July 20, 2023
The campground actually serves breakfast in the morning from 8:00AM to 10:00AM. Nancy wanted a decent breakfast so I got up early with her and we went to the office and had breakfast. It was actually really good. Our Plan A was to go on a tour of Nashville through Lawman Tours. He gave you a 3 hour tour and took you to some hidden gems and told you a lot about the history of Nashville. He is a retired Nashville Police Officer. However, for the last couple of days his car has been in the shop for repairs. Since we have other plans for tomorrow and Lawman Tours was out, we went to Plan B.
Plan B is to take the Nashville Trolley Tour. It is about 1 3/4 hours long and it is a narrated tour. So after breakfast we hailed another Uber and went to Stop 1 to catch the trolley. It was an interesting and informative tour. Our driver was Amy. She was very good. We rode the entire circuit once and decided that there was only one other stop that we wanted to get off at. Most stops will cost you to get admission into them. And the prices, I thought, were a little high. For example, that beer I had yesterday a standard 16 ounce bottle? It was $9.
The stop we got off at on our second time around Stop Number 7, the Marathon Motor Works. The original business was a steam engine auto builder. There are nine left in the world today. One is in the Tennessee Museum (which is totally free) and five are in the Motor Works showroom in Nashville, across the street from the trolley stop. There are two in Argentina. The manufacturing facility is now multiple shops, including wine and distillery tasting, a Harley Davidson souvenir shop, a couple of restaurants, and many other trinket shops. The main reason to stop was the Harley shop for me. We walked the building for a few minutes. I had to check out the Jack Daniels shop. No free samples there. No alcohol there actually. Coffee, rubs, chocolates, trinkets. Next we stopped at Legends Distillery. There we got some free samples of whiskey, moonshine, and assorted flavors such and creams. A couple were pretty good. You could have up to 5 one ounce shots. After that we checked out the winery. They had tastings but at a price. We opted for lunch at the Southern Deli. We each had a Rueben and they were very good.
Our last stop was the Harley shop. I have been collecting poker chips on this journey and once in a while I would even get a shirt. Like I did here. After we finished shopping, or rather I finished shopping, we hailed an Uber and we went back home to chill. We got back just before rush hour. The use of an Uber is a good deal for getting around a large city. Now I know why I love my country living.
July 19, 2023
I cannot remember who told me that Nashville was a terrible place to get around especially with a long bed truck. They suggested to use Uber. We have plans for the Grand Ole Opry tonight so we opted to go to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum this morning. I had down loaded the Uber app last night and had reserved a pick up for 9:30AM this morning. I later discovered this act cost us an additional $10. After scanning prices of several attractions, I thought the area was a little pricey but it is tourist season.
Our Uber driver was right on time and we had a nice ride to the museum. We had also prepaid for admission tickets so once we entered, it was a breeze to go through the process to enter. We opted for the Audio Tour for $5 more. It was well worth it as it explained a lot about what we were seeing. The tour starts on the third floor and you work your way down. The exhibits are only on 2 floors. The first is shops, offices, etc. Of course the tour starts with the beginning of country music. At one time it was called country and western but it truly is a blend of several different styles. The museum has some great displays and artifacts. Seeing some of the names of the earlier pioneers of country music brought back memories to my younger days. As a child I remember watching Hee Haw every Saturday night. I also remember attending the Grand Ole Opry when I was very young. The location was the Ryman Auditorium. It is still a music venue but not the home of the Grand Ole Opry.
There were a lot of educational displays. I learned a lot. The museum was a great time. We chose an oversized guitar pick as our Christmas ornament. It’s very cool. After the museum we decided to walk the two blocks up to Broadway. Broadway is also known as the Honky Tonk Highway. There are several bar/restaurants along Broadway. We could see the Ryman Auditorium from Broadway. I also remember the Ernest Tubb Record Store. It was a couple doors down from our eatery. We chose Rippy’s BBQ. They had seating on a balcony or two above street level. We stayed on the first floor. From every bar along the street a live band was playing. The sounds were overwhelming. Since I wasn’t driving a beer sounded good. I selected a local bottle of beer and it was quite good. We got a sampler platter of appetizers and some loaded pulled pork nachos. Way too much food. Did not realize the portions were so large. We took some home with us. When we finished eating, we caught another Uber back to the campground. We had time to rest and relax for a bit and then shower for our next event.
COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME AND MUSEUM PICTURES
The Grand Ole Opry is located next to Opry Mills Mall. It was relatively easy to get to so we drove the short distance. We had paid for parking close to the venue. Once we got there we were told where to park and that if we so desired, there were golf cart shuttles to take us from the parking lot up to the Opry. We had no sooner gotten out of the truck when we hailed a nearby golf cart. We were dropped off right at the front doors. It was great. The driver was very nice and explained who was performing tonight and where to stand to get a ride back to the parking lot.
The seating inside the Opry is pews. This is just like in Ryman. The reason is that Ryman was a church at one time. Nancy walked around a little and decided that there was no bad seat in the house.
The shows are telecast on Circle TV as well as simulcast on WSM Radio. There were large “ON AIR” signs that were lit during broadcast. The timing is right on the money for this reason. The opening act was Riders In The Sky. They have been around for a very long time. They did 3 numbers and then the next act came out, Zach Top. And then we saw and heard Mike Snider and Rhett Walker before intermission. There was a 15 minute intermission, T.G. Sheppard opened the second half and then we heard from Bobby Bones. He was a comedian not a singer but he was funny. The next act was making her Grand Ole Opry debut, Kasey Tyndall. And the closing act was Charlie McCoy. He is another one that has been around for years.
It was a great night. The music was great. The venue was gorgeous. We had a great time. After the show we decided that we would try and walk across the wooden bridge to get to the parking lot. It was not very far at all. The weather was warm and humid but not too bad. What a day! Time to go home and get some sleep.
July 17, 2023
Travel day is upon us once again For the most part, the drive was uneventful. However, once we arrived at the campground we found a couple of items. First, we were going to have to unhitch as the site was not real level. I like to have the level as close as possible so it does not put a bind on the slides. And then, I plugged our electric cord in and the 50 amp breaker felt loose. We were getting no 110 volt power to the RV. We called the office. Someone came out immediately. We assessed the issue. I could move to another site or wait a few minutes for them to switch out the breaker. I chose to stay and wait.
In the meantime, I stretched our extension cord to the site next door and finished setting up the RV. Once they were done with the breaker, I put the extension cord away. I say extension cord but it is 6 gauge wire and 30 feet long. Very heavy. We were on Interstate 24 when we traveled through St. Louis. We had a slight delay and slow traffic. We had a truck and a rescue pass us as well as an ambulance. However, by the time we got to where traffic was moving again, we saw nothing. The highlight of today’s travel was I got to see the Gateway Arch. Nancy had been there before and had been up in it. I had no desire to do so so we continued on our way.
Tomorrow is another travel day and we will make it in to Nashville.
July 16, 2023
Today is our last day in Hannibal. It has definitely been a great stop. Today we decided to go try and take some pictures of the murals that didn’t have a lot of cars in them. This is Sunday so our hopes are high. Additionally, Nancy wanted a better picture of the Mark Twain Steamboat Captain statue without a light in the background. Since I had to go back to the riverboat gift shop anyway, it worked out nicely. We drove through town taking some great shots of the murals.
One of the most interesting things we learned on the tour yesterday was the story behind Clemens Field. Clemens Field is a baseball field that several teams have played on at various levels of competition including minor league. The really interesting fact about this field is that has a tall stone wall built entirely around the field. The Admiral Coontz Armory is located here also. The reason for the stone wall is not to prevent people from getting in but to keep people from getting out. During World War II Clemens Field was used as a Prisoner of War (POW) camp for German prisoners. Legend has it that several townspeople were so kind to the prisoners that when released after the war, they stayed in Hannibal. We finished our tour and went back home to rest for the last event of our stay.
At 2:00PM we went to the office/gift shop and we were escorted to the small theater room. It was here that we were entertained by a gentleman that took on the persona of Samuel L. “Mark Twain” Clemens. For about 45 minutes he told us stories of his life. He was very entertaining and the language was accurate for the time period. It was a good show.
July 15, 2023
We started the day by taking the hour ride on the trolley of the Hannibal Tour Company. It was very interesting. Edward, our driver, told us about the history of Hannibal and some of its more famous residents. In addition to Samuel Clemens we saw the home of “The Unsinkable” Molly Brown (a Titanic survivor), Cliff Ukulele Ike Edwards (most noted as the voice of Jimny Cricket in Pinocchio. We saw the boyhood home of Mark Twain, and others that were inspiration for his books Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. One very interesting fact was how Mark Twain got his pen name. It has to do with measuring the depth of the water. A knot was put into a rope every 6 feet or 1 fathom. As the crew reached a knot, they would yell “mark one” and the next one was “mark twain” 12 feet. This came from his days as a steamboat captain.
The tour took us through Historic Downtown Hannibal and then to Riverside Park. In the park we could see the island that was the inspiration for the island in his writings. We saw the Mark Twain Lighthouse from the middle of town. It is a memorial to Mark Twain and not a lighthouse to guide ships. It sits atop a hill with 244 steps to get to it. Or you can drive most of the way up the hill, which we did later in the day. The tour drove us down to the river and then up to Lovers Leap.
The tour started for us at the Mark Twain Cave Campground where we are staying. There are also the Mark Twain Cave, the Cameron Cave, and Mark Twain Live attractions on site. Once we got back, we decided to drive through town again. Our first stop was lunch. We chose to dine at Becky Thatcher’s Diner. The food was very good. After lunch we drove up to the lighthouse. There were still too many steps to climb so we just took pictures from the parking lot.
After the lighthouse, we stoped at the Mark Twain Boyhood Home and Museum. For the one price you got to tour the interpretive center (a timeline of Twain’s life) and from there you take a short walk to tour the Huckleberry Finn house. Then another short walk through a beautiful garden you arrive at the Mark Twain home. Upon exiting the home you go through the gift shop. Then another short walk you are in the home of Lara Hawkins (the inspiration for Becky Thatcher). From there you could walk through the office of Judge Clemens, Justice of the Peace (Samuel’s father). Then you walk into Grant’s Drug Store. Samuel and his family lived upstairs with the Grants after Samuel’s farther died.
Once you exited the drug store you were on Main Street and straight ahead is the statue of Tom and Huck. From there we took a short drive to the Museum and Art Gallery. On the way there I made a stop for Nancy, the Bits and Pieces Quilt Shop. Both quilt shops were recommended on one of our campground sites.
The Museum and Gallery was great. On the first floor were a few scenes set up to depict some of his great works. Two of my favorites were Huck Finn and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. The mezzanine level had a display of his steamboat days. The second floor had several artifacts but the neatest display was the original artwork of Norman Rockwell. Rockwell illustrated Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. The artwork was wonderful. After we finished this tour I wanted to get some pictures of the flag display in town. I was also curious as to what it was as I noticed Maryland’s and North Carolina’s state flags. As it turns out the flags are from the original thirteen colonies. Time to rest and shower for the main event tonight. The town has several murals painted on buildings. Beautiful artwork.
BOYHOOD HOME / MUSEUM PICTURES
The main event is a dinner cruise on the Mississippi River aboard the Riverboat Mark Twain. Unfortunately it was not a paddlewheel. However, it was awesome. We boarded the ship a little after 6:00PM after we had our picture taken. The weather was gorgeous. We were escorted to our table. We decided to get a drink from the bar before we left the dock. A little after 6:30PM we left the dock and we decided to go out on the deck for a bit before dinner. It was very nice. Our table was on the first deck and we went up to the second deck and sat in some chairs on the bow. It was very relaxing. The call came out to return to our table to prepare for dinner. It was a buffet dinner and you were allowed one trip through the line. Coffee, tea, and water were also included. The meal consisted of roast beef and/or chicken, green beans, the Captain’s Macaroni Salad, baked potato, green salad, and a dinner roll. The meal was delicious. Before and after dinner a band was playing. The music was very good. The staff was very friendly and provided good service. The dishes were cleared and they brought around dessert. Dessert was a very sweet and fudgey brownie. I could not eat mine. I prefer cake brownies.
After dinner we went back up to the second deck and sat down. We started conversing with the couple in front of us. It was an enjoyable time. The route was a half hour north on the river, turn around and go half hour south of our starting point and then back. The sky was very hazy as the Canadian wildfires are still causing issues. It was neat to see the Tom Sawyer island from a different perspective. And then to see Lovers Leap from the river was cool as well. We saw a few very cool houses from the river. After docking we walked to the Mark Twain Steamboat Captain statute. We also got a couple of good pictures of the lighted lighthouse. It was a great night. Another item scratched from the Bucket List.
July 14, 2023
Today we opted to go at our own pace. No alarm clock. We are just going to take a drive through town and scout things out. Then we are going to run some errands. Nancy wants to get her hair cut. I need to find an auto parts store. According to some tips from other RVers, they recommended checking out the two quilt shops in town. Nancy being the quilter, I made sure she could see it. We drove through town and found a parking lot. It was just across the street from the Hickory Stick Quilt Shop. It apparently is a very famous shop. One of the top in the US. It had a lot of really neat stuff in there. I finished walking around a lot quicker than Nancy. I went outside and sat in the shade on a bench. Very relaxing. Once Nancy was finished we walked down the block.
It was lunch time so and we happen past Ole Wolfhound Pub. It looked and sounded good so we went in for lunch. Low and behold, they had Yuengling on tap! We haven’t had one of those for over a year. Not real popular west of the Mississippi River. It tasted so good. We ordered a couple of appetizers and a sandwich and split them. The appetizers were a Cork Cake (breaded crab meat paddy) and Pot O’ Gold Bites. They were white cheddar macaroni and cheese with bacon, breaded and fried. They were very yummy! The sandwich was a breaded pork tenderloin. It was very moist and easy to chew. Delicious!! It came with home made chips. Great meal.
It was starting to rain so we decided to return to the RV and chill for a little while. After resting for a while we went to check out the Cave Hollow Winery. We each chose a flight and sat outside and tasted our wines. Some were better than others but nothing I would buy. Descriptions of the Cave Hollow Wines and the West Winery Wines. On the way back to the RV, we stopped at the office. We talked to a young lady and we decided that tomorrow, we will buy tickets for the Trolley Tour for 10:00AM and the Live Show for Sunday. Thus concludes our day.
July 13, 2023
After some texting with Philip, I double checked the trailer plug. It appeared to have one spot where the truck blade missed the plug slot but went to one side. I pried the opening so that the connection would be better. Tomorrow, I’ll find an auto parts store to get some dielectric grease to help the situation also. I tried the Loves Truck Stop when we fueled up but they did not carry it.
Easy travel day. No big surprises. No mishaps. It was a relatively short trip. We had very nice roads the entire way. We arrived at our campsite and decided to just chill after we set up. We sat in the air conditioning and relaxed. We started our laundry and got our showers. Very relaxing.
July 12, 2023
We arose today and hitched back up. We left Minooka Lake and Kansas, headed to Missouri and Wallace State Park. Again the trailer brake warnings were constant and nothing I tried eliminated the dinging or the warnings. Very frustrating. We arrived at Wallace. Fortunately it was only a 4 hour drive today. Here at Wallace we only have 50 amp electric. We can’t wait to get to our next stop, Hannibal, Missouri. We have a full hook up site so we can shower and dump and do laundry!
July 10-11, 2023
Travel day. We are heading to our first COE (Corp of Engineers) campground. We are going to Minooka Lake (Wilson Lake) in Kansas. Today is the longest drive day. We will be traveling about 7 hours. We had some challenges earlier in the morning. For some reason Trip Wizard started taking us on some questionable routes so I opted to just follow US 24 from Colorado Springs up to Interstate 70. Apparently I missed a couple of turns so I had to keep stopping to get my route straight. And on top of that, I kept getting a “Trailer Brake Disconnected” and “Check Trailer Wiring” warnings. The dinging was driving me nuts. I had just replaced the pigtail before we left Arizona and all was working well. We pulled up to a stoplight. I had the red and some time, so I shut the truck off and after a few seconds restarted it. So I basically rebooted the truck. It worked. No more problems. We pulled into the campground and they had a couple of very cool decorations at the entrance. The campsite was not a pull through but we do have water and electric (50 amp). That means we can run both air conditioners. Definitely need them as the temperature is around 90. Threat of severe thunderstorms for this evening.
Around 10:00PM the wind started to pick up. Like about 60 mph. We have been living in this RV for over a year. This was the worst storm we have experienced so far. It got so bad that we put Ashes in his carrier in case something should happen. We woke up the next day and discovered that we survived without any damage. Nancy enjoyed her time outside before the temperature reached the expected 99 degrees..
July 9, 2023
Our last day of work as Host at Cheyenne Mountain State Park. I am including various photos of the campground. This evening Carissa and family are coming over for dinner and a campfire to do s’mores. We are all packed and ready to hit the road. Carissa is bringing pizza so we don’t have to cook. It was the best pizza we had since we left North Carolina. It’s pretty bad when Little Caesars is the best pizza we’ve had. Rain has threatened but nothing we couldn’t handle. I was able to start and keep a campfire going. The grandchildren had so much fun the last time making s’mores. We were able to get the s’mores in and all was well with the world. Grandma had to have a couple of pictures of the family. After pictures they went home. We went inside and prepared for the next day. Tomorrow we start our 13 day journey to home. Seems unreal.
July 6, 2023
This afternoon we are going to go to Happy Hour as a last gathering before we leave on Monday. We went to Folklore’s Irish Pub in downtown Colorado Springs. Appetizers were half off and certain well drinks were half off also. We ordered a tater tot app with corned beef. It was unremarkable. I had to order a Guinness. What else does an Irishman order when at an Irish pub? After Happy Hour we left and decided to continue the party back home. We offered our campsite.
Once we arrived home, I built a campfire and opened up our outdoor kitchen. Its is usually stocked with various beers. I also brought out our silver label Patron. Very smooth! We sat around the fire and talked for a few hours. We totally enjoyed this and would have done more of it except the weather was a little wet most of the time. We said our byes. We still have 3 more days to work.
July 5, 2023
Today is a me day. There were a few things that I was interested in doing but Nancy wasn’t. So today is my day to explore. Nancy will have the day all to her self and she can sew. She’s been working on another quilt so she will finish that up today. She has already done a quilt and a teddy bear for the Senior Park Ranger, Michael. He and his wife are expecting their first child in October. This current quilt will be our birthday gift for Aunt Carol. The plan is to give it to her Friday when they all come over again for a cookout. Fingers crossed that the weather holds.
On to my day. I started by visiting the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Fallen Fighters Memorial. It is located in Colorado Springs in the shadow of Pikes Peak. The IAFF is the US and Canadian firefighters union. I was never in the union as they did not unionize until after my retirement. Carmel Fire Department is Local 4444. The park itself is beautiful. From the parking lot the entrance has two statues one on either side and you take a short stroll to the memorial. The memorial is surrounded by two circles. The outer circle is concrete and in the concrete you will see words like Honor, Sacrifice, Family, Courage, etc. The next circle is composed of the granite from the original walls. This park was rebuilt in 2015. There is a large statue in the middle of the memorial with walls surrounding about 75% of it. On the walls are the names of the fallen firefighters by year. Next to each name is the state and local they are from.
Carmel Fire had started their paramedic response with medics and an ambulance from Riverview Hospital. That was the county hospital. They were stationed at Station 3 which was my station. One of those medics was Dave Edwards. He was a fabulous medic and very good at his job. He was also a volunteer firefighter with Castleton Fire Department. In 1988 he responded to a residence fire. After he entered the structure, he fell through the first floor into the basement where the fire was located. He lost his life. Since then I have seen his name on the Fallen Firefighters Memorial at the National Fire Academy in Maryland. I just happened to look here and found his name. I also remembered that Carmel had lost a firefighter a few years ago. I looked for his name, Mark Robinson, and found it in 2017. I was long gone before Mark was hired.
From the Memorial, I took a short drive to the Lester L. Williams Fire Museum. It is housed in the Colorado Springs Fire Department Headquarters. It was so named for the man that was their department physician and brought a lot of the equipment back to it’s original home. The museum is filled with many artifacts from firefighting history and Colorado Springs history. I watched a short video on a multi-department response to the Garden of the Gods area on a woodland fire. It destroyed several homes but a lot was saved due to the efforts of the responding agencies.
After the museum I headed north and arrived at the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame and the American Cowboy Museum. I arrived just in time to see the video on the history of rodeo. It was very informative and entertaining. When we were in South Dakota we went to a regional rodeo and enjoyed it. Then in Tombstone we watched bull riding. Both venues were a lot of fun. Back home we have a local who sponsors a Pro Bull Riding (PBR) event. His name is Jerome Davis. I am hoping to get to more rodeo events once we are home. The museum and hall of fame is loaded with artifacts and explains the equipment and clothing cowboys wear and why. There is even some displays about Olympic events and ladies in rodeo. I thoroughly enjoyed my day but after all this walking I am ready to go home and sit down.
July 2, 2023
Today was another work day but after we finished up we headed up to Monument to Carissa and Brian’s house. We are going up for dinner and to see Brian’s other brother, Jeff, and his wife Christina and their baby Freya (sp?). They live in Washington state and came down for the weekend. It was really nice to see them again. This was the first time we had seen Freya though. Cute little thing!
The true highlight was when we handed out the pottery to the grandchildren. They came out so nice. The smiles on their faces when they saw their work was priceless.
July 1, 2023
Today is a very light day at work. After work, I am going to head up to Monument and help Brian with a project at his house. The project is to vent his microwave over the stove to the outside. Right now it is just circulating the air. This set up is very common. Once I arrive we get started. The first step is to see what lies behind the microwave. The bad news is that the original plan of venting straight out the back through the wall would not work. The kitchen was not designed for that. There is a stud in the middle where the vent would go. So we looked at going up and through the back of the cabinet. We took some measurements. One big problem is that Brian could not find the adaptor piece that mounts to the microwave to which the venting is attached. They bought the house last year and apparently that piece was thrown away by the then owners. We had the manual online and looked at the process.
We thought we found a universal adapter at Home Depot. Armed with our measurements we headed off. We looked at a few options but we did not feel comfortable with how somethings tied together and wasn’t sure about the installation. We then went over and looked at an actual vent hood. Neither of us had done this type of project before. So Brian decided it might be best to have someone with experience and expertise to do this type of install. He will call someone he knows for an estimate. To complicate matters for us he would of had to buy a hole saw and the exterior siding is fiber cement and we had never worked with it before. I know it is tricky stuff to work with. This trip to Home Depot just cemented our resolve to leave it to a pro. :) Pun intended.
Nancy had texted me and said that our pottery was ready for pick up. So on the way home I stopped and picked it up. We are heading up to Monument tomorrow so we will take it then.
June 30, 2023
Very busy day today. First we have our standard site cleaning to do. Then Nancy has the 1:00 to 5:00 PM shift at the front gate. The reason is that the gate will be open from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM today. The event is actually being held across the street at Fort Carson. They are hosting a festival with food trucks, games and things for the children, etc. This is all open to the public. Then the main event is at 10:00PM. Fireworks. Due to our ideal location across the street from the fort and being elevated above the fort, we are the ideal location to see the fireworks. So as not to miss out on an opportunity to bring in a little money, the gate is open.
When we finished our clean up for the day I put some dry wood in our fire pit. Don’t know why but we have a lid that fits over the fire pit. This lid will keep the wood dry in case it should rain, as a little rain is being called for in the early afternoon. Sure enough around 1:00 PM the rains came. Naturally this would slow the gate down a little. But then an hour or so later, the sun was out again. The radar showed clear skies. Around 4:00 PM I went out and started a campfire. I had decided that tonight we would cook outside over the grill and enjoy s’mores during the fireworks. We had taken steaks out of the freezer several days ago so they needed to be cooked. Bree and I sat outside after starting the fire and I was enjoying a cup of coffee. Rough life, huh? Then I heard the rumble of thunder. I threw another log on the fire and hoped I could get dinner cooked before the next rain. Once Nancy came home I put the steaks on our tripod. The tripod is something left over from our early tent days. It is a tripod with a grate that you set up over a campfire to cook on. It is wonderful. I also decided to cook up some potatoes with onions and peppers. So I put those in a cast iron skillet and set those to the side over the campfire on the fire pit grate. The thunder rumbled more and the sky darkened. I managed to get dinner cooked and then I covered the dry wood and added another log to the fire to see if I could get it to stay hot enough for s’mores.
Fortunately it never really came a bad down pour. At 6:30 PM we had been invited to the Camper Services building for a get together hosted by Carla and Angel Amen, our fellow work campers. They host one every year to coincide with the fireworks. Even though we had eaten, we went. We met a few of their friends and family. It was an enjoyable evening. Even though we were full we thought we would try some of their dishes. They were wonderful. And I picked up a few new recipes. ;) We left the catering and came home. The weather was clearing so we decided to sit outside by the campfire to wait for the fireworks. Fortunately I had dry wood and the fire had continued to burn. At 10:00PM the bugle started playing Taps at Fort Carson. That must have been the cue as the fireworks commenced. We sat our site and looked out at the fireworks. It was wonderful. The fireworks continued for a solid 15 minutes and then the grand finale. What a great night! And then it was time for s’mores. Nancy likes to soften her chocolate over the campfire so the tripod gets lots of usage. After the s’mores it was almost bed time so I cooled the campfire and we went inside. Have to work tomorrow!
June 28, 2023
Tonight we are taking the four grandchildren to a place called Color Me Mine. It is a pottery painting studio. Well, we met them there as Carissa and Brian brought them. The studio was loaded with various items of pottery that you can paint and then they will glaze and fire them. You come back in a few days and pick the finished product up. They also had several pieces finished to give you ideas. Georgeann chose a BB-8 to paint. The top portion comes off and it is a container. It just so happens that Grandma chose the same item but she is painting it for Andrew. Lachlan selected a large mug and painted it in the Indiana Jones theme. I believe he was going to gift it to his Dad. Emmeline is really in to panda bears. They didn’t actually have pandas but they did have a bear lying on its back playing with a cub. She painted it as a panda bear. Ellia was adventurous and chose a guitar to paint. Daddy plays guitar so she decided to do that. The guitar is about 18” long. It is really cool. And then I selected a container in the shape of an X-Box game controller. I chose this for Braxton. He enjoys playing video games. It took us about 2 1/2 hours to put on our 3 coats of paint. We all finished then in one sitting. Everyone had a great time, talking, laughing, discussing paint schemes, etc. They really enjoyed themselves. As did we.
When we were all done we walked down the street a little to the Cold Stone Creamery. Nancy and I had not eaten any dinner yet. The kids were going to get ice cream and eat it on the way home. I think the popular item was milkshakes. We said our byes in Cold Stone and went our separate ways. Nancy and I had a ways to walk back to the truck so we discussed what we wanted for dinner.
Once in the truck we looked up various restaurants close by. We decided to try Rock Bottom Brewery. My flight here consisted of a Watermelon Hibiscus Blonde, Liquid Sun, Gila Pale Ale, and Lighten Up! Kolsch. They were good. The Watermelon Hibiscus Blonde was only okay. It sounded better to me than it tasted. Nancy ordered a Cheesesteak sandwich and I ordered the Brisket sandwich. We thought we would each eat 1/2 of our order and then try the other 1/2 of the other one. Nancy didn’t care for the BBQ sauce on the brisket sandwich so I only had a bite of the cheesesteak. It was okay, a little dry for me. I thoroughly enjoyed the brisket sandwich.
Maybe I should be writing a brewery travel blog. :)
June 27, 2023
We have reservations for the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo today. We can enter at 9:00AM. The zoo lives up to its name mountain. It literally sits on the side of Cheyenne Mountain. We first entered and walked arounds the gift shop and kind of got the lay of the land. That is when we spied a couple of golf carts with signs on them that said “Shuttle”. Nancy went over to one of the drivers and got the scoop. It would cost us $3 each for all day access to the shuttle service. He said that most people will ride the shuttle up to the top and then walk down viewing the exhibits. The zoo is divided into two sides so they would do one side, walk down, then shuttle up to do the other side. Sounded like a great plan to us so we paid our $6 (money very well spent!). Here’s a map of the zoo.
We started our walk down through Australia Walkabout and then found our way into the Asian Highlands. Next was the Rocky Mountain Wild section. After looking at the bears and domestic goats we opted for some lunch. It was time to sit down for a while. We found the Rocky Mountain Wild Barbecue Company. We ordered a brisket sandwich and a drink and enjoyed a pleasant view in the shade, while we ate.
We were almost done with one side of the zoo so we continued our journey through Water’s Edge: Africa and Primate World. We then walked back to the shuttle pick up area where a very nice zoo employee radioed the shuttle to wait for us. We hopped on the shuttle to take a ride back down up and then down the mountain. Some individuals on the shuttle were heading toward the exit so we just rode.
Then is was our turn to ride the shuttle back up to finish our tour of the zoo. We first started with the elephants and rhinos at Encounter Africa. There were a few other animals there but the larger animals were the main draw. On the zoo map you will find all of the animals listed in each area. Our next stop was the African Rift Valley. The main attraction were the giraffes. You could feed them, pet them. Some were very photogenic and would pose. We found our way through this area and were back at the beginning.
We surprised ourselves. We spent over 5 hours here at the zoo. That was a long time for us. The weather was warm but absolutely beautiful. We purchased a couple of gift items and found our way back home. Very tired but it was a most enjoyable day.
June 26, 2023
Today we are spending the afternoon with the grandchildren just to play games and have fun. We had a great time. Air hockey was a big hit. I played Ellia and she beat me 10 to 7. We had dinner together and before leaving I told Ellia that I wanted a rematch. It was a fun day.
June 25, 2023
Time is running out on our stay here in Colorado. Our daughter, Carissa, had told us the Trading Post, in the Garden of the Gods was really cool. It has a lot of very nice hand crafted items. Of course those fine pieces of art also come with a fine price tag. We ventured back in the park to discover for ourselves. She was correct. Some very beautiful work. We did not buy any high end pieces but we did get some fudge and some popcorn.
We left the Trading Post and went to the Ghost Town Museum. It is a totally indoor town that allows you to step back in time about 100 years. It was very cool. We toured the town and also a residence of that same time period. I had to stop by the firehouse and take a few pictures. I thought it was done very nicely. As you exited, there was a brief video on pioneer living. And then as usual, you exited into the gift shop. We strode around for a few minutes and then decided it was time for food.
We were just on the outskirts of Old Colorado City. In Old Colorado City there was a nice place to try. It is the OCC Brewery. The food was good and the beer was good. My flight consisted of Monk By Day, Kyle “Love” It, Westside Pilsner, and My Brothers Keeper. Nancy tried a special drink. It was a cucumber, minty wine drink. It looked good. She said it was okay. For our food I had the Korean-Style Cheesesteak Sandwich. It was very good. Nancy had the Colorado Bison Slider. She again said, “it’s okay”.
June 24, 2023
Today after work we went back up to Monument but it was to celebrate Aunt Carol’s birthday. Brian and Carissa made a great meal and we had ice cream cake for dessert. It was another nice family get together. When I say family, I am talking about the Hendrickson family. Brian’s aunt, Carol, moved to Colorado also, last year. His brother Scott was already in Colorado. So they are the Colorado Clan. I can’t remember if I have explained this already. If so, I apologize. Anyway you cut it, it was a good time.