Road Trip 2010: The Summary.

Well then.  The trip is over.  What did I actually see, accomplish, and take note of?  Well, let's see how far this list actually goes.

First, the logistics.

Days gone:  39.
Miles Driven:  10,914. 
Hours Moving: 216.
Average Hours driven per day:  5.5
Average miles per day:  280.
Days of rain: 3. (incudes the last stretch from Sanger to Houston).
Tanks of gas: 33.
Gallons used: 392.
MPG: 27.9
Average Gas price/gallon: $2.93
Highest Gas price/gallon: $3.39 (Arcata, California)
Oil Changes: 3.
Nights Camping: 8 (average camping price $20.06/night)
Hotels/Motels: 18
Average price per hotel/motel stay: $67.77 ( Priceline exclusively, usually day of)

Dams:  3. (Grand Coulee, Flaming Gorge, Hoover)
States: 13. (TX, NM, CO, UT, AZ, NV, CA, OR, WA, ID, MT, WY, OK)
State License Plates seen:  40.
Canadian Plates:  4. 
Baseball games: 15.
Baseball Stadiums:  16. (Toured Safeco Field, Seattle, WA.  Mariners were at Yankees that day).
Canadian Breweries:  1.
Aircraft Carrier Museum Tours: 1.  (USS Midway, San Diego.  Awesome!)
Volcano craters: 2.

National Parks and Monuments:  13.
Visited the highest National Park Ranger Station (Rocky Mountan NP, 11976 FT).
Stamps in my Passport to NP Book:  38. 
Crossed the Continental Divide 16 times.

Drove the Million Dollar Highway.
Drove on Historic Route 66.
Drove the Road to the Sun (Glacier NP in Montana).
Drove across the highest paved road in Canada. (Kootenay Skyway, Highway 3, summit 1774 metres).
Drove less than 200 miles on Interstate Freeway.

Got car searched twice in Canada, in and out, and spent more time in Customs than Canada itself.  Evidently Texans use brass knuckles to fight off bears at night while camping.

Drove on approximately 96% of Highway 101 from San Diego, California to Olympic NP in Washington.
Rode bike across the Golden Gate Bridge.
Drove across Tacoma Narrows Bridge, Seattle.

Completed 173 miles on bike over three days (July 31- Aug 2) including three passes:  Vail, Tennessee, and Fremont.

And how much did this cost, you ask?

For the entire trip:

Gas:  $1,150.
Lodging:  $1,220.
Food:  $1,600.
Other:  $550.

Total for the entire trip:  $4,520.
Daily Average:                $116.

And I'd do it again.  I saw the best national parks this nation has to offer, and I can't tell you how majestic, unique, spectactular, and just awestriking they are.  Take the family.  There's definitely one within a day's drive.  I can't tell you what my favorite park was; hard to choose between the Rocky Mountain NP, Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Sequoia, the Grand Canyon or the Painted Desert.  Or Glacier.  Or Olympic.  See?

You'll just have to visit them yourselves.  I did.  And I will never forget.  Just awesome.

Road Trip Day 27.

It was a long day, but a great one.

I headed south out of Evergreen on August 31.  This is a section of the road that I haven't seen in the daylight too many times.  Or maybe I just paid attention this time around.  Traffic was wonderful, and I didn't have enough traffic around me to have stupid, idiot, or retard bothering me.  Just enjoying yet another day of beautiful sky.  Before I knew it, New Mexico.  Raton Pass was just beautiful, and it reminded me of many of the passes I made on this wondeful, 10,000+ mile venture.

On the way in, five weeks ago, I had a friend suggest to me to stop in and see the Capulin Volcano National Monument.  It's on US 87, east of Raton about a half hour.  The museum and welcome center was quite informative; I didn't realize that the northeast part of New Mexico is actually a significant volcanic active area.  Well, relatively active on earth's time clock.  When I signed the guestbook, there was another entry.. 'last stop of a 10,000 mile road trip.'  I was just at 9700 at that time, but I would leave them in the dust in miles.

It doesn't look like much from the road, but driving around and around up to the peak was nice, and it gave a great view of the surrounding areas.  It's amazing to drive roads to peaks, across canyons, through valleys, switchbacks, and high altitude passes. This road was no different; it was winding, and steep dropoffs that are sure to be deadly if you miss a turn.  What is truly amazing is the stories behind the construction of these roads.  The first road and the conditions or lack of mechanized assistance available at the time.  Just amazing.

After a short walk around the peak, I headed back down and continued my journey.  Tempting indeed was the thought of driving through another state on my journey, so I went ahead and elected to pass through Oklahoma ( I know, I know....but it was worth it) for only a few miles.

I drove through Clayton, New Mexico, and crossed into Oklahoma on 56, then took a right at the first possible opportunity to head south, which wasn't far at all from Texas.  And, there wasn't a big, sizable, welcome to Texas sign, but there was this, which, in my personal opinion, was better:

This is the most northwesterly crossing you can possibly make in the Texas panhandle from Oklahoma.  And it was in the middle of nowhere.  I did get my 'official' Texas state flag a few short minutes south of this sign, approximately 896 miles from my house in Houston.

And that Texas flag welcoming me back to the great state of my birth? The very first mailbox.  Hell yeah.

Raised the hair on the back of my neck.  Just did again.  Beautiful.  And the scenery you ask?

That was damn beautiful.  And a place you'd sit for awhile with car trouble. There isn't much out there.  Panhandle north of Texline.  You might get passed by something green and tractorlike way before you get passed by a car.

Somewhere up in the panhandle, I picked up a companion.  I think he stowed away about the time I took the picture of the mailbox, but after rolling down all four windows to blow him out, he laded on the console and rode shotgun for quite awhile.  He wasn't bothering me, but I'm pretty sure he wasn't enjoying life with sunroof open and windows down at 75 mph:

I still had a ways to go before arriving at Dad's house, so I just kept plugging away.  I really did enjoy the drive through Texas on this day, although the heat hit me, and I turned on the air conditioning for the first time in a few weeks.  I had been in 75 degree weather for nearly a month, and having the sunroof open almost all the time was quite a treat. 

I was treated to a beautiful sunset that night, and these days, I try and cherish every one. And this one was truly spectacular.  Just awesome.  I ended up that day at Dad's house; I didn't stay particulary long this time.  Just long enough to get the car washed, and move stuff back to the truck.  I was ready to get back home, but for what I wasn't sure yet.  Time will tell.  Mileage at Dad's:  10,596.  Only 2,500 over the estimate.  Not bad, I say.  :)

Road trip Day 26.

Saturday. A great end of the main trip.
I started out heading south from the campground I stayed at inside Rocky Mountain National Park to the visitors center. I walked around the exhibit there and saw a note about a short walk to Adams falls. I started that way, and it was a pleasant drive there, and an even better short hike to the falls themselves. I stayed at this one for awhile, and walked up the river a few hundred yards just enjoying.
After the falls, I figured I needed some breakfast so I went to the Grand Lake Lodge. Walked into the restaurant, sat for a few minutes, and the two waitresses I guess just didn't see me. There were a few couples that were leaving, so the waitresses bussed the tables, and joked to the couple just leaving about how the service sucked. After a few more minutes, I agreed. I left.
Went to the town proper, found me a little spot, and read the local paper waiting for a great denver scramble and potatoes. It hit the spot.
Then I traveled back north and re-entered the park. I basically stopped at every turnout, read the info there and some that had short walks I took advantage of and enjoyed. One in particular was Lake Irene, and there were some deer that walked across the path. The lake was very nice.
This park has the highest visitors center, the Alpine visitor center. Its up above the treeline, with the arctic tundra. It is a sight to see. 12,000 feet up is a pretty harsh environment. It was beautiful.
Past the visitors center the next pullout was pretty good size. It was the highest point in the road, and I chose to hike up another 250+ feet to the rocks on the hill for the 360 view. There was a brass monument on the tallest rock, and it held distances to and elevations of the surrounding peaks, as well as the mileage to national parks around the country. It was neat. I took some pictures of it; I hope they turn out good.
It sprinkled long enough to make rain, so the second day of 26 probably is acceptable. Made some different photos too that look pretty neat.
I continued through the park for a few more hours, and ended up at Bear Lake. Its in the south portion of the park, and was smooth as glass. A path winds around the half mile perimeter lake, and I enjoyed the views around the edge. I the headed down the pass and continued to Evergreen where I began this journey more then two weeks ago.
It was about a two hour drive to Evergreen, and ended me up just about 9600 miles. I'm here for probably a few nights, then will head south toward home. The weather has been perfect; and cleaning out the car showed me what I did see this trip. Its gonna be fun to go back and read the first posts; seems like last year already.
I'll be posting a summary of sorts for the trip once I return to Houston. As far as day 27, we'll see when that is. A few folks have mentioned Palo Duro Canyon near Amarillo; might have to make a visit passing through. We'll see.
Drive on.

Road Trip Day 25

9445: Number of miles complete. 1200: number of miles straight back to the house. A little over my estimated 8500 or so.
Today was a fabulous day. The sky was clear for yet another day. It sprinkled a bit today, but no rain. Out of 25 days, one rainy day - the day I went to Canada.
Today I started from Rock Springs, Wyoming. I've been wanting to call it Rock Ridge all day, but it isn't. I spent last night driving 65 in the dark for a couple hours, with a full moon, in deer country. Kind of a new experience for me to drive while seeing deer all over the place. I drove to Rock Springs so I could make it to tonight's destination, Rocky Mountain National Park. I did.
I came south toward Utah after a full 2 miles on interstate 80. And I have to say that it was an excellent move to take the road less traveled. The first thing I came on almost immediately was Firehole Canyon. Bright red sandstone was impressive. I turned off the road to get a bit closer, and I did exactly that, and went in some areas that I shouldn't have in a Saturn food door sedan. It was quite an experience in itself, without the scenery.
Next came Flame Gorge dam. Also, brilliant red rocks lining the canyon. Wonderful. And I got my dam tour, the one I missed at Grand Coulee. And this one was probably better, because I got a one on one tour. I got to ask all the questions I wanted and still finished reasonably fast.
I then proceeded to Dinosaur National Monument, south of the dam. It is one of the highest concentrations of dinosaur fossils on earth. Unfortunately, the visitors center next to the wall of bones is still under construction, so it was off limits. The hieroglyphics were open though. I did not, however, spend time trying to decode them. Knock yourself out if you cone this way.
Then, I contacted a friend on the way to my final destination, and I'm glad that she could fit me in for a short tour of the ranch and the dime tour of the town of Yampa, Colorado. I'm glad I stopped in.
After dark, I went over yet another pass, this one close to 9200 feet in elevation. I have learned a new skill- descending mountain passes in the dark.
I rolled into Rocky Mountain National Park after ten, found a suitable campsite, and am braving one more night in the tent with sleeping bag. I'll let you know what the view is in the morning...I haven't seen them yet. But I can tell you that the morning will be welcomed...forecast called for lows from 39 to 45. Very nice. Nice, indeed.
Tomorrow is the last sightseeing day before returning to Evergreen, CO for a few days with family before heading back to Houston. I still don't have a definite return day. Around the first or something.
Its been a hell of a trip. Drive on.

Road trip day 24.

Grand Teton. Mt. Moran. Just two of the awesome peaks in the Teton range. Mt. Moran has a chunk of sandstone at the peak that belongs in a layer of sandstone 24,000 feet below it. That's a heck of a fault. And do you know why its called Jackson Hole? Because the ground went down four times the amount the peaks rose. The 'hole' was filled in over time, and the peaks were worn down from their potentially staggering height. Impressive.
I spent the night in the south part of Yellowstone, and drove not very far to hit the Teton National Park. I had some laundry to do (I know..I'm almost done) and grabbed some breakfast before heading out in earnest.
Definitely have to come here again. Although Teton didn't have as many things going on as Yellowstone, the bison and deer were all over the place today. I kept an eye out, but never saw the elusive moose. I even drove the moose prime area in the evening to no avail. Bug there were bison up and personal on the road. Those guys were fun to watch.
I spent the majority of the time at Jenny Lake. I sat down with a few hot dogs for lunch, and a family sat down next to me. Tess, 6, introduced herself and told me that the walk around the lake over to the hidden falls was worth it because she had done it. And the hike up to inspiration point was worth it too because she had done it. Gauntlet thrown. The walk was 2.5 miles around Jenny lake, or you could cheat and take the boat there and back. I decided that I needed some exercise, so off I went on Tess' advice, and she was right. It was a beautiful walk around; some rocky spots, but some great views of the lake and the trail was very enjoyable.
The hike around the land was nice, but the satisfaction of walking around made the hidden falls all the more sweeter. Or cooler. A very pleasant view of the falls was to be had, in the shade, with the mist of the falls sweeping over the area. Very enjoyable.
Then I was ready to quit. But little Tess popped into my head, and I went for the Money stretch. The stretch that makes the next time better, or easier, or more efficient. And I climbed the hill for Inspiration Point. The view was good, but the view didn't do it for me. Three guys did. Three guys climbed up from the other side. They had started out early that morning, and had hiked 22 miles over the ridge. They inspired me. I did ride the boat back across Jenny lake, and for some reason, I didn't think that the view from the boat compared to what those guys had seen this day. They told me so too; I asked.
And so inspiring was the couple that dropped their backpacks down on the boat after a three day hike. Impressive. And I rode the boat back.
And then I got go thinking. Thinking that this trip has shown me an interest in the outdoors. I have been active outdoors, but maybe a different facet that I hadn't considered before. Overnight hiking. My friend Steve mentioned it around the Grand Canyon this trip. Maybe I'll have to give it a go.
As for giving it a go, I decided to give it a go and head out of Tetons rather than camp another night. I drove another three hours after dark, and have arrived in Rock Springs, Wyoming, on I-80, southwestern part of the state. I decided I should add Rocky Mountain National Park to this trip. Its a little out of the way, but could make it there tomorrow if I took interstate 80 the whole way, but that would be boring, wouldn't it?
Oh, and by the way, crossed 8900 miles for the trip tonight.
Anyhoo, drive on. I'm getting close to stopping for at least a little while soon. I promise...maybe. :)

Road Trip Day 23.

23. Wow.
And Yellowstone. Wow.
Yellowstone was the first national park. And for good reason. I spoke too soon when I didn't think that anything could beat Glacier's Road To The Sun. Well, technically, it didn't get beat in my book. It got rivaled, though. In a different league...the mystical, magical, the unexpected.
I knew Yellowstone had the mudpots. I knew it had free roaming animals. I didn't know that it had 300+ foot waterfall, 100+ foot waterfall, and a spectacular, 1000+ deep canyon that is a hell of a treasure on its own. Forget about the active seismic zone that covers half the park, that has the ground steaming. Forget about the spectacular Yellowstone River, the Yellowstone Lake, and Old Faithful.
Did I say that?
What I meant was, each of these things were spectacular. Not to mention the beautiful vistas, endless forest, and striking meadows with elk and bison running free across the road. Amazing. And each of these things could have stood alone as their own little national park. But they are all rolled into one. I'm sorry that only one day of this place is all I had this time around. Actually, I'm still in Yellowstone tonite, at Lewis Lake; third night in a row in a tent; nice and quiet, and no connection to the world by phone. I actually poorly chose a spot right by the road, but the traffic is below about 50 feet, and can't hear them much when they are there.
I guess I did have enough time here. I saw everything I had expected plus. Out of the car, walk half mile, quarter mile, around the platform above the boiling pools of mineral rich crystal clear liquid damn close to steam. Down to the view of the lower falls. Around the west thumb of the lake to the clear pots. It took me all day, but I did everything on my list and more. I didn't drive every piece of road, but I drove more than I has planned. And on another beautiful clear day mid 80s. Still, day 23, and only a single rain day. I am blessed. I can only hope that the heat breaks in Houston upon my return.
Thursday is the Tetons. I'm not laying expectations down. I remember my parents talking about them when I was in college. I bet they are a class of their own too.
Enjoy today's pics. And drive on.

RT Day 22!

Fourth Tuesday on the road! And I've got over 8400 miles now to show for it. What a fabulous trip this has turned out to be. A few long days, but just spectacular. Most things I will probably never lay my eyes on again, but others I definitely will return to enjoy, hopefully next time with others to share. It has been a life changing experience for sure; and I'm glad that I not only decided to do it, I'm glad that I was able to do this at this point in my life. Life choices lay ahead.
Ah, so today I went more than 400 miles in the car. Fortunately, there was very minimal 25 mph areas; almost all the roads traveled today were not only scenic, they were at 65+ mph. I would say that there are more bugs that have a death wish on my windshield up here, but really, this is the first day in a long time of bug squishing speed. I cleaned the windshield just about every time I stopped. Then, the last stop before coming to Yellowstone, there were three juicy fellas before I got up to speed. Maybe they are just out for this Texan; and they knew I just washed the car.
Montana is Big Sky Country. I can vouch. Sunday was a rainy day (my only one on the entire trip) and yesterday was partly cloudy. Today, not a cloud in the sky. It might explain the reason why it was upper thirties last night outside Glacier. It was totally clear today. All day long.
Once again, just print out the pics and tape them together. Scenic views that never ended. And I crossed the Continental divide again today. I'm going to have to count the times I have crossed it in the last month. And, evidently, the road in Yellowstone crosses it three times. Maybe I can keep count just tomorrow by itself.
I think maybe I have more days that I climbed up and over a pass than not. Today was McDonald pass. You can probably pick out the photo from the vista point there.
I'll have to look up the lake that I passed. There was about five or six. They come out of nowhere; you come down a pass, surrounded by trees, and hit a clearing with a beautiful lake that takes your breath away. Its amazing.
And I have stayed 90% off the freeways, and followed the scenic route as I have mentioned before. Today I had to be on the freeway for 50 miles, and it was even scenic. Big Sky country was amazing today. Enjoy.
Tonite (tuesday night) I'm out of cell service, so this installment will be a bit tardy. I expect to upload it in the morning by at least nooner central time; thanks for your patience. I hope you are still enjoying these posts as much as I am enjoying writing them. It will be a treat next year for even me to go back and read my chronicles.
Oh, and if you have read my blog from the beginning, toy know Idiot and Stupid. Well, their Cousin Retard, lives in the mountains. And Retard is equally frustrating. Ok, so most times when the road is weaving through s curves going up passes, or just weaving itself around the hills, there's Retard that is holding everyone up. He maybe drives ten or so miles per hour under the speed limit. A curve comes, and he brakes (rightly so in some cases). In most areas, there are passing lanes provided for slower traffic to have an opportunity to let others by, without having to pull over, or the faster traffic to pass the slower traffic without risking a pass at speed.
Any guesses? Yep. Retard.
Most of these beforementioned passing lanes are for trucks- 18 wheelers, etc., who really do have to slow down thru the s-curves. These are not the Retards.
Most of these lanes happen to be on the incline of a pass. Makes sense. You lose inertia, so it makes sense, especially the heavy trucks. The lanes are also sometimes provided on the descents, too. Same reason.
Enter Retard. Say the speed limit is 55. Curves ahead have an advised speed of 45 mph for the geometry of the curve and road conditions. Retard is comfortably doing 40 and has a half dozen cars behind. Curves end and a passing lane appears on the straight section starting the pass.
I'd give you three guesses, but you don't need three; you know, its Retard. He mashes the gas, and the '68 Crown Victoria Land Conquerer has not only maintained speed, he's hit 80 out on the rise. Yessiree, Bob, Retard is leading the pack on the climb. If we were level, we would have took off in flight. And then, you know. Passing lane ends, and he's still AHEAD, and resumes sub-speed limit activity.
Retard. Yeah.
Another data point that some (and I'm beginning to think that is getting close to significant majority) that some people just don't give a damn about anything but them. Screw everyone. Or just as long as I get mine.
So, goodnight Retard. And the rest of ya, drive on.
Tomorrow, Yellowstone. I'm gonna like this too I think.

RT Day 21.

Greetings from Columbia Falls, Montana! For those of you that are map challenged, it's north of Kalispell, and south a tad from West Glacier, the entrance to Glacier National Park. And Glacier National park is where I spent the whole of Monday.

It really is a shame that there's only getting four pictures from yesterday on this post. I have seen some pretty country. Outstanding country. Spectacular country. But I think my favorite has to be Glacier.

And its gonna be hard to come close to this country.

I'm coming back. Guaranteed.

I started the day kinda late - I slept in. Then I caught a nooner. Whitewater rafting trip. Three hours. This is the low-flow season (the spring is the top season for the Flarhead Middle Fork) and we had to paddle against the wind, but it was still a pleasure. I'd never been. I'd go again. I have pictures, but they are on a waterproof camera that probably won't see the light of day until Texas.

Then I headed down the Going-To-The-Sun-Road, the crown jewel. I could have taken enough still pictures to make a movie. If you have been down the road, you know. If you haven't, don't miss this. Its Grand.

Tuesday is a travel day. 400+ miles, and intentionally not too many of those at all on interstate. And Wednesday, Yellowstone. Scenic route as depicted by Rand McNally, and he hasn't let me down yet.

Oh yeah, and 8000 miles down. My original estimate is a little short.

RT day 20.

Greetings from the Nelway border crossing from the great state of Washington to British Columbia, Canada! Yes, I have my passport with me. I'm headed over the border for a brewery tour (of course it involves beer!) at the Kokanee brewery in Creston, BC.
Last night was a success. I found a campsite, and it was just down the road from the Grand Coulee Dam, which in dramatic fashion, opened the floodgates for about half an hour for the laser show. It was pretty neat to see it on the dam face with water rushing down. Quite a sight.
I headed westerly, and didn't have a lick of traffic. But I did see the waves of grain as the orange just covered the ground all the way to the horizon. Rolling hills just made the peacefulness of the fields mesmerizing.
I then turned north and drove alongside part of Lake Roosevelt, the body of water created by the Grand Coulee dam. It extends 130 miles to the north, and is a pleasure to drive beside it.
Heeeeyyyyy Oooooolllll Aaaaaarrrmmmyy!!!!! Aaaarrrmy! WHAT? Got a little story for ya Ags! Fast forward to the border crossing. Ok, so I opened my mouth too much. Too friendly. Got car searched after I mentioned I had been camping. Dude was convinced that I had a weapon. Asked me twice. I told him I did not. He even asked me if I had brass knuckles. Anyway, he pulled me to the side before he searched the car and told me if he found any weapons he would arrest me. Evidently, I'm from Texas and we have to have some kind of weapon or spray or something to fight off bears when we camp. Or maybe just all Texans carry weapons everywhere we go. So, after he went through everything in the back seat, he went to the trunk, but didn't spend a whole lot of time back there. I think he found my dirty clothes bag and called the search off for my brass knuckles. Yeah. That's gonna ward off a bear. That's what I would have brought with me for bear defense. Brass knuckles. Yeah. Whatever.
After I reloaded the back seat (yep, everything but my bike) I headed off to Creston. I didn't realize that the road from the Nelway border crossing to Creston is the highest maintained road in Canada. 6000+ feet (everything was in meters, of course) in elevation at the peak. Pretty neat.
And then it happened. Finally, day 22 and it happened. Rain. And its because I was gonna wash the car when I got back to the states.
And it poured. It was pouring when I discovered that my gps didn't have Canada maps. It didn't know where the road was. And. It didn't have the streets in Creston. I drove on. And, I was able to see the sign for the Columbia Brewery.
Its funny; I had planned to make the 2pm tour according to the printout I had with me. Customs dude had done the tour, and tried to tell me they weren't open on Sundays. Was that really why I was coming to Canada? Did you call them? No. I didn't call them. My bad.
So, before customs, I was there at 2:10, according to gps that didn't know where I was going, and before the pouring rain. Half hour at customs. Nice. Upon arriving at the brewery, the last tour started at 2:30. Tin minutes ago. I sprinted to the gift shop, and asked nicely about joining the tour late. They accommodated me. Kudos to blonde chick. Thanks bookoos.
The tour was a beer tour. Huge tanks. Stainless steel. Piping. Beer smell. Very nice. And the sample was good...I had the Kolkanee Gold. Tasty and smooth. Notables: Kolkanee is the #1 selling beer in British Columbia; They bottle 1100 bottles and can 1400 cans per minute 24 hours a day five days a week; they have a bunch of settling tanks, the largest five (and the newest five) holding 120,000 liters each, which tour lady said, "if you tried to drink a tank by yourself, you would have to drink a '12 case' every day for 89 years." (add your own Canadian accent here).
I inquired as to the availability of non-chilled beer for purchase at the gift shop...none available. And then she told me to wait because its half price in the states. I'll look tomorrow. Taxes in Canada must suck.
Then, I headed back to the states straight south from Creston, and when they asked how long I'd been in Canada, my reply of a couple hours didn't win them over. What had I purchased? Some souvenirs from the Columbia Brewery tour I came to Canada to attend. That won me another search, but two guys came out this time to search. It didn't take long. Guess they just wanted the Texan again. After all, how did you afford to take time off? I SAVED. Ugh.
I digress.
The drive across Idaho and into Montana was quite scenic. It continued to rain from Canada on all the way past Kalispell, and ceased in time for me to set up camp a few miles from the entrance to Glacier National Park. I'll be here tomorrow night as well; I decided to take a full day enjoying the area without worrying about getting somewhere new tomorrow night. I'm tenting. And no brass knuckles. I'm in danger, I know. Sorry.
And for those of you in Houston enjoying this blog, its damn cold. Was 55 degrees around dusk. Forecast is mid 40s tonite. About the same as Copper three weeks ago. Nice.

Day 19.

Do I really need road trip in the title anymore?
This morning I was up, and maybe a bit worn out from the marathon driving session yesterday all over western Washington. I was relieved a bit to drive north from Kent straight into downtown with zero traffic issues. I even made it to my Safeco Field tour spot an hour early. I decided to drive north on 1st Avenue to spend some time, and it was pretty neat. Huge trees spanning four lanes wide down the avenue. And, although 1st avenue isn't that hilly, the cross streets are pseudo San Fran-esque. I returned back down to the stadium down the pier, and it was relaxing and scenic. It was Saturday, and things weren't moving at regular speed on the wharf just then.
The tour was excellent. Tour man Steve gave a lot of background not only about the building, but also about the history of the Mariners, and some information about Seattle in general. It was a great tour informationwise for someone that has never visited the area. Time well spent. And as far as the stadium goes, very fan friendly. Lots of options, perspectives, and areas to enjoy the game for the price of a bleacher ticket. I shall be back.
My friend Rick is an REI enthusiast. If you aren't familiar with REI sports, its an outdoor sports place, offering equipment, lessons, and basically anything else needed for pretty much any sport out there. Well, any outdoor sport maybe. Not bowling, for example.
Anyhoo, Rick mentioned that the flagship REI store was in Seattle. Being just a few miles away, I stopped by. It might as well could have been on Las Vegas Drive or in Times Square. It was probably half a city block. Two floors. Two spiral wooden staircases. A climbing wall. There was probably 1000 square feet of socks alone. The bike area was about the size of my grocery store. It was spectacular. And outside, there was a gravel trail that was a "bike test drive trail only." Tip of the spear for sure.
I then began my journey easterly, down I-90 toward Spokane, but got off to head through the coulee canyon, and to the Grand Coulee Dam. I was hoping to catch the last tour of the day, but it was not meant to be; and tonorrow's plans arent flexible enough to absorb the first tour tomorrow morning. However, there are a number of videos, and a good amount of info of the technical variety to satisfy my curiosity in the visitors center here. I've learned quite a bit about the Columbia river, and the projects developed and carried out to irrigate a good portion of Washington as a whole. The storage of water possible actually stretches into Canada, and channels and such effectively irrigate former waterless areas all the way south almost to Oregon. It is impressive. The dam itself is almost a mile long and is three times the size of the Hoover dam. It is the largest concrete structure in North America, with 12 million cubic yards of concrete. And, its gonna be real neat tonite to watch the laser light show on the face of the dam. I know, I'm an engineering geek. I guess I needed a fix.
So tonight might be a camping night...we'll see if I can find a pretty spot to land.
Drive on!

Road Trip Day 18.

Today was kind of a end of days.
I finished the 101 today. Drove in the neighborhood of 95% of it from where it began in San Diego, California. Three states worth. And I'd do it again.
I've been headed straight north for almost a week. I've been as far north as possible on the 101. Tomorrow I head East until I get to Montana.
I've seen the Pacific Ocean (a lot of it for sure) almost everyday for two weeks. I left it today in Olympic National Park, and finally dipped my toes in at the last possible opportunity. I'm glad that I did, for sure. Its f'n cold. Why didn't I swim in it? 'Cause it's f'n cold, thats why.
Thirdly, I'm in Tacoma, Washington watching the fifteenth of fifteen baseball games in fifteen different stadiums in five different states in 16 days, and I'll be at Safeco Park in downtown Seattle tomorrow morning for a stadium tour. Its a fitting night, though; my scorebook is completely full after yesterday; my radio battery died; I didn't make it to my seat until the third inning; I lost my pencil; and frankly, there's fireworks tonight. The Rainiers are currently beating the Isotopes in the bottom of the seventh, and if I remember right, that makes the home team record 8-7 if Tacoma wins. That's reason for celebration right there!
Lastly, I'm headed back in the direction of home now. I've been headed away from home since July 24, and tonite will be the farthest away from the house I will spend the night this trip.
Its been fun. Moments like right now- the mascot for Tacoma is a Moose (hadn't caught his name yet) and he's got himself a slingshot shooting t-shirts into the crowd. You wanna get folks excited off their ass? Break out the free crap. The slingshot is better than just throwing them, but my favorite has to be from last year though. Can't remember where it was, but the mascot was a Chicken, and he had a compressed air bazooka about four foot long. They had that thing strapped to that Chicken and all he had to do was pull the trigger. Chicken never moved. He just turned a bit and the girl reloaded the tube again, shoved the shirt down with a stick, and the second deckers got their free shit. It was awesome. And they had a talent for rolling ghe shirts. Looked like flying bricks with some attitude. Looked like a potato gun - that was a badass Chicken right there. Crowd pleaser for sure.
Minor league games have great antics, too. Soak a t-shirt, roll it up, freeze it solid, then get two guys racing trying to put one on first. Or if you're Fresno, you plan yourself a mascot wrestling battle royal after the game. For the right to date night with Wendy (from Wendy's) you get a chipmonk, a chicken, a frosty, an eyeball and a few more of your mascot buddies and have yourself a Main event. I've got video, and yes, it was kickass.
I digress.
I had a great day today, continued to see great things. God is just incredible. I have seen 7000 miles of land and water and sky- may not see these same things again, but each day has seemed better than the last. We will see what tomorrow brings.
Until tomorrow. Drive on. And let the fireworks begin. Tacoma Victorious!

Road trip day 17.

I mentioned a bit about the excellent weather I was having two days ago; yesterday it was cloudy almost to dusk; today, it was cloudy until about noon, and then opened up for a beautiful day. Tomorrow is Tacoma...we'll see what it looks like.
Some of you guys have voiced that you're enjoying the blog. If you haven't already, shoot me a shout out if you wouldn't mind. Thanks!
Today was much like yesterday scenery wise...just spectacular along the 101. What has really amazed me is the amount of bicyclists. Right on the 101. And every other road too. Bike lanes. Flashing signs on bridges and tunnels. Share the road signs. And they are often. Frankly, I've seen a hundred bicycles. I wore my Texas jersey across the Golden Gate, and as a guy rode past me, asked where in Texas I was from. He was from Austin, but was on his way from Vancouver. Back to Austin. Most of them have just a few saddlebags, and are rarely walking up the hills. Being an enthusiast myself, it is really pretty neat to see. I think those are excellent mentors for those of us that think that something isn't possible. It is. Maybe not the way you are doing it, but it is doable.
It's possible.
On the way, I stopped in at an air museum. I didn't expect to spend hardly anytime at it before I arrived, but the thing was huge. During world war II, it held 8 blimps. It has over a dozen aircraft that are all air worthy (bit that doesn't mean they don't leak oil. It was awesome. And my favorite fighter of my childhood was there, the P38 Lightning. It was just a great treat. Tillahook Air Museum. Look into it.

Thursday's game was at PGE Park, downtown Portland. The ball field is depressed probably about thirty feet or so, and the left field wall is a few feet from the street above.
I've been rooting (not necessarily cheering) for the home teams on the trip. But since the AAA Astro club was in town, so I cheered for the Round Rock Express. And when the second batter of the game jacked a homer that bounced off the street on left, I went vocal. And so 4 runs in the top of the first, I just relaxed and had a good time.
One of the cool features of that stadium, which I would definitely patronize again, was the 100% manual scoreboard. The at-bat number, balls, strikes, outs, and they even had the lineups (position and player number) updated during the game. It was just a nice environment. And extra nice with the Express not only taking the Beavers 6-2, it see the series record thusfar this season at 8-0.
Enjoy the pics!

Road trip day 16.

Wednesday I just drove. Mostly along the 101. And I took pictures. Its all just beautiful. And after awhile, the pictures all look the same. So, just print out the pic you like 100 times, paste them all together end to end and you'll have what driving the 101 along the coast looks like. :)

Oh, and California? Uh...buh bye. I spent enough money there to stimulate your economy back in the black. Thanks Jenny and Erin; enjoyed seeing you guys and meeting your families. Good times.

And then there's Redwood National Forest. Driving up to Lady Bird grove was like driving in a dream. The road went up 1200 feet in two miles; and the mist conditions made things surreal. I didn't take too much time, but I took long enough to soak in these trees. More than a hundred feet tall on average I'd say. And for your Star Wars fans, the Return of the Jedi jungle chase was filmed not too far away. It really was like I was there. And it really is like that.

I took the 126 from Florence to Eugene, and that was just like driving in the jungle. Just amazing. So unique. Pretty much anywhere around here, and for the entire west cost for that matter, just get off the freeway. Spend an extra hour drivig when you have nowhere to be. Just get lost. Its liberating.

Oh, then the baseball game. Yakima Bears at Eugene Emeralds. Played at the University of Oregon PK Park. Go ducks! A beautiful night, but the home teams have got to get it together. You guys are on a five game slide. But don't start Thursday in Portland. The Express is in town.