photography – Page 3 – OsteoPraxis on the road

Kentucky 3. Trying to kill Steve (unsuccessfully..!!)

As we continued our journey south, searching for a spot that was accessible for the Daniel Boone National Forest…and had a site available over the long weekend (July 4th being a ‘thing’ in the USA…!!!) I snagged a site at a KOA campground in Corbin, Kentucky.

It took us close enough to another expat friend (Hi Steve..!!) who lives in North Carolina to make an epic drive (he drove up through the tail of the dragon) to come and join us for the weekend.

Searching for this campspot, I was really more concerned about finding a decent location to stop during America’s ultimate party (and fireworks) weekend…..not following the brief of the bourbon trail. So…I managed to book us into a town that bridges two counties….both of them dry counties…LOL…so much for obscure bourbon tours and tastings.

We made up for it by having Cumberland Falls State Park right next door. Between us we picked a hike, which according to Alltrails was a moderate, 9.3km, 2 and a half hour hike. …and enticingly named Cumberland Falls and Dog Slaughter Falls (we preferred to read that as Dogs Laughter Falls….it just felt less disturbing.)

An early rise to beat the heat and the parking lot had a few vintage vehicles show up before we started….

We admired them for a bit then donned our boots, hoisted our packs and set off……

The trail was lovely and followed the river….as we began there were multiple rafts and kayaks lowering into the water to follow pretty much the same path as us.

The path was rocky and up and down most of the way………

Many parts had stone, or wooden constructed stairs…the stairs blended with the environment by being extremely uneven and treacherously moss covered.

All requiring careful foot placement.

There were spots where we opened out onto the river again……and the rafts were not catching up to us…

The trail proved trickier than its promise…..lots of little ups and downs ……

A bit of rock clambering and a few spots where downed trees blocked the path requiring looping up and scrambling through some pretty dense forest.

We were grateful for the shade on this trail as the temperature climbed….. also grateful for having started early enough that we were not at the peak heat of the day.

But there were lots of rock formations and overhangs to stop and stare at….

….and many stone ‘staircases’ (mostly moss covered and slippery)

Many spots with downed trees that required climbing over …

….or completely re-routing around

…..and a few narrow paths to edge around…… (not my favourite)

Crossing one of the tributary creeks to the river we came across a well placed bridge. I am not a fan of jumping into the unknown…..so after the boys leapt ably across the rocks….

I chose to scramble down the mudbank (yes I am a big wuss..!!!! )

Hydrating amply as we walked (between the humidity and the sweat we were all pretty soaked by this point) we made it to the last little climb to Dogs Laughter Falls.

Very pretty. Other people had come in via a much simpler route so we left them to frolic in the cool water with just a mild spat of envy. Checking out some huge dragonflies and weird ‘ufo looking’ spiders….!!!

Time to trudge on back……

The return journey was made harder by the fact that we were now on tired legs (and on our first real hike of the season)…….

…the path always seems a little steeper…..the stairs more numerous….

..the coolness of the rock overhangs and falling water was most welcome.

But at last we returned to that long flight of stairs we recognised from MUCH earlier in the day. A couple more turns and at last the Cumberland Falls re-appeared…..

Suffice to say that the trail description lacked accuracy. Five and a half hours later we emerged muddy sweaty and ready to admit that it might take a few days before that seemed like fun.

Back at the visitor centre/parking lot……ice cream and large pops all round to lift us a little before heading home for showers and cold beer.

It was a good hike…but maybe a bit more than planned for a first outing of the season. Steve was a good sport allowing me to take frequent rests and slow the pace on the way back.

Thanks for joining us Steve…..I thoroughly enjoyed the company on the hike. (Does it seem like more fun now ?….or still too soon…!!! 😆)

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Kentucky 2. Bourbon County Bourbon, Paris Kentucky.

After a quick (google) search around Blue Licks….the nearest Liquor Store (Kentucky has this radical notion of selling liquor , wine and beer from the same store) was on Old Paris Road….in Carlisle. That alone made it worth the trip to see what kind of beer we could find.

(Nb. We lived in the town of Paris Ontario….for 30+ years…)

Whilst browsing the store we came across a Daniel Boone Settlement Rye Whiskey. It seemed to be one worth further investigation given the history we had found ourselves in the midst of.

We struck gold with our first official Kentucky bourbon stop on this bourbon trail adventure, Regeneration in Winchester KY. They have a partnership with a local restaurant, Beech Springs Cafe, making it a perfect lunch spot with free whiskey/moonshine tasters. (and the service was excellent too…!!) They make a whiskey made from rye grown on land Daniel Boone farmed……how cool is that…..and it tastes not half bad…!!! (yes I have a bottle.) Winchester is a lovely town…beautiful old brick buildings constructed between the late 1800’s to early 1900’s.

Winchester itself is a pretty little town…we had a wander up and down the main street….

Having passed around the edge of Paris, KY on the way to Regeneration..it was most fortuitous to find the other nearby distillery, Hartfield and Co…was located in the middle of the town of Paris itself. It seemed like too good an opportunity to miss…so we hot-footed back there and found a parking spot to run in and book ourselves on the tour.

This was a great one to pick….not only are they a young, family owned company (opened in 2016) but they are also the only Kentucky Bourbon Distillery actually operating in Bourbon County where it all began. (Pre-prohibition Bourbon County had 29 distilleries…!!)

It was a superb tour looking at the bones of this growing operation as they follow in the footsteps of many before them to becoming established in the bourbon world.

It speaks of the ingenuity, the grit and graft of this family as they make it work.

Tour done…..and thoroughly enjoyed……it was time for a bit more discovery in the town itself.

I did not know, but do now…!!….that Paris is a major thoroughbred horse town. Driving between towns takes you through the most amazing, lush, rolling landscape filled with horse farms, manicured fields dotted with beautiful horses, picture perfect fences and magnificent stables.

The sidewalks through town have the names and shoes of all the famous horses from here….

The most famous being Secretariat, who was owned by a local stable…and was buried locally after his passing.

Thus far the decision to stay off the beaten track and search for smaller, lesser known distilleries has paid off. Not being lead by the nose through glitzy tourist information, but happening upon obscure but fascinating historical bubbles has so much more appeal.

I will raise my glass to the next ‘who-knew-it-was-there’ spot.

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Kentucky 1. Blue Licks Battlefield State Park.

I’m reluctant to say that we start the travel season without much of an itinerary…but we do start with either an overall theme (ie. route 66 last year) or an end point, and evolving as we find stuff along the way.

This year the idea was to follow the Bourbon trail through Kentucky and Tennessee……or at least use it as a theme to give us a direction of travel.

Researching Kentucky suggested we needed to be down around Lexington to start. So my first search was for an interesting camping spot somewhere around there. I tried to get in to Buffalo Trace State Park…but sadly it was not available for the dates I needed…..(boooo…!!) Searching Kentucky State parks I happened on Blue Licks Battlefield Resort State Park…..the name alone was irresistible (if you know me you will not be surprised at this…LOL)

I was panicking a bit as we approached Kentucky as I had been told some stories about the roads, ‘S’ bends and steep up and downs…….and the State Park I had picked for our first stop all of a sudden looked like it might be the middle of nowheresville.

The road was thankfully much less dramatic than I feared……and we arrived at this lovely little park run by a super friendly ‘friends of the park’ group. (…and the online booking site for Kentucky State parks is one of the best I have come across..!!)

Blue Licks Battlefield was the scene of the last big battle of the Revolutionary war……and Daniel Boone fought here…and lost his son in the battle.

The Blue Licks name and the Licking River, as strange as they sound, turn out to be because this area is an old inland sea. The area has significant salt deposits which were a big draw for roaming mammoths and mastadons ( I love that..!!) then latterly roaming bison herds. The word Trace in the place name refers to it being an ancient path carved out of the landscape where these great creatures walked. eg Buffalo Trace.

In the early days of European settlements the salt deposits served to provide income and trading goods…..and with a bit more ‘civilisation’ , health spas.

Imagine our surprise to find the remains of the Arlington Hotel…!!!

Even tho temps were in the mid 30’s C (low to mid 90’sF) the intrepid explorers set off to follow the Licking River Heritage trail using Alltrails.

Another little factoid for this trail is that it is reputed to be roughly the trail that Daniel Boone took to escape from the battlefield.

oh…and then there’s the local flora..…Shorts goldenrod..….I have never seen goldenrod any other colour than bright yellow….this stuff was very pretty…..

We set off early to follow the trail…it was not long, but the day was promising much heat and humidity.

Last year we had little opportunity for actual hikes and I had forgotten to carry a walking pole with me…..not for walking but on forest trails the lead person is constantly walking into lone spider silks that whisper across your skin…..carrying the big stick in front of your face helps reduce the unpleasant feathery yeuch factor on this one.

At the outer curve of this loop hike there is a reproduction of Tanner Station. A pioneering time operation to extract salt from the local salt springs…..and a little photo op.

It was a little more than an hour walk but we arrived back absolutely soaked between the heat and the humidity.

The park has a great little museum on site. An easy stroll from the campground and a good afternoon to be in air conditioning…!!!!

The ranger in the museum was great……very engaging. He showed us some of the artifacts he has reproduced using techniques from the first peoples of the area.

This is a tulip poplar bark basket.

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To Ontario and beyond.

From Chicago it really is only a short hop to our little secret spot outside Paris, Ontario and our ever patient and generous hosts who allow us to tuck in behind their barn when we visit.

Ontario treated us to some impressive stormy weather ………

…… a gentle introduction to the summer heat….a catch up with a dance at AIM dance studio…..

….a little bit of tree surgery to make space for us to pull out without sacrificing anything on the roof …..

a trip to Buffalo,NY for the Allentown Arts Festival…..

No pictures of any of the art work cos this is a juried art festival with many unique artisans. Definitely worth the visit as art festivals go..!!

…and of course, the opportunity to drop in and visit with some people. If we missed you on this visit we will catch you next time.

A long time friend moved house to a little place just south of Windsor, Ontario allowing us to break our journey as we headed south. Boy oh boy its humid in that area…but beautiful and lush.

First morning we woke to the plague of fish flies that are apparently a local phenomenon…..the whole sde of the trailer, truck and every house in the neighbourhood was covered….

We stayed a couple of nights to admire her new place and the landscape around Amherstberg, Leamington area, then headed on down across the Ambassador Bridge for a return visit to one of our favourite Boondockers Welcome hosts just north of Columbus, Ohio. Thanks Din…great to see you.

It was a little warm in Ohio…..the cat has begun his summer shed..(he much prefers travelling in the truck on days like this)

One little creepy chap stowed away and made it to Ohio without the AC…!!

But he is not coming with us to Kentucky…!!!

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Deja vu….all over again.

Starting the process of planning our route east for this years’ travel it became apparent we would be in the US over Memorial day weekend…so threw an inquiry out there to see if an invite could be arranged back to the party we accidentally found ourselves at last year. Cathy and Russ, our Boondockers Welcome hosts in Crete, Illinois responded positively..so the end date of the journey was set…I just had to fill in the dates in between.

This spot was the perfect jump off for us last year as we tackled Route 66.….and explored some of the tourist features of lakefront Chicago. Scott was soooo disappointed last year when ‘the Bean’ was shrouded in construction tarps and fences ( for maintenance and repairs to the walkways)….so here was a chance to go back and actually see it this time.

So…a year on from the epic journey of 2024…..we found ourselves back in Chicago’s Millennium Park on Memorial Day.

……and able to walk, unimpeded, right up to the Bean. (The ultimate selfie spot…!!!)

Last year, after walking over to the sign at the official beginning of Route 66 to take the picture, we had booked the tour at the Frank Lloyd Wright House and Studio, only to find that our path was completely blocked as State Street along with all its’ immediate side streets had been closed for the Memorial Day Parade.

This year with time to spare, we walked up to watch the parade itself….stopping, of course, to take that picture of the sign again…..and for some arty shots of the ‘L’ tracks. (with a few shuddering memories of being jammed in traffic there last year)

The side streets were all blocked off using the city snow plough fleet….!!!

….and could not miss the opportunity to take some pictures of the main street in downtown Chicago at noon on a Saturday…!!!

Yes…me in the turquoise shirt…!!!

We were not quite sure what to expect of the parade……but it turned out to be a very impressive display of marching bands and junior ROTCs

…….there were many groups from neighbouring states….

….and an overwhelming sense of respect from the onlooking crowd…..

….it seemed like each individual youth group were wearing identical, highly polished, black patent leather shoes……that’s a lot of shoes….!!!

And of course…the highlight of this stop….the Drunkin’ Seagull. A really terrific group of people…and more than a few laughs were had. Scott was appointed to hoist the sign for this years’ official season opening…..

Many thanks again Russ and Cathy….we will see you again soon…!!! 😊

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Answering the call of highway once more.

With warmer weather and the snow melted off the driveway, the time was approaching to pull that big silver beast forward and load her up for another summer of fun and frolics.

A little wiser after the problems and ‘on the fly’ fixes at the beginning of last year we had been on a little shakedown trip to Aspen Crossing again. A fun weekend with some folks we met last year ….and the check that all systems were go and nothing was leaking (last year it seemed like everything was leaking…LOL)

I can’t believe that we completely failed take any pictures …!!!

So back to pulling the trailer forward to load up….

..as we pulled forward one of the tires deflated a bit more with every revolution……

A four inch nail was sunk deep into the tire…..bear in mind this was at 4pm on the Friday of a long weekend. We quickly called the local tire shop and they (fortunately) were still open…we just had to get the wheel off and get it to them.

A chance to try out the ‘lego block’ levellers instead of jacking……it worked a treat…crisis averted.

I had booked us a couple of sites with Harvest Hosts/Boondockers Welcome so at the top of the driveway we turned right and headed for Sasketchewan ….almost immediately we left the Southern Alberta warmth and sunshine and entered the driving rainstorm that would accompany us for the next 4 days straight.

Our first stop in Saskatchewan was a Boondockers host. Unfortunately not much chance for socialising here with the continued howling wind and relentless downpour. We were highly amused when the lady opened up the shop to show us the power outlet and there was a pickleball court right there…..LOL…

Day 2…still in Saskatchewan….still in the driving rain (our gas consumption driving into an easterly headwind was frightening…!!)

Next stop the Ireland Bison Farm. There would be no walks around the bison paddock for us (lots and lots of mud…!!) but the spot for us to stop overnight was high and dry and level (level is important ‘cos it means less fussing around with the aforementioned ‘lego blocks’ to get us to where we are not doing a drunken stagger uphill to get to bed…!!)

In the paddock across the driveway was Tulip……the bison calf. Apparently when they have twins one is abandoned….she was the short straw twin and so was being hand reared…..very friendly…very cute.

The rain stopped briefly as we crossed the border into North Dakota at Elmore…yes it is as remote as it sounds. Not another vehicle in sight…easy crossing.

Our next destination was just east of Fargo, North Dakota….across the state line into Minnesota….. Junkyard Brewing in Moorhead MN.

They have a lovely big flat parking area…unfortunately after the many days of rain it was mostly mud.

The beer was good, the service friendly and this brew pub has a fabulous little Asian fusion/street food style restaurant next door called Sol Street….hands down the best chicken sandwich I have ever eaten.

Next day was another brew pub (sensing a theme….!!!😁) Sand Creek Brewing in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. A great little brewery in a great little town. The lovely old brick building actually started its life as a brewery but due to prohibition and many other changes in the area, it transitioned through many identities before being restored to its original function. We were hosted by the brew master for a very friendly private tasting good fun.

When we left the bar with our now full growlers for consumption later….the rain had stopped again so we took the opportunity to wander downtown in this charming little place.

We happened on a Scottish pub, the Stag and Lion, on the main street…..and it was open…so of course we had to go in.

This resulted in a very pleasant evening with the owner/bartender Rod McGillvray…a man of Scottish heritage from Chicago who supplied us with hints and tips of places to eat and things to see in Chicago…..because Chicago is the next stop……..

….and so the travel season kicks off for us..I can’t promise the kind of crazieness we found last year…but who knows what we will find along the road….don’t touch that dial…. 😊

Spring is in the air…Winter review

The saga of the giant pit continues, if it were on Netflix we would be signed up for multiple seasons. So after a fall season of filling the pit (who needs a gym membership!!!) with winter closing in and snow on the ground it was time for another burn ….

With less snowfall than previous years it took a bit of extra effort to get the truck stuck in the snow (Editor, I’m always willing to make the extra effort). This necessitated us abandoning it near the top of the driveway and trekking home…..( and missing pickleball….😮 !!!)

…..to be pulled out the next morning by our very kind neighbour, Andrew, with his tractor that is much bigger than ours ( and it has a heated cab….which ours does not..!!)

We tore out the wood burning, smoke churning fireplace……

…….and replaced it with a very pretty and much more efficient propane stove on its own thermostat.

…..and Scott set to his creative task of using the lovely grain washed lumber from the unholy pile at the bottom of the garden…..to build a little masterpiece behind it.

It turned out that our horrific smoke issue was an incorrectly installed chimney….but you could not tell that without pulling the whole thing apart. It was still satisfying to find this out…especially since we also discovered absolutely no insulation in the walls in that section of the house ( which is a real problem at -46 Celsius). Another good thing to have solved, especially since the next drama was the boiler failing (house is heated with in-floor heating) …in December……!!! Big drama as the CO monitor screaming was our first indication of the problem.

The short version of that story being that the new propane stove served us well (kept us from freezing in December) and two weeks later we had a nice new modern boiler installed and operational.

Ever Mr Reno…Scott also spent the winter tearing apart our master bedroom with a bit of whacky design in every corner……well nobody would expect it to just look ‘regular’

I am given to understand that the attic part of the insulation job was most enjoyable…(….NOT…!!!…LOL)…it certainly was not mood enhancing….!!!!

Remember the burn pit?…..well it has its own story this year….the short version being that the crew who demolished the old High School in the town of Milk River rented our burn pit to dispose of the lumber from that demo job. It saved them time, diesel and manpower NOT having to truck it to Lethbridge. They were superb to deal with….and at the end of it all….filled our original pit in, beautifully graded the land around it, and dug us a nice new pit over by the next section of the woodpile.

Google earth very conveniently posted an updated satellite image this year…..so the first image is from 2021…before us. The second image is the new one, with the woodpile circled in red….and the burn pit in blue.(the green line is our property boundary.)

Ironically….less than two weeks after the image was posted…that old pit was filled in and graded and we now have a new (but similarly gigantic..!!) pit to the left of the blue ring…!!!

With all that done…now all we need to do is pack up and get on the road….so lets get to it……😁

Eat Dirt……Patricia Rodeo 2024

The Patricia Rodeo has become one of our favourite events of the year to attend, with travel plans always worked around being available for Labour Day weekend. Fortunately it’s not far from where we live now.

This year we had also recruited another friend from Ontario to come camp with us ….. so we had our Russian Airstream friends, the youngest daughter and now one more camper in our circle. Should anyone else wish to join, this weekend does not disappoint.

This was the second year with the Rugged Rodeo crew involved….and with the new permanent lights in the arena (replacing the smaller portable ones running off generators) the order of events now extends into the evening on Saturday.

The flavour has changed slightly with less volunteers available as the experienced old guys age out of many essential positions and the shrinking numbers of young ones filling their spots.

Stock handling is not a job for those without experience or feint of heart, but an important skill set for the safety of the animals and the competitors. (would you take a rope off a bull or a bronco as it leaves the arena..!!!??)

There are so many great pictures Scott takes, often rolling around in grass and muck to get ‘the shot’, it’s difficult to select those to include….and worse (for me) which ones don’t make the cut.

Here we go with a bit of bull riding, bronc riding……….

…….wagons and chariots…..

…and, always a fan favourite….the mini’s…….

Those mini horses have no idea they are mini…….they run hard…..!!!!

This whole calf roping thing just blows my mind……how do you catch a running calf, with a rope…from the back of a running horse…….and without hurting the calf……The whole thing is impressive…!!!

Then we get to the Wild Horse race…….it begins in a very orderly fashion…….

….then quickly descends into chaos…….

The girls barrel racing….. those horses are amazing……and the teamwork between rider and horse…..wow…..

Of course there has to be a bit of mutton busting……

….and my oh my….those little itty bitty kids on those big horses……those are some tough kids….

The kids are fantastic with the roping as well…..

…and just in case the wild horse race wasn’t crazy enough….the kids have a go at the wild ponies. They don’t have to ride them around the track….just get a body on the back of the pony….but the tenacity of some of those kids hanging onto those ropes……..!!!!

There are four rounds of the wild horse race…there’s a 6 minute time limit to saddle the horse, attach a rider and round the track. Fastest one wins……it’s surprising how many of them make it. …….but there’s always a bit of trampling too….!!!

We finish up withe a bit more track action from the chariots and wagons again……Scott got himself a few face-fulls of muck this year……

Its a great community event where you see good people come together to make this thing happen……can’t wait to be back again this year……

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Looks like that’s all folks for the travels and travails of 2024…..we will be on the road again soon enough for more fun and frolics……see you there.

2024 Route 66 Adventure. The Road home.

It was late July and had been a long journey to finally arrive in California. As we were making plans for the journey north and back to Alberta there were many possibilities of sights to take in on the 2200km journey home (It seemed like the whole route 66 trip took us in an arc where we were always 2200km from home…LOL)…..but…we had reached the point where, after around 15,000km, we just wanted to go home.

Between us and home was a long haul up the impressive grades of Mount Shasta..again and then up through Oregon to a very lovely stop on the banks of the MASSIVE Colombia River, Umatilla…..

There is a small municipal campground at the marina on the river bank, just below the bridge across to Washington State.

We were treated to a lovely sunset on the river and some very friendly fellow campers…….(super clean showers and lots of hot water……that’s important y’know..!!)

We had some plans for a stop again before Montana….but this time when we hit the road……..we just kept going and a 12 hour drive across the more mountainous part of Montana rewarded us with a return to bricks and mortar…. a shower and bed at home.

Don’t get me wrong…we love the trailer and the travel….but it was time.

The Route 66 adventure was officially done.

Once home……time for a little reflection on the trip.

We met some great people along the way, had some spectacular boondocking sites in from the farm we stopped at in Michigan to the superb folks that invited us to the Memorial day party outside Chicago, Tulsa, Oklahoma city….you folks know who you are……

We met a Copperhead snake in a Thunderstorm, and a big Diamondback rattler in New Mexico. Had some great food, had a long list of repairs along the road…from water tanks to air conditioners to fuel pumps….

…many mishaps that could have been way worse….but always reliable, friendly people who went above and beyond. We thank you.

Favourite things.

From the very beginning of this epic journey many things went ‘not according to plan’…..from the scaffolding around ‘The Bean’…..and the memorial Day parade that blocked us from getting to the Frank Lloyd Wright workshop tour, which led us unexpectedly to the birthplace of Hemingway Museum…

But it did not dampen the mood as we were actually there…..the start point of Historic Route 66.

It did highlight the complication of navigating the old road across modern times.

We were over-awed with the murals, the giants, the crumbling signage and abandoned and dilapidated buildings that marked the rise and following redundancy of the road that changed everything

Crossing into Missouri and the Gateway Arch (actually going up inside to the viewing platform..!!) was a highlight.

Missouri offered some great little treasures…

the discovery of frozen custard for one….!!!

……. ending in Joplin, Missouri to take one of our first big side trips to Crystal Bridges, Arkansas.

The other ‘must see’ impressive(and unexpected) sights from thr Joplin stop was Red Oak II

Reading the books and searching the internet barely prepares you for the real enthusiasm people have for this snapshot in modern American history. Crazy legs Dean Walker in the visitor centre as we cut the corner of Kansas was the epitome of this. So many communities rely on this long tarmac ribbon for their tourism economies, they really embrace it.

Tulsa was the best strip of surviving neon….and the first slow roll drive to accommodate the intrepid blogtographer…..(and Tulsa had fraozen custard too…!!)

Oklahoma city and the bomb memorial…cowboy museum and the red barn

Texas and Amarillo yielded our least favourite campground, and the most disappointing attraction of the route….the Cadillac Ranch was such a let down, muddy and covered with litter. Amarillo itself had fabulous Mexican food…Oh….and the big Texan….

Crossing Texas we passed the midpoint in Adrian, TX and made our way to Tucumcari, which had one of our very favourite moments with Mariachi Elvis. It also is the source of the Radiator mountain in the Pixar Classic, Cars

The good fortune to arrive in Tucumcari for the ONLY event that happens in that town for the year……bonus being Mariachi Elvis.

Entering New Mexico is the point where the history changes from being the evolution of Route 66 from 1926, to a much more ancient history. We absolutely loved New Mexico from Santa Fe up in the mountains, the petroglyph cliff,

Albuquerque catching a Lyle Lovett concert and wandering the ‘Old Town’, bumping into the ‘Breaking Bad’ connections,

the guys at the Wheels Museum.………….

…..to the Lava fields and Sandstone Bluffs of El Malpais National monument. (and the bat outflight….that was a great moment…!!)

…and then catching up with Hemingway again in Villa de Cubero

Arizona continued with the same ancient history ……the Petrified Forest, Walnut Canyon and its adjoining monuments, and then a bit of more modern history making with the iconic ‘corner’ in Winslow Arizona ( got you singing it again….LOL)

In Arizona we stopped in Kingman, another part of the Cars inspiration. From there we did the fabulous loop up through Oatman to wrestle with some donkeys…!!!..it truly is another world up there.

..and doubled back up the road for lunch at the Roadkill Cafe in Seligman

The last stop was in boiling Barstow with a few more surprises on the historic quest……Scott was very taken with the burned down hotel…..

….and ….of course…that last drive in to Santa Monica pier at 5.15am for the sunrise….and the end of ‘The Road’

….and so this particular story is complete. It was a blast….I have no earthly idea how anyone does this route in two weeks….but thats the way the plan on the official Route 66 map lays it out. We were exhausted……fulfilled to overflowing but exhausted…..with many more tales I just couldn’t include them all, but next we meet in person, we’ll have stories to tell.

Movie star lifestyle and the T-bird.

These down days in California…..we actually stayed in one spot for a couple of weeks….were very welcome. It doesn’t take long to learn your way around, correct highway exit for the campground or grocery store and back road home from there, or just being in the correct lane to make that turn without trauma in the endless congestion.

We did a rare ‘divide and conquer’ day where Scott drove in to SF to meet up with an old university pal…..and I stayed in Sonoma and spent the day touring wineries in Paul’s 1957 baby blue Thunderbird convertible. I know….you feel bad for me…..!!! (Editor, her ladyship slipped very easily into the movie star lifestyle, while I trekked around Downtown SF with Derek. Hit all the tourist spots and ended up in the ‘Tenderloin’ district, only scary if you didn’t grow up in Fife.)

Paul has always been an automotive enthusiast…..but he has collected some real gems. There’s the restored 1943 Ford GPW, very similar to a Willys Jeep……which is an experience….( Scott got to drive….I didn’t dare…..)…..and the T-bird which is truly a thing of beauty.

Both vehicles arouse the same kind of response from other drivers on the road….and pedestrians in the town……they turn heads and illicit many smiles and waves. Reminded me of driving my Mini or pulling the Airstream, People just love to see these icons.

It was great fun…..and a terrific excuse to go for ice-cream in the town square where we were joined by one of Paul’s vintage car friends ….with her rather supercool car for a bit more head turning….

…..and in truth…the winery trips were on foot. Paul, very conveniently, lives 10 minutes walk from two very acceptable California vineyards. I’m not actually sure there are any I would turn down.

All very civilised I have to say….!!!

Our next trip out in Sonoma was a gem of a trail up through the grounds of the old Sanitorium, the “Sonoma Developmental Center” which closed in ~2018. Its original name when it was founded in the late 1800s was the somewhat non-PC “California Home for the Care and Training of Feeble Minded Children”.

After an epic effort by an army of volunteers the grounds of this former centre were cleaned up after many years of neglect and added to the neighbouring Jack London Historic State park in Jan of 2024.

The trail through the grounds reveals a more compassionate approach to care than the name of the place might suggest. Play areas, outdoor activity areas….and wilderness camp areas for both residents and staff. Not all residential care was cruel and inhumane.

It was a lovely afternoon hike/walk….mostly shaded..and through some big ( if not giant) redwoods….always such impressive trees. There were many which had burned out in the past and several new trunks were emerging from the old root stock.