The ancient Mariner

or is it the Old Man and the Sea???  After breakfast and an oil change, I did a few touristy things in Seattle.  Once again I had to be ID'd as I went onto a government installation to check out the Coast Guard Museum.  What is the women's version for a sailor having a "girl in every port"?

  Abby is only slightly jealous!

  There was some interesting info.  To get to the museum a retired Captain came to the front gate and had me follow him in my car to the museum.  Not allowed onto the base without an escort.

Seattle has a rich history involving water.  Went down by the Seaport and checked out a few more items.

  I always thought boats went in the water not on the ceiling.

  Hmm, for about the total cost of my trip, I could have this wooden boat.

  Or I could just build my own.

I then hiked a mile or 2 to do the obligatory Space Needle. 

  I have worked with Minasian Development back in Detroit.  I wonder if there is any connection???  I never thought of them as "Spacey".

  You really can see for quite a distance.  I am not making a mountain out of a mole hill.  That is a mountain with a plane flying an advertisement sign in the picture.  (Slight green to the left of the mountain).

Tomorrow nite is the Mariners game.  I will then head out of town right from the game.  I am heading towards Fremont, CA.  I will likely not be posting again before Sunday nite.

Oregon(e)

Oregon has come and gone.  I only spent the nite there in Pendleton.  I have to say that was the worst place I have stayed in so far.  A Knights Inn that was so bad, I ended up calling Wyndam Properties and telling them they need to cancel this franchisee.  I also contacted the local Building Department and asked them to inspect the facility for possible condemnation due to safety issues!  That may color my opinion of the state, which previously I had heard very good things about.  Other than having cheaper gas than Washington, I found nothing good to say about Oregon.  I was only in the northeast corner of the state, but found nothing to do or stop at that was worthwhile.  I will be passing through the western part of the state when I leave Seattle for California.
As I have been doing, I try to break up my driving, by finding spots to stop at along the way.  If possible I try to not drive more than 3 hours without stopping.  Pendleton and Seattle is a 4 hour 41 minute trip, but Yakima, WA is almost 1/2 way.  The tour guide lists the Hillside Desert Botanical Gardens.  Excellent a place to get out and stretch the legs before continuing to Seattle.

  My GPS took me to a cul-de-sac on a dirt road.  I called the phone number in the guide book and a guy answers.  I tell him I am lost and he asks me if I am driving a greenish car.  When I answer yes, he wells me to park next to the red truck and he would be right out.

  The owner. He has greenhouses in his backyard.  It is dedicated to cacti.  Nice guy.  Only the plants were prickly.

  I did not see the sign, because the backyard gate was open. 

Finally made it to Seattle late in the afternoon, but did not get to any sites before they closed for the day.  I hope to see some of Seattle on Wednesday and Thursday before the ballgame.

While I have been roasted by the extreme heat previously, temps are now expected to be in the 70s in Seattle and into the Bay area for the next week.  Hopefully I will not jinx it by saying that I have not had to use my windshield wipers on the trip yet (that I can remember).  Minimal chances of rain on the 10 day weather forecast where I will be.  Meanwhile, The Colorado Rockies, whom I saw last Thursday, had their game delayed last nite by 2 hours 41 minutes due to a rain and hail storm.  Even their dugout got flooded out.  I have been blessed with how things have gone so far, even with the horrible motel on Monday.  Except for my baseball card purchases, I have stayed within my budget for the trip.  Only 7 weeks left on the trip.  It is going too quickly.

BOY the things you SEE

I stayed in Boise, ID area on Sunday nite.  A lot of things are closed in ID on Sundays and Mondays.  The tour book did give a couple of places.  An Anne Frank inspired Civil Rights park. 

  At least they acknowledge it is an unlikely match, Anne Frank & Idaho.  Civil Rights matter everywhere.  They have the UN Charter carved into displays.  With the upcoming elections, I would urge everyone to check out the original UN Charter, which Eleanor Roosevelt was very instrumental in getting drafted.  We have strayed far from the Charter, not just worldwide, but in the US. 

  Very impressive and moving park.  Various quotes are inscribed in the walls.   Most moving place I have been to on the trip so far.  Who would have thought ID would have 2 of the trip highlights?

  My science center membership has long since paid for itself.  Another place where I got to be 12.  I was tired so I took a nap on this bed of nails.  This was no pointless experiment.

Tour Book lists a Money Museum, with a gold display, in Baker City.  Turns out it is inside a US Bank branch.    This took almost 5 minutes on the trip.

On to Oregon.

Moon Walking

 Sunday's plan was to go to Crater's of the Moon in Idaho.  I then noticed another stop. 

  What mad scientist could resist going to the first Nuclear Power Plant.  I wonder how much radiation could be leaking from a plant this old.  I hope no one is expecting kids from me.

  I am not saying I am on top of the world or that there are some desolate places in the west, but...

  Craters of the Moon is from all the lava flows over the years.  NASA even does tests out here for the Martian Land Rovers, due to the terrain. A ton of walking on some of the trails.  Little shade in most areas and hot sun.  Result more sunburn.  This time on the neck.  Will I ever learn???

  A cave we explored.  I was smart enough to go on a guided tour for the cave only.

  Craters of the Moon was an unexpected highlight on the trip so far.  Maybe not number 1, but a definite highlight.

What a Hole

Went to Jackson Hole, which is around Grand Teton National Park.  Tourists everywhere.  No wonder I could not get a room.  This place was overwhelmed by the number of people in town.  Population is small, and set up for the tourists.  Tons of small shops, restaurants, etc. 

  The public square.  All 4 entrances are made up of antler arcs.  Very impressive.

  Earlier blog posts talked about me and snakes.  While this is not a picture of my raft, I did go white water rafting down the Snake River with an outfit based in Jackson Hole.  This trip went through Grand Teton National Park.  I have gone white water rafting in West Virginia and Pennsylvania before.  I had heard it was even better out west.  This trip was only class II and III rapids.  I have done class IV before.  This was very pedestrian, although highly enjoyable.  I did flip out of the raft to go for a swim in the river.  Too COLD!  I did not last long and came right back in after 30 seconds.  Only the guide and 1 other in the raft dared going in.  Best part of the trip was we did NOT have to carry the raft back up to the truck afterwards as I remembered from previous trips in the east.  It was a beautiful da on the river, got wet, and had fun.  Unfortunately, my wet suit (and booties, which was an excellent decision) cut off a few inches above the knees.  I did not put enough lotion on and got a sunburn from 3 inches above each knee to my ankles.

Y oh me

I was given the advice to be flexible and adapt while on the trip.  Nothing goes according to plan.  Historically I have not been good with compromising, but whether it is being on vacation, no stress of a job or having a special someone, I am very relaxed and trying to go with the flow.  I had planned 4 days in Wyoming.  I could not find any reasonable accommodations to go to Yellowstone and the Grand Teton area to stay, especially for the weekend.  So while, I initially planned to go Ft. Laramie on Friday, Yellowstone on Saturday, Grand Tetons on Sunday and Jackson Hole on Monday, that plan needed to be scrapped.  I headed towards Laramie, instead of Ft. Laramie. 

  Did you know there are speed limits of 80 mph in Wyoming?  Made a stop to see another tribute to Abe.

Just because the speed limit is 80, does not mean you can do whatever you want.  Trouble could be lurking.

  Jackson Territorial Prison for those that do not follow the rules.  You wondered why I fell behind in my blogging???  Talk about the wild west.  The wardens have unlimited power and can adjust your sentences, shorter or longer at their whim.  This is the same prison that once held Butch Cassidy.

  Hmm.  I have a Jewish Uncle Billy with the same last name who I think came from Polish descent.  I wonder if there is any relation to this killer who was also incarcerated here.  I know I had some relatives that used to be in the Purple Gang (an old Jewish mob in Detroit).  I did not know we may have had a convicted killer related to someone in the family.

  Remember Clint Eastwood in "Hang Em High"?  They threw him in the back of the prison wagon.  Yeesh, and I thought Detroit was tough when I scalped a ticket.  All this for 3 mph over.

They haven't made the prison that can hold me yet.  Back on the road.

Springing forward for a Rockies day

I left the Springs and headed to Denver to meet up with inactive OBCer Walker Guthrie.  Walker showed me the town.

  First stop was the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame.  My lacrosse tryout did not result in an offer.  I will continue the job hunt.

  Outside Coors Field

Decent stadium, but nothing stood out.  Gets a very average grade.  Best part of the day was a card shop called Jordans.  Picked up some nice stuff, including a Colorado Rockie HOCKEY set I was not familiar with and a 1951 Topps Team card!  Big thank you to Walker for taking me around for the day.

A sporting day

Colorado Springs, Co is home to a number of sports themes.  First stop on Thursday, June 22 was the US Olympic Training Center.

  Training sled.

  They have an Olympic flame at the training center.

  Up in the mountains of Colorado Springs.  Did not do much walking as I thought it was going to rain.  Of course it did not.

  The Figure Skating Hall of Fame.  I was not aware right around the time I was born the 1961 US Olympic skating team all died in a plane crash.  This set the stage for Peggy Fleming as a 15 year old to claim the 1964 US title and usher in a new era for figure skating.

  From figure skating to the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame.  Only person I knew was Gene Autry!  He was a major stock promotor for a couple of decades.

The best stop of the day was the Olympic Training Center.  I did meet up with Jim Gottreid of Trading Bases at a card shop and dinner at Bubba's.  They have more TV's than booths.  Got to watch a rare Tigers win.

Kansas continued

Week 3 kicked off with me in Hays, KS.  Went to the Sternberg Museum and they had some excellent fossils.  Look at the smile on this one.

  A big exhibit of relatives of mine (aka rattle snakes).  Typical length of rattle snakes.  This proves I am not the biggest snake out there!

  A local library contains a museum.  Excellent piece of woodworking.

  Went to the Stone Gallery.  It is a hole in the wall.  Talented artist who had sculptures around town. 

  Made my way to the Kit Carson County Carousel Museum.  Notice any resemblance between Kit and I???  Not sure I have ever looked better!

  Best 2 bits I have spent so far on the trip.  25 cents for a carousel ride.

  Wrapped up the day at a Railroad car museum.  An old fashioned food car on a train. 

On to Kansas

Kansas plan included stopping in Abilene for another presidential tour.  The Eisenhower museum and complex.

First up was breakfast at the Whistle Stop Café a 1/2 block from the Eisenhower complex.

  Ike in a classic pose.

  The Presidential prayer hanging where Ike and Mamie are interned.

Across the street from the Eisenhower Museum, was another HOF.

  Mike and Ginger.  Guess which one was a champion Greyhound racer.  Picture at the Greyhound HOF.

  Some of the various trophies given out in Greyhound racing.

  After leaving Abilene, I stopped in Russell, KS at the Oil Patch Museum.  a model of a derrick.

  Some equipment on the grounds at the museum.

This wrapped up 2 full weeks on the road.  Wednesday is an ambitious day.  We will see what I get done.

Abby joins me for the weekend

Abby made it town Friday afternoon in time for us to go to the Tigers v Royals game again.

  The only bright spot of the game.  Abby joined me as the Tigers got clobbered.

Saturday we went to see the city.  There was a Trolley Tour starting at 10:00 in front of Union Station.  Unlike St. Louis, this one was bustling.  We got there before 10, but the tour was full.  We bought tickets for the noon tour, and went inside.  There was a Science Center that my membership got us in for free.

  A chair that spins as you sit.  I better work on my diet, as I initially did not spin, and instead was stuck in a reclined position. 

  On the city tour

  The nation's only Official World War I museum and monument. 

  After the tour, back in to Union Station.  They have a model railroad exhibit.  Multiple exhibits and very elaborate. 

It was time for a late lunch/early dinner.  We decided to try KC BBQ.  Arthur Bryant's had a line around the block!  In the 95+ heat, we proceeded to Gates BBQ.  Line was only to the door.  Done buffet line style, so it went fairly quickly.  We split a slab, or should I say, Abby had a few bones from the short end and I finished the slab!  Very Good, but I do not think it was better than what I have had at some places in Detroit. 

While the tour bus was air conditioned, it was still very warm.  It took a lot out of me/us and we called it an early day.  We were too tired to try and go to the Tigers game in person.  Good thing, as the Tigers were crushed.

Sunday, Abby and I went back to Independence for a Frontier Museum.

The weekend was way too short.

After dropping Abby off at the airport, I left Missouri and headed west to Kansas. 

  I was able to make it to Topeka in time to take in Brown v Topeka Board of Education museum.