September is Rolling Along On Two Wheels

These flowers say "I LOVE YOU"

30 Sep:  After our usual exercises, we joined Carol and Bill at Denny's for breakfast.  Cynthia enjoyed a ride out to their tree farm and further enjoyed hiking several trails through the woods.  Carol made a marvelous salmon dinner, first marinating the salmon in balsomic vinegar with blackberries, and cooking squash, sweet potatoes and broccoli w/ green beans.  Carol and Bill extended their hospitality by providing Cynthia a ride back to the hotel so that she didn't have to ride the motorcycle on their mile-long gravel driveway.  Are we really ready for October?  3.8 miles.

29 Sep:  One final visit with cousin Scott and Nadine before we left Keosauqua heading toward sistah Carol's.  The day was pleasant but warm; we left at 1:30 PM and arrived in Litchfield at six PM, in time for dinner at Ruby Tuesday.  Carol and Bill were surprised that we arrived so quickly and joined us at Ruby Tuesday.  Route was US 34 E past Burlington to Monmouth, IL, R on US 67 S to Carlinville to L on IL 108 E to R on I-35 S 8 miles to Litchfield.  This is our best, most comfortable route so far between Keosauqua and Mt. Olive.  US 34 in Illinois was not good (and much of that can be avoided), and a few miles on US 67 were a bit bumpy.

28 Sep:  After exercises and breakfast as always, we rode to Keosauqua to visit cousins Ken and Marvin at the Riverside grill for lunch, and then Ken dropped us off to visit Rex and Susie at their house.  Ken gifted Ron with a strongbox full of old family photos.  Some we've seen before but many were surprises, even to sistah Carol.  Route was I-35 S briefly to L on IA 5 E quite a way to L on IA 92 E to R on IA 163 bypassing Ottumwa and on to US 34 E to Fairfield.  The AmericInn was comfortable.  Iowa state highway 1 was still miserable, but cousin Ken said that they've repaved the road to Selma providing that as a more pleasant route to Keosauqua.

27 Sep:  We enjoyed a lovely ride on US 65 south to US 30 W to I-35 S to West Des Moines to visit cousin Sandy.  Our hotel is 2 miles from her house.  Sandy is as delightful as ever, and today is her birthday, so we sang Happy Birthday to her twice, the second time with her family at dinner.  Van and his wife have raised a wonderful couple of kids, a high school freshman, Colton, and a college junior, Julie (?).

26 Sep:  We were packed and ready to roll "early" at 11 AM for lunch with Ray and Mary in Mason City.  Our hotel is 1.4 miles from their house, but Ron missed the turns and arrived at their house first.  We thoroughly enjoyed good conversation until Ron and Ray were dispatched to Subway for luncheon fixings and enjoyed more good conversation as we ate.  Cynthia opted to rest at the hotel in the evening, whereas Ron chose to attend a flag football game wherein second grade grandson Rory nearly scored a last minute touchdown.  

25 Sep:  9 AM breakfast with Dick and Jane was a lot of fun, 7as usual.  Ron and Dick talked about guy things, and who know what the girls talked about.  Since Dick runs local coin auctions over the internet, I showed him my nephew's RPM coins web site (click here).  Cynthia and I repeated our 3-mile walk of yesterday in an hour and ten minutes (according to the official time-keeper.)  At 4:30 PM.  Jerry and Betty picked us up for dinner with Dave and Annie, Dale and Ann.  As usual, Annie outdid herself and prepared enough yummy food to feed a much younger army.  As usual, we all ate far too much because it was so good, but surprisingly, Ron was able to sleep quite well without the usual need to empty fluids every couple of hours.  A very good time was had by all.  Thanks Annie.  3 miles 

24 Sep, Sunday:  Since it rained overnight, Dale and Ann picked us up at 8:45 sharp for church.  We enjoyed seeing several people at church and at the ensuing coffee fellowship before Dale and Ann took us back to the hotel.  After several days of inactivity, it was refreshing to get out for a familiar 3-mile walk from the hotel south.  Dale and Ann picked us up again at 3:00 PM for the Sion Church Talent Show, a fund raiser featuring many church music singers.  At 5 pm Timen drove us to meet Cynthia's Turvold cousins, Joey, her daughter Stephanie, and Tommie, a cousin from another line of Turvolds at Subway in the Casino for dinner and boisterous genealogical conversation.

23 Sep:  Danny picked us up at 10:20 for lunch with him and Julie at the family farm.  Their cat thoroughly enjoyed Ron's petting while we all conversed.  Cynthia seems to be on a mission to acquaint everyone whose family has lived in Northwood for two generations that they are related to everyone else who has lived there two generations.  Danny was happy to show us a couple of his newest excellent drawings, one of a B-29 flying low over the barn, much of which was drawn from memories of buildings removed and family long gone.  Because of the wet conditions, Mary picked us up at the hotel for dinner with her and Lonnie at their farm.  Lonnie never farmed, but bought twenty five acres from a neighboring farmer and has built a wonderful home with gardens and fruit trees all around.  They fed us wild Minnesota rice, squash, and Alaskan halibut from his fishing trip last summer.  Seven guys came home with 700 pounds of fish.  LL (Lucky Lon) made his living as a contractor developing commercial properties in Rochester, Minnesota.  If the drive were not so long, he would probably still be working.  Mary has been Cynthia's florist for the last 15 years, an occupation that developed from picking flowers in her front yard.  (It is a BIG front yard.)

22 Sep:  After awakening, morning exercises and oatmeal, we rode the quickest route to Northwood via Minnesota highway 19 W and I-35 S.  The multitude of yellows in the fall folliage made the trip quite beautiful despite being interstate highway most of the way.  Mutual cousin David and his wife Pat joined us for dinner at the Casino, which did not disappoint.  Dave and Pat both admitted unhappily to age-related problems, which is very disappointing to us all.  We had hoped that Father Time was treating them better.  They drove us in the rain back to our nearby hotel, and we parted with hopes that the next year will be much better for us all.

21 Sep:  We stayed in Northfield a second night because Ron understood Cynthia to say that she would enjoy doing that to see the town.  After breakfast, we walked to St. John's ELCA Church to see if Karl's wife was quilting, but there were no quilters there.  It is allergy season so Cynthia went to the hotel and Ron walked alone through a very nice neighborhood to a small park, where he did his eye exercises while looking at a very vividly fall-colored red tree, and then found St. Olof's College, which is a very pretty campus.  Just after noon, we joined Karl and his wife at Goodbye Monday Blues coffee house for a couple of hours of pleasant conversation about our lives and experiences.  In the evening Ron and Cynthia again enjoyed fine dining at Subway.

20 Sep, Northfield, Minnesota:  We rode through Hastings on US 61 to Northfield, home of St. Olof College.  Karl met us at Perkins for a couple of hours over lunch.  Cynthia and Ron walked a HOT mile and a half to the Perkins and were surprised that there was no sidewalk for the last half mile.  Neither Karl nor I recognized each other, but I wore an unmistakable MIT tee shirt.  We enjoyed hearing about Karl's Norwegian ancestors, his teaching of economics, his roles in the Sons of Norway etc.  We parted with the expectation to see each other again tomorrow.  Cynthia and Ron opted for a quick & simple Subway sub for dinner after Ron mailed a check to the bank and walked about downtown to find blueberries and raspberries for breakfast tomorrow.  Route:  L on US 61 S 18 miles to R on MN 50 E 7 mi to L on 240th Street (MN 47) to L on Northfield Blvd 11 mi to L on MN 3 S 2 mi to R into Radison Country Inn & Suites.  It somehow seems improbable that the corn on one side of the highway can be dry and brown, ready for harvest, while the corn on the other side of the highway is lush and green, seemingly ready to grow for another month.  Fall yellows continue to range from faint to vivid.  QQQ closed disappointingly low after the Fed opined that another interest rate hike is likely to come.

19 Sep:  Ron was up early enough to watch QQQ and buy 10 contracts for 269 at an early low; now we wait to see if it goes up as expected.  Our route from the hotel to Hastings was absolutely familiar: out Lone Oak E to MN 55 S, merges with US 52 S, exit for 55 S to Hastings, and into town to meet Donna at the Perkins Restaurant.  As it turns out, the Country Inn in Hastings was not the one where Cynthia had reservations, so we had to ride several miles north on US 61 to Cottage Grove to a different Country Inn & Suites.  Donna drove out to our hotel to spend the evening with us over dinner at the Hy-Vee grocery Wahlburgers.

18 Sep:  We checked in to Hampton Inn at Minneapolis/ Eagen Airport.  Dinner at 4:30 at Axels in Mendota with cousin Lance and Shelly and sister-in-law Carolyn was every bit as good as the dinner we all enjoyed dinner together last year.  Route: I-94 W cross St. Croix River to L on I-494 S cross Mississippi to L on I-35E S to exit 98 Lone Oak Drive & Hampton Inn.  Continue on Lone Oak to end, R on Sioux Trail 1 mi under Interstate to L on Mendota Heights Road to L on Great River Road to Axels

Cynthia and Lana with Turvold trunk

17 Sep, Sunday:  It is dangerous for Cynthia to eat any sugar - it kicks off sugar cravings.  Yesterday the caramel pecan roll wasn't too bad (and it was very, very good), but that led to a sugary muffin and pastries at the wedding.  We rode to Hudson, Wisconsin in light traffic on scenic Minnesota highways 97 and 95 surrounded by early fall colors.  Cynthia's Turvold cousin Lana in River Falls, WI prepared a feast of foods we could eat for lunch: baked sweet potatoes, salad, fruit and veggies.  Ron was delighted and strove to leave no leftovers, but Lana packaged those to send with us to our hotel.  Route: cross I-35 on County Road 2 to R on US 61 S to L on MN 97 E through Scandia past farm to R on MN 95 S through Stillwater to L on I-94 E crossing the St. Croix River to R on WI 35 S 8 miles to exit for Radio Road - Chapman Drive E 1 mi to R on Kingsbarn, L on Newcastle Drive, a lovely ride full of the lighter green leaves of fall mixed with early yellows and an occasional tinge of red or orange.    

Cousins, Jim, Diane, Jenn, Cynthia & John

16 Sep:  We said our goodbyes to Brett's family before they left for swim lessons, packed and rode 48 miles on Interstate Highways to Forest Lake, MN, checked in to our hotel, and went next door to Keys Cafe to eat egg white veggie omelets with no oil and sour dough bread toasted dry.  Our plan was to arrive full at the wedding of Cynthia's cousin's granddaughter, so that we wouldn't eat bad stuff there, but our plan backfired because Keys makes everything from scratch and their pastries looked marvelous.  We were sooo good, and THEN we divided a caramel pecan roll.  (Cynthia ate one quarter of it.)  The wedding was a lovely affair at the family farm in Scandia, Minnesota, and Cynthia's cousins were a hoot.  Cynthia was delighted to meet nearly all of her cousin's kids and grandkids except for one who now lives in Hawaii.  A fun time was had by all the survivors.  Route: I-494 N to R on I-694 E to L on I-35W N to I-35 N to exit 131 L on County Road 2 W to Radison Hotel.  County Road 2 E to Broadway, R on US 61 S to L on MN 97 E 17 miles through Scandia to L into farm.

15 Sep:  Again Hudson was gone to daycare by the time Ron and Cynthia came upstairs.  Again Holden responded to Ron's smile EVERY time.   We walked only 3.5 miles because we overdid it yesterday and are too tired today.  Since this was our last evening with them, Brett took us to a delightful restaurant, Birch's on the Lake, where a couple of the waitresses were quite charmed by Hudson's cute smile.

14 Sep:  Hudson was gone to daycare by the time Ron and Cynthia finished exercises and came upstairs.  Holden again responded to Ron's smile EVERY time.  This time Ron and Cynthia turned right from Trace Ridge and walked too far, 7.0 miles.  It wore us both out, in part because it was 7 miles all at once instead of two 4-mile sessions as we did in Pagosa Springs.  We crossed Minnetonka Blvd and walked uphill to a park then beyond that into another forested pathway, seemingly far removed from traffic.

Ron (in middle) Hudson and Holden

13 Sep:  Precious boys.  Observe Ron smiling at Holden.  Holden's smile in return is delightful.  Ron was astounded by how chubby Holden is, but that baby fat sure protects him from falls.  The only time he howls is when he hits his head hard (about every third day) and whenever anyone takes something from him.  (The howls when the popsicle was taken away were awesome.)  Ron and Cynthia hiked left from Trace Ridge for 6.0 miles along a pathway that departed from the road into fields of cattails and swampy ground.  When we found ourselves in a subdivision, we continued through it and circled back to our original path back home.  It was quite delightful to discover so much undeveloped land so close to the I-494 corridor.

Ron is entranced with the programming.

12 Sep:  Vermillion, South Dakota to Wayzata, Minnesota, a Minneapolis suburb where grandson Brett and family are in a rental home.  Hudson has been counting the days until our arrival.  Holston was too young to remember us (and still is) and regarded us with suspicion at first.  Once he decided that we were OK (following the lead of his parents and brother), he returned our smiles with a delightful smile of his own.  As a matter of fact Ron decided that his job in the household was to continually smile at Holden, which caused Holden to continually smile in return, providing a very quiet household for everyone.  Route: E on South Cherry St -> SD 50 E 22 mi into Iowa IA 3 (Ron missed this at a T intersection and went left on Iowa 12 N 18 miles by which time he knew he was lost, turned R on IA 10 E for 16 miles to L on US 75 N for 36 miles.  Since we were approaching Minnesota, Ron knew that he was still lost and turned R on IA 9 E for 22 miles to IA 60 where we rejoined his original plan.)  Ron's original instructions were R on IA 12 S 1 mi to L on CR C38 E 22 mi to L on US 75 N continue on IA 60 N 70 mi into Minnesota (MN 60) around several rotaries to L on US 71 N 70 miles over Minnesota River bridge to Olivia, MN, R on US 212 E 54 miles to Norwood Young America and L on MN 5 E 18 mi to L on MN 41 N 2 mi to R on MN 7 E 6 mi to L on Williston Rd 1 mi to R on Minnetonka Blvd 0.5 mi to L on McGinty 0.5 mi to L on Trace Ridge.  This navigation fiasco probably resulted in 30 extra miles and an hour longer trip.

11 Sep:  North Platte, Nebraska to Vermillion, SD where we visited Cynthia’s lovely friend, Gay and her husband Dean.  It was just too amusing to learn that Dean has a twin brother Dale, the same names as my two brothers.  Much fun conversation.  The evening was too short.  Route: US 83 N 21 miles to R on Nebraska 92 E 37 mi to R on NE 2 S only 1 mi to hard L on Victoria Springs Road N then E 33 mi to L on US 183 N 7 mi to R on NE 91 E 45 mi to L on US 281 N 13 mi to R on NE 70 E 23 mi to L on NE 14 N 26 mi to R on US 20 E 42 mi to L on NE 57 N 4 mi to R on NE 59 E 6 mi to L on NE 15 N 16 mi to R on NE 12 (and 15) to L on 15 N into South Dakota (SD 19) N 2 mi to R on 320th St -> South Dakota Street into Vermillion, SD.  Victoria Springs Road was under construction, and Ron was petrified to see that the surface had been torn down to dirt and there was water standing in ruts in the dirt road.  Usually that means mud and a VERY slick surface that can cause the rear wheel to slide around sideways in a heartbeat dropping the bike into the mud too quickly to control.  Fortunately, this particular time the bike stayed stable, and we sashayed across the mud surface in 100 feet.  It was also entirely amusing to enter into Vermillion on South Dakota Street and to realize that in the middle of town the street name would change to North Dakota Street.

10 Sep, Sunday:  We rode out from Berthoud under threat of rain, experienced about 5 minutes of light rain in Greeley, Colorado and continued on under heavy gray skies for an hour until a delightful light blue appeared on the horizon.  Soon thereafter we emerged into a lovely whisp-filled light blue sky and slightly warmer temperatures (71° versus 61°).  Imagine our delight when we exited I-80 onto old US highway 83 and discovered both a Ruby Tuesday and a Hampton Inn at that interchange.  We are full and ready to sleep soundly.  Route:  1st Street N to County Road 56 E past I-25 to L on CR 13 N to R on CR 50 to L on CR 17 (but missed this turn and rode through Miliken until a sign towards Greeley) R on US 34 E until merge with I-76 NE into Nebraska, merging into I-80 E to exit 177 at US 83 in North Platte.  There was light traffic on I-76, so that was quite pleasant, but the last 60 miles on I-80 was much heavier and faster, so not as enjoyable.

9 Sep:  We visited Dick & Fran, Ron's cousins.  We talked, ate and ate some more garden fresh vegetables (especially good tomatoes and cucumbers).  We did not walk.  Dick and Fran plan to be in Iowa about a week before we get there.

8 Sep:  We DID leave by ten AM for a 9.5 hour ride to Berthoud, Colorado.  HA!  A long funny story to follow when we have time.   Oh my, was that ride ever a joy.  Weather was perfect, uncrowded roadway was smooth and twisty with lots of greenery and delightful views.  Route: W on US 50 to Gunnison & over Monarch Pass (click here) 126 mi to Poncha Springs and L on US 285 N through Buena Vista and Fairplay 109 mi to a L on County Road 73 N towards Evergreen, L on CO 74 N 5 mi to L on CR 65 N 3 mi to L on I-40 W 3 mi to R on US 6 E 2 mi to sharp left on CO 119 N 26 mi to Nederland traffic circle CO 72 W 21 mi to R on CO 7 E 14 mi to R on US 36 E 1 mi to straight on CO 66 E 8 mi to L on US 287 N 5 mi to R on County Road 2E 2 mi to L on CR 15 E 2 mi to R on Indiana St to L on Victoria St.  Road construction on US 50 stopped us for half an hour in a spot that was cool and sunny with pleasant vistas, much less inconvenient than the possible 2 hour delays.  When we went over Monarch Pass at 11,312' the winds were strong and gusty, and Ron was happy that he chose a lower route rather than going over the Trail Ridge Road through the Rocky Mountain National Park.  The plan was to stop after a good distance, but the scenery was so beautiful and the road was so smooth that Ron just didn't stop much until it became possible to make it all the way to Berthoud, and we did.  Dick and Fran were expecting us tomorrow, and that was our plan too, but the ride was easy, beautiful and pleasant, so we surprised everyone by showing up a day early . . . and then had the audacity to ask to stay overnight, to which Dick and Fran graciously agreed.  Thanks a million, Dick and Fran.

7 Sep:  We are sleeping in.  Zzzz  Cynthia is exercised, oatmealed, with financial market, and communications completed;  Ron is enjoying a sound snooze that happens doing eye exercises.  We  hiked along the great water sports recreation area alongside Uncompaghre River for 6.0 miles.  Cynthia has a manicure appointment at three.

Ron in Botanical Garder

6 Sept:  Montrose, CO.  Exercised, oatmealed, and now onto our morning walk; we toured a fairly recent and small botanical garden followed by salmon lunch at our favorite Montrose restaurant, the Stone House.  Cynthia spent a century on the phone this afternoon with Verizon to get Ron’s name to appear on caller ID instead of her name. 

5 Sept:  Zandy was not happy to see her new friend Ron leave.  We were loaded and riding from Gunnison at eleven AM for the one hour journey to Montrose.  As we rode west on US 50, we saw signs announcing that the highway was closed 28 miles ahead, so Ron turned right at the first detour sign onto Colorado highway 92.  My goodness, is that a breathtaking road along the north rim of The Black Canyon, littered with 25 MPH hairpins and gorgeous views for two additional hours.  This took us all the way north to Delta, where we turned south on US 50 (yes, the same road we detoured from).  Dinner at the Stone House in Montrose is always a treat.

4 Sep:  Today Howard picked a hike where we could let Zandy, an oversized puppy that hasn't learned not to jump up on people, off her leash.  After our overexertion yesterday, this was a good choice, although there was little shade.  Cynthia and Sage hiked the three mile flats.  

The Pinnacles near Gunnison

3 Sep, Sunday:  Since Cynthia likes lake views, Howard took us to the Dillon Pinnacles Trail (click here) adjacent to the Blue Mesa Reservoir.  It was a lovely hike, slightly uphill, with water views for three hours.  Cynthia returned exhausted.  Sage prepared fabulous food!  Ron and Howard hiked a second time to the summit of 12,500' Napolean mountain.  The rocky top was merely piles of loose rock, and the wind was strong enough that Ron sat down a couple of times on the descent to wait for less wind.  We had enough time afterwards to look for the Jewish burials in the Tincup cemetery.

Howard & Ron in hiking regallia

2 Sep:  We left "early" to visit and hike with Ron’s MIT alum Howard and his partner Sage in Gunnison, CO until Sept 5.  Blogging may or may not happen.  Sage is an exceptional cook.  We had a fast three mile afternoon hike with their labradoodle Zandy, who dove into any loose water she could find.  Route: US 160 E 58 miles to Del Norte, L on Colo 112 E 13 mi to Center, CO, L on US 285 N 23 mi to L on Colo 114 W 60 mi to L on US 50 W through Gunnison to left turn followed by a curve right and R at Western Lumber onto frontage road, R on Thornton, then 2nd right on Carbon Court (no sign)  

1 Sep.  After exercising and oatmeal, we were NOT out the door early to walk. With the sun already intense at 10:30 AM, and two nasty blisters on Cynthia’s toes, we opted to turn back.  Yup, back to finishing up chores.  We watched the stock market until one and enjoyed a salmon lunch at Boss Hogg’s with our favorite waitress Eliza.  Twenty-five years ago today, Cynthia’s oldest son Scott died from Leukemia.  6.82 miles 

August in Pagosa Springs Editing James Lea

31 Aug:  Two days until departure, but we didn't get up early, so it was already 2 in the afternoon by the time we finished eating at Boss Hogg's after our morning walk and breakfasts. It was a warm day, but we are pleased with the packing progress and our pleasant evening walk, spotting several deer.  9.16 miles today! 

30 Aug:  This was a successful day on all counts.  QQQ went up enough for Ron to make money on his last call option - - but then he immediately bought a put.  Ron's packing is progressing, and he made the first trip to deposit recycling at the EMS station.  We said good-bye to new friends Chuck and Jean for ten minutes on the evening walk and returned with the rising of a big "blue moon" (click here).  6,16 miles  

29 Aug: We enjoyed a pleasant day.  Ron walked in the AM, Cynthia’s feet are sore, but we walked tonight, so double 4.66 for Ron’s mileage. 

Sunset on August 11 was as spectacular

  28 Aug:  Ron continues mending, now a pair of socks.  Our day is just that exciting.  We did eat lunch at Boss Hogg's and saw Eliza again.  Our evening walk was pleasant with an amazing, colorful sunset.  We met a local couple here who live in Bentwater, Texas, across the lake from us in our winter condo.  9.14 Miles.

27 Aug, Sunday:  We are still not early birds, getting started walking today at 10:30, immediately after exercises and oatmeal.  Countdown proceeds, only six more days until departure.  Ron is preparing recycling to drop off in at the EMS station two blocks away, bookkeeping, and preparing for initial attempts to pack everything into five little luggages. 8.92 Miles, sore feet. 

26 Aug:  Another slow morning, but we did our exercises, ate oatmeal and walked as usual.  It was a little warm for Cynthia, but we had cloud cover a few times which enabled us to complete the usual walk to the boat ramp.  In the evening, the sunset pinks were marvelous for the second time this week, and we enjoyed seeing a cute little skunk ahead of us on the path for 50 yards.  One of us kept a wise distance behind, while the more adventurous one (male) trotted right behind him.  Cynthia’s total miles for June, July and August totaled 374.42.  Today, 8.84 Miles.  

25 Aug:  We arose later today because QQQ is in the basement.  After the usual exercises and oatmeal we went out for the usual walk and were surprised to see the pavers at work on the second lane in the subdivision.  We scattered dried flowers down the hillside of the dam, and finished our "morning" walk at Boss Hogg's.  All afternoon we fought sleep as our stomachs digested way too much food.  We walked late this evening and got back after dark, easy to do now since dark is an hour earlier than in early July.   9.5 Miles 

24 Aug:  We were delighted to see QQQ open at a price nearly high enough to trade, but that rapidly vanished as the price plummeted all day long to end up $11 cheaper than the opening price.  Ron is hoping for a recovery in a few days after the Fed conference winds down and things get back to "normal."  We did our usual two walks today despite cloudy skies and a little rain.  8.5 Miles 

Yes, more flowers

23 Aug:  Housekeeping comes again today.  Cynthia is excited.  Ron straightened his messes, Amber came and went, Cynthia is showered clean, the room is clean, and she is a happy girl.  We walked the usual route and were quite pleased to see much more progress with the asphalt today, but there is still an incredible amount left to do for one crew and one paver.  Just past the paving crew were five large bucks, one with a 12 point rack.  The rest of the walk was uneventful.  Ron sewed on a button, then rode to Walmart & City Market for groceries.  He returned with two bouquets of roses, and made an exquisite arrangement of pinks and golds.  We ate at Boss Hogg's, and our waitress was named Rain.  Interesting that we put the rain cover back on Cynthia's new seat, and it rained at 5 o'clock for a few minutes.  Tonight is laundry, and EVERYTHING will be clean.  Imagine that.!!   Cynthia walked 5.27 miles, but opted not to walk tonight following the rain.  Ron walked and reports more progress on the asphalt. 

more rainbow than rain

22 Aug:  Today is another early day.  Ron was convinced he would get to sleep earlier yesterday, but it didn't happen.  We were up early watching QQQ for our morning excitement, but it didn't behave well despiting opening much higher than expected.  It then spent the rest of the day in the basement hiding.  Our morning walk started out with disappointment that the street resurfacing project showed no signs of progress until we had walked to the lake and back.  Then we were excited to see workers around the asphalt machine.  In the evening we walked past the 1/4 mile new asphalt lane.  Wonderful, even if slower than molasses, and now they have placed cones to mark those suspension destroying ditches.  8.6 Miles 

21 Aug:  Again up too early only beause Ron doesn't get to sleep early enough, time after time after time.  Ron made money with QQQ on three out of six remaining contracts, but the market will have to go up significantly to make the other three profitable.  We enjoyed a quick, short walk this morning and only saw one road grader and one water truck, so our crew has mostly moved elsewhere.  Early afternoon we did lunch at Boss Hogg's with Eliza as waitress.  Cynthia's sister in Palm Desert has a lot of water damage from the hurricane.  (One doesn't think of mud in the desert being a big problem.)  Walk number 2 this evening was delightfully cool.  What a pleasant change.!!  There were surprisingly large and deep (10 inches) ditches at the two junctions where the newly smoothed dirt roads join the old asphalt roads leading into the subdivision.  Ron decided that this means that asphalt surfacing should begin tomorrow.  It was unbelievable that there was no signage to indicate that motorists were about to hit such a potentially damaging ditch.  The other excitement was seeing a fox near the dam for the second time this year.  8.0 miles 

20 Aug, Sunday:  Maybe today the early bird will sleep in.  She did! We are ever so curious to see if the truckers return tomorrow to continue working on the subdivision streets putting down “Ambient Mix Asphalt.”  Thirteen more days until departure towards Gunnison, Montrose, Berthoud, Vermillion SD, Medina, MN and Scandia, MN.  Our evening walk was pleasant, and we enjoyed fun conversations with Jim and Ming.  5.0 Miles 

19 Aug:  Saturday means we sleep in. Zzzz.  Oops no, someone awakened early and quickly.  We exercised, ate and walked, but not early enough to escape the heat, so we turned around early and came back to work on our computers until Ron decided to ride to Walmart for groceries.  It was hot, but the store was not crowded, and shopping went quickly.  We will undoubtedly walk late this evening, and it will still be too hot.  There are firefighters at the hotel between camps; they got the little fire out and will move to a bigger one.  6.0 Miles 

18 Aug:  Another good morning walk, a bit earlier today, but still a bit too hot for us.  Cynthia is in favor of 2 pm lunch at Boss Hogg's; Eliza and the good cook are working.  The trucks and construction workers are not in sight today.  The stock market went up a bit but not far enough; maybe Monday.  The evening walk was pleasant. 8.0 miles. 

17 Aug:  We both slept quite well, Ron for seven uninterrupted hours, Cynthia without foot pain.  (But the AC was too cold for her.)  Ron spent the day watching QQQ fall and fall and fall.  Maybe tomorrow it will rise and rise and rise.  Let's hope.  At 10:30 am, Cynthia required a ride to the hairdresser.  We are lucky that Ron was still able to recognize her when he returned to pick her up.  4.90 miles on the evening walk 

16 Aug:  WOW, we both slept well, and Cynthia was astounded to awaken after a night with no foot pains at all.  That was some foot massage with the pedicure yesterday !!  We exercised, ate, walked, and were very pleased with the progress on the subdivision streets.   They are now smooth and level without lumps and bumps.  Then we ate at Boss Hogg's, salad, salmon & a baked potato.  Now Ron is busy writing cards to send to invite more people to the Burton 3rd reunion party.  Cynthia tried typing and discovered that it puts too much pressure on her sagittal bands.  Ron's trip for groceries was a bit unnerving as it headed straight towards a very ugly dark black sky, but he returned to the hotel just as the first strong gusts of water-drop-filled winds blasted the area.  The rain prevented us from taking a second walk tonight. 5.23 miles 

15 Aug:  Up late.  Cynthia slept well despite foot spasms at night that sometime awakened her.  Her foot spasms did keep Ron awake so he worked on James Lea from 3:30 am until 6.  He is falling asleep this afternoon, alone in the room while Cynthia gets a pedicure & manicure.  The pedicure was the best ever; it really helped arthritis in her feet.  She is unaccustomed to pain-free feet.  Interesting to see daily progress as the streets are being covered with a new layer of packed dirt and rock, preparing for asphalt in the subdivision.  8.0 Miles 

14 Aug:  Another exciting day.  We did our morning exercises, ate oatmeal (invariably), walked to the boat ramp and back, ate lunch at Boss Hogg's and spent the afternoon on our computers.  Ron is excited to be figuring out a couple of complicated wills and estates.  This morning as we returned through the subdivision, we passed a long line of trucks pulling belly dump trailers, apparently waiting to add mixed dirt & rock to the interior streets.  This evening six of those huge trucks parked across from the hotel.  Now it is evening and time to walk again despite threat of rain. 9.20 miles! 

13 Aug: Sunday:  Some of the family are scattered right now; that's unusual.  Son Paul is in Berlin, going to Prague Monday, then to York, England on Friday to help his daughter Zoe and her new husband Jack move into their apartment.  Zoe's classes begin in Sept. Jack will play soccer.  Grandson Eric and his wife, Emily, are in Italy on the Amalfi Coast.  Son Jon and both of his daughters are in Iowa for a funeral.  We walked twice, totaling 8.5 miles. 

12 Aug:  We 😴!  Finally, at 10:30 AM we hoofed it to the boat dock, stopping to visit Jerry and Linda en route.  Ron transcribed documents for most of the afternoon while Cynthia had a nice nap. Then Ron napped for an an hour and a half.  By that time, Cynthia was sleepy, so Ron walked alone tonight; he has 8.5 miles. Cynthia has miles: 4.53. 

Some sunsets are amazing and this was after it started to fade !!

11 Aug: Because the road was being oiled, we circled around the lake back to our hotel, stopping to eat lunch at Boss Hogg’s, thereby adding 3/4 mile to the morning walk.  Back to our computers for the afternoon.  By the time we walked in the evening, the oil had dried sufficiently for us to cross the roadway as usual.  Highlight of the day was the sunset from the boat dock.  10 Total miles. 22381 steps 

10 Aug:  Up early again to watch QQQ, and Ron couldn't help but buy several more contracts.  Now we need the market to go up significantly in the next eight days.  We walked a shorter loop in the neighborhood and were rewarded with several sightings of bucks.  Then we ate at Boss Hogg's and spent the remainder of the day on our computers.  The evening walk was cool and pleasant, with a stop to chat with Jerry and Linda from College Station, Texas.  The sky turned a menacing black over the mountains, but it did not rain on us.  On the way home, eleven bucks meandered alongside of us, including a ten-point buck.  6.40

9 Aug:  We were up sorta early at 7:30 and straightened up our messes so that housekeeping could keep house.  We decided not to walk this morning to give Cynthia's feet a break, so we spent all day staring at our computers until our evening walk.  QQQ suffered again as credit ratings for several major US banks were downgraded.  Don't expect consumers to slow down spending just because credit costs more.  Ditto US government spending.  The national debt is horrible, more than $100,000 for every man, woman and child.  Paul says that whenever the BRICS block establishes another currency to buy and sell oil, the inflation in this country will go through the roof.  4.25 miles 

8 Aug:  Joy!  Cooler weather blew into Pagosa Springs, making the morning and evening walks pleasant.  We enjoyed meeting a  retired high school math teacher, Greg, and his wife, Vicky, on our way home tonight.  They call us the “Happy Couple.”  Fabulous folks live in Pagosa Springs!  Fifteen years ago today, we decided to take a thirty-day research trip together to solve a genealogy mystery; we fell in love, and we are still on that journey.  A happy couple indeed. 9.0 miles  

7 Aug:  We completed our morning 4.25-mile walk to the boat dock.  Ron had an excellent pedicure at one PM.  It took an hour and a half, but it was a fantastic job.  We repeated the walk at seven, except tonight, Ron added a stunt, fall and roll as he made a mis-step off the curb.  Cynthia inspected him to be sure he wasn’t bleeding.  He was delighted that he stayed clean and didn’t tear his clothes.  8.5 miles. 

6 Aug, Sunday:  We enjoyed a short, warm, two-mile walk at 9:45 AM, then Ron rode to Walmart and City Market for postcards.  He returned without postcards but with fresh roses for his beloved bride.  Our hotel staff originally stocked our room with a vase for fleurs.  Cynthia is no longer wearing a brace on her right hand, but typing will be limited.  Total 6.0 miles for the day. 

5 Aug:  The editor is at work in the hotel room, with thanks to Barb W. for her research and helpful edits.  Yaay.  No morning walk due to the heat.  Ten more days of 85 degree highs are forecast.  4.5 miles tonight at seven PM.  Fun to see two large bucks with big antlers, ten or twelve point racks. 

4 Aug:  We left for Durango at 8:45 AM to meet Ron’s friends, Cindy and Greg from Big Pine Key, and Cindy’s friend, Renee, and her husband, Gordon, from Durango, at Jean-Pierre’s Bakery for a delightful brunch.  A good visit was had by all.  From there, we went to Spine Colorado for X-rays and an injection in Cynthia’s bursa.  She is now overhauled and hopes to last several more decades.  Ron is working on James Lea.  2.0 miles.  Good night

3 Aug:  Walking about 9.0 miles in two pleasant trips made this a great day.  The downside was Cynthia’s Apple Watch quit working, so we don’t have exact mileage.  9.0 

2 Aug:  We slept in until 7:30 before arising to check QQQ and discovered that the U.S. credit rating had been downgraded, so the markets were down when we needed them up.  Oh well, time to finish preparing for housekeeping and to get busy walking.  It was moderately hot, so we shortened our hike and avoided the big hill. 6.23 miles. 

1 Aug:  We arose at 6:30 to leave for Durango to see the retina specialist, Dr. Haug, at 10:30.  Cynthia is overjoyed with the comfort and security provided by the new Russell "Day-Long" motorcycle seat.  Dr. Haug hails from Minnesnowda and delivered nothing but good news.  The retina bleeding has stopped; Cynthia does not have “wet” AMD.  Instead, she has a type of dry AMD that affects the optic nerve, so her glasses prescription can be expected to change sporadically.  The red dot wallpaper vision was likely caused by a heat stroke.  Good news all around!  All we must do is sit in the shade whenever Cynthia becomes overheated.  We came home and napped before we walked 3.0 miles.  Zzzz, good night. 

Hurray, Hurray, Birthday in Pagosa Springs

31 Jul:  The last day of the birthday month!  Up early for QQQ, and change the August blog title. We are not too exciting when all we do is eat, work, and hike.  This AM we walked to City Market for decongestant.  Ron walked again in the evening, but Cynthia is resting to prevent her allergy-driven sinus infection from turning into bronchitis and bronchial pneumonia.

30 Jul, Sunday: The morning trek began at ten AM, not quite so hot, but we did shorten our walk.  It was fun to see several deer out and about, too.  At four PM, the skies look like rain.  Hmm.  It drizzled a bit but the fround stayed dry.  Wearing raincoats, we walked dry for 4.5 miles at seven.  Total of 7 miles today. 

29 Jul:  After oatmealing and exercising, we bounded out the door (well, not really).  We did walk 4.09 miles on our usual trek, but it was too hot.  Ron rode to Walmart to fill an RX, and then we slept for two hours.  (All that bounding wore us out.)

28 Jul:  Woo-hoo!  Here we are, up early, with plans to hike at 9:30. Ron tuned into the markets reaping rewards.  Cynthia phoned her retina specialist in TX and negotiated for a new appointment in Durango on Tuesday, 10 days earlier.  The pacemaker test is completed; now to exercise.  Our new custom seat arrived, too.  By the time activities were completed, it was too hot to walk.  We will hike tonight.  Cynthia is delighted to learn the name of our tenth great-grand, baby, due in November. Life is good! 5.07 Miles  

27 Jul: Lunch at Boss Hogg’s with friends from Texas.  9.0 miles 

26 Jul:  Ron continued work on the MIT reunion and the markets. Our walk this evening was pleasant, not too hot at 7:45 PM. But we didn’t get far after chatting with Ann and her poodle, one of the many friends we enjoy in PS.  2.0 Miles. 

25 Jul: This was a quiet, lazy day with ninety-degree temps that kept us indoors until time for our evening walk. 3.0 Miles

24 Jul:  Early this morning, Cynthia called her retina specialist in Houston, who recommended she get checked.  Ron was greatly surprised when a taxi for Durango showed up twenty minutes later.  He grabbed his just-cooked oatmeal, a banana, and morning pills, and we were off to Durango to see the SW Eye Consultants, an hour's drive away.  They worked us in, ran tests, and showed us fluid slides under the retina and news of bleeding behind the retina, all related to wet macular degeneration.  This is all treatable.  As bad news goes, this was wonderful.  We have an appointment to see the retina specialist on August eleventh at one PM.  Until then, we know nothing more.  We walked a little way this evening with Cynthia in her new shoes.  Her feet are much happier. Two miles. 

23 Jul, Sunday:  Cynthia reports seeing things, flashes of light.  Ron again spent the day communicating with his MIT buddies until late when he walked to the boat ramp and returned after dark.

22 Jul:  With our noses in our computers, we managed to do nothing else.  Cynthia read two books.  Ron typed messages and finally hiked at 7pm.

21 Jul:  We skipped the morning walk and met David to hear about his extensive journey to Lea's ancestral areas.  Cynthia decided to rest her feet since the new shoes should arrive before too long.  Ron typed messages all afternoon and finally hiked late, returning after dark.

20 Jul:  The morning heat was tough.  We turned back before we reached the lake.  By then, her feet were again hurting.  David, one of the Lea YDNA participants, met us for dinner to discuss his research.  Grandson Eric is in Guatemala on a mission assignment. 3.0 miles.

19 Jul:  Ron is almost finished with the early MIT communications. We walked twice and enjoyed talking about skiing, fishing, and motorcycles with Mike.  Cynthia again continued hiking morning and evening despite the painful blisters. 8.80 miles.

18 Jul:  The internet has been sporadic, slowing Ron's progress on MIT correspondence.  Cynthia has one month to wear the brace on her right hand; it will be removed slightly at a time.  It is unlikely she will type much for a while.  We received the sad news that MIT alum Carlton Sockwell suddenly passed away in April.  He was Cynthia’s favorite of Ron’s MIT friends, an amazing, beloved math professor who continued to tutor students after retirement for thirty-five years.  Cynthia continued hiking morning and evening despite the painful blisters on her feet.   8.5 miles 

Happy Birthday from Zoe, Jack & his parents

17 Jul:  It always pays to think ahead.  For some reason, perhaps our cluttered minds, we posted Aug instead of Jul!  We walked 5.3 miles in AM at 8:30 before it got too hot, but this aggravated Cynthia's feet and blisters. After dinner at Boss Hogg’s, Ron walked an additional 4.25 miles.

16 Jul, Sunday:  The high point of the birthday month of July is the 16th, the big day.  Sadly, during the evening walk, Cynthia's feet blistered in the new shoes.  9.30 miles

15 Jul: We have added the Bates Eye Exercises (click here) to our daily regimen for the past three months.  We also started SightCare supplements in concert with the exercises.  Watch the video, then read the reviews.  Ron is definitely seeing improvement with astigmatism. Cynthia’s vision has not yet improved, but she will continue the supplements to keep macular degeneration at bay.  We have no side effects.  And one more interesting piece of advice: it is good to change shoes frequently.  We wear Hokas until they are worn out.  Cynthia’s shoes had spread and flattened out, so her feet hurt.  In addition, she wears Turf-Toe steel plates (Amazon) under custom orthotics for a bunion.  The steel plate slid to the opposite side, not under the big toe.  Yes, her feet hurt.  Today, she changed the orthotics and turf toe steel plates to new Hoka shoes discovering she shoulda changed to new shoes months ago.  7.80 miles

14 Jul:  Ron is making positive contact with many MIT alumni. We decided to stay in Pagosa Springs until after Labor Day. We can get the James Lea book off our computers to the publisher during this August.  8.5 miles.

13 Jul: We exercised, oatmealed, and Ron worked on his MIT organization while Cynthia did stretches. We ate at Boss Hoggs, then walked to City Market.  Our evening walk was uneventful.  5.83 miles

12 Jul:  After watching QQQ in vain, Ron finally did his exercises and ate.  Now we can go walking again when it is not as "too hot" as it will be later.  Excitement builds as we approach the precise "Happy Birthday."  Cynthia did exercises for tight IT Band and then fell asleep. Now, it is time for the second walk.  We met Justin and Madison close to the last turn. 9.2 miles 

11 Jul:  We walked again a little too late and too hot, but at least we walked.  Cynthia met another family this evening because she was impressed that the woman rowed the boat forcefully onto the shore - but that meant that we arrived "home" after dark but still ahead of dark thirty. 8.9 miles 

10 Jul:  The best part of our daily hikes is that we meet the loveliest people, like Ray and Twyla from St. Louis, MO, who are staying at their son's house, helping him remodel it for rental (since his plans to relocate to Pagosa fell through).  Ray suffered a heart attack at age 48, so they didn't need convincing about healthy eating and fitness.  They return to STL tomorrow, so we won't be able to enjoy their company again here & now.  We wish them a safe journey. 9.0 miles today.

9 Jul, Sunday:  Happy Birthday, Rachel!  Our morning walk to the boat dock (4.5 miles) began after 11:00 AM, translating to being HOT.  We visited with Jim's extended family and his charming 97-year-old mother.  Ron is focused on MIT correspondence.  The mosquitoes were out in abundance tonight 8.5 miles

8 Jul: What fun visiting with Linda and Greg G. (3 G), who live overlooking the lake close to the boat dock.  After that visit, we remembered several more about meeting them on prior visits.  9.0 miles.

7 Jul:  Ron is on a roll, organizing a Burton Third MIT reunion for April 2024.  Some of the more hilarious memories of dorm life: Students could not plug in appliances to cook in their rooms, so one clever guy used an iron to make toasted cheese sandwiches.  The dorm rooms had single light bulb fixtures in the ceiling, so one duo shorted the electricity at the wall socket to turn off the electrical current and replaced the single bulb with a new ceiling fixture.  Students invented "hall bowling" in 1963 by rolling a heavy metal gear the length of the hall, calling it a strike if the gear threw off sparks when it hit the radiator at the end of the hall.  Oh, what fun!  9.0 miles.

6 Jul:  We almost rested, but not quite.  MIT DTYD 2024 is barreling full-steam ahead.  We walked at 7:30 P.M, but only 3.33 miles to the lake and back.  Now we will sleepzzzzz. 

View from the boat dock

5 Jul:  Ron stayed up too late working on an unofficial MIT reunion event for Patriot's Day 2024 and sent a blind-CC invitational E-mail to 90 alumni.  Significant progress has been made.  Have you guessed we are tired?  9.0 miles!

4 Jul:  Independence Day and Happy Birthday to Don.  9.2 miles 

3 Jul:  We arose a bit late and started our morning walk at about 10:45, which means that we were hot by the time we returned, so we continued straight to Boss Hog's for luncheon baked potatoes & salmon, this time without the kidney beans and tomato that were the suspects in Ron's stomach upset yesterday.  We were also late beginning our evening walk, about 7:30+, so we had a chance to return before dark until we met a lovely couple by the lake, Suellen and Doug (doing his exercises) and Hank the dog.  8.54 miles 

2 Jul, Sunday:   Our first walk was lovely and cool, and our lunch at Boss Hog's seemed fine although Ron felt uncomfortably full after one big salad and 1.6 baked potatoes.  His overfull feeling didn't go away, and by 6pm had turned into acute stomach pain.  During our second walk, he stopped at a "Johnny on the Spot" to reduce the load on his stomach and threw up three times.  That relieved the stomach pain only briefly, and before falling asleep, he threw up another three times.  Ron likely had food poisoning from the salad bar.  Yuk.   8.80 miles.

1 Jul:  Birthday month begins. Sixteen days until the apex of the month.  Love and Smooch.  On our evening walk, we met Stumpy, a six or eight-point buck with antlers still in velvet.  7.45 miles

June, Too Soon! Hasta La Vista Sedona

30 Jun:  QQQ success this morning.  It rose from the get-go to new highs, enabling Ron to sell at substantial profit.  Pat was able to tear himself away from his truck and steering pump problem to join us for lunch at the Stone House.  After we said our goodbyes, we rode off towards Ouray without much traffic to bother us.  The day was warm and the scenery pleasant rolling hills and ranchlands.  Ron is quite puzzled by his recent lack of confidence in turns.  It is embarassing for a motorcyclist to be slower on mountain roads than cars.  The snow-covered peaks at the tops of the passes were worth the ride, and traffic remained unnoticeable.  A good day was had by all the survivors.  We arrived at the West End Lodge in Pagosa Springs and were greeted by our familiar friends here.  They had even put our packages into "our" room and provided a flower vase.  Apparently we are more memorable than I thought.  On our evening walk to the lake, we noticed smoke from a forest fire much too close to agosa Springs.  Firefighters shopping at City Market explained to Ron that this was one of two fires, each covering about 200 acres.  3.9 miles

29 Jun:  To be continued after packing & riding.  The ride from Grand Junction to Montrose was short and sweet and early enough to be comfortable, although the scenery was unremarkable.  Again the Quality Inn said we'd have to wait for our room, and again we rode over to the Stone House for luncheon salads.  Cynthia found a pedicurist and Ron visited with Pat for the afternoon until dinner time at Denny's.  We were shocked and disappointed to learn that the waitress lied to us.  The person delivering the food said the cook had used as little oil as possible, and our omelets looked quite oily.  Never again will we order at Denny's without first asking if they have cooking spray in the kitchen. 2.06 miles 

28 Jun:  The ride from Steamboat to Craig on US 40 was pleasant, but without snow-covered mountain scenery, just large expanses of open grasslands and hills.  The ride south from Craig to Rifle on Colorado 13 became hot although the roadside scenery was delicious yellow brown grasslands - actually dying from excessive heat and little moisture.  The remaining miles from Rifle to Grand Junction through that winding canyon was terrific scenery since I-70 follows the Colorado River. 1.85 miles

27 Jun:  We had the most spectacular view of snow covered mountain peaks from our Rodeway Inn hotel this morning.  We expected more similar views as we rode, but none matched the magnificence we saw in Leadville.  The wind started out disturbingly strong from Leadville on Colorado Route 91 north to Interstate 70, but I-70 is a disaster since it is badly rutted and potholed.  Add the wind and the traffic and we were happy to get off I-70 nine miles later to take Colorado Route 9 north toward Kremmling - - - until the wind grew in intensity again and again and the ride became a tedious battle with the unrelenting wind.  One has to continually remind oneself that there have been no recent reports of motorcyclists blown off the road by the winds in Colorado.  The thought of those winds above tree line caused us to abandon our intended route over Trail Ridge Road crossing Rocky Mountain National Park at 10,000+ feet.  Instead, we headed west on US 40 to Steamboat Springs, again with strong wind gusts broadsides several times, but once we cleared Rabbit Ears Pass, the winds diminished significantly so that the last 15 miles was actually pleasant.  After booking ourselves in to the Quality Inn, we ate at Seeds, a new, healthy choices restaurant there.  Delicious.  Being way too full afterwards, we walked and sat by the Yampa River, watching rafters and several young boys who were surfing in a standing wave on the snow-melt swollen river.  2.03 miles 

Cynthia foreground, snow behind

Ron, Cynthia, Helen and Doug in Aspen

26 Jun:  We got on the road "early" at 10:20 AM in order to ride from Montrose to Aspen, a three-hour ride to join Helen and Doug for lunch at the White House Tavern.  We should have picked a quieter place.  After lunch, we rode another two hours over Independence Pass to Leadville, CO.  Our route: US 550 N mi towards Delta to a R on D Rd -> 1900 Rd to R on F Rd to L on 2000 Rd to R on G Rd to L on 2050 Rd to R on H Rd to L on 2075 Rd to R on Colo 92 to L on Colo 133 to R on CO 82 into Aspen and over Independence Pass @ 12,095 feet to a L on US 24 into Leadville.  It is 115 degrees in Texas, and we were in snow as shown in photo. 

25 Jun:  Montrose, CO, Ron spent the day with Pat A. working on his truck after dropping Cynthia off at Zion Lutheran Church to worship.  She walked the two miles back to the hotel, stopping at Denny’s for lunch.  After Ron and Pat finally found all the bolts holding the steering pump and the reservoir in place, we all gathered at Denny's for a goodbye dinner.

24 Jun:  Ron decided The River’s Edge to be his favorite place to stay in Ouray because the owner walked across America a couple years ago.  We were packed and on the road early, arriving in Montrose, CO at 11:30 AM,  unable to check in early. That was fine, we love eating at the Stone House.  Our grilled salmon salad was delicious. They had a fantastic lemon sorbet for dessert. Ron was happy to get half of Cynthia’s.

23 Jun:  Worn out, we slept late, Ron researched the markets, and we walked the River Trail.  4.0 Miles  The name of the river means “Dirty Water.” 

Uncompahgre River is raging today

There is snow high in the Rockies

22 Jun:  Ouray today, a cabin next to a river. Durango to Ouray, CO is always a breathtaking ride. Today, it was more so, the air was crisp, and the leaves on the trees fresh and new, with magnificent snow-capped mountains on three sides. It seemed like spring at Nola’s Summit Pass. Arriving in Ouray, we quickly shed our jackets to walk about searching for food. Only one restaurant has food we eat, and they don’t open until five. We settled for splitting a very large house salad and an English muffin before locating our lodging. Ron remembered it was on the Umcompaghre River, but it wasn’t the hotel he thought it was. That’s ok. The Rivers Edge is better. We walked the River Trail 4.0 Miles. 

21 Jun:  We hiked six miles on the Horse Gulch Trail. The trail was very dry, loose, soil causing Cynthia to slip twice and fall on her tush;  Ron slid once, except he stayed upright. We ate sandwiches using sour dough bread from Jean-Pierre’s Bakery, and spinach and kale because we did not want to buy more food. Ron said he brought the wine (water). 

20 Jun:  Cynthia’s hand Dr appointment was good news and bad news. The good news is her hand is healing, no surgery is needed, but she must wear the hand brace two more months. The bad news is her left thumb is dislocated due to arthritis, and it needs reconstruction similar to a knee or hip replacement.  The Dr. gave her a cortisone shot in the thumb, plus a comfort brace.  We enjoyed lunch at Jean-Pierre’s French restaurant. 

19 Jun:  Ride to Durango, CO, lunch at Abiquiu Cafe is lovely 

18 Jun:  Happy Father’s Day! Today, we pack! 

17 Jun:  Our wifi has been down. Cynthia walked to the plaza and found it too crowded to walk!  We enjoyed a lovely dinner with Mark and Vangie. 

16 Jun:  will be here too soon. No wifi.  We rode to Walgreens to pick up a RX.

Alto Street is narrow here

408 Arroyo Tenorio

Santa Fe Supreme Court Building

15 Jun:  Ron intended to blog, but spent the morning watching QQQ climb and climb and climb now that I need it to go down. We walked to the Administrative Office of the Courts following the path Ron used to take to work, toured the Capitol, walked to the plaza and saw where Swansons Ice Cream used to be. They went out of business when Ron moved. And we walked to 408 Arroyo Tenorio, his second house in Santa Fe. 4.5 miles

14 Jun:  and another day.  Let’s take a hike! So we did that with John B. on the Ponderosa Trail in Bandelier National Monument.  Ron and John hiked down a trillion switchbacks into the canyon and across the creek while Cynthia stayed on the trail atop the canyon. We had a great dinner with Nina, John, and Linda at Vinaigrette, despite arriving late in our hiking clothes!!!

13 Jun:  Here we are in Santa Fe with no idea what we might want to do with ourselves on a nice day - and we have yet to come up with any ideas.  Ron should have gone shopping for popcorn and pretzels.  We enjoyed a pleasant visit with Michael and Claire at Vinaigrette from 5 pm until 7 pm.  They are as delightful as ever.

12 Jun:  Ron had a wonderfully lovely visit with Lupe until Cynthia called at 3 pm to say she saw road signs for St. Francis Drive.  Cynthia’s flight to ABQ was delayed while United found another aircraft, but she still caught the shuttle to Santa Fe and arrived early for her reunion with Smooch.  We were excited.!! and are pleased to discover that we still love each other after an entire week apart.  We returned to the apartment and allowed Cynthia to catch up on her sleep.  (She awakened at 3 am two mornings in a row.)

Jack and Zoe seated behind roses

girlfriend, Jack, Robin, Alexander, Cynthia, 
Hamilton and Jon

Robin, Alexander and Cynthia

11 Jun, Sunday:  Cynthia thoroughly enjoyed visiting niece Robin and her sons, Alexander and Hamilton, at the Wedding Brunch.  Ron could not find friends to visit in Santa Fe today; bummer.  He idled all day, including waiting at Mark's house for a couple of hours doing his eye exercises and calling Paul about QQQ. 

Grandmother Cynthia is the shortest

10 Jun:  Granddaughter Zoe and Jack’s wedding in Round Top, Texas, was a lovely affair held under a huge oak tree, which shaded and cooled the magnificent event.  The bride was beautiful, and the bride's grandmother was also beautiful.  Cynthia stayed overnight in a lovely hotel in Round Top.  In Santa Fe, Ron and John got an early start at 9 am for an industrious hike at the Santa Fe ski basin up the Windsor Trail to the Wilderness boundary fence, then up along the fenceline to 11,500 feet elevation in the snowfields.  We met Sylvia, a delightfully enthusiastic young woman hiking solo up there who claimed to be 70 years old, rehabbing after a successful knee operation.  The hike went up and up and up, and the views expanded with each up.  We returned just in time to clean up for Peter's dinner party, full of interesting people, as can be expected in Santa Fe.  Ron seldom remembers names but did particularly enjoy conversation with Steve.  Cynthia stayed up past midnight getting her new iPad copesetic.

9 Jun:  Cynthia packed and shipped Ron’s shoes and stuff to Colorado, plus she is getting a pedicure.  Cynthia's iPad fell on the floor, cracked, and refused to connect to WiFi or Verizon. Long story.  She could not make a phone call. Or text.  Ron spent the afternoon with Janie and went to dinner with Janie and Roxanne.

8 Jun:  Ron had a successful day with QQQ, then he visited Tony at nine AM, ran to a hot luncheon with Maria Tortilla at 11:30 at Vinaigrette, and joined John for a short (5 mile) hike at 3 PM.  The hike was down and down and down, crossed the stream, equal parts up and down to cross the stream again, then up and up and up to the starting point, the Borrego Trail above Hyde Park.  The stream flowed vigorously, and several smaller trickles wound down the watershed.

7 Jun:  Cynthia again had a doctor's appointment.  She got an A+ for perfect weight and terrific labs.  Linda laundered Ron’s clothes, and Ron could hang them all over the apartment to dry.  Ron called Janie S. for lunch at Harry's Roadhouse (no longer owned by Harry; he gave it to some of his employees).  We walked in the arroyo in the evening with Janie's two cats, so Ron learned all the new cat calls.

6 Jun:  Dr. Appts. Cynthia received an A+ on her mammogram.  Her hand is healing; she has two and a half months to wear the brace!  Ron started late morning and rode the old Highway 14 (the Turquoise Trail) through Madrid to Santa Fe.  This route is a calm and pleasant way to get to Santa Fe instead of the busy interstate highways.

5 Jun:  Cynthia has a flight to Texas.  Charlie convinced Ron to stay a day before riding to Santa Fe.  Charlie and Ron walked three miles on walking paths around his neighborhood.  Very lovely with the mountain views, so close.

4 Jun:  We rode on I-40 to I-25 south to Gibson Road and Yale Avenue to the Albuquerque Airport Comfort Inn (not recommended).  We arrived at the hotel early to find rooms unavailable and no reservation.  Evidently, the website needed one more click to actually reserve the room.  After unloading bags, we walked the half mile to Dennys for egg white omelets.  It is warm in ABQ!  Dinner with Sam and Charlie was delightful.  Sam prepared salmon and asparagus, yum.

3 Jun:  How fun to make a new friend from Washinton State riding a nice Suzuki V-Strom.  Ron chose the wrong lane and got on I-40, but we turned around and took the exit south on New Mexico Highway 602 to Highway 53 East.  The Zuni reservation surprised us by being so green as we turned south into the turquoise Valley.  Every house had many vehicles, but gas stations were scarce once we detoured west on 53 to Zuni, NM.  We thoroughly enjoyed hiking two miles in El Morro Monument with a steep climb to a very exposed, narrow ridge walk (click here).  Amazing hike.  Exhausted, we arrived at Sky City Casino and Hotel lodging near Acoma.

2 Jun:  We rode on the Indian Highways through Indian lands to the Comfort Inn in Gallup, New Mexico, beginning first on US 89 N 3 miles, R on the Townsend-Winona Road 8 miles until the left turn towards Leupp, then continuing on Indian Highway 15.  And we skirted rain hither, thither, and yon as we wound around through the volcanic landscape in the arid Southwest.  We rained on a couple of times but kept going anyway.  I had forgotten that the Indians don't believe in road signs, so we saw one or two Indian Highway 15 signs as we started, but no indication of which way to turn at the first T intersection (left) and no notice that Highway 15 was a right turn three miles later.  Ron was sure he was going the right way, but the only signage read "Do not pass" and "Pass with Care."  We even rode through Greasewood without knowing that there was a town there. Coming upon a familiar Chevron station at the intersection with AZ Highway 191 was quite a relief.  We followed 191 south towards dark rain clouds and ducked into the Hubbell Trading Post museum at Ganado to avoid a shower.  (We have stopped there before.)  The museum is a delight to tour, and we watched a Navajo woman meticulously weaving a rug.  After passing through Tec Nos Pas, we turned south on US 491 to Gallup.

1 Jun:  Flagstaff, AZ: Just as the merry month of May was at its merriest, here we are in another month and another town.  Flagstaff is much more relaxed; Cynthia wore a jacket to breakfast.  We rode 18 miles to the Sunset Crater National Monument (click here) and thoroughly enjoyed the Visitor's Center and a good long hike around the Lava fields.  This volcano is unique because Indians lived in the vicinity as the volcano started warning of the impending eruption.  They moved several miles away, taking all their "valuable" possessions, including roof beams !!  We were rained upon getting there, leaving, and one other time today.  The arid Southwest in action.  We rode 20 miles north to Wupatki (click here), where the Indians built an impressive pueblo that has been significantly restored.  We enjoyed another mile-long walk through the pueblo, although the sun was quickly too hot whenever it peaked through the clouds.

Hurray, hurray for the 1st of May in Sedona

31 May:  As we leave the merry month of May, we also ride away from beautiful Sedona to Flagstaff.  The astounding part is that Ron's packing was completed earlier than ususal and we finished housecleaning only an hour past our check out time.  (Ron has learned that the housekeepers are delighted to discover him still cleaning when they arrive.)   The ride north to Flagstaff was scenic and uneventful unless you consider that there was little to no traffic to slow us down.  As we rode up the switchbacks onto the Mogollon rim, we encountered a surprisingly chill wind.  Then again, Flagstaff is at 6900 feet elevation.  Route: 89-A N to I-17 N to I-40 E to exit 198, R on Butler Ave .7mi, L on 4th Street .7mi, R on Industrial Blvd .6mi, L on Steve's Road, R to Best Western Pony Soldier.

"Happiness isn't something that depends on our surroundings ... It's something we make inside ourselves."

-Corrie ten Boom 

30 May:  This will be an early to hike day, then filled with packing and recycling until dinner at Linda and Dale’s at 5 PM.  With luck everything will be packed and ready to roll first thing in the morning - don't we wish. 4.0 Miles

29 May:  Memorial Day, so no QQQ.  We hiked at 10:30 and enjoyed watching a backhoe digging loose rock from the entrance to the irrigation canal.  Cynthia took a video to delight the younger generation.  At 4:15 we rode south to dinner at Cucina Rustica with pastors David and Gwen B.  Our waiter was quite a character, with a strong accent that was hard to understand.  This time they got the message no oil, no butter, no fat, no cheese and delivered immediately with no backtalk.  3.0 miles

28 May, Sunday:  Worship at Christ Lutheran was wonderful.  The sermon highlighted the need for being feathers on the breath of God, a need for good leadership and communication to overcome division in our troubled times.  We stand united with a constitution like no other country.  Being in the presence of America’s beauty, its red rocks and rills, is a gift.  Cythia became teary-eyed while singing the national anthem in church.  After breakfast at Cafe Jose, Ron rode to Cottonwood for frozen mango and pretzels.  Cynthia is almost packed.  Ron hasn't started packing yet.  3.9 miles  

27 May:  We hiked a short one early because Cynthia has a nail appt at one.  Cynthia's goal is to pack her saddlebag.  On our evening hike, we met a delightful foursome from Santa Fe at the overlook after our mandatory hill climb!  We enjoyed visiting so much that we failed to notice the encroaching darkness, so we boogied off down the hill via the access road past Cresent Moon Ranch house.  3.02 miles  

26 May:  Two hikes, it was such fun meeting Brad and Natasha from Duluth, MN, and how fun to see Gretchen with little Gitsy in the park.  6.5  miles 

25 May:  Ron strapped the big box of Cynthia's clothing, etc to the back of the bike and mailed it back to Texas.  We hiked twice, and our backs have survived too much bending over to move rocks to help clear the trail.  It took us this many hikes to decide which path is a trail that leads to Buddha Beach and on to the old water-powered pump.  5.10 miles.

24 May:  We leave for ABQ a week from today. LIFE IS GOOD! Thank God!  Thank God!  Two hours hiking, moving rock, and clearing trees from the flood damaged trail left us exhausted.  Progress is being made.  The evening walk was also satisfying. 5.25 miles, 13,868 steps  

23 May:  Exercised, oatmealed, and QQQ’d, we were hiking by 8:30 AM for three miles before returning to more of the crazy market returns.   Ron rode to Cottonwood for groceries for the "last time."  Cynthia started packing.  We went out for a second hike at 6:30, but that is only an hour and a half before darkness threatens.  Five miles 

22 May:  We tried to hike early, but that turned into 10:45 AM when the sun is already too intense; so we opted for forty-five minutes with a second hike at 6:30 PM when it was cooler and pleasant.  We met Angela again, this time with her husband Ryan and two cute, cute little ones, Finn and Johanna.  4.7 miles

Another lovely day in Sedona

21 May, Sunday:  Oh, oh! Oh, no!  Our friends at church gave Ron a two-sided, complicated puzzle.  We enjoyed breakfast at Cafe Jose, and Cynthia fell asleep while Ron now puzzles away.  It is 85 degrees warm today, very hot degrees outside, and it is steamy hot indoors.  Ron was able to spend almost the entire day on the puzzle.  We walked only 3 miles in the cool of the evening.

20 May:  Our one day to sleep in, now that QQQ obsession has gripped Ron.  We did sleep in until nearly 9 AM.  Whoopee !!  Then we exercised, ate, and went for a quick walk through the park, past the pump, and up the hill.  We met the nicest person, Angela, writing at the picnic table chained to a tree that had kept it from being washed downstream in the flooding.  After exchanging life histories, we proceeded up the hill to find that the temperature had gotten too warm to continue before evening, so we returned by the upper route across the meadows.  We went for a second walk this evening after it cooled off and helped some folks from Napa Valley find the vortex. 5.0 Miles

Looking back after all these years of wedded bliss.

19 May:  Tomorrow, Ron will get Tori's photo aligned with the text below.  First QQQ, exercises, oatmeal, and a ride to Elite for Cynthia's hair.  Cynthia walked to Cafe Jose to get steps on her Apple Watch.  Then instead of breakfast at Cafe Jose, as planned, we rode home to avoid the approaching thunderstorm.  We listened to thunder for a couple of hours - but no rain.  Had we known, we would have eaten omelets.  Ron is patiently waiting for QQQ to go down again, a certainty now that the debt limit talks have stalled and the Fed is threatening another interest rate rise.  Over the weekend, he will work on James Lea instead; now, his focus is on the great-grandchildren of James Lea of Cobbs Creek.  The lightest drizzle of rain commenced about 4 PM and continued until midnight without leaving much wetness anywhere.

Tori on the Path to Willingness

18 May:  And the rains came, fortunately after we finished our walk and had met Tori on the Ridge Trail, a painter, and musician (The Path to Willingness).  Cynthia wanted to capture her sweet persona as we said goodbye.  Tori was framed against the deep red rocks, and Cynthia captured the image, but unfortunately, the light did not fall on her sweet face.  Thank you, Tori!  We got an earlier start than usual and were able to hike up the hill and up the Ridge Trail to the Sketch Trail, which we soon decided was too challenging for us just now.   It rained lightly for the rest of the day without amounting to much.  6.17 miles  

Tivoli Fest-ivities #2

17 May:  We have dinner this evening with Nellie & Lisa, cousins of Deb, an Iowa friend who sent Danish party favors from the Elkhorn Danish Windmill (click here).  Both girls were wonderfully sweet, and Nellie's Eddie was also a nice man.  We all enjoyed a couple of hours of reminiscing "Tivoli Fest" (even though Ron and Eddie were about 60 years out of the loop).

16 May:  Rain is forecast again today, but only at 30%.  We need to hike, but the temperature is 85 degrees Hot.  Ron rode to Cottonwood for groceries, and we hiked 3.39 miles at 6:00 PM when it cooled down.  After we hiked through the fields and up to the road, we met a mom and her two UT grad student daughters who wanted to swim in Oak Creek, so we led them down the hill to a wide spot in the creek where they could swim. 

15 May:  Another day on pins and needles, wondering if QQQ would go up or down, and eventually, it did move far enough up for Ron to sell his calls at a profit.  Our new efforts to improve our vision require us to exercise our eyes for an hour daily.  As he does those exercises, Ron often falls asleep mid-exercise. We tried a late hike when it cooled off, but the rain forecast was actually correct, and we got wet while putting on our plastic rain ponchos!  One little mile!

14 May, Sunday:  HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!  After a beautiful Lutheran church service and visit with friends, we enjoyed a good breakfast at Cafe Jose and rested our overfull stomachs all afternoon.  After a short nap, we awoke to dark skies threatening rain.  Ron spent the second day on the puzzle given to him by Dale and Linda for his birthday.

13 May:  Ron is editing… he did finish entering the great-grandchildren of James Lea of Kilgore's Branch this weekend.  Our granddaughter Zoe (Magna cum Laude with Honors Distinction) and her fiance Jack (All-American soccer goalie) graduated from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas.  Cynthia was delighted to be able to watch the ceremony on her computer.  They will wed on June 10 and move to York, England, for Zoe to pursue a master's in public history, and Jack will play soccer, hopefully professionally. 

12 May:  HAPPY ANNIBIRSARY!  We celebrated our twelfth anniversary, and Ron is now 76 years old.  (Let's see - born in '47 so math works out.)  We could never have envisioned our lives so changed & wonderful fifteen years ago.  Ron continues to say that he had the perfect life for a bachelor - - and leave it to God to improve upon perfection.  Ron again bought QQQ calls, but the market didn't agree with him until closing.  He then rode to Cottonwood Walmart for the last groceries we would need while here.  Then at 5:30, we joined Linda and Dale (whose birthday was Wednesday, May 10) at Judi’s Restaurant to celebrate our birthdays and anniversary over dinner. 3.6 miles 

11 May:  I LOVE YOU, SMOOCH!  We hiked the Ridge Trail (marked with a black diamond on the maps) for quite a distance.  The black diamond means it climbs and climbs and climbs some more.  Actually, there are a couple of difficult rocks covered with loose sand & gravel to scramble over.  (Falling is not allowed.)  We turned back before reaching the second junction with the Sketch Trail, totaling 6.10 miles. 

10 May:  We arose early and decided it was too cold to be up, so we went back to bed to warm up and fell asleep.  At one, we went for the first of two hikes, moved rocks again, and met several lovely people.   Our second walk in the evening only took us as far as Buddha Beach again.  5.42 miles.  We started SightCare eye exercise program. 

9 May:  We can hike early today! Nope!  We left at 1:30 when the temp was at 80 degrees and did rock maintenance ... moving loose rocks to create a better trail than the one the flooding left us.  We went out again at six, found a shortcut to Buddha Beach, and helped a girl from NYC find it too.  Ron is enjoying telling people that Buddha Beach is buried under 6 to 10 feet of loose rock and gravel left by the flooding, which carried the vortex downstream too.  5.00 miles 

8 May:  Ron arose at 5:30 to finish exercises and breakfast and QQQ in time to leave at 7 am and took the motorcycle to Scottsdale for 6,000-mile maintenance.  And twelve hours later,  he successfully returned home with groceries, new light bulbs, and a better coffee pot.  He spent several afternoon hours in Cave Creek visiting with his cousin Rex and Susie. 

7 May, Sunday:  A week went by already here at the Creekside Cottage.  Thanks be to God for the earth's beauty and the beautiful sermons Pastor David preaches.  And let's also thank God for the choir and Jim.  Despite being tired, we hiked again to the top of the hill and the junction with the Sketch Trail.  Then we collapsed for the remainder of the afternoon.  3.5 miles.  Ron discovered the need for one more sentence to make the next picture fit correctly.  Oops, today it took two more sentences.

Our guests shot us in the back as we hiked

6 May:  Hiking Bell Rock was the goal, but we weren't sure if our guests were hikers.  Indeed, they are young and fit!  Jim even scrambled to the top of Spaceship Rock.  We hiked 6.09 miles with our granddaughter's fiance’s parents, followed by breakfast at Miley's cafe.  Our ride home through Page Springs was lovely, so one would not know it was Arizona.  In a rush to depart on time this morning, Ron accidentally melted his shirt while trying to iron on a patch.  Fortunately, he has identified a candidate patch for that spot.  (He still hasn't finished the mending job on May 18th.)

5 May:  It is lovely to sleep with open windows and not need A/C because the cold overnight air keeps us chilly until noon.  QQQ behaved nicely.  Now it is time to hike!  Hiking Sedona! The flooding was impressive, leaving debris twelve feet high in trees and piled in heaps blocking the trails. Buddha Beach is no longer; the Slickrock slab is covered by a pile of loose rocks up to ten feet high. Cynthia’s hiking goal of thirty days consecutively turned into 37 days because of the rain, but her total was 159.33 miles, not too shabby for a great-grandmother. Photos (?) are from today's hike, where many old Westerns were filmed. We once met a guy who grew up in the area then. His parents hosted and fed many movie stars, including John Wayne. He remembered seeing the valley filled with water when the creek flooded.

4 May:  National Day of Prayer begins with thanksgiving for life lived abundantly and together.  We pray for healing for our country.  QQQ didn't behave as planned, so we hope for better behavior tomorrow.  The ride to Cottonwood for groceries was windy, but the ride back was very scenic and pleasant.

3 May:  It is wonderfully cool at night and early AM.  The microwave is a combo microwave and air fryer.  (This modern world needs to be simplified.)  Cynthia is still exhausted, so Ron walked alone today out the door and over the rocky "trail" to discover Buddha Beach covered with rocks and sand up to 8 feet deep, another casualty of the flooding this March.  No more cute piles of rocks, no more psychic vortex.  He again made it to the top of the hill and came back via the Secret Slickrock Trail, and the wind was strongest where the exposure was greatest a fun combo.

Cynthia with niece Kelly

2 May:  We are ensconced in Creekside Cottage, a block to the Red Rock Crossing of Oak Creek, with a phenomenal view of Cathedral Rock, the most photographed spot in Sedona.  We walk through the adjacent Crescent Moon State Park to terrific hiking trails, and the weather forecast for next week is excellent.  Those fantastic hiking trails are gone because massive flooding washed them away on March 22nd this year.  We could pick our way over river rock and sand to find recognizable portions of the trail to the top of the nearest hill.  4 miles.  We discovered that the rose bush adjacent to the porch is blooming a few red blooms.  Yes, JOY.

Tivoli fest (see Apr 24)

1 May:  Mee weefee returns !!!  Oh, Joy, oh, Joy.  Yes, JOY.  Ron made one trip with a big box to the Creekside Cottage & recycling to Sedona before Cynthia returned, but ran into a mile-long backup due to a paving crew on the return trip, so he could not welcome his WeeFee home.  Ron cleaned, packed, and prepared to move to the Creekside Cottage while his exhausted WeeFee slept.  Cynthia and her children arose at three AM for early airline departures from Palm Springs Airport, plus she had a two-hour shuttle ride returning to Sedona.  Zzzz