Retired and Trippin

Our last day of the trip. 😢 At 7:40 we left our hotel in Lincoln, Nebraska under cloudy skies and it was 75 degrees. It did rain just a little bit earlier in the morning. We drove a short distance to see the Nebraska capitol building. Chris, Marge and Carl in front of the capitol. Our route today was 34 east out of Lincoln, 75 south into Kansas, 36 east to Hiawatha, 73 south to Muscotah, 159 east and south to Nortonville, 59 south to Oskaloosa, 16 east to Tonganoxie, 40 east and 7 south to Shawnee. We stopped in Hiawatha for gas and in Basehor (on 40 Hwy) for a tasty lunch at Kelley's. We said our goodbyes in Basehor and took off for home, where we arrived at 1:40 having traveled 228 miles and experiencing a high (briefly) of 90 degrees. To see the few photos taken today click here -  LastDayPics This 14 day trip covered 4,008 miles through some beautiful scenery (and cooler temperatures) with good friends who just happen to also be family. Life is very good!

Yesterday evening at our hotel in Ogallala, Nebraska was very relaxing. There was an outdoor pool and hot tub and the temperatures in both were perfect. Even Marge joined us in the pool. Our departure this morning at 7:45 was under cloudy skies with a temperature of 70. It felt very nice and we hoped the clouds would stick around all day. Not far down the road, however, it became obvious that we'd soon run out from under the clouds. Also, not far down the road we crossed back into central time zone so we lost an hour. Our route today was Hwy 30 eastbound from Ogallala to Grand Island and 34 eastbound to Lincoln. On the west side of North Platte we stopped at the Golden Spike Tower, which gives a view over the Union Pacific's Bailey Yard, the largest classification rail yard in the world. It is an impressive operation, 8 miles long on 2,850 acres. It's where east meets west on the Union Pacific line. this is a portion of the eastbound portion of the Bailey Yard

Departing our hotel at 7:40 it was sunny (again) and 72 degrees so the top was down. Our route today was I-90 east to Rapid City, 16 west, 16A south, 244 west (to Mt. Rushmore National Memorial), 385 south (past the Crazy Horse memorial under construction) into Nebraska to Northport and 26 east to Ogallala. We did not stop and enter the park at Mt Rushmore but we did take some photos from the highway. Carl was leading today and he took the turn to enter the Crazy Horse park but at the pay booth we told them we were turning around, which we did after I took a quick photo. We gassed up in Custer and continued south on 385. On the way we saw one buffalo and a boat load of prairie dogs. The temperature climbed to 92 by the time we reached Hot Springs, SD. At 11:05 we entered Nebraska and it was 96 degrees. Outside Chadron, NE it reached 99 so Chris and I stopped to put the top up and turn on the AC. In Alliance, NE we enjoyed a good lunch at the Korner Grill. Shortly after lea

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our son, Bryan! Forty years old today. WOW, I must be getting old (upper middle age?). We took off today at 8:50. A late start on a day of lollygagging. Another sunny day and it was 75 degrees. Our plan was to do some tourist stops around and near Spearfish and return to our hotel. A day of low mileage and rest. We are getting older you know. Our first start was the Termesphere Gallery. The artist, Dick Termes, paints spheres ( www.termespheres.com ) and many are on display at his gallery. Marge is expanding our horizons by exposing us to some art. It was very interesting. Our next stop for the day was the D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery, also in Spearfish. This was another interesting stop but the buildings and the railroad fish car were all closed. It was very cool seeing all the big ole trout. From the fish hatchery we headed to Spearfish Canyon to take the scenic drive. It was a nice drive, but as scenic drives go, we've had more scenic

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Marge! I won't say how old she is but it's younger than me. 😘 At 8:00 we left our hotel in Williston, ND and traveled south on Hwy 85. It was sunny (again) and 55 degrees (top up). When we arrived at the Theodore Roosevelt National Park (TRNP), north unit, it was 61 degrees so the top went down to cruise through the park. We enjoyed the scenery and we had to be careful with all the bison wandering around. view of the Little Missouri River from the River Bend Overlook I was stopped on the road trying to photograph a baby bison when it took off running away from its mother onto the road right in front of us. Then it ran back towards the car hopping around like it wanted to play. Mother bison was about 50 feet away and when we heard her starting to snort behind us we took off. When we were approaching the Oxbow Overlook, the end of the line, we encountered another herd of bison on the road. We stopped to watch. The whole time we were there a big

Yesterday evening it rained for a spell and when it was over I went out to wash the bugs off the front of the Mustang. On the hill behind the hotel I saw this - very pretty! When we woke up this morning (in Shelby, MT) it was 41 degrees. When we took off to start our day it was 52, so the top was up. Our route today was easy, Highway 2 all the way to Williston, ND except for a brief detour down to the Fort Peck dam. I was leading today. East of Chester, MT I looked in my rearview mirror to see how Carl and Marge were doing. They were following a white pickup truck. Two pronghorn antelope ran across the highway right in front of the truck, causing it to brake. It made my heart go pitty-patty. Carl said later that it wasn't really that close. We stopped in Havre, MT for gas. It was 66 degrees so the top went down. South of Havre, extending west and east for some distance were some hills that signs identified as Bear Paw Mountains. In Malta, MT we stopped at a rest area for a

It was very cool when we woke up today - 46 degrees. When we departed our hotel at 7:55 it was 50 under sunny skies. Another beautiful day. Glacier National Park was our destination today. When we arrived it was 49 degrees and as the morning went on, and our elevation increased, the temperature dropped to 45. The top stayed up. Portions of the road were wet, I believe from condensation dripping from the huge trees hanging over the road. As we traveled through the park low hanging clouds were constantly changing the view. We really enjoyed the park despite all the people and vehicles clogging up the place. Here are a few photos taken today. All east entrances were closed so we could only go so far into the park. We entered from the west and went as far as Logan Pass, where we turned around and went back down. Towards the top we saw a mountain goat, which was cool but there was so much traffic around that I could not stop for a decent photo. I shot through the passenger wi

We started our travels today at 8:00 under sunny skies with a cool temp of 63. Our route was I-15 north out of Great Falls, MT to exit 290, 89 north, 200 west, 1-90 west, and 93 north to our destination of Kalispell, MT. The weather and scenery were exceptional again today. Highway 200 headed to Lincoln, MT We stopped in Lincoln, MT on Hwy 200 to check out the Blackfoot Pathways Sculpture in the Wild. There was a walking path through the ponderosa pines with sculptures to view along the way. Chris and Marge walking in "Ponderosa Whirlwind" In Arlee, MT on Hwy 93 we stopped for lunch at The Huckleberry Patch before going to the Garden of One Thousand Buddhas north of town. The outdoor venue was outside. Waist high walls formed a large circle or wheel with 8 spokes. A large Buddha was in the middle. Carl counted the Buddhas and there were 125 on each of the 8 spokes for a total of 1,000. There were others in the area also so there were well over 1,000. Carl an

Our travels today started at 8:10 when we pulled away from our hotel in Billings, MT. It was 64 degrees under blue clear skies. Another BEAUTIFUL morning! Our route was 87 north to near Roundup, 12 west to White Sulphur Springs, 89 north to 87 west to Great Falls, MT. It was a scenic route most all the way. westbound on Hwy 12 approaching White Sulphur Springs, MT We stopped for lunch in White Sulphur Springs. In July of 2013 Carl, Gary, Larry and I were on our way back from Alaska. We stopped for the night in White Sulphur Springs and ate dinner at a bar just up the road from our hotel that served fantastic broasted chicken in a contraption that sounded like it was on it's last leg. Today Carl was on a mission to find that broasted chicken again. We found it in The Shack. That bar from 2013 was no longer there. The Shack, obviously, had no indoor seating so we ate at picnic tables just around the corner. The chicken was good . . . . but not as good as I remember it

Yesterday evening we walked to downtown Cody after I finished the blog for the day. There was a street performance going on and, as you can see, nobody was worrying about social distancing. Chris and I took a walk in downtown Cody before we took off today. The main drag was rather empty this morning. At 9:00 we left our hotel and took Hwy 120 north to Hwy 296 westbound. This is the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway, named after the Chief of the Nez Perce tribe in 1877 ( Chief Joseph Scenic Byway ). The scenery was beautiful and an appetizer for the scenery of the Beartooth Highway yet to come. On this highway we also spotted a moose, which was quite a treat (see link to photos at the end). At Hwy 212 (the Beartooth Highway) we turned north and headed up into the Beartooth Mountains. Along the way we stopped to check out a waterfall. Carl and I with the waterfall in the background The scenery on the Beartooth Highway was breathtaking. The low temperature near the top wa

Before leaving this morning we went shopping at Murdoch's Ranch & Home, which was next door to our hotel. Carl was looking for a different ice chest but he didn't find one that he wanted. They did have some high dollar YETI's. At 8:30 we were pulling away from our hotel in Evansville, WY (right next to Casper, WY). It was sunny and a cool 63 degrees. Top down this morning. We drove/rode west on 20/26 to Hell's Half Acre, a badlands or Bryce Canyon type of area, where we walked around and took some pics. Traveling on west on 20/26 we were seeing many pronghorn antelope. When I saw some fairly close to the highway I stopped to take a photo. At Shoshoni, WY we turned north (still on 20) and drove through the Wind River Canyon, which has the Bighorn River running through it. We drove through three tunnels. At the north end of the canyon is Thermopolis, WY where we visited Hot Springs State Park. Hot mineral laden water flows out of the spring through the