Camper Twins drive to and around Florida!

First camper trip of the year - our camper twins, Terri and Kent, joined us on this adventure. As did Joe & Nancy, our camper cousins who live in Wisconsin.  We all have E-Pro campers and love them.

What a great trip!  Ten weeks, 6000 miles

Collin and Kohlie on our family vacation in Key Largo.

We visited John Pennekamp State Park but didn't get a campsite there.  Snorkeled and saw huge fish and an undersea canon.  Small beach but a cool place.

We saw so much new scenery, had great experiences, enjoyed good times with T & K and friends along the way.  Also got to know Florida - not only on the coasts.  We liked the middle area of the Springs the best.  Crystal clear chilly water and we swam with some wild manatees.  Amazing.

States we went through and/or visited:

Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia

Texas - visited Jimmy and Cheryl in Kyle (near Austin)

Louisiana - visited John and Sallie in Baton Rouge

Florida - Karen and Gary in The Villages

    Dave and Richard in St. Pete

    Mary K. in Bradenton

    met Vicki and family in Key Largo for 6 days for family vacation

We drove many miles with gas prices getting higher every week.  Argh...  in the high $3 per gallon.  But, we rented our house to Audrey on Airbnb for the entire time we were gone.  So we thanked Audrey every time we filled up!  

On the way home we hit gale force winds that were getting stronger!  We had to high-tail it home or be stuck in Oklahoma.  We drove in winds in Arkansa, Oklahoma, then Kansas on I-70.  Stopped by the visitor center in Kit Carson, CO for 4 hours of crazy wind before we could leave at night to get home.  650 miles in a day pulling the camper - not recommended.

We are done with Florida for a while even though this was a fabulous trip in so many ways. There are many more places there to explore, but...we are bothered by the politics and the Trump signs.  Don't want to go back until things change.

Evening star talk with a ranger in the Everglades.  The biting bugs made us crazy!!!  Saw crocodiles, rode bikes, hiked, but couldn't get away from those bugs.

One of many bikes rides.  We rode a lot!  Great way to explore.

Silver Springs.  We rented kayaks so we weren't kayaking with alligators in our inflatable kayaks.  Saw gators, manatee (so sweet), and a monkey (wild troupe lives there).

The Springs we visited:  Juniper Springs - camped there, Silver Glen Springs - choked with boats but here we swam near a manatee, Silver Springs State Park - rented kayaks, Alexander Springs - not crowded and some weedy area to snorkel in, Salt Springs - ringed by a wall and we saw blue crabs!  Loved this one.

One of our first bike rides with all 6 of us - from our campsite at DeSoto State Park.  We loved that place.

Scott and I did a lot of fishing and had tons of fun.  We even ate some of them.

A warm night at the campfire at DeSoto state park.

A ride on the Pinellas Trail with Dave and Richard

We spent a lot of time with my friend Dave from high school and his partner Richard.  We rode bikes in to downtown St. Pete pier area, played pickleball, played euchre, went to the beach, and just got to know the beautiful old St. Pete area. 

We hiked on the Florida trail when we were at the Springs area - crosses the state.

Camper life....  we love it

So many beautiful scenes and sunsets.

We experienced all kinds of weather in our 10 weeks.  Cold, rain, wind, heat, and adjusted activities accordingly.  Camper issues - of course.  We got one new tire and had to reattach the bench seat.  The frig does not do well in the heat so we need to figure that out.  Generally, we have been able to handle whatever has come up.

The world situation has gotten scarier with Putin of Russia invading Ukraine in March.  Gas prices rising for us but death and destruction of their country in Ukraine.  These things are part of vacation whether we want them to be or not.  

High hopes for the New Year - 2022

 Starting 2022 with so much hope for how this year will be better than the last two!  Again, hoping covid goes

 away. 

Celebrating the new year with Terri & Kent has become a tradition.  We got together on NY Day because of heavy snow, a little depression over the Marshall Fire, and very cold weather on NY Eve.

Fire:  On January 30, we had horrendous winds and we had NO rain or snow for months so conditions were extremely dry.  When the Marshall fire started east of Boulder, there was no stopping it.  By the end of the day, much of Marshall and Louisville had burned to the ground.  Over 1000 structures, mostly houses, were consumed as were over 1400 vehicles.  Devastating!  The next day, New Year's Eve, we got heavy snow.

Very sad start to this new year.

Aerial view of homes burned in Louisville.  Now that we know whole subdivisions can burn, we are looking at our house and our neighborhood differently.

Me, Terri, Stephanie, trying out our snowshoes in not much snow and lots of sunshine at Rabbit Mountain

Our monthly quilter group had some fun in January!  Match the quilter to their New Year's Resolution, and other fun games.  

I am finally posting this post in August... I'm not so good at updating my blog I guess.  ha ha.

This year Scott and I have many trips planned.  And we hope to see friends and family often too.  And, we have a front yard landscaping project scheduled!  Can't wait to get it going and get it done.

Some notes:

I will run every Sunday that I am here with my Dirty Girlz! I look forward to that Sunday tradition of a trail run and coffee whenever I am home.  It's getting harder to jump into a run at altitude after travel though.  Argh..   Nanci isn't running so much anymore but comes to walk.  Sarah had a needed hip replacement and will get another replaced this year.  Jen runs with us now and got a new job in Boulder.  Melinda"s son is moving out of the house and then out of state.  Transitions...  Ann continues to sub, travel, and stay very busy.  Steph and Steve and traveling a lot and enjoying life.

Scott's daughter, Lisa, had neck surgery and wants to learn to sew in her recovery time.  I got her started on a table runner project.  She chose a difficult pattern, fabric she loved, and did a great job.  She's already an over-achiever.

Looking forward to another family vacation with my sister and kids.  This time we are joining them in Florida in winter!

Scott's niece Megan in Virginia had another baby girl. Rich takes care of kids and manages their Airbnbs.  We want to visit this year and meet those other kids.

Scott's mom Marilyn is adjusting to her new home at Heritage Woods Assisted Living in Moline, IL.  She was willing to move there but it will take time to adjust.  We hope she makes friends and loves it.

I visit my former sister-in-law, Lynn, at Brookdale in Boulder when I am home.  She's slowing down but has such a happy attitude.  I take her out and she always says "this is like getting out of jail, there's a whole other world out here".  Then we laugh.  She's a sassy lady.

I hope to see my step-daughter Buffy with some regularity since she's in Broomfield, and my granddaughter Teanna in Denver area.  Granddaughter Danyelle in California is going to have a baby in July!!!  So excited for her and Tyler.  And granddaughter Jaymie is in her last year of college.  She and Ezra have done some traveling and are waiting to have kids.  Ezra is working for Fidelity now while finishing college.  They are all doing great.

Ezra, Jaymie, Scott, me, Danyelle in June in Colorado at McIntosh Lake

Our first trip of the year starts at the end of this month....  

Christmas and Illinois visit

 We had the time so decided to drive to Illinois for a couple weeks.  The plan was to help Scott's mom move to an assisted living place in Moline and to see both our families for Christmas eve (Moline) and then Christmas day (Manhattan), and then drive home.  This plan got derailed by covid too.

Marilyn in her old place.  We packed for 2 days and moved boxes and unpacked her over time.  Big project! She thinks she will like Heritage Woods.

Scott and I stayed at an Airbnb apartment that we'd stayed at before - The Bend.  Great place looking at the very cold and windy Mississippi.  We mostly walked for sanity away from the water.

We drove through Ranch Oaks to see my parents' old house and the old neighborhood.  We love how all the neighbors do the Christmas lights. 

I spent 4 days with my sister Vicki before Christmas.  We got to paint rocks with her grandkids and it was a blast.  

We spent Christmas Eve with Scott's family at his brother's house.  Sorry that I can't access those photos but we ate well and his mom did fine.

Christmas Covid:  On Christmas morning we drove 2.5 hours to my sister's.  Mid-drive she called to say she had a cold and was looking for a Covid rapid test but of course couldn't find one because they are impossible to get right now.  Miracle!  Scott & I stopped for gas on I-80 at the small town of Princeton and asked the clerk if any pharmacies were open.  He said No, but we have those tests here!  

We delivered the test to Vicki with fingers crossed but....she was covid positive - probably Omicron. She had bad cold symptoms only, isolated for 5 days (boring) and no one else got sick.

My nephew cancelled Christmas at his house so we went to my niece's house outside of Chicago to celebrate with them and stay overnight.  We brought our Christmass food with us!  Played euchre, visited Josh's business and had a great Christmas with them.

SHE had covid!  We had just spent 30 hours with them, so we said goodbye to Scott's mom and left for home a day early.  Jamie's family all got covid, but no one else did.  We didn't either.  Woo!

So many family's Christmas plans were ruined/changed by Covid.  Omicron symptoms are mild for those vaccinated and boostered but the hospitalization and death rates in the U.S. are at an all-time high.  Vaccines are part of the political divide.  Some ignorant people like to compare vaccine requirements and cards to the Holocaust.  Pathetic & no where near the truth of the horros of the Holocaust.  Tough times in this country.  

I am relieved to have Biden/Harris at the helm.  The January 6, 2021 riot at the capital committee is meeting so much resistance to their investigation.  Congressmen are more interested in their political power than in truth and their line is that that event was a non-violent expression against government power.  Those on the right still claim the election was rigged. Argh... Just writing this raises my blood pressure.

There is much to be sad about this year and many of us have great fears for our future as a democracy.  Not to mention the world situation.  But... Personally, it was a very good year.

Vicki and I kept busy during our 4 days together in Manhattan.  We saw our cousin Lee Ann, and cousins Suzie, Mimi, and Jack with their mom Joann for bagna caulda & a final visit with Joann.

A beautiful sunset over McIntosh Lake

Eric, Buffy & Troy, Teanna, Jaymie & Ezra flew to San Luis Obispo for Thanksgiving to be with Danyelle & Tyler and Tyler's family.  They celebrated at the wedding venue (Loriana) that Dani & Tyler run there.  Those girls are all grown up and doing well.

Unplanned Staycation in October and November

 Covid put a monkey wrench in our plans to go to Hawaii with Kirin and Matt in November.  So many plans get changed for everyone these days.  So we must be flexible.  I can't say I was very accepting when we first realized we may not get to go to Hawaii - I haven't been there for 36 years and Scott has never been.  

For a time Hawaii was only accepting entry of people who had one of the 3 US approved vaccines - J & J, Phizer, or Moderna.  They would not accept my Astrazeneca even if I got a booster of one of the others, which I couldn't get because I had Astrazeneca vaccine.  So I cancelled our flights and gave in and we had an active and wonderful over 2 months at our Longmont area instead.

The time at home allowed me to do a great deal of research to make a plan for a new front landscape.  I've been wanting to do this project but didn't make the time until this October and November.  The photo is not our yard, but I hope ours looks like that when the work is done.  It took an incredible amount of time to formulate ideas and to hire a landscape company to do the work.  We start next April.  Yay!

We got to spend time with Scott's grandkids

We picked and processed more apples!  We were apple obsessed for sure.

We camped at Chatfield with Joe & Nancy and had some great bike rides!

You can't see both, but our campers are cousins - both e-Pro brand.

Joe & Nancy happened to be passing through on their way back to Wisconsin so we got to spend some time with them again!

I got to visit my former sister-in-law Lynn several times.  She lives at Brookdale Senior Living in Boulder and always has a happy attitude.

We took Brendan to the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg on one of our visits.  Scott tried a mustache but finally shaved it and I was happy about it. 

I enjoyed the Longmont Halloween parade with Bill & Lorraine Eyl on a warm day.

We celebrated Terri's birthday in November inside a restaurant!  Me, Terri, Maureen, and Marianne.

It was a pleasure to be home and to see friends regularly, to get back into a running routine with Jen and with DGz on Sundays, to do some fix-it, and plan the landscape upgrade. 

Washer had a problem.  With help from Youtube, we fixed it.

Covid, Apples, and Moab camping, No raft trip

We got home on Sept. 1 and met up with Terri & Kent right away to have a hike in beautiful Rocky Mtn. National Park.  I had a bit of a sore throat (from our dryness after Alaska?) so wore a mask in the car with them.  On the hike, I was just tired...

Home from Alaska and on a hike at RMNP

And that was the start of my Covid-19 Delta variant experience. Luckily I did not give it to anyone else except Scott.

 Headache, body aches, fever, chills, loss of smell and generally feeling very lousy for about 3 days. After about 3 more days I was fine and we took our camper to Moab to meet Jen & Mike and Joe & Nancy from Wisconsin).  I'd be done with quarantine in time for our raft trip on the Colorado River.  BUT, 2 days before departure, Scott felt tired.  And had covid and after-effects for several months.  No raft trip for us.

Apples!  These trees are bearing so many apples that we have to pick them and we have to freeze them and make apple sauce.  We just kept going back for more because they are unbelievably abundant and beautiful this year.  Love that Apple Peeler Corer so much!!

It was hot hot hot in Moab, so while our friends were enjoying the OARS raft trip (great company!), we headed for the high country and camped in the La Sal Mtns at Mason Draw Campground - and had the place to ourselves with freshly cut aspen wood... so Scott could recoup from Covid.  

Awesome ride down from LaSal Mtn. on Kokopeli Trail to Sandhill Rd, to singletrack, ending at Slickrock parking lot just outside of Moab.  Epic!!  Loved it.  Nancy was our ride back to camping.  Scott did fine in spite of Covid hanging on.

Mason Draw Campground in the La Sal Mountains, above Moab.

Looking down on the White Rim Trail, which we rode in April with Jen & Mike.

Riding on the Intrepid Trails with amazing views and yurts - staying at Horsethief Campground.  Had our "Friendaversary" with Joe & Nancy on Sept. 17th.  One Year!

Great visits and hikes at Dead Horse Point State Park & Canyonlands National Park.

The view from the parking lot very near our campsite in the La Sals.

Scott and I did quite a few easy hikes while he was recuperating from Covid.

At Arches National Park

Joe & Nancy - so many red sunsets due to smoke in the air

Alaska Adventure

Scott and I spent over 3 weeks in August getting to know Alaska on bike, on foot, in a van, a bus for a day tour and in a rental car.  We flew there and home - first time flying in a very long time because of covid.  

Impressions:  Beautiful and amazing scenery - when you can see it.  The weather was mostly gray with low clouds and no sun, so we didn't see as much of it as we'd have liked.

No one wears a mask there.  On our flights home from Fairbanks to Anchorage and then Anchorage to Denver, we got covid  Delta.  Or I got it and then gave it to Scott later.  No fun. More on that later.

On the ride that started with a van ride from Anchorage to some quieter highway north of there.

A rare clear day - just over Thompson Pass

Homer.  Lovely fishing village.

Outside of Anchorage on the Turnagain Arm outside Anchorage

Beautiful salmon. We saw thousands of spawning salmon in the rivers too.  We had a modern Airbnb on top of a hill with a fabulous view of the harbor. 

We biked for a week with an organized tour called Alaskabike.  We don't recommend this small company or their Alaska tour.  We saw beautiful vistas on 2 of our 6 riding days.

We rented a car from Anchorage on our own and then again to share with Kirin and Matt.  With them we drove and stayed in Homer and Seward, great small coastal towns.  The guys fished and we sent fish home! beautiful salmon, halibut, and rock fish.

Then we 4 friends flew to Katmai Peninsula and Brooks Lodge to see the grizzlies in the river.  The most AMAZING and fabulous things I've done.  We loved it - even the scare when the bear was in the road and we couldn't walk by and when the momma bear and cub walked right behind us.  Interesting delay at King Salmon airstrip too but we finally got back to Anchorage.

Still with Kirin and Matt, we rented a car from Anchorage to see more interior Alaska, driving north to visit Talkeetna, Palmer (giant cabbage), Hatcher Pass (mining remnants, vistas & flowers), Denali (bus trip to interior but can't see Denali due to clouds.  We did see animals), Fairbanks & Pike's Landing (Iditarod start & Love Alaska), North Pole (Santa, Mrs. Claus & reindeer & rain), Chena Hot Springs (interesting but dumpy & not enough help).

Fairbanks on the Tanana River near Pike's Landing

Rainy day walking in North Pole

Kayaking trip with a company in Seward.  Had a cute little Airbnb house and walked to the main street to meet tour guide.

Amazing flowers on the hike on top of Hatcher Pass. Chilly up there.

The momma and baby bear who snuck past us from a trail, as we waited for a big bear to get off this dirt road.  So close!  Very exciting after the fact.

Our bus trip in to Denali Backcountry Lodge was cancelled due to a mudslide on the road, so we improvised and had a good time seeing other things. And we saved $.  We'd been to wilderness & Denali a lot on this trip so it was actually a good thing for all of us.

The falls at Brooks Lodge were a happening place - we saw about 20 bears there at times. Never fewer than 10.

Sleeping bear.  We were on the walkway above.