After a couple days of driving we arrived at our next stop, Kerrville, Texas. We chose this place due to the fact it is centrally located to some of the sites we wanted to see. Our park is named By The River Rv Park, and is located on the banks of the Guadalupe River. This area of Texas we are in is called the “Hill Country” and is really quite beautiful. The area has nice tall trees, green grass and water, something Cindy and I have missed seeing the past few months.
We went to a town called Fredericksburg which is an old German Town. The town is a shopping haven for those of you that like antiques. Store after store of antiques and gifts to buy, and plenty of food along the way. We actually went over there to see some of the wildflower fields but they were not in full bloom yet, so we’ll try it in a week or two.
We have been keeping busy taking some day trips throughout the area and enjoying the countryside. We have also had our days of just doing nothing but sitting by the river, reading and watching wildlife. We did take our bikes out to a city park with trails and we found out just how out of shape we really are. But on the positive side we at least attempted to do some riding and actually enjoyed the day (the aches and pains came the next day).
Our plans are to be here for a few more weeks and we want to visit San Antonio, LBJ Ranch, Corpus Christi , Austin and some other scenic drives. After that we will be heading to Estes Park and settle into the wonderful Rockies and prepare for the summer. Until next time consider this “Happiness will never come to those who fail to appreciate what they already have”.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
Leaving Arizona
The winter months are over and spring is here. Cindy and I are spending our last 3 days here at Augies and are heading to Texas for a few weeks before our arrival in Estes Park, Colorado. This past couple of weeks we have enjoyed spending time with some of the people here in the park. We went to the Arizona Opry and had a meal and a show featuring John Denver. The man performing did a very good job of telling the life story and singing the songs recorded by John Denver.
We rode along with Larry and Evelyn and after doing some shopping they took us to Organ Pipe Pizza. It’s very hard to imagine what the place looked like just by seeing the pictures but it was a truly an amazing place. The organ and all of the attached pipes located throughout the building were installed at a cost of $1 million. The stage with the organ lowers into the floor when the organ is not being played and turns 180 degrees when it is being used.
DOUBLE CLICK PICTURE FOR FULL SCREEN!
We had the opportunity to ride in a parade being held in Gila Bend. John asked us if we wanted to take his 4-wheeler and join along for the fun. Talk about bringing back memories, this reminded us of all the times we were involved in the “Big” Little League Baseball parades from Sharpsville to the ball diamond. I think the whole town of Gila Bend turned out just like it seemed the whole town of Sharpsville did. We actually enjoyed watching the little kids running for the candy and filling up their bags ( reminds me of Dylan when Connor was in the parade).
As I stated in the first paragraph this is our final weekend at Augies. We would like to thank John and Donna for giving us the opportunity to come here and spend the winter. To all of the people we met while staying here we wish you the best that life has to offer, and for you to know we have been blessed to spend the winter months with you. Our travels will take us to the “Hill Country” of Texas for the next few weeks, and then we are heading to Estes Park the last week of April. Until then remember this ”Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anybody can start today and make a new end”
We rode along with Larry and Evelyn and after doing some shopping they took us to Organ Pipe Pizza. It’s very hard to imagine what the place looked like just by seeing the pictures but it was a truly an amazing place. The organ and all of the attached pipes located throughout the building were installed at a cost of $1 million. The stage with the organ lowers into the floor when the organ is not being played and turns 180 degrees when it is being used.
DOUBLE CLICK PICTURE FOR FULL SCREEN!
We had the opportunity to ride in a parade being held in Gila Bend. John asked us if we wanted to take his 4-wheeler and join along for the fun. Talk about bringing back memories, this reminded us of all the times we were involved in the “Big” Little League Baseball parades from Sharpsville to the ball diamond. I think the whole town of Gila Bend turned out just like it seemed the whole town of Sharpsville did. We actually enjoyed watching the little kids running for the candy and filling up their bags ( reminds me of Dylan when Connor was in the parade).
As I stated in the first paragraph this is our final weekend at Augies. We would like to thank John and Donna for giving us the opportunity to come here and spend the winter. To all of the people we met while staying here we wish you the best that life has to offer, and for you to know we have been blessed to spend the winter months with you. Our travels will take us to the “Hill Country” of Texas for the next few weeks, and then we are heading to Estes Park the last week of April. Until then remember this ”Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anybody can start today and make a new end”
Monday, March 8, 2010
Laughlin NV, Grand Canyon, Sedona
Well it’s the first week of March already and we’re getting anxious to hit the road for a few weeks before heading to Colorado. This past week Cindy and I took a few days and headed to Laughlin, Nevada. We had the chance to drive through Quartsite, Az but luckily nothing was going on. The reason I say this is because a month ago there were somewhere in the neighborhood of 150-200,000 RV’s camping in the desert around that town. People have told us from high up it looks like a sea of white (roofs of the rv’s) in the desert. Now for those of you who know me understand why we waited till it was over before traveling there ( I’m not into the BIG crowds).
The pictures of the London Bridge are actually the real London Bridge located in Lake Havasu . The family that owns the McCullough Brand of tools, actually bought the bridge, dismantled it piece by piece, and shipped it over here. The waterway you see under the bridge was man-made and branches off of the Colorado River. This is definitely a case of someone with too much money and nothing better to do with it than spend it on a bridge.
We spent the next couple of days in Laughlin, NV at the Riverside Hotel and Casino, the 1st hotel/casino built there, sightseeing and doing some hiking in the surrounding area. Our plans were to head to Vegas and see the Hoover Dam then maybe take in a show, but decided instead to go to the South Rim of Grand Canyon. The temps were a little cooler up there than what we have been accustomed to. Upon our arrival in the town of Williams we were greeted with temps in the high 30’s and snow on the ground. Actually it was kind of nice to see that white stuff again ( I know, you’re all tired of it) and it did make the views of the Canyon even more spectacular. We spent the night in Williams, a Route 66 town, one of many that is struggling to stay alive, and made plans to go to Sedona, Arizona the next day.
Wednesday we headed to Sedona to take in the beautiful red rock that is there and to do some hiking. The area surrounding the town itself is beautiful with all the red rock formations, it’s just the town in one big tourist trap. The average selling price for a home there during the first part of this year was over $500,000. Now trust me, these homes are not mansions, these are single family homes, that are selling for this price. We drove through the town (as fast as possible) which was about 15mph, and headed out away from the rat race to take in some beautiful scenery hiking. Back home to Gila Bend where the temps were 70+ to do some absolutely nothings.
The pictures of the London Bridge are actually the real London Bridge located in Lake Havasu . The family that owns the McCullough Brand of tools, actually bought the bridge, dismantled it piece by piece, and shipped it over here. The waterway you see under the bridge was man-made and branches off of the Colorado River. This is definitely a case of someone with too much money and nothing better to do with it than spend it on a bridge.
We spent the next couple of days in Laughlin, NV at the Riverside Hotel and Casino, the 1st hotel/casino built there, sightseeing and doing some hiking in the surrounding area. Our plans were to head to Vegas and see the Hoover Dam then maybe take in a show, but decided instead to go to the South Rim of Grand Canyon. The temps were a little cooler up there than what we have been accustomed to. Upon our arrival in the town of Williams we were greeted with temps in the high 30’s and snow on the ground. Actually it was kind of nice to see that white stuff again ( I know, you’re all tired of it) and it did make the views of the Canyon even more spectacular. We spent the night in Williams, a Route 66 town, one of many that is struggling to stay alive, and made plans to go to Sedona, Arizona the next day.
Wednesday we headed to Sedona to take in the beautiful red rock that is there and to do some hiking. The area surrounding the town itself is beautiful with all the red rock formations, it’s just the town in one big tourist trap. The average selling price for a home there during the first part of this year was over $500,000. Now trust me, these homes are not mansions, these are single family homes, that are selling for this price. We drove through the town (as fast as possible) which was about 15mph, and headed out away from the rat race to take in some beautiful scenery hiking. Back home to Gila Bend where the temps were 70+ to do some absolutely nothings.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Our Trip to Mexico
This past week that we were in Mexico was nothing short of spectacular! We arrived on Monday the 8th and returned on Sunday, 14th. If there were any setbacks we had it would have been the 2 hours it took to go through Customs upon our arrival. I believe everyone that were heading to Mexico arrived at 3:00 pm. It took us 2 hours to finally get through customs and board our shuttle to take us to Riviera Maya Resort. The time lost waiting in line at customs was made up by our van driver. I have taken the cabs in NY but our driver had to be an ex Formula One driver. I never knew a 2 lane road could actually be made into 3+ lanes.
We took Tuesday morning and visited Playa de Carmen, one of the hottest spots for shopping and night clubs in the area. For those of you that love to shop and take in beautiful beaches, this is the place to go. Street after street of shops and food vendors.
On Wednesday we headed out to see the Maya Ruins in the city of Tulum. It was a very rewarding trip to see the beauty of what is left of an ancient city dating back to around 1200-1500 A.D. It was a pretty awesome experience just standing in the center of it and visualizing the city filled with people. One of the things we found interesting was the fact of the height of the doorways. If you look at one of the pictures of an adobe where I'm standing, you realize the height of the citizens of Tulum.
The remaining of the week we just stayed around the resort and took life easy. I went snorkeling with Aaron and David one morning and had a great time ( although it does get one tired real easy). Cindy and I took a kayak out and went for a ride on a catamaran. Our day deep sea fishing trip was fun, even though we did not have much success (Laura caught one nice one), the water was really rough and did not have much sympathy on our stomachs.
The night of the wedding there just happen to be a beach party going on which we all felt we should contribute to. There was music, contest for the adults, try placing one hand on a ball, circle around it 5-6 times, then run backwards to the next person in line ( almost makes you feel like your drunk ) or doing the limbo ( good thing was if you lost you got a shot of Tequila poured into your mouth).
Our last night there we had the pleasure of seeing our son, David, go upon stage and compete in a "Perform like Michael Jackson contest". He did not win top prize ( but in all of our opinions he should have), he definatly has some moves when he is on the dance floor.
This trip would rate at the top of things that Cindy and I have been able to do, and were very fortunate to have the opportunity to spend it with Aaron, David, and our new daughter in-law Laura, along with her family.
We took Tuesday morning and visited Playa de Carmen, one of the hottest spots for shopping and night clubs in the area. For those of you that love to shop and take in beautiful beaches, this is the place to go. Street after street of shops and food vendors.
On Wednesday we headed out to see the Maya Ruins in the city of Tulum. It was a very rewarding trip to see the beauty of what is left of an ancient city dating back to around 1200-1500 A.D. It was a pretty awesome experience just standing in the center of it and visualizing the city filled with people. One of the things we found interesting was the fact of the height of the doorways. If you look at one of the pictures of an adobe where I'm standing, you realize the height of the citizens of Tulum.
The remaining of the week we just stayed around the resort and took life easy. I went snorkeling with Aaron and David one morning and had a great time ( although it does get one tired real easy). Cindy and I took a kayak out and went for a ride on a catamaran. Our day deep sea fishing trip was fun, even though we did not have much success (Laura caught one nice one), the water was really rough and did not have much sympathy on our stomachs.
The night of the wedding there just happen to be a beach party going on which we all felt we should contribute to. There was music, contest for the adults, try placing one hand on a ball, circle around it 5-6 times, then run backwards to the next person in line ( almost makes you feel like your drunk ) or doing the limbo ( good thing was if you lost you got a shot of Tequila poured into your mouth).
Our last night there we had the pleasure of seeing our son, David, go upon stage and compete in a "Perform like Michael Jackson contest". He did not win top prize ( but in all of our opinions he should have), he definatly has some moves when he is on the dance floor.
This trip would rate at the top of things that Cindy and I have been able to do, and were very fortunate to have the opportunity to spend it with Aaron, David, and our new daughter in-law Laura, along with her family.
The Wedding & Beach Party
Remember to double click slideshow for full size photos
Without boring you with every detail I'll let the pictures explain themselves. The only details I will give now was that it rained all day( off and on )and 45 minutes before the wedding they had to decide what to do, stay outside and hope for clear skies or go inside and have it in a building. They decided to stay with it outside and by the time the of the wedding NO RAIN and cloudy skies. The wedding was wonderful and the resort was having a Friday night beach party which turned out to be a perfect time for their reception. I can only say it was a night to remember ( or at leasst try to remember). For the rest of what we done I will post it later with more pictures.
Without boring you with every detail I'll let the pictures explain themselves. The only details I will give now was that it rained all day( off and on )and 45 minutes before the wedding they had to decide what to do, stay outside and hope for clear skies or go inside and have it in a building. They decided to stay with it outside and by the time the of the wedding NO RAIN and cloudy skies. The wedding was wonderful and the resort was having a Friday night beach party which turned out to be a perfect time for their reception. I can only say it was a night to remember ( or at leasst try to remember). For the rest of what we done I will post it later with more pictures.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Ajo (ah-ho, not A-hole)
The past couple of weeks Cindy and I have enjoyed visiting some of the area attractions. We headed down to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. The park sits in the lower part of Arizona south of Gila Bend and borders the Mexico border. Needless to say we stayed on this side of the border and chose not to visit Lukeville, Az., a border town. There are some towns on the border that one crosses and there are others where it’s just plain smart to stay away from, and Lukeville is one to stay away from.
We left the park and some hiking and headed to a town called Ajo( pronounced Ah-ho, not A-hole as some of us do.) The town was home to a very large copper mine, the mine itself is actually 1.5 miles across and employed over 1000 workers until shutting down in 1985. Ajo is a small town with a few restaurants, shopping and some mission buildings.
Ater leaving Ajo we headed back to Gila Bend and enjoyed just lying around in the 70’s degree temperatures. After closely watching the weather map I now know why people head to the southwest part of Arizona. While everyone ( including Florida was freezing ) we were enjoying the temps in the mid 70’s in the day and mid 40’s at night ( makes great sleeping weather).
Wednesday, Jan. 13th, we had an opportunity to go to the bombing range just south of us. Now I have not talked very much about the bombing range( in fear of worrying some of you at home) around here but I will try and fill you in on what it is. There is between 1 and 2 million acres of desert here that is owned by the govt. and used for every kind of training from all of the branches of the military. It is not uncommon for us to be sitting outside or in the camper and hear them dropping live bombs. Sometimes they drop the BIG ONES (someone said around 500-1000lbs) and you actually feel the after shock of it. We have also had the opportunity to hear the A-10 Wart Hogs use live ammo ( 30 mm) , it shoots 3900 rounds per minute, 50 rounds the first second and 60-70 rounds per second after that, so what we hear at the rv park is the sound from this huge gun being used. The sound we hear is nothing more than a loud zipppp to us. The day we went to the bombing range they had the F-16’s dropping dummy bombs and firing live ammo. It was quit the experience to be able to stand on the tower and watch them fly by where you could actually see the pilot and watch them shoot at the targets ( see pictures). The only disappointment was that the A-10’s were not out that day but we did get to see quit a show put on by the F-16’s. including some rocket fire at targets.
NEWS FLASH: we actually got rain here, the past 4 days, and cooler temps, so I guess we have experienced WINTER in Gila Bend.
We left the park and some hiking and headed to a town called Ajo( pronounced Ah-ho, not A-hole as some of us do.) The town was home to a very large copper mine, the mine itself is actually 1.5 miles across and employed over 1000 workers until shutting down in 1985. Ajo is a small town with a few restaurants, shopping and some mission buildings.
Ater leaving Ajo we headed back to Gila Bend and enjoyed just lying around in the 70’s degree temperatures. After closely watching the weather map I now know why people head to the southwest part of Arizona. While everyone ( including Florida was freezing ) we were enjoying the temps in the mid 70’s in the day and mid 40’s at night ( makes great sleeping weather).
Wednesday, Jan. 13th, we had an opportunity to go to the bombing range just south of us. Now I have not talked very much about the bombing range( in fear of worrying some of you at home) around here but I will try and fill you in on what it is. There is between 1 and 2 million acres of desert here that is owned by the govt. and used for every kind of training from all of the branches of the military. It is not uncommon for us to be sitting outside or in the camper and hear them dropping live bombs. Sometimes they drop the BIG ONES (someone said around 500-1000lbs) and you actually feel the after shock of it. We have also had the opportunity to hear the A-10 Wart Hogs use live ammo ( 30 mm) , it shoots 3900 rounds per minute, 50 rounds the first second and 60-70 rounds per second after that, so what we hear at the rv park is the sound from this huge gun being used. The sound we hear is nothing more than a loud zipppp to us. The day we went to the bombing range they had the F-16’s dropping dummy bombs and firing live ammo. It was quit the experience to be able to stand on the tower and watch them fly by where you could actually see the pilot and watch them shoot at the targets ( see pictures). The only disappointment was that the A-10’s were not out that day but we did get to see quit a show put on by the F-16’s. including some rocket fire at targets.
NEWS FLASH: we actually got rain here, the past 4 days, and cooler temps, so I guess we have experienced WINTER in Gila Bend.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Desert Living
Yes, Cindy and I are still alive and well, we just haven't posted anything for a while and people have let me know about it. I have to admit that we have been pretty much just hanging around the rv park and not doing very much sightseeing. Basically we have just been waiting for some people to arrive here. The place is starting to fill up and we are meeting and making several new friends. The pictures on the first slide show are from a State Park called, Painted Rock. The petroglyphs you see were made by the Indians that lived here.
We spent our first Christmas in the land of sunshine, the temps here were in the high 60’s and mid 40’s at night. I will have to admit it was totally different being here for the holidays, no snow, no cold temps, no family, very few Christmas decorations around, but on the positive side, it sure was nice to go outside in our tee shirts and soak in the sun. Randy and family came and visited us on the 28th and 29th and we were very excited to see them. The boys sure are growing up fast and getting bigger every time we see them. We enjoyed the time we got to spend with them and hope they enjoyed it as much as we did.
For those of you who we haven’t told, we will be spending our summer months in the beautiful state of Colorado. We have already lined up a place to be, Rockmount Cottages, in the Estes Park Area. This place is located just 2 miles from the entrance to the Rocky Mountain National Park, in Estes , Colorado. Those of you interested in seeing where we will be can type in www.rockmountcottages.com and explore what’s there.(click on the numbered cottages and see pics of the actual cottage) We’re excited about the area ( lots of 14,000 peaks there) and are looking forward to being there.
Cindy and I experienced our first today. We spent 7 hours riding ( in mid 70's) 4 wheelers in the desert with several other people. The man that owns the RV Park here let us use his 4 wheeler and we had a blast sightseeing in the desert. I now know why people like to be in the desert ( if you own a 4 wheeler). For those of you who know us and know how much we love the mountains, well today we had the chance to see the beauty in the desert. We found our winter home( you'll find it in the pictures) and I actually found a crystal nugget with several GOLD flakes in it and we both found several small flakes (NO BIG NUGGETS). We rode to an old copper mine and the picture of the thing that looks like an oven ( actually it is) is called a smelter, used to extract copper from other iron. CIndy even came home with a nice size copper nugget. Other than having to eat a lot of dust, the ride we took today was one of the highlights of the things we have been able to see and do since we left home back in April. In fact in might even come close to catching a 24 inch rainbow trout.
We’re looking forward to the coming months and have several things planned, the most important one being a trip to Cancun in February, to see Aaron and Laura exchange wedding vows. We are also planning a trip in the next few weeks to drive down to Mexico and take in the sights there ( and yes, we are going with someone that has done this before).Until next time remember this, “ Life is not about how many breaths you take, but about how many moments take your breath away”.
We spent our first Christmas in the land of sunshine, the temps here were in the high 60’s and mid 40’s at night. I will have to admit it was totally different being here for the holidays, no snow, no cold temps, no family, very few Christmas decorations around, but on the positive side, it sure was nice to go outside in our tee shirts and soak in the sun. Randy and family came and visited us on the 28th and 29th and we were very excited to see them. The boys sure are growing up fast and getting bigger every time we see them. We enjoyed the time we got to spend with them and hope they enjoyed it as much as we did.
For those of you who we haven’t told, we will be spending our summer months in the beautiful state of Colorado. We have already lined up a place to be, Rockmount Cottages, in the Estes Park Area. This place is located just 2 miles from the entrance to the Rocky Mountain National Park, in Estes , Colorado. Those of you interested in seeing where we will be can type in www.rockmountcottages.com and explore what’s there.(click on the numbered cottages and see pics of the actual cottage) We’re excited about the area ( lots of 14,000 peaks there) and are looking forward to being there.
Cindy and I experienced our first today. We spent 7 hours riding ( in mid 70's) 4 wheelers in the desert with several other people. The man that owns the RV Park here let us use his 4 wheeler and we had a blast sightseeing in the desert. I now know why people like to be in the desert ( if you own a 4 wheeler). For those of you who know us and know how much we love the mountains, well today we had the chance to see the beauty in the desert. We found our winter home( you'll find it in the pictures) and I actually found a crystal nugget with several GOLD flakes in it and we both found several small flakes (NO BIG NUGGETS). We rode to an old copper mine and the picture of the thing that looks like an oven ( actually it is) is called a smelter, used to extract copper from other iron. CIndy even came home with a nice size copper nugget. Other than having to eat a lot of dust, the ride we took today was one of the highlights of the things we have been able to see and do since we left home back in April. In fact in might even come close to catching a 24 inch rainbow trout.
We’re looking forward to the coming months and have several things planned, the most important one being a trip to Cancun in February, to see Aaron and Laura exchange wedding vows. We are also planning a trip in the next few weeks to drive down to Mexico and take in the sights there ( and yes, we are going with someone that has done this before).Until next time remember this, “ Life is not about how many breaths you take, but about how many moments take your breath away”.
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