In the Hills of West Virginia... Which Way??!

Keep in mind... there are only two on ramps at this spot... one going left. One going right... ha!



This is one rest area I remember because of it's form and the setting... it's in between two tunnels on the most beautiful spot... either WV or VA... they're both right around this spot.




I saw Rskoo again!! I went to her house because the campground last night was about 140 miles from her house. There isn't a campground anywhere near her. I met her Mom, who is a saint, putting up with her (grin)... we had a discussion about HER ROOM, but I'm going to leave that to her to explain.

She fed me the most delicious quiche... I should have bummed some for tonight, cold or not. OH! and I got so excited about real food that I forgot to mention how beautiful their home is... Rskoo has done some incredible painting (wall type), and with the things they have, it really sets them off. I could live in their kitchen with the window on the back yard...

Now..

About that Christmas tree...;)

I'm in Sutton WV. The only decent campground in a long ways. It's behind a Day's Inn, which is a good use of the land, and it's quite pretty.



However...

They are having a concert tonight in the amphitheater (why can't I spell that word anymore??) which is ATTACHED to the campground, so I'm as far away as possible. It's Darryl Worley, which won't be bad, it's just really loud when you're up close. Problem is, the restrooms are down by the concert, which means a half mile walk. Thank goodness for my little porta-potti!



Apparently he and Dickle (whiskey) travel a lot together.. (hic!) and look!.. it's pooping ice!!

I have excelent wifi again, for free. I can't see this screen well in this moving daylight, but i'm trying very hard to do it right. They could get quite wet tonight at that concert!


Another campground view.. it may just be me, but I think my little camera is misbehaving...

I love this drive..

I love TO drive..

i.e. I love to drive this drive...

37 degrees!!!? whooooeee!

VA entry rest area... hand set stone, and quite pretty. They are still working on the main part.

They say it's going to be cold tonight. I am so excited! I thought it was going to be hot forever! Last night was ... Ok, but this is my kind of weather. I've got my sweatshirt on and I'm ready... plus, it's going to help the leaves change. They are beginning to do so quite nicely already, but I am always set for more.

This was a shorter drive, so I got to do some "antique store looking" today. I THINK I found the match to the one carnival glass dish that committed suicide during the last big earthquake. Poor thing... I still have half of it, and I'm going from memory here, but I think it will match. Of course, I was too stoopid to take a picture along with me.. shh... I got some other stuff, too..

The drive around here is beautiful. This part of the U.S. is, without challenge, the prettiest. No arguments accepted, at least on this front. Tennessee, Kentucky, Western Virginia and West Virginia, Parts of Kentucky.. green rolling hills and mountains (they're older than the Rockies, and softer). All different types of green, some of which are striving to be the first to change color this year.

Virginia...

I'm in Wytheville, VA..(rhymes with smithville) This is one of the nicest and best situated KOA's, too. I stayed here on the run back home from the 350 yr family reunion in 1992. Then they had a 'watch pig' in the yard, but I suppose he's gone now. It's lush and filled with colors of bushes and trees. It has swings on the porch and a huge central room for laundry and TV and it has a wood burning stove for those soon to be cold nights. It has smaller versions of the Kentucky horse fences around the areas, and a crisp, clean look. If I could stand summer travel, I would sit here for a couple of weeks and explore and visit friends and then run home to here!

That's all I know for now. I've been doing my laundry while blogging. I was going to do it last night by the Karaoke Bar, but it was way too expensive...

I'm glad I waited, it's delightful in this warm room looking out at the trees..



sigh..

Oh yeah.. and thank goodness (in the form of a sweet turtle) for my little hand warmers!!!!!!!

I Met a Turtle.... um.. GIRL! Today!...

More kudzu!

No pictures, although I'm going to go over a take a KUDZU picture right quick after I finish this.. see how the south has affected my speech?

I met Turtlegirl today. She was nice enough to come out to the campground and obey my stoopid rules about no freeway driving except by me, so we sat and talked and talked and talked. She told her boss that she was visiting an old family member... hey! I resemble that remark!

And we are a family. Sometimes better than the ones we were born with, no matter how good they are. We share a commonality of interests and friendship that is unique. We've shared things, all of us, with each other that we haven't told family and friends (mostly because it's ABOUT them!).

But back to Turtle.

We're all in trouble now. Turtle really DOES look like Catherine Zeta Jones... actually, she's prettier by far. She is beautiful, inside AND out, and, as gorgeous as we ALL are, she's truly truly pretty. We talked as old friends, sitting in the warm sun under a shady tree at the campground, and the rain that was supposed to come today is waiting... it will most likely come tonight, but it gave us today, and for that I'm happy!

She brought food for me... LOTS of snacking goodies. Enough to keep me through those days when I don't stop for dinner after a late-ish breakfast. Maybe enough to keep me until I get home..

yeah..

right...

But best of all, after her sweet self, she made a pair of hand warmers for me that are just like the ones that TRIXIE wore in the scenes from the Amateur Show!!

I feel so special.. I told her I feel just like Trixie... a whore...

no..
wait..

that came out wrong (grin).

In fact, I'm going to go and take a picture of them right now!

Here... they are greener than they look in the picture, and are soft soft soft...



sigh...

Everyone has been sooo good to me!

and so much fun to meet in person...

I'm a happy camper!!

oh..,

so THAT'S where that expression came from! ;)

Almossst to North Carolina...

I'm on the border...

A nice campground and a great deal cooler... well, not a GREAT deal, but I'll take what I can get. I see Turtle tomorrow.. oboyoboyoboy! I'm having so much fun.

ewww..

a bug just flew in my nose! WHY DO THEY DO THAT!?

dang... I hate it when that happens.

I went back to see Medic this morning because I was so close, so we got about another hour in until I left again. I realized I hadn't seen her daughter's room, and that was rude. One can't be rude in the south...

No pictures because I didn't take any on the way here.

I'm going to pick the bug out of my nose and go and take a nap!

Ok.. I'm better now. Funny what a shower can do for you.. sigh...

Addendum...

Medic is right. They cheerfully took me all over Beaufort, which, apparently, has had it's share of movies made there. The old houses and movie set places were a treat to see, especially when you compare them to the position they took in the movie. Funny how they can make a house look as if it's set way out in the country, when it's behind a fence somewhere.

Kudzu... all over this campground (well, all around it anywayS). Not a lot of campers, but some live ins in the back (which is always a bit dicey). The place fills to the brim when race time is here... remind me to NEVER come to Charlotte when there is a race. They have made the most of their possibilities with a 'lounge' (read bar) and a gas station and a convenience store right at the entrance. They had me right next to it until I told them that wasn't MY idea of camping (grin).

Shower...

sigh...

EARTHQUAKE...??? riiight....

The old south...

A busy time again in the old south...

Last night, outside of Columbia South Carolina (I have to say that because they only have 15 names for cities down here, and they use them repeatedly in each state) I was sitting in my little camper when I felt a couple of bumps. Several minutes later I felt a couple more.. If I had been home, I would have said.. hmm... earthquake...

Turns out I was right.

APPARENTLY, they had an earthquake yesterday morning in the area in which I chose to make my nest. What I felt was surely a couple of aftershocks...

is there no end to this insanity!?

An old church in Beaufort... built in 1722... you can see part of it and the trees and the old brick wall... I'm so used to taking pictures from the car that I didn't even get out for this one!

The very good news is that I got to meet Medic today. Some of you remember her, she hasn't posted for a while, but was very active 'back in the day' as they say. She was (is) a total doll. She has a beautiful home/house that she and her main squeeze built mostly themselves. The kitchen is huge and welcoming, which is what they wanted as they both love to cook. They took me around Beaufort and showed me all the history. It's an incredible city, with buildings that used to house Civil War patients. The old city is gloriously old south, trees, buildings and all. We had such a great visit.. her daughter came home during the visit. She and I (daughter, 10) have exchanged letters for a while (I'm going to get better at it again, I promise)...

and...

true southerner..

her squeeze (who was eminently squeezable but I resisted) WASHED ALL THE BUGS OFF MY CAR... actually (another great southern word) he washed the entire thing! Bless his heart...



The dock that is used by their little area... it connects to the ocean, so I truly have gone from coast to coast...

However... there were the "love bugs" (and that's NOT what they're doing when they hit the windshield... it may look like love as they dangle there, in extended coitus, but it's NOT LOVE). I'd forgotten love bugs...

I'm back in my little campground and heading north again.

I want a place where I can have you all as neighbors...

minus the earthquakes, tornados, closed roads, snow, and... oh yeah...

accidents...

You Can’t’ Call Me Sasquatch Anymore... Eric...

Tennessee Mountains...

I’m in South Carolina. Not the prettiest campground, but they do have a handicap shower with a seat.

I shaved my legs...

I may have backed up the entire campground, but I feel sooo clean and I ain’t taking responsibility... nope... not me...

My insurance company called today. A nice little fellow named Eric. He seemed a bit new, which was not to his betterment today. Some of the things we discussed:

Eric: I left a message on your home phone.

Me: Eric, does the fact that the accident took place in Tennessee mean anything to you Eric?

Eric: Let me tell you first about your coverage.

Me: I don’t give a rat’s ass about my coverage, Eric, I’m doing 70 MPH on a freeway in Tennessee. You pay what you’re going to pay, and I’ll pay the rest, Eric... how’s that work for you?

Then he starts with the questions that I answered yesterday when I called the first time..

Me: I already answered these questions, Eric... don’t you guys ever talk to each other?

later.

Eric. (they asked me this question yesterday, too). Was anyone else in the car with you.?

Me. Nope, just me, Eric.... Forever...

Eric: Was there a child’s car seat in your car?

Me: Eric... I never had children, Eric... why would I cart someone else’s around with me?

Eric: Was there any damage to your car.

Me: Nope.
Eric: I’m going to give you the name of our collision center because you have to have your car checked.

Me: Even though there’s no damage Eric? How’s November work for you Eric?

and on and on.

To Eric’s credit, he laughed a great deal... I was being recorded, so if anyone knows a good insurance company, I might need one when I get back.

Tennessee is such a beautiful state in the mountainous parts. I drove off the main highway down into Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. I am so glad that my first visit to those places was more than 20 years ago, as they have been so corrupted by success that they are spoiled. Gatlinburg not as much because it is nestled in the mountains, but there is also no place to park and just walk around. Pigeon Forge is a wreck. When i first visited, there was this little ‘attraction’ called Silver Dollar City. There were local crafts and music in the winding ‘streets’ and displays of soap making and moonshine making (no tastes, more’s’ the pity), and people dressed in ‘period’ clothing and the like. It was very charming, and, fortunately, I have video tape...


Gatlinburg Tennessee...

Then, Dolly bought Silver Dollar City and made it DOLLYWOOD... and it and Pigeon Forge were never the same. now Pigeon Forge is like Branson Missouri, loaded with music theaters and attractions and as garish as Hollywood would be with a billion more lights and covered in sequins...

hmmm...

But the drive after I left those places was to die for...

This road to Gatlinburg looks like the Blue Ridge Parkway, which is the most beautiful road I've ever traveled...

and there was KUDZU!!

KUDZU!!

And He Smelled Good, Too...

Tennessee Sunset...

Sunday/Monday
shh.. I'm stealing wifi in Pigeon Forge... shh... damn... can't load pictures yer..

In keeping with the theme of this trip, yet another delightful thing has befallen me. hmm.... I make it sound like ti wasn’t my fault.

Let me clarify.

This trip has been so wonderful on so many levels, what with meeting some really good people, and seeing some old friends. I’m not complaining. However, there have been several... well.. . unforeseen things happen. The closure of I-70. Tornados. Heat and humidity (to be expected, but certainly not longed for). Today i ‘bumped’ a small VW (are there any other kinds?). Not a big thing, and Fallcor suffered no damage at all. That’s why I have that bumper on the front, so i can run into other people and make THEM suffer, not me.

It scuffed up the back part of the Vdub, and broke those little lights that light up the license plate. That’s what you get when you drive a car that’s lower than everything else on the road.

HOWEVER, it was my fault. I thought the traffic had started, and it turned out I was the only person moving,. duh... I have never run into another automobile. I didn’t like it one damned bit.

But, the NICEST Sevierville Police Officer came to the aid of both of us, and totally made the experience better than it would have been. He was pleasant, professional, humorous, cute, AND he smelled good. What more can you ask ??

On a positive note, I met Shrieky’s Mr. the Shriek, and the little shrieky kidlets. We had dinner and talked and it was so much fun to get to know the shrieks I hadn’t met yet.

Oh.. and we can TOTALLY auction off Mr. the Shriek to pay for a 4th season of Deadwood... I’m thinking e-bay...

bonho?..... when you get back... we’ll talk about it...


The river by the campground I almost made before the accident... I should have thrown the VW into it... it was little... I could have.. it was an ordinary VW.. I can kill an ordinary VW..

Oh Wait!!

Wait... but I met Catherine Zeta Jones in Missouri...

Now I’m confused...

Do we ALL look like CZJ??

PEEBS! or is That Cathrine Zeta Jones?

Peebs was nice enough (which should come as a surprise to no one) to come out to the campground to see me as I drove over 300 miles today and am very very tired.

It was so good to see her. We've spoken so many times on the boards, and in emails and on the phone that we knew each other anyway, but it's so cool to put people to these voices and words. She looks like CZJ, by the way (slowly counting her money and chocolate cookies that she was paid to say that).. no... really!

as do we all...

She squeaked too, OUT LOUD... and there was some other noise, but I"m not going to even bring it up.. (ha!) I only wish I was more alert. The news today said it was going to be worse weather than last night ( riiightt), but it never materialized. I was going to stay where I was, but since it wasn't raining this morning, I thought I would get as far as I could..

I got alll the way here!



The green parts...

This part of the country is extremely beautiful. Missouri, Kentucky, Alabama (at least this part), Tennessee, Georgia.. it's just so damned humid and sticky. I took a shower when I got to the campground, as I got SOAKED last night running to the bathroom of the KOA when the TORNADO SIREN sounded. I mean soaked. We had just had hail, which is a forerunner to tornados (for the uninformed) and then it poured and THEN the siren came by.

so much fun I can't wait to do it again.

Toto.. get me out of here!



Nashville...

Run For Your Life, Toto...

Friday night...

The Tornado siren went off at 10:15.

I spent the next hour in the bathroom of the Campground with some very nice people and my laptop and my purse and my wallet..

Oh....

Boy....

I was in Eastern Kentucky (where my parents were born... in a backwoods old shack... oops.. ) sorry, I got off track.



The pond at the campground....

The good news is that I met Anna's Aunt!.. We didn't have a lot of time together, because I didn't get there early enough to go to lunch with her and her mom, but we had a really nice talk about Deadwood and stuff. She's so sweet! She knew who I was when she came down the hall. I didn't even need my little Mizmarilyn sign!! We hugged until we squeaked.... there are a lot of strange noises coming out of the south lately.

I don't like this weather. When it's not THUNDERING AND LIGHTNING AND RAINING, it's humid as hell... Make it go away! I'm blaming Peebs for it...

so there.

I forgot to bring my camera up to the posting place in this campground (in Alabama... 11 states so far, if anyone is counting), so if I get enough umph to get back up here I will put on pictures. I didn't SLEEP VERY WELL LAST NIGHT! Ahem...



Kentucky entry rest area... it used to be a house... well.. a BIG house...

St Julien, the Bird Woman of Missouri...

I met St. Julien today!!! She FINALLY dragged herself out of bed! Dang.. I travel over 2,000 miles and she SLEEPS!...We had quite the experience after we talked ourselves out and wandered all over this part of Missouri which just happens to be her old stomping ground...

Be sure to ask her what she does to welcome trains...

...

When we got back to the campground, we were sitting and talking and a tiny bird *plop*; threw itself at Nancy's feet. I figure it was headed for her hair, assuming that it was a far superior nest to the one it had left earlier. We picked it up. It was old enough to hop and flutter about, but was clearly looking for food. I managed to stuff some mashed turkey down it and it quit asking. Either it had enough or was fearful of whatever else I might shove down it's little gullet.

We drove to the local vet's office, but they were already closed, so we finally put it down in a safe place near where it had fallen. We saw Mom checking it out, so there is hope for it... It surely was pretty, with a dark stripe over it's beak and little bright yellow feathers on the end of it's budding tail. Hope for the best...

Oh.. St. Julien.. yeah yeah, she was really neat (grin). This is such fun! I'm going to know you all better than anyone...

and we're going to open the Gem again and bring back the rocks and fish and not let the naysayers in...

Waiting...

tap... tap... tap..... TAP!!!

Boy These Southerners Can Talk!!=)

It's morning and I'm just waiting for St Julien to DEIGN to see me.... She's sleeping. I saw a field with HUNDREDS of geese and a few wild turkeys on the way to breakfast this morning... hundreds...

It's so green here...

This morning the couple next to me pounced over and sat and talked to me about everything until I was faint from lack of food! He came over first and said they're heading home because they (meaning she) keep fighting and if they were gonna fight, they might as well be back home.

I made the .. well... not a mistake, but close, of talking to the lady in the bathroom 5 minutes ago. She told me her ENTIRE life's history and about how she and her husband drive trucks, and she told TOM, the dispatcher (who mixes her up with one of the other drivers cuz they sound alike so he offered her a single person trip and she told him that.... ) just when they were going to drive and her husband couldn't do that because he didn't have any backbone and that they had to go and help her sister's uncle (well, it's not really her uncle, but someone else) move and then someone else was in the hospital and he was really sick it was something with his heart so she TOLD him that they couldn't take a trip because they had said they wouldn't be able to take one until Saturday and her husband thought they were going to be fired because she talked to TOM that way but of course they weren't because she can talk to anyone that way and no one ever calls her on it and they were supposed to have 3 days off and by god they were taking them and then TOM called and they have trips for next week so I guess they're still working there...

I kid you not...

I love these people...

it doesn't hurt that I am no longer the largest person I see... ;)

Missouri on My Mind...

Somehow I think that's another song...

ILS and I had a great breakfast this morning. It's like we've known each other forever... but , of course, we have! We talked and talked and talked for about an hour and a half. Yesterday we talked about Deadwood, today we talked about us... I didn't hit the road until 10:30.. waaaay late for me, although I no longer have a compunction to jump up at 6 and hit the road early..

thank goodness!

Here's one of the things I like about the midwest. Yesterday I went to the market to pick up my ice and fruit and stuff. I saw some Halloween lights and decided to send a couple of strings to my nephew. I got the lights, picked up a mailing envelope, and, as I was leaving, noticed that there was a POST OFFICE IN THE MARKET!...

sigh...

This is what the rest areas look like in Missouri. Again, I am reminded of the states who want you to come and visit. They make you welcome...



Missouri is a beautiful state. Green. Tree laden. Until, of course, you get near St. Louis, and then I was in TRAFFIC for about 45 minutes getting to this campground. It was worth it. I'm staying here for 2 nights (!) because I can't get to see St. Julien until tomorrow... it will be worth the wait.

I met a little couple here with the CUTEST trailer... They are from Alabama (peebs!) and we talked and talked for a long time. I've convinced him they need a computer. I showed them all it can do. We talked some more... Look at this little trailer...



aren't they cute!!

So...

I'm off to shower and read and stuff.

About Those Postcards....

um.....

maybe?

The S in ILS Stands for Super!

Kansas City... quite a sight after more than 600 miles of open land since Denver.

I met ILS today!! I'm in Blue Springs, Missouri... We had a late lunchtypesnack. She bought!! It just gets better and better! She is cute and funny and smart and I think we're going to connect for breakfast tomorrow... we have so much more to say!

Not much to say today. It was another long drive, but this should be the last until I head back home. Now I get to ramble from state to state and drive shorter and stay in a campground longer..

read

meet people!

The topography changes in eastern Kansas.. more rolling hills. More trees and grass and green. Very welcome.. That being said, the interchanges in Kansas City ... well... SUCK! L.A. may be more crowded, but this was incredibly convoluted! It's a wonder I'm not still wandering around somewhere looking for I-70...

I called bonho today and she was in the Denver airport! Talk about missed signals!!

I'm going to try to post the pictures now.

Tomorrow.. (yells so St Julien can hear).. I'm going to St. Louis!

I'm going to post the extra pictures here, since I don't have but one from this leg of the trip.



The geese... they say not to feed them, but the very nice police man (who had to sit and talk for about a half an hour, cuz there's so much to do in Ellis) said if he didn't see it, it didn't count.


Mist over the little lake thingy in the morning. It was very cold last night... at least in the 40's, and there was frost on the grass (and pumpkins, had there been any) and the lake was warmer than the air... pretty...




The church that had wifi. I figured it must have been a school, too, and that was the reason.. The 'sheriff' didn't know, but also didn't know
a. what wifi was
and
b. that they had it

Beauty in All Things...

The gravel in the gravel pit campground last night...

Sometimes You Get Lucky...

The entry rest area in Kansas. This one, like most of the midwest entry points, was filled with local artists work and products being sold along the route. It was big and warm and had free coffee and nice people in it. You Californians remember those places in Californi.... oh.. wait.. you don't??

guess why...




Wheat... the staple of Kansas.. at least I think it's wheat... and there were bunches of hawks making lazy circles in the sky..
oh wait.. that's another state!


Monday
I was going to drive to Salina today, It would have meant driving another 100 miles on top of the 350 or so I have already driven. I've stayed at the KOA there, and it's OK, but right on the freeway.

Kansas... it's nothing if not flat!



i pulled off the road to get gas at Ellis.. there was a little sign with a camper on it. I followed the signs into town and found this little campground right on a tiny lake formed by a small river. Beautiful. Peaceful. Electric! and.. after I drove through the teeny tiny cute town of Ellis looking hopelessly for wifi, I found it here on the lake. Must be a nearby church or something.



the little lake... I later counted more than 30 geese... beautiful .. I'll put them in the next post..


The signal is weak and fluctuates, but I think I can get this posted. We’ll see. The drive today was long and flat and very windy... this is not helped by the “what to do in case of a tornado” sign as I came into the campground. This is a city campground; the fees are collected by the local police. I’ve found gems like this before.. the most notable in Fargo, North Dakota... it was early in the year, so it was free.



me... notice the grassy field behind the van. This was the nicest spot!


I’ve just been joined by a flock of geese... 11 of them in all, with an obvious leader who keeps them all in line.. literally.

There isn’t much to say about Kansas. I’m sure if you spent a couple of weeks here and hit the ‘high’ spots you would find some wonderful things. I’m on my way to bigger places, though, and this isn’t my kind of weather. This is a pretty little town, however, with tree lined streets and high school kids playing football on a grassy field that you couldn’t buy in L.A.

I got lucky...

again....



One of at least 5 churches in this small town. I love the midwest churches. On the plains you can see them for miles before you get to a small town.. They are huge and beautiful.

Post Script -Tuesday I found the source of the wifi.. it's the Catholic church across the pond. I had this feeling...

so now i'm going to add some pictures and go and hunt the wild breakfast...

there was frost on the ground this morning..

oh . . yea. . .

Blogger won't let me put pictures right now... I'll try later...

Ahem.....

That THING on my dashboard is a tiny dog. He's been traveling with me for a very long time, and has appeared in all my videos... he's my watchn'guard dog..

he's cute...

(wanders off, muttering.. "picking on my DOG""!)

The earliest snow I've seen on a trip was in Yellowstone.. september 8th. I have video. The elevation wasn't as high, but it was more norther... um.. northerly... um... farther nor..

oh the hell with it.. I'm off to get coffee!

it was cold last night....

brrr..

and the camper next door has been feeding the rabbit too... so it's not some spirit guide or sumthin'...

OMG! Golden wifi...

The incredible Rocky Mountains...



I had a real dinner tonight. I've been driving so that I have only eaten my Kashi and yoghurt, but this campground is pretty... well... SERE, so I had time to go out and have corn chowder and a half a turkey sandwich... yum... While I was there, I checked the wifi and found a weak connection from the coffee place across the street, but it needed a password. I thought I would write tonight and go back and post tomorrow morning. I don't mind buying a cup of coffee for free wifi... bartering is fine, paying is OUT! SO I fire up the old computer and as I start to write, I get a little wifi signal and here I am! So for those of you who listened to peebs, she didn't lie!

Quite a day today. I was staying at a campground in Grand Junction, which is at exit 37. For those of you who don't travel much, here's a huge tip. In most civilized states, the exits are numbered according to how many miles you are into the state. Left to right and South to North.. so exit 37 was 37 miles into Colorado... comprende? As I get on the freeway for a fairly simple drive to Boulder to visit my nephew, I am struck by a sign... well.. not STRUCk by it, but it stands out and yells at me "I-70 CLOSED AT MILE 55".

Great..

Everyone seems unconcerned, though, so I stay on the highway. I call the little number and, sure enough, it's closed due to a landslide. So they take us all off at mile... oh... 49 or so, and then it's an hour's drive through a windy road and we get back on at mile 62... not very good driving time at all.


following the river on I 70... notice how, as they widened the road, they didn't chop into the mountains, but rather elevated the west bound part. Very very clever.

The river cut the channel for the road in these steep cliffs...

I notice that my little van seems to be struggling, and then realize that the MEDIAN altitude is 8,000 ft! I actually had to use 3rd gear for the first time ever to get across the 10,800 ft. pass, and then was faced by the Eisenhower tunnel.

and snow..

The rest area about 20 miles short of the tunnel had snow all over it. Not a great deal, mind you, but it must have snowed some yesterday. Then, at about 11,000 ft, it started to snow. It was delightful, as it didn't stick or cause problems, and the tunnel is a wonder for sure.

I went to see my nephew, arriving quite late. We had a short visit and I gave him his favorite pillow (he'd forgotten it) and he showed Boulder to me. The last time I was there was in 1966.. on a trip with three dingy chicks... um... make that TWO dingy chicks and me... It's changed quite a bit (grin).

Boulder.. the college has been there since the 1800's...




Then I tried to find a campground in Golden, but the first one was full.. the next one, a GOOD SAM campground (and you can bet they are going to hear from me!) said I couldn't stay there because they didn't let people 'sleep in their cars"..

EXCUSE ME!?

I explained that I had a real bed. I have a real potti. I have curtains. I have..

no use...

so I called this place (across the street) and she said, "come right over"... and I did. No pictures, as it's a parking lot campground, but it has the nicest showers I've seen in a while...

So... tomorrow I'm off to Kansas.. somewhere... If I remember, there are some pretty good semi historical sites having to do with the westward trek. I am always in awe of the pioneers when I travel across this country. Imagine how difficult this would have been in a wagon... walking... breaking down.. .having kids... dying... going on and leaving people behind... When i was young, the story was that you could get off the main highways on the down side of the Rockies and find furniture and wagons and all kinds of stuff abandoned as they struggled to get over those incredible mountains...

my hat's off to them...

oh.. and as I came around the side of my van, there was a little grey bunny sitting right there on the gravel. No grass, no trees, no nuthin'... but this little bunny.

I gave him a carrot and he thanked me and moved on...

no time for a picture..

dang...

Morning in Grand Junction...

Well, I'm fed and off to the market to buy a fat pi... no... that's not it..

I think I'm going to have to let some air out of the air mattress... it kept trying to throw me off all last night!!


I'm off to find my nephew... hopefully.,.

Utah...

A short blog with many pictures. I'm stealing wifi again. The campground wanted 4 bucks, and I ain't paid yet. I'm at about 850 miles, and I'm in Grand Junction Colorado. It's a pretty campground, but I got the last spot. Seems there's a wine festival hereabouts...

whoopee...

The drive was beautiful today. Utah is a varied state, with some INCREDIBLE grandeur. Canyons, cliffs, and vistas... I'm gonna put some pictures here so you can see where I drove today.

The first three were taken as I moved east. At one point I was at 7,000 + feet. Then, of course, as soon as I hit the border in Colorado, the scenery changed..

it always does..

state to state...

it amazes me..





I don't know how this will show... I haven't corrected any images so far... it looked still to me, but I was going 75 mph!


always nice to have company...



pretty stuff.