Going In Circles
July 28, 2013 04:36 PM
We’ve once again come full circle, back to Denver, parked at Cherry Creek State Park. If you go back to our first post, you’ll see that we left here on April 4th, bound for the west coast. Now, a little less than four months later, after a great tour up the coast, we’re parked a few steps from where we left. We’d intended to stay on the west coast for another month or so, but decided that since we’ve “been there, done that,” we’d cut our stay short head cross country earlier. I’m glad we did; I was getting tired of cool, windy, rainy weather.
So instead we’re parked in Denver in cool, windy, rainy weather. It’s an unusual pattern for this time of year here. Usually it warms into the mid-90’s on summer days, cooling to the upper 60’s at night, with occasional thundershowers. Instead, it’s currently 61º and foggy/drizzly, with a forecast high of 77º this afternoon. But I’m not complaining; I’m sure we’ll soon be wishing for cooler weather.
When I closed the last post, we were parked just east of Portland. We spent a great week there exploring the area. We spent a day in downtown Portland, one of my favorite cities. We drove up Mount Hood and watched people ski. We met our friends the Duncans in Hood River. We attended a Scottish Festival. Oh, and we visited several brew pubs. Our favorite was the McMenamins Edgefield location. McMenamins is an Oregon tradition, a brewing company with pubs in a number of Oregon locations. Their Edgefield location a 74 acre site, heavily wooded, with a hotel, several pubs and restaurants, and outdoor entertainment venues. If you get a chance, be sure and visit them.
We left Portland last Sunday and spent one night in Pendleton, OR. Pendleton is a cool little town, home to the Pendleton Woolen Mills. It’s also home to the Prodigal Son Brewing Company. I’ve overnighted in Pendleton before and always enjoy a return visit.
Next morning we followed I-84 southeast over the Blue Mountains to Boise, ID. I’ve been to Boise several times, including a couple of extended stays while in the Air National Guard. The Guard base at the Boise Airport is a very nice little base with seven RV parking spots.
We arrived in Boise and stopped at a Les Schwab tire store to have the front tires balanced. Of course, it’s never that simple. Turns out that the front end was badly out of alignment and the tires were badly worn and cupped, causing the vibration. Two new tires and an alignment, and about $900 dollars poorer, we had the problem solved. Lesson learned: Pay attention to the front tires and have the alignment checked at the very first sign of wear!
The rest of our three-day stay in Boise was enjoyable. We took the pup to Ann Morrison Park, a beautiful park in the middle of town. We discovered the park in 2008 on our first stop in Boise. It’s a real treasure for the people of the city. We also, of course, explored the very active Boise brewing scene. Our favorite pub was Sockeye Brewing. Their beer and food were both great, and their wait staff was the friendliest we’ve seen for a while. If you hit Boise, give them a visit.
On Thursday we continued southeast on I-84 and stopped at HIll Air Force Base in Ogden, UT for the night. We only ventured off base for a couple of hours for dinner and beers at Rooster’s Brewing. Then it was up early the next morning, hoping to beat the inevitable Wyoming heat and wind as we made our way eastward on I-80 to Rawlins. We just made it in time, as a thunderstorm hit the park shortly after we arrived. We considered a trip into town to a restaurant but decided that since (a) the weather was still acting up and (b) there aren’t any interesting restaurants in Rawlins, we’d just cook dinner and stay in for the evening. Traveling in your home has its advantages.
We again rose early on Saturday and drove to Frederick, CO to the Transwest Truck, Trailer and RV shop for some motorhome service. We were supposed to have a new tailpipe extension installed, but the part they’d ordered was the wrong one. So we just had an oil and filter change and then headed south to some friend’s house for the evening.
Rob and Heather have been two of our closest friends for a number of years. They live in a beautiful home on an acreage near Elizabeth, with plenty of space to park our rig for the night. Another friend, Katy, dropped in and we enjoyed a nice dinner and evening with them. It’s great to see old friends and catch up on what’s been happening. Thanks for the hospitality, our friends!
On Sunday we traveled a short distance north to Cherry Creek State Park and settled into a nice RV spot in the Coyote loop. One of the cool things was watching Muffin as she recognized where she was. Shortly after arriving, she decided we were going to the lake. She took the lead and pulled me all the way there. The lake is low and a little grungy, but she enjoyed playing in the water anyway. She’s a happy pup when water is near.
We’re here for a week while we catch up with friends, visit doctors and dentists, and prepare for the rest of our journey. Next week we’ll travel to my son Mark’s house in Missouri, the first leg of a trip that will land us in Asheville, NC in a couple of weeks. But for now, we’ll just enjoy one of our favorite places on earth, Denver.
(Sorry for the photos—few and of poor quality. My camera somehow erased its SD card so I picked a few from our iPhones instead. Time for a new camera?)
Alan
So instead we’re parked in Denver in cool, windy, rainy weather. It’s an unusual pattern for this time of year here. Usually it warms into the mid-90’s on summer days, cooling to the upper 60’s at night, with occasional thundershowers. Instead, it’s currently 61º and foggy/drizzly, with a forecast high of 77º this afternoon. But I’m not complaining; I’m sure we’ll soon be wishing for cooler weather.
When I closed the last post, we were parked just east of Portland. We spent a great week there exploring the area. We spent a day in downtown Portland, one of my favorite cities. We drove up Mount Hood and watched people ski. We met our friends the Duncans in Hood River. We attended a Scottish Festival. Oh, and we visited several brew pubs. Our favorite was the McMenamins Edgefield location. McMenamins is an Oregon tradition, a brewing company with pubs in a number of Oregon locations. Their Edgefield location a 74 acre site, heavily wooded, with a hotel, several pubs and restaurants, and outdoor entertainment venues. If you get a chance, be sure and visit them.
We left Portland last Sunday and spent one night in Pendleton, OR. Pendleton is a cool little town, home to the Pendleton Woolen Mills. It’s also home to the Prodigal Son Brewing Company. I’ve overnighted in Pendleton before and always enjoy a return visit.
Next morning we followed I-84 southeast over the Blue Mountains to Boise, ID. I’ve been to Boise several times, including a couple of extended stays while in the Air National Guard. The Guard base at the Boise Airport is a very nice little base with seven RV parking spots.
We arrived in Boise and stopped at a Les Schwab tire store to have the front tires balanced. Of course, it’s never that simple. Turns out that the front end was badly out of alignment and the tires were badly worn and cupped, causing the vibration. Two new tires and an alignment, and about $900 dollars poorer, we had the problem solved. Lesson learned: Pay attention to the front tires and have the alignment checked at the very first sign of wear!
The rest of our three-day stay in Boise was enjoyable. We took the pup to Ann Morrison Park, a beautiful park in the middle of town. We discovered the park in 2008 on our first stop in Boise. It’s a real treasure for the people of the city. We also, of course, explored the very active Boise brewing scene. Our favorite pub was Sockeye Brewing. Their beer and food were both great, and their wait staff was the friendliest we’ve seen for a while. If you hit Boise, give them a visit.
On Thursday we continued southeast on I-84 and stopped at HIll Air Force Base in Ogden, UT for the night. We only ventured off base for a couple of hours for dinner and beers at Rooster’s Brewing. Then it was up early the next morning, hoping to beat the inevitable Wyoming heat and wind as we made our way eastward on I-80 to Rawlins. We just made it in time, as a thunderstorm hit the park shortly after we arrived. We considered a trip into town to a restaurant but decided that since (a) the weather was still acting up and (b) there aren’t any interesting restaurants in Rawlins, we’d just cook dinner and stay in for the evening. Traveling in your home has its advantages.
We again rose early on Saturday and drove to Frederick, CO to the Transwest Truck, Trailer and RV shop for some motorhome service. We were supposed to have a new tailpipe extension installed, but the part they’d ordered was the wrong one. So we just had an oil and filter change and then headed south to some friend’s house for the evening.
Rob and Heather have been two of our closest friends for a number of years. They live in a beautiful home on an acreage near Elizabeth, with plenty of space to park our rig for the night. Another friend, Katy, dropped in and we enjoyed a nice dinner and evening with them. It’s great to see old friends and catch up on what’s been happening. Thanks for the hospitality, our friends!
On Sunday we traveled a short distance north to Cherry Creek State Park and settled into a nice RV spot in the Coyote loop. One of the cool things was watching Muffin as she recognized where she was. Shortly after arriving, she decided we were going to the lake. She took the lead and pulled me all the way there. The lake is low and a little grungy, but she enjoyed playing in the water anyway. She’s a happy pup when water is near.
We’re here for a week while we catch up with friends, visit doctors and dentists, and prepare for the rest of our journey. Next week we’ll travel to my son Mark’s house in Missouri, the first leg of a trip that will land us in Asheville, NC in a couple of weeks. But for now, we’ll just enjoy one of our favorite places on earth, Denver.
(Sorry for the photos—few and of poor quality. My camera somehow erased its SD card so I picked a few from our iPhones instead. Time for a new camera?)
Alan
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