A chronological review of our treks across this great nation
We travel mostly by car, but there have been a couple of
Alaska cruises and about ten Amtrak journeys across the country (mostly to
Seattle). National Parks or Monuments are our most common destinations. TS
condos are our favored accommodations. Our many camping trips across Minnesota
with the family are not included in this description. Most of the continental
US has been visited/or traversed, with
only Delaware and NJ escaping our travels so far. Mountains rate highest on our
list of favorite places. Canyons, waterfalls and wildlife all deserve a second
look and a photo. Minnesota’s North
Shore is a close second to any other place we rate highly, however. Our zest
for traveling has increased with age, but the exploring/hiking has diminished
markedly.
Our destination trips began during the 1960’s with a
Christmas visit(’62) to Washington D.C. while Jean and Fritz were residing in
Alexandria, VA. Mom and Dad, and Marilyn Kay joined us in our 62 Bonneville for
some sightseeing in the Capitol. Fritz was our personal tour guide.
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| Capitol Mall |
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Lincoln Memorial
Clicking a pic will link you to a SMUG gallery- return using the back arrow |
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November of 1964 was our first visit to Florida.
Marilyn’s folks joined us for a quick tour of alligator territory and a stop in
Huntsville, Alabama to visit her Uncle Herb. This blog is being limited to one or two pics per location traveled. You may branch to other pics and galleries by entering the SMUGMUG application (CLICK the pic).
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| Busch Gardens, 1964 |
Kansas City was the destination for a hot July BHS
convention trip in 1974. Our mini-motor home was inaugurated with a 6,700 mile
tour of the western USA in September of 1974. Brian (9), Brad (8), Brett (1) and
Leonard and Olive got to visit about nine states and seven National Parks in
23 days with us. San Francisco and Los Angeles even got a brief tour. LaVonne’s family lived in Blythe, California so we stopped for a short visit on our
way to the Grand Canyon.
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| Our first family travel adventure started with the Badlands of South Dakota |
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| Camping overnight at Jackson Lake in the Grand Teton NP was next |
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| After the Columbia river gorge we headed for Crater Lake NP |
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San Francisco was also a 'camping' stop
Our San Francisco tour was brief, varied and exciting with street cars, waterfront and the Golden Gate bridge all included.
San Francisco famously boasts some of the steepest streets in the
country. Whether you’re walking or driving, the varying gradient of the
road is sure to catch your attention and give your heart rate a healthy
boost. Lombard Street is one of the most unique of the vertically
endowed roads and is a great stop to add to any itinerary.
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| Grand Canyon, Arizona 1974 |
In the summer of 1977 we had our first tour of the
Smokey Mts on the way to Athens, Georgia courtesy of Marilyn’s national meeting
of Veterinary School Administrators. Again we had a full load in our motorhome.
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| Great Smokey Mt NP |
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| Brett was King of the Mountain (Stone Mt, GA) |
During July of 1979 we headed for Toronto with Brad,
Leonard and Olive for a NAVCA meeting.
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| Toronto from the CN tower (351 metres (1,151 ft) below) |
A Honeywell User’s Group meeting took Brian and us to
New Orleans for a visit to Bourban Street in 1980.
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| Whirlwind tour of New Orleans while heading for Florida |
Knoxville, Tennessee was our destination for a NAVCA
meeting in 1980. Brett was the lucky passenger that year. Marilyn hates flying so we combined business with pleasure quite often.
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| Elephant ride at Knoxville, TN zoo |
NAVCA was held at Mississippi State in 1982 and the kids
were not along. In 1983 the meeting was held in Stillwater, OK and we were
there.
Brett and I visited the BWCA in 1986 and 1987 for some
wilderness canoeing with Jerry and Dirk Larson.
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| Taking a rest from paddling in BWCA |
In the fall of 1988, Brett and Krista traveled with us
to Colorado (RMNP) while Marilyn attended the NAVCA in Ft Collins. Hiking the park was exhilarating.
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| Hiking RMNP 1988 |
Brett and I rafted
the Grand Canyon in June of 1990 with Jerry and Dirk Larson. A truly trip of a lifetime down 289 miles of the Colorado River through the Canyon. Rapids every few miles kept everyone interested and alert.
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| The roar of the rapids was ever present for 7 days on this adventure. |
Amtrak took Krista and us to Spokane for the 1991 NAVCA
and a tour of Glacier NP.
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| Amtrak is an adventure when you're ten |
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| Logan Pass, Glacier NP - 1991 |
In 1992 the NAVCA was in Baton Rouge, LA and Krista
toured the bayous with me.
Kansas State hosted the NAVCA in 1993 and we included
Branson on our tour with Krista.
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| Atchafalaya Basin - 1992 |
Prince Edward Island was the site of the 1994 NAVCA
meeting in Charlottetown. Krista and Olive toured with us that year.
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| Cavendish Beach, PEI 1994 |
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| Cavendish is a Canadian National Park |
The spring of 1995 included a vacation to Disneyworld in
Orlando with Krista and Brett. Carolyn and Vanessa joined us there also.
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| Lookout Mt, Tennessee 1995 on the way home |
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| Disneyworld 1995 |
Virginia Tech hosted the NAVCA in the fall of 1995 and I
did a few local tours. We stopped in a couple of WVA state parks on the way.
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| Blueridge Parkway, VA 1995 |
Cascades Recreation Area near Blacksburg, VA
In 1997 we returned to Glacier NP via Hope, Idaho with
Krista.
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| Logan Pass, Glacier NP 1997 |
Door Co, WI was our fall destination in 1998 with the
Larsons.
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| Washington Island, Door Co, WI |
Atlanta, GA hosted an IBM users group in 1999 and Olive
accompanied us there.
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| Atlanta 1999 |
We celebrated 40 years of marriage in 2000 with a BHS
cruise to Alaska (Glacier Bay) via Seattle. The Larsons and Settevigs were also
on this voyage in May. In the fall we visited Branson with the Larsons.
Glacier Bay NP was the destination of this cruise on the Norwegian Sky. The Inside Passage was a fun tour we repeated in 2010 on the Island Princess on our way to Anchorage, Alaska.
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| Dogwood Canyon is a great day trip when in Branson |
Newport, Oregon was our fall excursion with the Larsons
in 2001.
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| Newport, Oregon |
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Cape Perpetua, Oregon 2001
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We began 2002 with a trip to Naples,FL to visit the
Bergseths. In the fall we headed for Stowe, VT with the Corbins and to Lutsen,
MN with the Heddings later.
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| Giant Banyan tree, Fort Meyers, FL 2002 |
Mt Washington is the windiest place in North America and a treacherous drive. Our beautiful day ended up shrouded in fog at the top. Taking the cog railway is a better option.
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| Rest stop halfway up Mt Washington |
2003 took us to Key West, FL in early March and Monteal,
Quebec in July for the BHS convention with the Bergseths. A side trip to Stowe,
VT also took place.
Whale watching on the St Lawrence with the Larsons ended
with a week in NH to check out the fall color. Another trip to Branson was
taken in late fall.
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| Whale watching on the St Lawrence 2003 |
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| Soaring in Stowe, VT |
Branson is always fun, especially with some time at the Corbins in Reeds Spring.
Spring of 2006 was spent with the Carlsons in Pigeon
Forge, Tennessee and the Smokey Mts. Fall included a Virginia trip to
Massanutten and Shenandoah NP.
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| Laurel Falls, GSMNP 2006 |
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| Deal's Gap - GSMNP 2006 |
No trip to Virginia is complete without a stop at Monticello.
2007 began with a spring trip(with the Settevigs) to
Williamsburg, VA, Edisto Beach, SC and Lake Lure, NC with the Corbins. I spent
a few days in Albuquerque at the BHS Mid-winter also. Summer included a Crow
Duck Lake trip with Jim and some time at Two Harbors. Fall meant another visit
to Branson as well.
There's a lot of history to see in Virginia and Williamsburg is a great place to start.
Battersea in Petersburg proved to be an interesting addition to our visit also.
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| Side Saddle Walleye fishing in Whiteshell Provincial Park, Manitoba |
2008 started with a BHS Mid-winter in San Antonio and a
spring visit via Amtrak to Vancouver Island with the Carlsons. August included
a quick trip to the Wisconsin Dells with the family and fall was a major tour
of New England with the Heddings.
San Antonio still has cowboys and longhorns.
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| Cathederal Grove, Vancouver Island 2008 |
Vermont has a good taste in the fall.
2009 was initiated with a BHS Mid-winter to Pasadena and
a few days in San Diego. Spring took us to Branson with the Settevigs, Heddings and Johnsons for some celebrating. August was WI Dells time and fall included
a trip to Itasca with the Heddings.
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| Echo Park, LA |
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| La Jolla, CA 2009 |
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| Crossing the Mississippi at Itasca SP 2009 |
We partied with the Heddings in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon,
Lake of the Ozarks and Breezy Point celebrating our 50th in 2010 multiple times and places.
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| Denali |
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| Alaska RR Coastal Classic to Seward |
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| Haystack Rocks at Canon Beach, Oregon 2010 |
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| A good day at the Columbia River Gorge east of Portland |
The spring of 2011 found us back in Branson with the
Heddings and then in the Fall there was another excursion to Steamboat, CO with the
Corbins.
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| Celebrating spring with the Corbins |
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| Dunckley Pass with the Corbins |
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| The Maroon Bells in Aspen are world famous and photographed non-stop |
2012 began with a trip to Door Co with the Heddings in
May and an Amtrak ride to Washington to start our travels to Banff in June. In
Sep we headed for Wyoming and Yellowstone with the Heddings.
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| Door County, Wisconsin |
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| Peyto Lake, Banff |
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| Emerald Lake, Yoho NP |
Yellowstone on SMUGMUG
May of 2013 found us in Two Harbors enjoying spring ice.
Later in May we headed for St Louis, Lake of the Ozarks and Branson. Tom and
I headed for Banff and Jasper in Sep and yet again to Branson in October.
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| Two Harbors, MN |
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Grand Auglaize Suspension Bridge
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| Jasper NP, Canada |
2014 started with a stay at Two Harbors with the
Heddings. The fall was our first trip to Sedona, Arizona (via Colorado and Utah) and ended with another visit to Branson and the Corbins.
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| Steamboat Lake SP 2014 |
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| Canyonlands NP, Utah 2014 |
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| Sedona, Airport Vista |
Marilyn, myself and the Heddings went to New Orleans in January
of 2015 for the BHS Mid-winter via Amtrak. We trekked around the city via
trolleys.
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| St Louis Cathederal, New Orleans |
May 29th found us on the way to Lutsen, MN for a week at Caribou Highlands IN the Lutsen Mts. We had some rain later in the week, but enjoyed Cascade, Temperance, Grand Marais and the Gunflint Trail before the clouds rolled in. The Larsons joined us on Tuesday which made the week even more enjoyable.
More to come in 2015... (Durango, Great Sand Dunes NP, Colorado Springs..)
By train – Seattle, Spokane, Portland, New Orleans,
Milwaukee, Wisconsin Dells
By ship – Glacier Bay NP, Anchorage, AK
NPs – Glacier, Mt Rainier, Crater Lake, Glacier Bay,
Yosemite, Denali, Wrangel, Sequoia, Grand Canyon, Canyonlands, Arches, Mesa
Verde, Great Smokey Mt, Rocky Mt, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Shenandoah,
Everglades, Yellowstone, Mt Rushmore, Badlands, Voyageurs, Acadia, Petrified
Forest, North Cascades, Olympic,
