Here is a link to the first and second part of our trip Out West Slideshow! It is a compilation of pictures and videos from everyone. The third part is still being put together!
http://www.kizoa.com/Movie-Video-Slideshow-Maker/d213292141kP693311537o2l1/out-west-2018-1 http://www.kizoa.com/Movie-Video-Slideshow-Maker/d222655990kP693572979o2l1/out-west-trip-part-2
0 Comments
8,259 Miles driven
228,433 Steps taken 20 States Visited 28 National Park Sites Seen 57 Other Random Places 28 Days 14 People 3 Cars I can not begin to thank my parents for this amazing journey that happened because of their generosity. My dad said many years ago when my siblings and I were younger that he wanted to go Out West with our children when we eventually had some. We did so much over the last 28 days I can not still wrap my brain around it all. We moved all day everyday to so many cool interesting fun places. At the last few National Parks we have visited the Rangers have been asking my kids which Parks were their favorites. All three have different answers PMan is Yellowstone, JMan is Mesa Verde, Kit Kat is Badlands, and I love Bryce Canyon. The Rangers at Flight 93 Welcomed Us back home when we told them where we had been and that they were our final destination. It began 28 days ago with pouring down rains as we drove Westward. We arrived West to Dry HOT temperatures. This should be their Monsoon season but it is dry, no rains are falling. They are in a drought so bad. There were forest fires around us. We could see the smoke. Roads were closed the day after we had traveled on them due to fires on more then one occasion. I can say I drove from the East to the West Coast and then back again. I don't ever need to return to southern California again. The traffic was outrageous way worse then ANY New York CIty traffic or Philadelphia traffic I have ever been in. The beach is HOT in California. I did not feel the cool ocean breeze like you get at the Jersey Beaches. I may have lost my cool with the kids and the same goes in return for them. But 28 days together with no where to take time for yourself. In hotels, lodges, cars, buses there is no me space. You are around each other 24/7. I have learned all 3 kids have NO FEAR. They will lean over ledges, wall, fences on their tip toes. I may of had a panic attack on the rim of the Grand Canyon as PMan sat and leaned over a wall. 6 feet away from the edge. I could of used a recording of myself. But we saw it all. We walked rim trails (me included which it is hard to do). I seriously have a huge fear of heights I am not sure that people understand its a hard thing to just walk up and look off the side. I can't I feel paralyzed. I am pretty sure my entire family thinks I am crazy with how paranoid I get around ledges, fences, walls that drop down very far. We ate in so many different restaurants. A few of my favorite would be Day 3 in Keystone SD the pork chops, Day 7 The Dining Room at Mammoth in Yellowstone The Montana Meatloaf (it was Elk), Day 11 Metate Room at Mesa Verde the Salmon, Day 17 Bryce Canyon The Lodge Bison Stew and Day 27 Wheeling Brewery The Italian Pierogies. My top favorite would probably be the Salmon at Mesa Verde. One of my favorite moments would be when we turned the corner at the Badlands National Park and you got the first true sight of the park the kids reactions. They were all so amazed at what they saw. PMan said to me Mom I am so happy I stayed with you. It was so worth missing the baseball tournament. Kit Kat and JMan both were enthralled by the sights as well. It was truly a blessing to witness and hear their thoughts about how beautiful our Country is. Another favorite moment was seeing a Moose. It was on my bucket lists of must find/do while Out West. Kit Kat even asked in Yellowstone where we could find one. The Ranger told her but made her promise not to share the location on social media. So when we went to the Grand Tetons we went on a mission to find a Moose but were unsuccessful. The next morning before leaving to head to our next destination Ed and I got up extra early to try to go find a moose. We attempted to get the kids to wake up and come along but they all declined. And low and behold we did we found not one but TWO MOOSE! It was so cool to see them grazing by the waters edge. Supposedly there was a baby moose as well but it never came out of the tree line to our line of vision. One other favorite memory would be Las Vegas. All the kids were so excited to see it. PMan had me go gamble 20 dollars to win lots of money. I lost it all in 10 minutes! We all went to see Cirque Du Soleil The Beatles Love. They were all on the ends of their seats watching the show. Then afterwards walking around outside to see the lights of Vegas. JMan LOVED getting his photo taken with the Vegas showgirls (as he called them). I could go on for hours about all the things we saw and did over the course of the 28 days. Feel free to go back and read through each day. Look at the photos. It was very hard to pick and choose which pictures to put up each day. Johanna Today we ate our final hotel breakfast. There was lots of fruit YUMMY! We left West Virginia and enter Pennsylvania! Cheers were heard around the car! We stopped at Frank Llyod Wright's home called Fallingwater. The house was amazing! After that we headed to Somerset PA and saw an Elephant standing in a Eat and Park Website. Then we headed to our final destination Flight 93 Memorial Park. Kit Kat and Jman earned Junior Ranger Badges here. Kit Kat has earned a badge at every park we went too and sometimes multiple badges at a park! It was raining for all of our destinations. It was also POURING the whole drive today. Sometimes so hard it was hard to see outside the windows of the car. We made it home to Lancaster at 2:39pm!
Today we went to the Wright Brothers Memorial again because we realized there is a National Park Center there. We wanted to get stamps for our books and Kit Kat wanted to ask about he Junior Ranger Program. The Visitor Center is called Dayton Aviation Heritage Huffman Priarie Flying Field National Historical Park. While we were there Kit Kat saw that if she went to 7 out of 14 aviation locations she could earn a free stuffed bear. She also did earn another Junior Ranger Badge here. So we got the first stamp!
Next we went to the National Museum of the United States Air Force. We spent a few hours here. This museum is FREE! It is an amazing place I highly recommend it. We did not even put a dent in seeing the museum. The kids went on a virtual reality space ride and loved it. They also attempted to land a space shuttle unfortunately they all crashed! Stamp 2! National Aviation Hall of Fame. This was inside the National Museum of the United States Air Force. So she was able to get three stamps so far! Wright State University Library was next on the list. Not only did she get stamp 4 here we were also able to see a replica of the Wright Brothers Plane. Historic Woodland Cemetery got her stamp 5. Also the Wright brothers are buried here so we were able to see that! Dayton Aviation Heritage Wright Brothers Aviation Center at Carillion Historical Park. This was a paid museum so we did not go in. We just used the restrooms, got pennies and Stamp 6! Dayton Aviation Heritage Cycle Shop National Historical Park she did it she got 7 stamps and got the Bear! She also earned ANOTHER Junior Ranger Badge here! We then left Dayton Ohio and drove to Wheeling West Virgina. We are staying at Springhill Suites by Marriott tonight. We had dinner at the Wheeling Brewery. Poppop and I had pierogies(sp). The kids all had flatbread pizza. The dinner was delicious here. The kids and I had a local black cherry soda it was really good. Afterwards the kids said we had to have ice cream since we never got it the day before for National Ice Cream day. So they asked the waitress and she told us were a Dairy Queen was. So we all had a blizzard. Then we headed back to the hotel. And just so everyone knows I do take photos of PMan they have consisted of everywhere imaginable that he has played games on his phone while on the trip! I told him I am making him a scrapbook of all the photos I took of him on his phone! I think it has now become a big joke. My favorite photo of him playing on it is from Yellowstone! It's hard to believe that it is our last night in a hotel. The last 27 days feel like they have flown by but then it also feels like leaving our home and heading out was forever go. I miss my bed and pillow and shower! I have barely watched television in the last month. I have also barely read. We have been so busy. Johanna I don't know how it has been 26 days but it feels like forever since we turned that corner and all 3 kids were amazed at what they saw at the Badlands. I don't think I will ever forget their responses or the awe in their voices. Today we drove from Illinois to Ohio. I am currently sitting in bed looking at the window at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright Patterson Air Force Base! We will be going there tomorrow morning. Okay so here is what we did today.
So this morning I officially decided I am tired of eggs or sausage or bacon or muffins. We had lots of rain again this morning while we were driving. We drove two hours to Casey Illinois small town big things is what it is known for. We saw the following things: World's Largest Mailbox, A Really Really Big Bird Cage, World's Largest Wooden Shoes, World's Largest Knitting Needles and Crochet Hook, A Really Really Big Yardstick, World's Largest Rocking Chair, World's Largest Wind Chimes, A Really Really Big Token, World's Largest Pitchfork, A Really Really Big Pencil, A Really Really Big Golf Tee, A Really Really Big Bookworm and A Really Really Big SeeSaw (they are trying to break the world record)! It was a really cool little town. The sun started to shine as we were getting ready to leave the town. We then drove to Indianapolis Indiana. As we were driving I remembered that the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was there also so Poppop looked it up and we were a few miles away from it so we went and saw it. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is huge! This was really neat to see. After we left the Speedway we drove to the Indianapolis Art Center. There is art in the building by their students and structures outside you can walk around. We came here to see the Twisted House. I had found it on Roadtrippers and thought it would be a great place to stretch our legs. We also ate lunch here. We then drove to Dayton Ohio. We checked into the Comfort Suites Wright Patterson- (we can see the Airforce Museum from our hotel room). Our room is really big. We had dinner at the Clancy Tavern. After leaving dinner we decided to drive past the National Museum of the United States Air Force so we would know where we are going in the morning. Also to check the hours it is open. As we were leaving I saw a sign that says Wright Brothers Memorial 1.9 miles to the right. So of course we drove down to it. It is a very nice and big park for the Wright Brothers. It is also part of the National Park Service so we are going to stop back tomorrow to get our stamps for our books! We then headed back to our hotel. We are getting ready for bed. We will take our time getting up tomorrow as the Museum doesn't open till 9am. Then we will head to Wheeling West Virginia and spend the night there tomorrow. We will be home on Tuesday! Johanna We left our hotel and drove to the 3 state marker. This is in no way built up like 4 corners. It is a rough broken road and a little square on the ground to mark the spot where Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri all come together. It rained again on our way there. There was also a bison there as well. We had a good laugh and all stood on the three states at one time. We then drove up to the Gateway Arch in St Louis Missouri. The Gateway was extremely busy but I was able to find a parking spot for Poppop pretty close. It was really cool to see. We were not able to go up the tickets were sold out till 430pm, 3 hours later. So we walked around outside and then left. We then went to the World's Largest Bottle of Catsup. After that we checked into our hotel. A Holiday Inn Express in Troy Illinois. We went to 4pm Church service at St. Jerome's Catholic Church. It was storming pretty good the entire mass. After Mass we went to Pizza Hut for dinner and another storm blew in. It was a pretty nasty storm. After the storm Poppop bought the kids all ice cream at the hotel and they sat eating it watching the storm out our window!
Today we left Amarillo Texas and headed east and north! Our first stop was Phillips 66 on the Route. It was on historic Route 66 in a town called McLean. It was cool seeing. It is the first gas station ever in Texas! After that we crossed into Oklahoma. Our first stop was Roger King of the road Miller Museum. Thirty one years ago I was introduced to his singing on the cassette tape as we drove cross country out west! You Can't Roller Skate in a Buffalo Herd became a regular part of our singing! So of course I needed to check this out. Unfortunately it is permanently closed (my dad said he is buying it and moving there). It was a little one block town called Erick OK. After that we headed to Pops Soda Ranch. My dad and I were both expecting an old 50's style diner with the old fashioned fountain drinks. It has a lot of soda to choose from but it is all bottles. The food was just okay. I wouldn't have to go back. Right down the street is the Old Round Barn also on Historic Route 66. So we got to see that as well. We then headed to Tulsa Ok there we saw The World's Largest Praying Hands. It is on the Oral Roberts College campus. It was cool to see. We didn't get out as there wasn't anywhere close to park. After that we saw the Golden Driller.
Info on the Golden Driller: At one time, Tulsa, Oklahoma sat atop the world's largest-known ocean of oil. Drilling derricks were everywhere, even on the lawn of the state capitol. The city called itself "Oil Capital of the World."But Tulsa did not build Tulsa's giant oil man. It was built by an oilfield supply company out of Texas, which set him up in 1953 for a trade show at the Tulsa State Fairgrounds. Dubbed "The Golden Driller," the giant roustabout resembled an oversized brass statuette, with a broad grin, a tin helmet tipped back at a rakish skew, and a gloved right hand raised in a kind of limp-wristed OK sign. The statue proved so popular that the Texas company returned six years later with a second temporary giant. A third giant, tallest of all at 76 feet, took up permanent residence at the Fairgrounds on April 8, 1966. This version still stands today. He's very different from the original Golden Driller, with a slender waist, muscles ripped on a bare chest, mustard-colored rather than gold, and a face that's a chiseled mask of Teutonic invincibility. He was designed by George S. "Grecco" Hondronastas (1893-1979), a Greek immigrant to Tulsa who viewed the Driller as his greatest artistic accomplishment. By 1979 the Texas supply company had abandoned the Golden Driller, which had suffered from years of neglect (and bullet holes). The city of Tulsa adopted the statue, repaired it, and put "Tulsa" on the giant's belt buckle. With that, the statue was declared Oklahoma's official state monument. It was not a universally popular decision. Many Oklahomans at the time viewed the Golden Driller as an artistic eyesore. Some wanted his bare chest covered with a shirt, an idea that was quickly shot down by the protests of angry oilfield workers. he Golden Driller is still the tallest free-standing statue in the U.S. He's so high that he rests his gloved right hand on a real Oklahoma oil derrick. Built of steel and concrete, he weighs nearly 22 tons and is expected to survive 200 mph tornadoes. The plaque at his base dedicates him "to the men of the petroleum industry who by their vision and daring have created from God's abundance a better life for mankind." There isn't much room between the Golden Driller and the parking lot, which means that visitors have to stand near his big boots, enjoying a heads-up view that is both steep and startling. Occasionally someone in Tulsa will suggest that the big man be moved deeper into the Fairgrounds (now called "Expo Square"), where his naked chest and manly pants might be less visible. "I don't foresee that happening," said Sara Thompson, marketing supervisor for Expo Square. "He's really big and very heavy." As for altering the Golden Driller -- which some say has happened in the past to make him less virile -- Sara said that to her knowledge that had never occurred, and never will. "We're very sensitive about keeping his image static." To show how much Tulsa now loves its mega-roughneck, in 2011 it gave the Golden Driller a thorough inspection (which found him to be in excellent shape), and coated him with a new layer of state-of-the-art mustard paint, which its suppliers said will last 100 years. We also only drove by because we couldn't get into the parking lot. It was mobbed. Traffic was crazy. Speaking of traffic. People in Oklahoma CAN NOT DRIVE. They do not use turn signals, they weave in and out of traffic, they cut you off, they drive WAY above the speed limits. I will never come back to Oklahoma I AM NOT IMPRESSED! Okay after my rant back to our day. Next we went to the Blue Whale of Catoosa! “The Blue Whale was built by Hugh S. Davis, Boy Scout, photographer, zoologist, lecturer, father of two, grandfather of four, great-grandfather of nine and friend of many. Hugh believed that every day was a beautiful day, that people should use the talents God gave them, that one should keep busy by thinking, planning and creating, that people should love what they do and do what they love, that you should always finish what you start and that you should enjoy life and live it to its fullest. The pond on the Davis property was always a fun place. Before the whale was built, the kids who were friends of the Davises’ son Blaine and daughter Dee Dee swam, canoed in dug-out African canoes, played King-of-the-Hill by throwing each other off the large floating rafts and fished for perch and bass. They picnicked in the summer and skated on the ice in winter. Then Hugh’s children grew up and the pond was quiet … but not for long. When Blaine had sons John and Paul, their favorite place was “across the road” building and exploring with their Papa. Hugh always had a “project” in the making … whether it was building furniture, creating an alligator ranch or constructing an ark, he was always busy. After his retirement from the Tulsa Zoo, he devoted all of his time to developing facilities to educate people about nature. First he build the ark with its cute cut-out wooden animals smiling at the kids who celebrated birthdays there, then the Alligator Ranch and Nature’s Acres with its live alligators, snake pit and prairie dog village. In the late 1960’s at the age of 60, Hugh began to doodle pictures of a “fish” that he wanted to build at the pond. From that fish evolved a whale – larger and larger he grew from sketches on napkins to drawings on oversized sheets of paper. He left notes about the materials he used to build the Blue Whale:
In July 1972, the unpainted whale began attracting people who wanted to fling themselves off his tail, slide down his water-coated fins and poke their heads out the holes in the whale’s head. So began what became one of the best loved icons on Route 66. From 11:00 a.m. until dark every day (except Monday or when it rained) people swam, picnicked and fished. Blessings were showered upon the Davises during the time the Blue Whale was in operation. No one was ever seriously injured, no one ever sued and no one was ever bitten by a snake. It was a good time. It was a good place. Because of Hugh’s crippling arthritis, the Blue Whale was closed in 1988. Hugh died January 11th, 1990, and his wife, Zelta, to whom he had given the whale as an anniversary gift, passed away August 1, 2001. The Blue Whale is now owned by Dee Dee (Davis) Belt and her husband, Dick. Blaine and his sons, John and Paul, keep the grounds maintained and the gates open so people can continue to enjoy the Blue Whale. Restoration of the Blue Whale has been an ongoing effort. In 1997 the Catoosa Chamber of Commerce refurbished the fading landmark. Governor Frank Keeting himself painted the pupil of the Blue Whale’s eye. Volunteers, private companies, family members and the Hampton Inns have pledged time, money, and energy to maintain the site.” After we left the Blue Whale we headed to our hotel a Holiday Inn Express in Claremore Oklahoma. We got here around 5pm and ate our yogurt and fruit and some snacks from breakfast this morning! One of the perks of free breakfast in hotels is being able to take stuff we can use later on in the day as another meal!!! Johanna We left Carlsbad and headed for Roswell New Mexico. We started out by touring Walker Air Force Base Museum and the area that use to be the base. Poppop was very excited to be back and to tell the kids all about his 3 years here. Things have changed a lot since he was stationed here but some stuff is still there. We drove through Roswell seeing Aliens everywhere and we stopped at the UFO McD's! We found the park that 31 years ago I remembered being at and running around in with Larry. It is fixed up and had fountains and water now.
After leaving Roswell we drove through New Mexico and into Texas. We found the area on Route 60 I remember driving down 31 years ago. The cows waiting to be slaughtered standing on their poop. The smell was just as bad. The kids got to experience what I experienced many years ago! We arrived in Amarillo Texas and found a cowboy statue on our way to the Cadillac Ranch. At the Cadillac Ranch the kids spray painted the cars that are standing in the dirt. We then went and saw the second cowboy statue. The Second Amendment Cowboy and he is with 3 nice Cadillacs. We then headed to our hotel. It is a Comfort Suites tonight. The room is very large. We were tired of eating out so we just got frozen dinners and made them in our hotel room. Johanna Okay so yesterday I said we were officially headed East and home but I was wrong we went South more today! We saw Mexico! We were all the way down in El Paso Texas on our way to the Guadalupe Mountains National Park. We stopped in El Paso because we needed gas and saw a 7 11. Today was free slurpee day but you couldn't get one till 11am the very nice worker let the kids get one since he said we wouldn't see another one where we were headed! On the way to the national park we were stopped by border control and drug sniffing dogs. We were all asked if we were United States Citizens. The kids were a little unsure of this! We went to the Guadalupe Mountains National Park and Kit Kat earned another Junior Ranger Badge. We then drove to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. I was slightly hesitant going down 75 stories UNDERGROUND on an elevator but I did it! I am so thankful I did WOW words can not describe what we saw and the picture do not do it justice. If you are ever in this area GO. You will not be disappointed. Kit Kat earned another Junior Ranger Badge (I am almost positive she is at 20 for the trip with 2 we need to mail back because she was not able to finish them at the parks). We headed to our hotel around 230 and arrived around 345. I did two loads of laundry so we will now have enough clothes to make it to the end of the trip. Kit Kat and JMan went swimming while I was doing the wash. We ate dinner and McAllisters Diner and then came back and are having an early night at the hotel. I think we lose another hour tomorrow and enter Central time at some point. I also think Poppop will be up and excited to leave in the morning as we are headed to Roswell New Mexico! This is where he served in the air force for 3.5 years. He loved it there! The kids are excited to see it and the aliens!
Johanna It's just Poppop, the kids and I now. Everyone else is heading back to NC. We left our hotel and headed to the Petrified Forest. It was really cool. The painted forest was neat and seeing Petroglyphs was cool! We also saw lots of petrified wood and felt it. Kit Kat earned another Junior Ranger Badge! We then headed to White Sands National Park. They way there was all one and highway with no traffic a lot of the way! We hit lots of rain storms today with some really cool lightning. White Sands was so fascinating. Sand in the middle of the US. The kids had a great time running up and down the sand dunes. Unfortunately it was raining. Kit Kat earned another Junior Ranger Badge here I believe this makes 20 for the trip so far! We got to hotel and ate PB and J and rice and other stuff from the car for dinner. It was a really fun day!
|
Authors
Kreibick, Schmitt, & Archives |