We Did It Again!

After waiting years for the opportunity to experience a sailboat ride, we experience it twice within one week. The magic of New England! Today, it is the Friendship V, a much larger type of sailboat, a catamaran. Sails are not used on this boat. It has two hulls instead of one, which allows it to skim the water without a propeller. Kinda like a large yacht. The ship’s crew assured me this is a type of sailboat. 

The location is Bar Harbor, Maine in some of the most scenic coastal landscape we've ever seen. For a blissful three-hours, we're aboard this spectacular vessel taking in iconic lighthouses and views of Arcadia National Park from the ocean. Pinch me! We learned about lobstering, Maine’s biggest industry along with tourism. We saw from a distance huge, opulent homes. Summer homes of the rich, like in Newport. Martha Stewart has one here. Walter Cronkite had a yacht anchored in the harbor. It was named Assignment. Yup. You’ve heard it too. “Walter Cronkite is off tonight. He’s on Assignment.”

Every television show or movie watched does not hold a candle to the extravaganza of sights, sounds, and smells. I truly cannot explain why this area is so spellbinding. I'm in a trance. Of course, the chill in the air and the pending cold and snow in the weeks ahead is enough not to hold me here forever, but the moments now are priceless.

We saw four lighthouses from the ocean. Top left clockwise: (1) Bear Island Lighthouse, 

(2) Mark Island Lighthouse which is currently for sale for only $2.3M, 

(3) Bass Harbor Head Light Station, probably the most photographed of all lighthouses, 

(4) Safety House #5, described by Gene, our tour guide, as additional houses in the ocean where personnel could physically reach ships in distress and rescue sailors, saving lives. 

(5) And the final, Egg Rock Lighthouse. This lighthouse is still manned and gave us a fog horn salute as we passed by. Watch and listen to the short clip 

SOURCE: https://youtu.be/QDJ4TxgFSXA?feature=shared

That was just the start of the day. When in Maine, must have lobster. Sitting high on a deck overlooking the harbor and boat we just sailed, we were surrounded by lobster decor. Papa and I had our first lobster roll. Delightful. 

Time to explore Arcadia National Park and do a little hiking. Papa and I did three short hikes, one per row of pictures:

Carroll Homestead: and they had an Open House so we were able to go into the house and even the cellar

Wonderland Trail and Ship Harbor Trail. 

Just driving around the park was fascinating. It isn’t like other national parks. People live here. There are small villages or towns. Schools. It is stunningly beautiful and charming. 

And so were our accommodations for two-nights along the coast in Maine. We had the view of beautiful suspension bridge from our window, both day and night.  Plus we could open the windows and practically feel the fog roll in. It is hard to leave this place. There is so much more to explore. As Papa and I often say, a marathon road trip is the Cliff Notes of travel. We get just a taste of areas and want to come back. 

Our Nation's Capitol

It is amazing to me that this is my fourth visit to our nation's capitol. If anyone would have told me that would happen when I was in high school, I would have laughed at such an impossible idea.

We stopped again because we wanted to tour the White House. Accomplished. It is a tour limited to parts of the East Wing, crowded. Still it was interesting to see the size/scale of the rooms and learn the history. That history and our traditions are so important.  

This trip we walked about 10 miles around DC. That sounds like a lot but it was a leisurely stroll on an absolutely beautiful day. We were fortunate to stay in the Capitol Hill area, close to many Washington 

landmarks. Here are some we visited.

We stopped by the Department of the Treasury. Papa checked his wallet. Nope, nothing in there. We visited the massive World War II Memorial with huge fountains, and pillars representing every state. The nearby Reflecting Pool provides a great photo of the Lincoln Memorial in the distance.  

Memorials to other wars: Vietnam, Korean as well as recognizing military service and POWs. 

Memorials to leaders like Lincoln, the Roosevelts, Thomas Jefferson, Martin Luther King Jr. and Washington. 

Well-known gathering spaces like The Reflecting Pool, the National Mall, and the Tidal Basin. It was fun to see groups of school children touring. People having picnics, flying kites enjoying the grassy national mall. 

Many famous buildings, like the White House, Supreme Court, Capitol, Senate office and park. We stayed at the Phoenix Park Hotel, another place on the Historical Registry. We could see the Capitol dome up the street. 

The reward for walking 10 miles was dinner at the top of a hotel across the river in Arlington, VA. For two hours, our dining room slowly rotated around to provide spectacular views of the Pentagon and downtown DC as the sun set. One. Fantastic. Day. 

A Walk in the Park

After a couple days of touring and sight-seeing, it's time to return to nature as we meander eastward. Today we had a beautiful and unusual hike, the Lower Dogwood Trail in Hot Springs National Park. It is an easy hike just under two miles. To get to the loop, however, we had to access the Arlington Trail, which is located behind the Arlington Hotel and Spa. The historic hotel is huge with over 500 rooms. The staff are incredibly kind and accommodating. I spoke with someone via phone a couple weeks ago and couldn’t believe their instructions to do this hike, but it was as they described. 

First, we drove into their parking garage and received valet parking for $5. “Park as long as you need. Enjoy your hike.” Ok, when have you ever had valet parking for a hike? 

Second, this is our first hike where we started on the sixth floor of the hotel. Yes, that's right. We went inside the hotel, took their elevator to the sixth floor and exited to the Arlington trailhead, which is right by their outdoor pool and spa. See the black railing in the far middle on the photo where we exited the 6th floor, then walked around the pool and through two gates to find the trailhead by the spa. A sixty-foot elevation gain when hiking has never been so easy.

We capped off a great day with a wonderful dinner at Fisherman's Wharf (no not in San Francisco). This restaurant has been around for years and is still popular. It has a large outdoor seating area that extends over the water, allowing boats and wildlife on Lake Hamilton to come right up to the edge. Locals drive up to the restaurant in their boat and dock. How fun. I wish we could have stayed until sunset. It’s a beautiful place and the food is good too!

This is our first visit to Hot Springs. I was impressed. Lots of hiking and boating options. Beautiful area. Restaurants. Great summer playground!

Forest and Falls

If you're like me, New Mexico seems like a desert wasteland. Truth or Consequences? What a name for a town. Of course, Albuquerque and the hot air balloon festival are well-known. In 2022, we went to Carlsbad Caverns, which are absolutely the biggest cave(s) we have seen. Outside of that, we have driven through the state a few times on our eastward adventures but haven't taken much time to explore it. This trip is different.

So far we spent time at White Sand National Park. Next up: Lincoln National Forest. First stop is a picnic lunch at the Trestle Recreation Area near Cloudcraft. 

What a peaceful, relaxed place for lunch with perfect fall weather. Ideal break before we drive onward. The skies were crystal blue, the mountain fresh air. Lovely. Lincoln National Forest is beautiful. And large! 

We drove through a captivating village called Cloudcraft. It is the highest point in New Mexico at just over 8300 feet. I could return here…in the summer. 

From Cloudcraft we were searching for Hope. We found it. Barely. Hope, New Mexico is so small you will miss it if you blink! Wouldn't it be fun to say, "I live in Hope."

On a road trip, there are a few places I like to find: Spanish missions, lighthouses, waterfalls to name a few. Papa and I both like to hike and golf when we can. Today, we combined two of those activities and hiked to our first waterfall within the Lincoln National Forest. Sitting Bull Falls, located outside Carlsbad, is an easy mile-long hike to the falls on a well-maintained sidewalk trail. To really explore the pools and caves, there are several steps to go down near the end of the trail, then traversing some slippery rocks, but totally worth it. Like visiting the ocean, there is something uplifting and restorative about the sound of the water cascading down a waterfall.

Source: https://youtu.be/6LiHNtKEE_4?feature=shared

White Sands National Park

White Sands is the largest white sand, gypsum dunefield in the world. One of the easiest and most popular ways to see the park is to drive the eight-mile Dunes Drive. The national parks service preserves the vast majority of this vast area along with the native plants and animals. It isn’t spectacular at first. Looks like Arizona desert with white sand. By the end of the drive, the dunes are the tallest snow drifts EVER! It was fun climbing them in our bare feet. And we saw families sledding in the sand. Ok this type of “snow” is a blast!

After driving through on Dunes Drive, Papa and I returned to do two easy hikes. The first was the Interdune Boardwalk. A short, accessible walk with informative stations and several rest areas along the way. 

Then we did the Dune Life Trail. The first part was easy and not much sand. Upper left is from the top of the first ridge looking back at BetsyB in the parking area. From the ridge on, it was all white sand. No way to have a manicured trail. We relied on the blue posts to mark the way, and a few footprints. Papa found one shade tree along the way. 

This is a fun area. There are several museums like the Space Mural Museum and the Space History Museum. There is the Missile Museum. We tried,  but didn’t have all the documents we needed with us in order to get security clearance. We were turned away. That’s ok. Missiles are scary and playing in the sand was so much fun. 

Within 30 minutes of checking into the motel, we hear a racket at the window and then, the power went out. Yup. Major thunderstorm. The power was only out for a few minutes but the storm lasted almost two hours. At times it sounded like hail. I don’t think there was any hail, though. BetsyB needed a shower so it’s all good.

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Saguaro National Park: Stop #4 of 4

There are many events or places where you will always remember your first time seeing or where you were when it happened. Seeing a Saguaro cactus is probably one of those times, especially when you're from the Midwest or Eastern areas. Saguaro cactus are unique to the southwestern U.S. Our first exposure was driving into the Phoenix area back in the 1990s to visit family. We pulled off the road multiple times to take photos. Now, we drive those same roads and never stop.

That said, the fascination with Saguaros hasn't ended. They still remind me of the cartoon character, Gumby. Their white caps in springtime transform into large white flowers that are so beautiful. Spring would be the best time to visit the Saguaro National Park just outside of Tucson. Did we? No, let's go in

Joshua Tree National Park

After the cooler days along the coast, the temperatures continued to rise as we drove inland. By the time we reached the desert around Joshua Tree, we were back in triple digits. It meant that our tour of Joshua Tree was more a driving tour than hiking. We did exit the car for brief periods while being mindful of the extreme heat and strong sun.

We used an audio tour to guide us. This is a great way for us to do self-guided tours while still gaining insights. The audio tour described Joshua Tree as a cartoonish park, and that it is. Visions of old Flintstones cartoons came to mind as we drove through the park. The tour also clarified that Joshua trees aren't trees. They are part of the succulent family called yuccas, a variant of asparagus. Who knew?

The plants aren't the only amazing visual at Joshua Tree. The enormous rocks within the park

The General

Our drive took a very different look today. So far we have driven through the Mohave Desert and skirted Death Valley. Temperatures hover around 110 degrees. Today the landscape changed. We headed up Highway 99 through central California, with almond trees lining the roadway. Fortunately they weren't blooming. When we went through a couple years ago they were and I could barely see to drive as allergies hit. 

We turned off the highway and took country roads through the diverse farming area. Crops ranged from grape vines to corn, lettuces and other leafy vegetables, and citrus trees. Group of cattle and other livestock was scattered between farmlands. So much diversity! Our vision of California is beaches and southern cities. This is definitely a different vibe.

Our destination today is Sequoia National Park. Due to winter storms and snow melt, we must enter from the north. The more direct, southern entrance road is washed out. The northern route worked out for us since we have to go north anyway. It also allowed us to drive through part of Kings Canyon National Park on our way to Sequoia.

The drive was filled with curvy, steep mountain roads, but it was fascinating. The mountainsides

Home

After the Antelope Canyon tour, we knew there were hotel rooms available in Page. But what if there were last minute vacancies at the North Rim? Are we pushing our luck? Doesn’t hurt to check, right?

Yes! There was a vacancy for the night. Ok, next. What about a dinner reservation at the lodge? That was harder. 7:30 was the only time. Ok, we will take it. We were set for our final night of the trip. 

A little history. Papa and I hiked the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim for the first time 12 years ago. My friend, Judy, encouraged me to “go for it.”  I feel a connection to her when I am there, especially on the North Rim. (Judy's Story)

This visit varies from the template Judy laid out but it was wonderful evening. We still stopped at Jacob Lake on our way to the North Rim. We picked up cookies, as Judy suggested. I also picked up muffins for breakfast. 

We arrived at the North Rim at 6:35. Sunset is around 7:30. Both large lodge verandas overlooking the Canyon were pretty crowded already. We found a picnic table and proceeded to enjoy dessert, our Jacob Lake cookies, before dinner. 

Miraculous

When Betsy fell ill, we had to cancel the major “kick” to the end of our planned trip. #1 We have wanted to tour Antelope Canyon for years. #2 Stay overnight on the North Rin of the Grand Canyon. That one we have done years ago when we hiked the Grand Canyon the first time. 

First we overslept on the morning we wanted to leave Salt Lake City. That made getting home really late. Just for kicks, I called Antelope Canyon to see if, like us earlier in the week, someone may have canceled their tour reservation. Guess what? We could get a reservation at 3:45 giving us plenty of time to make the drive. Plus, if we arrived early, they might be able to slip us in earlier. 

Grand Teton Again

Like with Yellowstone, we had the morning to tour Grand Teton on our own. It was Sunday so we wanted to experience church at the Chapel of Transfiguration. Built in 1925, this log cabin-like structure has original ash tree pews. The large window behind the alter perfectly frames the Tetons. The colorful wildflowers along the boardwalk leading to the church give it a welcoming, homestead feeling. 

Grand Teton - Evening

Don’t know why it surprised me but there is a lot of driving in the national parks. They’re large. A state highway goes through Yellowstone and continues through Grand Teton. Did you know there is less than 10 miles between Yellowstone and Grand Teton?

The highway through Grand Teton does not have a kiosk or require a national parks pass or entrance fee. There are kiosks on all the other roads/entrances, just not the main state highway. Why? It is a major road for commerce with trucks using it. It is also the route to the Jackson Hole airport, the only national airport located within a national park. 

Papa and I met our tour group in Jackson, located on the southern end of Grand Teton. That meant we drove the entire length of this road through the park. The iconic view of the Tetons is visible all along this highway!

Yellowstone

West Yellowstone lies just over a mile from the Yellowstone West Entrance. It is a fun town with the typical tourist gift, clothing and souvenir shops. Our lodging was only a block off the main drag and the evening was picture-perfect weather wise. We had to take a walk to celebrate. 

What are we celebrating, you ask? Well, it was Nana’s turn to have a blunder. As we unloaded the car at the motel, I forgot to remove the keys from the ignition. Now, the car shouldn’t lock if the keys are in the ignition right? Wrong! Called OnStar to unlock and nope, the car’s too old. Seriously? I say age discrimination! Poor Betsy. Never fear. AAA to the rescue. Less than an hour later, the nice young tech retrieves the keys. Time to get some ice cream. 

North Dakota

This was a longer miles/driving day, which means we didn’t get many photos. We came into North Dakota from South Dakota so we didn’t experience the far eastern side of the state. Honestly the area through Jamestown, Carrington and Harvey had a somewhat familiar look of Iowa or Eastern South Dakota. As we got closer to Minot, the rolling hillsides were green. They looked almost like mowed yards but it was prairie grass. Beautiful. 

Meet Me in St. Louis

It has been over 30 years since we visited the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. Much is the same. The cocoon like tram cars (8 cars total) still take 4-6 people per car to the top. The view from the 630 foot top windows is still amazing. 

The new fascinating piece of information we learned was part of the Mississippi Cruise after the arch. Apparently when the arch was built in the 1960s, there were elevated train tracks between the arch and the Mississippi River. Well, the developers felt that would distract from the arch. 

Oklahoma City National Memorial

The Murrow Building was targeted in 1995. 

We first visited the memorial in 2000. 

We came again in 2013.

It is still a deeply moving experience today. 

Carlsbad Caverns

It is not possible for me to describe or photograph the enormous underground Carlsbad Caverns. The Caverns consist of over 100 caves. The 1.5 mile path descends the equivalent of 75 stories, which makes the path (and a few steps) a pretty steep grade down. It is a hike.

The start of the path is serenaded by bats (see video below).  Even at mid-day, there are numerous bats in flight. As we descend, the darkness envelopes us and the temperature drops to around 56°. Despite the cool temperature, we are sweating due to the high humidity levels. 

There aren’t a lot of people on the path so we hike at a good clip. One because we like to, and two, because we couldn’t find Papa’s wallet. Thanks to AirTags, we knew the wallet was near/in the car but we couldn’t locate it. We had a reservation window to enter the Caverns so we left the car in hopes we would locate it when we returned. 

About a third of the way down the path, I realize the AirTag has a sound option to help us locate the wallet. Then I panick. What if the wallet had dropped to the ground when getting out of the car? We didn’t think to look under the car. We need to hustle and find that wallet.  

We hustled! One hour to make the entire hike and, yes, we took the elevator back up. And, yes, we found the wallet safely hidden inside the car. Yeah for AirTags…and learning how to use them.