TravelStream™ news feed for member tink8580 on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/tink8580 en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sat, 12 Apr 2008 12:20:55 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/8/1208005200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/8/1208005200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/8/1208005200/tpod.html Sat, 12 Apr 2008 12:20:55 -0400 Poppies at Picacho peak

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Picacho, Arizona, United States

Last year when Ben and I saw the pictures of the wildflowers down at Picacho peak we decided right then that this year we were going to make it down. We both enjoy taking pictures, although alot of the pictures don't look as amazing as the place you were its still enjoyable. Our friend woody also enjoy hiking and just getting out to the house so he came along as well.

Driving down I'm not quite sure what our expectations were. I my self hadn't been to Picacho since I was a kid and Ben had never been. When we finally arrived and saw the large patches or gold poppy scattered about the mountain we were happy. We drove through the small park to decide where to eat lunch and hike and somehow ended up at the hardest trail on the mountain- the hunter trail. I believe we were more than halfway when i decided I would just rather sit and wait for the 2 of them to get me on the way back down.



On the way out of the park we stopped at the Nut House. We stocked up on munchies for the drive home.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/alaska-07/1179193500/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/alaska-07/1179193500/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/alaska-07/1179193500/tpod.html Sun, 25 Nov 2007 22:04:11 -0500 Inside Passage & driving trek thru Alaska

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Whistler, British Columbia, Canada

The beginning of our family vacation! We flew out of Phoenix, AZ going to Vancouver, BC. The difference in the two places is amazing. So green and lush in the north, dry and brown here in the southwest. Once we landed, got our luggage and rental car we headed north to Whistler, a ski town about an hour north of Vancouver. We stayed the night there and explored the following day before our Cruise ship left. The town of Whistler is so quaint and friendly. Even in the middle of May there were still people heading up the slopes to get in some snowboard or ski time. (if only we had the time!!)The cobblestone paths were lined with tulips and daffodils!

After a good breakfast we decided to take a drive a little past town to see what there was to see. Green lake, as well as some amazing views at the next town over.

On our way back to Vancouver we stopped by Shannon falls. I absolutely love waterfalls and this one ranks quite high. It was flowing full and fast. There were several Dogwood trees in bloom as well. The variety of plant and tree life up here was specular. Even the dandelions scattered about were nice to see!

Once we got back to Vancouver and boarded the ship it was just about time for dinner. We had the early seating. We were able to wander the ship a bit and watch it head out to see which was nice.

This was a fantastic start to an incredible trip!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196043780/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196043780/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196043780/tpod.html Sun, 25 Nov 2007 21:37:59 -0500 This was our trip leaving Washington for the move to Arizona.

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New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

This was a major stop of ours since its where Ben grew up and where most of his family was living at the time. (pre Katrina) Growing up in the southwest coming here and seeing this place was amazing to me. The history and amazing architecture blew me away. We didn't get to spend a bunch of time downtown in New Orleans but the day and a half that we did was worth it. (As well as meeting Bens family!) We got to spend 2 nights in the W hotel in New Orleans across from Harrah's casino. That hotel was a very nice change from all the camping we had just done. Feather everything! One night we went to a few bars and listened to some of that famous jazz music, it only seemed right. The next day we went to a farmers market and I picked up a alligator head for my dad. Such a tourist! We also stopped to eat some bingets at Cafe du Monde in the french quarter. I am now hooked- good thing you can get the mix here in Phoenix.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196043180/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196043180/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196043180/tpod.html Sun, 25 Nov 2007 21:19:43 -0500 This was our trip leaving Washington for the move to Arizona.

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Alliance, Nebraska, United States

The only thing I remember about the drive from South Dakota to New Orleans was carhenge. A replica-like of stone henge but made out of old cars. Ben and I both said we wanted to stop at those random tourist attractions that we might pass along the way. This was one of the few that I remember.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196039640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196039640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196039640/tpod.html Sun, 25 Nov 2007 20:15:00 -0500 This was our trip leaving Washington for the move to Arizona.

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Hot Springs, South Dakota, United States

Our last stops in South Dokota were the Wind Cave National Park and the
mammoth site both near Hot springs. The wind cave was discovered by
brothers in 1881, who heard wind blowing out of a small hole in the
side of a mountain. We took the natural entrance tour inside the cave
and saw lots of boxwork. It was hard to take pictures in the cave since
of course there was very little lighting but we did our best. The cave
tour was a great new experience for us both.

After the cave
tour we headed a bit south to the mammoth site. The history of this
site goes back 26,000 years. A large colony of olumbian and woolly
mammoths were trapped and died in a spring-fed pond
near what is now the southwest edge of Hot Springs, South Dakota.
Discovered by chance in 1974 while excavating for a housing development
the Mammoth Site is the world's largest Columbian mammoth exhibit and
research
center for Pleistocene studies. As a child I loved dinosaurs and
anything similar. This was an amazing thing to see all of these fossils
in one place still being excavated.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196035500/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196035500/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1196035500/tpod.html Sun, 25 Nov 2007 19:24:33 -0500 This was our trip leaving Washington for the move to Arizona.

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Keystone, South Dakota, United States

We had a few more stops along the way, south, out of South Dakota. First was The ever famos Mt Rushmore. When we first spotted it from the road we were quite surprised at how big it wasn't. Although still a great feat that it was to creat this monument, we had both for some reason always imagined it bigger in our heads. The museum below the monument was interesting as well as informitve about the creation and creator, Gutzon Borglum. From the museum going out towards the overlook there are flags from every state in the US.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177286520/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177286520/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177286520/tpod.html Sun, 22 Apr 2007 20:23:11 -0400 This was our trip leaving Washington for the move to Arizona.

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Badlands, South Dakota, United States

This was Ben's favorite place and is actually still pretty high up on his list. With him being from Louisiana he hasn't seen much landscape like this place. With each hour that passes the colors look different. We drove through in the morning went for a late lunch then came back again in the late afternoon while the sun was setting.

We had a long rocky road to take to get to our campsite in the middle of nowhere. It was the only free campsite in the park. When we got there the wind was blowing so hard that we decided to toss everything outside the truck and sleep in the back. The next morning we awoke to a herd of close to a hundred bison surrounding the entire campsite! What a sight!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177143600/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177143600/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177143600/tpod.html Sat, 21 Apr 2007 02:34:05 -0400 This was our trip leaving Washington for the move to Arizona.

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Deadwood, South Dakota, United States

After driving a few hours we came to the black hills of South Dakota. Once seeing it you can understand why they are called the black hills. The evergreens are such a dark green that they actually do look black, unlike the evergreens from western Washignton that we are accustom to. We drove through Sturgis (thinkfully about a week after the big run) and found ourselves in the town of Deadwood. Personally I loved this little town. There seemed to be so much history there. Our main stop was the Mt. Moraih cemetary where some pretty famous people happened to be buried, like Wild Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane. This small town is a must see!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177135740/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177135740/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177135740/tpod.html Sat, 21 Apr 2007 02:19:37 -0400 This was our trip leaving Washington for the move to Arizona.

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Devils Tower, Wyoming, United States

Devils Tower was a quick drive by stop early in the morning on our way to South Dakota. As was Fort Kearny.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177138560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177138560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/tink8580/raod_trip_04/1177138560/tpod.html Sat, 21 Apr 2007 02:06:18 -0400 This was our trip leaving Washington for the move to Arizona.

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Grand Teton, Wyoming, United States

After Yellowstone we headed down to Grand Tetons for the day. Beautiful mountains and clear Lake Jenny were a sight to see.
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