Our 49^th Anniversary Trip

May 29th –June 22^nd, 2014

June 5, 1965 – June 5^th, 2014

At Denver Botanical Garden in front of

Dale Chihuly Glass-June 21,2014

May 29^th – May 31^st.

We left a day early and drove to Oklahoma City to visit Linda’s 88 year old mother. We were a little worried about starting our trip with this visit but it went so very well.  Mom was aware of who we were and even joked with us and Shirley her friend.  We bought a Pizza and she ate three small slices and we took her some flowers which she seemed to like. It was a very good visit and we left filled with hope and joy.

We stopped at the first Texas welcome stop and took a picture or two of the unusual rest stop. Continuing on to Amarillo we found a motel and went to dinner at “Coyote Bluff”, a “Man vs. Food” restaurant. It was very quirky and neat and the food though greasy was pretty good. The atmosphere was better. We got up early and went to breakfast at another  “man vs. food” place, Youngblood’s café. Way too much food and again a quirky atmosphere.

On the way out of Amarillo we stopped to see the famous buried caddie’s. Yes this was dumb but fun!

 I walked all the way out to them and had my picture taken there while Linda observed from the car and took more pictures.

We arrived early in Albuquerque and went to the first of many great motels provided for this trip by one of our daughters. We actually went swimming and even visited the hot tub. We went to dinner at PapaDeaux’z and could not eat even half of the wonderful food we ordered. We are slowly coming to grips with the fact we do not eat as big of a portion as we used to. This is good but presents a learning curve.

We drove on to the Grand Canyon and went in the back way. The Canyon was as expected and usual so very beautiful. This was to be the first of many days on this trip that we observed that there were more people present this early in the year at attractions than we have ever encountered. We could not even get to the Canyon Lodge or a special point we had visited in the past because of the heavy people traffic.

Still the visit to the Canyon was special and it will always be beautiful to us and we are glad we stopped for a short time there.  Even a beautiful point we used to visit was closed except for donations and we did not feel welcome there so did not stay.

We spent the night in Kingman, Arizona.

June 1^st

We decided to drive through Lake Havasu to see “The London Bridge.” Wow was it hot and dry and although exactly as advertised not all that special to the naked eye. The Bridge is still in use daily and at first seems to be a bit ordinary and then you take into account it’s very old and strong history. Still it wasn’t all that great and the city is strictly a tourist destination. Again it was very hot.

We drove out on highway 62 toward the upper entrance to the Joshua Tree National park and again, hot and dry and hot and dry is the word. Actually we were beginning to enjoy  ourselves and our surroundings.

We arrived at the best motel of the trip because for the next three nights we enjoyed a Jacuzzi in our room which we used all three nights. The first night we sat in the tub drinking champagne and eating Domino’s pizza.  In a special way

this was an incredible day and although we won’t go into details we were exhausted, demolished and rejuvenated all in one long day. Sitting in the tub together after this day was so very important and special. After 49 years we seem to find a way past and through so much that we cannot control.

June 2^nd

We got up and began our day by going to the wonderful San Diego Zoo. We took pictures of a baby orangutan and some beautiful birds. We took many pictures but we love the Panda’s most and they did not disappoint. They were active and we enjoyed the Zoo very much.

In the afternoon we went to Balboa Park which we had wanted to visit for many years and had not. The park is large and a tram took us all the way around it. We visited the botanical building and saw a fabulous display of orchids. We walked past the large pool and again had our picture taken. We had a sandwich at the Japanese Tea Garden Café and we drove back to the motel and enjoyed another Jacuzzi together. It was a very nice day!

June 3^rd

We drove to La Jolla and watched as people swam with sea lions. We drove up to Torrey Pines and took in the views from the top of the State Park and then drove up the coast. It was a nice drive although a lot of traffic. We finished the afternoon by going to a yucky movie. It was supposed to be a funny movie but was just gross. This was a day to relax so we again finished the day by drinking champagne in the wonderful Jacuzzi.

June 4^th

We went whale watching and while we did not see any whales, we saw a double mega-pod of dolphins. They were leaping, jumping and just racing with the boat. A mega-pod is over a 1000 dolphins and this was a double mega-pod.

We drove on to Baldwin Park and got our next room for the next two nights.

June 5^th – Our 49^th Wedding Anniversary

This was to be easily the most enjoyable day of this very special trip. NO drama just love and fun the whole day which we spent at “The Huntington Library”. This was a free day at the Library but you had to have tickets which usually would have cost us around $20 each. The manager of the Japanese Tea garden Café left free tickets for us at the entrance. He also made reservations for us for “High Tea” in his café.

We began the tour of the 120 acres by visiting the Library itself. We saw the original document that chose George Washington as the commander in chief of the Continental Army. We saw and took a picture of an original Gutenberg Bible.

We had our picture taken in front of the original Pinky and Blue Boy paintings and saw and took pictures of other art works there. We went to the Japanese
garden, took pictures, went to the Rose Garden and took even more pictures. We then had High Tea which included great tea, fabulous finger sandwiches, incredible deserts and caviar which Linda really enjoyed. We also had the finest table in the place which had been set aside for us by a young gracious manager. It was wonderful!

We finished our day there by visiting the Chinese Garden which had just opened. Again so very special.

We were tired but had a very special day!

June 6^th

We drove up to Moro Bay and had a very nice dinner.  We drove out to the Moro bay Rock- State Park and took pictures. We then drove up the coast to San Simeon where we took pictures of Elephant Seals. They were noisy, smelly and fascinating, but also fun. It was another nice day.

June 7^th

We drove slowly up the Coastal Highway stopping when we felt the urge to take pictures of Seals, Windsurfers, Bridges, Ocean Views, and a Lighthouse. It again was a slow day filled with enjoyment of appreciating where we were and who we were with.

We took a sunset whale watching trip out of Monterey Bay Warf. We saw over a dozen whales and although we were very tired had a most exciting day. This was to be our only night time driving as we drove back to our motel in the late evening.

June 8^th

This was a different day than originally planned in that after we checked in room in Madera, we went to a flea market. It was hot, hot and more hot – in fact over 110 degrees. No pictures from this day as we drove from the coast and cool to the desert valley of California and it was just plain hot.

June 9^th

This was to be a most interesting day filled with car drama at the end of the day. This drama which was just one of much such drama’s that happened during this trip did not interfere with our delight in the day. In general we handled each issue as it presented itself and did not let our fears dictate our actions.

We drove to Yosemite National Park where we took pictures at Yosemite falls and Bridal Veil Falls. We took pictures all over the Park and although dry and very hot, (hottest day since late 1800’s), it was a wonderful day in the Park. There were so many people in the Park – more than we have ever experienced.

June 10^th

We drove the short distance to Tulare where upon finding our room not ready, we drove to Kings Canyon National Park. It was very hot once more. We took a road we have never taken and will not retake. We drove up highway 245 from beginning to end. It was so very curvy that you felt you were meeting yourself coming and going. Thirty plus miles took over two hours.

We went to the famous Grant’s Grove where we walked among the Sequoia’s and took many pictures. We drove through Sequoia National Park on the way back to Tulare. We saw a mother bear with three cubs. We took pictures of one of her cubs standing in a tree. You could hear the baby bears calling to their mother. Their mother was fat and sassy and just beautiful and we got many pictures.

We got back to our motel and were greeted with a bottle of champagne and 4 incredibly delicious chocolate covered strawberries. It was a very nice evening and gift from the motel we stayed at.

June 11^th

We drove to Sequoia National Park and took pictures of a rock we had taken pictures of many years ago when you could still drive through it. Our daughters were younger and Gigi was actually standing on the top of this rock with Nikki in front of it. We walked around Round Circle and saw a bear up close and personal. It was fun watching it scratch itself on a log. We took pictures of a small fire which considering how dry it was, did not seem prudent. California in general was the driest we have ever seen it even on the coast. On the way back to the motel, we saw and took pictures of another black bear. We took pictures of a log you could walk through at the General Sherman Tree, a huge beautiful and famous sequoia.

June 12^th- June 13^th

We drove to St. George, Utah avoiding Death Valley because of the heat and worry over the car. We drove through Las Vegas but did not stop. It was as busy as ever and very hot.  We struggled with car drama this night but survived. This was one of the longer drives this trip, around 500 miles and so combined with car issues, it was a very long day and we were glad to get past it.

We drove up to Provo, Utah where we had a nice dinner and took in a movie. We had a great motel with a wonderful 2 person many nuzzled walk in shower.   We saw Blended which was funny and relaxing. We talked for a while with Zach who is doing well in Washington DC.

June 14^th

We had a nice day driving to Jackson, Wyoming. We checked into our hotel and went to the Teton National Park. We saw up close and personal a large young bull moose and of course took many pictures. Although the mountains were cloaked in clouds, the scenery was superb.  The flowers were much prettier and more present than we have seen in a very long time. There were of course a whole lot of people. This had been true this whole trip and was true the rest of the way also.

June 15^th

^{The Great Grey Owl Day}

Today was a day spent driving all around the Tetons and yet we will always remember it as our “Great Grey Owl” day.  On Wilson Road near Moose Junction,

we were watching from quite a distance the “head” of a cow moose when we were startled and ecstatic to see a Great Grey Owl in a tree quite a ways from us. We were able to get some decent pictures of this rare and beautiful bird.

We stayed, watched and took pictures until the owl finally left and hid far away behind another tree and out of sight.

The rest of the day was spent looking for animals and talking about the owl. It was a good and fun day.

June 16^th

We drove early to Yellowstone National Park, one of our most favorite places on earth. We did not have reservations but were ever hopeful and yes our luck once again held out. We were able to book the first night at Roosevelt Lodge, a rustic cabin near the Lamar Valley and a great place for animals. We booked the following 2 nights at Canyon Lodge thanks to our friendship with Julie, the manager there. We figured about $700 for the 3 nights and the total cost for all 3 nights was around $340. Unbelievable!  Canyon Lodge is right in the center of Yellowstone.

We headed up over Mt. Washburn to the Lamar Valley. We saw a red fox near Tower Falls and took pictures of course.

Linda took a picture of an eagle, and wolf waiting their turn to eat on a bison carcass. They waited while “Scarface” a well-known grizzly was eating on it. She actually got all 3 in a picture. Yes they are almost a mile away but when you blow the picture up, they are all 3 in the same picture.  She got several of these shots.

We saw and took pictures of the largest Yellowstone buffalo herd we have ever seen.

We also saw through a spotting scope mountain goats and bighorn sheep. Bison, elk and deer were all present in the Valley this day. We had a warm night in the cabin even though the temperatures outside were below freezing and it was indeed a good day.

June 17^th

We started the day watching as a mother black bear took a baby fawn down right in front of the Roosevelt Lodge. It was horrible and fascinating all at the same moment.

We drove up toward Mammoth Hot Springs just looking for animals and stopped to take a picture of the flowers when to our surprise Linda spotted a nesting Sand hill Crane. Her mate flew in while we were there. It was an unexpected gift.

On the way back to Canyon over the mountain near tower Falls one of our best treats happened. We saw a pair of bighorn sheep very close to the road. They were almost exactly where the red fox had been the day before. The sheep were clearly visible and close and we enjoyed them for many minutes.

We went to Yellowstone Falls which is always scenic and pretty. Again there were many people.

Finally this day was ended with our taking pictures of a giant racked elk, a Wapiti!

It was an expected beautiful day in Yellowstone.

June 18^th

Today we drove the complete Yellowstone loop from Canyon past Old Faithful and back around to Canyon through Fishing Bridge. We were in constant heavy snow showers.  It wasn’t the beautiful heavy snow flakes but rather large pounding snow pellets.  It made for interesting driving and we stopped often. Meanwhile we thoroughly enjoyed this day as we saw Yellowstone Falls from a new view which we had never gone to before.  We drove and took pictures of Fire hole Road. We took Linda’s favorite side road which of course took us through geyser land. It was way too cold to walk but it was very enjoyable. We saw our large bull elk again and another Sand hill Crane.

June 19^th

We drove out of this beautiful and wondrous place, (Yellowstone), on our way to Denver through Saratoga, Wyoming. We stopped at Grizzly Point where a nice friend showed us a huge mother grizzly with 2 cubs. Linda got a picture although very far away. We drove out past Lewis Falls and took more pictures and saw bison crossing our road. We also took pictures of elk.

Later in the afternoon after we .had given up hope of seeing any, Linda spotted a small herd of wild horses and yes, we took more pictures. We hunt with our camera. It is the only way.

In Saratoga we got a reasonably priced motel and had dinner at Bella’s – a very expensive and excellent restaurant. It remains a mystery to us why this small town is a destination spot. It has more than three five star restaurants.

June 20^th

We drove to Denver through another of our favorite places, The Poudre River Road just on the way to Fort Collins.  While we did not see any animals we did see a man climbing on the cliffs.

This night we went to a Rockies ballgame and although long, it was very nice. It was a beautiful night for a baseball game.

The traffic to the motel was incredibly horrible at one time moving only 2 tenths of a mile in 45 minutes.

June 21^st

This was to be one of the best days of the entire trip and also filled with car drama. Somehow seems appropriate. We spent the entire morning at a Pep boys and almost $200 later we left somewhat dismayed. We went anyway to the Denver Botanical Garden where we had an incredibly nice afternoon. The flowers were as always perfect but the Dale Chihuly glass exhibit was even more spectacular. We had a great lunch and we walked forever. I think Linda even forgot about her new knee. It was that kind of an afternoon.

We finished the day even better as we went to Le Central for dinner. The owner himself, Robert Tournier, prepared a wonderful Grand Marnier Souffle for us for desert. The dinner and desert was just wonderful. A great way to end a long and special 49^th anniversary trip.

June 22^nd

We traveled home this day tired but having enjoyed another wonderful trip. It seems to us that although there were so many drama’s from nearly losing all of our money by leaving it in a motel, nearly losing our phone and my wallet, several days of car drama, and family having money crisis, and Linda’s mother being put in the hospital, well, we just kept going determined to enjoy this time together as though it might be our last such time together.  We considered coming home at least three times and we just did not want to so we simply were selfish and continued to enjoy our special time together.

For the most part, we did just that. We kept going and trying to enjoy this great trip. We only drove one real long day and every other day we had more than enough time to drive and enjoy. We stopped and looked when we wanted to. Many people remarked to us that on this one trip, we were seeing and enjoying more of America than they would ever see in a lifetime. We have taken many such trips. Each one special and each time we are keenly aware that we might not ever be able to do what we are doing again.

Some of the highlights were the many people who seemingly rejoice in our 49 years together. The motel staff that surprised us with champagne and chocolate covered strawberries is a big highlight. For me the three Jacuzzi days were fabulous as was the two person walk in shower. The Zoo, whale watching, going up the coast, and the best day was The Huntington Library. Denver Botanical Garden, the little bear in the tree, the bear, wolf and grizzly together, and visible to us all. The bighorn sheep pictures, even the snow showers. The Great Grey Owl was such a delight and just being together was beyond words special and good.