Aussie Animals

We had the opportunity to travel to Australia in February to visit Barry. What a trip and too much to tell in one post, so I wanted to start with the animals. A photo and a little about each animal, more to help me remember what all we saw than anything. Enjoy.

Kangaroo sighting with joey

It was such a treat to see a wild kangaroo. Then to see the joey poke his head out from the pouch definitely put this experience over the top! I spotted this kangaroo and joey on the way down the mountain from O’Reilly’s.

Koala

A rare moment of movement! Koalas are marsupials and eat eucalypt leaves. Eucalypt leaves are low in protein, high in indigestible substances and contain compounds that are toxic to most species. A zoo worker said it is similar in nutrients to eating cardboard. This is why koalas are usually either eating or sleeping. We got to pet koalas and the fur is thick and reminds me of wool.

Wombat

Wombats are marsupials that reminds me a bit of a groundhog.  They dig burrows and usually move slowly.  Although when threatened, the wombat can run up to 25 mph for up to 90 secs. So be mindful of these guys.

Cassowary

Talk about a rocking head piece. The cassowary is a flightless bird that reminds me of an ostrich, but with a horn-like casques on its head. It eats fruit and one theory of the casques is protection from falling fruit.

Wild cockatoo

I have only ever seen cockatoos at an aviary or in a cage, but these two are wild. Cockatoos are easily recognized by their showy crests (head feathers) and curved bills. And boy are they loud squawkers!

Laughing Kookaburra

You know this bird call when you hear it. Imagine an obnoxiously loud laugh and you’ve got the laughing kookaburra.

Looks like an owl, but it's not

This is a tawny frogmouth, a member of the nightjar family. The wide beak helps derive its name. A nocturnal bird that rests during the day in trees, keeping still and using camouflage to avoid detection.

Lorikeet

We saw several lorikeets in the wild. I use the term “wild” loosely. They know people have food. That is why this one landed on my hand. I just held my hand out like I had seed in it and he flew down to check things out.

Brush Turkey or Scrub Turkey

This guy is not related to the american turkey. We saw numerous brush turkey in the rainforest at O’Reilly’s of all places.

Noisy Miner

On our first sighting, we thought this was a pretty neat looking bird, and then we saw them everywhere and they quickly became unimpressive. The noisy miner is a common and aggressive bird.

Lyre Bird

This is not the best picture, but it is a lyre bird. We spotted him in the Blue Mountains. It reminded me of a road runner. The lyre bird has an amazing capacity to mimic other bird calls. I wonder how the lyre bird would compare with the mocking bird on various bird calls?

Crested Pigeon

I may be able to get over my distain for pigeons if we had the crested pigeon in the USA. The feather spike headdress is a fun look.

Dingo

Most notable to me about Australia’s free-roaming wild dog is that they look very much like my brother’s dog, Sydney. Is she part dingo? You decide.

Sydney
Echidna

Porcupine or anteater? A bit of both, this little guy, the echidna, is known as a spiny anteater and is an egg laying mammal.

Bilby

With transparent ears, a long tail, long snout and sharp claws, the bilby is a most unusual nocturnal animal. Bilbies are great at burrowing, making elaborate systems of tunnels in the wild.

Creepy Australian Spider

I have no idea what kind of spider this is, but we saw TONS of them at the Sydney Harbour National Park. The idea of running into a spider’s web makes my heart race, so I kept my eyes peeled for these guys once we saw several. I attempted to identify him using the trusty Google, but quickly had my fill of looking at spiders and am comfortable simply calling him the creepy australian spider we saw too many of!

Goanna Lizard

This goanna was spotted at a park near Noosa. He was just wandering around. Take a look at the long tongue!

Oh the joys of seeing amazing creatures. God sure was imaginative when he created the creatures of this earth.

 

Grand Canyon Trip Bucket List Slide Show

This is a follow-up to the Valleys and Mountains post. After hiking into the Grand Canyon with 11 coworkers, we sat in the shade and shared some items on our bucket lists. After returning home a slide show was made with photos from the trip and our bucket list items. I can’t seem to watch this without smiling like a fool and tearing up. I hope you enjoy it a fraction as much as I did. Grand Canyon Bucket List Slide Show.

Valleys and Mountains

Donan Engineering:

I first have to tell you a little about the amazing company I work for, Donan Engineering. I took part in a Get Fit program earlier this year offered by my employer. The program worked like this:

(1) set a goal – mine was to hike, run, walk a total of 400 miles in six months

(2) use the Nike+ and iPod (both provided by Donan) to track the mileage – easier said than done at times, technology is so challenging!

(3) meet set goal in six months – made it!

The reward was keeping the equipment and getting your name thrown in a pot for a chance to be one of eight spots on a trip to hike into the Grand Canyon with the boss and a coworker, who would lead the trip. Yes, I am totally serious here. A rewards trip for getting fit!

When it was all said and done, I had a spot on this trip to hike the Grand Canyon! What a thrill.

I most looked forward to meeting coworkers for the first time and getting to share this experience with them.  Donan has about 25 offices spread throughout the midwest, so needless to say, I do not know everyone. Spending three days with 11 other Donan employees would create bonds and camaraderie.

The plan was to hike into the canyon via the South Kaibab Trail, stay the night at Phantom Ranch and then hike out of the canyon the next day via Bright Angel Trail. I would then extend the trip and drive to Colorado to hike my third 14er, and my first solo 14er, San Luis Peak in the San Juan Mountains.

The Valley:

Our descent started at 6:30 a.m. at about 7,200 feet on the South Kaibab trailhead, about 7 miles and 4,654 feet above Phantom Ranch. The trail is full of switchbacks and amazing views.

Down and back and forth we go
Still smiling on the way down and taking in God’s glorious creation
Our fearless and experienced leader, Rob
First view of the Colorado River

I realized just how big the Grand Canyon is when it took 3 miles, and a descent of 2,040 feet, before the Colorado River was first spotted.

Where’s Alex?

We had a triathlete amongst us. He decided to run part of the trail. Can you find him in the above photo? I promise he is there. Look way down the trail.

Kaibab Suspension Bridge

We were getting close to Phantom Ranch when we crossed the Kaibab Suspension Bridge over the Colorado River. Phantom Ranch is only about a mile away from the bridge with a sizzling hot afternoon for us. In the sun, a thermometer read 139 degrees! If I remember correctly the thermometer read 115ish in the shade. We spent the afternoon sitting in a creek, in the shade, watching the canyon wildlife. It was a perfect way to pass the time on an otherwise insanely hot afternoon.  This dip in the creek also served as our showers due to a pipe break the day before we reached Phantom Ranch, resulting in limited water usage.

Lots of prickly pear cacti
Canyon at dusk
Home for the night

I spent the night in a bunk house with other ladies.  Pretty nice accommodations for where we were.

The following morning we got started a bit earlier, around 5:30, in order to hike the 10 miles out of the canyon. We crossed the Colorado River immediately and then walked on sand, like a beach, for a ways before heading up up up.

Silver Bridge with Kaibab Suspension Bridge in the background
The beach in the canyon!

One of the pleasant surprises of the Bright Angel Trail is that we were shaded for a huge part of the hike. It was such a blessing. Another pleasant surprise was that we hiked along a stream for miles. The gurgling stream added a nice touch to the challenging hike.

Got to get power down there somehow
Mule train

Mules travel the Bright Angel Trail and we encountered a couple mule trains. Those guys work hard to take supplies down to Phantom Ranch and bring out mail and garbage. Thank you mules for the delicious dinner last night.

Waiting at the top for the rest of the group

As members of our group finished, we gathered at the top to greet others as they finished. It was such a high to make it out of the canyon and have others to celebrate with. Overall, the hike was not quite as hard as I imagined, but way more beautiful. Something I will never forget. The shared experience allows for a unique bond with coworkers that is so cherished.

Mountain:

This next stage of the trip I experienced alone. I drove to Creede, CO to camp the night. Let’s just say God was present during this part of the trip, assisting and guiding me.

A little bit of home in Creede
The sky out west is just indescribable
The trailhead is up a gorge past old mines

I camped as close to the trialhead as my little rental car could get me, when I actually found it. It was a chilly night and I started the hike with all the cool weather clothes I had with me, including socks on my hands as make-shift gloves! I was not alone on the trail. I encountered several hikers at opportune times and had a blast watching San Luis get closer and closer, all the while soaking up the scenery of the mountains, ridges, basins and patches of trees.

Socks make good gloves when needed
Trail around the basin
The tough part

After enjoying most of the hike, I got up to the saddle and things turned vertical and tough. The Grand Canyon hike did not prepare me for straight up at 13,000+ feet. I was sucking wind, briefly wondered why I like conquering mountains so much, then I made it to the top and I remembered – the views and sense of accomplishment!

#3 San Luis Peak 14, 014 feet
What a pretty 14er - San Luis Peak

A large portion of the trail to San Luis Peak ran along the Colorado Trail (CT), which starts in Denver and ends in Durango, 483 miles away. Apparently, it is a popular trail to hike in the summer months. I ran into several conversation starved hikers on their way to Durango from Denver. I think I had a conversation with every hiker I encountered.

Me and San Luis Peak

As a matter of fact, the gentleman who snapped this shot of me was hiking the CT. He is from Nashville, TN. So us easterners hiked together for a while.

Mountain flowers are beautiful

I took more time on the way back down to look at flowers and try to see wildlife. I knew I wanted to ascend the peak as early as possible to avoid any weather hazards. The day turned out perfect for hiking and so the hike back down was quite enjoyable. There is so much variety in the mountain flowers. As far as wildlife goes, I saw so many pikas, no marmots though. I ended at the rental car 7.5 hours and 13 miles after I started, with tired legs and a huge sense of accomplishment.

Made it!

Guide Dog

My parents came to visit this past weekend and we decided to hike the Pinnacles in Berea. The day was overcast and we hoped not to get rained on. Among the clouds a very bright spot shown itself the moment we pulled in the parking lot and her name is Tillie.

Tillie

Those of you who often hike in the Indian Fort Mountain Trail System, more than likely are acquainted with Tillie, but we had not met her. Tillie looks like an Australian Shepherd and her tag says this:

A hike was on the list for Tillie today

Needless to say she followed us on our hike to West Pinnacle and eventually lead us to Indian Fort Lookout. We gave her the title of Sherpa.

Our Sherpa leading us on the trail

Tillie seemed to have a rock at each stopping point where she would patiently wait for us to take in the sights, eat lunch or drink some water. She would watch us closely and be on the trail the moment we made a motion to move on.

Mom and Tillie

Toward the end of our hike we realized food may play a part in her decisions to join people. We met a group of college kids having lunch on East Pinnacle. When we made our move to leave, Tillie curled up on a rock near the kids. So much for our Sherpa. It was a lovely addition to our hike and she truly did assist us in finding portions of the path. Thanks so much Tillie!

Tillie and her new friends

Anniversary in San Antonio, TX

Each year Peter and I take a trip over Labor Day weekend to celebrate our anniversary.  This year frequent flier miles landed us in San Antonio, TX for the weekend.  The two things we were told by several people to make sure we did while in San Antonio was walk the River Walk and eat at Boudro’s making sure to order the guacamole made table side.

River Walk - check.
River Walk - check.
Guacamole at Boudro's - check.
Guacamole at Boudro's - check.

What else did we get into? Well, we found the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch African Safari – Texas Style. AWESOME. A 4 mile drive through 400 acres of Texas hill country to see some of the over 500 animals. Some close, some not so close and some a little too close. Check it out:

Too bad I can't remember the animal names.
Too bad I can't remember many of the animal names.
These guys are cute.
I like the stripes on these guys.
Long horns are HUGE!
Long horns are HUGE!
Definitely well fed animals.
Definitely well fed animals.
Did I say well fed yet?
Did I say well fed yet?
The ostrich is up to no good.
The ostrich is up to no good.
He made his way down the line of cars sticking his head in each one looking stir things up.
He made his way down the line of cars sticking his head in each one causing squeals and laughter.
So many differnt horn styles.
So many differnt horn styles.
Peter likes the horns on this guy.
Twisted horns.
How many people share the road with such a horned beast?
How many people can say they shared the road with such a beast?
This occurred just after the educational cd we were listening to said the zebras should be avoided. Instead, Peter gave him a little pet!
This occurred just after the educational cd we were listening to said the zebras should be avoided because of the danger. Instead, Peter gave him a little pet!
Baby zebra!
Baby zebra, oh so cute.
This park has a different kind of traffic jam.
This park has a different kind of traffic jam.
Sicilian donkey. See the cross on his back? I touched one!
Sicilian donkey. See the cross on his back? Yeah, I touched one.
I think it is an emu and I think he is crazy.
I think it is an emu and I think he is crazy. You can see it in his eyes.
We ended of safari at the petting zoo hoping to get rid of extra food and all they wanted was the bag!
We ended our safari at the petting zoo hoping to get rid of extra food and all the goat wanted was the bag!

If you ever find yourself in San Antonio, TX, we recommend you check out the River Walk, guacamole at Boudro’s and the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch. Oh and don’t bother with the extra bag of food…you don’t need it.

Fourth of July Bug Fest

I thought it would be fun to go backpacking for a weekend.  I’ve always wanted to check out the Land Between the Lakes (LBL), so I started planning a trip over the long Fourth of July weekend to backpack at LBL. The plan was to hike in, camp, hike, camp, hike out.

We stuck to the plan and all things considered walked away with a few good memories.  Saw tiny frogs, had a nice camp site, and toured the bison reserve.

One of a bazillion tiny frogs we encountered.
One of a bazillion tiny frogs we encountered.
Campsite on the each of a freshly cup field. Pablo liked the spot.
Campsite on the edge of a freshly cut field. Pablo liked the spot.
Baby bison on the reserve.
Baby bison on the reserve.
Pablo was definitely curious about the creatures.
Pablo was definitely curious about the creatures.

But we had our share of difficulties. The insane amount of spider webs strung across the hiking path was fixed easy enough with a waving stick held by the leader.  Our spur of the moment decision, early our first full hiking day, to add a loop to our planned hike made the end of the day really tiring but made us more determined. The strong thunderstorm late in the evening the second night, that lasted most of the night, didn’t dampen our spirits much.  But the mosquitoes, ticks and chiggers tried us mightily and nearly broke us.

My fearless spider web catcher and his trusty side kick tick collector.
My fearless, spider-web catcher husband and his trusty, side-kick, tick-collector dog.

We stopped about a mile into our hike the first night and discovered ticks on our socks and legs.  This led to a tick check each and every water break.  Poor Pablo had to of been tired of us poking and pulling at him.  He was attracting TONS of ticks. The mosquitoes were just a general annoyance.  But the chiggers were sly, we didn’t realize their presence until the second night camping.  They might be little but they cause a BIG itch.

So Peteifer and Pablo decommend the LBL in July for backpacking.  Stick with the water adventures friends, your skin will thank you.

Wye Valley Walk

During our recent Europe trip, we decided to hop on over to Whales, since it’s so close to Bristol. What we hadn’t accounted for was how big of an adventure it would be. Be warned this is a very long blog post. The pictures and captions make for a great quick version.

“I guess it is about time for us to get back to the bus station,” I said glancing at my watch. “Instead of taking the sidewalk, I bet we can take this path,” Jen responds. We had spent the last couple hours exploring the Chepstow Castle, admiring the view of the river and cannon ball damage. Next on our schedule was a bus ride to ruins of Tintern Abbey.

We visited the Chepstow Castle in Wales
We visited the Chepstow Castle in Wales.

We begin down the path and there is a tourist information sign, the type that is along thousands of paths the world over. Having a propensity to read signs, my wife waits so I can see what is has to say.

The sign is a map that shows the castle with a “you are here” arrow pointing to it. Also on the map is Tintern Abby. Connecting the two is the Wye Valley Walk. We stop in at the tourist info center 100 meters away and ask for more information about this “walk”.

We saw a sign (like this but without the labels) and thought, that would make a nice hike.
We saw a sign (similar to this one) and thought, that would make a nice hike.

“How far is it to walk to Tintern Abbey?”
“About five and a half miles. The walk is marked with flying salmon.”
“Great!
“But right now, part of the walk is closed for refurbishment. There are diversions.”

“Are the diversions marked?”
“Yes, they are well marked, probably better than the regular walk.”

Jen and I are usually up for a good hike. 5.5 miles isn’t too far, especially since we know we can take a bus back. We head down the black asphalt road, it’s not yellow and not brick, but it will do.

We walk by the castle, then past a school, which is letting out. On our way out of town we see a sign marking the ‘diversion.’ What we in the U.S. would call a detour. Of course I stop to look at the sign, and while there is no “you are here” printed on the monocrome map, it doesn’t take much to identify our current location. We follow the route and head out of town.

We pass through a wooded park. Ahh, another sign. “It looks like we’re supposed to go straight through the field,” I announce. Jen confirms, “yep, looks like it.” We proceed through a small gate, over a hill and see something we have never encountered on a trail before: sheep.

Our hike took us through sheep pasture.
Our hike took us through a sheep pasture.

This is just too cool. So we decide to enjoy the sheep pasture for a little longer and have a snack. We are clearly on someone’s farm. We had heard that in the UK public walking trails cut right through private farms. The path is very obvious, after our snack we continue down it.

We come to the end of the field and enter some beautiful woods. We hike along a ridge overlooking the river. Such a gorgeous hike, and it is not crowded at all. We haven’t seen anyone since we passed the school.

As we come out of the woods, another detour map. Yep, we’re still on the right path. “Looks like we need to do a little zig-zag and cross the road,” I announce. We do and find ourselves walking along, and on top of, a field of 3 inch high sprouts. We both attempt to tread lightly, hoping we don’t damage much of some farmer’s crop.

Each stage of the hike has taken us through different terrain. We know the detour ends at about the half way point. Almost two hours in, it feels like this might be longer than a five and a half mile hike.

We find the end of the detour, which is conveniently at a picnic and parking area. We take in our backpack full of “energy,” a term that makes “calories” sound so much more appealing.

Half way through our hike we stopped for a picnic overlooking a valley.
Half way through our hike we stopped for a picnic overlooking a valley.

Now where to from here? The picnic area contains a couple signs we investigate nearly a dozen times, between the two of them and the two of us. We wander off in what must be the right direction.

At the top of “365 steps” we find our first flying salmon since lunch. “I think we took the long way up the hill” says Jen. “The diversion does seem like it is marked better than the regular trail,” I conclude. No use complaining, we’re at the top of the hill and walking through a forest.

This forest is the kind of seen in movies. It is filled with the brightest greens that have ever made their way out of a children’s book.

We hiked through this beautiful green forest after hiking up 365 steps
We walked through this beautiful green forest after hiking up 365 steps.

We continue along, spotting small flying salmon marking every few hundred meters. Keeping an eye on the time, we have to be getting close now. The forest ends, and we’re in another field. More sheep! On to a step, and over a fence, and now cows. Awesome, picturesque black and white cows. They’re curious and we’re having a blast. This is not something we see when hiking close to home at the Red River Gorge.

The trail went through fields and pasture, clever steps let humans cross but livestock in
The trail went through fields and pastures, clever steps let humans cross but kept livestock in.
I'm not sure what the cows thought of people just walking through their field
I'm not sure what the cows thought of people just walking through their field.

We see a sign post in the distance. Crossing the dry creek bed it takes only a couple minutes to reach it. It is at the intersection of a little one lane country road and the path we had been on. There are a couple wooded arrows. One pointing towards a church, but no mention of the abbey ruins, which are our destination.

Without any reason to think otherwise, we continue walking in the same direction. We keep any eye open for any fence crossings or other path markings. I’m starting to think, I really wish that sign mentioned the abbey. We find ourselves among more cattle, not as picturesque as the previous herd, but still cool. Neighboring the cows is the church that was mentioned on the sign.

This country church is not the abbey we're looking for
This country church is not the abbey we were looking for.

This doesn’t happen to be the one Sunday a month when the church is in service and there is no one around. The information board by the church has a crude map. It marks the path we are on, an arrow mentioning the abbey and an arrow towards the church parking area, up over the hill. Oddly, the arrow pointing to the abbey and the path on the map don’t go in the same direction.

“Do you see a path through that field?” I ask Jen. “Not that I can see” is her response. “Okay, you go around the fence, looking for a path marking, and I’ll go straight through the field.” We set out, but there is a bull staring me down. Suddenly, joining Jen along the fence doesn’t sound like a bad idea.

After a 5 minute walk we reach the other side. Nothing, not a fence crossing, not a sign, not a trail marking. Maybe I miss read the map at the church. Considering we didn’t actually have a map, we head back to the church’s map. No new clues are revealed. “We should head the the parking lot,” the tired version of myself suggests. Up the hill. The parking lot is on another little one lane road. After standing there for 5 minutes we realize there is not a great chance of anyone passing by anytime soon.

As the day becomes later and our energy wains, we realize that we might be lost in the middle of a foreign country. We can’t really go back the way we came, we left nearly 5 hours ago.

We say a little prayer by the church and decide to head back to the arrows where the path crosses the first little road. There are some barns and we can see a pretty good distance. Worse case, we follow the road for a while until it comes to something. As we near the road, we see an old man and a dog come and sit down. We haven’t seen anyone since the green forest. An answer to prayer, someone to ask for direction.

His dog is excited to see us and makes for a natural conversation starter. (This way we don’t seem too desperate or too lost.) I mention, “We were headed to Tintern Abbey but seem to have lost our path.” He replies with the accent you would expect from an old man in the-middle-of-no-where Wales, “Ah, yes. You came off the path a while ago. The easiest way to get there would be to go back down this hill, and follow the valley to the left.” “The creek bed?,” I ask for clarification. He reiterates. That is the way we’re supposed to go.

We arrive at the dry creek bed and follow it to the left. We praise God for giving us someone to point us in the right direction.

To get back to where we needed to be we should take the valley left
To get back to on track for the Tintern Abbey we should take the left valley.

With smiles returning to our faces, we hear a weird sound up ahead. It gets louder as the source comes into view. It is the thing we would least expect to see at this moment. We see a dirt biker enjoying the challenge of the rocky valley. Wanting to make certain I understood our friend, the old man, correctly, I ask if we’re headed the right way to the abbey. He responds over the noise of his idling dirt bike, “Yes, just follow this for about a mile.” In just a few more minutes we see a trail sign.

If we had taken the right path, we would have seen this sign over an hour ago
If we had taken the right path, we would have seen this sign over an hour ago.

“So it looks like we should have gone straight instead of taking a left,” Jen states as we piece together what went wrong, “but didn’t we see trail markers?” At this point it all starts to come together. We saw plenty of trail makers, taking us through the the cow pasture, and up to the church, but they weren’t flying salmon trail markers.

Now we are on the right path
Now we are on the right path.

The tree covered creek bed ends behind an old building. Making our way around we see the abbey. I see the bus stop in front of the abbey and glance at my watch. “We just missed the bus.” We didn’t have a map of the hike, but we knew our planned bus times.

After hiking for 5 hours we finally saw our destination, Tintern Abbey
After hiking for 5 hours we finally saw our destination, Tintern Abbey.

The guy in the gift shop confirmed the bad news. The next bus didn’t come for a couple hours, but they did sell ice cream. At this point we were in no mood to look at the abbey, so we just waited and enjoyed some ice cream and cold water.

“I’ll meet you at the bus stop,” I said to Jen as I headed towards the restroom. Nearly two hours had passed and we were ready for our adventure to be over. When I got to the bus stop there were two people waiting. One being my wife, and the other, being a guy in his late 50s or early 60s talking to her.

His accent is heavy, and while we can’t understand everything, we gather that he once lived in this town. He liked to talk, but wasn’t much of a conversationalist, he also hadn’t been to the dentist recently. We definitely weren’t late for this bus and as we saw the old clunker of a bus come down the road, I was secretly hoping our new “friend” wasn’t going to keep us entertained for the 20 minute bus ride back to Chepstow.

He didn’t, but we did have a problem when we got to Chepstow. By missing our intended bus from Tintern, we missed our intended bus from Chepstow to Bristol. I checked the signs at the unmanned bus station. “We missed the last bus to Bristol” I told Jen, trying to fight back my “what’s next?” voice. Out from the other side of a bus time poster pokes the heads of two middle aged women. “Sorry for being nosy. But did I just hear you say you missed the last bus to Bristol?” Glancing over to catch Jen’s expression, I respond “Yes, you did.” “Well, we missed the bus too.”

I said earlier it was getting late in the day. Let me remind the reader, that this is “late in the day” by little-town-in-Wales’ standards. It was only 5:30.

Bus stations, even un-manned ones are a hub of transportation. A taxi stand nearby had a cab or two waiting for a gig. I walked up to the nearest taxi and ask the driver how much a trip to Bristol would be. I was hoping it would be cheap, but by this point we didn’t have a lot of options. “Um, to Bristol? About £35,” was his response. Since the two middle aged ladies were also in need of transportation to Bristol, we split the fare.

We made it to Bristol City Centre just in time for the rain to start, and after one last walk bringing our total for the day at least 8 miles, arrive back where we started wet, but happy to be “home.”

Draisine Tour in Germany

So our European friends and family tour, quite some time ago, included Germany to visit our friend, Kris. She set up a fabulous day for us riding hands free bikes. What am I talking about you might ask. Well, check it out:

img_2379Hands free indeed!

img_2371Walking our bike across road crossings and someone had to jump out and lift the barrier.

img_2382So lots of people were just pedaling down the tracks. If you happened to stop and wanted to take the pedal bike off the tracks – lift with your legs – those bikes are not light by any means!

img_2374We biked through several little towns.  Leaving Erdesbach according to the above sign.

img_2375It really was a nice way to see the country. And we almost got through the day without getting rained on, but the last several kilometers were in the rain so we used that as an opportunity for some 1 km time trials! Thanks for the great day Kris!

Peter’s Great London Park Tour

Peter planned out a great walking tour for us to further explore London the day Tyler and Ruth were finishing up their move to the new flat. We started in Kensington Park and continued on to Hyde Park through Wellington Arch to Green Park, saw Buckingham Palace and strolled through St. James Park across Westminister Bridge on to the Tate Modern and then across the Millenium Bridge to peek at St. Paul’s. Whew. Needless to say, we were both tired after all that, but it was a very fun day and a great tour.

img_2184A flower garden in Kensington Park. I have never seen such dark tulips before.

img_2189In Hyde Park

img_2197In Green Park

img_2201More amazing flowers in Green Park.

img_2205Buckingham Palace

img_2218Soldier stretching his legs.

img_2238Having fun with the fountain. Drink up Peter!

img_2241The Mall by Buckingham Palace. So green and tidy isn’t it?

img_2243These flowers in St. James Park remind me of candy canes!

img_2250We must have found the royal stables. I just don’t know how the soldiers can keep a straight face while tourists take pictures and gawk. I certainly couldn’t do it.

img_2253Hello.

img_2257Any finally after approximately 7 miles of walking, St. Paul’s Cathedral. Next we took our tired feet to the tube and back to the flat in West Hampstead.

London with the Tates

Our European tour started in London visiting our friends Tyler and Ruth. We took a boat ride down the Thames River to Greenwich on a spectacular Saturday with the Tates.

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Of course we took a picture near Parliament and the Clock Tower housing Big Ben near the dock where we caught our boat tour.

img_2822Ruth and Tyler on the boat tour with us and the London Eye in the background.

img_2836Portion of the Tower of London and the “Gerkin” in the same shot. Just goes to show you London is both old and modern.

img_2860I thought of my sister-in-law, Annie, when I saw all the wisteria in Greenwich. Just beautiful!

img_2183So our visit caught Tyler and Ruth in the middle of a move, which turned out to be a huge blessing since we didn’t have to invade their space for 4+ days. We took their old flat and they took their new flat. We did however help them move a shelf to their new place. What a scene seeing four people carrying a big old shelf down the street to the tube station where we were told we absolutely couldn’t take said shelf, so back onto the street to the bus stop and thankfully the bus driver let us all on, shelf and all! Fun times.