Trip Day 1 - Mostly just driving!

Day 1, we took a few hours to pack and get ready so the drive started before 11am. We found the hard way that Warren Dunes State Park has no signage on I-95, so we stopped in New Buffalo, MI for a walk and found a small art festival “Artigras”. It was very nice, I especially enjoyed the work of one artist who did nature photography printed on metal. We then hit the road again. I had a small issue with the storage “motorhome”, the bolt holding the bike mount was lose, not sure if it shook lose or started that way, I found it about an hour outside of Chicago and fixed it at a TA gas station. It was warm, with the outside thermometer showing 107 at one point (the real temperature was less, but the pavement was HOT). Mostly a boring and uneventful day so all is well. We put on about 500 miles, I hope to do 600 tomorrow. We are in a campground in Amana IO, a bit off the highway, but it was time (past 10pm MI).

The adventure is about to begin. 3 weeks, 3 National Parks, 4000+ miles.

The motorhome has been serviced, a new storage unit has been added to the back and I am seeking a new BBQ,

Three unplanned road days with the first planned stop of Bighorn National Forest.  We are staying at a primitive campground with lots of good hiking and nearby waterfalls.  After two days we will be heading to Grand Teton National park for 4 days of hiking, we have reservations outside of the park, but I hope to snag a spot in the park.  Then on to Yellowstone National Park for a driving and hiking tour of one of the true wonders of the world.  From Yellowstone we have two days to get to Glacier National Park where we will spent two days on the west side and two days on the east side, renting a car so that I can drive the Going to the Sun road.

Just a few 100 little items to take care of between now and 8am Saturday when we depart!

Day 2 of the LMB West Shoreline Tour

Check out my 65.8 mi Ride on Strava: http://app.strava.com/activities/360550741

How to tell directions like a man (or at least how to be understood by a man)

Terms like “look” and “over there” do not communicate anything beyond that fact that you cannot describe where you are looking or what you want someone to see. Terms like “look left” are fine if a mountain fills the left horizon but is mostly useless for any object smaller than a mountain. “Look right” truly fails when you are looking at a flower and the person you told to look right sees a bird and you both agree it's beautiful. Vague terms seem to be sufficient between two people that each have two X chromosomes and how they every understand each other is beyond me.

Directions are only useful to XY chromosome people if you can communicate where to look with enough specifics for others to understand. Compass heading work well so long as you are in an orienteering class, otherwise use clock headings where 12 o’clock is straight ahead (along the trail, road etc). It's also acceptable to use headings relative to well defined objects “a bear is at 12 o'clock, lets walk in the opposite direction”. Notice I have identified what to look at and where to go without ambiguity. Being clear about what you want someone to see is important, saying “look at 12 o'clock” and a man may only see the hiker in a bikini, if you intended him to see the bear walking up behind her you should have said so.

Grateful for time to think or too much time to think?

I got to walk on Virginia beach for an hour tonight, It was mid sixties with a warm breeze off the ocean. I'm staying in a Hilton with my Mom in a room with a view of the ocean. A great time time to think about life, what I have and what I want. What I have is everything needed and then some: I have a wonderful wife, a son I am proud of, a job I like, my health, time to spend with family and friends and hobbies that allow me to give back to the community. So I work very hard for each and everyone of these things, so why should I be grateful? The “thing” I am most grateful for is understanding how blessed I am, not for the things I have but for the people I have learned from, starting with my parents.  

On the road again

Heading to the Atlantic coast with my Mom.  We left Novi today and drove along the Erie coast and then onto the Ohio turnpike.  In Sandusky we found a nice nice cafe Berardi's family kitchen (on Route 6 ), great breakfasts and what looked like good deserts.  Then we drove through Ohio and into Pennsylvania.  Near Pittsburgh we jumped off the highway and took Route 30 through the mountains.  The fall colors were good but a bit muted.  We hoped to see the sight of the old Noha's Ark, but never found it.

We found a Hampton Inn in Bedford, PA and got a room for the night.  Tomorrow Baltimore MD and the Atlantic Coast.

Wrapping up three weeks of vacation in Europe

They say all good things must come to an end, but I'm not sure.  The vacation is over, but the experience will truly last and bring me back again.  The last few days have been "unplanned" and you get what you plan for.  #1 thing to ask when reserving nice expansive hotels in Germany in July is "do you have air conditioning?".  It's above 85 outside and we have an otherwise nice hotel (that we reserved 3 weeks ago) and it does not have AC (and yes I feel like a spoiled American).  We drove along the Rhine and stopped in a few small towns and Wiesbaden, Germany on our path back to the airport in Frankfurt.  Part of me says it's time to go home and party of me would enjoy continuing the trip for a few more months.  Any way I look at it, I have been blessed with  a great travel companion, good friends, friendly strangers and the opportunity to see some spectacular parts of the world.  Now I think it's time to plan 2015, someplace out-west in the good old USA.