Scoping Out "Going to the Sun" road

Slept in as much as I could this morning. still, I was on the road by 8am. The motel "breakfast" did not have any hot food. So had coffee and a packaged cinnamon roll.

With the start I had, I decided to head up to St, Mary to scope out the "Going to the Sun" road rather than drive US 2 to Kalispell. On the way to St. Mary I kept an eye out for a place to eat breakfast. There were non along the road until I arrived in St. Marys.

Got to St, Mary's at 9. One place did not open until 10. Other places had waiting lines. So, I entered the park and started drive toward Logan Pass. Stopped to take some photos on the drive. The photo here is a tunnel on the "Going to the Sun" road up toward Logan Pass.

Traffic was bad at the pass Visitor Center, so just kept driving down toward Lake McDonald. Missed the turn to the Apgar Visitors Center and before i realized it, I was exiting the park. By now (11:30) I was getting hungry. Gobbled up a patty melt and fries at the West Glacier Restaurant.

Back into the park to the Visitor Center to get books, post cards, and check on places to hike. The ranger suggested getting up early and driving up to Logan Pass. Nice, easy hike and there are still wild flowers at the pass. Back in West Glacier Village, picked up walking stick (with bear bell), a cap, t-shirts, and a couple more post cards.



Still lots of time to do things in Kalispell. Picked up a hydration bladder for my camera backpack. Checked into the motel. Moved bikes and other stuff into the room. Then, got directions to Wheaton's Cycle (local Trek Dealer) from the motel. Picked up an area trail map.

Talking with the desk clerk at the Motel. Sky was a bit hazy, though the temperature was pleasant. He said the haze is smoke from a forest fire about 2 hours to the South. No wonder I smelled something - wondering if the car, brakes, or such were overheating Hope we get clearer skies tomorrow..

The Top of My World

Today's goal... to reach the summit. If you have been following along, I have walked along the oceanfront to the left and to the right. I have walked up the hills to the Governor's Mansion and I have walked around the town. Today, I see if I am getting in shape enough to climb the STEEP STEEP roads up to the summit of the island... To see what's on the other side!

This is the view from about half way up.



Got to see one of the large cruise ships coming in.

And indeed I made it!

Does my ass make my donkey look big???Fun at the top

They even had a convenient gift shop at the top. Along with convenient tourists that had taken a bus,



And indeed, a short walk later, I did see what was on the other side...

The North side of the island, including this view of Megen's Bay, one of the top ten beaches in the world.

Parking Lot Camping

Parking Lot of RV Service of Virginia — Ashland, Virginia
Temps: LO @ BRRP 47F / HI in Ashland 76F (8C / 24C)

Tonight we’re getting our first taste of parking lot camping. We’re overnighting in front of the service bays at RV Service of Virginia in Ashland, just north of Richmond. Though this is a far cry from the kind of camping we usually do, with a 50 amp hook-up, we’re certainly not roughing it.

I didn’t sleep well last night; I think I was just a bit too anxious to get this adventure on the road. So, I was up at 4:47a. Since Mui was already awake as well, together we prepared the Phaeton for the trip ahead and took the time to eat a stick-to-your-bones oatmeal breakfast before pulling up stakes.

Part of our getting-on-the-road routine involves rolling up the rug and securing
it on the sofa with bungee cords.

At 8:30a, we pulled out of site 109 at Bull Run Regional Park, stopped at the campground’s propane station to top off our tank (the first time since about a year ago), and headed over to Fannon Petroleum to top off the diesel (3.94/gal). By 9:30a, we were finally on the road. We easily negotiated the Prince William Parkway to connect to I-95S. The latter was surprisingly free of any traffic troubles, and we made the 92-mile (147 km) drive in record time, arriving at RV Service of Virginia well before our 1:00p appointment.

Mui makes himself comfortable in the RV Service lounge while we wait for our appointment.

We came here to have the Winegard tech look at the signal-lock problem we had with our satellite dish. Though we were hoping for a quick in-and-out, we knew there was a distinct possibility that would not be the case, so we had no plans past getting here today. Good thing, too; it was 5:30p before we got the Phaeton back with the signal-lock for one of the three satellites in our programming band resolved. From what I gather, the LNBs (Low Noise Blocks) — those white thing-a-magies in front of the dish — will have to be replaced to get the other satellites. After checking to see what channels we’d be getting from the remaining two satellites, we’ve decided we’re not missing anything. So, for the time being at least we’re going to hold off on this part of the fix.

Seeing as how night had fallen and we didn’t relish getting on the freeway, we were considering our options when Mui decided to ask the service shop owner if we could stay in their parking lot. Not only did they say yes, but they also offered to hook us up to 50 amp electricity. Better than the Walmart parking lot ;-)

Snug as a bug in our camping spot; note the satellite dish is up and ready to
entertain us tonight with no manual intervention required on Mui’s part.

After making our home habitable for the night, we decided to take the recommendation of the tech who worked on the satellite and go to the World Famous Islamorada Fish Company Restaurant for dinner. The eatery, which has a 12,000 gallon saltwater aquarium in the center of the oversized dining room, is part of the Bass Pro Shops restaurant family and was doing a booming business tonight. Not bad at all, but we wouldn’t go out of our way to seek it out again.

We knew there would be parking lot camping in our future, but didn’t think we’d be experiencing it on our first day on the road ;-) We’ll see what tomorrow brings as we continue to head south.

When One is Not Enough ...

After the initial binge, which lasted three days, my desire to read was sated and I found myself wanting something more satisfying.





I had broken a toe. One small toe. The amount of pain and disruption it caused was out of all proportion. Ridiculous, but true. I had to keep the foot elevated, ice packs, etc. a complete nuisance.





Now, boredom is not something I normally suffer from as life around here is hectic (a lot of it spent outdoors) but reading, much as I love it, was just not enough to keep me occupied.





So I took up some long abandoned craft work and found myself really enjoying it. I fear I am revealing too much of my personality-type here, but once I had completed one project I had to continue, I was unstoppable.





After three and a half weeks - I was finally able to get a very capacious sandal on my still sore foot, which was wonderful. I began to play rather less with the craft work, just finishing off bits and pieces.





When I took stock of what I had made during my enforced incarceration I found that I had made:





30 vintage lace lavender sachets

1 gingham dolly bag

2 organza dolly bags

6 fabric origami bags

4 hamsters dressed in 60's/70's style clothing

15 heart shaped pomanders

9 mouse-shaped pincushions

2 pin wheels

24 organza flower brooches

10 dog-shaped fabric brooches

56 fabric birds...













Luckily I was able to take a last minute stall at a small craft fair, which was held in a tiny local church this weekend - so, much of this lot has now been re-homed - much to George's relief.

EXPLORING BUDAPEST IN A COLD WINTER NIGHT WITH ANNE J LO PHOTOGRAPHER FROM CHICAGO - 7 SIGHTS OF BUDAPEST

Fisherman's Bastion, The Castle - Budapest

Sunset along the Danube - Budapest - A J Lo Night tour starts

Ice Cream at famous old style patisserie and tea room Gerbeaud in the city centre - Budapest

The elegant façade of Gerbeaud Patisserie in Pest, the New Town - Budapest

Matthias Church in the main square in the Old Town, Buda at Budapest's Castle - Budapest

St Stephen Statue in the Old Town, Buda - Budapest

Fisherman Bastion, Old Town, Buda - Budapest

Hungarian Parliament along the Danube - Budapest

Thank you Anne J Lo to have contributed to our blog with your wonderful photos! We hope you will send more soon...
Please leave your comments about Anne J Lo's photos and send yours to be published.
VISIT MORE CAPITALS IN 7 SIGHTS ONwww.edwhatamidoinghere.blogspot.com:

BRASIL - 7 SIGHTS OF RIO DE JANEIRO - NATURE, ARCHITECTURE AND LIFE - #1 PART
HUNGARY - EXPLORING BUDAPEST IN A COLD WINTER NIGHT WITH ANNE J LO PHOTOGRAPHER FROM CHICAGO - 7 SIGHTS OF BUDAPEST


PERU - 7 SIGHTS OF LIMA - THE PERUVIAN CAPITAL AND ITS SPANISH COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE EXPLORED IN 7 PICS BY BLOGGER LOURDES





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The Cave

The Cave, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

A cool hidden cave in Las Trampas. It is only accessible if you hike off-trail. Many such caves dot the area, as the common sandstone outcroppings are easily weathered. Some of the largest caves to be found are in Diablo Foothills Regional Park...they are home to owls, hawks, and falcons.

Exloring West Albuquerque Trails

I was in the mind to explore new trails. Looking at the Albuquerque Bike Map, I decided to check out the west side. Looks like a bike path along Unser Blvd. Additional trails along some of the arroyos. Now, just find a place to park the car.

Drove over to Unser Blvd North from I-40. When I got to Western, I knew I could park at the Petroglyph trailhead. Unloaded the bike and headed North on the trail. Rode the Under Blvd trail to Mariposa Trail. This trail mostly follows an arroyo and power line. Got a little confused when the trail ended.

With some help, I realized I was at Mariposa Basin Park. Found my way along the park and the Riverview Trail. Riverview Trail is a very steep (or a paved trail). Flew down (had to use brakes) the trail. Explored the basin and gravel trail at the end of Riverview.

Not looking forward the climb back up - but got to it. The trail got too steep for my to ride up part of the trail. Back at the Basin Park, I rode around the park and took the turn to Boca Negra Trail. Rode that trail to its end.

Retraced my tracks back up Mariposa Trail and Unser Blvd to my car. By the time i arrived back to the car, I had enough for today. Loaded the bike, stopped at a Subway for lunch. At the room, processed the photos I took today.

Today's photo is of my Trek 7200 FX hybrid on the Boca Negra Trail.

Sun-Soaked Poppy

A golden California poppy.