Day 1 - Macon Bound

So the 2 Gassy Girls blog has been  reactivated!  Granted, I'm missing the other gassy girl but hopefully this trip will be just as fun as WestFest!

Day 1 of our late summer vacation has consisted of leaving work mid afternoon and driving. And driving. And driving some more. Okay, technically I was riding.  

Our drive today was through the beautiful countryside of Alabama. Rolling hills, flowing streams, and miles of asphalt!  

Tomorrow morning we head out to Savannah. It's been a number of years since I was last in the lovely city of Savannah. Great memories of meeting our friends, Steve and Debbie, there many moons ago.  Hey Margarita!  

So please join me on a weeklong adventure as we trek across Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. 

End of the Road - Day Sixteen

Home. One of my favorite four letter words (and trust me I know quite a few of  those).  Home is where I can completely relax. It is my refuge. And as much as I LOVE to travel it is so nice to be home. 

WestFest has come to a close. We traveled 5484 miles. We all have earned the Buns of Steel Award. Can't wait to see what that patch will look like. HA!

We have had a blast on this trip and I thank you for following along with us. Big shout out to Cynthia and Curtis for being great travel partners. And another big shout out to our navigator and trip planner John. 

In the coming days I will be doing an AAR (After Action Review - thats a Lessons Learned for my NASA peeps) and sharing a photo album on FB. 

Again, many thanks for reading. Good night folks!  

Wichita to Little Rock with a little Barry White! - Day Fifteen

Sleep, blessed sleep....  Had a late start this morning in Wichita, KS. Picked up Cynthia and Curtis at her parents home and then we all had lunch at Old Chicago   Cynthia's parents, Mike and Margaret, are adorable. Having lunch with them reminded me of restaurant meals with my own parents. Mike, like my Dad, insisted on picking up the tab and I felt a piece of home wash over me. Like I said, lovely people!  

We then left Wichita and headed south into Oklahoma ( Oklahoma! where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain, And the waivin' wheat can sure smell sweet When the wind comes right behind the rain )

Turned left and headed east into Arkansas where we clicked off the 5,000th mile of this journey. Cynthia and I did the wave and a little yell in the back. I'm sure John and Curtis LOVED it.  

We have finally landed for the evening in Little Rock. 

Went downstairs to have some refreshments and as usual ended up talking to a person at the table next to us. He was a little inebriated and it was rather apparent. 

There was a partition between the two tables so he was not able to see the 4th member of our party ( Curtis ) he was only able to hear Curtis.  After a few minutes of listening to Curtis he leans around and says "is that Barry White over there ?"  And Curtis now has a new nickname!   

Tomorrow we will be rolling into Huntsville with dirt layered across scores of dead bugs. 

If you see a white Chevy Tahoe with a swarm of flies following behind and you hear Barry White singing.... well then you know it's us!  

Good night folks!  Thanks for reading. :D

Dodge City - Day Fourteen

Woke up this morning in Cheyenne, WY. At this point in time I am thanking God on an hourly basis that I do not have Alzheimer's...... Otherwise I would have no flippin' clue where in the heck I am. ;D

We drove from Cheyenne into the Sunflower State of Kansas after making a little dip into Colorado and headed for Dodge City. Yes, WestFest is wrapping up....  :-/

We FINALLY arrived at Dodge City around 4:15ish and began our tour of Boot Hill and Front Street.  For such a small museum they have an extensive Native American collection and a really good gun collection!  

One of the amusing things I learned was the jail on display at Boot Hill was "stolen" from Fort Dodge.  The museum approached Fort Dodge about having the jail donated to the museum or the museum purchasing the jail. Apparently there was some regulation that prohibited  either avenue. However, if it was "stolen" charges would not be filed. So a band of gentlemen got together and did a "midnight requisition" !  This occurred in the mid 1950's.  My kind of people. :D

We are currently heading east to Wichita where we will overnight and have a delayed start in the morning. I think we are looking forward to sleeping in. 

As our trip winds down I am again reminded of our country's vast beauty. The beauty of her glacier covered mountains and sweeping plains of golden wheat. The beauty that is seen in our large cities with their industrial feel to the small towns that are scattered across her lands. It is found in your own backyard and in your own hometown or wherever you may be.... You just need to look for it. 

Tomorrow it is on to Little Rock. :D

 

Cheyenne or Bust - Day Thirteen

This morning we woke up to a bit of a medical problem. Cyn had an issue with her eye. Luckily there was a medical clinic on site so she was able to see a physician. 

While Cynthia and Curtis were taking care of that issue, John and I decided to have breakfast. We sat in the Mural Restaurant and had a quiet breakfast with the Grand Tetons as our backdrop. It was a nice way to wrap up our visit. 

Then we were off!  Back in the family truckster and headed to Cheyenne. 

Today was strictly a driving day and we covered a LOT of miles. I think we have added a new song to our playlist - Rawhide. "Rolling, rolling, rolling. Get those dogies rolling. Oh my butt is swollen RAWHIDE"! 

Driving across Wyoming was a unique experience. The scenery quickly changed from the splendor of the Tetons to smaller mountains with patches of snow and lush green meadows. Then the landscape began morphing into reddish brown rock formations that towered above dry gulches. Occasionally one of those gulches would have a nice stream. The scenery slowly changed to rolling hills with clumpy grass pastures dotted with the random pronghorn. And then we made Cheyenne!  

Also -  Wyoming Rib and Chop House. Thumbs up for food and service!  

Tomorrow it is Dodge City and we will be overnighting in Wichita. 

Good night folks. We have a LONG drive tomorrow :D

Grand Tetons - Day Twelve

Started out in West Yellowstone, MT this morning and headed east through Yellowstone. About the midway portion of the park we started heading south. Our goal today - the Grand Tetons!  And gosh they are GRAND! 

We stopped by the Visitor Center as we entered the Grand Tetons National Park. John started chatting with one of the employees and long story short we met a  lovely individual from Freer, TX. His name is John Anderson and he was the football coach at Freer but has since retired. For all of you South Texas people reading this blog you know what a delight it is to run across one of our own!   

We arrived at Lake Jackson Lodge around lunchtime and had a nice lunch at the lodge. 

Cynthia and Curtis decided to go for a hike around the lodge ( there are over 250 miles of hiking trails in this park ) and we decided to take a scenic drive through the park. 

One of the special views was a church. It is the Chapel of the Transfiguration and is a small Episcopal Church. The chapel was built in 1925. Behind the altar there is a clear window that frames a view of the Cathedral Group of the Grand Tetons. The chapel is part of the St. John's Episcopal Church in Jackson and holds Sunday services at 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM on Sundays. It reminded us of our own St. Thomas and the view of Green Mountain. 

We joined back up with Cynthia and Curtis for dinner. From the restaurant we watched the sun set behind the mountain range. The sky was painted shades of orange and blue.  Some of the peaks were highlighted by the sun causing the snow and glaciers to sparkle with an orange-pink hue. Wispy cirrus clouds accentuated the mountains and sky. 

I am awed and humbled by the magnificent scenery we have visited and I am ever more grateful for being allowed to share these moments with my favorite person. 

Tomorrow it is on to Cheyenne!  

Yellowstone Take Two - Day Eleven

This morning we hit the dusty trail at 0530. Our mission, go find wildlife in Lamar Valley of Yellowstone Park. As we entered the park the sky was beginning to show the pale shades of dawn. We had clear skies and the park to ourselves. 

We immediately saw a wapiti and then started seeing several bison all before getting to Lamar Valley. Upon rounding a bend we encountered two adult bison sauntering down the middle of the road. We stopped the family truckster and watched them amble by within inches. And no, I did not try to pet them....

As we entered Lamar Valley we encountered bison, pronghorn, and whitetail deer.  There was herd upon herd of bison with their young calves kicking up their heels and running around   Most of the adult bison were grazing or taking a siesta. 

The two animals we did not encounter were bears and wolves. There are three packs of wolves that live within Yellowstone and of course the park definitely has bears .... Hey Yogi!  ;o)

After driving through the valley we had breakfast at Roosevelt Lodge. And man it was good!

We hopped back in the truckster and headed for the Upper and Lower Falls on the Yellowstone River.  The views were incredible. The sides of the canyon have active thermal vents that are marked by different colors. The colors come from the chemical compounds in the soil while others come from microorganisms known as thermolytes. 

It was a great day in the park. Tomorrow we are driving back through Yellowstone and headed for Moran, WY. 

Thanks for reading and have a good night. :D