or homesteads from various periods in our history. I think the the most famous of these is Williamsburg VA. Another place is in TN and these people worked a farm using 1850s techniques. We stopped to talk to the young men plowing the field and breaking in a new mule. The mule clearly had had enough for a stretch and stopped. The young men said she likely would only plow another row or two and then would be done for the day. They explained that the mule was getting used to the harness and would stop when she began to get sore. Like a good athlete she builds up the muscles and endurance over time. I inquired why they didn't use a horse. They said that a horse was more expensive, ate more, and wasn't as smart. A horse could be worked to death, a mule couldn't. The mule has a reputation as being stubborn because they will not work beyond their endurance - they won't work themselves into the ground.

Like many I know, we pride ourselves on our work ethic. We think less of those that don't put in the hours, or grind out the widget. We often forget that we should work to support our life, instead we make our work our life.  Maybe it is because we want more stuff, maybe it is to feel useful, maybe it is because we define ourselves by our title. We all have reasons. But on this trip, I am learning to stop when my muscles hurt and that I need less stuff. I am learning that I no longer want to define myself by my work, I want my work to support my life. I want to have time to live my life. I am learning it is okay to not be so driven, I am becoming a mule.