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Most of the fall chores have been completed but our cottonwood tree still has about 1/3 of its leaves yet to fall. Another weekend or two and the leaf season should be over.

Our focus has shifted to looking at a retirement house. Last weekend we made two different trips; one to the Divide, Colorado area which is more eastern slope, also known as the Front Range, and a second [overnight] trip to the Durango, Colorado area, which is in the southwest [four corners] part of the state.  We viewed a variety of houses but none said “buy me” to us.

The first house in Divide was in an older subdivision and had views of Pike’s Peak. However, the layout was funky and the place had a lot of steps. Electrical was also an issue; extension cords painted to match the wall color ran up to the overhead fans [not code], for example. Despite some updates in the kitchen and main bath, we were not impressed.

Other places in the Divide area were drive-by stops and we did not get into the houses. One looks to have potential, but what would we do with a horse paddock area? On the up side, we did meet a realtor who seems to be personable and we may work with him in future.

Same trip included a stop at The Lot to check on the shed and take a general look around. It was a very nice day in the high country and an enjoyable quick visit.

Pam at The Lot

South Park from The Lot

Our second trip was an overnighter to Durango. Pam had been keeping tabs on several properties around Vallicito Lake to visit. This had been an on-again, off-again trip due to the weather forecast including snow over Red Mountain Pass. At the last minute it was a “go” and we braved the weather.

Pam had contacted a Vallecito Lake area realtor and we hooked up with her at her office. The realtor, Marilyn, drove us around the area in her 4-door Jeep.  (Dogs stayed at home, the neighbor watched them overnight.)

The houses ranged from very small to quite large, with price ranges to match. Our ‘wish list’ includes 2 – 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, and a lot with a view or water of some type. A garage is highly desirable.

Only one of the 5 properties we visited had everything we wanted, but the house was a manufactured home and Pam would prefer a stick-built home. The price was over our target but at least we know houses that meet our general criteria exist at Vallecito Lake.

Here are “view” photos taken from some of the properties we visited:

Middle Mountain Road

Tucker Lane (Pond with fish in it.)

Grimes Creek

Vista Estates

By the time we finished four hours had passed, and the snow had started falling, so we drove through the dark and flurries back to our hotel in Durango.

The next morning we looked at weather cams for Red Mountain Pass and decided to head for home after breakfast instead of spending more time around Durango. This proved to be a good plan as the trip back was very slow due to road conditions (and getting stuck behind a large semi-truck). The leg between Silverton and Ouray – 24 miles – took an hour in and of itself. Here are some views of  the trip home over Red Mountain.

Hwy 550 in winter – few guard rails

Twilight Peak near Durango

Road conditions on Hwy 550

House-hunting is a humbling experience. Colorado real estate is expensive particularly when we’re trying to plan on living within a retirement income. Many of the places we looked at would need renovation or upgrades, not to mention a garage. (Garages are something of a luxury in homes designed primarily as 2nd houses for summer vacations.) The search will continue (it’s only just begun, really), but we may have to amass a larger down payment to make a retirement mortgage affordable.  We enjoy getting out and looking at places, though, and have plans to make more real estate hunting trips during the winter.

That’s it for now. Thank for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Who knew there was so much shag carpet and so many avocado appliances still left out there?  I mentioned this to one of my younger co-workers at the community college, and she said, “What are avocado appliances?”  Call me older than dirt to remember not only avocado, but also harvest gold and almond appliance colors. Having been there for the original issue, I’m certain I do not want these colors in my future kitchen.

Happy Trails.

Avocado appliances (Web photo.)

Down time: Well, only in comparison to our normal schedule. Our weekends are still busy, but the jobs are not individually very big.

Take the skunk fence, as Pam calls it. This was an additional section of fence that I installed to help close off the back yard. The job took a few hours, including applying the wood preservative.

Jer applying wood preservative to the fence

The task was complicated a bit by the addition of a gate-with-hinges at the left-hand end of the section so we can access the areas behind the garage. The job took most of a morning.

Then there was getting the RV’s water system winterized. (This requires an RV specific antifreeze, not auto antifreeze.) That was the last RV-related chore; the RV is pretty well set for the winter. The solar panel is set up and keeping the batteries charged so I should not have to pull the batteries for winter storage.

I cut up the rest of the fire pit wood, put the snow blade on the John Deere lawn tractor, did a lot of leaf raking and mulching, cleaned out and organized the steel storage shed for the winter, and put new seals in the bathroom shower faucets. Each job in itself was not large, but in total it kept me busy every weekend.

I’ve also been keeping our snow-bird neighbor’s yard raked in return for letting us park the RV behind a fenced enclosure. This is a big job that takes some time every weekend. Pam took this photo of me working in that yard; you can see The Box in the background.

lots of leaves

Pam helps with most of these jobs plus has her own additional chores around the house. Her weekends are as busy as mine. She is researching Colorado retirement houses for us to look at; tomorrow we will be heading out to look at a few properties.

The high desert had a snow/slush morning the other day and there was some accumulating snow on the grass at our work location (Glenwood Springs). The snow has since melted but night time temps have dropped below 20 degrees and the furnace has been running regularly the last few nights. Winter is fast approaching and we are attempting to get all outside tasks done before the snow arrives in earnest. Other than more raking/mulching – a task that will continue for a few more weeks – I think we’re done. There are other small jobs to do that are not weather dependent (such as cleaning the garage and collecting my scrap metal to take to the recycle center), but these tasks can be done evenings and weekends at my leisure.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

A parcel arrived with items for my upcoming birthday.  My childhood/high school/adult friend Mary so thoughtfully sent along something to help me get through the long winter nights ahead.

Pam’s birthday book front cover

Back cover

Cat hair is certainly not in short supply around here.  Reminds me of “Trump Your Cat.”

Happy Trails.

It’s that time of the year again when we begin our fall chores.

I put new filters in the furnace, vacuumed out the floor vents (dog and cat hair accumulates in them over the summer), winterized the swamp cooler, removed a window air conditioning unit, put the fans away and took a couple of oil-filled heaters out of storage, started raking and mulching leaves.

Pam began winterizing a few of our windows (that are no longer double paned = plastic inserts) and helped with raking leaves and emptying the RV. (The RV has been moved to its winter location, which is behind a fence in our snow-bird neighbor’s yard. They winter in Arizona.) Pam has done a lot of work on the flower beds, cutting them back and getting them ready for mulching and winter weather. The iris bulbs for the new raised bed outgrew an existing bed; Pam had to dig them up and thin them out before planting them in their new (however temporary) home. This project required a lot of work!

New corner flowerbed already mulched for winter

There is still much to do; I need to finish winterizing the RV and there will be several more days of raking and mulching leaves. What we don’t use on our flower beds gets hauled off to a compost area the town has set up.

Other fall projects are on the docket; I varnished the stake bed sides for the trailer and I have a section of fence to install behind the garage (keeps out skunks – 9 trapped on our end of town this summer). Some firewood for the fire pit, which we keep on the back deck, has been cut but a small pile remains to be processed. After that I will need to put the snow blade on the John Deere garden tractor and make sure it is ready to run when needed. We saw snow on the top of the Mamm Range as we drove home from work yesterday. Winter is coming!

Varnishing the stake bed trailer sides

I upgraded the tires on my Generac generator; this project required me to make an axle. The problem with the old tires (kludged on by the previous owner) was they would not traverse gravel very well. Installation of the new tires, which are pneumatic instead of solid rubber and much larger, make the generator far easier to roll — I am confident the new tires will handle gravel and uneven terrain of The Lot. This will be important, as I plan to move the generator often this coming summer when cutting firewood with the electric saw.

Old wheel (left) and new wheel (right) on generator

All-in-all our weekends are busy with fall chores and winter preparation. The last big project, as mentioned, will be the installation of that skunk fence. After that there will be more raking and mulching as needed. But the bulk of my fall prep will be over, at least until it is time to put up Christmas lights…. 🙂

Our daughter, Felicity, is in England at the moment doing a house-sit. She hooked up with the local ladies singing group, the Crystal Chords, a UK group similar to the US Sweet Adeline chorus that Felicity joined several years ago. The Crystal Chords recently won first place in their division at a regional contest, quite an accomplishment, and Felicity was able to be part of that effort. Here is a photo of Felicity, taken on their return bus trip from the competition, holding the group’s trophy:

Felicity with the Crystal Chord’s trophy

Felicity sent us these You Tube links to videos of the Crystal Chords singing in concert at a local guild hall in Yorkshire.

Happy + Contest Package (All the Way & Let’s Do It) – https://youtu.be/lCfZMoFM-nw

Let’s Do It – https://youtu.be/n11E4HozIsw

Go the Distance – https://youtu.be/ZgvT54hln18

The videos are a bit fuzzy but the sound is pretty good so take a look/listen.

I’m keeping busy and I’m looking forward to a break once the chores have been completed. (Don’t know if that will ever happen; there always seems to be another project on the horizon!)

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Busy. Yes.

Happy Trails.

There is not a major news story this week so this post will be a collection of short topics, including the new stove, The Lot, a few animals, and a few miscellaneous photos.

Our new stove arrived and I installed it this past Wednesday. It sure is nice to have a working stove again! Pam has tried the oven and reports it appears to be more evenly heated than the old one, and the top-side burners light quickly and have very even heat distribution. Pam hated to have to replace any more appliances here, since we don’t plan on staying that many more years.  It is what it is – you don’t mess with gas.

Our new GE stove

The last of the firewood has been picked up; it’s good to have it gone from the edge of the driveway but I do miss the woodsy smell that was present every time I walked past the pile.

There are a couple of miscellaneous photos from trips to The Lot. We took Tabitha’s advice and spent some time enjoying our visits from time to time.

Jerry enjoying a campfire

Pam viewing fall colors from Pavilion Point

Pam and Jerry look out over South Park

We will miss our mountain visits (eight weekends in a row late August through October), but the night time temps are getting below freezing on a consistent basis in the high country and, with the leaves fallen, the scenic views are not what they are in the spring and summer. Besides, there are plenty of projects to work on around the house.

On my last trip to the lot the free-range Llamas were pretty close to the road and I could not pass up this photo of a young one:

Young Llama in South Park

We have squirrels (and chipmunks) on The Lot and the dogs enjoy trying to find them. Although we see them often I’ve not gotten a good photo of one. Here is a bit of info about pine squirrels:

Pine squirrel info

One aspect of Colorado that I like is the history of the state, particularly the narrow-gauge railroads that were built during the gold mining days. South Park had the Denver, South Park & Pacific line that came out of Denver, crossed Kenosha Pass to enter South Park, and served Breckenridge by way of Boreas Pass. At the top of Kenosha Pass a bit of the line has been reconstructed. Here is one informational sign from that stretch:

A bit of rail history in South Park

For the time being our lives will settle into the cold weather routine, mostly work and chores around the house related to fall activities such as raking and mulching leaves, prepping the house for winter, and other low-level activities. Just as well; with sunsets coming earlier and earlier it is hard to get much done after we get home during the work week, usually around 6:00 PM.  We do have a couple of real estate property viewings scheduled for later in the month; more on those as they occur.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Fairplay property visits scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 8.  Hope to set up Lake Vallecito property visits for Nov. 10-11 (taking some annual leave).  All dependent on weather – light snow already in the forecast for higher elevations.

Happy Trails.

During September I took some video clips of different events but did not have time to put them in my posts. Here are 4 short movies depicting events and outings from that time.

The first (1 minute) is a view of fall colors taken from The Lot on September 12th.

[cincopa AkMAS9MmZWrY]

This next clip (3:10) is of the delivery of 15 tons of gravel for the lower end of The Lot’s driveway. This occurred on September 24 and was the last major project for the year.

[cincopa AoEAu_M6ZyZa]

These next two clips are from ATV trips. The first, North Twin Cone Peak, (1:06) is silent as the wind noise over the microphone rendered the audio track unusable. It is a visual record that I was there (elevation of 12,600 feet) but otherwise is not significant.

[cincopa AQLA088ZZ6Di]

This last clip, the longest of these 4 at 6:22, is of scenery (mostly mine tailings and mountains) along Forest Road 290 near the old mining town of Montezuma. Again, it is mostly a record of “I’ve been there” rather than any cinematic masterpiece. The second half of the clip was taken from Handcart Gulch, the trail leading up to Webster Pass, also in the Montezuma area. This part of the clip has a bit more color and a couple of Jeeps in it.

[cincopa AIDA7_MBZSss]

These short takes are, as I mentioned earlier, more for documentation than entertainment, but I hope you enjoy some parts of them.

Finally, one photo of all the firewood cut up and stacked along our De Beque driveway before Kathy and Doug come and start taking it away. Kathy uses the wood to heat her 1-car garage, converted to rescue cat house, in the winter.

All firewood has been cut

(The cat in the background is Sunny, one of our indoor-outdoor cats.)

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

I looked back at the summer calendar – Fields and (less frequently) myself + the dogs were at Sanderling eight straight weekends from late August through early October. Which is what happens when there’s a late, wet spring and all the projects push forward to the end of the season.  Accomplished this summer: retaining wall and gravel work on the driveway, clearance of the future carport area, down and standing wood removal (includes larger trees) in The Nook, septic pumping system operational, components purchased for the cistern system.

Happy Trails.

It has been a couple of weeks since I last posted. We have been very busy with a range of activities that includes The Lot, the “new” utility trailer, a couple of ATV rides, fall colors, and wood cutting. Here is a bit of an update on all these topics.

I had wanted to add stake bed sides to the utility trailer to increase it’s carrying capacity, particularly for hauling slash to the burn pit. It took me a few night’s work, but the stake bed is finished and working very well for my intended use(s).

Stake Bed sides help load capacity – burn pit wood, in this case – from The Nook area

In a bit of an unusual design, both the front and end panels can be removed giving me great flexibility in loading stuff. At the burn pit I can remove either side or end and unload the trailer right from the deck, a much appreciated feature.

Over the last few weeks I have taken several loads of wood to the burn pit and brought home two loads of firewood with this trailer and am very pleased with the way it has worked out.

One thing left to fix; the tailgate of the truck won’t drop down if the trailer’s tongue jack is in place. This is not a major problem but is inconvenient. Back in the day truck tailgates were not as tall as they are now and there was no clearance problem but the newer Ford F-150 tailgates are pretty tall, causing interference. I will either buy a bolt-on jack and mount it further back on the tongue or weld up a plate and re-use the original jack in a different location.

The trailer upgrades are tied in with work on The Lot, which pretty much ended last weekend due to encroaching cold weather. (Last weekend you could see a white tint on the top of Boreas Pass and other high peaks. Good thing we already “visited” Mtn Laurie up there for this year.)  We finished clearing The Nook to our satisfaction; the last of the firewood from this area is in the trailer and waiting for me to finish cutting it up later this week.

Last load of wood for 2015

Firewood waiting for delivery

It is always sad to shut down The Lot for the year and bring The Box home. It means summer is really over and signals an end to our weekends in the high country. I’ll miss my campfires under the stars.

Last campfire of 2015

Speaking of campfires…

Our gas range, 21 years old and original to the house, developed a leak and is not worth repairing. We have a new GE unit on order with expected delivery of October 13th. In the meantime we are using our 2-burner Coleman camp stove and microwave for cooking. Camping at home!

Camping at home with the Coleman stove

I did get one last ATV/Fall Color trip completed a couple weeks ago, a re-visit of Webster Pass and the surrounding area.

Old cabin along Forest Road 290

Gold Aspen along Handcart Gulch

I can say I am tired. August, September, and early October — a very busy time, including nights and weekends. Once we get the last of the wood cut and delivered, get The Box home from The Lot, and complete a few chores around the house (Pam wants a new raised flower bed and some fence work done) I will be ready for a break. By that time fall chores will have started, mostly raking leaves and mulching flower beds so we will see how much of a break I actually get!

A couple of miscellaneous notes…

KitKat has decided she wants to be an indoor-outdoor cat and has taken to coming into the house for long stretches of time, including overnight. She was the most anti-social kitten we fostered, and after Pam put KitKat outside I didn’t think she would even stay around. Surprise! KitKat even lets me pet her while she is in the house. Unbelievable.

The Honda turned over 377,000 miles last week. We are aiming for 500,000 miles. There are signs the transmission (automatic) is not what it used to be, particularly when cold, and we are just hoping it hangs in there through the winter.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

With the conclusion of the work on the Sanderling property for the year, we commence the winter project – our search for a retirement house.  Actually, the realtor who sold us the Sanderling property has already shown us several houses in the Fairplay area, so the search has begun.  Two schools of thought about a retirement location – we are attracted to the water and recreational aspects of Vallecito Lake near Durango.  But, their internet situation at the moment is not good and I need reliable internet to work at home.  An alternative would be finding a retirement home near the mountain property in the Fairplay/Alma area.  Internet is somewhat more established in Park County, and of course it would be nice to be a half hour drive away from Sanderling rather than four hours.  Homes everywhere in Colorado are expensive; it will take us a bit longer to put together the [outrageous] down payment needed, so the search will continue. If it takes as long to find a house as it did to settle on the Sanderling property, we are in for a two year run.

Clover Court home for sale near Fairplay

Happy Trails!

Much has transpired since my last post. Here is an effort to catch up on the last 3 weekends.

We had driven to our Sanderling lot the weekend before Labor Day to continue cleaning the area we have taken to calling The Nook. The Nook is an expansion of an uphill area we had partially cleared  last year, but is further back on the lot, in more pine trees, and steeper.

Pam and I created a slash pile (burn pit wood) and another pile of soon-to-be firewood. However, due to the terrain we had to haul the slash further than I really like; only with much difficulty could I get the ATV and utility trailer into the area. This slowed us down a bit but we still managed to get several loads of slash staged and one load of firewood ready to bring home.

That weekend we had mice again. Determined to fix this problem,  I crawled under the RV to identify the entry point. Peeling back some of the undercoating fabric,  I found a place where the mice had gained entry through a very round-about route. I think they had come in though a space near the holding tank drain line then followed a smaller drain line into the bathroom sink area. Having purchased a can of expanding foam, I proceeded to plug the route and every small hole and opening around the water tanks and lines that I could find. While this appears to have ended our mouse problem for now – no mice over Labor Day weekend or last weekend – I will need to make a more permanent fix when I bring The Box home for the winter.

And speaking of that…tree colors are changing here in the high country. Como had one night below freezing. It may be only a matter of weeks before we’ll have to shut down operations for the year. Seems like it is just too soon for fall to be here!

September 13, 2015, fall colors beginning to show

The next weekend was Labor Day.  I had taken off  Friday to make a 4-day mini-vacation out of it, planning to include a little adventure by adding a couple of ATV rides to the weekend schedule.

I went up on Friday with the truck and trailer and Pam followed Saturday afternoon with the dogs. By the time Pam arrived I had The Nook slash loaded and taken to the burn pit. Determined to get the most out of the Saturday, we tackled a project closer to the driveway…clearing an area adjacent to the dog run. This spot is in line-of-view of The Box, and has fairly easy access. We quickly had a load ready to go and when I returned from yet another burn pit trip Pam had a good start on a 2nd load. That load would have to wait until this past weekend as the burn pit was now closed for the day. We came to the conclusion that there will always be another pile of slash…for the rest of our lives!

Another slash pile takes shape

Jerry getting a load of firewood out of The Nook

Sunday morning we again worked on the dog run area and added to The Nook’s piles of firewood and slash. Pam headed home around 3:00 PM; I stayed to take my ATV rides later in the day and next morning. We feel we got a lot done and the absence of mice was an added plus.

My 2 ATV rides (Sunday evening and Monday morning) were of Hall Valley and North Twin Cone Peak. The former was fairly easy and short, only about 14 miles round trip, but a light smattering of rain made the evening a bit more interesting. However, the rain ended quickly and the long rays of the sun made for a very nice late afternoon ride.

My ATV and another family at the end of the Hall Valley trail. (Building is an old bunkhouse.)

Monday’s ride of North Twin Cone Peak, accessed from the top of Kenosha Pass, was pleasant but the final third of the trail was rocky and steep, thus making for slow going. The 32 mile round trip took me over 4 hours. Highest elevation, at the top of the peak, was 12,600 feet. I was glad Pam had insisted I bring my lined leather jacket along…it was chilly up there. I headed back to The Box, had lunch, hooked up the trailer full of firewood, and headed home, completing the long holiday weekend.

Downhill on the North Twin Cone Peak trail. Angles not enhanced by camera…trail was steep and rocky in places.

Fast forward to this past weekend. I drove up Friday after work  – no day off this time – while Pam stayed home. Saturday morning I managed to get the pre-staged slash (a couple of loads) out of The Nook and over to the pit and still had time to get another load ready by late afternoon. (Photo of this 3rd load is below.) Originally I had planned to return home on Saturday, but the weather was totally beautiful and I was tired so I decided to stay over until Sunday morning. I made myself dinner then built a nice campfire and watched the stars appear after the fire died out. At our elevation, just under 10,000 feet, and with no lights around (the moon had not yet risen) you can really see all the stars and the swirls of the Milky Way.  I slept well that night.

Load #3, more fuel for the burn pit

Sunset from The Lot, 9/12/2015

The last big project for the year is scheduled for September 24 – 25, when we will have another load of gravel delivered for the lower end of the driveway. While the gravel company will try to spread the gravel somewhat when dumping it from the truck, we anticipate a lot of gravel will have to be moved and raked by hand. We want to get this done now as some washout has occurred on the lower end of the drive over the last two winters. Hopefully the gravel will put a stop to further driveway deterioration.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

It’s a mad rush to the end of the season.  Once we wrap it up at Sanderling, it will be time to accelerate the retirement house hunt– into next year.  Something to keep us engaged during the long winter months.

Happy Trails.

In my last post I mentioned a “trip video” I was working on. Here is a 6-minute clip consisting of footage taken in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The footage is mostly waterfalls, but a few still photos have been added to break up the waterfall monotony.

[cincopa A0PAI1MTLn1e]

I do like my waterfalls. 🙂

A few statistics about the trip:

Miles on bike: 580

Miles in truck: 3,313

Highest price per gallon of regular: $3.17 in Colorado

Lowest price per gallon of regular: $2.46 in Iowa

Hotel price range per night : $59.00 in Lincoln up to around $85.00 in Nebraska and Minnesota. (Julie’s Motor Inn, base camp for the rally, came in at just under $65.00 per night.)

Total gallons of gasoline purchased for truck: 250

Average MPG – truck: 13.3

Total gallons of gasoline for bike: 14

Bike’s average MPG: 42

Number of photos taken: 131

Number of video clips shot: 12 (all on an iPhone 6+)

The trip took 11 days all told, August 11 (afternoon) until August 22nd (early evening).

 Next post: Back to normal themes, including The Lot, Fall colors, and general living.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

And my vacation lasted from August 11 (afternoon) until August 22nd (early evening).

The last segment of my trip, which had begun on August 11th, included a visit to central Wisconsin to see my mother and family members.

I arrived in Greenwood, where my mother lives, late in the day on Monday, August 17th. The drive down from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula was a bit rainy and cold, but I did work in a stop at another waterfall. Notice how grey the sky is, an indication of the intermittent rain falling on this Monday morning.

Agate Falls

The old railroad trestle is now part of a recreational trail for both summer and winter use. Must be interesting to ride a snowmobile over it! The primitive trail down to the bottom of the falls is almost non-existent and it took a bit of work to get this shot.

The visit with my mother and sister Sienna was quiet. We talked a lot, watched a little TV, and I walked part of the land where I grew up. It is different now, after 4 decades, particularly where open fields have grown over with large trees and tall grasses.

On Wednesday I drove to Bloomer to visit with Pam’s brother Craig and his wife Dianne, who just moved into their newly-built lakeside retirement home. While there is still work to do, the house is very well built and quite attractive. Both Craig and Dianne are glad to be out of their small rental, occupied while the house was under construction. They still have a lot of boxes to go through, still need to sort out storage places for their stuff, but both are retired and are looking forward to settling into their new place.

Craig and Dianne outside their new house

After a very good visit with relatives on Pam’s side, I headed back to Greenwood, stopping to see my father’s brother Frank and his sister Gina, my aunt and uncle. Both live near Chippewa Falls. Aunt Gina is 94 and is still as sharp as ever. Uncle Frank is 88 and looks terrific. They took me out to eat at a China Buffet and we were able to talk for quite a while over dinner and later back at Aunt Gina’s house. It was very good to see both of them.

The next morning, the 19th, I started back to Colorado with the intent on making it as far as Lincoln, Nebraska that evening. On the way I passed a sign advertising the Iowa Aviation Museum. Who knew? So, just on the spur of the moment, I decided to visit the museum.

The museum is small but growing and has a collection of some ’20s and ’30s aircraft as well as a few newer planes.

1929 Stearman

A-7 Corsair

I had arrived late in the day and could not stay long at the museum, but it was an interesting place to visit! Later that day I arrived in Lincoln and settled in for the night.

The next day it was back on the road again. Previously I had mentioned I’d stopped in North Platte during the initial days of this trip to buy a used tire, and at that time had been quoted $180.00 per tire for a set of “take off” tires. (The story is that a guy had purchased a new truck but wanted “monster truck” tires installed so traded these in. Supposedly the tires, Michelin light truck tires, had only about 400 miles on them.) I decided to offer the dealer $150.00 per tire, about $92.00 each off the price of a new tire, and they said OK if they could keep the old tires to resell. So I stopped in North Platte and had a “new” set of tires installed! The old tires, on the truck since we bought it, were nearing the end of their service life and Pam and I had talked about replacing them this fall, so I just accelerated the timing a bit. The Michelins seem to ride very well and are quieter than the tires they replaced. I just hope they last a long time.

That night, Friday, I made it as far as our Sanderling lot in Colorado and stayed in The Box, our RV trailer. Saturday morning I did a few chores (such as loading the firewood I had cut previously), walked around the lot a bit, and just sat for a while enjoying the morning while drinking a hot cup of tea. After I did get going I stopped to look at a couple of For Sale houses Pam had seen during an on-line search; my last leg home was unhurried with a few side stops.

Over all it was a good trip. I saw some new country, reconnected with some old acquaintances, met some new people, and visited family. I had the opportunity to visit Craig and Dianne’s new home plus walk the property where I grew up.  I ate some good food and drank some good beer and learned a bit of history along the way.  Then I had to go back to work… 🙁

My next post will have a few statistics and a movie clip, mostly waterfalls but presenting a few other topics as well.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Convincing Fields to drive the truck and trailer the cycle was a good move.  He also did well watching his diet and practicing moderation to control his diabetes during his first major trip since his diagnosis.

Happy Trails.

Saturday was the “Big Ride” day. After a good breakfast we headed north out of Houghton into the Upper Peninsula. (Da UP.)

One stop was at the ruins of the Calumet Brewery, once one of the largest breweries in the state. (1899 – 1919.) Prohibition put an end to this and many other breweries in the country. The remains of the building are impressive but are being taken over by vegetation.

Jerry at ruins of Calumet Brewery

We made a few other stops, then took off for a ride around the south side of the peninsula, going through the town of Gay. Of course, we had to stop at the Gay Bar for refreshment and to take photos.

Our group at the Gay Bar

A scenic stop was part of the Brockway Mountain drive, with views out over the town of Copper Harbor and Lake Superior.

Brockway Mountain overlook

After a 200+ mile day we ate dinner at the Red Jacket Brewery in Calumet. The room was a bit warm but the locally-brewed beer (I had the Downtown Brown) served with the broiled lake trout was excellent. The trout, fresh caught, was delicious.

Our motorcycles lined up in Calumet

After dinner it was back to the hotel to clean up, talk, and relax after the long day.

Sunday was short ride day as some of the guys had to start home. Erik led us out to the end of the shipping canal, dredged to open a natural passage though the peninsula for ships to pass through instead of having to go around. With the decline in copper and coal mining the canal does not see a lot of use but large freighters occasionally pass through. The lift bridge in Houghton goes up for ship passage then down for auto travel. In winter the bridge drops to it’s lowest position so snowmobiles can use the bottom level to cross the canal.

Lift bridge over shipping canal in Houghton

After lunch we returned to the motel and another fellow (Brent) and I decided to ride some local roads we had not been on before. Part of the afternoon was spent sitting under a pavilion overlooking the lake, watching the lake traffic and swapping stories about riding motorcycles. Later we rode some back roads and returned to the motel just in time to hook up with several other guys for dinner. We ate at Joey’s Fish Market in Houghton. Advice: Don’t order the 3 piece cod dinner unless you are very hungry!

Brent has a fondness for cigars

Back to the motel where farewells were said as all of us would be heading out our separate ways on Monday morning. It had been a good gathering with nice roads to ride, stops that combined a mix of history and scenery, and good company.

Next post: Visiting family in Wisconsin and the trip home.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

While Fields was cycling da UP, I was driving back and forth to work with not-totally-healed bursitis.  Ouch.

Happy Trails.