Water and a Duck's Back

If you've never been to Wisconsin Dells, picture the Las Vegas strip, with-out the gambling. Several streets filled with; t-shirt shops and tourist booths offering discounts on the many water slides, amusement parks and well you get the picture. Ok, when in Rome....



We took a tour of the Wisconsin River on a Duck. A World War II relic that travels over land and water. Actually, through some very beautiful areas. Then we headed for Noah's Ark, which is billed as the Worlds Largest Water Park. Lots of inventive rides that we had never seen anywhere else.

Speaking of water.... we have had several emails asking if we were able to avoid the flooding that is currently plaguing this part of the country. For the most part yes, but I can say that in the last 2 months we have seen more severe weather than in the previous 20 years. Skys so dark with clouds that they turn day into night and lightening flashes, where a second one starts before the first has finished, turning the night into day. We have heard thunder that rolled on and on for countless minutes without stopping and rain that came down so hard that it passed through the weather stripping on the van. We did miss the major flooding however by 30 miles to the south.



We take it all in stride.... like water off a ducks back

Duluth

Duluth turned out to be surprisingly pleasant . We took a drive up the North Shore to the Two Harbors area visiting Minnesota's oldest light house.



A hike in Jay Cooke State park was along he St. Louis river also known as the root beer river due to it's brown color with white foam.... mmmmmm......root beer.




The downtown Duluth area featured a shoreline walk along lake Superior ending at an ariel bridge that lifted up every time a boat needed to pass under. It takes a special boat captain to time the passage perfectly.



Luckily with a telephoto lens I was able to view into the wheelhouse and get a look at one of these exceptional pilots.

A Drop in the Bucket

Here in Minnesota the mighty Mississippi is a mere drop in the bucket that one could throw a rock across. It's hard to believe that a few hundred miles downstream huge barges and ships are on their way to the rest of the world on this same river.

There was plenty of wildlife on this paddle, including some huge turtles, as well as this "rafter" of wild turkeys...



...which reminds me of the strangest high school mascot name we've encountered..... Atkins, Minnesota, home of the fighting "gobblers" ... wow, that must really intimidate the other schools!

Minnesota Sunset....the picture says it all

Where will you find....

...a life-size Harry Potter, made of cheese...



...a huge variety of health food...



....200 different types of corn....



...at the Iowa State Fair.....



All in all, a pretty fair Fair.

Bridges of Madison County

Never read the book....

Never saw the movie....

Didn't even know they were in Iowa...

The most interesting thing I noticed about these bridges, other than the fact that people are still visiting them 12 years after the movie, is their security system. The bridges are pretty much in the middle of nowhere, yet each one has it's own solar powered security camera and microwave link. Probably because one was burned down years ago due to arson. For more pictures of.....well.... bridges check out the link in photo archives to the left.

Three, Two, One...

THREE: the 3 strangest state laws that we have had to deal with so far are:

#3: In the state of Oregon you can't pump your own gas.... don't even try, the attendant will take the pump out of your hand and give you a dirty look.

#2: In Colorado you can't buy beer or wine in a grocery store, but you can bring your groceries into the adjoining liquor store and pay for them with your alcohol.

#1: In Missouri you must register before going into a casino and receive a players card... why... because you are only allowed to loose 500 dollars every 2 hours. Apparently there are no restrictions on winning as it is not expected.

TWO: the 2 strangest marquees I have read.

#2: on a Colorado hotel sign: "Free Rooms! Just Kidding".

#1: on a Kansas Dairy Queen: "My boss told me to change this sign, so I did".

ONE: the strangest rule we have encountered:

#1: at a Kansas City RV park, swimming pool rules included: "no holding your breath"

I will update these as they become more bizarre!

Parting Shots, from Dodge City, KS

That title works on so many levels... here are a few shots you might have missed, mostly because I haven't posted any of them yet.

What's the chance of catching this muzzle blast when the camera shutter is set for 1/1000 of a second.....



...or a bolt of lightening over a cornfield....



...ok, the rainbow stood still long enough to have it's picture taken but a cool shot none the less.... by Donna...



...this one I call "truth in advertising"....




Well time to get the heck out of Dodge....hey that actually works, because we're in Dodge....and we're leaving and.... well never mind.....

What made this marmot scream....

...he saw our jeep on this "road":




Having survived the death defying hike of two days ago we decided to tempt fate yet again by renting a 4X4. Jeep trails are rated much like white water rafting, from 1 to 5. We chose a nice 2. The description talked of a beautiful journey over the 13,000 foot Ophir pass, (you'd have thought the 13,000 foot part would have tipped us off). It starts off nice enough, much as the Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland before plunging you onto a single track road hugging the side of a cliff. The path is only a Jeep and a half wide, so what you ask happens when 2 Jeeps meet head to head. Supposedly the uphill Jeep has the right of way and the other one has to back up until a turnout is found. Did I mention the path is only a jeep and a half wide and 13,000 feet up! Luckily for us we never had back up, or, put into action my plan B of not speaking any english until the other Jeep backed up. The 86 mile journey was not without it beauty, beaver ponds, ghost towns, and aspen groves. Pictures of course to be posted soon.

What we did today:

Imagine climbing all the stairs to the top of the Empire State Building....twice! And what if those stairs were only 18 inches wide and there was no side to the building so as you climbed you looked out over a 1000 foot drop-off. Now what if you started you climb a mile and a half above sea level so every breath you took only had part of the oxygen your lungs expected and the pay-off for all this is a visit to a deserted mining shack, that looks as though it was glued to the side of the mountain and would fall at any minute. Throw in a thunderstorm on your return trip just to make the pathway back a little slicker. That's what we did today.

Can you find Donna in the picture below.... hint: she's on the path.

You're right.... no trees

Our journey took us to the Great Sand Dunes National Park. A virtual Sahara Desert created at the base of the mountains. Since the sand can reach temperatures of 140 degrees in the summer, hiking to the top of the dunes is usually done in the early morning or evening. The great thing about this hike is you can do it 24 hours a day. With that in mind we decided to try a full moon attempt to the summit; but first, we thought it wise to pick a path in the daylight so we would know where we were going later that night. Our simple re-con turned into a full hike to the peak without water or proper attire. The last 50 yards up a 45 degree slope. It worked out for the best because by 9pm it was pouring rain and lightening. By 3am the rain stopped and we heard other campers heading out but we lacked the momentum and pulled pillows over our heads.

The dunes are a photographer's dream. As the sun changes on the landscape beautiful shapes are created. Check our photo archive to the side for pictures of the park, as well as an encounter with bighorn sheep. (When our internet speed allows uploads of course).