Thursday July 26, 2012

Not too much to report today – we started out at 76 degrees in MO and it is 78 degrees here in Ohio, 12 hours and 600 miles later.  We ran into a bit of traffic here and there, but we have settled in for the night about 60 miles south of Cleveland.  We hope to get to Keuka Lake, NY by early afternoon tomorrow.  The biggest change we had noticed coming east is that the number of trees has increased dramatically.  We had a pretty uneventful day – the kids watched their last movie.  We are out of books on CD so they spent some time drawing their dream sports cars.  They have each designed one that they expect to build when they become rich (although we don’t have any details on how they will become so).  We just had dinner and the boys are showering before bed.  We have a few more chapters in our book so we try to read a couple tonight and maybe I can finish the book in the car when I am not driving.  The boys are looking forward to seeing their parents and sisters and cousins at the lake tomorrow.  I don’t know what the internet access is at the lake so this may be the last blog for the trip.  We plan to be home on Tuesday and then have my brother, Russ, and Cathie, his son, Tristan, and wife Dee and twin babies come in on Wednesday at noon so will have to do a quick dusting of the house when we get home.  We also will be exchanging Dan for Ella, as August is girl cousins’ month.  We look forward to seeing our local friends and sharing our pictures of the trip.

Wednesday July 25, 2012

We got an early start this morning and made good time.  We got to downtown Laurence at noon.  We found Buffalo Bob’s Ribs and it was the same one we had gone to many years ago with Amy when she was going to KU.  We had ribs and pulled pork sandwiches.  Dan said the ribs were great!  They gave each person enough fries to feed a family of six!  We found our way to the university and showed the boys where Amy had gone to school and then found the house she lived in when she was here.  We got back on the highway and kept driving east.  There was a bit of traffic in Kansas City – we thought it was a bit early for rush hour, but many they start earlier here and get out early.  The truck registered 108 degrees at one point!  We drove until we got to within 60 miles of St. Louis and stopped for the night.  We just came back from dinner and Theo is in the pool as I write this.  Dan and Alex decided to watch a bit of TV in the room with Dave.  It is 7:30 at night and the temperature is still 103!  We were very grateful to be in an air-conditioned truck in this heat.  We will start a bit later tomorrow so as to not get snarled in the St. Louis morning commute.  I’m not sure where we will stop tomorrow night.  Happy Birthday to Susanne! 

Tuesday July 24, 2012

We got up early this morning and had a quick breakfast before getting on the road.  We traveled through more of the San Juan National Forest and then over the Colorado Rockies.  We went through one pass that was 10,837 feet and also crossed the Continental Divide again.  We traveled north on the other side of the Rockies for a while before turning east.  We had a bit of snafu trying to get to I-70, but after a bit we did get going correctly.  That confusion did cost us about 45 minutes so we didn’t get as far as we had planned.  We passed many wheat fields and then came the dreaded CORN!  We crossed into Kansas and got as far as Colby.  We went to dinner at Montana Mike’s and everyone had a delightful dinner.  The boys have showered and Dave and I will do so in the morning.  We hope to get to Lawrence, KS tomorrow to show Alex and Theo where their mom went to graduate school. 

Monday July 23, 2012

We got up early this morning and got on the road.  It is only 47 miles to Durango, but there was some road construction and we didn’t want to be late.  We took the narrow gauge steam train from Durango to Silverton (3 ½ hours one way).  It rose from Durango at 7000 feet elevation to Silverton at 9200 feet.  It was a lot of fun, but I can certainly understand why people complained about riding the train in the old days – we were covered in soot!  We had some great views of a river (the Animas) with lots of rapids most of the way and passed mountains and canyons. We also passed through the San Juan National Forest.  We saw someone go by on a zipline and a glider in the sky.  When we got to Silverton we had two hours for lunch, which left us plenty of time after eating to look around this small Western town.  There was a 10-year-old boy near the station who was selling rock samples out of a wheelbarrow.  Dave bought a piece of polished agate.  Back on the train, we saw views from the other side of the train.  Everyone had a good time, but we did hit some rain on the way back to town.  We drove a few blocks to our hotel and then went to the restaurant next door for a light dinner.  Alex and Dan had buffalo wings and it was worth the price of admission to watch them eat them!  They were very spicy and the boys had watery eyes and sweaty brows as they ate their full.  They each went through lemonade, a couple glasses of water and a glass of milk.  Dan said they should use the sauce instead of Novocain when having dental work done!  Alex said they were the spiciest things he has ever had and he ate twice as many as Dan!  We walked back to the room and we are cycling everyone through the shower.  Theo will be last as he wore flip-flops on the train and his feet are BLACK!  I will read a chapter of our book tonight and then we will all go to sleep.  We are heading back east tomorrow.

Sunday July 22, 2012

We all showered this morning and then went to breakfast.  We drove the 9 miles to Mesa Verde and then another 15 miles to the Visitor Center where we got tickets for Cliff Palace.  Our next stop was to pick up box lunches at the cafeteria, as our tour would not start until 12:30.  We drove to the museum and watched an informational film on the people of Mesa Verde and then looked at the exhibits on display.  We walked down to Spruce Tree House, a small area of cliff dwellings built into the ledge below the mesa.  The kids got to go down into a kiva (round religious/ceremonial hole built into the ground accessed by a ladder).  We then went to picnic before our tour.  The lunches were pretty good: turkey sandwich, sweet potato chips, granola bar, banana, and a bottle of water.  Cliff Palace was so much larger than Spruce Tree House!  They think there were 23 clans living there, as there are 23 kivas in evidence.  The people grew corn and squash on top of the mesas and dried the corn for winter.  They have found some 200-year-old dried corn in some sealed pottery that was still edible!  They also ate small rabbits and mice for protein.  Because of the surrounding area and lack of large trees, they probably did not have access to large game.  We had a lovely day at Mesa Verde.  Back at the hotel, we went to the pool so the boys could have some fun.  It is thundering and lightening outside again this afternoon so we are again happy that we are not tenting in this kind of weather.  The boys have been writing in their journals although both Theo and Dan have fallen behind.  Alex is the only one up to date, but hopefully the others will catch up on the return trip.  We saw a BBQ place at the edge of town and were thinking about stopping there for dinner tonight, but when I inquired at the desk, the clerk said that it has been closed for years.  She suggested another place that we will try.  We just got back from dinner and, boy, are we stuffed!  Alex and Dan had ribs, Theo had chicken, Dave had steak and grilled shrimp, and I had pulled roast beef.  Everything was very good.  The boys have just showered and I will read to them in a few minutes.  We will have to get up early tomorrow as we have reservations for an early train ride in Durango.

Saturday July 21, 2012

Happy Birthday, Lolo!  We got the boys up early this morning, as we knew it would be a long day in the car.  We carried all the bags and backpacks to the truck and Dave said he would pack the truck while we went for breakfast.  He is feeling much better, but didn’t want to take any chances.  He had another bagel for breakfast.  We noticed yesterday that the breakfast meals were huge so today we ordered two meals and split them.  We were plenty full so that was a good choice.  We got started out of the Grand Canyon and headed to Mesa Verde.  Unfortunately, we realized this morning that the boys had not gotten their Grand Canyon stamp for their passport books and it was too early for the Visitor Center.  I told them that they should each design their own Grand Canyon stamp, so we shall see what they come up with!  We stopped for lunch in Tuba City (Alex and Theo were hungry).  Do you kids remember Tuba City and the Taco Bell incident?  We didn’t want to repeat history, so ate at a Sonic!  The rest of us waited about a 100 miles and stopped again so the rest of us could eat.  We finally got to Four Corners and I took photos of the boys standing in four states (Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah).  On the road again, Alex and Theo talked to their family who had just come back from Greece.  Dan then called to wish his mom a happy birthday.  We drove on until we came to Cortez.  We could see a huge thunderstorm up ahead with massive lightening strikes so we opted to stop at a motel instead of trying to set up the tents in this weather, as Mesa Verde is only nine miles ahead.  We will go out to eat in a bit.  The boys are deciding who will sleep on the floor, as there are only two queen beds in the room and no cots available and these guys are too restless when they sleep for all of them to be in one bed.  We dashed across the parking lot to a small lounge and grill for a light supper – no one was particularly hungry.  When we got back we let the boys swim in the pool.  They also enjoyed the spa pool.  After drying off and getting ready for bed, we let them watch a tiny bit of TV, which has been a rarity on this trip.  Dan drew the floor so we made a nice nest for him with extra blankets and pillows.  Theo will get the nest tonight.

Friday July 20, 2012

We heard rain several times in the night, but no thunderstorms.  We woke up early and I went to the lodge to sign the boys up for a mule ride on the canyon rim.  The boys slept in – 9:00!  We went to the lodge for a late breakfast.  We drove down to the campground to do laundry and the boys played cards until the laundry was done.  The boys each had a soda and a candy bar.  We drove back to the cabin and Dave decided that he wasn’t feeling well – could be an altitude problem or maybe something he ate for breakfast.  He took a nap while I took the boys on their mule ride.  Theo rode on Snoopy, Dan on John D (short for John Deere), Alex had Madonna, and I had Buttercup.  We took a lovely ride along the rim and into the woods.  The boys really enjoyed the ride.  Madonna kept trying to sneak a grass snack along the trail so Alex had to keep pulling up on the reins.  Buttercup tried a few times, too – the trail leader said that those two mules were best friends and they seem to do everything together.  Alex went into hysterics when Madonna passed gas into Buttermilk’s face!  (Freud said that potty humor was alive in children from 5 to 15).  We got back to the lodge and I took the boys in the truck out to Cape Royal Point.  It was another fantastic view of the Canyon and from one viewpoint we could see the Colorado River way below us.  We got back to the cabin and Dave had decided that he would skip dinner and just have a couple of bagels.  Alex and Dan opted for Chicken Parmesan, Theo stuck with the pasta bowl, and I had a grilled Portobello mushroom with lentils and rice.  The boys shared an ice cream sundae.  We got back to the cabin to pack up and I cycled the boys through the shower.  They played another game of cards and I read to them again.  They must have been tired, as they didn’t take too long to settle down.  Sleeping was nice as we could hear rain on the roof – always good sleeping weather.  Apparently, it rains most afternoons or evenings here as the hot air from the floor of the canyon rises to meet the cooler air on the rim.  Tomorrow we head to Mesa Verde.