Orlando, Yellowstone (to work), White Fish, MT (to be with Kathi & John), Banff (to be with Bill & Mary Ann), Alaska, Washington State, Vancouver, Idaho, Utah, Colorado (lunch with Larry & Judy), Missouri, Tennessee (to spend the night with Bill & Mary Ann), Mississippi, Alabama and finally back to Florida (Thurs night.)

23,000 miles

It was a great adventure!  Thanks for sharing it with us.

Since the last post we have been to Little Wild Horse Canyon in Utah and hiked.  It was remote and of course very beautiful.  Utah is such a colorful, interesting state.   You'll be happy to know we did not sign up to be Mormons!
We have been to Glenwood Springs, one of our favorite small towns in CO.  We toured the famous, very old Hotel Colorado.  Some of their famous and infamous guests have been: Teddy Roosevelt, the Unsinkable Molly Brown, the Mayo brothers (Mayo Clinic), William Taff, Patrick Swayze, Al Capone and Diamond Jack Alterie (a gangster.)  We went to Lookout Mountain and hiked up about .5 to a mile to the Lindwood Cemetery where Doc Holiday is buried.  We were miserable because it was so hot.  When we came down we went to a Pioneer Museum.

When leaving Glenwood, CO we drove towards Castle Rock to have lunch with Larry and Judy Weiner.  On our way past Vail we saw the beautiful Aspen trees that had turned golden.  The mountain sides were bright with color.
We took a tour of Larry and Judy's home and saw the lovely things they have collected from all over the world.  He and Judy took us out to lunch.

We are near St. Louis now and will be in Memphis on Tues.
   

Little Wild Horse Canyon

Little Wild Horse Canyon

Little Wild Horse Canyon

Little Wild Horse Canyon

 

Near Little Wild Horse Canyon

Little Wild Horse Canyon

Little Wild Horse Canyon

Little Wild Horse Canyon

Little Wild Horse Canyon

    We drove from Goodland, KS to Grain Valley, MO.  We’re about 250 miles from St Louis.

The hot springs in Glenwood Springs

The golden Aspens

With Judy & Larry

   

ND and I took the city bus downtown and went to Gastown, one of the original settlements.  It was here that we saw the “steam clock.”  I know most of you have been to wonderful Vancouver but I'm going to tell some of the things we did anyway . . . We took a bus (I accidentally opened the emergency window) out to the Capilano Suspension Bridge.  That is the famous one you see in all the pictures.    We took the Seabus to North Vancouver where we walked around and went into the Market.  When we got back we took the Skytrain to Bridgeport just to experience riding the rail.  Lastly we went to the Lookout, at the top of the highest building to get a 350 degree view of Vancouver.  It was beautiful as the sun was setting.  One more day in Vancouver and then we'll be on the road again . . .

Capilano Suspension Bridge

Capilano Suspension Bridge

Capilano Suspension Bridge

Steam Clock in Gastown

Capilano Suspension Bridge

Vancouver from Lookout

Canada Place

Loading area for the containers

Ferry to North Vancouver

     Sunday morning at our B & B in Haines we met Larry  from California.  Larry had lived in this B & B when he was around 10 - 14 years old.  His parents owned it at that time but of course it wasn't a B & B then.  This was the first time he had been back since then so it was very special to him.  He told us what the room were used for at that time (we were sleeping in the dining room.)
     The owners are trying to sell the place for $560,000.  Bradley, the manager, says it only brings in about $1200 a month and it’s only open for 3 months out of the year.  Good luck.
        We drove around to explore on our last day.  Then we went downtown and tried to poke around in a couple of shops but there wasn’t much.  It was so cold in the grocery store we didn’t stay long.  
    We drove out and find out where to pick up the ferry and pick up our tickets.  The guy giving me the tickets told me where to go to see bears and eagles.  We drove out there and sure enough we saw an eagle up in a tree.  We also saw a huge grizzly fishing, he almost came up on some unsuspecting fishermen.  We yelled to them and they ran just in time to avoid disaster.  The bear was back and forth under the bridge we were standing on.  Then it came up on top and we (all the photographers) scattered.  We ran to our cars.   We went back to the ferry and got in line to board the Columbia around 6 p.m.  We actually drove on about 7:30.  We drove our car onto a lift that took us to an upper floor.
    After finding our room, we went to explore.  It was really quite nice, four bunk beds and a bathroom.  It reminded me so much of the last time I was on a train with my travel partner, Barbara.  Of course our experience wasn’t nearly as nice as the ferry.  On the very top deck is the “solarium” where a lot of the backpackers were spending the night on chairs or the floor.  There were heat lamps overhead so it really wasn’t as cold as we thought it would be, we were just glad we weren’t staying out there.   There was a movie theater where some of the backpackers were sacked out on the floor and they were also sacked out on the floor in the lounges. 


We slept great as we were lulled by the motion of the ferry and the sound of the engine.  It was a much better sleep than Barbara and I had on the train to Bulgaria.
    The scenery was beautiful, lots of islands and mountains plus we saw humpback whales which was a thrill.    We got off in Sitka for four hours paying a shuttle service $12 to take us into town.  There wasn’t much to it, basically it’s a tourist stop.  The one interesting thing is the high hill (there used to be a “castle” up there)  where the sale of Alaska was made from Russia to the US.   There is still a lot of Russian influence in the town. It is also where the papers were signed and the ceremony took place when Alaska became a state.
    A girl from the ferry got off to run and was attacked by a bear.  She ran right in on into her.  She screamed, rolled down a hill and the bear came after her and bit her on the buttocks.   She did what few probably could have . . . she stood up and made herself "big" and the bear ran away.  She was taken to the hospital, sewed her up and she’s back on the ferry.
    Dogs are allowed on the ferry but have to stay in their cars but a couple times a day.  They poop on the deck and the owners have to clean it up.  People are allowed to let them out at 8:15 a.m., 2:15 p.m. and 8:15 p.m.  Basically they are locked up most of the day.
    We docked in Ketchikan at 2 p.m. catching the local bus into town for $1.00.   We saw the totem poles that Katchikan is famous for then we walked around town until it was time to catch the bus back to the ferry.
    They made an announcement that we would be entering rougher waters at 8 p.m. and that people that needed to should take their medicine.  We never felt a thing in fact it is smooth as glass.

    We have left the Marine Highway and are now in Vancouver. 

Vancouver

Katchikan

Stanley Park

Stanley Park

We drove from Tok to Haines on Sat.   We checked into our B & B which was part of the old Ft Seward,  Army base.  Our B & B was the chief surgeon’s home which is listed o the National Register of Historical Homes. 

The Fort was built around a parade ground similar to Yellowstone.  Some of the still standing buildings include: the laundry where the noncommissioned officers' wives did the officer's  laundry in "Soapsuds Alley"; the fort commissary; a private residence with a totem pole and a cannon sitting outside.  The cannon was cast in 1861; the bachelor officers'quarters and the captain's quarters to name a few.

Today we took a hike through a forest taking lots of pictures of unusual mushrooms and the light shining through the trees.

We need gas but have decided to only buy 4 gallons in the morning because it costs $4.71.  Yikes.

I had to sneak to take this guy's picture in Valdez.  Don't you love his "stach?"

Fishing boats in Valdez

Fishing in Valdez

Leaving Valdez with its low hanging clouds

Taken from the car as we drove toward Tok.  The leaves were changing and it was just beautiful