We did a two week trip to Vail Colorado February 2011. We normally do this trip to pick up our son Chris at Colorado Springs Colorado where he is currently a senior at Colorado College.
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After the week we drove over Sunday to Aspen to stay with some friends there who build custom homes. The trip to Aspen from Vail is spectacular. AS you can see from the map below it runs right through the Glenwood Canyon. Last year a boulder dislodged and made travel impossible. This year no boulders but lot's of snow.
We arrived for Super Bowl and watched the game with a large crowd of Aspen locals. Most had moved to Aspen in the 60's and 70's and had made their living on the mountain and in the town. They were a real group of down to earth folks.
The next morning we got up early and headed to Aspen Highlands on the excellent local buses that picked us up right outside our front door. We skied there all day and then Nancy and I decided we had to hike Highlands Bowl. You see our son Will had done it so we couldn't leave the Highlands without at least looking at it. IT was still blowing snow and visibility was limited so we took off for a closer look. For a description of the hike click here.
After skiing we got a chance to visit our host's latest project. A spectacular mountain home with awesome views. More information is available here
We got back home just in time to prepare for another dinner party, this time at Marsha and LJ's house where we had the best Lasagna, wine and camaraderie one could imagine. A truly wonderful end to a wonderful evening.
Tuesday we took off to SnowMass which we hadn't visited since1992. We got there early and had a wonderful morning skiing the Cirque followed by lunch at Gwynnes High Alpine restaurant. Not to shabby.
After a full day of skiing we got back home just in time to prepare for another dinner party, this time at our hosts house. We had great grass fed beef steaks and of course more wine and fun. We watched SALT with Angelina Jolie. This movie had the distinction of being the most expensive movie to insure in 2010. I'm not sure if anyone of us would have been able to stay awake with any less action in the movie.
The next day we took a morning walk around Aspen where we were told that a Mr. Wheeler, who built the Opera House, was the origin for the term "Wheeler Dealer". A nice thought however it might just be a lucky coincidence as the term was previously used by English fish mongers who used to wheel their catch in prior to the start of dealing.
We dropped our friends off at the airport later that morning and had a wonderful drive back to Vail where we finished our vacation with two days of Blue Sky riding.
In November of 2010 we finished an epic journey around the USA in a generally counter-clockwise direction courtesy of a 2009 Ford E-350 van with a pop top. It was five months long and wonderful. Complete pictures and descriptions are in the works. Here is a brief summary of our trip to whet your appetite.
We left Florida in May and spent time in Charleston and Cape Hatteras arriving in Rhode Island May 15th. After taking in some Newport summer events we left there July 15th for Jackson Hole WY then Yellowstone and Glacier National parks. We spent the summer in the Gorge with one side trip via airplane to Punta San Carlos Mexico and San Diego.
Old Faithful (what else) Yellowstone Park
Back in the Gorge for a week and then a two week trip through the Olympics, Vancouver Island and then the Northern Cascades. After a break to wash everything and re-pack we then headed down the coast stopping at Crater Lake, Mendocino Point, the Lost Coast and of course the wonderful vineyards all along the way finally arriving in San Francisco where the boys joined us for a week of exploring.
Fabulous wild woods, ocean and of course the Redwoods. Wrote some of this in Trinidad California after camping out overnight at Flint Ridge. We camped in the fog in a small lot overlooking the Pacific where we could hear the booming surf below us. Right now I am at the Beachcomber coffee shop using their WiFi. This town is the most hippy dippy thing ever. I just might stay for the weekend workshop on dismantling corporate America or the Yoga life balancing retreat or perhaps just become a growers assistant - ah the possibilities. We meet Will & Chris in SF this weekend.
San Franciso Ideas Ocean - Embarcadero just under the Bay Bridge Embarcadero - weekend farmers market The Green Door - Thai Restaurant - need reservations Paulines Pizza on Valencia / 14th Tomasso's in North Beach
Costa Noa - chic campground rent tent - near Pidgeon Point betwixt Waddell and SF
There was a great post French Impressionist show at the de Young museum that I brought them to as well as a free concert in Golden Gate Park. Wonderful.
We took two weeks off by flying back to Rhode Island to close our house and see friends there before resuming our trip from San Francisco through Yosemite, Death Valley, Grand Canyon, Texas (7 days including Big Bend park) and then back along Route 10 to the Panhandle and south arriving back in Delray Beach.
When one grows up in the old US of A it is almost a rite of passage to do a road trip as soon as you have your own car, that and a reasonable stash of driving experience and dough. Well somewhere in between college and this summer life intervened. By that I mean a retail store and two sons. I lay most of the blame at the feet of the store because once we started running it we were pretty committed to summers chained at the oars. Of course we could have dragged the boys with us earlier but we didn’t so that was that.
When we sold our business (Island Sports) in 2007 after 37 years of operation we thought ‘finally we are free and can roam the world.’ Here we are circa 1986 or so courtesy of David Brownell
Life then intervened. The day we sold the business Nancy’s father passed away after a long struggle with cancer. He was 87, was a sea captain and a decorated WWII veteran. That was February 8th and naturally was traumatic to everyone. No one was in the mood for a trip.Exactly eleven months later my mother passed away. A year after that Nancy’s mother also passed away, the last of our parents and we were now both officially orphans. Life was indeed kicking us around. There was no “hooray we sold our business” there was only the realization, drummed into us, that life is short and moving faster and faster by us. It was time to stop putting our road trip on hold and it was time to start on the road.
April 30 – May
We owned a 2000 GMC extended Safari van that had 35,000 miles on it. It would be our choice of vehicle for the trip but there were concerns as to how reliable a ten year vehicle would be. We didn’t want to take any chances so we thought that if we could we would sell in and replace it with a newer model. It was still up in the air exactly which vehicle we would eventually take and we decided to make that decision in Rhode Island, not Florida.
Our 2000 GMC Savana on it's way north for the last time
We left Florida on the last day of April and spent the night in Vero Beach with our friend Lucy Whittemore. From there we drove to Charleston SC for a long visit with Andy Segal and Karen Weber. Charleston is a wonderful town and we enjoyed many fine meals there. Restaurants’ that we tried were Samoz, Monza, Home Team, and Cypress. We barely scratched the surface according to Andy. A highlight was kiting at a spot called the Bath on Sullivan’s Island where Andy is restoring a fine old house. They have some vicious watch dogs too.
The first leg ran up the east coast staying close to the ocean
After SC we headed North along the coast, a theme that will recur this summer, and stopped in Hatteras NC for some epic days of kiting and windsurfing. It blew 30-40 knots one day and literally blew us off of the water.
Here is a quick log of the sailing
On 5/7/2010 Friday We kited at Hatteras on a 14m and then a 12m kite - It got windy. Dinner at Mack Daddys - Checked into the Outer Banks Motel room 3A - nice room for 69/night
5/8/2010 Saturday - Sailed at Hatteras on a 4.2 and then a 3.7 off of Canadien Hole from 10am - 5pm - I used the Fanatic 88 liter FreeWave. The 81 was WAY to bouncy in the chop.
5/9/2010 Sunday Left Hatteras at 11am after kiting south of Canadian Hole - Nancy lost her board but I found it while kiting on my 12m and 141cm X-Ride North board. Had a Mothers Day Brunch at the Dubes restaurant in Nags Head- Arrived NJ at 10pm stayed at a Holiday Inn Express
The next two months we worked on our house, visited Martha’s Vineyard to work on our families rental house and generally tried to get back into the swing of things. An obvious highlight was the annual IYAC raft up with assorted fans.
July 5th Raft Up
July 14th, 2010
We head west and on our way with a new 2009 Ford E-350 van.
Will, Chris and Platt just before Nancy and I left on our 15,000 mile journey.
The first day our real trip began, not a good start hard rain through CT. We went an unusual way rt 84 across the Hudson River, into Pennsylvania, and through Ohio. We passed right through Middletown, CT - ironic seeing as we left from Middletown, RI. Our first night was spent camping along the Delaware Water Gap.
By the next day we had made quite a bit of progress and made it to Huntington Indiana, the headquarters of SportsMobile where we had an appointment to get a pop-top installed. We arrived in time to see a typical midwestern storm system hit us.
What a great system this gave us a "penthouse" to sleep in, with big screened windows. We had a fun time checking out Huntington interesting town. Entire downtown buildings for sale for just $39,000 with Ferrari's parked nearby.
Huntington Tractor
The Rusty Dog - good eats
Quality Construction - town hall
With pop top installed we crossed the Mississippi River on the 16th and thought, gee only 1/3 of the way there.
Mississippi River
On the17th the windmills appeared out of the morning mist as we started crossing the great plains.
Iowa Morning
It was a long day that was broken up by a visit to Lincoln Nebraska's Farmers Market.This is one of several towns that I could see myself living in. They had converted the lovely old train station to an event hall. The food and the people were wonderful indeed.
Lincoln Nebraska Farmers Market
We put the hammer down as our friend Mike McLaughlin wanted to see us get to Jackson WY by Sunday AM so we could go to a concert with him in Idaho at the Grand Targhee ski area. Why not we said.
Windmills along a ridge in Wyoming - there were hundreds
Camping on the high lonesome somewhere west of Laramie
We arrived in time for the concert and had a great time. The next morning we rode bikes into town for trout and eggs.
July 19th 2010 Snake River Expedition
Mike and Nancy setting off from the dam
Mount Moran from Jackson Lake
Mike scratching the clouds
Mike and Nancy playing around
OK - just a little smooch
July 20th we hiked up Snow King Mountain which literally rises up from the town of Jackson. Wonderful views all around.
Tetons viewed from Snow King
The next day we started North through the Grand Tetons towards Yellow Stone and Glacier
