July - Smooch Smooch is 18 AGAIN, AGAIN!

31 Jul: Hwy 120 from Riverton, WY to Billings, MT is called the “lonely and  scenic” route; it wasn’t lonely,  but it was very scenic.  Thermopolis impressed us when we stopped there for lunch at Nature’s Corner to ear serving bowl size salads.  The community obviously cares passionately about being vibrant even though it is a small town.  We were surprised to see many lakes despite the aridity. The best part of the ride was a canyon with three stone tunnels followed by the Big Horn River with the railroad visible on the opposite side of the river.  The state had few residents in the 1800’s, mostly ranchers.  The winter of 1887 was devastating to livestock creating the need for  irrigation to become necessary for agriculture to feed cattle during harsh winters. Ron saw evidence of more agriculture in WY than Cynthia did; she noticed ag changes by the time we approached Montana.  We didn’t stop at the oldest cowboy town of Meetetsee, WY, even though we heard it has a marvelous museum, because we encountered a road construction delay.  Exciting wildlife viewing was a  deer, an antelope and soft, furry rabbits.   Montana has more sheep than Wyoming.  About 6 PM we arrived in Billings; Ron rode to Walmart to shop.  Last night it became apparent that July 31 is the last day of Cynthia’s birthday month, with the help of the desk clerk, a recycled card, gold stars, red marking pen and glue, a surprise greeted her with bouquet of red roses and the recycled birthday card. She should like the card since she picked it out

Red Roses for da wee fee

30 Jul: Walking Riverton, CO was again a pleasant, albeit warmer, experience than yesterday. We hoofed nearly six miles.   The city has done a lot of work creating the Wyoming Trail, aka the Rail to Trail.  Tree planting along the trail was an outstanding idea in need of water. A few sections have sprinklers; most do not.  It is very arid. Genealogy and DNA was second on our list of to-do items. It is interesting that several descendants of Robert Rambo are coming out of the woodwork.  A new grandson is expected this week or the doctor will induce labor on Monday.

29 Jul: Riverton, CO where the livin’ is laid back. Cowboy town. We stay at many different hotel brands, but we often choose the Hilton properties because their breakfasts are not vendor fast food.  The guarantee is satisfaction or you don’t pay. This morning they were out of oatmeal at nine AM. Breakfast is served until ten.  Oatmeal is the healthiest, cheapest food on the buffet.  To run out on a Sunday morning means very inefficient kitchen management. Ron walked to Walmart and bought two small boxes of oatmeal and gave the manager the receipt saying he expected to be reimbursed. We received comp for one night.  Soooo today Cynthia received a DPT shot because she scratched her leg on rusty barb wire crossing the Trail to the hotel.  Her last TT was February of 2008 before her trip to Asia.  And the rest of the day was terrific. Guaranteed.  We were pleasantly surprised to learn more about Riverton's effort to inspire community betterment.  It was pleasing to walk the Wyoming Trail dubbed Rails to Trails; when the train tracks were removed an asphalt trail was laid along with a lovely tree planting effort.  Very nice.

28 Jul: Rawlins, WY, Hampton Inn; This is one of the rare times on our travels a TV in the breakfast room is turned to CNN.  Packed up, we rolled onto Riverton, Wyoming getting hit with a little bit of rain.  The scenery was like yesterday's ride. Lots of vast arid ranch land with cattle grazing in spots. The rest stop at Sweetwood Station was instructive; we were on the Oregon Trail!  Fascinating.  Leaving the rest stop we turned NW onto Wyoming 135 towards Riverton, Wyoming crossing over an amazing pass. The earth looked like the surface of the moon.  Riding into Riverton was not so scenic; trailer park city.  The city has one reputable restaurant: The Trailhead.  But they did a fine job of feeding us with a great salad bar and egg beater omelets apart from tak8ng an hour to be served because they were so busy.


27 Jul:  We crossed the state line from CO to Wyoming at 10:58 AM with little change in scenery. The Dr at the Medical Clinic described Walden as being like Wyoming instead of uppity CO. The ride across a plateau atop a Mesa of thousands of acres of barren ranch land was interesting; a very few ranches used irrigation and had green pastures and crops.  Cattle, horses and even antelope were spotted grazing.   After checking in at the Hampton Inn, we lunched on veggies and baked potato at Bucks Grill and Bar.   Tonight we walked 3 miles  round trip to dine at the Aspen House.  The steamed vegetables were excellent. On the way home we saw a curious sight, a deer was inside a chain link fence in someone’s front yard. A bit later another deer exited a parking lot in front of us and raced across the highway. By the time we reached our room, after climbing three flights of stairs, the key cards didn’t work. Down the stairs we went to get new key cards, and they didn’t work. Cynthis plopped down on the floor while Eon summoned the desk clerk The desk clerk made several attempts and finally figured out corrosion behind the batteries was the culprit. Down the stairs again, this time to see the beautiful blood moon. The photo does not capture the redness.



26 Jul:  Walden, Colorado enjoying cool weather.  Unfortunately we were only able to extend our stay one day, and we have to switch rooms, so we leave tomorrow for Rawlins, Wyoming where it will be warmer, forecast 84-degree high.  Then it should be another easy ride to a Hampton Inn at Riverton, Wyoming. Today we were treated to wildlife other than us: we saw a moose as we hoofed it when we were caught in the rain. The sunset tonight was incredible. And so is the moon.

25 Jul:  Walking Walden was the big event of our day, racking up 10,000 steps.  As we walked on the side streets we chanced to read the sign for the North Park Medical Clinic, so we stopped to see if they could examine Cynthia's ribs.  Yesterday when Ron gave her a close, comfortable hug, something went pop and immediately hurt, so we are nervous that she might have a broken rib.  The nurse showed us a photo of the bear that was in town last week dining on a neighbors garbage.  Cynthia took photos of stuffed wildlife in the Forest Service Office to send to granddaughter Fyn.  As we ate a late lunch at the River Rock, all the motorcyclists had on heavy clothing.  It is cool here this afternoon.  Big event of the day is that Cynthia was able to do laundry.  Nearly nothing makes her happier.

24 Jul:  We had a yummy breakfast with Pat outdoors at the Happy Cooker in Georgetown, Colorado.  Cynthia celebrated her birthday again with another eggs Benedict.  Deju Vu all over again.  We left Georgetown after filling with gas and rode old U.S. 40 from I-70 through Winter Park to Granby.  As we approached Granby, we saw signs for a restaurant at the Inn at Silvercreek.  Once we arrived at the front door, we recognized that we had stopped another year at the same resort and discovered (again) they open only for dinner.  They recommended Mavericks in town, and it was indeed good.  We rode out of town on Colorado highway 125 to Walden.  Part of the ride was very twisty, but after the town of Rand, the road straightened out and we rode between mountain ranges, marveling at the snow at higher elevations and the vast "flat" fields of brush, moose country.  In Walden we walked to find food and, as we approached the River Rock Cafe in the Antler Inn, we began to recognize it.  Once inside it was unmistakably familiar.  The curious part is that neither of us remembered ever being in Walden previous to walking into that restaurant.  They served us wonderful and humongous salads.  Our only disappointment with Walden is that the Arapaho National Wildlife Refuge is not in the mountains and has no paved roads.  The valley here is apparently quite the wetlands with several rivers and streams meandering throughout, making it an angler's paradise and a lovely moose viewing center.  (We saw neither anglers nor mooses.)  Two of the rivers are named the Illinois River and the Michigan River.  While walking to the grocery after dinner, Ron saw a gaggle of geese at the Michigan River.

23 Jul:  Georgetown, Colorado.  We had an early start for our 25 mile ride down Interstate 70 from Silverthorne to Georgetown, so we arrived too early to check into our motel.  Instead we mailed another package off to sistah Carol and enjoyed breakfast at The Happy Cooker.  The delightful clerk in the post office was happy about the pleasant, cool weather and about the smell of fresh pine in the air.  We are visiting Ron's long time friend Pat A.

Lookie at the snow field in the background

22 Jul:  Important note!  Ron slept all through the night.  Today the ride from Carbondale to Silverthorne gave us Colorado Rocky Mountain High!  Oh, what a high.  We love our breathtaking rides through the Rockies.  Leaving Aspen, the narrow road was uncomfortable when the traffic backed up ahead of us.  Ron fixed them by passing.   Yikes! For a short distance, the road narrowed down to one lane.  We survived.  (Apparently one of us was uncomfortable.)  As we summited Independence Pass, snow was cradled in crevices below the craggy peaks.  Breathtaking.  When we reached Leadville, we were hungry!  We ate at the historic Silver Dollar Saloon, but the menu options had little little we could eat.  We didn’t remember this from earlier visits.  Cynthia ate in halfs;  half a berry and spinach salad, half a veggie/green chili sandwich, and half a baked Alaska.  (She splurged - her birthday month is drawing to a close.)  Ron enabled this behavior by finishing the other halfs.  (Although there was really only a quarter of the baked Alaska to finish.)  It was our first and last yummy baked Alaska.  We sat in Jimmy Buffet’s booth, walked past Buddy Holly’s guitar,  and Cynthia read a blog about the saloon by a motorcyclist.  Once we were again riding, ominous black clouds threatened and even delivered several drops of rain.  Regardless, we arrived at our hotel dry.  Woohoo!  Ruby Tuesday is in Silverthorne.

21 Jul:  We checked out at noon, followed by a luscious lunch at the Stone House, and we were on the road again. Roxanne sent us a text of Willie Nelson singing,”On the Road Again,” to cheer us on.  Cheering up was needed as the temperature was roasting hot.  By the time we reached the mountains it cooled off a bit but warmed again as we descended to the Comfort Inn at Carbondale, Colorado; the views and mountain stream were worth the heat.  We dined at the Goat House Restaurant across the street.  Ron walked to City Market, returning to have Cynthia dress to see the forest fire burning on the mountain outside the city.  After being under control the  fire increased two days ago.

20 Jul:  The Black Canyon of the Gunnison is magnificent.  And the painted wall is the most spectacular part of the canyon.  Were we ever surprised to find that Pam and Walt are also here in Montrose.  Dinner plans tonight.









19 Jul:  So today we stuffed everything onto the motorcycle and rode through (cool) Silverton and (cooler) Ouray to Montrose, Colorado to stay the night at the Hampton Inn (here) where the temperature is 100 degrees HOT.  Miss Smoochie, our traveling companion, didn’t complain. The motorcycle is a bit less top heavy after shipping Remembering Our Ancestors off to sistah Carol, mailing another few pages to cousin Tim, and depositing recycling.  It was nice to hear from Paul G. tonight. Deja Vu! As we pulled into the parking lot of The Stone House Restaurant, it looked familiar. We have eaten there several times in the past. Our romantic dinner was excellent, and so was a delightful 10 year old dining with her grandmother.  Good night.








18 Jul:  We are staying an extra night at the Blue Lake Ranch B and B. Dinner at Kennebecs tonight was a delightful experience due to a very lovely couple from Durango.  Everyone should be so charming.  Now we pack for our departure to Montrose, Colorado in the morning.  And Ron should be packing instead of blogging.

Thank goodness Cynthia didn't think to take the picture earlier

17 Jul:  After a morning appointment in Durango, we enjoyed a lovely lunch at Kennebec’s Restaurant.  Another adventure ensued as we left when a customer asked if the blue BMW was ours; it had fallen over.  That 800 pound bike could not be raised by Ron and the thoughtful fellow.  Ron returned to the restaurant and espied a couple of young men with their parents.  The five men managed to lift the bike easily.  Fortunately neither bike nor any of the heavy lifters were injured.  Cynthia thought about a picture after the bike was upright, so Ron is relieved that there is no evidence that this ever happened.  In Ron's never ending quest for shade, he parked the kickstand on pine duff that looked like solid ground but wasn't.  Here is a link to hikes in Mesa Verde: https://www.alltrails.com/parks/us/colorado/mesa-verde-national-park.



16 Jul:  It was a memorable birthday!  We had quite the big adventure hiking the Petroglyph Trail, steep and rocky with too much exposure for Cynthia in several places.  She was terrified - and exhausted herself with fear !!  After 1.2 miles of this, we came to the petroglyphs, a single panel packed full of drawings.  Soon after that the trail ascended onto the mesa top and became a simple waltz in the woods.  Cynthia was greatly relieved until lighting began and one clap of thunder sounded very, very close, like a blast of dynamite.  A family had caught up to us and their two little girls were in the lead, their little feet boogieing as fast as possible, sheer terror evident on their faces.  The rain started as we descended the open rock towards the Mesa Museum, and then it poured.  We read most of the panels in the museum and waited and waited and waited for three hours until the rain finally stopped.  Unfortunately we ran into lots more rain as we drove down the mountain.  Fortunately at this late hour (7:30 pm) on a rainy day, the road was empty of traffic.  Surviving while living with Ron proves the existence of God.  We continue to survive.



15 Jul, The ride to Mesa Verde to hike was pleasant and cool. The Balcony House overlook hike was surprisingly warm. It was fun to see how much we  remembered  our Mesa Verde hikes  in the past. The Knife Edge Trail was fairly level with great views. Cynthis will post the photos tomorrow

Rain over 416 Forest Fire?

14 Jul: Jackie, the hostess/chef at the Blue Lake Ranch makes our mornings such a delight. We were surprised to learn she is married to the coach who remembered us.  He described the harrowing tale of having his foot run over by his van yesterday.  Once again we enjoyed conversing with the trio from Belgium.  Our morning hike was at the ranch's event center; the trail was not as well maintained nor as long as we remembered. Cynthia quizzed the gardener about why we are seeing so many purple plants in higher altitudes; the answer is timing. The yellow flowers bloom first followed by red ones then the purple flowers. Much has to do with rain and humidity. We rode into Durango to shop at the Nature's Oasis Market and enjoyed a salad lunch.  Upon our return, Ron enjoyed Casita porch time working through a new genealogy book he purchased about Shenck ancestors.  Cynthia had the same magnificent view of the mountains Ron did (shown in the photo below from inside the casita) staring at the back of Ron's head on occasion; she was reading a book on her iPad inside the house The rainfall was minimal. Our evening hike was not too long because the triangular flies are biting

13 Jul: Blue Lake Ranch B&B on Southern Ute Reservation is 200 acres of beautiful views. Our Sunset Casita is semi isolated; we awoke Mountain Views on the north and the sunset on the east.  It is a blessing to sleep with the windows open.  Our breakfast table companions were from Belgium and a bicycling coach, who remembered us from one of our previous visits.  We have lots of trails to hike and very little WiFi.  It seems the WiFi goes out every five minutes.  Updates will be sketchy!

Cynthia likes the headboard

12 Jul: We check out of our hotel at one PM followed by a one hour ride to Durango; Cynthia has a chest XRay at three. Good Results!  Plans are weather dependent . The Blue Lake Ranch B&B is home for the next week.  They serve marvelous breakfasts.

11 Jul:  We are in Pagosa Springs for the final day of packing before riding to the Blue Lake Ranch outside Durango tomorrow the 12th, God willing.  Our morning 4 mile hike was pleasant followed by brunch at Two Chicks. Ron, the recycling man,  walked the cardboard and paper around the corner to recycle and packed bags all afternoon.  By the time we go to sleep we will be ready to ride. Well, after the box gets shipped to Texas at UPS.

10 Jul:  Another day of organizing document photos for Ron.  We did go for a very short walk late this morning and saw our favorite nine bucks awaiting their bird food.  Then we ate brunch, and Cynthia went to Sue's Sizzors for a hair cut.  Ron rode the Beemer back to the motel from where it was parked yesterday afternoon.  Early evening we walked our usual route and again saw the nine bucks, this time strolling through the neighborhood and browsing leisurely.  Cynthia's breathing is a little easier today, and the skies are a crystal clear blue. It appears allergies and smoke may be responsible for breathing issues. Prayer works!   Cynthia will have a chest X Ray tomorrow.

The other side is a bench !!  Pretty ornate - or ornate and pretty

9 Jul:  Happy Birthday Granddaughter Rachel!  Since Ron had cards and letters ready to mail, we decided to hike on Reservoir Hill after negotiating postage at the Post Office across from the hot springs.  Our decision to hike at Reservoir Hill was serendipitous; we met a delightful, effervescent couple from Katy, Texas who shared their unique faith journey and prayed with us for B, C,  and K.  God is good!  The hill was more of a hill than Cynthia remembered, and although she is breathing easier, she was quickly winded by the hill.  Ron remembered (from another hike years ago) this most interesting bench carved from a tree.  The fact that Ron remembers these sorts of things is yet another unexplained miracle !!

8 Jul:  Being creatures of habit, we follow the same daily routine: exercise, oatmeal with fruit followed by a 4-5 mile hike; on the last lap homeward bound, we are seriously ready for brunch at Two Chicks.  Betsy, the owner, turns the order in to the chef, “ for the special couple.”  "Isn't that special," says the Church Lady. Last night’s rain was a blessing,  but not too noticeable this morning. We spotted 9-10 deer, including an injured buck, and one named Stumpy (due to a stump on his antlers).  A community of geese was happy to be photographed for granddaughter Fyn. Tonight,  loud crashing thunder and sharp cracks of lightning roared above us at Boss Hogg’s Restaurant.  We are it back to the hotel in between the rain showers.  Ron will hike in the rain alone tonight.  Cynthia's blister is healing nicely.

Geese in the lake at the end of our neighborhood walk

7 Jul: Every day we hike past 8-10 elegant buck deer ensconced in the same shady spot. The antlers are growing by the day; One has 10 points. The deer seem unafraid; they like this place because a  bird feeder is directly across the road. The fellow who feeds the birds said, "I can't help it if the deer eat the seed.  I am only feeding birds.“ We had a most interesting visit with a neighbor ( to the deer) who is in charge of managing manpower for the fire, search and rescue teams;  he was one of the team hiking up mountain to rescue the young woman with a broken ankle as we were hiking down from Four Mile Falls.  He said she had surgery and gave us a report on the Colorado fires.  Cynthia's blister is greatly improved thanks to Ron's medial expertise. It rained briefly tonight as we walked to dinner. Ron has had opportunity to tell his bear stories several times today. The guy in the restaurant had a very good bear story in return.

Lookie the velvet and all those tines on his antlers.

6 Jul:  Are we boring?  After explaining our lifestyle to a 13 year old who was helping her mom clean our hotel room, we wondered if our routine was boring.  For extreme exciting news: Ron fixed a mole skin cover for Cynthia's blister; the bad news is the blister is still to painful for hiking.  BUT, we did get to Two Chicks for lunch and hobbled home.  The extra good news is the room is clean!  Cynthia created Rambo and Bankston spreadsheets for GEDmatch.com.  Ron continues working on the SCS projects.  It is pouring down rain in Pagosa Springs.  For how long, we don’t know, but it is mighty welcome to the firemen fighting forest fires. Yes! We are not boring or bored.
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5 Jul:  Cynthia hiked just fine yesterday morning.  Attempting a second hike last night was her undoing because the blister worsened.  Ron hiked alone this morning, having a great time visiting with the deer feeder guy who said 10 bucks were ensconced across from his home last night.  Ron was introduced to his Texas neighbors who happen to winter on the north side of Lake Conroe, Texas.  We lived on the south side.

4 Jul:  Wishing our family and friends a Happy Independence Day - the Fourth of July!  To reflect on the meaning of Independence Day is to grasp the suffering paid by the signers of the Declaration of Independence and those who fought so valiantly for the freedoms we have today.  Our country is unique in providing more opportunity for more people than any other country ever has.  We salute our veterans and soldiers.  Thank you.  God Bless America!

3 Jul:  Blistered Cynthia sat out the walk today, so Ron used the opportunity to talk to a friend who enjoys long, long conversations and walked the entire circuit around the lake to Pagosa Road.  After brunch, he examined several of those files converted to Word and discovered a few more letters that need to be considered for Volume 7 of the Records of the Colonial Swedish Churches in Pennsylvania.  (Sorry Ken.)  At 8 PM punctually, he was out the door to walk to WallyWorld, gawk at the sunset, and converse with another friend via the miracle of telecommunication - remarkable even with an old flip phone. We assisted Brett with his blog posts: https://bsismanturkey.blogspot.com

That bright red dot above the trees is the sun !!

2 Jul:  Da hubsand failed in hubsandly duties by asking if (instead of insisting that) we turn around when my beloved SmoochSmooch confessed that she had started walking in her "comfortable" shoes instead of changing into her hiking Hokas.  Now she has a blister and is doctoring before we go to Two Chicks for brunch at 1pm.  (Brunch because we always order egg white omelets there.)  It was a hot walk with little shade this morning because we started late instead of early.  Fortunately, the smoke has been blown away by the strong north winds today.  Unfortuately the 416 fire is heading northward.  We need a southeasterly wind to blow it back into areas already burned.  Today the guy who feeds the birds was out, and we talked with him for a bit.  He cannot prevent the deer from eating that bird food.  One large buck has survived three hunting seasons so far.  Here is Ron's description copied from an email to a Little cousin, "We are safely ensconced in Pagosa Springs, Colorado breathing that lovely, fresh, high altitude smoke from the 416 fire 60 miles away and moving incredibly slowly on land, but not so slowly in air quality.  Cynthia tells me that I keep the room too cold and the air conditioned air is giving her sundry problems, so she has contrived to move us much, much closer to the fire on July 12th to the Blue Lake Ranch near Hesperus, Colorado.  I liked the idea so well that I bought her another bouquet of flowers yesterday and almost had them trimmed and en-vased before she noticed.  This is Cynthia's birthday month, so I wished her happy birthday, and the Blue Lake Ranch is one of her favorite accommodations hereabouts.  The beauty of Pagosa Springs (besides the brilliant smokey sunsets) is that the highs have been running in the mid-80s.  When we leave Durango around July 19th, we will probably tour through Colorado to get the most smoke possible en route to Montana for cooler temperatures (although that didn't work last time we tried it).  Route to be determined by the seat of my pants, recently mended.  We do genealogy 80% of our time, but most of it has to do with DNA or the Swedish Colonial Society.  (Tell Shelley that we are on her side.)  We hike for an hour or two every day and just today talked with the guy who feeds the deer via his bird feeder.  We've seen 9 bucks waiting their turn to his feeder."  Sunset tonight was blood red, smack on the horizon!  Awesome !!

1 Jul, Sunday in Pagosa Springs, Colorado:  Thank God.  Today is the first day of the birthday month.   SmoochSmooch.  I love you on your birthday month.  God was willing, we did wake up, and there was much less smoke in the air.  The temperature was 72 degrees when we began our morning hike. It felt like 85 degrees when we finished.  The smoke increased considerably during the day.  About 8:00 PM Ron walked to Wally World for groceries and phoned Cynthia twice to encourage her to look out the hallway window to see the marvelous coral sunset that preceded a sky full of brown wisps.  And he sneaked a gorgeous bouquet of pink roses into the room !!  Ron has finished for now changing Word Perfect files to Word.  Good job.  We are so very thankful, so richly blessed, and we Thank God big time.  Thank God for Cynthia.