Contents

Rearview Mirror - Summary of the past week
Pups Across America! - Come back next week...
Headlights - Our schedule as to where we will be heading

(Note: click on any photo for a larger image/slideshow)

Rearview Mirror

Sunday: On to Copenhagen
The whole family left our motorcoach BERT (Big Expensive Road Traveler) early to drive the half hour to the Grand Junction airport, where I arrived in ample time to catch my 6:35 a.m. flight--on to Salt Lake City, then Atlanta, before touching down in Copenhagen at 9:30 a.m. Monday morning. All easy flights and I got a lot of sleep on the pond crossing.

Monday: Lund
At the Copenhagen airport I breezed through passport control, walked to the train station, bought my ticket and boarded the first train north. Within 30 minutes I was in Lund, Sweden, where I walked to quarter mile to the Grand Hotel, my Swedish home for many days over the last several months. The skies were grey and the wind chilly--sad to be wearing a jacket in the later part of June. After checking in, I walked across the street to the Old Bull for their lunch special, a wonderful plate of salmon.



I spent the afternoon preparing for the upcoming client meeting, and then met up with Kevin, my Swedish colleague. We worked through dinner doing final preparation.

Tuesday
This was all day at our clients, sharing findings from a study we had done and making recommendations as to how to best build their services business. Good day, but a long day. We had an early Thai dinner and then went to bed.

Wednesday
Another day chocked full of client work.

Thursday
An early train ride back to Copenhagen to spend the day with another client, helping them introduce a new services offering.

Friday: Midsummer’s Eve
An old pagan tradition, dating back hundred’s of years (before Christianity) is the celebration of Midsummer’s Eve, linked to the summer solstice. Several years ago I was in Sweden at the summer solstice and was introduced to their habits of wearing traditional garb complete with crowns of wildflowers around their heads, dancing a strange dance around a maypole to traditional music, staying outside all day--rain or shine, hot or cold--eating very nasty herring and drinking a very-hard-to-describe snaps. Quite the time. If you get the chance to be invited to someone’s home, jump at the chance--just be careful of the snaps! Click here if you want to learn more. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsummer

It is a big deal in Sweden, and today was an official holiday with many people taking time off before and after.

Waiting to board my flight to the States, I took this pic of a good-looking family.



The rest of the day was spent flying. The good news is that I made it to Salt Lake in time for my last flight to Grand Junction. The bad news is that they cancelled the flight due to a mechanical problem. So a complimentary hotel for the night, food voucher, and an emergency bag complete with a range of supplies from toothpaste to a Delta tee shirt. Oh well, so goes traveling.

Saturday: Finally Back to Camp
I took a long walk, cleaned up, had breakfast, and then took the shuttle to the airport. All went well and I arrived on time. Poor light, dirty glass, and a low-resolution iPhone couldn’t stop the Great Salt Lake from being a spectacular sight to fly over.



At the Grand Junction airport I was greeted by sounds of canine excitement and a wagging of tails that rivaled the speed of a Mercedes windshield wiper in a rainstorm. The Pups must have thought I’d been gone for a decade!

After setting my bag down, we quickly retired to the shade by our coach. We sat and chatted with camp personnel and I got a quick shot of Alan the head ranger. Also, I diligently worked trying to capture a butterfly in flight and after a hundred or more shots I finally got one that was acceptable--quick little buggers!









Long week, but a good week.

Pups Across America

Yikes! Nothing this week. I promise to do better next blog.

Headlights

June 26-August 7: We will continue our role as camp hosts at Highline Lake State Park near Loma, CO
September 4-10: Camp with Scott and Deb in Northern Michigan?
September 11-25: Visit Kalamazoo, MI friends and participate in Ribarama
October 16-31: Visit Kentucky friends
November 1: Head back to Pine Island

Have questions or comments--send them in.

Next week should be loaded with pics as we are going to Colorado National Monument a time or two.

Tags: Sweden, Midsummer's Eve, photography

Contents

Rearview Mirror - Summary of the past week
Pups Across America! - Roxie the Boxer and friends
Headlights - Our schedule as to where we will be heading

(Note: click on any photo for a larger image/slideshow)

Rearview Mirror

Sunday: Last Day in Cherry Creek
Today was a quiet day, a little work and a little play with Grandson Austie. We read a few books, played with superhero action figures, and played at the playground and the beach. In the afternoon his Mom and Dad along with Hanna the Pug came over to chat and have dinner. Here is family portrait of Austie’s clan.



Monday: Up and At ‘Em
By 6:05 a.m. we had broke camp and were headed out the state park gates. Our plan, which proved successful, was to skirt through Denver before the normal rush hour traffic--Parker Road to I-225 South to I-25 North to West 6, then on to I-70 West across most of Colorado. I’m not big on traveling on interstates, but this was just a beautiful trip, up and down, and mountains and deserts. After fueling up at Loma, we traveled north and a tad west a few miles to Highline Lake State Park, where we checked in at the visitor center and were greeted and welcomed by the head ranger, Alan.



Soon we were in the campground and set up at Site 7, reserved for camp hosts.

Tuesday: Rookie Camp Hosts
Highline Lake State Park is an oasis of tall trees, green grass, and blue water. It is very attractive to the desert dwellers within a couple hundred miles who are looking to boat on the lake, relax by the beach on the large lawn, or hang out in the shady campground. Alan gave us a succinct rundown on our hosting duties, but our new neighbors, and existing camp hosts, Margie and David, clued us in on how things worked. When on duty wearing our official state park shirts, we have a walkie-talkie to coordinate with the rangers and the visitor center, and a golf cart to patrol the 31-site campground.

Wednesday: Day Two
The weather since we arrived has been just marvelous--mid-80s, slight breeze, and super-low humidity, just a pleasure to be out and about. Although our core tasks are relatively straightforward--be ambassadors to campers; help register, document, and assist changes as required; keep the camp sites tidy; and sell firewood, ice, and worms--the procedures are a little complicated (well, the paperwork side of things, anyway). We just go along, do what we think is best, and confer with Dave and Margie to keep us straight. Little by little as they say.





Thursday: Day Three
This “job” is quite fun! Almost all the campers are good folks, and it is nice to be of assistance. It is a very family-oriented campground with kids and dogs everywhere.

Friday: Day Four
Keri, another volunteer at the visitor center, is a fellow photographer, and she was kind enough to take me around to where the owls hang out, the hawks and falcons nest, and where the bats reside. I’ve had some fun taking shots of a young Great Horned Owl and hope to get a “just right” shot one of these days.



That evening, while addressing an occasional camper request, we sat around a fire with Dave and Margie and just chatted away over ‘smores--living large in Colorado.

Saturday: Day Five
I have been investing quite a few hours doing consulting work this week, especially preparing a big report along with colleague Kevin for a Swedish client. So I spent the majority of the day hunkered down on the computer, packing, and doing odds and ends for breaks.

Ended the day with a campfire dinner with our neighbors--great way to end a great week.

Pups Across America

Check out a few pup shots from the park.

Headlights

June 19-August 7: We will continue our role as camp hosts at Highline Lake State Park near Loma, CO
September 4-10: Camp with Scott and Deb in Northern Michigan?
September 11-25: Visit Kalamazoo, MI friends and participate in Ribarama
October 16 to 31: Visit Kentucky friends
November 1: Head back to Pine Island

Have questions or comments--send them in.

See ya next week!

Tags: Colorado

Contents

Rearview Mirror - Summary of the past week
Pups Across America! - A new pup joins the family
Headlights - Our schedule as to where we will be heading

(Note: click on any photo for a larger image/slideshow)

Rearview Mirror

Sunday: Parked in Paducah
Nice in the morning, but whew, it turned into a hot one! Mid 90s by midday. We headed north out of Clanton on I-6 stopping to fuel up at Birmingham. Back on I-65 North to Nashville picking up 24 West to Paducah. Nice, uneventful trip. After taking five minutes to set up camp at Fern Lake Campground, we took a drive down to “old” Paducah. Lots of old store fronts and homes (at least by American standards), and a drive right along the river, where we viewed an old yellow Lab walking in the water, folks strolling along enjoying the view, and a tugboat pushing along some commerce up to the dock. Worth spending some time there in the future.



Monday: Best-Laid Plans
After thinking through our travel options, I decided to get a little off the beaten bath and take a leisurely ride across beautiful south Missouri—driving through the Ozarks, passing through Mark Twain National Forest, and setting up camp at Branson for a couple of days in this popular resort area. I had work to do and phone calls to make on Tuesday, and although doable on the road, it is easier sitting at my desk inside of BERT. I scoped out potential camping spots and went on both the AT&T and Verizon websites to confirm good mobile signals. We set this plan in motion by heading on 60 West, a flat, straight, four-lane road that soon turned into a still flat, more-curvy, two-lane road. Jan had to slow BERT down a tad and pay a little more attention to the terrain, but it was worthwhile, as we drove through some interesting and colorful farmland. However, within an hour from our start, Jan was confronted with passing over a very tall, very old, very narrow, and very scary two-lane bridge over the very high, very wide, and very muddy Mississippi River. As expected, Jan did a fine job of sharing the bridge with oncoming 18-wheelers and we crossed safely. This was a dramatic view of the results of the heavy rains that had inundated much of the country.

Immediately after crossing the bridge we came to a stop sign. The arrow for 60 West pointed to our left, but luckily we looked ahead on our intended route and about a quarter mile ahead was a sign stating “road closed.” Bummer. With no other option available, we turned right instead, heading to Cairo on route 62, and as the GPS voices like to say, we started “recalculating.” From there we took bumpy I-57 North into Illinois and at Mt. Vernon, we picked up I-64 West. At St. Louis we finally made our entry into Missouri and traveled all the way to Columbia on I-70. Here we set up camp at Cottonwoods RV Park in the hot late afternoon.



Tuesday: Option Two is a No-Go
As I mentioned, I wanted to stay at a campground for a couple days since I had five phone calls scheduled, and it looked like this park in Columbia would work fine…I could work in peace while Jan could take the car and check out this college town of 100,000 people.

Alas, the Verizon signal was poor (I need Verizon so that my MiFi provides Internet access) and AT&T for my phone was spotty as well. Reluctantly, we got back in the bus, Jan driving and me in the navigator chair. My first business call was a no show, so no problem. My second went well as the AT&T signal was strong and consistent. However, as we started heading west on I-70, further and further away from Kansas City, the AT&T signal waned in and out—not at all what their signal map showed! My third call with long-time (and tolerant) friend Bruce was a little embarrassing, as the connection was dropped twice and there were several missed phrases that had to be repeated. With that I decided to reschedule my next call. Bummer.

Most of the drive all day was with 20 to 30 mile-per-hour winds with the occasional gust of 40, and the day was hot, but the traffic was light and the road was good for the most part. Mid-afternoon I started looking for places to camp, and after many studious minutes I decided to hunt for a state park. At I-70 marker 135 (Ogallah) we turned south on 147 for the 20 miles to Cedar Bluff State Park at Ellis, Kansas, adjoining the Cedar Bluff Reservoir. After checking in at park headquarters, we were told to go to the Wagon Rut Campground and select the spot of our desires. The place looked about 15 percent full and had several gorgeous pull-through lots to choose from, all with water and 50-amp service. After setting up and taking the Pups for a short walk in the windy, 95-degree weather, we spent the rest of the time inside.







Wednesday: Out on the Prairie
About 5:45 a.m. we all headed out for a pre-dawn hike. I had my camera and bear spray (didn’t anticipate any bears, but coyotes and other critters were around), and Jan had the two Little Ones on leashes. We saw deer, rabbits, lots of birds, and a cute toad as we walked along the prairie grasses and down by the shore of the water. The weather was a perfect 70 degrees with no wind. The Pups had a blast running in the sand among the foliage and chasing a rabbit or two along the way. As we ended our trek we met a man and his twin sons who had recently moved to the area from Texas. After our hour-and-a-half walk, we came back in for breakfast. Jan cleaned up while I had a business call. Late morning we back-tracked, heading north on 147 then back west on I-70. It was still windy, but partly pushing instead of pulling us, and it was warm, not simmering hot. Pleasant drive with light traffic.





Sticking to our “off the beaten path” routine, we decided to try another state park, this time in Colorado. Hence, we took I-70 all the way through Kansas and turned right in Colorado onto 385 for 22 miles. We turned right at the Papa’s Bait and Tackle store and drove for four miles on a washboard dirt road until checking in and setting up camp at Bonny Lake State Park. Interestingly, this state park will cease to exist in October. Based upon some old Colorado/Kansas water agreement, they will “pull the plug” on the reservoir and that will end the state park. Kind of sad. However, I bought the last T-shirt.



Mid-afternoon we took a walk around the campground and the park and down to the reservoir. We sat outside in the warm but pleasant weather and I took a few shots of some nesting swallows. Great day.





Thursday: Birds Galore
For the first time on this trip, we had the luxury of staying in the same place more than one night. My morning started with a 6 a.m. business call, but by 7:30 all of us were out in the chilly (can you believe it?) 55-degree weather. We took a long walk across the park spotting a variety of birds from wild turkeys, cedar waxwings, finches, robins, swallows, bluebirds, blackbirds, crows, doves, yellow-headed blackbirds, red-headed woodpeckers, and so on. As we walked and the Pups prowled, we were serenaded by a stereoscopic cacophony of bird songs of all varieties. Jan started a fire and we sat around it drinking coffee and enjoying nature’s music.





I got my work done during the middle of the day, and by late afternoon we were ready to explore again taking a slow drive throughout the park. With both Pups on my lap sticking their heads out the window, it was a little difficult to photograph, but one must make personal concessions when on a family outing.



The good news is that we brought along our bird field guide; the bad news is that it is for the Eastern U.S. Anyone know the name of this mystery bird? If so, please let us know.



Friday: The New “Car House”
I got up early in the noiseless campground (except for the endless melody of our avian friends) to prepare for a morning coaching call with a client. Later after coffee at 5:30 a.m., the whole family went for our morning stroll down to the water and across the prairie. After my 7 a.m. call, we broke camp and were back on the road, this time turning right at Papa’s joint, north on 385, then east on 36 through farm and ranch country for about 150 miles until merging onto I-70 West, then south on I-225 to our campground at Cherry Creek State Park right in Denver.





Soon after setting up camp and preparing for the evening festivities, our grandson, Austin, and his mom and dad, Kelly and AJ, pulled into our campsite. We had a camping birthday party for Austie (he turned four in May), complete with campfire hot dogs and s’mores. Now that is living large. I was quite pleased that Austin said he liked our new “car house.” He has his own man cave (or bat cave depending on what is his latest wardrobe attire) complete with DVD player and headphones.







Saturday
Another busy day. After doing walks and work, we took Austie for his T-ball practice. What a hoot! The Little Man hits the ball well, but doesn’t have much interest in the field! Sorry to have to miss his first game next Saturday.









Back at camp, Jan, the Pups, Batman, and I drove around the park, getting out here and there and checking things out. More walks, a campfire, and all went to bed early after a busy day.

Pups Across America

Check out Austie’s new pug, Hanna, and take a look at a pic of Jerry and Mitzy.

Headlights

June 12: Cherry Creek State Park, Denver
June 13-August 7: We will be camp hosts at Highline Lake State Park near Loma, CO
September 4-10: Camp with Scott and Deb in Northern Michigan?
September 23-25: Visit Kalamazoo, Michigan friends and participate in Ribarama
October 16-31: Visit Kentucky friends
November 1: Head back to Pine Island

Have questions or comments? Send them in.

See ya next week!

Tags: Bird photography

Contents

Rearview Mirror - Summary of the past week
Pups Across America! - Jessie Jane and friends
Headlights - Our schedule as to where we will be heading

(Note: click on any photo for a larger image/slideshow)

Rearview Mirror

The motorhome is in motion, the Pups are settled on the sofa, I’m in the navigator chair mulling over maps, and Jan is cruising in the captain’s chair--Motoring Across America 2011 has begun!

We’ve spent the last several weeks (maybe months) in “P&P&P mode” (pondering, planning, and prepping, that is). Our Island home is hurricane ready and under the watchful eye of friend, Jan. We left Neighbor Bill in charge of Date Street. The rest of Pine Island will have to fend for itself!

After much deliberation, we traded our old faithful coach BALY (Big A** Land Yacht) for BERT (Big Expensive Road Traveler). She’s a beauty...long and wide, a resort on wheels but also a mobile productivity center. She strolls down the highway with style and panache!

Saturday, June 4: Heading North

At 10:30 in the morning our road trip started. Jan piloted BERT through the gates of the Lazydays dealership and onto Interstate 75 North. Warm and sunny--a pleasant way on a perfect day to start this year’s discovery journey. At Tifton, Georgia, we turned west on US 82, a flat and smooth four-lane road. Gorgeous green farmlands and fields complete with grazing cattle and horses. At Montgomery, Alabama, Jan turned BERT north on I-65. After a 500-mile day, we spent the night at Dandy’s RV Park and Sales, just off I-65 on the outskirts of Clanton.

Pups Across America

While at Auntie’s in Apopka, right before launch, I had the chance to take a few pup pics. Here is an image of Jessie Jane and one with her family...what a cutie she is. Also, here is a shot of her best friend, Chief. Finally I have a shot of both Jerry and Mitzy.

Headlights

June 5-9: Travelin’
June 10-11: Visit our grandson, Austin, near Denver at Cherry Creek State Park
June 13- August 7: We will be camp hosts at Highline Lake State Park near Loma, Colorado
September 4-10: Camp with Scott and Deb in Northern Michigan?
September 23-25: Visit Kalamazoo, Michigan friends and participate in Ribarama
October 16-31: Visit Kentucky friends
November 1: Head back to Pine Island

Have questions or comments? Send them in.

See ya next week!