The Moose, is loose!!

The last time our family spent some quality time in Wyoming was 20 years ago. As we explored the great national parks, we would tell our kids (four and seven at the time) to keep their eyes open because "The Moose, Is Loose!" which always made them giggle.

Today Greg and I went for a walk through Bear River Park, which is strangely not that far off of highway 80. We stopped on one of the bridges crossing the Bear River only to find out that "The Moose, was indeed Loose!" and standing on the river bank about 25 feet away from us. The cow was alone, with no calf insight (thankfully). She just stood there, looking at us until Lucky saw her and started barking like crazy. She perked up, stood still for about two minutes then turned and ran off downstream. Needless to say we went the other way down the trail, lest we meet up with her mightiness again.

Here she is in all her glory!


The park is also a preserve for some Bison and elk. In the Bison pasture were some calves and they were so cute.



The elks were hiding down in the tall grass. All you could see were their enormous heads and racks.



I have to say Evanston is a charming old western town, and the wild life is a joy to behold!

This Is How We Roll!

Today was a road day. We were packed and on the highway by 10:00AM. The day was spent traversing Utah on the 15 North. We travelled a total of 382 miles, from Zion to Evanston Wyoming. Which took close to eight hours, with fuel, food and rest stops.













It was a beautiful day for travelling, warm and sunny. We were amazed to see that the tops of the Wasatch Mountains were still cloaked in snow. It was a magical sight.

We saw lots of beautiful scenery, ranches, farms, lake and rivers. We did see an amazing sight (which we had never seen before), it was two steers chasing a coyote in a pasture! Ol' Wil.E.Coyote was busting some serious moves!!

Of course our own little furry passenger travelled in complete comfort. He requires a fluffy pillow, a blankie and the window to be slightly cracked. Quite the life. Lucky always enjoys his pit stops. He gets walked, watered; some treats and even gets to play a round or two of fetch if we can find the space.



I must say we are getting pretty good at a speedy break-down and set up at each site. This evening, we were done, and had a glass of wine in hand in twenty minutes flat. We'll try for 15 minutes in Cheyenne!

These Boots are made for Walking!

Today was a day to hit the trails. A beautiful 72 degrees and the canyons called. Thanks to some nifty second hand boots (thanks Katy!), I was ready to go. We did two easy trails (because we are aging and out of shape!!) The Weeping Rock and the lower Emerald Pools. Both were beautiful and offered some amazing views and here they are:

Mountain's Majesty

Have you ever been in the presence of something or someone that makes you feel so small, so inconsequential? For me, I feel that way here in Zion. I look up at these towering sheer cliff and spires, and I feel like a mere gnat. I watched rock climbers ascend one of the summits from the valley floor, and from my vantage point they looked liked little mustard seeds climbing up a tiny thread to the heavens.

The grandeur of this special place is really hard to capture on film because you must have context and scale to really appreciate what you are seeing. Despite this, I could not stop pressing the button on my camera, as I am desperate to somehow bring this magic to you.

So, here is a bit of what we saw today. I am sorry that you were not standing next to me to see the spectacle for yourself!

I hope you have enjoyed this small glimpse of Zion National Park. We will be hitting the trails again tomorrow!

Warning: Road Hazzards Ahead!

We left the house this morning at 7:30 AM on the nose. Being a holiday Friday, we expected to find the traffic tangled on the highways. We actually found the traffic to be quite light and found ourselves on the Pearblossom Highway in no time. All was smooth sailing until we crossed Stateline (which is where the craziness usually begins). Within minutes, we came up on an SUV whose front-end was fully engulfed in flames in the center divider. Two of the passengers were standing along the guard rail watching, while the last Joe was trying to haul and toss as much stuff from the back of the hatch as possible. All that was missing was a fire truck and some marshmallows.

Before you could say blackjack, Greg exclaims "WHOAH... That guy behind us just had a big blow out!" I looked into the side review mirror to see the guy in his car, towing a small trailer, slowly limp to the side of the road in a cloud of dust. Unfortunately, whatever was in the trailer was now decorating the highway.

Just around that time the wind gusts ratcheted up in ernst; the traffic on the 15N began to slow into a 2 lane crawl. It was soon evident why. Some poor soul was driving a conventional trailer and had jackknifed it. The truck went one way, and the trailer ended up in the ditch. I am sure that is not how they anticipated their holiday weekend would begin (or end, for that matter)!

(What you can't see is the truck on it's side and the trailer in the ditch!)

The roads can be treacherous. As is our tradition, Greg and I prayed as we were leaving this morning that God would protect us and grant us safe travels. We are certainly at his mercy when it comes to our safety, and we are just fine with that. So, please love ones be safe out there this weekend! Buckle-up, be kind and courteous, don't speed (be fashionably late, like me). And for Pete's sake, don't text or drink and drive. Take a cab, they need a paycheck too.

At the end of the day, we made it safely to beautiful Southern Utah and the gateway to Zion National Park, Springdale. Tomorrow we'll enjoy the splendor of one of my favorite parks!

T - Minus and counting!

It has been a good two years since Greg, and I hitch up the rig for some serious travel. Family duties called, and we needed to put our road maps and passports away for a time. Now we are just seven hour away from an EPIC (I love that word) adventure.

We are driving from California to Minneapolis and back! The classic ROAD TRIP!! Just Greg, I and the pup, on a round trip gig of 4746 miles!

We plan to see America in all of its glory! I few high points of the trip are, Zion National Park, Mount Rushmore & the Crazy Horse Monument, the Badlands of South Dakota, The old Domeier Homestead in Ohiowa Nebraska, the Colorado Rockies, Lake Tahoe a few Ghosts towns and a wonderful wedding in Minneapolis (some how it doesn't seem right putting this highlight next to a ghost town, sorry Kelsey).

The trailer has been reorganized and is now packed to the gills. Every nook and cranny of our glorious 32" has something in it. One reason I know we have everything with us, is because my house has never looked sooooo clean! It's nice to have all the comforts of home along for the ride. Sort of makes me wonder why we are leaving?

Anyway, Greg wanted me not to over pack. As we all know, fuel is a bit pricy these days (understatement alert!!). So, I did get rid of a few pieces of Tupperware and a 1981 Audubon guide. That should help lighten the load, don't cha-think!

I hope you will come on this journey with us. Who really know what a month on the road will do to us? I promise to share the good the bad and the ugly with all of you. Just think of is as a new season of survivor. Instead of getting voted off the island, one of us may end up stranded at a truck stop in Duluth!