Following Fall South in October

We are relocated to Lake Carlyle, Illinois.

The Valley Orchard was fun

15 Oct:  And another day dawned bright and cold.  Temperatures are finally where they should be this time of year.  We survived our hike on the "haunted trail" despite the slithering ghoul we had to pass in the cemetery.  Cynthia didn't like the coffee provided by the hotel machine, especially after she added cornbread mix to it from a bag of mine she found lying on the counter.  She usually knows not to mess with my stuff but apparently needed a reminder.

14 Oct:  We thought it was going to be extremely windy and cold for our ride to Carlyle, but the ride was actually quite pleasant although not warm.  Pam greeted us warmly when we arived at the Mariner's Village, another hotel where the managers treat us like family.  We shopped at the nearby Walmart for groceries and walked halfway across the dam to the spillways.  I was quite surprised to see that they are releasing quite a flow of water from the lake into the Kaskaskia River.   Cynthia is washing all traces of poison ivy out of her clothes.  We have no idea how and where she got it.  We remembered to send Ron's pacemaker data off to Medtronic using Cynthia's smartphone and a pacemaker device reader (aka magic).

13 Oct, Sunday:  We enjoyed a second day with sister Carol & Bill in their woods.  Ron walked to mud slide hill and saw Eric's new deer blind next to the ashes signifying an earlier burn pile and stack of firewood chopped from the tree on the neighboring property.  (Carol says the tree was on her property, walked a few steps over onto the neighbor's property and fell backward onto hers.)

12 Oct:  Carol & Bill will pick us up at 10 am, God willing, and take us out to the country to enjoy an 83 degree day.  We were all worn out, Ron from overeating oatmeal first thing, Cynthia from days on end of travel, Carol from her early morning schedule.  But Carol did fix us a great lunch of salmon, sweet potatoes and colorful mixed veggies.   Bill took Ron on a quick tour of the property, to the splitter shed to see the new firewood racks all dado jointed and sturdy, down mud slide hill to see the new bridge, and on the new path: "Carol's Lakeside view" with a magnificent view of the Mt. Olive Lake, now drained down to a swamp full of weeds.  Apparently it would cost the city over a million dollars to bring the deteriorating dam up to modern standards, so the lake is now drained.  No doubt someone on the city council will have a plan to enrich himself by selling development rights to someone, and then the city will repair the dam.

11 Oct:  We managed to get on the road at 10:30 and only stopped once to arrive in Litchfield at 2:30 in the afternoon and have Carol and Bill join us at Ruby Tuesday.  Much fun was had by all.  The fall colors were less frequent and less striking but were still very nice.  The most amazing part of today's ride was that the pavement was very smooth from start to finish.  That is so very unusual in Illinois, a state known far and wide for poor pavement.  US 218 into Keokuk, US 136 crossing the Mississippi on a bridge undergoing repair, 3 miles to a R on IL 96 S 28 mi (missed turn #1) to a L on US 24 (missed turn #2) for 3 mi to a R on I-172 for 20 miles continuing onto I-72 for 55 miles to a R on US 67 S just west of Jacksonville, about 4 miles to a left on Woodson-Winchester road 4 miles to a R on IL 267 S (which i recognize as Lawrence''s favorite) 22 mi to Greenville for gasoline and a L onto IL 108 which was surprisingly nice and newly repaved, 22 mi to a R in I-55 S in increasing winds 7 miles to Litchfield.

10 Oct:  We visited with cousins Ken and Marvin (& Doris) at noon at the Great Day Cafe in Keosauqua.  Unfortunately, we missed both Rex and Scott in the afternoon and left at 4:30.  We are spending the night in Keokuk and bought blueberries, raspberries and bananas to go with our oatmeal dinners.  Route wasn't great: US 63 S -> US 34 E, R on V43/ IA 16 E to R on IA 1 S which is much improved by grinding and replacing pavement joints.  Continuing IA 1 S from Keosauqua was again rough and lumpy to IA 2 which is not as smooth as previously to US 218 S to the Quality Inn in Keokuk.

9 Oct:  Our visit to Northwood was a success; we managed to spend two hours apiece with loved friends and family there.  We are heading south before snowfall and hope to see a few relatives in Keosauqua.  No worries about being too cold this year.  Fortunately the fall colors are beginning in each place we stay, and the colors were gorgeous as we rode south on I-35.  Route: I-35 S to I-80 E skirting Des Moines, R on US 65 S briefly to L on IA 163 S for miles to join US 63 S to Otumwa and IA 149 to the Quality Inn there.

8 Oct:  Breakfast with Dick & Jane at the Holiday Inn was again delightful.  It is nice to talk with people who share convictions and observations.  Ron rode into Northwood to pick up Annie's leftovers at Susan's Corner Cafe.  (We were lucky that no one else ate them.)  At 1:30 we rode to Kensett to see Danny, Deanna and Julie for delightful conversation and snacks (lefse !!).  At 3:30pm, we set off the exit alarms first and then visited Ann-n-Dale and their grandkids Cole and Bria.  They guided us into the nursing home next door to visit Cynthia's cousin Nelda.  Next stop was the cemetery to pay our respects to Cynthia's parents.  After parking within twenty feet of their graves, we wandered around for ten minutes looking for them.  Before leaving Northwood, we shared a foot-long veggie sub at Subway.  Next year we hope to visit Ray and Mary

All the kids at the playground in Wayzata, MN

7 Oct:  Ron called his cousins in Iowa and was lucky to talk to three of the four in Keosauqua.  Lunch with Annie and Dave, Ann-n-Dale was delightful and delicious as always.  Everyone actually looks better than a year ago, better health is such a blessing at our ages.  Annie is such a good cook that Ron was still too full to eat dinner with Dave and Pat in the evening.  We have to thank Ann-n-Dale for the ride to Annies so that Cynthia could enjoy seeing her friends without the embarrassment of hairdo by helmet.  Ron was quite disappointed to discover that no one had remembered to bring the leftovers that Annie had packed for us.  Pat is having back pain and nerve problems, Dave is older too, but we all enjoyed good conversation despite discomforts.  The biggest surprise is that Dave and Pat sold all their "rendevous" gear and are planning to do their camping in a tin can.

6 Oct, Sunday:  We had great fun visiting with Brett & Holden at breakfast before driving to Northwood.  We really missed Jen and Hudson, but they had to attend a birthday party.  Holden has a smile a mile deep.  Both of the boys were sad to see us go.  Hudson gave us huge hugs last night, and Holden hugged tight this morning.  Precious boys.  The wind was horrendous whipping us around for 2 and a half hours.  There aren't good restaurants in Northwood, so we ate popcorn for warmth and crunch, then shared a Subway filled with veggies.  We've seen lots of fall color in Minnesnowda.

5 Oct:  We relocated as early as possible (11:30) to another Country Inn closer to Brett, Jen, Hudson & Holden and then joined them at the Birches on the Lake for lunch, a Wayzata playground on a lake (see photo) for an hour and again at Gianni's for dinner.  We are now way too much overfull, but it was delicious.

4 Oct:  We enjoyed a nice 45-minute walk in the neighborhood around Neil Armstrong Elementary School.  Then, suddenly, it was time to shower and pack in order to check out and relocate to the Hampton Inn in Eagan, near the airport.  The ride N on US 10 to I-494 W to I-35E South one exit onto Lone Pine Road and the Hampton Inn was easy in light traffic.  We had great fun at dinner tonight (starting at 4:30) talking with Lance & Shelley, and Carolyn at Jensen's in Eagan, Minnesota.  We sat at a booth next to Shelley and across from Carolyn and Lance, so were able to converse in separate conversations: Ron & Carolyn versus Cynthia & Lance & Shelly.  Then we used the restroom and switched seats to switch conversational partners.  Now, at 8:33, Ron can get back to work on Cynthia's James Lea index, but he worked far too late, past midnight. 

3 Oct:  More indexing, more walking, more raspberries and almonds at ALDI.  Cynthia went walking the halls of the hotel without me, so I started ten minutes later and could not find her.  She left her phone in the room and hid in the fitness center on the treadmill. Cynthia treaded on the mill for thirty minutes, but the Apple Watch only recorded nine minutes as exercise because she only walked 2.5 MPH…not pushing fast enough to be considered exercise.  Sadly, Axel’s Restaurant closed permanently on 30 Sep, so Ron was forced to find an alternative and located a Jensen’s Restaurant that might be very good.  Donna is still suffering from a bad cold.  We walked outdoors twice totaling 5.38 miles, and we split a Subway whole wheat bun filled with veggies.   (15,101 steps) 

2 Oct:  More indexing, more walking (twice for 45 minutes each).  Donna didn't call today, so we assume that her cold is worser.  Let's hope she feels better tomorrow.  We baked our huge sweet potato in the microwave in the potato pocket that Elauth gave us, and it turned out perfectly.  This time we bought blueberries and raspberries at ALDI (again).

1 Oct:  We spent the day at the hotel since Donna's cold has gotten worse.  Her doctor prescribed medication, so we will see how she is tomorrow.  In between times, we did walk once to ALDI for a sweet potato and continued for a mile or two, and repeated the walk around the Neil Armstrong school before dark.  Ron spent the day working on the James Lea index and is ready to redo the text file to find more needed index entries.

14 Oct:  relocate to Mariner's Inn

15-25 Oct:  - see if we can finish index

20 Oct, Sunday:  Morning offering is due, Thanks be to God.

25 Oct:  SmoochSmooch departs for baby shower, wedding shower and/or Houston showers.

Fall Foliage in Vermont - September

30 Sep:  We did depart Wisconsin "early," 11:30 AM, and returned to the hotel in Cottage Grove that we liked last year.  Donna came over to join us for dinner at Applebys, which can prepare only broccoli and salmon for us, no baked potato, no rice, no bread, very unsatisfactory.  Ron walked to ALDI nearby for almonds, blueberries, raspberries and bananas; he forgot the spinach and sweet potatoes.  Our route was simplicity itself, I-94 forever into Minnesota, MN 95 south several miles, R on 70th Street to a traffic circle, L on Kent Street S to a R on 90th Street W to the hotel, 250 miles later.  Ron is now "free" for three days to work on that James Lea index.

29 Sep, Sunday:  We said our goodbyes to Stan & Raquel.  WOW, did they ever treat us good.  We rode left on Indian Trail to R on something to L on I-88 toll (pay on-line for 50% off) to R on I-39 N to US 20 E 1 mile to Valley Orchards to visit Spruce & Molly & family (Ada, Eve, and Otto) at an apple orchard in Rockford, IL.  A fun time was had by all.  Ron and Spruce regaled each other with reminiscences and stories.  Cynthia and Molly talked intently about who knows what.  The kids shot a bucket of apples via slingshot at targets, and Eve even shot an apple through the mouth of the target to win donuts.  After a couple of hours, it was time to get the kids home, so we said our goodbyes and rode north on I-39 to join I-90 into Wisconsin where we stopped for dinner in Madison at an IHOP and at a Comfort Inn for a night's sleep.

28 Sep:  We visited Raquel and Stan for the day.  It is quite unique for us to visit another couple, both of whom are genealogists.  Everyone took a nap in the afternoon except for Ron, who worked on his index.  We went to dinner at a new, ritzy Italian place that couldn't offer anything to fit Ron's diet, so he ate a plate of noodles and half of Cynthia's Norwegian trout (which was quite good).

27 Sep:  We enjoyed breakfast with Dave & Barb before packing and leaving Fort Wayne at 11:30 AM with a forecast of rain coming in an hour from the south anywhere along our route.  Our plan was to circumnavigate Chicago to Aurora, Illinois to visit Raquel and Stan  Despite the threat, we stayed dry and enjoyed the scenery, fields and occasional harvest activity..  Stan has lots and lots of interesting stories and an excellent memory (for his stories at least).  They fed us a delicious chicken, sweet potato and salad dinner.  Route was West Washington to West Jefferson -> US 24 (12 miles) to R on IN 114 a long way to join IN 14 through Rochester (where I expected rain but was not disappointed to stay dry) but there was a detour that took us north to IN 10 W until it crossed into Illinois and became a very rough road, IL 114 to Momene where we turned L on Second street and continued through Kankakee to a R on IL 102 that was a very nice road to Wilmington, IL, L on IL 53 briefly to R on Strip Mine Road, R on IL 129 onto I-55 N 20 miles to exit 257, L on US 30 4 mile to IL 59 N 10 miles that took forever, L on Aurora Road -> Indian Trail Road, L on Felton into Stonegate West, R on Havershire, 2nd R on Kingsley.  We were so happy to get off the bike and be done traveling for the day.

26 Sep:  We enjoyed a peaceful, quiet day at the Allen County Library (Indiana) with Barb and husband Dave.  They have certain traveled to a lot of places and have interesting tales to tell.  Since Ron had no research plan to follow, he didn't find anything important.

25 Sep:  We plan to leave somewhat early, ride all day through Ohio to Ft. Wayne, 230 miles.   Wow, Did we get wet.!!  We ran head on into a massive downpour or two or three on Ohio highway 3 southwest of Hudson, Ohio.  The rain started so quickly and came down so hard, that we didn't even have an opportunity to find a place to stop until after we were soaked through to the skin.  So, since we were so wet and the temperature was above 72 degrees, Ron decided to keep riding so that the wind would help evaporate all that water.  He was looking for a Shell station, but none appeared before the fuel gauge read only 10 miles left.  We stopped in Findlay at a Martin's grocery hoping to find a salad bar.  No such luck, but the greeter recommended Chick-fil-A for a good, big salad.  Bad recommendation, but we did get an inferior salad.  We arrived in Fort Wayne before dark and enjoyed a simple dinner of grilled salmon without any sides since the restaurant did not have rice or baked potatoes or steamed anything.  Route: Pekin Road west to L on OH 306 S fifteen miles to Streetsboro, R on Market Square to R on OH 303 W through Hudson twenty miles, L on OH 606 S eleven miles to R on OH 3 where the rain hit us like a hammer as we rode through Medina, OH and, rain-blinded, we missed US 42 S but still came to a R on US 224 forever, drying out a little bit more with each mile, stopping in Findley, OH for food, continuing to Van Wert, OH (146 mi), R on US 30 towards Fort Wayne (25 mi), straight on IN 930 towards downtown and our hotel.

24 Sep:  Walt says rain is forecast all day, so he took us to the renowned Cleveland Art Museum for the day.  It was wonderful; Cynthia really enjoyed seeing so much fine art (as I did also).  We walked and walked so far.  When we got back outside, the sunshine was very enticing, but that disappeared as Walter drove us home.  Pam cooked for us again this evening, salmon, brown rice, sweet potatoes and salad.  We are so happy that she is a VERY good cook. 

23 Sep:  We certainly slept soundly and long, not awakening until 8:30 AM.  Walt and Pam are busy with doctors appointments today, but they will have time to see us tomorrow.  It is drizzling, so we sat indoors all day working on the James Lea book.  The drizzle abated after noon, allowing Ron to rush out for groceries.  Walt and Pam invited us over in the evening for grilled chicken, quinoa, corn and salad.  (Pam is a very good cook.) 

22 Sep, Sunday:  Google maps said our selected route to Novelty, Ohio was 256 miles, and they were indeed beautiful miles with mostly good pavement.  We arrived at Walt & Pam's house just minutes ahead of Walt, a few more minutes ahead of Pam, and even a few more minutes ahead of Ben.  Everyone is tired from long days in the sun, so we all agreed to see each other later, like tomorrow.  Our route was full of turns, and we only got lost once.  US route 6 W to Smethport (93 miles), where we did not find a good restaurant, PA 59 W (44 miles) to Warren, PA, rejoining US 6 W (14 miles) to a L on PA 27 W (20 miles) to go straight onto the Enterprise/ Titusville Road (3.6 miles) to rejoin PA 27 W again (18 miles) to L on PA 173 S eight miles to a R on PA 285 five miles to an unmarked turn onto Adamsville Road (which was fairly bumpy but came to a T intersection that was unexpected - we crossed under I-79 as expected and wandered around on bumpy roads following the GPS for 20+ miles until we discovered Adamsville Road again and resumed our intended route) R on Liberty Street 1/2 mile to L on US 322 (43 miles) into Ohio to L on Auburn Road (3 miles) to a R on Pekin Road (3 miles) to Walt & Pam's.  A lovely day with surprising fall colors in several places.

21 Sep:  After heading west for 15 miles on old US 20, Ron missed the turn onto I-88, so instead we rode parallel to it on NY 7 for a dozen miles on a smooth road.  I-88 to Binghamton, NY (105 miles) and I-86 & Old US 17 W until Waverly (40 miles) when we dropped into Pennsylvania on US 220 S for about 15 miles to take old US 6 west.  Again the interstates were mostly smooth pavement with  a couple of 10-mile expansion joint lumps and bumps, but road work is underway to replace a couple of those sections.  Thirty-five miles later, we were nervously watching steel grey skies as we approached Mansfield, PA and decided to spend the night in the good Comfort Inn we found there.  Good thing too, color radar showed that it was raining just to the west.  The motorcycle is getting rained on now as I write this.

20 Sep:  Departure for Texas via New York, Ohio, Indiana, MN,  IA and Illinois.  Forty days on the bike?  We need exercise!  Well, we started at 3:30 PM after saying many goodbyes! and after Ron had pleasant success in the options market.  Instead of Binghamton, we are overnighting in Latham, NY. after a very lovely and comfortable ride on US highway 4 S 53 miles to L on NY 149 S for 12 miles to L on US 9 S a mile to I-87 S for 47 miles, a nice, easy 110 mile day on mostly good pavement.!  (I-87 had bumpy expansion joints for a couple of 10 mile stretches.)  Cynthia LOVED the hotel, especially the bed, soft enough to sink into, relax and sleep the night away.

19 Sep:  Our morning hike was again gorgeous; the trees are more colorful, fallen leave cover the trail, and we hiked quickly on our usual route to the top of the hill and back.  Cynthia took a HOT shower afterwards while Ron was fussing with recycling.  We ride up the montain to Cynthia's physical therapy appointment at 3:30.  Cynthia has got her box ready for final packing and shipping to Texas.  And she is learning to index.

18 Sep:  This is the take away from September in Vermont:  After two months in Vermont of conservative hiking due to her three torn tendons, Cynthia is trying to make up two months in twenty days.  This is what happens when she tries ro get everything done yesterday.  Cynthia is fatigued after longer and more industrious hikes, but happy to have those tendons healed.  We hiked to our favorite boulder and back in time for a 2:00 PM nail appointment.  Ron's last QQQ option sold while we were gone, so we are ready to do our final laundry here before packing those clothes and then eat dinner.  While Ron was finalizing travel plans, Ed Kellett did not respond to e-mails or phone calls, and Ron discovered an obituary; Ed died on 5 Sep, another excellent good friend gone.  (This is perhaps another way of defining time, by the passing of family and friends.).  Cynthia is going to miss Ed’s calls to Ron.

17 Sep:  And today we hiked to our favorite boulder atop the hill and down to the second turnaround spot, then returned.  Ron is feeling quite energetic and lively; Cynthia is exhausted.  Ron suddenly realizes that he hasn't updated the blog for two weeks, and with his memory like it is, those two weeks are lost forever.  He has been working diligently to clean up his "Google Drive," to document Oke's life (a potential best seller), to index the Lea books, and to recycle everything possible.  Suddenly it is time to pack everything besides all of the above.

16 Sep:  Physical therapy is cancelled.  We hiked Kent Pond to the big boulder.  Ron is trying to teach Cynthia about creating an index.  She is falling asleep.  It is easier to teach her when she is sleeping; she makes fewer mistakes.

15 Sep, Sunday:  Cynthia slept twelve hours!  Ron’s attempt to back up his new Mac to the time machine failed.  We hiked to the big boulder to see a cute little white fuzzy catapiller trying to hike up Ron's pant leg.  Then, back at the first stream, we witnessed a turtle (maybe a snapping turtle) big as a dinner plate with a head the size of a tennis ball.  Ron is attempting to teach  Cynthia about creating an index.  She prefers eating.  Ron's time machine backup refused to work despite trying several suggested fixes, but the fix that worked was credited to ChatGPT.  HA.

14 Sep:  We are in progress of creating a place name index to the Lea book, Volume I.  Our hike to the stone steps was exhausting.

13 Sep:  Cynthia wanted to reach Thundering Falls, so we rode the motorcycle to River Road and hiked to the falls, then up the steep climb to the big boulder and back to Thundering Falls Brook Road and River Road, walking to the motorcycle by road.  Cynthia was exhausted but pleased.

12 Sep:  Temps are warming up in the mountains!  Ron wants to hike early.  LOL  It is the same time either of us gets ready to hike… noon.  The problem is that Ron asks Cynthia when are we going hiking.  She replies, as soon as I finish my coffee.  She finishes her coffee, changes clothes and shoes and she is ready - but doesn't say so and starts looking at her iPad.  Ron, meanwhile is doing whatever he does while waiting for her.  So Ron is waiting for Cynthia whle Cynthia is waiting for Ron.  And we both prefer to stay busy, so when Ron eventually says when will you be ready, Cynthia replies that she has been ready for an hour already.  Ain't love grand !!

11 Sep:  We had a fabulous hike to the stone steps… another closed ring wonder.  The markets had good news

10 Sep:  We hiked to the big boulder!  Cynthia is learning about creating an index.  With her at the helm of indexing, it will be another two years before we get the books to the publisher. 

9 Sep:  Monday Physical Therapy after we hiked to the big boulder.  Ron updated Oke's story and decided that Cynthia could help with the index for her Lea books to speed things up to her satisfaction.

8 Sep, Sunday:  After breakfast, Cynthia was cold (49 degrees) and feels beat up, so we went to bed for a nap instead of out the door for a hike.  By the time we awakened, the forecast called for showers soon.  We had a day off.!!  Ron began cleaning old files from his Google Drive, updated the QQQ spreadsheet and did Sudokus. 

7 Sep:  We hiked Kent Pond ... carefully so as not to cause body ACHES.  We are guessing that this was the day we met a lovely couple through hikers who flipped to summit Kithadin and are now again northbound to finish after crossing the Kennebec River Ferry, Sundshine and Scarecrow, now as a couple Sunny & Scare.

6 Sep:   We did it!  We hiked to the ski run!!!  Amazing after so many torn tendons and so much pain!!!!  Yay.  It was only five miles but a lot of elevation gain,  Good for us!!!

5 Sep:  Cynthia organized stuff to get shipped home to Texas and arranged appointments for that first week back in Texas.  She arrives the 25th of Oct; Kiira's baby shower is scheduled for the 26th. Cynthia doesn't want to leave Vermont, a hiker's paradise, well, except in two weeks it will be cold!

4 Sep:  As we head inexorably towards our likely departure date of Sep 20, Ron took the first bit of recycling out and is mending socks now.  Oke's book is due for an update before Ron forgets everything Oke told him.  Most important is to go hiking after Cynthia awakens from a necessary morning nap.  If Ron gets pills done and sock mended, perhaps he will leave a note and hike up the Sherborne Pass Trail until Cynthia phones him. 

3 Sep:  Up and exercised, fed and ready to go hiking.  The temp of 60 degrees was perfect, the sun just warm enough, thank you, God!  Big day ahead with trip to Rutland for shoe repair and Post Office mailings.  Ron is busy mending a jacket while waiting for Cynthia to finish coffee.  Shoes should be ready by the 10th, excellent.  Postcards and check mailed, Great.  Hike was very pleasant, and Cynthia's back and feet complained less than usual recently.

2 Sep: We had a lovely day hiking after the sky stopped spitting on us. Ron finished sawing a maple tree across the AT Trail entrance at Kent Pond. A tree branch swatted him across the eye but he is fine. After dinner we showered and fell asleep!  

1 Sep, Sunday:  26 years have passed since Scott died from leukemia.  It seems like a moment ago.  Cynthia’s heart hurts like it was yesterday, but she is thankful for the memories.  We have been noticing more and more reds and yellows in the leaves underfoot as we hike, and a couple of the roadside trees have turned brilliant.  Fall is falling.  We enjoyed a "short" hike of 2 miles each way, taking it easier on our bodies for a second day.  Oke stopped by again with more materials (homework) for Ron to help "flesh out" his biography.

August in Vermont

Photo credits: Carolina Sunshine

31 Aug:  The last day of August in Vermont, and the forecast has turned better for us hikers with little chance of rain until after dark.  We will let you know how it went, but first, Cynthia went back to bed to see if she could get back to sleep after awakening at 4 am.  Ron completed a second draft of the index. 454 pages in Volume One!  We never got out of doors today, but a day of rest is necessary every once in a while for us old folks.  (Me, not Cynthia.)

log rolling with LoMein

30 Aug:  And another day dawns bright and beautiful.  We got to bed early and slept well, so we were full of energy and ready to hike.  Here we are home again after a vigorous hike, over 14,000 steps.  It was delightful to meet Chef Reggie on the trail; he was mushroom hunting, one of our favorite cooks here.  Then we had a delightful visit with a hiker from Wyoming with the trail name SideQuest.  Ron clipped overhanging branches along the way and sawed a huge log laying across the trail.  Thankfully, a strong hiker named LoMein happened along and offered to help finish the sawing.  He and Ron shoved and rolled the log off the path.  Ron has a major job redoing the index.  Bummer.  Cynthia was hopeful it could get to the publisher by the time we leave Vermont on 20 Sept.  The good thing about leaving will be having decent wifi!

29 Aug:  Unfortunately Cynthia's hip gave her significant pain when she rolled over in the night.  It got quickly better as she walked to breakfast, and we had a great hike before her physical therapy at 3:30 PM.  Then we rode to the pharmacy for a prescription refill and back to the Inn ASAP for FOOD.  Ron continues working on the James Lea index; lots to do.

28 Aug:  We extended our hike today past the ski run and third turn-around to the stone steps.  So far we seem to have survived without undo discomfort, but the real test comes if we sleep well tonight.  Ron discovered several flaws in his index and hopse to be able to rectify them "easily." Our new hiker friend had dinner with us tonight.  

27 Aug:  I love my wife, and I get points for first written I love you of tomorrow.  We got out for a good hike today around Kent Pond, up to the big rock and down to the ski trail.  That was enough for today, and we met a delightful hiker named No Shit, who has flip flopped and is now southbound with 1400 miles done and "only" 800 "easy" miles left.  Ron sent a new draft of Oke's life to him.

26 Aug:  And just when we were preparing for a hike, the rain came down fiercely.  It then rained a second time just before Oke showed up with more artifacts for his long life story.  (Ron expects the book to be a best selling classic American novel.)  That second rain ended just in time for us to ride dry all the way to Cynthia's physical therapy.  Ron is  delighted to have a rough draft of the index in the book now, so it is time to work again on Oke's life story, typing for a couple of hours before bed.

25 Aug, Sunday:  Surprise!  We awoke early and amazed the staff at the inn when we showed up for breakfast at 7:40. Then we fell asleep after breakfast!  Ron is working on the Index for the Lea book using a VI editor.  It is going well. After the index he will look carefully for errors, double check page numbers, order the copyrights and ten Library of Congress numbers. The DNA study will be a separate book, but it is already written. The appendices will be a separate book, but it is already written. Cynthia is elated. Oke stopped to visit this afternoon so we did not hike.

Ron, Cynthia and salads

24 Aug: Sat: Cynthia slept ten hours and declared she is rested!  Indeed she is rested and the torn tendons seem to be healed; she is exuberant!  Yaaay!  At 68 degrees, the day is gorgeous, the sun is shining and we hiked four miles. It was fun to shower and clean up!

23 Aug:  We slept in longer than expected and were rousted from bed by a phone call from Jan asking us to come to breakfast at 8:30.  We enjoyed tremendously our lively conversation with Jan, Dorothy and Donna.  What a fun bunch of people.!!  At noon we went for our usual hike across the stream to the big rock a the top of the hill before rushing off to Cynthia's manicure and pedicure appointment.  After five sudokus while waiting, Ron sneaked out to ALDI for groceries.  We lived life on the wild side this evening and had toasted soda bread for appetizer and dessert.  The scripts for the index are proceeding exceptionally well.  (I am so proud of you! by CF)

22 Aug:  Ron spent the morning absorbed in computer programming with the Vi editor to create an index for the James Lea book.  Initial results look interesting.  Then at 1 pm we rode to Kent Pond and walked as far as the little stream, still just a tiny bit too high to cross comfortably.  So we walked across the dam and made it to physical therapy just three minutes late.  Jan and Dorothy and sister Donna are due to arrive before midnight after a long day supervising movers.

21 Aug:  24,000 mile service scheduled with MaxBMW in NY.  The ride wasn't bad at 3:30 am; no cars passed me for the first hour, but I only went a little over 30 miles in that hour because of darkness and rain from the Inn to Rutland and wet roads for the next thirty miles.  I arrived at Max BMW about 6:30 and met the owner, Ben, who was there early and still has a tremendous passion for BMW motorcycles.

Queen Anne's Lace

Glodenrod

Ron wearing gloves for Cynthia

20 Aug:  The temperature drops today.  Brrr!  We hiked at noon.  Despite cold, wind and mud on the trail, we had an excellent hike.  The small waterfall was full of rushing water.  Goldenrod and Queen Anne’s Lace made a lovely photo.   It is amazing that Cynthia's tendons are healed and her hip pain is gone so quickly.  We met another couple of couples hiking, Chuck & ?, Steve & ??, and enjoyed a very nice conversation over dinner.  The page numbers are in the book and it awaits the index.  Ron rode to Rutland for groceries.  

19 Aug:  Monday… Cynthia has physical therapy at 2:45.  This morning while sitting up in bed at 8:45 am, Ron experienced sudden, intense dizziness for thirty seconds followed by a sudden sweat for two minutes, exactly the same sort of symptoms from his first episode of Afib in 2015.  Cynthia got on the ball and wrote to our doctor and Ron's cardiologist.  Cynthia's Apple watch can and did take an ECG that shows normal sinus rhythm.  All is well.  We made it to Cynthia's PT appointment but a downpour ensued delaying our departure for 45/minutes.  

18 Aug, Sunday:  Again we slept well and are delighted to be feeling better rested.  Cynthia is marveling that she has no pains after walking as opposed to severe pains after sitting.  We will not be walking this morning in the drizzle and rain, but it is supposed to go away at noon, so we should get in another good walk since the rain isn't sufficient to make the creeks rise.  Oke visited us again with more momentos of his earlier life.  After his visit, the rain finally stopped after it had intensified enough to raise water levels.  Ron was falling asleep working on James Lea, so we took a nap.  Eric made us another great dinner of salmon, sweet potatoes and veggies.  Life is good.   

17 Aug:  Fortunately Cynthia slept well last night despite the excessive exercise.  Ron did not.  Even when he felt himself to be comfortable, he still couldn't fall asleep for a long time.  Fortunately we got to bed early, so we spent 11 hours in bed.  A light shower passed at noon, and we went hiking soon after, hiked to the big rock, and decided that was good enough after yesterday.  Ron is still making cosmetic changes to the James Lea manuscript; we both hope it will be finished soon.

16 Aug:  Ron is betting that Cynthia will take a nap this afternoon after our daily hike.  (Ron lost his bet although she did fall asleep on the heating pad ;on the couch for fifteen minutes before dinner.)  And our hike was the most difficult since Cynthia's injuries started complaining on day three here in Vermont.  We hiked past both of our earlier turn-arounds to the rock stairs fairly close to the road above Thundering Falls.  Cynthia's watch probably knows the distance (4.91 miles, close to closing all three rings).  Because of our poor sleeping recently, neither of us felt very energetic, and we were very tired afterwards.

15 Aug:  We left first thing in the morning to get Cynthia into town for her haircut appointment.  She liked her new stylist and style.  Then we have to leave last thing before dinner to get her to physical therapy.  In between we stopped for the first time this year at Sugar and Spice for egg white veggie omelets and pancakes.  Then Cynthia decided to try a scoop of their maple ice cream.  Consequently we were not very hungry at dinner time.  We haven't been sleeping well, and we are tired little puppies.  Ron slept much better this evening, but back and leg pains are still disturbing Cynthia's sleep.

14 Aug:  We awakened early despite not getting to sleep early.  Consequently Ron was dragging a bit on our ususal hike plus a little bit extra.  Now it is time for him to shower and nap.  And a good time was had by all.

13 Aug:  After breakfast, Ron finished the jigsaw puzzle because someone else had done a great job putting in lotsa pieces.  Then we chatted with a delightful hiker from Charleston, SC named Carolina Sunshine.  She spent the night at Pico shelter with a group of a dozen giggly girl scouts and drank eight cups of coffee at breakfast to offset the accompanying lack of sleep.  After noon, Ron & Cynthia rode down to Kent Pond and walked to the usual lawn chairs on the dock.  Imagine our surprise when Carolina Sunshine walked out on the dock to visit with us again.  She had hiked downhill from the Inn to the Gifford Woods State Park and learned that she could indulge in a fifiteen-minute shower for $1 in quarters.  She was so happy that she was dancing and singing in the shower, and we were happy to see her again, even if she was clean.  She took the precious photo of us holding hands sitting on the dock!!!  She is indeed Sunshine!  After dinner Ron to rode into town for groceries, esp. bananas, blueberries, yogurt and frozen mango, but on the way, exiting the parking lot, he stopped abruptly and dropped the bike, because the pavement is slanted downhill significantly there.  He had to ask for help at the pub to get another three guys help him right the bike before he left the parking lot.  Amazingly there is not even a scratch on the bike to commemorate the mishap, although Ron's hip is extremely tender in one spot. 

12 Aug:  Sixteen years ago Ron and Cynthia were going to do a thirty-day research trip together, but they had so much fun that they haven't stopped.  They fell in lust and got married.  Ron worked on a jigsaw puzzle this morning, and Cynthia had an eventful morning phone call from the author of Mocking Justice and learned that a documentary is in progress to tell Barefoot Oke's life story.  Cynthia had physical therapy early at 1:15, and it sprinkled on our ride home, and then the sun came out and it sprinkled some more.  We extended our stay until the first of October.  

11 Aug, Sunday:  Gorgeous weather!  A great hike!  We barely made it across the stream.  That was crazy!  Ron has been working on a mental outline for Oke's biography in the mornings when he wakes up early.

10 Aug:  Our hike was short because the stream was too high to cross on dry rocks.  The weather forecast is fabulous for the next ten days with high sixties and low seventies.  Oke visited us again with more notebooks from his colorful life.  Two-year-old great-grandson Holden broke his femur on a playground in Minnesota.  A cast will suffice, surgery is not needed.  The best news of the day is that Ron gets to start at page one again renumbering the pages.  The James Lea book will be three volumes with two of them about 400 pages apiece.  If all goes well with renumbering we will hope the index goes well, too!  Cynthia figured out the cover design for all three volumes, done identically using the deposition line: "I married the Bankston daughter" and the James Lea signature.

Cynthia can make shoes muddy

9 Aug:  After breakfast this morning, Oke dropped in to say hi.  It was great to see him.  Since the forecast had been for a lot of rain (shades of Debby), Ron took advantage of a break in the rain to ride into Rutland for groceries.  After lunch, Ron started in on the jigsaw puzzle, and Cynthia decided that this is almost a perfect day for hiking at 66 degrees with an overcast sky.  The wind is blowing, which Cynthia thought might dry the mud on the trail, so she succumbed to temptation, and hiked fifty minutes up the Sherburne Pass Trail in lotsa mud.  Cynthia was so pleased and thankful to have hiked alone to the first sitting tree (3/4 mile, halfway to the sinkholes).  It is a challenging trail.  Of course, our readers know exactly where the sinkholes are!  The trail is blue blazed, and under those blue blazes on the trees are 100-year-old white blazes; this is an original route of Appalachian Trail.  Cynthia's new hiking shoes are broken in, wet and mud-covered.  Cynthia hiked alone because she stuck her nose into the Inn where Ron was working away at the jigsaw puzzle and announced that she was going for a walk - - - without bothering to listen to Ron's inquiry whether she wanted to go down to hike at Kent Pond, our usual.  So Ron followed her up on an outstandingly muddy trail.  After dinner, the rain came down in sheets, as forecast.

Cynthia selfie, lake in background

8 Aug:  Another beautiful day for our great "morning" hike, the usual at Kent Pond with an extra walk across the dam, thanks to the overcast, cooler conditions.  Cynthia took a selfie while we relaxed on wooden lawn chairs at the end of a short pier in the lake.  Today's high was 72, and we rode to Cynthia's biweekly physical therapy despite threat of rain.  While there a brief shower passed by at 3:30 PM, so we were not terribly surprised to run into that same shower as we rode eastward downhill returning to the Inn.  We got soaked and the temperature dropped significantly.  After dinner Ron commenced on the jigsaw puzzle until 10:30 PM, during which time, Cynthia fell asleep on the heating pad wrapped in a blanket.

7 Aug:  Sunshine, a hike at Kent Pond, and the Lea book is close to completion.  Ever-hopeful, Cynthia hopes we get it off to the publisher by the end of August.  On the other hand, Ron was excited to find that someone had spread out another jigsaw puzzle and put the entire edge together.   

6 Aug:  We were delighted to see Jan and Dorothy, especially since they arrived with Cynthia's left-behind clothing in hand.  They enjoyed lunch at McGrath's and then left immediately to drive to Burlington to help Dorothy's sister pack and move.  (Their car is full of bags of newspapers that they had used for their own move, just completed into Marlborough, Massachusetts.)  Now we are preparing for another hike but, since the weather forecast turned sour and uncooperative, we napped!!!

Ron crosing stream, a daily event

5 Aug:  Fabulous day, great hike! 

4 Aug, Sunday:  Unfortunately we did not sleep well last night despite getting to bed early.  Nonetheless, we are up, breakfasted and enjoyed a lovely hike after the forecast showers departed the area.  We hiked a little further than usual rehab distance and added more distance by walking across the Kent Pond dam. 

3 Aug:  is forecast to be a rainy day all day, but instead we had a dry day, so we hiked our usual rehab route along Kent Pond in the early afternoon.  Renumbering and cosmetics not only continue for James Lea, but have expanded far beyond the original scope.    

2 Aug:  We slept very well last night and plan to continue our new sleeping positions and hiking without hills.  (Yes, it is Vermont, but we can walk along Kent Pond.)  After breakfast, Ron indulged in another hour of jigsaw and another hour at noon, and another hour at dark; sadly there are only 20 pieces left.  We did enjoy another walk along Kent Pond, but didn't walk again in the evening because Ron rode into town for groceries after dinner.  Renumbering P## continues and cosmetic changes continue too.

1 Aug:  We slept well last night and awakened feeling somewhat better than all last week.  Oh goodie,someone started a jigsaw puzzle and abandoned it.  Cynthia had much less hip pain today, thank God, and we went for a nice short walk along Kent Pond (to avoid stressing the glutes with uphills).  Ron was considering an after dinner hike when the rains came and canceled that thought.  He enjoyed doing the jigsaw puzzle for an hour before returning to James Lea, making those cosmetic changes and beginning the renumbering all of his P## page number references. (Fooey)

Birthday month in Vermont: Eighteen Again and Again

Ron enjoying sunshine at Kent Pond

31 Jul:  Another good day, but we were quite lazy and only walked a tiny bit on level ground before the rains came about 2 PM.  Ron has been very busy with James Lea and is now finding P## references to change into page numbers.  Never mind that he is seeing reason to make cosmetic changes that will change the page numbers.   

30 Jul:  And we are up, dressed and ready for breakfast at 7:15 in order to get Cynthia to the doctor by 8:15 to learn what the MRI said about her hip pains.  Dr. Gammons is really good; he said my sweetie is just wearing herself out.  The new hip pain is another torn tendon, this one on the gluteus maximus, and as long as the pain doesn't get any worse, things are healing as well as can be expected.  We did our grocery shopping but forgot to get a couple of critical items (yogurt).  Neither of us slept well last night, and we were falling asleep, so we took a nice, long nap.  Cynthia wrote:  I had a pelvis MRI on Friday and met with the ortho specialist in Vermont.  They are internationally renowned for sports medicine. The major problem is the date on my birth certificate.  And they cannot fix it.  The hip tendons above the piriformis are torn on the left side and starting to tear (threads) on the right side.  The tendons wear out.  Because they tore due to overuse, they will sort of heal.  The tendons are thin, like tissue paper and stick to the piriformis muscle that sits directly under it and on top of the sciatic nerve.  When I rise from sitting the sticky stuff adheres to the piriformis and the sciatica nerve below the piriformis muscle.  The dr said I am doing all of the right things.  The tendons won’t heal, but they will get bigger and stronger.  Injections do not help, and I don’t want pain meds.  It may take a year.  Ron went out to talk with a couple of hikers this evening, Yard Bird and Penobscot.  Yesterday's excitement was talking with White Lightning, who started the 9th of May and has covered 1700 miles in 73 days, 23 1/4 miles per day, every day on average..

29 Jul:  Immediately after finishing breakfast, we hustled down to the Post Office to retrieve the medications Cynthia had requested via USPS, which does not deliver to the Inn.  Ron then checked QQQ and decided to eat some frozen mango before hiking to the ski run again, except hiking uphill is much harder than he thought, so he only made it to the sink holes and decided that was good for today.  Last year he hiked to the sinkholes in a mere 36 minutes versus the 50 minutes today.   

28 Jul, Sunday:  And another beautiful day, but it is unclear just how much hiking we will do since Ron's knee and thumb joint are slightly less well than yesterday morning.  It is Sunday, a day of rest.  We rested the afternoon away!   Thanks to Kamie B. Cynthia pulled on the back brace she received at Winchester Hospital and that is helping!  

27 Jul:  Pain eventually brings Pollyanna down to earth.  Cynthia is lying beneath her new heating pad, trying to warm herself back up to her normally ebullient self.  Ron is about to head out the door and up the hill, having dispatched the final message about our Sprague ancestors.  Boy, oh boy, did Ron overdo the hiking today, but fortunately Tyler and Lydia provided conversational incentive for him to hike downhill without thinking.  After dinner at the Inn, Ron spent a pleasant 20 minutes outdoors talking with Post-it and Amber before they needed to check the laundry.  Post-it started the 19th of March in Springer.  Amber stayed at home in Pennsylvania but came up to the Inn to provide support.

26 Jul:  Another successful day of sitting around doing genealogy.  We did take Cynthia to the hospital for an MRI to see if there is some reason for the intense pain she experiences when arising from a sitting position.  We bought a heating pad and an electrolytic drink to see if either of those might help.  Today went quite well, so we are encouraged.

25 Jul:  Today we met Canadians at breakfast.  They had just finished hiking 100 miles of the Long Trail, especially 11-year-old Geneva and her mother Momma Bear.  Kate is getting ready to ride a motorcycle from Nova Scotia to British Columbia to attend Simon Frazer University,  Drat, we sat inside all day again today until time to leave for physical therapy.  Ron learned yesterday not to go for a long hike at 7 PM, so this may be another day of rest.  Physical therapy at 3:30 PM was wonderful and left Cynthia feeling much better.  Heat seems to be really, really helpful.  

24 Jul:  Rain is forecast to begin at 2:38, so Ron is going to repeat his hike to the sinkhole, hoping for a better outcome today.  QQQ bets are in, so it is best to get outta here and not obsess.  Cynthia is still hesitant, being exhausted from recurrant pain. The MRI is scheduled for Friday afternoon. Results next week.  Ron went for a hike too late; he had forgotten that the days are getting shorter now.  But at least he met a couple of nice guys hiking, Hot Dog, hiking the Long Trail, and Yard Sale, an AT thru hiker who started in June and carries an unbelievably small pack and no sleeping bag.

23 Jul:  We had great hopes for a good nights sleep, but it didn't happen.  Our injuries are still interfering with our abilities to return to sleep after awakening in the early morning.  Regardless, we continue to thank God for our lovely life together.  Rain, rain, rain. for the next three days is the forecast.  The sun broke through, so Ron hiked to the sink holes, despite a couple of very brief, light sprinkles.  On the way back, Ron was threading his way down through tricky wet rocks when his foot caught on something and he fell headfirst, bruising his right palm and wedging his body upside down between the rocks.  The worst damage appears to be a muddy right shoulder and hip.  Nothing is broken, nothing torn, nothing bloody, and maybe nothing is bruised.  We won't know for sure until morning.

22 Jul:  We got out for our usual walk to the big rock and back.  Cynthia's physical therapist, Shannon, gave her a great massage and heat treatment that provided welcome relief.  Shannon agreed that this may be a knot in Cynthia's piriformis muscle.  Ron rode into town for groceries and returrned barely before dark.

21 Jul, Sunday:  We woke up and usual and thank God as usual, ate breakfast as usual, and Ron went back to bed, having not slept well through the night.  He re-awakened at 2 pm.  It is another lazy day.  It was great fun to have breakfast with BitterGoat!  Too much fun that BitterGoat has met Starfish, Cynthia's Facebook friend from 12 years ago, 22 Jul 2012.  Cynthia could not hear well because of background music and loud conversation at a large table, but she was delighted with a flash of understanding what BitterGoat meant by Nothing!  

20 Jul:  Cynthia rested, trying to avoid her recurrent pain in the hips.  Ron wonders if that could be a muscle cramping.  Ron hiked up the Sherborne Pass Trail long enough to discover that he has gotten much older recently.  It was a hard go just to get to Cynthia's first "sitting rock."  He also tried to do a little trail maintenance and discovered that he is entirely out of shape for using a hoe.  Stay tuned; we will document any "progress" to be found.  Cynthia’s goal post-publication of James Lea is HEALTHY AND FIT.  No more sitting   Based on Greg's recommendation, we went to the pub this evening and stayed until closing listening to a delightful band, Kilashandra (click here) playing their own songs.  The only other couple left at the bar at closing was another female pastor, Hannah, and her husband.

19 Jul:  The Republican National Convention looked more like a Trump rally on steroids.  It was great fun to wathch all the hoopla.  Cynthia continues to stand on point, twinkle toes, to get her muscles back into place for pain free walking.  She's finished her second cup of coffee, and we are about to head out the door and onto the trails.  We hiked around Kent Pond and up the hill to the big rock and beyond ... to the "new" stone steps just before the next "road" crossing, a new personal best for this year.   4.90 Miles. All three rings closed 

18 Jul:  We got up and out early enough to get acroos the stream and to the big rock again, but there Cynthia determined that we needed to return so that she could get a shower before a physical therapy session.  Shannon was also puzzled that Cynthia's twinkle toes posture could reset her hips so that the pain goes away.   Ron continues working on James Lea appendices when not shuttling Cynthia hither and thither.  Oh, yes, and we enjoyed a delicious dinner of salmon at Choices.  Cynthia made it through the entire day without the intense pain that has afflicted her for at least two weeks now.The moon was beautiful, too. 

17 Jul:  Another day in the birthday month.  We will get off our duffs and go hiking today.  We will find suitable food.  We will NOT sit all day again.  And indeed, we hiked over the hills and through the woods, across the stream to the big rock.  Then we decided to err on the side of caution and returned in time to ride home on the motorcycle in the rain, stopped at the pub for salads and a Magners, and returned to our usual couch potato positions absorbed in electronics devices.

16 Jul:  HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my beloved.  I'll keep you, even with all these injuries and medical appointments.   We did absolutely nothing energetic today.  We didn't even go out for food.  Maybe we will celebrate Cynthia's birthday tomorrow with more activity.  Ron spent the day working on another James Lea appendix, now that he has discovered a better way to make smaller files.

15 Jul:  And today we took Cynthia up Killington to rehab.  It is still too early to trade her in on next years model.  Shannon found a tight piriformis and is of the opinion that there might be a tear there that is healing.  No hiking today because she has a pedicure and manicure this afternoon.  The big revelation today is that Cynthia can entirely eliminate the pain by standing on her tippy toes.  Amazing but true.   

14 Jul, Sunday:  Another day, another hike to the big rock and back.  Seems likely that this was the day we encountered our favorite trail maintainer, Charley.  Great to see that he is still lookin healthy and fit.  Cynthia is napping this afternoon after struggling with her hip pain today.  Ron is still struggling with appendices for James Lea.

13 Jul, Sunday:  And today on our hike we met Drag'anFly, a delightful 83-year-old woman who is on a mission to complete a hopscotch thru hike.  She started at Springer, but skipped many miles in Tennessee to visit friends, skipped more miles in Virginia for a family event and was hiking southbound today for logistical support (Plans Too Much shuttled her north so that she can hike back to her van).  After she summits Katahdin, she will return to complete the sections she skipped.  This is her second thru hike, the first was in 2014 when she was 74.  She usually lives near the Appalachian Trail Museum in Pine Grove Furnace and volunteers there frequently.  Eric cooked us dinner of arctic char, veggies and baked sweet potatoes tonight.  Then we enjoyed sitting outside our room in lawn chairs and talking with several people/ hikers until mosquitoes convinced us to retreat indoors.  It has been a marvelously pleasant day.  We hope your day was equally pleasant.

12 Jul:  Cynthia says that Ron should take a break from James Lea to go hiking for the day, but Ron's knee is also a limiting factor just now.  So far, his knee is calming down nicely after two months of being less and less painful. No more squats for Ron - ever.  But then Cynthia slept very well last night  and woke up eager to get out and hike, so we did our usual hike to the big rock and back, and met several through hikers including Slip and Slide and New Hampshire Peak Bagger.  We even enjoyed dinner with another delightful couple, Mike and Karen, from North Carolina, who have completed 1800 miles of the trail in several installments despite injuries.  Cynthia begins physical therapy on Monday at Vermont Sports Medicine in Killington.

11 Jul:  Cynthia's sleep was greatly disturbed by lots of pain in the tendons of her hip, perhaps IT band issues.  In the early afternoon, Cynthia and Ron teamed up to send his Pacemaker test today.  Ron then rode to town for groceries, but otherwise we had a lazy day pampering Cynthia's poor abused tendons while Ron worked on converting James Lea JPGs to Grayscale for the book.  Cynthia's tendon pain reached new highs today.   

10 Jul:  Murray suggested Cynthia’s hip pain is tight IT band at pelvis.  She needs to knead it vigorously with her knuckles before arising to walk.  After breakfast we had an ADVENTURE hiking.  The color radar forecast suggested that the rains were diminishing and vanishing as they approached our area, so we rode the motorcycle down to Kent Pond and dismounted just in time to experience rain coming down in sheets for twenty minutes.  After it stopped we hiked only as far as the stream crossing because several important stones were under water.  We still congratulate ourselves on maintenance activity.

9 Jul:  Another warm day is forecast, with thunderstorms in the afternoon.  Cynthia's hip pain is inexplicably worse again this morning.

8 Jul:  Cynthia phoned the ortho in Rutland for an appointment and is scheduled for July 30 at 8:30 AM.  We had a great hike today, even further downhill from the boulder because Cynthia felt so good after we began walking....4.24 miles.  This afternoon we had a real treat; Oke came to the Inn and visited with us for half an hour.  He chuckled quite enthusiastically when Ron pulled the straw hats Oke had given us from the drawer next to the safe where Oke had stored them.  Life is good.

7 Jul, Sunday:  Refreshed, we hiked 3.5 miles in cooler temps only because we started at 10:30 AM.  We pushed further downhill from the boulder.

6 Jul:  We are again happy to be alive, thank God again and again!  Another day of zero hiking; we hope Cynthia's hamstring is appreciative.  The James Lea book has been paginated, and the table of contents created. Yay!  

5 Jul:  It rained early as we ate breakfast, and we never quite made it out the door to hike today.  We are again happy to be alive, thank God, and are quite pleased that we are able to continue hiking, albeit less distance than formerly.  Cynthia has been experiencing a debilitating pain in her hips that goes away when she walks any short distance; very puzzling.  Ron continues working diligently on the James Lea book, and is excited to be making such good progress towards completion. 

4 Jul:  Happy Fourth of July.  Today was just like yesterday, except that Ron's calf muscles are complaining about the unaccustomed exercise and Eric fed us quite delicious Alaskan char with our sweet potato and Irish soda bread.  We hiked the same "morning" hike of about a mile out and a mile back around Kent Pond to the huge boulder that marks the beginning of the long downhill leading to Thundering Falls (click here) and the same evening hike up the Sherborne Pass Trail (click here) for far less than a mile.  Cynthia's hamstring wasn't feeling up to the climb, and Ron's calf muscles were quite tight too.

3 Jul:  We arose a little later, but got started hiking a little earlier and repeated the hike we did yesterday.  This time it wore Ron out much more than expected.  Time for a nap.  The new chef, Eric, introduced himself and assured us that he was capable of feeding us well according to the demands of our diet: no oil, no butter, no fat, no cheese, no salt and no sugar.  Our salad and sweet potatoes were perfect.  Again, we hiked an additional half mile up the Sherborne Pass Trail in the evening, and Ron is pleasantly surprised that his aggravated knee seems much better already.

2 Jul:  Hiking Vermont: We did hike the state of Vermont a few years ago, and we continue to love hiking.  This year Cynthia is recovering from a torn hamstring tendon in Feb, a nasty fall that bruised her ribs in June, and a bump on her head from falling to the floor after melting in 101 degree heat a few weeks ago.  Today we hiked almost four miles on the Appalachian Trail at Killington, VT; we managed the rocks and roots on the trail, clambering up and down gentle slopes and crossing a stream bed on the stones, which proves to us that Cynthia is fine.  We are staying at the Inn at Long Trail (click here) until mid-September.  We can walk out the door and hike daily in this hikers heaven.  The huge breakfasts are awesome.  We have been coming here since 2008 and love the people.  No A/C is needed!

1 July:  The three hour ride from Milford to The Inn at Long Trail begins whenever Ron gets packed.  The bike was loaded at 11:40 AM, and we were en route to fuel the bike, but returned to the hotel to return room keys.  By 1:30 PM we started searching for food in Western Mass.  Greenfield had 5 pizza restaurants, one Wendy’s, multiple cannabis dispensaries and a whole lotta closed cafes.  At the next exit from I-91, Bernardston, Massachusetts, Zeke's (click here) was recommended, the Crumpin Fox country club that offers good salads and delicious salmon.  About an hour north on I-91 was US highway 4  west.  The ride was story book beautiful over Quechee Gorge (click here), along the Ottauquechee River (click here), and through picturesque Woodstock, Vermont to Killington.  Brogan gave Cynthia a huge hug.  Ron enjoyed a tasty lettuce, tomato and turkey open-face sandwich on toasted Irish soda bread.  Our favorite room has not changed…  in fact it has likely been  unchanged since 1970 apart from the bathroom update which we donated.  Route: I-495 N to I-290 E to I-190 N to MA 2 W to I-91 N to Hanover, NH, L on US 4 to the Inn at Long Trail (click here)

June Hiking Someplace

Cynthia with baby Becks

30 Jun:  Another lovely day!  5.25 miles walking from Milford to Holliston to Braggville to Holliston and back to Milford on the Upper Charles Trail.  Tomorrow we ride to Killington, VT.  Cynthia is enjoying an online philosophy class.  This hotel was a LaQuinta with horrible reviews in 2019 and earlier.  Apparentlly Choice Hotels bought it about then, and it now seems clean and not moke-filled, but the elevator is terribly slow, breakfast is poor, and wifi is also slow.  And Yaay, we leave tomorrow.

29 Jun:  We greatly enjoyed a lazy Saturday morning and made plans to stay here in Milford two more nights.  Our walk on the Upper Charles Trail totaled 5.60 miles in two parts, morning (i.e. noon) and evening.  Yay. 

28 Jun:  Ron rode on MA 16 to Watertown to visit Richard G. then to see Bob and Rachel.  Cynthia went to Urgent Care to check out ribs.  Nothing was broken, evidently just bruised.  Ron continues to be pleased with the new GPS; the displayed route often is labeled with the route number, reassuring him that he made his turns correctly (or incorrectly).  Bob had warned Ron of the terrible streets in Brighton, but Ron still hit a couple of bone rattling chuckholes there.  We had another good evening walk on the Upper Charles Trail (click here).

27 Jun:  Cynthia stayed in the hotel while Ron rode down MA 109 to Dedham to have lunch with and spend the afternoon talking with Dave E.  We walked a bit of the Upper Charles Trail nearby.

26 Jun:  Ouch!  The ride to Hingham, MA over roads badly in need of repair was tough for painful ribs to endure.  But, we did get to visit with 97-year-old Maggie; how marvelous that she was able to take five steps recently (her first steps in 20 years), and we enjoyed lunch with her in the cafeteria.  The ride home on freeways was smooth without the extreme traffic we anticipated.  Chosen Route: I-495 S to exit 33A, I-95 N to exit 17, S Main through Sharon 5.5 mi continuing on Sharon St., Central St. (MA 27) 4.2 mi, Dykeman Way briefly, Harrison Blvd 0.8 mi to L on Pond 0.8 mi, L on W Main 0.3 mi, L on E Main (MA 28) 0.9 mi, R on Centre 1 mi, R on Union (MA 59) 1 mi -> Plymouth St. 0.5 mi to L on Weymouth St 1.6 mi -> Randolph 0.7 mi slight L on Randolph 0.5 mi to L on Pond St .1 mi -> Pleasant St 2.3 mi to R on Washington St (MA 53) 0.5 mi to Linden Ponds Way.  Central Street was blocked off for construction, causing us to wander around a bit until the GPS directed us back to Weymouth Street.  On return we took Pleasant Street south and were confounded that it did NOT have a ramp onto route 3, so we rode to next major intersection for a left and another left to get onto MA 3 N to join I-93 S/ W to I-95 S to I-495 N back to Milford.

25 Jun:  We could arrive in Killington today, except we didn’t - because they don't have a room available for us to rent.  Instead, we re-directed from Williamstown to Milford, Massachusetts via MA 2 just south of the Vermont border.  The ride was pleasant, the view was lovely, and it included a surprise billboard that read Welcome to Florida.  Yes, Florida, Massachusetts (click here)!  After riding on the wonderfully green and scenic twisty mountain highway for the first 40 miles, the ride continued pleasantly for another 50 miles before running into more and faster traffic as we neared "civilization."  Even I-495 S traffic wasn't that heavy except near the I-90 interchange and we arrived in Milford stress-free.  Route: MA 2 E to Leominister, R on I-290 S to L on MA 117 E to R on I-495 S to exit 38 at MA 109, Milford, MA.

24 Jun:  The ride north in New York was lovely until rain ushered us into Williamstown, Massachusetts, about 5:45 PM.  Cynthia has an ongoing headache, likely from hitting her head when she fell two days ago.  Her symptoms do not really indicate a concussion.  Route: NJ 17 N (somehow transitioned to US 202 through Mahwah) -> NY 17 N 13 miles to R on US 6 E 10 mi across Hudson to L on NY 9D N 22 mi to Hughsonville and Wappinger Falls where we ate lunch at an Outback Steakhouse that actually served baked sweet potatoes, then E on Old Hopewell Road (NY 52) 8 mi to L on the Taconic State Parkway (click here) N 60 miles to R on NY 295 N 10 miles to L on NY 22 N 10 mi to Stephenstown where rain began falling.  After waiting for half hour for it to clear and become sunny, we turned R on NY 43 E 12 mi into rain and Massachusetts to L on MA 7 N 4 mi into Williamstown, MA, R on MA route 2 E 4 mi to Howard Johnson motel and arrived soaking wet.  This was a very nice route, pleasant, scenic, smooth, and not busy.

23 Jun:  We rode to Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey (click here) for breakfast/ lunch with cousin Greg and family, Robyn, Grayson, and Guiliana.The ride on I-287 in New Jersey was really quite pleasant on this Sunday morning, although it is likely far busier on a normal workday.  This is a somewhat mountainous part of New Jersey filled with trees and valleys.  Then we rode south on New Jersey 208 through more beautiful scenery with even less traffic to Maple Avenue, then east on Maple a four miles to the restaurant -- but Greg and family were not there, having relocated to a nearby restaurant that they like, rather than endure the fifty-minute wait to be seated at their first choice, a new restaurant.  It was fun seeing Greg and family.  Greyson is developing into a good baseball pitcher and plays Little League several days a week.  Guiliana is a girl scout as was her mother and Cynthia, but scouting has changed, with much of it being on-line now-a-days.  Everyone is very busy, so we feel quite honored that they took the time to visit with us.  We rode a few miles north on Franklin Turnpike (!!) and a few miles on NJ 17 to get to a Doubletree hotel.  Ron is delighted to report that the newly installed GPS worked beautifully.

Superhero Noah fireman and friend

22 Jun:  Today is Cynthia's great grandson Noah’s third birthday, and he is celebrating as his favorite super hero, a fireman, with a friend.  It is also granddaughter Lauren’s birthday.  We did leave Winchester by 8:30 AM, but the heat index rose inexorably.  We stopped once at the Pennsylvania state line for Ron to doff his helmet (he hates those things), and again briefly after another hour at a rest area with no shaded parking places.  An hour later, we stopped at a Ruby Tuesday in Bethlehem, PA for lunch.  Ron left Cynthia off at the door, and was quite shocked to find her on the floor after he parked the bike and entered the restaurant.  She had walked inside, taken off her helmet and passed out, "melted onto the floor."  The restaurant manager had already called EMS, and they arrived promptly from the hospital across the street, revived her and thought she should go to the hospital to be checked by a doctor.  After she passed their battery of tests (verbal, ekg, blood pressure, blood sugar, etc), they strongly recommended going to ER and waiting interminably without food, but agreed that they could not force her to do so.  We ate our Ruby Tuesday salads, drank a lot of water, and rode another forty miles to Morristown, NJ for the night at a Hyatt hotel (points).  Route: I-81 N to I-78 E to PA 33 W one exit to Ruby Tuesday and back to I-78 E to L on I-287 N to Morrisotown; interstates chosen to avoid bumps that might cause pain for Cynthia's injured rib.

Hudson and Holden

21 June:  Woo Hoo!  The GPS part arrived in the morning as we were walking in 90 degree heat.  Ron departed in 93 degree heat for another hot two-hour ride to Jessup, MD for the installation of one more part and an even hotter ride back to Winchester.  Cynthia is nearly packed, bathed, clothes washed and ready to roll.  Ron arrived home at 7:05 PM, hungry and sweaty.
Today is great grandson Holden’s second birthday! 

20 Jun:  No word yet at noon about the missing GPS part.  We continued having fun.  Ron has finished all of the appendices for the book. Now he needs to remove all of his notes cluttering the manuscript.  Cynthia is squealing with joy.  We had another good salmon dinner at the Outback Restaurant. 

19 Jun:  The part for the GPS mount did not arrive, despite being expedited.  We did manage a thirty-five minute walk this AM, plus a short walk to ALDI (for frozen mango, blueberries, raspberries and bananas) despite high temperatures, and a third walk in the evening when it was much cooler.  Ron is making great gains on the Lea book, almost finished with the appendices and nearly ready to add the page number references.  We might get it to the publisher this year.  Our total walking for the day was 5.12 miles. Yaay!

18 Jun:  Ron arose at 5 AM to make the trip to Bob's BMW to get the GPS installed.  Indeed, when Cynthia arose at seven AM, she discovered that Ron successfully made it out of the hotel room without awakening her.  By eleven AM, she had eaten, and walked for fifty minutes.  Atta girl.  Today, she is much better, and she decided she has bruised, not broken, ribs.  The folks at Bob's had ordered the necessary mount, but neglected to get the other auxiliary pieces to attach the GPS, so after spending most of the day there, the GPS is still not attached.  Ron will have to return after yet one more part arrives.  The problem is that these mounts are not sold for a customer bike, but are only provided for police bikes; hence the shop has never installed one before, although they see them on all the police bikes.

17 Jun:  We were up a little earlier today to get in our first walk about before excessive heat grew about us.  We got frozen mango and yogurt at ALDI for our respective lunches and walked a second time to get more oatmeal.  Motorcycle shops are closed Mondays, so we will get the GPS installed tomorrow.  Ron spent his time fussing with the JPGs to go into the appendices; some of them are just too contrary.

16 Jun, Sunday:  Cynthia slept well last night, but her rib still hurts a lot this morning.  We rejoice in the fact that she is still alive and kicking, plus she wants to go on another hike.  What a girl.!!  We decided against the hike to avoid jiggling the sore rib on a motorcycle ride, but we did walk around the shopping center a couple of times, including to Outback Steakhouse for dinner of salmon, asparagus and a baked potato.  Ron was able to work on the James Lea appendices, but using Gimp (click here) for image processing is a bit much for him just now. 

Photo from Fox Hollow Trail

15 Jun:  Just like yesterday, Cynthia slept in her favorite spot, her head cradled in Ron's arm while he laid on his back for two hours occasionally dozing.  Since her hamstring ligament needs to heal, sleep is vitally necessary.  The late start and a few queries led us to departing for the National Park at 2:30 PM, but the heat was not so bad as we feared, and by the time we reached the park, temperatures were pleasant in the low 70s.  We stopped at the visitor center and were recommended the Fox Hollow Trail (click here) across the road for 1.2 miles with 300 feet elevation gain.  The hike was pleasant and fun until Cynthia tripped on a rock and fell, bloodying her arm and scaring the bejesus out of her.  We finished the hike and asked for first aid at the Visitor Center.  Now that we are returned to the Comfort Inn, Cynthia is nervous that her rib hurts too.  Ron is remembering that Cynthia usually falls soon after we begin hiking every year.  He should have reminded her.  All that walking on the flat lands of Houston allowed her to forget to lift her feet with every step, and those low flying feet get caught by a rock and down she goes.

The Blue Ridge Mounains

14 Jun:  Worn out, we overslept!  Ron departed for Jessup, Maryland at eleven-thirty AM and arrived at one-thirty PM, a two-hour journey in 90 degree heat.  The ride went smoothly with little traffic and nice scenery, but it is a little tedious after twice recently.  The new top case was put on, and BIG surprise, the GPS mount arrived just today.  Had we known, Ron would have arrived when the shop opened, but as it was, they had to research how to add this mount into BMW's complicated wiring system, and by the time they figured that out, there was not enough time to do the installation today, so Ron will return on Tuesday for that installation.  Cynthia enjoyed leisure time to shower and work on her IPad.  It was disconcerting to discover thousands of dollars erroneously charged to our American Express card.  Thankfully, it was an accounting error, and the charges were immediately withdrawn.  Cynthia ate breakfast again for dinner.  We extended our stay at the Comfort Inn to depart Wednesday, and we will hike in the Shenandoah National Park for three days, God willing. 

13 Jun:  We slept well again and are beginning to feel somewhat caught up on sleep.  Ian, from Bob's BMW, called to say that the replacement top case arrived, so we added that into our decision making to follow lunch at Ruby Tuesday in Charles Town and relocation to the Comfort Inn in South Winchester, Virginia to enable a get together with cousin Kami and hubby Chris, who now live in Lake Frederick.  The motorcycle ride went smoothly with beautiful scenery while the temperature climbed to 90 degrees at 2:30 PM.  Ian agreed that Ron should get the top case replaced tomorrow in cooler temperatures.  Kami and Chris picked us up and whisked us off to dinner at the good restaurant, Region's 117 (click here) that is part of their Lake Frederick community.  Afterwards they gave us a grand tour of their new house and property on a cul-de-sac overlooking the lake.  They made numerous modifications to the house and intend to live there at least until they die and maybe beyond.  
Route: West Virginia route 480 S 2 miles to a left on Ridge Road (no signage) 4 miles to R on Luther Jones Road 1 mi to a L on WV 9 E 7 miles to Charles Town and Ruby Tuesday on US 50. Then S on US 340 S 24 miles to a R on US 522 for 1 mi to L on Tasker (again no signage) 4 mi to L on VA 37 W across i-81 but be aware that US 11 S is a right turn off VA 37.

12 Jun:  After a good night's sleep, we luxuriated a quiet morning before venturing to the restaurant for breakfast.  Our expectations of a delightful breakfast were replaced by the reality of small omelets (with cheese first time despite our reiterating three times NO CHEESE), cold English muffin, and half the order at first.  Fortified with so little, we walked across the bridge into Maryland again and walked too far on the C & O Canal path, looking for a third bench.  Cynthia's Apple Watch has increased the effort required to close her rings beyond our abilities now that we are injured, so despite all that distance with our injuries her watch wasn't satisfied.  Our injuries were both complaining when we got back to our room.  Ron napped after finishing a sudoku, and we gave the restaurant a second chance at dinner, which was really fabulous.  Halibut, huge portions of brussels sprouts and asparagus, fingerling potatoes and toasted rye bread.  Now we are ready to go to sleep, preparing for a transition tomorrow to South Winchester, VA to visit with cousin Kami.

11 Jun:  We spent the morning packing liesurely, filling saddlebags full to overflowing with all Cynthia's things.  In the end, everything fit, and we left about 1:30 anticipating the Ruby Tuesday in Charles Town.  Then we rode to the Bavarian Inn in Shepherdstown for a romantic "honeymoon" overlooking the Potomac River.  The view is quite enchanting.  After the heat of the day dissipated, we walked a mile or so over the bridge into Washington County, Maryland (where my McSweeneys lived for a while) and down the C& O Canal path to the two nearest benches.  We were happy to be able to walk so far, given Cynthia's torn hamstring and Ron's irritated knee.  Route: MD 27 S to I-70 W to US 340 S to Charles Town and Ruby Tuesday; reverse to West Virginia 230 N to Shepherdstown which was larger than expected, nor was the Bavarian Inn at all obvious, so we wandered around before using our GPS to direct us to WV 480 N.

10 Jun:  Cynthia returns via air to Baltimore, MD arrival 4:03, and Ron waited in the cell phone lot for only about 10 minuts before the Smooches were happily reunited.  We went to dinner with Jim & Joni again at the Mt. Airy Inn and said our goodbyes since Jim leaves for work before we expect to be up in the morning.  Whle looking for places to stay, Ron found a secluded, romantic, small house on the river.  It doesn’t have running water, but what’s that!  We didn't stay there or even look at it.  Cynthia went on a tear to add every possible family photo yesterday.

Cynthia and Charlotte

Mom and Jon

I recognize Blaire.

Hudson and Holden

Lauren & Cynthia

Becks and Julie

9 Jun, Sunday:  Cynthia thoroughly enjoyed another family birthday brunch with Lauren, Tyler, Charlotte, Steven, Karen, Mark and Jon.  Ron wonders if any others will show up to surprise her.  Indeed, Terry Foyt joined the party.  Interesting that Terry’s dad, AJ Foyt, knew Cynthia’s sister’s neighbor Carroll Shelby in California and Lee Iacocca.  It is indeed a small world.  Cynthia ate no-sugar, low-fat ice cream with a banana. And it is time to pack her bag.

8 Jun:  Ron had an enjoyable day in Mount Airy, Maryland, including eating breakfast and dinner with Jim & Joni at the Mount Airy Inn and an after-dinner walk in town for a couple of miles, culminating with a visit to Jimmy Cone.  Cynthia enjoyed getting a haircut.  So no big news.  Likely, we will hike near Maryland, perhaps along a canal path, waiting for the new top case to arrive.

7 Jun:  Ron left at 7:30 AM for Bob’s BMW in Jessup. MD to have the top case hinges replaced and the GPS mounted on the bike. (Thank God)!  However, the new hinges didn't fix the problem so a new top case is ordered from Pennsylvania, and the GPS mount ordered three weeks ago has not arrived.  In Texas, Cynthia is packing a box of hiking stuff to ship to Killington, VT that includes old short sleeved shirts that she will wear or put into the hiker box.  The shipping box is packed and ready to mail tomorrow.  Driving in the bright Texas sunlight is a challenge.  Ron was able to ride an extra 15 miles south on US Highway 29 to visit friends in Silver Spring, MD, but only Dale was at home.  Nick is out kayaking as usual, and John is recuperating in an occupational therapy setting.  Dale is also suffering from heart distress, unable to do much without exhausting his breath.  I didn't visit Harry because he said not to visit him a couple of days ago.  Cynthia attended an anniversary party for some of Jon’s friends.  The piano player was entirely too loud.  

6 Jun:  Ron had fun on the Blue Ridge Parkway, did you notice?  But now he is back at rest (and in need of a rest).  Jim cooked a sumptuous meal of baked potato, corn on the cob, broccoli, and tuna steak.  THANK YOU Jim.  Cynthia has an appointment for a gluteus medius tendonitis question and answer session.  PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) is injection of choice.  We will search for a Dr who will do this in Nov.  This will heal naturally given time.  All is well, Cynthia can walk and hike moving at her own pace.  She completed organizing the storage unit.  And she remembered she has cheap hearing aid insurance that will pay $200.00 for each ear.  And now we are exhausted. 

5 Jun:  In the morning, Cynthia saw her new ortho doctor about her torn hamstring tendon.  At 3:45 she saw a new ENT to update her hearing aids and test a demo pair.  However, the technician did not have Oticon software to update Cynthia's hearing aids, so Cynthia is demo testing a pair of ReSound hearing aids.  She is halfway through organizing the storage unit.  Ron left Christiansburg around 10:30 to ride I-81 to Lexington, because at the first exit off I-64 west, there is a Ruby Tuesday for breakfast/ lunch.  The color radar forecast showed afternoon showers popping up north of there after about 2 PM, so Ron continued on I-81 until exiting onto US 33 south 18 miles to resume riding Skyline Drive.  Unfortunately, Skyline Drive was again damp, so Ron rode much more cautiously than he had intended.  (It is so embarrassing to be passed by Harley riders.)  The road was nearly empty of traffic, very peaceful and pleasant all the way (60 miles) to Front Royal, where Ron exited onto US 340 N to I-70 E to MD 27 N to the Weis grocery store for frozen mango, frozen blueberries, and oatmeal.  He was congratulating himself for having arrived dry until he started to load his groceries onto the motorcycle and noticed the first few (of many) raindrops falling.  It was simply too peculiar that Ron rode under grey, overcast and threatening skies all day, only to encounter rain a mere 5 miles from Jim and Joni's.  Needless to say, by the time he arrived, after riding five miles in light rain, he was soaked.  However, the big news of the day on TV was that tornados were touching down in several nearby towns.  The tension was palpable since Jim's brother & mom live close to one of those nearby towns.

4 Jun:  Cynthia had an appointment with Dr Sharpless this AM.  Bruce left early, and Jane arrived about 9 AM to take Ron to visit the Morganton Museum (click here), which is full of artifacts and articles about her ancestors.  After a full and interesting three hours I had been given a thorough tour of very impressive displays showing many aspects of life over the years since the founding of Morganton in 1777.  Jane had finished her docent duties by then, so we returned to visit Art again for a couple of hours, but he was still under the weather with his cold, so I left to ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway again, following US 64 N with a L on US 321 N for 36 miles through Blowing Rock to the Parkway.  After 20 miles, I was just getting into the mood and enjoying the Parkway when it was cut short by a detour onto US 221 north.  There were several detour signs every five miles until I passed a forest of orange highway construction signs.  Then I continued on 221 until it was joined by US 21 and followed that north into Virginia, approaching Wythesville.  Now had my bearings and stopped for a huge salad at Ruby Tuesday before continuing on I-81 to Christianburg, VA and the same cheap Econolodge for the night.  That Parkway detour extended for 50 miles.

3 Jun:  Ron may have been bitten by mosquitos, or a spider, or a bed bug.  His toes itch and his leg began itching enough to keep him from sleeping.  After breakfast, he started riding, towards Morganton, NC to see Art and Jane.  Cynthia had an appointment with an audiologist and a new ENT; we are saddened to learn that her hearing has declined significantly.  She will have her Oticon hearing aids adjusted and do a demo test on Wednesday at 3:45 to see if the newer Resound technology will improve clarity of sound.  And she is catching cold.  Ron's ride was started wonderfully on south on US 441 thirty miles until he could catch the Blue Ridge Parkway north for 85 miles until exiting onto US 74 west and I-40 east to exit onto US 64 south and look for Settles Road.  Unfortunately, the Parkway was damp, and Ron isn't yet gutsy enough to ride fast on damp roads.  This was again a very enjoyable ride with very little traffic.  Even I-40 traffic wasn't very heavy.  It was great to see Art again and to meet Jane, "blondie," a very fast talker and dynamic woman.  They arranged for me to sleep in a spare bedroom at Bruce's house so that I could easily see them again on Tuesday.  Bruce was also very interesting, but since we were introduced at 11 PM, our conversation didn't last terribly long.  Ron's itching leg and bad knee again interfered with his sleep, but he woke up feeling OK despite taking a long time to fall asleep.

2 Jun, Sunday:  Ron was hugely surprised to discover a brief, early morning rain before breakfast.  Reasoning that the parkway roads would be wet and the forecast called for more intermittent rain, he opted to continue south on I-81 to a Ruby Tuesday in Wytheville, VA for lunch and phoned Cynthia, telling her that he has hours more to ride before reaching Cade’s Cove, TN.  Cynthia is hosting a family brunch on both Sundays that she is in Texas.  This Sunday only one photo turned out good, but it is a beauty.  It is a joy to know the grandchildren are excelling, and the babies are sooooo cute.  Ron called at 4:28 PM from the Cade’s Cove Museum (click here), which is closed until Tuesday.  After he hung up, he texted Gloria and Jim, and they arrived, unannounced, mere minutes later.  We had a lovely 30-minute conversation and a personal tour of the Cades Cove Museum, but they really had to leave ASAP, being already nine hours delayed in their departure for Jim’s brother’s funeral in Florida.  Other friends from Cades Cove had insisted upon their music at a memorial service for another departed Cades Cove "resident."   Cynthia told Ron that there were hotels in Cades Cove, so he rode there although he was certain that there were no such commercial activities in the National Park.  Since darkness was approaching, this was risky and led to riding 30 miles after dark on narrow mountain roads.  On the other hand, it was a delight to ride the 11 miles to the Cove and part of the single lane circuit including a water ford wherein the water was a foot and a half deep.  (BIG splash.)  This wild goose chase was based on Cynthia’s misreading the hotel data for Cades Cove.  The hotels are located NEAR Cades Cove in Gatlinburg.  At 30 MPH, on a very dark night, he didn’t go over the side of the twisty mountain roads, nor did he hit a bear, and he found his way into downtown Gatlinburg to those very hotels near Cades Cove.  So far, the trip has exceeded Ron's expectations for fun although he has spent way too much time on I-81.  Route: I-81 S 210 miles to L on TN 66 S into Sevierville (a busy tourist road), R on US 441 N to L on US 411 S into Maryville, L on Cherokee to R on US 321 and Museum.  Ron rode the wrong way fifteen times trying to find the Ruby Tuesday for dinner using his GPS and finally called the restaurant for directions, which were simple.  Leaving Ruby Tuesday on US 129 S (which goes to The Tail of The Dragon, click here), he turned R on US 321 and followed that into the National Park, following signs for Cades Cove (click here) all the way to the Cove, obviously a magical retreat into an earlier time and place.  It was dark by the time he returned to the sign showing the way to Gatlinburg and he crept along that road cautiously too.  The roads in the park were all damp from earlier rain.

1 Jun:  While Cynthia is in Texas for ten days, Ron is left without adult supervision and is traveling to Tennessee and North Carolina to have fun visiting friends.  He is excited to ride the twisties on the Blue Ridge Parkway for miles and miles.  Hiking will follow after 10 June when Cynthia returns to her beloved, although we don’t yet know where we will hike.  Ron phoned at 8:45 PM Eastern time from Christiansburg, VA having a whole lotta fun; he found a Ruby Tuesday restaurant near an Econolodge to overnight.  His plan was to ride lots of miles on the Blue Ridge Parkway, but he left late,  turned too early in Front Royal and rode US Highway 522 south for many quiet, pleasant miles until he saw a sign for New Market and turned to follow a very twisty US 211 up to the Skyline Drive entrance.  After 75 miles, at the southern exit of Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah National Park, he turned around and greeted familiar Park Rangers manning the entrance station for a very pleasant and surprising five-minute conversation.  (In a former life the guy was an executive chef for the Canyon Ranch wellness center in Malibu.  Then he supervised installation of a Canyon Ranch in Massachusetts (click here).)  Instead of continuing on the Blue Ridge Parkway into potentially rainy weather, Ron opted instead to ride over to Waynesboro to see Charlotte at the Comfort Inn, but she has retired, and her son Daniel is no longer GM either.  Ron had eaten such a huge bowl of oatmeal & fruit for breakfast that he wasn't hungry, but knew that a Ruby Tuesday was available about 100 miles south, so he rode that on I-81, which was enjoyable with relatively light Saturday evening traffic.  Route: MD 27 S to R on I-70 W 30 miles to L on US 340 to Front Royal and a L on US 522 S to a R on US 211 W to a L on Skyline Drive for 73 miles to a L on US 250 W, L & R onto I-64 W to L on I-81 S, 100 mi to Christiansburg.