Grand Lake

Thanks to Susie's wonderful accommodations, we left Niwot feeling refreshed and recharged. We skirted Denver to the west and headed into the mountains on the curviest interstate that I had ever been on: I-70. After dodging semis taking the bends at breakneck speeds we were happy to turn north at Idaho Falls which is still very much in Colorado. The much windier road to the north seemed much more reasonable since the speed limit was lower. We couldn't help but stop for pictures at the top of Berthoud Pass (11,307ft) which took us across the continental divide. There was plenty of snow and almost panoramic views of the rocky mountains.

Our gas mileage started to tick-up as we headed through Winter Park and onto Granby, where we took a sharp right towards Grand Lake. We snagged one of the only open campsites available at Green Ridge Campground within the Arapaho National Forest. We would be sleeping just below the dam that created Shadow Lake Reservoir and we crossed our fingers that the engineers that designed it were competent.

We left our tent and headed north into the eastern entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park. We purchased our "America the Beautiful" annual pass and found a nice picnic spot near a herd of elk. They seemed more interested in eating grass than turkey sandwiches which worked in our favor...

After we packed up, we headed north to follow the headwaters of the Colorado River to LuLu City, an abandoned mining town. The waters were really flowing and we slopped through mud in places and through streams in others. However, the sogginess was worth the amount of wildlife that we saw since we encountered a herd of bighorn sheep, three moose and a squirrel. We kept our distance, but one of the moose seemed interested in us...we kept moving on...

The ruins of LuLu city made a nice foreground meadow for the impressive mountains surrounding us. The surging Colorado River ran through the middle of the site. I can imagine that this would have been a picturesque location for the settlers this time of year and absolutely horrifying in the winter.

When we arrived back at our campsite, there was a sad looking couple from Missouri in need of a place to stay. Lisa offered that they could park their teardrop on our site since we just had the Prius. They were so happy that they offered that we could use their kayaks in the morning!

Naturally we started the next day with an early morning paddle on Shadow Mountain Lake. We just had to bring the boats to the dam and launch. Other than a single crazy person waterskiing in a wetsuit at 7:00AM, the lake was deserted. We paddled the length of the reservoir, almost to the village of Grand Lake before we turned around. We figured that if we were gone too long that the nice couple from Missouri would assume that we stole their kayaks and were living a new life on the lam.

After graciously returning the boats, we headed into town to hike the Adams Falls Trail which continued deep into Rocky Mountain National Park. Adams Falls was impressive, but only a third of a mile into the trail so it was quite crowded. We continued hiking for a few miles and admired the mountain meadows teeming with more moose! At this point we had seen more moose in the past two days than we had ever seen before. We even saw one at the post office in Grand Lake, that was a first class animal right there!

We were hungry when we returned to town and both managed to demolish some enchiladas at El Pacifico restaurant. The sun was hot overhead and we spent the afternoon reading, playing music and watching dysfunctional marital interactions taking place at the Shadow Mountain Lake boat launch. No better entertainment could be had on any reality TV show.

Once the sun had started to sink in the sky, we went to the Dairy King in Grand Lake to enjoy the thickest vanilla malts that we had ever experienced. We went for an evening hike on the Continental Divide Trail into Rocky Mountain National Park along the lakeshore that was accessible from our campsite. Off to bed early since we did a lot and ate a lot that day.

In the morning we departed the Green Ridge Campground and headed west on Route 40. We arrived in Steamboat Springs to find the forest service office closed and not much to guide us other than our Colorado Guidebook. Since the ski trails were mostly devoid of snow, we stuck to the summer activities. We first visited Fish Creek Falls, a short hike that was rewarded with a tall and rushing waterfall. We hiked to the overlook and then down to the refreshing mist at the bottom of the canyon.

We returned to town and had a quick bite at the Johnny B. Goode Diner on main street - the broccoli slaw was delicious! After lunch, we headed to Strawberry Park Hot Springs for a soak. As Lisa said: when in Rome, go to the baths.

It was a refreshing and interesting landscape as a series of exterior pools had been built from the hot spring on the hill. The steam was coming from the spring and we could only take the lowest pool. We watched some folks boiling themselves like lobsters in the highest pool. We could only assume that they had been there for years - cooked alive a long time ago...

With thunderstorms rolling in, we headed back to the Johnny B. Goode Diner since we had noticed an advertisement for "Pie Happy Hour" every afternoon. After scarfing down some pie, we were ready for the next step in our adventure. We are recharging tonight in Craig, Colorado and we will be off to Dinosaur National Monument tomorrow. If we see as many dinosaurs as we saw moose, I'll be very happy!

Eldorado

On our first morning in Niwot, we ate a quick breakfast and headed to Eldorado Canyon State Park for some morning hiking. With highs forecasted in the 90s, we figured that we should hike before the mercury hit sweltering level. It was a short drive from our posh accommodations and Susie decided to join us.

We thought that we took a wrong turn as we ended up on a dirt road in a neighborhood, but just as we were about to turn around we spied a sign for the park. Driving into the canyon through the giant rock cuts we immediately saw rock climbers scrambling over the sandstone cliffs. We parked the car and were thrilled to see the Zion-like spires surrounding us.

To get our bearings, we first hiked the relatively easy Fowler Trail which gave us expansive views of the area. We squinted into the sky trying to see the birds soaring high above us and admired the bravery of the rock climbers. After finding the edge of the park boundary, we made our way back to the Rattlesnake Gulch Trail which was quite a bit steeper. It took us to the ruins of an old hotel on the mountain which had views of the valley and the Continental Divide.

We spent the afternoon organizing our gear and made a field trip to Susie's barn to meet her horse: "Victoria." We took some videos of the horse trotting on the indoor track. With the heat, we spent the rest of the afternoon reorganizing our gear for the next leg of the trip and doing laundry.

Once things cooled down a bit, we took bikes to downtown Niwot to see "Soul School" perform in their biweekly concert series. What could be better? Food from a truck, a beautiful mountain view and good tunes.

Unrelated....but some funny signs that we have seen on the trip thus far:

"Discount Smokes"

"Used Forklifts - Cheap!"

"Gunbarrel Veterinary"

Roxborough and Golden Gate

After a light breakfast in the parking lot of the Goodland, Kansas Walmart (homemade granola and yogurt) we crossed the deceiving "Welcome to Colorful Colorado" sign. After seeing that, there is still at least three more hours of "Kansas" ahead before you reach the Rocky Mountains. We cruised on I-70, but finally turned off south of Denver and found suburban sprawl galore. The southern side of Denver looks like completely brand new construction since we were last here in 2013.

Our destination for the morning would be Roxborough State Park - a day use park at the foothills of the Rockies that was known for fantastic hiking. It did not disappoint as we gleefully parked the car - excited to see some indication of elevation change. The park was set around gigantic sandstone "fins" that uplifted at an eighty degree angle. It makes for some interesting shadows and bizarre landscape as you hike through them.

We hiked two easy trails in the park when some spotty afternoon thunderstorms started to roll in. We decided that it would be a good time to find a place to stay for the night. It was recommended that we go to Cherry Creek State Park but we arrived to find a full campground. The rangers helped us find an available site at Golden Gate Canyon State Park just west of Denver.

Heading up the mountains, we began gaining quite a bit of elevation on the switch back road. When we finally arrived at our campground we were at 9,300 feet above sea level. I set-up our tent amid spitting raindrops when I heard Lisa talking to the lone camper at the site next-door. She marched over to me and exclaimed that our neighbor has a cheese platter that she needed help with and that we would be eating our dinner at her picnic table. We brought our bowls over and had quite a spread that was leftover from a Stevie Wonder concert tailgate party the night before. We talked the night away and she came over to fill in some missing harmony parts when we were playing music after dinner. Thanks Francis!

The night was cool, but we stayed warm with hats and wool blankets. We awoke early and headed to Panorama Point for breakfast where we had a sweeping view of the Rocky Mountains. It was a majestic view and we donned our hiking boots to follow the Raccoon Trail - which is also open to mountain bikes and horses. We enjoyed our meander through the pine and aspen forest even though we were huffing at the high altitude.

After our hike we decided to head to Niwot (just north of Boulder) to visit our friend Susie who had recently moved to the area. When we arrived at the turn to the Boulder Canyon road, we found a sign saying that the road would be closed for four hours starting at 9:45. Our clock read 9:42 so we pulled in as the last car admitted before the road closure. It was a good thing too since the scenery resembled a national park. With no oncoming traffic due to the imminent blasting, we were able to gawk at the scenery.

We arrived in Niwot around midday excited to see Susie. She gave us the grand tour of the village and even brought Lisa to see a prairie dog city within walking distance of her house. We now have fifty pictures of prairie dogs...but some comfy accommodations for the night!

Kansas City

We awoke bright and early since our circadian rhythms seem to still be beating in eastern time. After consuming last night's dinner leftovers for breakfast, we headed to Independence, Missouri which we learned is wild about Harry:

Harry S. Truman that is. With shops closed in the early morning hours we wandered around the downtown area which would make a great setting for a remake of the Andy Griffith Show. At 8:30 we were first in the door at Harry S. Truman National Historic Site. The ranger on duty gave us tickets to tour his house and gave us directions to the house roughly five blocks away. We inquired whether we could walk and he looked at the clock and said we would have to hurry...

We headed out the door and made it to the house with twenty minutes to spare. Perhaps the ranger pictured us walking on our hands...

The Truman's house was an interesting mix of grandeur at one side and down-to-Earth living on another. Apparently the Truman's were responsible for the meager look, while Bess's parents were responsible for the more ornate architecture. It was an interesting and informative tour and unlike many historical houses, all the furnishings and items displayed were original to the dwelling.

After the park ranger gave us some tips on local Barbecue restaurants (they had a preprinted sheet...), we got in the car and headed to the Kansas City Jazz Museum. It was a small museum but had some great displays and artifacts including one of Charlie Parker's saxophones and one of Ella Fitzgerald's gowns. It also had a great section of interactive exhibits geared towards children which we naturally enjoyed toying with.

With tummies grumbling, we went down the street to Arthur Bryant's Barbecue and ordered two beef brisket sandwiches. After we ate, I declared that we had found my favorite place on the road trip already and refused to leave. I told Lisa that I was content to live the rest of my life cycle at Arthur Bryant's fine establishment but she dragged me out of there kicking and screaming.

We made one more stop in Topeka to see the Brown vs. Board of Education National Historic Site. It was in a formally segregated black elementary school within the city. We were both struck by the interesting history of integrating the teachers within the city since we were already familiar with the integration of the students. They also had a kindergarten classroom set-up as it would have been in the 1950s and the tiny wooden chairs were adorable (or adorabubble as Maya would say).

I spent the rest of the drive slumped in the passenger seat asking for Lisa to turn the car back towards Arthur Bryant's Barbecue...she never did and now we are sitting in Goodland, Kansas for the night - phooey!

At least my mental anguish and suffering inspired the following song while driving through Kansas today:

Cuyahoga Valley to St. Louis

After a picnic breakfast of buttered raw toast (ok, just bread..), we headed to Cuyahoga Valley National Park which we have driven by for years. We weren’t expecting much for the area between Cleveland and Akron, and we found out later that we visited on the fiftieth anniversary of the last time the Cuyahoga River was on fire… 

Not knowing where to go - Lisa spotted a van with a National Park Service logo on the side and exclaimed: “follow that van!” We did and parked at Brandywine Falls, a short boardwalk hike that led to an impressive waterfall. We spied it from all possible views before finding a map and going to the Boston Store Visitor Center to see what else we should do.

With map in hand, we went to the village of Peninsula intending to rent bicycles. After standing in a stationary line for a few minutes, we decided that it would be better to go for a walk. We walked the towpath of the Ohio and Erie Canal, admiring the locks that still stand along the way. There was a quarry path that we also followed through the woods that seemed to lack a quarry but was full of mysteries!

Cuyahoga Valley National Park was a nice surprise. It was full of trails and beautiful river scenery as well as an interesting human history. We would gladly stop again to stretch our legs.

Continuing west, our next stop was in the city of Dayton where we visited the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park. It preserved the site of the Wright Brothers’ bicycle shop and print shop where they first experimented with flight. They were truly jacks of all trades that would toy with whatever seemed to interest them at the time. There was also a portion of the museum that celebrated Paul Laurence Dunbar - a celebrated American poet from the late 1800’s.

We spent the night at the Terre-Haute KOA, intending to head toward St. Louis in the morning. I believe that Terre-Haute translates from French as “stupid boring cornfield.”

After eating a salad with polenta for breakfast we disembarked and headed to St. Louis for the morning. We admired the famous arch and went into the subterranean Museum of Westward Expansion. It was a newly updated museum that did a great job giving the history of the St. Louis region as well as the Lewis and Clark expedition and other journeys to the west. There was also an area that gave some interesting engineering and design information about the arch.

We grabbed some barbecue sandwiches at Caleco's, which seemed to be the only restaurant open in the downtown area. After lunch we explored the old courthouse, another National Historic Site which was the site of the historic (and most today would say bungled) Dred-Scott case and also home to some epic architecture.

Leaving downtown, we first headed to the Scott Joplin House, a state historic site that was unfortunately closed on Sundays. We snapped a picture and moved on. The Cardinals were playing this afternoon, but with rain in the forecast it didn’t seem like a nice afternoon to catch a game. We will save Busch Stadium for next time…

Our last stop before leaving St. Louis was at the former home of Ulysses S. Grant. It was his house as a younger man and included a horse barn by his own design. The interpreters gave a detailed history of his life as well as a tour of the house. He was certainly a product of the times in which he lived…

We then spent the afternoon blasting across central Missouri on interstate 70. We are spending the evening in Oak Grove intending to sink our teeth into some Kansas City Barbecue tomorrow. Sounds like we will have some sweet, tangy and spicy dreams tonight!

We have a drive through the plains tomorrow...I don't know what people think is so great about them:

Compass Point: West!

It has come time for our 2019 road trip which we have been planning on for months, but not really planning at all. Usually we have some parks picked as destinations but this time we are treating the trip as one great improvisation. We are heading west for the summer, but we don’t know how far, where our stops might be or where we may eventually turn around. The car is packed and we are ready to go.

As our friend Steve once said: “The hardest part of the trip is getting past your mailbox.” It was a whirlwind getting the house ready and finally hit the road on the evening of our first day. We made it as far as the orchard where we immediately dove into more chores (mowing and some light apiary work) before having a campfire dinner consisting of venison sausage (thanks Pat), baked beans and fried onions. We did dishes in the rain and spent the rest of the evening playing tunes before going to bed early.

We awoke early the next morning and decided that we needed some sage advice. Therefore, we went to the Port Henry Diner for breakfast to talk to our friend Don, one of the most well travelled people that we know about making some plans for the summer. He had some good suggestions for places to visit in Canada - we may hit those on the round trip since we are not currently pointed north. With our belts bursting, we waddled back to the car and started our drive through the Adirondacks.

We made slow but steady progress in the pouring rain with a short stop at the Adirondack Experience (formerly the Adirondack Museum) in Blue Mountain Lake to see some of the historical boats and lodgings of the region. We didn’t let the rain dampen our spirits, although some of the items in our car were not drying as quickly as we would like and were giving the vehicle a pungent musty aroma.

By the time we were sick of driving for the day, we pulled of the New York State Thruway to Cayuga Lake State Park on the northern tip of Cayuga Lake. I spent three summers at the southern tip of the lake many years ago, so it seemed like a nice place to while away an evening. We ate lasagna and played tunes on the porch of the picnic mansion while watching the herons glide over the misty lake. The campground was almost completely empty, se we enjoyed a quiet night of sleep.

In the morning we headed to Seneca Falls for a picnic on the river - grilled cheese sandwiches for breakfast! Yum - clearly we are trying to eat leftovers from home! We then went to the Women’s Rights National Historical Park where we watched an incredibly dated introductory video and found many of the exhibits repetitive and in need of repair. Perhaps it was a symbol of unfinished social change....but seriously, get them some funding! Maybe we saw whats left of women’s rights? They did weave together the history of the suffragette, slavery, civil war and temperance movements nicely however so good work there National Park Service.

The afternoon was spent driving through New York’s wine country and winding through the Finger Lakes region. It was a beautiful drive and the weather was much improved from the previous day. Our afternoon destination would be the Lucille Ball museum in Jamestown. Since we both grew up watching reruns of the "I Love Lucy" show on Nick-at-Nite, we were shocked to see the show's set in color. Did you know that their couch was blue? Me neither!

After a quick homemade taco salad in Jamestown's nearest city park, we made our way west through the tip of Pennsylvania and into Ohio to camp for the evening and Punderson State Park, just east of Cleveland. It seems to be a busy place on a clear Friday evening, although we don't quite fit in without a Winnebago. Dinner was couscous with a jar of salsa and black beans and garlic scapes (from our garden!) to doctor it up. It'll be off to bed soon - and we are planning to see Cuyahoga Valley National Park in the morning - a park that we have driven by for years.