Turning Towards Home

Have you ever heard of a round “tuit?” Well I found one and decided to use it to finish my blog, we’ve only been home a little more than 3 months.

 We pulled out of Bowman, ND heading south to Black Hawk, SD on the 22^nd of Aug. At some point we found ourselves close to the town of Sturgis, SD and decided we just had to stop.

Thank goodness that it was not during Bike week, that would have been way too busy for us. We found a place to park and walked over to the main drag where we found Wieners Diner & Donuts on Main Street and had a second breakfast.

For all of my Biker friends that have gone to Sturgis during bike week this is what Main Street looks like without all your compatriots.

After we had a bite to eat, we continued on down the road to our stop at 3 Flags RV Park in Black Hawk, where we will be tourists for a few days. Our first stop is Mount Rushmore.

Gee, which picture do I choose? I had to put this one in showing us both at Mount Rushmore, HERE WE ARE! But I decided to go with a more traditional

Rather than showing the heads through the state flags. We talked about going over to Crazy Horse, but decided that it was not complete and we were not really in to it, but….

We took this picture when we drove by the Crazy Horse Site.

We also drove through the Custer State Forrest hoping to see the large herd of buffalo purported to be in this park.

We couldn’t find the herd, but we found a few males out grazing. Here’s one fellow that was by the side of the road and no we are not that close, I used a telephoto lens.

Several times as we have been traveling we’ve seen antelope. This is the first time we were able to stop and take a picture.

This fellow we were able to get close to. It’s a sculpture we found in Hill City across the street from the restaurant we just had to go for dinner. We had a $12 Fillet at the Alpine Inn. Of course, you had to get there early and you had two choices for dinner it was steak or some vegetarian dish. And it was all cash. When they opened the doors, the line was out into the street. We got there early enough to make it for the first seating. You got a wedge of lettuce with a drizzle of their dressing, the steak dinner with a baked potato, Texas Toast and if you paid extra you got a dessert.  Was it good, or worth the wait? You just have to go and decide for yourself. By the time we got home we were exhausted.

The next day I got up early to go and play a round of golf while Pat stayed in bed for a bit of a sleep in. As I was eating breakfast I noticed a rig across the way that looked familiar but dismissed it as “no it couldn’t be.” When I got back from golf I walked over to that rig and sure enough it was a fellow that is in my Friday league down in Pharr, TX. We went out to dinner with Brad and his wife the next night. We’ve run into folks we’ve met in our travels many times and it never gets old.

Our last day finds us on another tour heading out to the badlands. While you know that Badlands are called that because they are lands that are useless and not good for anything. Well, these lands were certainly not that. There was plenty of life.

This is the first of the Badlands life we came across as we entered the park. Later we came across more of these mountain goats grazing in some grass land.

Even though it was quite cloudy as we started out, I was quite taken with amount of color shown in the bands here in these hills.

Looking at other areas it was interesting to see how they erode and don’t have any growth areas on them. You can see the various geological layers in all of the hills.

Couldn’t resist through in some of these prairie dogs. We also saw some single buffalo, again no herds. At one point I got excited and took some pictures of what I thought might be a buffalo herd but when I blew the pictures up, I found the were beef cattle. This was not our year to see a herd of buffalo.

Our route out of the badlands took us through the town of Wall. So we had to stop at the famous “Wall Drugs” for a malted milk. Wall Drug reminded us of “South of the Border” on the east coast. In other words, “a tourist trap.” We were going out to dinner with our surprise couple, so not much to eat till dinner.

We are traveling again on the 26^th of August and doing an overnight in Chamberlain, SD. As we cross the Missouri River we spot a statue that we just have to come back to for a photo.

She’s called “Dignity” and she is in the Rest area overlooking the River. She honors the Lakota and Dakota peoples of the Dakotas.

The next two days were spent in Sioux Falls, SD.

Yes, these are the falls. We ate lunch in an old pump house next to the falls, it was quite nice. I also got a round of golf in.

Pat was looking forward to our next stop in Lincoln, NE where she wanted to go to the quilt museum which is run by the university. She dropped me off at the golf course and then headed for the museum where she came across this useful item.

That is if you have a camel you want to fancy up. Pat tells me she really enjoyed the display. Most of the collection came from the far east but it was certainly different than anything you would normally find here in the US.

Well we turned the camera off as we headed south towards home. So, the rest is just some story telling. As to the time frame, we are in late August and Hurricane Harvey has been ravaging the coast of Texas as we are heading south. We arrive in Guthrie, OK on the 1^st of September and the reports of damage are still not complete, but we know that our normal route would take us close to Corpus Christi and we are not sure if the flooding has not reached some of the highways we plan to travel.

We pulled out of Guthrie and headed for Wichita Falls avoiding the whole Dallas mess. Then went down through Brady to Carrizo Springs. This was a little town the first time we had stopped here, but, after the oil boom it is now full of campgrounds, man-camps, hotels and restaurants. When we made reservations at the campground, the night before, we were told they had plenty of room, the refugee’s had just left. When we arrived the lady told us they had every place full, all lawns full of tents and the neighbors were taking in the overflow all from refugees from hurricane Harvey just a few days ago.

The next day, we drove down through Laredo and continued on to our home in the Rio Grande Valley. How many miles? We started with our Easter trip to Port Aransas for about 365 miles, then up to Denver for around 1,300, over to Watsonville for another 1,400 then 1,200 up to Washington. A couple of thousand across the top of the country then back down to home for another 1,500 or so. Anyway, the total came in around 7,950 miles. With side trips in the car, we were well over 10,000 miles.

Pat had a class she need to attend in Dallas mid-September. We chose to go home rather than camp in the Dallas area until the class started. Campgrounds are hard to come by and I was ready to get home. So, after a week at home we were off to Dallas with the car to get Pat to her class and me to a couple of new golf courses that got me to 201 different courses throughout North America.

Into The Smoke

It is August 3^rd and we are on our way to Ellensburg, WA. Our last two days we were in Smoke coming down from the big fire north of us in BC. Our course is set as we leave Mt. Vernon, our decision is to go south and cross the Cascades on I-90 and we found something in Ellensburg that we wanted to investigate. You guessed it, we are looking for a restaurant that is unique.

They took an old Mobil gas station and turned it into a restaurant called the Red Wing Diner.

This is the interior, there certainly is enough memorabilia on the walls to keep you busy reading until the order arrives.  The next day, I headed south to Yakima to play golf at the Elks Course. I think this is course #192, coming closer to that 200 number.

Remember I was telling you about the smoke?

This is a picture taken just outside of Ellensburg as we turn north to visit our good friends in Osoyoos, BC.

As we drive through customs into Canada with the motor home, we do something that we’ve been unable to attain in a number of years. That is taking the RV into Canada and not getting searched. We answered a few questions and then drove right through. We didn’t go far. Just past the customs stop, we turned right then left into our friend’s driveway.

Let me introduce our good friends, Bob & Donna. Bob is taking us on a tour of Lake Osoyoos. You can see just how smoky it is and the fire is some 200+ miles from here.

This is a view of the lake from an overview east of the lake. You can just make out the lake through the Smoke.

We found this sign while we were out and about. We had timed our visit with a tournament at Osoyoos Golf & Country Club with about 60 of us seniors. How did I do? Not quite last place but, pretty close.

We had met Bob and Donna when we first went on the road about 2001 in the desert at Quartzsite, AZ. It’s been a lot of good times over all the times we hooked up. They ended up taking us to many places in the Okanagan Valley and we met a bunch of the great people that they hang out with at home.

This is one our better pictures, even though I seem to have my mouth open. That was supposed to be a smile.

It’s August 11^th and from BC, we headed for Missoula, MT. First, we were stopped and searched at the border crossing by our US guys. They took some great tomatoes that Donna had given us out of her garden. I told Donna she could walk over and get them back if she wanted. She declined.

We made a quick stop at the Dry Falls in Washington. These were Falls when the Great Glacier Dam in Missoula broke and the water came rushing through creating this grand falls that were larger than Niagara.

These pictures are views from the overlook looking both left then right. I’ve touched them up as much as possible, but the smoke was so thick that this is the best I could do.

Our next stop was a camp near Worley, ID. where we met up with some good friends that live next to us in Texas. While we were there I got a chance to play Coeur d'Alene Golf Club which normally cost a bundle but they were having a special for only a third of a bundle. You had to pay for a caddie, too bad we didn’t get a good one, oh, well.

I got a kick out of the golf cart, complete with a wooden steering wheel, headlights, turn signals and fancy wheels as well as a fancy GPS. The course is known for its floating green which, after you hit to it, you are taken by boat to complete the hole. I did well and got a par on the hole. Did I mention that we got a chair massage before we started and after we were done? I guess this is how the other half lives, eh?

We continued the trip onto Missoula, MT. Now this is our first time in Montana. So, on through the smoke we drove. At one point the smoke was so thick we had to slow down. I was afraid that the highway might be closed because the fire would be so close. But as we neared Missoula, we seemed to come out of the worst of it. We got parked for a 2-night stay. The fires were north and south of us.

The next morning found Pat dropping me off at the golf course while she went on to a display of Hmong Art and Stitchery.

Of course this is just a small example of what she saw. But, she then came and picked me up and off we went for some lunch and then in search of a thousand buddhas, yes, you read that correctly.

About 30 miles north of Missoula we found them.

Ok, so this is one, but if you look, this one is surrounded by others and you can see many others in the background and yes there are 1,000 of them situated in lines radiating out from the goddess in the middle.

Of course, throughout the park we were treated to many little sayings. I know the picture is clear of smoke, but it just happens to be that the wind is blowing in the opposite direction keeping the smoke away. One of the worst fires is in the Lolo Mountains just south of Missoula.

So not only do we get an artistic tour we were enlightened as well.

We did drive out of the smoke finally as we came out into the plains.

Our last night in Montana was Miles City. While it was not a large city it certainly was a charming little city. We did find the Range Riders Museum. This place had a bunch of buildings full of stuff. It was great. There was everything from pictures and photos to housewares, saddles and guns with a bit of everything else thrown in.

There were so many things that were donated by the locals that it took many buildings to hold all of the treasures.

We went from building to building enjoying the various displays.

This was truly a marvelous find for us.

We are moving on to Bowman ND. This is the first time in North Dakota. We now have only one more state to reach for us to have achieved all 48 states with our MH. Bowman will find a day of golf and a bit of relaxation before we turn south and head for home. That will be our next story, I hope you have been enjoying our stories to this date. Oops, I forgot to tell you that day of golf in Bowman was during the eclipse. We were far enough out of the path where it only got a little darker. Pat tried a few things to put the image on cardboard and I was able to look through some glasses some kids had at the course, but that was the extent of our eclipse experience. See you next time.

Our Time in Washington

We’ve left Vancouver, WA and are headed north to Mt. Vernon, WA. We have to pass through the little village of Seattle and they sure know how to greet a traveler with a lot of their neighbors to guide them (slowly) through the city. Fortunately, we don’t have that far to go and we arrive at our destination only mildly fatigued. As we are getting settled in, two golf carts come down the road and into our space and out step 3 couples that we are good friends with in our Texas park. Oh yes, we knew they would be here, but it was great to be greeted with friends.

One of our reasons to visit this fine area besides our friends, was to meet up with my step-sister Susan. She lives about 35 miles away on Lummi Island. Susan did come out to visit with our friends and us at the campground and we had a wonderful dinner and visit. The next day, we were off to visit her on the island. The plan is to park the car on the mainland and to walk onto the ferry and cross. She will pick us up on the other side.

 

This is some of the artwork from the Lummi Indians on the mainland side near the ferry crossing.

We crossed over and Susan picked us up giving us a tour around the island.

I had her stop on the north side of the island so I could take this picture of some reef netters. Two things to note are the driftwood logs on the beach and the San Juan Islands in the background.

This is a closeup of a couple of netters working together. Netting can only be done by the Lummi Tribe. This is an agreement with the native Americans that dates back to the 1930’s, allowing them to net salmon.

Continuing our tour, we came across this poor boat.

Note that it is tied to the tree. No it’s not tied with a rope, but with a branch from the tree.

We have finished the tour and returned to Susan’s condo.

This is a view from her deck. She tells me that if it were a clear day, we would be able to see Vancouver Island off in the distance.

Hey! Is lunch ready?

To my step brothers; do you know that look?

Meet my sister, Susan.

We will spend almost 3 weeks in Mt. Vernon and will get together with Susan several times. It was great to be able to spend so much time with her. We miss you already, Susan.

While at Mt. Vernon, I had the opportunity to play 5 different golf courses. I showed up early to the first club I played and found the parking lot empty. I went in wondering if they were open. “Oh yes, we’re open, most don’t show up for another hour or so.” Ok, so off I went. The first hole I looked at was elevated and hard to see where I was going. The only thing I could think was “what have I gotten myself into?”

If you can make it out, in the background is Mt. Baker a feature seen from many golf courses here in the area. I think my total hit around 188 after these 5 courses.

Well it’s that time of the year and for once we both remembered that our anniversary was coming soon. So, we made plans to go to dinner at a good seafood restaurant on Anacortes. As we were driving around enjoying the island, we came across this:

And no, there is no water under this paddle wheeler called W T Preston. This boat was used to clear snags in the local rivers.  And because the rivers were shallow in many places that this boat needed to go,

With the paddle wheel and the shallow draft of the boat, this was the boat needed and it saw service up until 1986.

You can see that even the washing machine was a bit old fashion.

Yes, this was a treasure to find on our way to a fabulous anniversary dinner. Yes, the dinner was good and the number of years we celebrated? 48!

Another little tour we took from our stop in Mt. Vernon was out to the Washington Pass along Highway 20. We had considered taking the RV and going through this pass to get to our next stop in BC. So you might consider this to be an exploratory as to whether it would be feasible to take the RV.

First let me tell you that the RV ain’t climbing this hill. We are at the top (5,476 feet) looking down at the two lane road that makes the turn and starts down. Considering we started at sea level, you can understand why this is not going to be the preferred route.

We did not come alone. We had a native Washingtonian giving us the low down as we traveled this most picturesque drive.

She kind of does look like a native, eh? Here’s Pat with her good friend Tara, our guide.

One of our first stops was to grab this picture. I just love a good water fall and this is a good one.

Our next overlook was that of Blue Lake.

What can I tell you all of the pictures came out looking like green Lake. This I feel was the best of the lot. Have you noticed those bits of white in some of these pictures? Yes, it is snow! And, yes it is July.

Where ever I turned, there seemed to be a picture I just had to take.

It might be a good thing that Pat is here telling me not to make it too long or I would be boring to you.

Tune in same time, same channel for the further adventures of Pat & Tom as the head INTO THE SMOKE!

See you next installment.