On the road

September 8, 2018

In late August, after seeing the oncologist and getting a three-month reprieve for Brian, we put Houston in our rearview mirror. Two weeks into this latest traveling saga and we are just now taking time in a library to update this blog. After an overnight stop in Dallas, we pushed on to Dodge City, Kansas in time to attend mass (in Spanish) at the cathedral – different architecture for sure.

We made a stop at Nicodemus National Historic Site in Kansas and were disappointed to find the Visitor Center is not open on Sundays. This small historic community is trying to preserve its history with the help of the National Park Service.

https://www.nps.gov/nico/index.htm

Moving on up into Nebraska so visit the World's Largest Rail Yard – the Bailey classification yard in North Platte. The view from the Golden Spike Tower encompasses miles of tracks and we could see rail cars being shuttled to various locations in the yard. Quite an impressive display of engineering and coordination.

The mountains were calling to us so we camped at Vedauwoo Rocks in Medicine Bow National Forest, Wyoming. Our campsite was at elevation 8300 feet so we were huffing and puffing a bit as we explored the area. It usually takes a few days to get acclimated to the altitude. Morning brought temperatures in the upper 30s and we were happy to snuggle into our sleeping bags. We spent the next day on the scenic byway through the Medicine Bow Mountains and made breakfast at lovely Libby Lake.

Vedauwoo Rocks campground

Libby Lake, Medicine Bow Mountains, Wyoming

Then came the long trek on I-80 across southern Wyoming, a drive we have done several times so we didn't make any stops. We entered Utah through Echo Canyon and spent the night in Logan.

It has been quite a few years since we drove out to Promontory, Utah to the Golden Spike National Historic Site with our kids, but we wanted to see it again. On the way, we stopped at the “Rocket Garden” and the Northrop Grumman facility - who can pass up a display of rockets? At Golden Spike, we arrived just in time to see the reenactment of the historic meeting of the two locomotives that marked the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869. We sent video clips to our son in Houston and his 4 year old loved the steam whistle and ringing bells.

Entering southern Idaho, we headed to a remote National Park Service location called City of Rocks National Reserve. The roads in the park are unpaved and you have to bring in your own water. We did a 3-mile hike after settling in to our campsite and saw amazing rock formations wherever we ventured.

With the coming of Labor Day weekend, we settled into Massacre Rocks State Park near American Falls where we had reserved a campsite for three nights. It was not an ideal location as it was in sight and sound of the interstate, but was right next to the Snake River and we walked up to the overlook from the campground several times. It was also 'home base” while we ventured to nearby towns of Pocatello and Blackfoot and Minidoka National Historic Site where Japanese-Americans were incarcerated during WWII.

Snake River from Massacre Rocks State Park

We have visited two potato museums in Canada so we gave Idaho equal time.

Next up was Twin Falls, Idaho and Shoshone Falls then into central Idaho on the Sawtooth Scenic Byway. We passed through Ketchum on the way to Sawtooth National Recreation Area. Central Idaho is the first area in the U.S. to be designated an International Dark Sky Reserve so with the moon waning in its cycle, we were treated to a magnificent star display and a faint glimpse of the Milky Way from our campsite at Redfish Lake. The last time we saw the MW was at a Dark Sky park in Nova Scotia three years ago.

Shoshone Falls, Twin Falls, ID

Hemingway's grave in Ketchum, Idaho

early morning at Redfish Lake - see our shadows?

Next morning, the thermometer read 34 degrees and I dug out my gloves for the first time. Later in the day, we were in bathing suits soaking in Kirkham Hot Springs. It's a good thing we pack for all circumstances. Camping in Boise National Forest among tall trees was a real treat. We met a couple from New Jersey who were on their honeymoon trip and enjoyed a nice conversation. (Editorial Note: It is always nice to talk to someone other than each other!)

Kirkham Hot Springs, Sawtooth National Forest

We came down from the forests of central Idaho to the Snake River plain and its brown, rolling landscape and entered into Oregon, spending the night at Farewell Bend State Park – a site along the historic Oregon Trail. We heard a pack of coyotes during the night, but they didn't keep us awake for long.

Hells Canyon on the Idaho/Oregon border is the deepest river gorge in North America, 2000 feet deeper than Grand Canyon. We set off on the Hells Canyon Scenic Byway through Wallowa-Whitman National Forest with high expectations. The vista was hazy due to smoke from wildfires, but the drive was beautiful.

You can't see the Snake River from this Hells Canyon Overlook, but it's down there somewhere.

Now we are in southeastern Washington near the confluence of the Snake and Columbia Rivers. Whitman Mission National Historic Site in Walla Walla deserved a visit as did the Hanford Reactor unit of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. We took a tour of the first fully operational nuclear reactor and were impressed with the engineering and technological expertise that went into its construction and operation in 1943-1944. We are two dyed-in-the-wool nerds (as our children can attest) and never fail to learn something new about history, geology, geography, and culture as we continue to explore our great nation.