TravelStream™ news feed for member greenvanartusa on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/greenvanartusa en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:28:43 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1257223097/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1257223097/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1257223097/tpod.html Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:28:43 -0500 Part 4:First Greenvan Trip via Northern States to West Coast and South to CA

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Gardiner, Montana, United States

  I headed into Livingston and stopped at the Safeway to look for a phone book.  My recurring van problems were recurring and I wanted to fine an auto parts store.  I saw a couple spots and went downtown to the business district.  Before I got started I took a break at Daylight Donuts for a coffee and donut.  As the name says it is only open mostly during daylight hours so I don't consider it a real donut joint ($.40).  It had to do, and then I got a couple of books at a used book store (2 books-$.35).  Things were cheap here.  I got a bunch of stuff at a hardware store that had auto parts.  I had checked the spark plug wires and saw that they were a big part of the problem.  For those who don't know you use to run the engine when  it was dark and you could see if the cables were bad by the flashing crossfire along the cables.  Mine could have been lighting up a road sign.  So cables, distributor cap, tune-up set, book on auto maintenance for additional insights and 5 feet of vacuum hose.  It was getting cooler because I had to get some wool insoles for my shoes at the drugstore.  Returned to the Safeway to do the work on the van in the parking lot.  I realized I had the wrong set of cables so went back downtown to replace them.  As I travel around I get impressions of the towns and cities where I travel and some put on a good and friendly face and others are Hadleyburgs (see Mark Twain).  The first time I went downtown I had parked without paying the meter, a rather small sum.  I came back and there was a ticket.  But when I took it off I got the surprise of my life.  It was a courtesy ticket welcoming me to town and asking me to pay next time I stopped-no fine.  So that is what I did this time.  Starting down the road again about 2:30 I headed south on 89 towards Yellowstone which I was hoping to see tomorrow.  I reached Gardiner but turned around and retrace my path back along the Yellowstone River until I found a good stopping place.  I had additional car stuff to do.  I took my tape player apart and cleaned the sprockets, then I fooled around with the antenna, which I kept hidden so it wouldn't look like a had a stereo.  The system was in a cabinet I built behind the drivers seat so I could operate it by reaching behind the back of the seat but it was concealed behind a curtain.  In response to the colder weather I had to do some maintenance on my heater. The heater controls no longer worked and I had to put on a petcock in line with the heater hose and would turn it on and off manually by opening up the petcock or closing it.  After putting on a new fan belt and adding more antifreeze I was ready to go get a bucket shower and shampoo by the river.  It's always good to be able to get cleaned up after working on the van because of all the dirt and grease I would get on me.  Once I got cleaned up I headed back to Gardiner and parked near the entrance to Yellowstone National Park.  After working most of the day I was really looking forward to seeing the park the next day. 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256875023/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256875023/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256875023/tpod.html Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:47:35 -0400 Part 4:First Greenvan Trip via Northern States to West Coast and South to CA

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Park City, Montana, United States

  I backtracked somewhat to I90 and headed north into Montana, my 39th state, first stop being the Custer Battlefield National Monument.  It was fixed up rather nicely and had nice views.  There was a small national military cemetery there where I might be able to be buried since I was in the army.  It did seem to have a number of Vietnam war dead there.  I guess that was appropriate-to bury the dead from a misbegotten war at the site of one of the worst military disasters at the hands of one of the worst military leaders our country had.  If Custer had been in Vietnam he would have probably been fragged.  If you look at where the men were you would realize they were sitting ducks.  Custer was looking for glory and had no regard for the safety of his men and he led them into a trap.  Our history books in school as I was growing up pretty much touted "manifest destiny" as god's will.  I don't buy that. I read an interesting book a number of years ago presenting American history through the  eyes of minorities, or those without the power and it gives a much different view than our textbooks give us.  Anyway, enough of that, it was just  interesting to get to see a place like that, something like Mount Rushmore but on the opposite end of the spectrum.  It was a beautiful day and after spending a couple of hours there I went on north and had a cheeseburger deluxe at the Schwarzwald Restaurant Club off of 90.  then into Billings to the KMart dealing with my own seemingly never ending problems with my van.  It had been missing all day and the temperature was going way up whenever I went up a hill.  I got a metal hose and tried to clean up my vacuum leaks, checked things over again and mostly scratched my  head and hoped for the best.  Then I turned west on 90 and stopped for the night at a rest area past Park City.   185.3 miles for the day-end day 21
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256615069/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256615069/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256615069/tpod.html Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:11:26 -0400 Part 4:First Greenvan Trip via Northern States to West Coast and South to CA

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Sibley Lake Campground, Wyoming, United States

  When I went to move the van in the morning to another spot in the campground it stalled and flooded.  After waiting awhile I did get it started but there was a lot of smoke and a sooty type of powder coming out the exhaust-more vehicle problems.  Another say was dedicated to fixing the van.  Checked dwell and timeing, found the vacuum was low and started checking for leaks.  I found a loose metal tube that had broken off from the engine and I tried to bondo it back on.  The van was running more smoothly after it had heated up and I figured I would check it again in the morning, meanwhile spending the day and night here.   I started a painting of Sibley Lake and while I was working on it I saw a moose in the distance to the right.  I put down my paints and decided to sneak up on it and have a closer look.  No camera and no time to get it.  I started heading around the lake and tried to keep behind trees and get closer whenever it was looking the other way.  A bonus, it was a big mama moose with a young one.  I kept up the same pattern until I got within 35 feet of it,  but then ran out of cover.  It turned around and saw me there and snorted and started pawing the ground like it was getting ready to charge.  And it was big-I could have walked under its head and there was no way to out run it.  I slowly backed up and tried to get a tree in between me and it but the closest thing was a sapling about 4 feet tall, but I got behind it and continued to back up.  After a couple more snorts and shakes of its head she walked off.  I was really glad she didn't trample me death.    On the way back arond the lake, I had gone about a half mile chasing the moose, I spied another wild animal but this one didn't seem so threatening-a beaver and its hut.  Back to finish the painting and then I heated some water for a washcloth bath and went ot bed.    My art website http://home.earthlink.net/~greenvanartusa/  , most of the photos and paintings from former trips here   http://artwanted.com/artist.cfm?artid=42727  and a new site   http://www.redbubble.com/people/greenvanartusa  I am putting my stuff on where cards and prints of different sizes can be bought.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256520063/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256520063/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256520063/tpod.html Mon, 26 Oct 2009 01:47:12 -0400 Part 4:First Greenvan Trip via Northern States to West Coast and South to CA

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Sibley Lake Campground, Wyoming, United States

  When I got up the next morning I was walking along the creek and I saw where somebody had left 13 beers in it to keep it cool.  It definitely wasn't my favorite but at least it wasn't diet beer and it would be fine on a hot dry day when I have been hiking.  I headed back into civilization, which out west could be several buildings sitting together.  This was Moorcroft where I had breakfast  at the Hub Cafe-eggs, toast, potatoes and coffee for $2.18.  I love these places, how can a chain fast food ever compare?  Yeah, I really want breakfast in a bag.  I headed on west to Buffalo and figured I needed to do my laundry before I went back into the woods again.  After getting some gas and stopping at the postoffice I went to Fort Phil Kearney Historical Site http://www.philkearny.vcn.com/  and had my lunch.  I didn't spend much time there before heading to Sheridan where I got some groceries and filled up with gas because I figured I wouldn't be seeing good gas prices where I was going.  I got a free Wyoming map there too.  I guess I had a somewhat deprived childhood because going into an old gas station back then and seeing a rack full of free maps was big excitement.  I loved looking at maps back then and hoping someday to be doing what I am doing now.  Next a stop at KMart for auto supplies-antifreeze, tail pipe mender and oil.  One last luxury of civilization-a milkshake at the local Dairy Queen.    Heading west into the backwoods and hills/mountains I found a spot for the night at Sibley Campground in the Bighorn National Forest. Had some hot chocolate that evening by the campfire with an older couple that were living the RV life after retirement.  The man had grown up on a farm and studied corn in college.  Who would have thought that that would have led him to being paid by just about every country in the world that grows corn to come and share his knowledge with them.  My 38th state since the beginning of these trips, 3410.2 miles so far on number 4, $573.46 spent and $326.32 left.  I have to start economizing or quit having vehicle problems.  End Day 19.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256267491/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256267491/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256267491/tpod.html Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:14:30 -0400 Part 4:First Greenvan Trip via Northern States to West Coast and South to CA

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Beaver Creek Campground, Wyoming, United States

  I left the last nights Moon Campground and didn't go very far.  I did take a photo of an old shack and then stopped at another national forest campground-Beaver Creek, a mere 11.6 miles.  I was having vehicle problems again and I spent a good part of the day doing maintenance. This consisted of various tune-up tasks again as I must not of solved the problem a few days ago-pooints, condensor, timing, and saw the vacuum was low.    I have talked aobut the national forest campgrounds in a former blog, but to repeat, they were generally pretty basic-no running water, no bathrooms (sometimes portojohns), sometimes picnic tables and trashcans, but that was about it.  And I liked it liked it like that, because aa a general rule they were always free and you didn't have a bunch of big rv's turning it into a big parking lot.  And Beaver Creek was very basic,  and it was full when I got there but I found a spot to park.  But this was the magic time of the year-Sunday and the end of the weekend.  By the time it got to late afternoon I was the only one still there.  It was me and the woods and a little streamlet.  After I had finished working on the van I washed and shampooed in the creek.  Then I started on the second painting of the trip. One of the little creek that ran behind the campground.  Later as dark came on I started a campfire  and had plenty of firewood because of all that was leftover by the weekenders.  With dark night coming on I enjoyed the sound of the fire crackling and the quiet of the deep forest.  My personal art website http://home.earthlink.net/~greenvanartusa/ , stuff I am puttin on redbubble where prints can be purchased in various formats http://www.redbubble.com/people/greenvanartusa and finally my artwanted portfolio with most of the photos and paintings from my first three travel blogs http://artwanted.com/artist.cfm?ArtID=42727 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256184399/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256184399/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256184399/tpod.html Thu, 22 Oct 2009 01:28:16 -0400 Part 4:First Greenvan Trip via Northern States to West Coast and South to CA

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Moon Campground, South Dakota, United States

  I was excited because I was about to go see Mount Rushmore.  I had seen so many pictures of it growing up-it is an American icon, just lke the Washington Memorial or the Statue of Liberty.  Only it is way out in the middle of nowhere and there was little chance of me ever seeing it while I was growing up and it is so far from where I was living it's not somewhere you just jump in our car and drive all day to see.  When I arrived at the parking lot and walked up to the visitor center I realized that Alfred Hitchcock took a lot of liberties in the scenes that were supposedly at Rushmore in North by Northwest.  No way you could walk up there or climb around it.  I got a cup of tea and savored the moment, non-chalantly glancing out the window and oh yes there is the big scuplture of the presidents.  Here is a link to the park website http://www.nps.gov/moru/index.htm .  After spending about an hour and a half of the morning there I went on to explore more of the Black Hills.  I stopped at Iron Mountain Picnic Area for lunch and for you birders I saw some red crossbills there.  Next I stopped at the Norbeck Memorial Scenic Overlook.    I saw there were cave tours in the area, the main being Wind Cave and Jewel Cave.   I decided to go to Jewel Cave  http://www.nps.gov/jeca/index.htm  , as the site says Jewel Cave at 146 miles is the second longest cave in the world.  One of the things that is nice about it is that they try to keep it from becoming like many cave tourist attractions and protect the integrity of the site.  After my tour there it was getting on toward evening so I stopped at the Moon Camp Ground in the national forest for the night.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256094738/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256094738/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1256094738/tpod.html Wed, 21 Oct 2009 00:57:10 -0400 Part 4:First Greenvan Trip via Northern States to West Coast and South to CA

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Keystone, South Dakota, United States

  I got an early start heading south on 83 then west on I-90.  I made a short stop at the Murdo rest area and crossed into mountain time a little bit further down the road.  When I reached Kadoka I stopped at the Petrified Gardens, looked around and had a Dr. Pepper.  Years later during my trips to California I would often go rockhounding with my cousins husband whose favorite discovery was petrified wood.  Doing a goggle search for wood I found this plae mentioned but until today when I reviewed my log book I had forgotten that I had been there.    Next I got a partial fillup of gas because I found the price in this outying area had jumped up like it usually did away from the city.  I had a 20 gallon tank and usually got between 15 and 18 miles per gallon so had a range of about 300 to 350 miles and I always tried to plan my route so I would hit and urban area before I ran out.  I would be hitting Rapid City soon so I figured I would get gas there cheaper.  Gas was my major expense so I always kept close of it as I went along.    The Badlands National Park was my main destination for the day and at Cactus Flat I headed south and entered the northeast entrance. I stopped at the first scenic overlook by the gate and then the Big Badlands Overlook where I took the first pictures of this trip.  I was really taken by surprise by the landforms.  When you are approaching mountains you usually see them in the distance and you adjust to their size as you get closer,  but here the approach was basically a flat plain and when you reach the edge of the badlands they drop away before you suddenly in all their fantastic eroded shapes.  Next stop was the Windows Overlook where I hiked the Door Trail,  then I hiked the Cliff Shelf Nature Trail a little  further on.  I stopped a while at the visitor center then onto the Gullies Overlook and the Pinnacles.   What a day.  I even saw a veritical rainbow that went straight up in the distance.    I was back to civilization  when I reached Grand Rapids, stopping at the Ruchmore Mall where I got a late snack and picked  up a book,  groceries at the Kmart-supplies for the next few days as I would be heading out into the Black Hills.  Here I did fill up with gas $1.26/galloon as opposed to $1.37/galloon in Kadoka.  After checking out downtown Rapid City I went out into the country again and stopped for the night off 16 near Keystone.  The Badlands is one of the areas I would like to get back to and see more of sometime.  Picture #4 now available from my redbubble portfolio http://www.redbubble.com/people/greenvanartusa
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1255994319/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1255994319/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1255994319/tpod.html Mon, 19 Oct 2009 19:52:41 -0400 Part 4:First Greenvan Trip via Northern States to West Coast and South to CA

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Pierre, South Dakota, United States

  I liked the area so much and it was had great facilities in the park I did something I rarely ever did- I decided to stay for another night.  I moved the van to a shady spot in the park and did some house cleaning, rearranging things once again and took out my throw rugs to shake out and swept out the main carpet.  I also added a quart of oil and then I walked downtown, which was real close by.  I saw the Capitol building and went to the Soldiers Memorial Museum.  I made a stop at the World of Donuts and had a donut and coffee (.58).    When I returned I set up my easel for the first painting of this trip, a view of the mountains across the river.  It was nice enough under the shade and usually unless I was going in somewhere I just wore shorts,  but my thermometer in the van which was under the shade too read 94 degrees, which was warmer than I expected for this time of the year this far north.   After finishing the painting I got on my running shoes and ran out on the connecting levee to La Framboise Island.  It was here I had another run in with the well named bull snake.  I was on a wide dirt lane and not going fast when I came upon about a foot long snake smack in the middle of the road.   I figured if I stayed in the midlle he could retreat in either direction like they tell you snakes will do.  Not with this guy, when I got within a few feet of him he reared up as high as a foot long snake can and starting hissing and springing towards me.  Well it was enough to convince me to give him a wide berth and around to the side of the road I went.    After returning I was able to shower again and took another walk up town to see what Pierre in the evening was like.  It was pleasant enough with the temperature going down somewhat but not too much was happening.  I did get myself a drink and returned to my van.  $1.16 expenses for the day and zero miles.  End Day 15.  My personal website with my paintings  http://home.earthlink.net/~greenvanartusa/  ,  my portfolio on artwanted with my past photos and paintings from these trips http://artwanted.com/artist.cfm?ArtID=42727  and the new site I joined where much of my artwork and photos can be found with various copie sizes available http://www.redbubble.com/people/greenvanartusa 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/1/331476000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/1/331476000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/1/331476000/tpod.html Tue, 15 Sep 2009 02:24:22 -0400 Part 1:First Northeast Trip in the Green Van

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Naples, New York, United States

Went across canal to do a painting of waterfalls.  Medina is known for either having a canal that crosses over a river or the river crosses the canal.  Go to Brockport and then Rochester.  Parked near art museum on Prince Street.  A guy juggling outside with with two friends let me use the shower in his apartment.  Stopped at Hill Commorrah, a Mormon historical spot, but I think it was closed.   Then on to Canandaigua.  Went to the Sonnenburg Gardens, box office was closed but I still walked through the gardens.  As I remember there were beautiful weeping  beeches.  Parked on lake fishing pier for night, but it turned out to be a young rowdies hangout with noisy cars so I went south along lake through Naples and a place near a boat launch.  136.1 miles for day  photo available through  http://artwanted.com/artist.cfm?ArtID=42727
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1252987366/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1252987366/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/greenvanartusa/4/1252987366/tpod.html Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:27:15 -0400 Part 4:First Greenvan Trip via Northern States to West Coast and South to CA

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Pierre, South Dakota, United States

  I started off and I was able to return the favor I had received the day before when I came across a couple of guys whose car had broken down on 94 and helped them get going again.  My first main stop of the day was the Bismarck state capitol grounds.  Called the "Skyscraper on the Prairie" http://www.realnd.com/capitolmap.htm I went in to check out the building and took the elevator up to the 18th floor which had an observation deck.   However it was a diasappointment because you couldn't go out on the deck itself and the view from the inside was much more limited and only in two directions.  Next I went to the North Dakota Heritage Center but was not impressed with that either.  Heading south I kind of followed the west side of the Missouri River, stopping at a rest area in Fort Rice and then on into South Dakota where I stopped at the Three Sons Restaurant in McLaughlin for a late afternoon snack and coffee.  Getting close to Pierre, which isn't pronounce like it is spelled, I saw that there was a free campgournd with bathrooms in town and that's where I headed.  I found it and that's where I parked for the night.  It even had free hot  showers-it became one of  my favorite cities. 
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