Sat & Sun Days 16 & 17

After a huge breakfast provided by Peg, Sue & Sandy, we began the beautiful trip back to Boise. After a couple of stops to soak in the views, we dropped the girls at the airport and started our drive towards Wyoming. We travelled past the great salt Lake and headed into the Rockies. Saw our first buffalo herd and hundreds of elk and pronghorn anthelope as we drove through the high plains. There are a LOT of signs, and statues of really tall cowboys in Wyoming! We stopped to take in the george at Malad river. Wow was that awesome! After our longest day of driving so far, we landed for the night in Rock Springs, WY. The hotel was next to a Cold Stone ice cream shop so we grabbed a late snack and called it a day. Tommorow we are off to Denver to see where Amy lives. She should get home tonight.

Thursday, Friday-Days 14, 15

Cliff...the Ladders pro!

After 2 weeks of extreme heat, the weather finally cooled off for us. Rain moved in to Boise on Thursday. We took advantage of the change and spent the day bumming around Sue's house, doing a little laundry (REALLY necessary) and waiting for the Nagel troops to arrive in Boise for the trip to McCall. Despite uncooperative airlines, everyone made it and we packed up a caravan and headed north on the incredibly picturesque drive to McCall. The mountain roads wound through evergreen forests next to the Payette River. Despite the cooler weather, white water rafters and kayakers played on the river. As we continued further north we came across an accident victim being airlifted from a small mountain community (saw the vehicle up the road), a rodeo, farmer's market, and assorted wildlife. Never a dull moment in the mountains! We arrived at the lake house in McCall just in time for a game of ladders and beer in a light rain. Mark grilled burgers, we all spent time catching up and then called it a day. Friday, after fueling up with coffee and a quick breakfast, it was back to ladders and beer until we went to check out town. McCall is a great mountain resort town; fun shops, restaurants, and bars. After walking to the marina and checking out some local businesses we all retreated to the Yacht club for drinks and heated games of pool and shuffleboard. Since this is my blog, I'm going with the story that I kicked butt! (Thanks Amy, Nick, Dust & Amy for going along.) A couple more stops and a near adoption of another puppy (Dustin and Amy....NO) we headed back to the house for more games, a fantastic birthday dinner and a roaring fire. Perfect day! Happy 80th to Peg and Cliff. You are an inspiration to us all....but you already know that!

Day 13 Wednesday

Lakeview, Oregon turned out to be a lovely little town to stop for the night. After settling into the local motel, we walked uptown to grab a bite. The vote was Chinese so we stopped into a little place called King’s Hunan Café. We each ordered a different dish so we could share. Turns out, each entrée was large enough to serve 4 people. We did as much damage as we could then walked around town to work off some of that damage. Lakeview has an old theater with a marquis. We’ve seen a lot of those out west. Most of them, like Lakeview’s, are still in operation with current movies listed. Makes you feel good to know some relics are still hanging in there. The town was full of historic buildings that have been lovingly preserved or restored. A couple of them are even on the Nat’l Registry. We found an authentic bakery that we returned to in the morning for breakfast before we took off again. The decision to travel this route has been a good one so far. Most of the day, we travelled through foothills, buttes, and finally mountains. We began the day in smoke from yet another fire (Cascade Range) but the air cleared as the day went on. We stopped to check out a couple of alkaline lakes (pee-u) and the fault line that runs through Oregon. There was a perfect mountain stream that ran beside us for most of the afternoon as we wound through the mountains. We wanted to put our feet in it but the rattlesnake warning signs kept us from hiking through the brush to get to the streams edge. Oh, we thought about it…….. There were very few towns along the route. We drove over 90 miles with very little traffic and only one “rest stop” (a very loose term for an outhouse, picnic table, and more rattlesnake warning signs). There were mountain passes named “Stinking Water” and “Drinkwater” just a couple of miles apart. Not sure who to trust around here. There were horses running through the valleys around every turn. They were beautiful and mesmerizing to watch. For a second I thought it would be great to be a cowgirl…..ONE second! We finally found a place for ice cream so we called that lunch. Our drive took us through more farming valleys with crops including onions, beets, and corn. Since we had already been through the garlic capitol (Gilroy, CA), and the olive capitol (Corning, CA), it was only fitting that we visit the onion capitol, Vale, OR. There is NO mistaking what the crop is in any of these places. You can smell them as you approach. We got to Boise in time to check out the downtown night life and grab some dinner with Sue. Boise is such a cool place. Downtown is full of bars, restaurants, theaters, parks, all bicycle and pedestrian friendly. We checked several of them out on a quest to find Mark his Black Butte Porter and finally settled in for beer & pizza. We went back to Sue’s and hung out with Nick & Moose (Nick’s awesome dog). I wish we could stay here longer but it will have to be another time. Tomorrow we head up to a cabin in McCall, ID for a couple of days with the Nagel clan. Peg, Cliff, Sandy, & Amys all fly in tomorrow so it should be great fun!

Tuesday

Goodbye wine country.

During morning coffee in Napa, we decided to change up our trip plans (yet again). We had never been to North Central California so we decide to give it a try. We left the rolling vineyard covered hills of Napa and moved into the Sacramento valley. Surrounded by mountains, this very flat valley is full of sunflower farms, strawberry fields, orchards of oranges, apples, cherries, almonds and olives to name a few. We moved from farm country to ranch country to mountains again throughout the day. We began the day at an altitude of 15 and ended in Ponderosa Pine country around 5100 feet. We stopped in Corning, CA (the olive capital of the USA) and stumbled on to Route 99. I think we followed it for a while but it is not marked as well as most of 66. Mark filled you in on the fires so I won't say much else about those. As frightening as they are, they do provide surreal and beautiful views. Along with the fires we also saw giant cranes (I think they were emus) antelope, goats, sheep, and a small herd of majestic bucks standing at the edge of a hillside orchard. There is a huge alkaline lake (Goose) located at the boarder areas of CA & OR that is nearly dry. There was a cloud of dust blowing over the dirt where the water should have been. There was also a train that had derailed in the mountains. We pulled over for a lot of pictures today but I'm sure they cannot convey the true beauty of this area. That is the best part of this trip....seeing the landscape change 2-3 times a day and being excited to see what the next days journey will bring. Tomorrow we have a short trip to Idaho so we'll take our time and see what we can find along the way.

Tuesday Night

Just got out of the hot tub in Lakeview Oregon. We drove through some pretty heavy smoke from the Northern California fires today and the hot tub took the smell off of us. I have never seen so many fire trucks, helicopters and fire planes in my life. Thank goodness for those fire service people. We have driven 3428 miles so far in 74 hours of driving. Geez, that sounds like a lot but it doesn't feel like it has been that long. Northern California was beautiful. We ran into a couple at a Chinese restaurant in town tonight that just came in from Boise and are traveling to where we just came from. They said we have a lot of nothing to look at on our drive tomorrow. I am in Black Butte Porter beer country now but I'm not sure how much I can fit in the car. It is so full of wine I am afraid I may overload the shocks. I'll throw out some pillows to make room.

Days 10-11ish

Ok, I have completely lost track of how long we've been on this adventure! Sunday, we picked Brad up in San Jose and had a nice lunch & visit with Dave and Charlotte then spent the afternoon in San Francisco. After walking around the Wharf, we jumped a tour trolley and explored some of the city’s historic areas. It is always a fun place to visit but we never seem to have enough time there. We headed to Napa before sunset and found a great BBQ place, Bounty Hunter’s. The guys say the ribs were the BEST they’ve ever eaten. Yesterday, we headed to Calistoga to begin our wine adventure. We found a couple of nice smaller places (Envy, Summers) where the tastings were exceptional and the people were so welcoming. Bought some wine and moved along. We stopped in St. Helena to visit Greystone and take some pictures for L & J. Wonderful memories of their wedding there. It is the home of the San Francisco Culinary Institute so it always smells soooo good. While in the St. Helena/Oakville area we also visited the Folie a Deux/Napa Cellars winery. Mark is a fan so it was time for him to take over tasting duties. Brad & I needed a rest! The grounds were lovely and we wished we had planned ahead and packed a lunch. There is a picnic area adjacent to the tasting room. Marty and his friends Diana & Sharon drove up from the bay area to meet us for some more tastings. We stopped at St. Supery and Rubicon Estate in Rutherford for wonderful tastings (thanks Marty!) and then took a break for dinner at the Rutherford Grill. More wine….more food…great day! We now have so much wine in the trunk and being shipped that we should be able to keep you all quenched for the winter. The best part is that we still have No Cal & Oregon microbrew territory to cover.

Day 8

After spending the night in Golet (Santa Barbara burb) we headed to Solvang to visit MY favorite bakery: Olsen's Village Bakery. They make the best cream puff in the world!! Just a touch of raspberry under the cream......yum. My memory did not let me down on this one. After scarfing that up, we walked around town and visited a wine tasing room or two. After picking up some butter cookies for the road, we moved on towards San Luis Obisbo. We tried to find the restaurant where we first had white chili but the town has grown so much that we just wandered and took in all of the sights. We settled for another great pizza place, the name escapes me...Woodhouse or something. Anyway...awesome pizza and salad. After an obligatory stop at Sephora we were off again, to Paso Robels this time. The canyons were gorgeous and covered with vineyards. We took a few pictures but they just don't do justice to the land. There were farms & ranches everywhere with everything from cattle to goats to ostriches, etc. We checked out a few wineries and landed for a while at Peachy Canyon, another of my favorites. After joining the vineyard club and picking up a few bottles, we began our climb over the coastal mountains to the Pacific Coast Highway. The rest of the day was spent slowly navigating the winding drive along the coastline, climbing above the clouds to the sunshine and then decending through the fog to the shore. We stopped to watch elephant seals lounging and playing on the beach. Other points of interest were San Simeon, Pismo Beach, Big Sur (another of my favorite spots) & Carmel. Mark handled the pin curves like a pro. The views are just surreal so we spent the best part of the drive just taking them all in. We arrived in Monterey just as the sun was setting but the marine fog was moving in. We met Dave at our hotel in San Jose and went out for a nice Italian dinner. We had a chance to relax and visit. This morning we will pick up Brad from the San Jose airport and meet Dave for lunch. We are planning to spend the afternoon in San Francisco and then head up to Napa this evening. The next couple of days will involve a lot of wine tasting so if you don't hear from us it's because we can't navigate the keyboard.

The end of Route 66...Santa Monica.

Road trip Part 2

Not much exciting to report today. We took most of the day off yesterday and treated ourselves to spa pedicures (we have put a lot of miles on these tootsies) and the Maxima to a nice in & out cleaning. Bob started us off with a great breakfast. You just can't beat the fresh fruit in CA! On our way out of town, we stopped to see mom at the Auto Club, say a quick goodby and we were off again. We almost beat the LA traffic......almost. It took us about 3 hours to get as far as Ventura so we left the "parking lot" and did a little shopping/walking at a great outlet center. After about an hour, the traffic had thinned so we were off again. We watched the sunset over the ocean and decided to stop for the night just north of Santa Barbara. Found a nice hotel and a cool pizza joint and we were in for the night. Today we begin our trip up the coast and should land somewhere near San Jose this evening. We are hoping to meet up with Mark's brother Dave for dinner.

Day 7

Boy, is there a lot of desert out west! As we approached Laughlin Wednesday evening the sun was setting so the mountains were hazy, beautiful sillouettes. We had been in pretty high altitudes for a couple of days but most of the climbing had been gradual so it didn't seem extreme.....until the decent into Laughlin. Just as it got dark, we dropped about 3000 feet in 12 miles. There was a 6% downhill grade and our gas mileage registered about 120 miles per gallon. It was so cool but a little scary. Mark negotiated the mountain curves like a pro. We stayed at a casino on the CO river. Laughlin is a very nice place but at 106 degrees, we decided not to stick around too long. As we continued into the California high desert. the land became very desolate. We decided to stick to the interstate as much as possible because of the exreme conditions. We tried to re-join the route a couple of times but it was missing. One of the adventures of this trip is trying to find existing sections of 66 in some parts of the country. We did take a couple of the better loops but after Barstow we gave up. There was a cool little diner/coffee shop in Ludlow but we weren't hungry so we moved on. We saw a huge solar collection field near Daggett, CA. Impressive!! We travelled through mountain ranges named Dead Mtns, Sacramento Mtns, Piute Mtns, Clipper, Marble, Bristol....you get the picture. All of these ranges surround the Mojave Desert. after Victorville, we started the downhill into San Bernadino. Knowing that the ocean was so close, we clipped along the rest of the way straight to Balboa Peninsula. It was decided that the LA section of Route 66 needs to be attempted seperately over a few days. Too much congestion to slow down and look at anything. We will visit part of it today but have decided that it merits another trip....going west to east to see everything that we have missed. We spent the afternoon on the beach at Balboa and then met mom & Bob for dinner on the island. It was a perfect ending to part 1 of our adventure. Today we will head up the CA coastline. After all of that barren desert, it will be heaven to follow the ocean for a few days. Don't misunderstand, the desert has it's own powerful beauty. But it is a threatening environment and there are signs everywhere (especially on the route) of those that tried to make a go of it there and failed. 78 degrees with sand ending in water is much more our style!

Days 5-whenever

Music on the Plaza in Santa Fe

Well, we've learned that much of northern AZ is not wireless-friendly. After leaving Santa Fe, we were'nt very successful finding wireless venues. We've even found a non-wireless Starbucks!!! Anyway....from Sante Fe, which was incredible by the way, we trekked across some of the most beautiful country so far on our way to Williams, AZ. Mesas of reds & browns, elk and free-range cattle everywhere. We followed the railroad most of the way so we saw plenty of very long trains. Stopped at one of the original Route 66 eateries, the Roadrunner cafe. food was not great but the atmosphere was cool. We've been trying to leave our money with the route locals as much as possible. Stopped in Winslow, AZ for the obligatory picture "on the corner". Turned out to be a great little community. Found a nice indy coffee place and a couple of decent gift shops. The people were very welcoming. As we moved through northern, AZ the land changed again. There is a definite feel of cowboy country down here. These people walk the talk. No trendy hats or boots, just jeans with Skol can rings worn into the pockets. We got to Williams in the afternoon and had a great night. Lots of local bars and restaurants all within walking distance from hotels. We stayed at the Grand Canyon Depot. Spent the evening enjoying live entertainment including music and a wild west shootout in the street. Hung out with several locals who were happy to share the local history. On Wednesday, we jumped on the Grand Canyon Express train for the trip to the south rim. More entertainment on the train. Spent the day hiking the rim trail. The canyon takes my breath away everytime I'm here. Pictures truly can not do it justice! After getting back to Williams, we took a sunset drive throught the mountains toward Kingman, AZ. We stopped at another historic cafe, The Copper Cart in Seligman for dinner. It was the BEST food on the route so far (except for those doughnuts). The sunset over the mountains was incredible. As we reached Kingman, we made the decision to go on to Laughlin, NV. A slight deviation from our route but a lot more fun. We've had great weather (80's & low 90's) the whole trip. As we decended into Laughlin we watched the temp rise to 101. It was 100 at 10 pm. I think we have found that extreme heat everyone hasbeen talking about. We will head into the California desert today so I'm sure there will be little relief until we get to the coast. I'm sure I'm forgetting so much but I will catch you up after I fuel up with breakfast. It is hard to believe that we are already halfway through our trip. Oh well, there is so much yet to come.....

Monday

When Lorrie says we found a great donut place, she means we found the greatest donut I have ever eaten and trust me I know donuts! I even bought a bag full to go. This trip is really almost too much to take in. When you are on the old route you feel like you are back in the 40's or 50's. I have gotten to know the road so well I can tell when we have ventured off the route and I can usually find my way back onto 66. As we pass old relic after old relic I kind of get mad at the people who are just letting this places fall apart. It can't be that hard to just do a little basic repair or upkeep. Kent and I could have one of these places back in business in a week. There are times when you don't see another car or person for an hour or so when you are on the actual route. I guess that may be why all the businesses went under, duh! Time to call it a night. A long trip to Williams AZ. tomorrow, 415 miles. I've got my bag a donuts to get me there!

More catching up

We have reached Santa Fe and are considering staying forever. What a beautiful place. We are using the wi-fi at a great indi book store/coffee shop. Here is how we got here... Day 3-4ish (I'm losing track). We departed Oklahoma yesterday but before leaving, took some time to wander the grounds of the Nat'l Route 66 museum in Elk City. It was closed (Sunday) but the place was impressive nontheless. As we headed west the landscape began to change dramatically. Black dirt turned to red clay, cows horns grew considerably longer and the wind became very hot. In Groom, TX we saw the largest cross in the western hemisphere. Texas was not terribly exciting because most of the route runs parallel to I-40. We did stop for lunch at the Midpoint Cafe in Adrian, TX. It is one of the purported 1/2 way points on the route. Nice place..lots of history. There were travellers from New York & the Netherlands resting there as well. We had planned to overnight in Tucumcari but we just didn't feel great about the available lodging so we moved on the Santa Rosa. Excellant decision! The road became rolling as we entered high plains country. Got to the hotel just ahead of a gully-washer. By the time we checked in and took a swim, the sky cleared and the sun came out. We had dinner at a historic place called Joseph's, took a sunset drive through the high plains to Puerto de Luna, a very old Mexican village that is still inhabited. New homes intermix with ancient ruins. This morning we had breakfast at another historic place called the Silver Moon Cafe. Scrambled eggs with chorizo & onions. Great way to start the day. We are taking the Sante Fe loop today which included a stop in Las Vegas, NM. So cool. Amovie is being shot in old town today so as we wandered the streets, we got to watch all of the action. the movie is "Paul" so we will watch for it in future. Turns out they make a lot of movies there including; Easy Rider, No Country for Old Men. We saw the building that Jesse James was shot in. Wyatt Earp & Doc Holiday all lived here so once again....history. I visited with a local artist/shop owner, Tito Chavez. bought a great pair of silver earrings from him. We also found the perfect doughnut (according to Mark) at Charlie's Spic & Span Cafe. You are now caught up. As I've been blogging, Mark has been booking us a hotel here so it sounds like we are here for the night. There is so much to do and see so I'll get back to you later. Lorrie

Yea!! back on line!

you know you're travelling old school when the wireless is out in the entire community. That's what happened in santa Rosa, NM yesterday. Here's how we got there: Day 3 We started the morning with a great breakfast at the Pankake Hut in Clinton, MO. On the drive into Kansas we came upon a narrow bridge under a canopy of trees. Sitting on the rail was a huge golden eagle. He took flight just a few feet in front of us, circled and landed back on his perch once we crossed the bridge. It was amazing. Stopped at an old gas station turned museum in Afton, OK. Had a nice visit with Laurel & Ron about the history of the area and some must sees to come. Stopped at the birthplace of Mickey Mantle in Commerce, OK and checked out the shed with dented steel walls from all of the practice pitches. We had to check out Totem Pole Park outside of Foyil. Well worth the side trip. Tried to imagine the Blue Whale amusement park (Catoosa) in its glory. It looks like a perfect location for a Pee Wee Herman movie. Will Rogers presence is everywhere in these parts. His museum rivals those of many Presidents'. We skirted Tulsa and Oklahoma City and spent more time in the smaller communities that have been largely forgotten by time. Many skektons in these parts leave much to the imagination. Miles of well maintained original road in this state. Great people, too! Stopped for the night at a KOA on Clinton Lake in OK. We rented a Kamping Kabin for a new experience. It certainly was cozy!!!

Sorry no Internet today. Catch up tomorrow.

Day 2

Well, after meandering from KC through Ozarks country we finally joined the route in Lebanon, MO. We started with a catfish & BBQ lunch and began our official journey. Old neon signs and diserted buildings are everywhere but enough remains to imagine how it was in the hayday of Route 66 travel. We have begun to meet some interesting 66 locals who are more than willing to share their tales and direct us to some off-beat sights that we may have surely missed. One such stop was Red Oak II, a town that was picked up and moved 20 miles to be closer to the route. Once a bustling tourist stop it is now eerily reminiscent of a Tim Burton movie set. We ended the day in Carthage, MO, checked in to a motel recommended by one of the aforementioned natives, junped into the pool to refresh, and headed out to the local Drive-in theater for a late movie. Just like being a kid except that we had popcorn, chili dogs, wine & cheese. It was awesome! Looking forward to another day of unknown adventures tomorrow

Lorrie

Day One

Good morning. Day 1 of the official trip has begun. We are leaving KC for Springfield, MO this morning. First stop is the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. I've already left a pair of earrings at the hotel so at this rate my luggage should be very light by the time we reach home again! On the up side...we've already been in 3 states (IA, MO, KS) and we've barely started. Take care. Pictures will be coming soon. We made it to the end of the driveway before stopping to see if we had everything!