We Made It!

Success. We made it to Seattle. And our first reaction- rain, what rain? It’s 70 degrees and sunny. Feels like the Bay Area.  No complaints so far. (Okay, knock on wood. I’m sure those comments are going to come back to haunt us.)

Now on to the mission of finding a home. We’ve spent the first two days scouring around the area trying to get a feel for the neighborhoods- checking out restaurants, parks, commutes, etc.  I think we are narrowing things down to a couple of places, which seems to agree with our initial thoughts based on our early research- Greenlake and Queen Anne seem to fit us well, while Magnolia and West Seattle are maybes. We took a look at the eastern towns: Bellevue, Redmond, and Kirkland.  Eh. Too much traffic, too little culture. We hoping to line something up by this weekend.

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Final Approach

Day 10. Over 3500 miles traveled. Getting tired. We’re on final approach into Seattle and its coming at just about the right time. We either need to take about 3 days off to stay in one place, or be done.  And with only 280 miles to go, being done looks good.

Today was mostly a driving day. We traversed the final stages of the Rocky Mountains and crossed the Continental Divide, which is always a big moment. Everyone in the car was asleep (except Jadon) when we did.   We got into Spokane, which was our goal, at about 4 (with the time change) and played around at the Riverfront Park downtown.  When researching the things to do online today, the two big options were either an indoor water park in Coeur d’Alene or the Riverfront Park here.  The weather forecast was great, so we opted for some outdoor fun. The park has a 100 year old ferris wheel, carousel, kiddie airplane rides, roller coaster, bumper cars and all kinds of other fun stuff. It seemed like a good idea.

Bad planning. Had we checked the calendar, which we did not, we might have noticed that all the fun stuff sans the carousel were closed. Cest la vie. We walked around, took a ride on the carousel, played in the park and checked out the falls from the bridge. The cool Radio Flyer slide was open and a hit with Jack. Jude didn’t want any part of it. Too much slide for him.

We finished off with some swimming at the hotel pool, which has become uncomfortably routine for the boys.  This may be a hard habit to break when reality comes crashing back in a few days.

We’ve had a lot of fun on the trip. We’re looking forward to arriving in Seattle and the end. We need some rest from this “vacation.”

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Survival

On every journey, there is danger and risk. Today was a series of near death experiences, all of which we found our way out of successfully.

We woke up in the morning at the “Bates Motel” still alive, a feat in itself, and then set out up the Bighorn Mountains. Though it is mid-May, it is still the dead of winter through the high mountain passes. We had to divert from our intended track due to road closures   We seemed to be the only car on the road for extended periods, and were thankful not to have any car trouble, because we were really not prepared for that weather.  But we made it through alive, descended the mountain and emerged to cross the Wyoming plains.

Next up was entering Yellowstone itself, which also was experiencing a bout of winter. It was on again, off again whether or not we’d be able to get in to the park at all. The big spring storm that had been hitting the region for the past week had let up, but there were snow tire requirements in the park and only some roads were open at all.  The East Entrance, or direction of entry, was only just opened Friday, and in jeopardy of closure due to snow conditions.  But as fortune would have it, we were able to pass.  Interestingly, we made it through a little before 1 o’clock.  Sometime around 2, they ended up closing the East Entrance due to an avalanche on that snow-laden pass heading in to the park. A near miss, but again, a survival story.

Once in the park, it was better, but no picnic. Our first challenge was a run in with an angry bison who refused to let any cars pass on the road. We entered into a test of wills, and surprisingly won, as we were able to continue on to our destination of the famous Old Faithful geyser.

Old Faithful erupted on schedule, if not perhaps a few minutes late, and was enjoyed by all.  For those that aren’t aware, Yellowstone is actually a 60 mile wide caldera of a still active volcano.  All of the geothermal activity that occurs there is due to the near proximity of hot, molten earth near beneath our feet. So, you can see, even entering the park, watching the geysers erupt, and making it out alive is yet another show of our fortunate day of staying alive through the many challenges thrown at us. Granted, it hasn’t erupted in 60,000 years, but we all know its coming sooner or later (2012).

We also visited the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and saw the falls there.  The trails were snowy and iced, so we couldn’t hike too far down and viewed the canyon and falls from the rim trail. It was very slippery, and we got really close to the edge, but nobody fell off.  Survival.

After a long, exhausting day we left the park and headed towards our hotel for the night. Jack was pretty clear in his request for a Hotel (H) not a Motel (M) like we had last night. He seems to have connected the cheapness of a Motel with less than par rooms and no pool- a cardinal sin in his view of temporary accommodations. Anyway, on the road out of Yellowstone we had a beautiful twilight drive into Montana.  Twilight around Yellowstone is dinner time for all the bison, elk, bighorn sheep and deer- and we saw plenty of them on our drive.  Of course, on two separate occasions, the deer and elk decided to play chicken with us as we were driving, forcing us to take evasive driving maneuvers to narrowly avoid the proverbial deer in the headlights experience.

But of course, we survived.

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Dinos, and Presidents, and Bears- Oh My!

Big improvement over yesterday. Today was packed with a littany of activities that ranged from cheesy to impressive. The cheesy part was the Dinosaur Park in Rapid City. Of course, we had to go, but they were definitely old school, vintage, cheesy dinosaur statues.

We began the day with about an hour more of the water park at the hotel. What a deal- one nights rent got us two beds and two trips to the water park. I don’t know why more hotels don’t do this outside of the Midwest. Jack must have ran up the stairs and slide down the big waterslide about 30 times. It resulted in a very nice nap while we made our way to Devil’s Tower later in the afternoon (see below). Jude is not quite into the slides and adrenaline in general. He only likes to go on the little pirate ship slides- and only on Daddy’s lap.

After the water park and the dinosaur park came Bear Country USA. Now this was Jude’s favorite. He’s always been an animal guy, loving every trip to the zoo, but this was even better. It is a drive-thru animal encounter with elk, mountain sheep, bison, cougars, and about a hundred black bears all roaming around. The bears were the namesake and certainly the highlight. The were within feet of the car as we slowly cruised around the reserve. There was even a pack of them pacing at the exit not allowing us to leave for a while (they just wanted out themselves). Ang was getting a bit frightened. But we made it out alive. It was quite and adventurous car-bound safari.

Next up was Mount Rushmore. This was the most impressive part of the day. Definitely a man-made marvel. Very cool. We even learned something new- the four chosen men represent the Birth (Washington), Growth (Jefferson), Preservation (Lincoln), and Development (Roosevelt) of our nation. Nice work gentlemen. See, now it all makes perfect sense.  It is truly something impressive to behold, and behold it we did. The hiking trail was closed due to icy paths and some construction, but we wouldn’t have been able to hike all the way with the boys anyway.

We left Rushmore and drove through the Black Hills and Custer State Park on the Needles Highway. We passed through a very tight tunnel through the rocks, which the boys (and grown-ups) thought was pretty cool.

Eventually we found our way into Wyoming and up to Devil’s Tower. We hiked around the base and did a little rock climbing with the boys. Jack wanted to climb the tower itself, Jude was game for stepping onto a rock or two.

After that we hit the road to try and get at least half way to Yellowstone so we can get there relatively early tomorrow. We had planned on stopping in Sheridan. But when we got there, we found out the town was booked solid with some soccer tournament. The whole town. Soccer. Really? So, we pressed on to find accommodations elsewhere.

Beyond Sheridan the pickings quickly became slim. We ended up at some small local place called the Bates Motel, or something like that. It’s pretty creepy and seems oddly familiar, but I can’t quite place it. I’m really not too sure about the strange lady working the counter. And Angela is freaked out by the buzzing neon sign out front. The accommodations are pretty austere. But, at least there is a very nice shower.

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Watching Paint Dry

Today was long. Not to be a downer, but it was probably the worst day of the trip so far. It rained. It snowed. Yes, it snowed. Breakfast wasn’t very good. We couldn’t find a restaurant for lunch for over an hour and got really hungry. We cracked our windshield. It was cold. We almost ran out of gas.

(Visit Wall Drug)

Technically, it started off pretty good. We went to the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center in the morning and the boys had fun stamping their books at all the exhibits. Then we got in the car and it all went downhill.

(Wall Drug- Books)

Basically, to sum it up, today we drove across South Dakota, end to end. The title of this post isn’t meant to be an indictment of the aesthetic beauty of the state, really it is more an analogy for the big event of the day- a rock to the windshield.

(Kids Love Wall Drug)

Shortly after entering the state we took a solid strike to the lower driver side of the windshield.  Then, for the next six hours we watched the ding develop into a crack, and the crack grow and grow across the window.

(Wall Drug – Free Coffee and Donuts for Honeymooners)

We called the insurance company to get it fixed ASAP, but since we were in South Dakota, the nearest authorized repair facility was all the way on the far side of the state. So, we got to watch that bugger grow, and grow, and grow.

(Wall Drug – $.05 Coffee)

They said we could repair it if it was 6 inches or less. The drama built as we watched it get longer and longer every few miles…would they be able to repair it, or would it require a full replacement?

(Wall Drug – Exit 110)

The analogy? Watching the crack grow was really what we did all day. It was kind of like watching paint dry.  It wasn’t exciting, but it kept the trip interesting and suspenseful watching to see how long it would ultimately get.

(Wall Drug- Free Ice Water)

For those who have been through South Dakota on I-90 before, you know that no matter where you are going or what you are doing, one thing tends to haunt you… Wall Drug.  Wall Drug is a huge conglomerate of a drug store, tourist trap, restaurant, retailer, etc all in Wall, SD just west of the Badlands National Park. It really doesn’t seem to have much to offer, but boy do they like to advertise.

(Wall Drug- Fresh Breakfast Rolls)

Along I-90, there are hundreds of cheaply constructed, homemade signs for the establishment persuading the beleaguered traveler to stop and drop off some cash. (For you uninitiated East Coasters, think South of the Border, done Midwest style.)

(Wall Drug- Boots)

Of course, we stopped. We picked up some salt-water taffy and post cards before saddling back up and making our way to Rapid City, where we found our new favorite thing.

(Wall Drug- 10 miles)

Yesterday we commented about our appreciation for the inventor of the hotel pool.  Today, we’ve met his daddy. The hotel water park.

(Wall Drug or Bust)

It’s one thing to have a nice pool at a tropical resort, but why not stick a few waterslides and a pirate ship in the middle of a big warehouse building in Rapid City, South Dakota?

(Wall Drug – Dinosaur!)

That’s just fun for the whole family, and an instant sleep potion for the kids upon returning to the hotel room.
Thank you, Mr. Hotel Water-Park Inventor. (For full effect try to imagine that sentence set to the Bud Light “Real Men of Genius” commercial riff.)

(Wall Drug- Just Ahead)

We’re looking forward to a great day in the Black Hills tomorrow, assuming we can convince the boys to check out of water park heaven.  And as for the crack? It was at least 7 or 8  inches by the time we arrived in Rapid City. They ended up fixing it anyway, even though it was “a little longer than we normally repair.”  You can still see the crack. Hopefully it holds.

(Wall Drug- Last Chance, Exit 108 and turn back)

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Lewis and Clark Trail

Today was a mileage day. We knocked off about 500 miles crossing Missouri and Iowa along the Lewis and Clark Trail (i.e. following the Missouri River). The boys have been pretty great in the car as long as they get their “fun kid stuff” fix every day at some point.

After driving all morning across Missouri, we stopped in Kansas City at Oklahoma Joe’s BBQ for lunch. Anthony Bordain says it is the best BBQ in KC and therefore the best in the world. The lunch line was out the door. It was certainly good and had to be done (Jadon was talking about KC BBQ for about 300 miles). Jadon had a Z-Man sandwich which was a specialty and Ang had some BBQ Chicken. Neither of us had a rack of ribs or brisket, etc, so I don’t know if we can judge it on pure BBQ status.  Though it was good, I’m not sure I’d include it on my list of 13 restaurants to eat at before you die (as Bordain did). It was certainly a unique location for such a heralded restaurant…it shared its facilities with a gas station and quik-e mart. Eclectic, I suppose.

After lunch we played at Penguin Park, which we discovered in an online search for good play areas. Google maps let us down and initially led us astray to the wrong location. After figuring out the error and finding the right spot we ended up playing and burning some energy for a couple hours.  We enjoyed it, but couldn’t figure out why they called it Penguin Park…

We’ve decided to send a little shout-out to whoever it was that first decided to put a swimming pool in hotels. Wow are those things great when travelling with kids!  It has been great to let the boys swim and burn energy every night and some mornings after we get to the hotels. The one we are staying at tonight is the best so far… lots and lots of pool toys!  Mom and Dad enjoy the hot tub.

Lastly, its snowing in Yellowstone right now and has been for about a week. Is that normal? Snow in May? The temp is currently 5 degrees there tonight. That’s just silly. We’re all a little pink from all the sun we’ve been getting. It was 91 on Sunday in Philadelphia. I know its a big country and all, but really- below freezing and snow in May? We didn’t pack any of our winter clothes.

Oh yeah, and there are tornado warnings in Kansas and Nebraska tonight. Not right here where we are staying (at least I don’t think so), but I’m just saying…tornados!  I’m glad we drove as far north as we did today, since most of the warnings seem further south.

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Westward Ho

Today we crossed Ole Man River and officially made it to the West and have left the East behind us for now.

We started the day with a trip to the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory (thanks for the tip Troy) which turned out to be pretty fun. As Jack put it, it was a history museum, but still had fun stuff for kids to play with (i.e. batting cages).  It was pretty cool to watch the bats being made on the lathes.  Jadon got reprimanded for taking a picture on the factory floor. The are very Top Secret about their work behind the scenes- corporate espionage and all.  But really, they are baseball bats… can there be that much innovation?  Who knew?

After a morning at the museum, we drove across Indiana and Illinois to eventually arrive in St. Louis. Once here, we visited the Gateway Arch and rode the tram (i.e. claustrophobia pod) up 630 feet to the top of the arch and were treated to some very impressive views of the river and city.

For Cinco de Mayo (Cinq du Mai?) in St. Louis we went to a local Mexican restaurant, Casa Gallardo, and had some tasty margaritas and la comida. Jude almost choked to death on the tortilla chips, but other than that it was a good time.

We finished up the great day with some pool time and are looking forward to the adventures tomorrow brings.

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Round on the ends and HI in the middle

Today we crossed Ohio and spent a good portion of the day exploring at COSI, the Parents Magazine number one science center in the country.  The boys had a great time exploring, learning, and playing.  There were lots of things to do and learn: space, gadgets, “grossology” (why your body produces mushy, oozy, crusty, scaly and stinky gunk), and others.  But I think the clear favorite of both boys was the organ that played various bodily noises for it’s notes- talk about loads of giggling. They are definitely boys with the snails, puppy dog tails and such.

We also got to spend some quality time with Grandma Corinne before heading south towards Louisville.  We had devised a plan to catch a baseball game at the Great American Ballpark- beer and dogs sounded like a perfect end to the day.  However, both boys decided to conk out right at  7 o’clock as we were approaching the stadium in Cincinnati for the 7:10 game time. Missing the naps this afternoon while going crazy at COSI may have cost us. Ang overruled the idea of leaving them in the car while the grown-ups went into the game anyway, so, we powered through another hour or so to Louisville for the evening.

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Out of the Gate

After three days underway, we haven’t made it very far. Tonight we lay our heads on pillows just south of Pittsburgh. Sunday we had a great time at Sesame Place outside of Philly. It was Jack’s fourth trip there and he finally got to go on ALL the rides, including the big kid waterslides, which was quite a personal achievement.

Monday we found our way to Luray Caverns in Virginia, which was a bit of a detour from the direct route, but worth it. The boys really enjoyed the subterranean hike. 160 feet underground!

We ran into our first traffic snafu today as the highway was CLOSED with a jackknifed big rig across all the lanes.  We took an impromptu detour through Deliverance country. We made it out alive. Westward Ho!

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Picking up the pace

Okay, so we haven’t used this blog in about a year. It seems that Facebook has become a more suitable medium for doing the things we are looking to do here most of the time.  But…. that being said, I think this is a bit of a better spot (more robust technological capabilites) to chronicle our cross country road trip.  Therefore, we’re going to give that a shot and see how it works.  You may notice the new Road Trip page tab at the top, that page has a nice map with position updates and such.  Keep tabs on updates, we’ll probably throw some journal updates here, too.