Gateway to the East

We traveled east from Colorado to Kansas. After a full day of driving, we stopped in Junction City, KS for the night and continued on to Missouri the next morning. My only memories of Kansas are cornfields meeting an endless blue sky and the flat road stretching out ahead of us. Which was pretty for the first hundred miles or so, but then became quite mundane. I have to give Brian major props for all of the driving he's done, getting us from one city to the next safely; he's a champion!

We finally arrived in Saint Louis on Saturday evening and got our first glimpse of the famous arch, which stands as the Gateway to the West, but for us felt more the gateway to the East (and home) as we crossed the Missouri River. We checked into the Omni Majestic downtown, a four-star hotel we found on Priceline for a bargain! Brian discovered a restaurant two blocks away called Alumni, and we were very impressed with the atmosphere, prices and the menu!  Everything was designed with Saint Louis in mind, from the decor to the cocktails named for famous residents, to the trivia cards on the table. We ordered toasted ravioli, the local favorite, as an appetizer. 

One of my friends from high school and college, Hailey Capps Mick, and her husband, John, moved to the area about three years ago. When Hailey heard we were in town, she was gracious enough to offer recommendations on what to do (and what not to do, which is equally valuable) during our stay. At her suggestion, we went to Broadway Oyster Bar to check out the live music. When we got there, it was like being back in NOLA, where we started. We almost wished we hadn't eaten yet as the special Shrimp Festival menu they were offering looked amazing!

Road weary, we headed back to our luxurious room to rest. The next morning we hit the restaurant jackpot again with brunch at Rooster. It was a popular place and after tasting my savory crepe with bacon, caramelized onions and Vermont cheddar, I instantly knew why!  Apparently it was named "Best Breakfast in Missouri" in Food Network Magazine.  Check!!!

Next, we made our way to the Gateway Arch park to explore the famous landmark. It was even bigger than it looks from a distance. I couldn't look up to the top without feeling dizzy. And photographing it in its entirety was a challenge since even walking down to the banks of the Mississippi River didn't allow a wide enough angle. But we got creative...

Our next stop was highly anticipated by my husband, an avid beer drinker and connoisseur, the Anheuser-Busch Brewery.  As a marketing professional, I was very impressed with the portion of the museum that documented the brewery and its flagship product, Budweiser's, rise to fame. I'm a sucker for taking a commodity, differentiating it and creating a brand with superior value. It's like my version of an underdog winning. But I digress...  We took a free tour of the brewery, saw the famous Clydesdale horses and learned all about the process of making beer (including the difference in Bud vs. Bud Light... just ask me), followed by a tasting opportunity. Needless to say, it passed our taste test! 

Hailey and John had invited us over to their house across the river in Illinois for some pool time and dinner, so we headed there after we finished our beers.  We were greeted by her dogs, Harley and Lucy and I was smitten with Harley and his sweet face, probably because he is part collie and reminded me of Cody, my sheltie, who I am missing like crazy.   It was so nice to relax by the pool, catch up with Hailey and meet her husband. There is something about being in someone's home that makes you feel comfortable that you can't get from a hotel, and their home was beautiful!  Dinner was homemade burgers, baked beans and sweet potato fries, and we knew we were getting closer to the South. For dessert, we drove to Bobby's a place famous for its frozen custard (or "concrete") live doo-wop music, and classic cars, something right out of the 1950's. We bid farewell to our hosts and told them to visit us in Naples soon!  On the way home, we caught an amazing sunset and were reminded that you can never see too many!!

After another restful night's sleep at the Omni, we packed up the car and went to find the child inside each of us at the City Museum. A playground made completely of reclaimed materials including two small airplanes, a firetruck, a ferris wheel, several bridges and miles of sheet metal and rebar, the scraps have been reconfigured to create a world beyond imagination. Brian and I climbed, crawled, slid, and "played" like the big kids we didn't know we were. Some of the spaces actually were too small for us to crawl through, but the museum was a maze spanning four stories plus the rooftop and we had an incredible time exploring it!

When we were all tuckered out, it was time to hit the dusty trail again. Next stop, Nashville, Tennessee!

Rocky Mountain Memories

Our next destination was Colorado and we're both excited to see some real mountains! To break up our trip to Denver/Fort Collins we decided to stop in Grand Junction for a night.  Sara has family friends currently living there -  Sarah and Amanda Andrews - the daughters of Pat and Mary Andrews; Pat performed our wedding ceremony.  The two sisters have been living in Colorado for the past three years and Sarah was able meet us downtown on short notice and play tour guide.  It didn't take long to walk up and down Main Street, so we popped into a local brewery so the girls could catch up. We missed a good photo opportunity but are grateful for her kindness - she even bought a round of drinks!

Wednesday morning we hit the road heading east to Denver. The drive was beautiful! Our poor car who has earned the moniker "Bessy," coughed and sweated up and down the passes that wind through the majestic Rocky Mountains. I had been to Colorado once before on a family ski trip many years ago, but I had never seen the area in the summer. Lush greenery and spruce pines towering along the roadway, I gripped the wheel tightly; this Florida boy had to get used to mountain driving real fast! As we passed Vail, Breckinridge, and Beaver Creek, they all looked so different in the summer sunshine with the Colorado River thundering along beside us.

When we arrived in Denver we met up with Sara's cousin Kim, who joined us for lunch on 16th street. It was great catching up with Kim, who also met us on short notice, welcomed us and showed us around happily. We are so blessed to have people in our lives who will overlook our lack of scheduling and it makes traveling even more exciting when we get to see friendly faces in strange places. After lunch with Kim, Sara and I explored downtown Denver. Initially we had planned on staying the night and making the short trip to Fort Collins in the morning, but finding a reasonably priced hotel proved harder than we had planned. Being the nomads that we have become, we decided to return to the car and drive to Fort Collins that afternoon, saving some money along the way.

In a short hour and a half we had arrived in Fort Collins; we'd decided to hit the campground again as it definitely was the best value. A short drive from downtown, we made camp.

Why Fort Collins you might ask? I have had several friends attend Colorado State University who raved about the town so Sara had booked us a whitewater rafting adventure on the nearby Poudre River.  Downtown Fort Collins was awesome! I have never seen so many independent restaurants in a compact area in my life, each one unique. No matter what you were in the mood for you could find here, usually with a innovative modern twist. Our first night we ate at The Blind Pig which I highly recommend, the beer list alone was loaded with a variety of locally-brewed options. We spent the remainder of the evening walking through the plaza, sightseeing and enjoying the weather - it never went over 75 the whole time we were there!

Thursday morning, after breakfast at The Egg and I, Sara and I were driving around when we noticed a huge display of colorful flowers. It turned out after further investigation that annually CSU holds the Annual Flower Trials to allow students, researchers, and other groups to display, test and evaluate different types of plants and flowers in the unique environmental conditions of the Rocky Mountain/High Plains region.  The colors and variety were amazing!

With some time before our rafting reservation we hit the New Belgium Brewery, home of Fat Tire Ale and numerous other micro-brewed delicacies. It was such a cool environment! Dozens of people mulled around tasting and learning about the exceptional brews. You had the option to order tasters for just $1.50, allowing you to truly experience all the different combinations and creations this growing brewery has to offer. They also offer guided tours to walk and talk you through their process.  We were excited to learn they will be distributing in Florida later this year!

Next, whitewater rafting. Sara booked our trip with A Wanderlust Adventure. They are one of four companies who are permitted to raft down the Poudre River. We came to find out that the water we were rafting on was completely snow melt! Our guide was amazing and we had a great time meeting the people in our group and mostly, riding some rapids!

Tired from our adventure we were craving some BBQ! We ate at Nordy's BBQ which boasted six homemade creative BBQ sauces. I was impressed again with the quality of the food and friendliness of the staff. I would definitely place Fort Collins at the top of my list of food experiences thus far on this trip. Fat and happy, we headed back to camp just in time to find the remnants of a beautiful sunset, a perfect culmination to our stay in Colorado. Sara and I both agreed that we would return, it is truly is one of the most beautiful states we have encountered.

Lessons From The Road

The following excerpt arrived in our inbox a few a days ago, right on time:

"Once a journey is designed, equipped, and put into process, a new factor enters and takes over.  A trip, a safari, an exploration, is an entity, different from all other journeys.  It has personality, temperament, individuality, uniqueness. A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike.  And all plans, safeguards, policing, and coercion are fruitless.  We find after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us."

- John Steinbeck, Travels with Charlie

                                                                            

My beloved mother-in-law, Kim, sent us this little piece of wisdom when our journey was starting to "take" us...  We had just come off a week of camping (which is not very conducive to good sleep and requires a lot of effort breaking down/setting up) and we were supposed to have another week or so ahead of us in Utah and Wyoming. But upon arriving at Brian's aunt's house, we were just happy not to be moving...  This passage affirmed what we were already thinking, that we should not try to force ourselves to push onward for the sake of sticking to our itinerary. We have been viewing this road trip as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, which it is, but I think we have since realized that we have our whole lives together to explore this beautiful country, and we don't have to cram it all in this summer!

So we decided to save our northernmost points for another time, and instead we were able to enjoy a few days in Vegas and pick up with our itinerary in Colorado, refreshed and rejuvenated.  We are driving across Utah today and while we are very excited to be turning toward home, this journey is far from over!  We still have 3,000 miles of exploration and experiences ahead of us and we will not presume to know where this journey will take us next.

Here is a short list of lessons we've learned from the road:

1. Be ambitious in your planning, but flexible to change

2. Eight hours in a car will test your sanity; stop before you lose it. 

3. Schedule time to relax, driving doesn't count. 

4. Choose your companion wisely; it's the journey, not the destination (trust me, I couldn't have done this with anyone other than Brian)

5. In extreme circumstances, one must always find the humor.        

6. There are never too many sunsets to share with the one you love.            

                      

Viva Las Vegas!

As some of you may know already, Sara and I decided to take the western track around the Grand Canyon. My unbelievably gracious aunt Catherine and her husband Todd opened up their beautiful home in Las Vegas for us to relax and regroup. Unfortunately, our hosts are out of town, but nonetheless making us feel at home from afar.

This is my first time visiting Las Vegas, and with the house only miles from the strip, we could see the lights of Sin City glowing. My aunt recommended an amazing sushi restaurant, Xtreme Sushi, upon our arrival (we have been eating hot dogs, mac-n-cheese, cereal, and granola bars for days!) and it was amazing!

We slept hard, weary from the road and camping; a warm bed and accessible restrooms felt like heaven. It certainly heated up quickly and with temperatures in the 110's, Sara and I took advantage of the refreshing, resort-style pool at my aunt's. We spent most of the day lounging and floating around, beating the heat.

Our plans for the evening were to hit the Las Vegas strip. My aunt Catherine Hickland, a comedy hypnotist, actress, author, owner/creator of Cat Cosmetics, you name it, hooked us up with tickets to one of the hottest shows in Vegas, The Mentalist!
Gerry McCambridge, the Mentalist himself, is a personal friend of hers and put on a mind-blowing performance fusing comedy, magic and mind-reading. In fact, the show on ABC is his creation and based on his abilities. We really enjoyed watching him do his thing and were able to speak with him after the show.

Next we headed to Caesar's Palace to try our luck in the casino. It was Saturday night and the strip was electrified! People were milling around everywhere and it was really cool to experience the strip this way. After donating some money to Planet Hollywood, Caesar's and the Flamingo (I feel better using the word donating than losing) we called it a night and headed back to the house. As we drove away, the lights and sounds drifted away behind us.

When we woke up the next day we headed back to the strip to walk around and see the rest of the casinos. Sara had taken a family trip when she was sixteen through the city and was excited to share her experience with me. We walked through New York New York, Paris, The Luxor, The Excalibur, Mandalay Bay, The Bellagio, MGM Grand, Bally's and the Tropicana. This is just scratching the surface. I quickly realized that a couple days is not enough time to experience and explore all that Las Vegas has to offer. Every hotel has numerous shows and exhibits, shops and restaurants.

More important than experiencing the Las Vegas strip was having the opportunity to rest and relax in a comfy home. Sara and I are more than half-way through our summer expedition and this stop happened at just the perfect time. Thank you again Catherine and Todd, your hospitality has been very much appreciated and we can't wait to come back for another visit in the future!

The Grandest Canyon - Part II

Brian was awakened in the middle of the night by footsteps 10 feet from our tent. Then a loud knocking sound commenced and he opened the screened "window" of our tent to reveal the giant elk banging its antlers against a nearby tree. According to him, it was snacking on pine cones as they fell.  He stayed awake for an hour watching the creature (and making sure we were not trampled in our tent) until the elk moved on...

He relayed this story to me when I woke him at 4:30 AM to get to the canyon in time to watch the sunrise. Included in the $25 per vehicle park entrance fee is transportation via a network of shuttle buses powered by natural gas that make it very easy to get around.  We drove to the bus terminal in the dark and hopped on the Orange Line to get to Yaki Point.  

From Yaki Point, we watched in awe as the sun crested over the East Rim of the canyon. It was truly breathtaking to see the orange glow gradually stream its light into the depths of the canyon below. Granted, most of the sunrises I've seen lately were not for pure pleasure, (on the way to the airport to catch an early flight, or competing in a triathlon) but this one was like nothing I've ever witnessed. I am still learning to use my Canon EOS Rebel T3 in unfamiliar lighting/circumstances, and I don't think it is possible to capture the true beauty, but I had fun trying.

We returned to camp to cook some protein for breakfast and prepare for a morning hike.  We took the shuttle west and made our way to the Bright Angel Trailhead to begin our decent.  We had decided to do the 3-mile round trip, a decent of 1,140 feet.  The switch-back trail was gentle for the first 1/2 mile, then became moderately steep.  It was a pleasant journey on the way down, and we stopped to admire the scenery and take pictures along the way.

Being inside the canyon felt like a different world, more up close and personal, even though we could still barely make out the trees at the bottom.

The trail cutting down the right wall of the canyon

Just before we reached our turnaround

We reached the mile-and-a-half rest house, our turnaround point, in about 40 minutes and stopped to eat a protein bar and refill our water bottles.  It was 8:00 AM and only 70 degrees, but the elevation change had us short of breath so we rested a few minutes before beginning our ascent back up to the rim.  We were mentally prepared for a challenge, but in a matter of feet we were breathing hard and sweating profusely.  So we took it slow and rested when we needed to, hydrating along the way.  Step by step, we climbed back out of the canyon.  When we reached the top around 9:40, we were both exhausted and exhilarated!!!

Thanks to my sister Jenna for letting me borrow her boots!

The next question was... now what?  We had a reservation to stay at our campsite another night, but the canyon had beat us into submission, so more hiking (or physical activity of any sort) was pretty much out of the question, and it was only 10:00 AM.  We decided it was probably time for us to move on, so we broke camp and much to our surprise, when we checked out they refunded our money for that night!

Now the question was, where do we go now?  The next stop on our itinerary was supposed to be Moab, Utah, but I had not showered in three days and the thought of driving five and half hours and camping again made me want to cry a little.