Home but not done yet!

It is taking a few days to get back into the home front. SOOOO glad to see all the fuzzies! We are finishing up some of the trip info and pics - just to have some closure (LOL).












We boarded the train - The Empire Builder - in Seattle and left quite on time about 3:45pm. It is a beautiful ride. And the train was very new. The crew however could have been replaced! Never the less, we enjoyed our ride and rested and discussed our days of leisure and adventure and newly found places.
We had relied on timing and our good luck throughout the trip except for Amtrak and Seattle. The Saturday we were arriving in Chicago we reached out with the online Verizon to Hotels.com and found a room in Chicago for under $415.00. As it turned out it was out by Ohare Airport but that was ok.
Last day in Chicago. We were up at 10am and had a nice breakfast buffet at the hotel and decided to take a taxi back down to the Amtrak station rather than venture on the L today. We arrived at Union Station about 12:30 and tried to rent a locker - finally accomplished with lotion on Ric's finder for a print. We then went only a few feet to realize we could place them in holding for free since we had a room - back to the lockers - another fun time getting it back open and after moving the bags we were off. We walked around taking tourist pics til 2:30 then grabbed a huge Jamba Juice for the train. This train was older but had a great crew! We had dinner with 2 sisters returning from Chi town and a bachelorette party. Ric enjoyed the cornish game hen and I the salmon and of course since it was our last night we had chocolate peanut butter cake! Tomorrow we diet!
Back in the room we read and piddled on the computer. Anxious to get packing to move!
The SW Chief stops at Mendota where there is a railroad museum (Menodta means crossing of trains in American Indian). Princeton which was a large part of the underground railroad, Galesburg where Carl Sandburg called home and had the Lincoln - Douglas debate in 1858. Ft. Madison home of Schaefer Pen company and across the Mississippi river and LaPlata (Spanish for silver) because of the color of the prairie grass.
We have really enjoyed sharing our tip with all of you and have had a fantastic time. We saw new places, visited old friends, and have gone 18 days without television, news and stress. Except a little in Seattle and Chicago traffic.
We loved the wide open spaces, the quiet, the easy going pace and are very ready to start this new chapter in our lives. We always have fun on vacation and enjoy each other's company - we took a lot of pictures and a large box of papers and brochures so I can scrapbook out the wazoo.

Life without the internet!

Okay, this is more than a catch up. I have heard from some of you and yes it has been since last Sunday - but not on purpose!
We left Idaho Falls on Monday about noon and headed towards Seattle. Well, we didn't find a place to stay and then it got late and we kept driving (see a pattern here?) so we finally stopped about 1:30am in Wenachee, Washington. Stayed at a stunning Super 8 Motel and had breakfast at Denny's. The scenic area of Washington is ahead of us. Who knew that these northwest states ad soooo much grasslands and hills with no trees?
By the way, Wenatchee is the apple capital of the world and Drydon Washington is the pear capital. The orchards are planted right up to the roads and highways and up the gentle slopes of the mountains. The trees seem to go on forever!
Leavenworth, Washington is styled as a Bavarian Village. Every building in town from McDonalds to Subway is in this style. Quite touristy but might be a fun side trip. There are flowers everywhere and I don't know when we have seen such lovely groupings. It seems that anything that is planted here grows vigorously and blooms constantly.
We stopped at Elliott's Knife shop along the way a picked up two great multi-eating tools. They have your knife sharpened, spoon, fork and can/bottle opener and stay in great OD green pouches.
This part of Washington is the most beautiful land we have seen on this trip. The trees are fantastic, evergreens and mixed with aspens. Rocks have fallen and the rivers and streams flow around then making little rivlets and patterns inthe water. The moss comes in so many forms and follows the contours of the boulders. There are snow peaked mountains still peaking over the trees and the pine needle aroma is relaxing.
We went through Sultan which is a cute little town and Monroe - a larger town where we visited the McD but will have to come back to the local cafe on another trip.
Headed west we started coming into traffic. We have not really had any until now. We have not missed it! One sign in Seattle said "WEAVING". We were unsure what that meant and then we saw a brown oxidized pickup with a very attractive man go from the far left lane across 4 lanes of traffic and then because he had missed his exit go up and over curbing to follow the exit up the hill. That is weaving in Seattle. Who knew?
We stayed in Mildred's Bed and Breakfast in Seattle. This was the only reservation we made except the train trip. Well, I didnt ask one important question - air conditioning. They didn't have any. We stayed on the 3rd floor. Seattle was having a heat wave. Needless to say anyone reading this knows how much I hate heat. We had fans going 24 hours a day, doors open and coooool showers. There was a small deck out the back which found shade fairly early and we spend some time out there enjoying the cooling breeze that didn't quite reach inside. This B&B has been in business for 26 years and before that was a boarding house since 1946. You would think they would have had some hot days before now! Anyway, it was nice and the breakfasts were pretty good. There was Mittens the black and white cat and Buddy the springer spaniel which of course were wonderful. The owner, Melody (the B&B was named after her mother in law who ran it first) had 3 very nice sons who helped around the place. But, no one could get the internet to work!
We ate Tuesday night at the Loc Spot and great little fish and chips place where we had been last time in Seattle. It has been around along time and has the right "worn" feel to it. The B&B is across from Volunteer Park a beautiful place which has a leash free area and the pups were playing frisbee all over the place. We went to Filson on Wednesday to drop off my coat and get some additional snaps on the cuffs and to the other sporting goods store across the parking lot. It took a while as there was a Mariner's game and the traffic was slow! From there we headed to Bothell to Sandee's house and had lunch at a Mexican restaurant near by.
I spent the last couple of hours in Seattle on the front porch of Mildred's. It was cool and shady. The downtown bus stops here every 12 minutes and there have been fascination people coming and going. The flowers are beautiful and the magnolia is just starting to bloom. Although it is on a fairly busy street it is pretty peaceful this morning.
We miss the fuzzies so much!
The train left on time around 4:40 and we got our room without any problems.The landscape outside is very beautiful. This is a great train trip for viewing. Dinner was pretty good with chicken fried steak and cornish game hen. We went back to our room, pulled out the bed and read for a while and then slept to the rhythmic movement that only a train and boat can produce.
Friday - we passed through fields of Sunflowers being raised for seeds. Never really thought about where all those seeds came from in all those little bags! Now we know.
Saturday - We went through Minneapolis/St Paul and over the Mississippi River with barges and tramps and ferries, a wheelboat and lots of smaller boats. The river was smooth and it looks like they have had lots of rain up here. We packed up all our "stuff'" for Chicago and headed for the observation car. Red Wing Minnesota has a areally cute train station. By this time we had lost an hour and we addressed the no reservation problem in Chicago. No internet has been an inconvenience. So, Verizon internet came to the rescue. We got a room near the O'Hare airport at the Holiday Inn. I called and asked if they had a shuttle from the L to the hotel and the girl said "oh we are so close, not even a block, really, just across the street." The train actually came in close to on time and we headed out the station with L train card in hand. The nearest L (local train/mass transit) was at the other end of the station and two blocks down the street. Then underground. Most of you reading this know how "slow and tired" we have become in the last 5 years. Our stamina was tested today. And yes, we got tired but we made it. The L was down a few flights of stairs then on towards the Cumberland station. One problem, they were working on the tracks and so we had to get off the L, onto a bus and then back on the L. We got off at the Cumberland station - remember how close the hotel was to the station. Well, lets just say it wasn't as close as described and when we staggered into the lobby - her health and beauty would have been in danger had she still been on duty. I imagine we looked like 2 hobos dragging in with1 pack, 3 bags, 2 walking sticks a purse and lots of sweat. But the room has great AC and internet! So here we are.
As we headed down to get a taxi for dinner at Gino's Pizzeria we ran into 3 of the nicest travelers. They are all bike riders and one is just finishing up his ride across the entire nation - done in parts! We were asking for a taxi and they were asking about a restaurant and they were kind enough to drive us. We had a wonderful time and really enjoyed visiting with them. In all the chatter I have misplaced their names but hopefully we will see them again in our travels! If you all are reading this let us hear from you!
Well, off to the shower and then on the train home tomorrow afternoon. Wow what a 17 days! We drove over 5000 miles and saw so much.
Will finish up any spots after we get home! Hope all of you are doing well and will see you soon.

Sunday in Idaho

Ok, some catch-up - we had a wonderful day on Saturday, Vicki and Bill took us to those places that only those who live here would see. We had a great breakfast here at the house then headed out to Swan Valley a great little small town and by the World Famous Square Ice Cream. Through Victor, and Alpine and to Driggs. The Grand Tetons were a backdrop for most of this ride and all of these towns would be fun to live near. The Tetons still have some snow and just looking at it makes the day seem cooler. Driggs is a very cute little town and I think Ric and I are going to look at property around this area. We also went through Afton Wyoming where their little dog "Afton" was found. Will have to get him to pose and get you all a picture.
We went to Jackson Hole - quite a tourist town but really cute with gate entrances made all of antlers. We drove by the Cowboy bar which looked like fun and then to Moose, Wyoming to Dornan's and ate a Buffalo berger and were joined by Vicki's sister Diane and her husband Kent. Sat outside in the shade and had a great time visiting with them.
We saw sleeping Indian Mountain and these great elk and a cute little red fox whose tongue was hanging out from running.
At Moose Junction we encountered these buffalo in a nice little herd and a bald eagle sitting in a tree following the Snake river, Through the Pallisades and around every curve was just more beauty.

Bill and Vicki have 2 cats Baettis and Caeddis - too cute and fun to snuggle with!
















Sunday - we went to Idaho Falls and ate at the Brownstoner - excellent turkey cranberry sandwich, Ric had the French dip and some of their raspberry bar-b-que sauce! Wow have to try to make some of that! And Vicki had a fantastic spinach salad with pears and blue cheese. We then walked across the street to the Idaho Falls greenway and took these shots of the river which has been dammed up parallel to the shore - it is just a wonder!

We saw Idaho Falls the town which is really growing and visited Wal Mart which had a fly shop inside!


Idaho Falls has been a great visit and we hate to leave in the morning but Seattle and the train are calling. We are doing to head up the west side of Idaho to Spokane and will spend Tuesday and Wednesday night in Seattle and then be on the train home on Thursday.

Friday in the park you'd think it was the last day of July

Well we were up and at it fairly early with waffles for breakfast and headed back to Yellowstone. It has been clear and bright for our whole trip - today is no exception but with some nice clouds to break up the blue. You know me, I like fog and clouds and rain too. Anyway, we went back into the park with our week pass and headed north this time. We were lucky today and saw a few more animals. We passed this buffalo laying in a wallow - flipping his tail and thoroughly enjoying the dirt bath. Then we went to the falls and after we came back to the road there was a bear on the opposite hill. Now this is not just any bear, the Ranger who showed up about the time the traffic jam got into full swing said that was Rosie. She is about 4 years old and she had a cub with her - her first and it is very light in color. She is a brown bear and comes out to eat here just about every day. She couldn't have cared less about all the people and was really working over on eating what might have been a huckleberry bush. We did not see the cub. But it was fun anyway.
The rivers running through Yellowstone all look like fun and good fishing especially Elk Park. You could easily
spend a week in the park and just be getting started in seeing it. It has over 2 million acres. The park closes when they get their first snow.
After leaving Yellowstone we went by the Grizzly and Wolf Center ($19.00). It had quite a bit of information on bears and some "stuffed" bears but the live animals were a bit disappointing. First they had little shade and it was hot and so were they. There were 4 wolves and 2 bears so these are the best pics we could get.
Left there and turned on "Weegie" - our name for our GPS unit - her full name is Sacajawea but we are all on a nickname basis now. And we headed to Idaho Springs, ID to Bill and Vickie's house. Pretty land heading down - saw our first $4.30+ gasoline. Sorry but last night I was just too whipped to write. Will put pics up later and tell you what we did today. I can't believe our time is running out!!!! But we will be back and soon.

8 days on the road

We started out about 8:45 and headed to Twin Bridges. It was sunny and cool. It is about time to do laundry maybe tomorrow. One nice thing about Montana is the higher speed limits 70-75. We have not really read the news since we left except snippets and it feels like we are disconnected a bit. Twin Bridges is home of Winston Rod Company.
Sheridan - is a cute lettle town with one street and an old fashioned motel. Nevada City is ALL old wood/western buildings very cute with cabins and motels, B&B and then Virginia City where we viewed Boot Hill Cemetary.
We came back through Ennis - the little town we thought was so cute and ate at the Ennis Cafe. If you are ever there order the cinnamon roll. It is huge and very good. Also they have "world famous" strawberry pie but we saved that for next time.


From there we headed to Yellowstone. It is $25.00 for a 1 week pass to Yellowstone and Tetons. The first wild life we saw was Canadian Geese on the river and then an Eagle and a nest. We stopped at Midway Geyser Basin and was amazed at how many people were there. We saw a elk doe across the river going in and enjoyed it with about 80 other cars of people. We arrived at Old Faithful about 45 minutes before she blew and walked through the original lodge. Just like I remember it except not this crowded. Of course that was about 40 years ago so - time change. We have both been surprised at how many people are on the roads, how many motor homes and how many foreign visitors are here. Anyway, we waited around with a few hundred of our best friends and sure enough about 7 minutes after she was scheduled - she blew her top.



















Heading out we saw some elk on this side of the river and then further along a lone large doe that posed nicely for us.



























We decided to head back to West Yellowstone, Montana and stay the night and after a few attempts found the Stagecoach Inn. It is like a chalet on the outside and western on the inside. Looks better than it sounds - has big pine beams, a fireplace, rustic furniture and a moose, bison and elk mounts. Very comfortable and attractive. We are on the 2nd floor but they have an elevator!!!! The hallways have cute little ceiling lights with buffalo on the shades and the room has drapes and bedspread with bear, moose and buffalo and rustic twig style chairs. The AC is a little unsized for the temp we like and this hot weather they are not used to here. Last winter they had 170 inches of snow here and at least twice that much in the higher elevations - now that sounds wonderful!
We ate at Bullwinkles a popular restaurant, bar, and also has a liquor store and casino tonight. I had trout and Ric had walleye and we had bourbon pecan pie for dessert. We both found today too HOT. especially me. wimpy wimpy wimpy!
Anyway after dinner we stopped in a couple of shops - sports and outfitters and book stores and then came back to the room to cool off.
The fire back in 1985 really stripped Yellowstone of a lot of old growth timber and although it has reseeded itself it makes you appreciate a big tree when you see them.
Tomorrow is up in the air - it is supposed to get even hotter not sure I want to enjoy that we'll see. Take care!

Tuesday in Idaho (& Montana)

Well, we headed out this morning about 9:45 - filled the hungry car and used our free car wash token - part of the motel deal - then took a look around Hamilton and drove by a house I had seen on the net and wound up looking at the one next door because the guy was home. Nice land, about 5 acres but it does not snow in Hamilton so when I heard that if they "gave" me a house it would be useless. South to Darby and visited a sporting goods store which we found out was for sale along with the gas station, casino and convenience center. I have not told you but in Montana casinos are everywhere. They are based on how many people are in an area and the license costs about $300,000. Anyway, it was interesting. He told us some of the best hunting is in the valley around Hamilton and Darby. If you are interested this was Mr T's Mercantile.
We wound our way down to Salmon, Idaho losing trees as we went. Great fishing streams/cricks/rivers everywhere! Anyway, gas and Burger King in Salmon - no snow there either. We went to Tendoy and turned east heading up a gravel narrow road to travel the Lenhi Pass (7458 feet). It was close to the path that Lewis and Clark traveled and that most of the gold seeking wagons traveled - hard to believe when you see it! At the top is a marker (see pic) and with one foot on each side of the Great Divide well the view was amazing. The wind had picked up some and it was an awe inspiring moment to see so far and know how difficult it had been to actually settle the west. (http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/lewisandclark/site3.htm) if you want more history on this specific point on the divide.
As you come out on the east side there is a Bar Double T Ranch that has been in existence since 1883 - there are 3 old cabins on the property which they have fenced and were from the earlier generations. This place is the way a ranch should be! The buildings are all log with red metal roofs and their view is spectacular. The older barn is the one in the photo.
We saw one doe and some prairie dogs but no other real wildlife. So glad we took this route off the beaten path!
We made it to Dillon and staying at the Sundowner Inn - nice and simple. We ate on the office's suggestion at Sparky's Garage.
We had their honey cornbread which was darn good. The napkins are mechanics towels and they had very cute antiques decor and friendly service. Ric had Pulled pork sandwich and beans and I had ribs and sweet potato fries. If you like Kansas City BBQ you would like this.
The Dairy Queen in town was having a collector's car show and over 25 cars were there - we followed one to Sparkys - a corvair convertible, white with a weenie dog riding on the back of the drivers seat. Couldn't catch a picture but you can imagine how cute this was!
Tomorrow we head to Yellowstone to see if we can find a bear or two. Hope everyone there is well - take care and write soon.
The Wandering Gypsies

Tuesday - day 6

Something I forgot about last night - while were dining at JJ's it was very quiet - then suddenly from hidden speakers came Christmas Music. It really set the tone for the evening!
Well we ate at a cute little cafe this morning Chic-N-Chop Restaurant, Inc. Home grown flavor and great waffle with strawberries. It was bustling and even the forestry department was eating there - which I corrolated to be like where cops eat - usually good. Anyway, we were on our way by 9 ish and headed towards Kalispell. On the way we went through Libby. It has the most beautiful huge metal eagles at each end of town and over the entry to it's "downtown" area. It has a very cute rehabed area and was certainly worth another look. And I even found flamingos there!
Kalispell is bustling and seems like a big city compared to where we have been. It is nice and clean and has everything you could think of! We visited Mickey D's and it was very different from any we have been in. It had slate tiles on the wall and a fire place and seats/chairs of knarled logs. It had decorations on the walls - show shoes and skis and was "nice". Like a restaurant! We really like Kalispell and the trees and mountains up here are what we think of when we say living in the mountains. Have to go back. It was a nice 77 and sunny. We headed to White Fish! WOW - this is a beautiful little town that is really and extension of Kalispell. The downtown has been completely rehabed and the parks, buildings, stores, everything is wonderful. This is a come back to spot for sure!
From there we headed to around the lake and stopped at a roadside vender selling fresh Cherries - just picked with a few leaves! They of course are delicious. They even give you a "pit bag". We munched on them as we headed around the lake and suddenly I threw on brakes and backed up. There in her lone nest atop a telephone pole was a bird of prey - caring for her babies. Ric got this great picture from the roadside. It wasn't long after that we were heading out of Rollins, MT when again I threw on the brakes. This time I turned around - I had seen a convenience store/post office/ gas station with a house that was for sale on line a couple of weeks ago. There it was! This lovely log building - so we went in and bought something to drink and looked around. Nice place - close to the road of course but interesting. Wish the building was a house on about 5 acres!
We really are enjoying this trip - sometimes we forget to stop and snap the picture but . . . we are trying to fit a lot into the days and see the different areas so we will know where we like best. So far, since we want forest, trees and mountains the north end of both states has been the most pleasing but . . . there is more to see.
I promised Ric at this point that I would not brake so suddenly again but then we were leaving Polson MT and what to my wandering eye did appear - a scrapbook shop. This is really the first one we have seen so of course we went in. Bought some special things they had printed up on Montana. The women up here are a little tougher than down there to get into this shop you had to climb a loose flight of stairs about 15 of them. I told Ric these would not fly in KC but then they did not have a crop room yet!
Not sure where we are going tomorrow - so it will be a surprise to us all. Hot here - more snow gone off the peaks than usual we have been told. I am like a little kid and excited about any snow I see.
Tonight we are staying in Hamilton, MT. Just a hotel and ate at a little cafe - Valley Cafe - pretty good food and pecan pie that was all pecans - hardly any filling.
Take care and thanks for the comments - it is so nice to hear from everyone!