It’s only been two years since we traveled that area but we saw a few changes. Corn was one change. There is a lot more corn being raised and I’m assuming that is from the increased production of ethanol. I didn’t see as many cattle grazing or feed lots as I normally see. Are we eating less burgers? The most dramatic change was the introduction of “wind farming”.

This one in Utah was the most spectacular with the mountains in the background. Whole fields are now “planted” with these gigantic windmills. The machines convert the wind into electricity. They are approximately 300 feet tall with just three propellers. They are quite fascinating to watch. I did a little research because I was curious as to how they work. Here’s a simple diagram.

The wind farms are not without controversy. Many see them as an eyesore. They have also had a negative impact on the wild bird population. For me, they were a lot of fun to watch. They are so graceful. I’d rather watch the wind machines than an ugly power plant. Somehow it seemed poetic to see that we are capturing the wind and making it work for us in this new way.

Join me next Sunday for another look at one of our Favorite Places.

Favorite Places

I think we all admire the beautiful and historic cathedrals around the world. I also like to find the village churches. There is something about them, maybe just the fact that they are still being used. Here are three I want to share. The first two are in the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska. This one is in the little fishing village of Ninilichik. It’s on a hill overlooking the sea.

There is still remnants of the Russian presence in Alaska, especially in their Russian Orthadox churches. Here’s another one in the little town of Kenai. The architecture is similar and I wish I knew more about it. Little picket fences around the churches seems to be a tradition.

The next church is in the little village of Bodega, California. It’s about two miles from the beautiful Bodega Bay. Does it look familiar?

If you are an Alfred Hitchcock movie fan, you’ll know this one as the “Psycho Church”. The little village of Bodega is very small. Besides the church, there are less than ten business buildings and about that many homes. But on the weekends it is street fair time. You will find outdoor sales of art and various crafts and, of course, food. Lots of motorcycles are also parked along the streets. Services are still held on Sunday morning in the church. Occasionally tourists like us pull up and take pictures of this classic building.

I hope you’ll join me next Sunday for more Favorite Places. If you’d like to join in, post one of your Favorite Places on your website and come back and leave a comment with a link. Feel free to take the button.

There is only one road in the park and it is limited. Private vehicles are allowed only on the first 15 miles. The picture above is what you see at the 15 mile area. It was great for animal watching so we drove out here every day.

If you want to go past that point, you have to ride one of the limited buses. It’s best to have reservations. The goal is to protect the animals and the vegetation from human encroachment.

Twice we were able to ride one of the buses. One day we went out about 45 miles. Another day we rode to the end of the road – 91 miles to a small village, Kantishna. If you look carefully in the above picture you can see that one lonesome gravel road.

Denali National Park is home to Mount Denali (formerly Mount McKinley). Only once were we able to see the mountain and that was a very brief look. The guide told us we were lucky as in the summer it is only visible about 20% of the time. There are plenty of other mountains around however, to satisfy those who have to have their mountain fix – me. For mountains and vast open places, Denali is definitely one of our Favorite Places.

If you would like to join us in this weekly feature, please do. Post a picture on your blog, go to the comment section here and leave your link. Visit others who share their Favorite Places. Feel free to borrow the button.

This week’s Favorite Place is: 

Apple Orchards in Northern California

Most people don’t think of California when they think of growing apples. If asked, most people will tell me Washington State. But here I am driving the back roads in Northern California and I see apple orchards. What’s the story?

 It turns out that Sonoma County (about an hour north of San Francisco) used to be covered with acres of Gravenstein apple trees. Back in the 1950′s we visited a great aunt and uncle on their apple farm in this area. I remember those Gravenstein apples. They were very juicy with a slight tart taste. I recall canning jars of applesauce that we brought home with us. Gravensteins are also good for pies and cider.

Gravenstein apples are wonderful but  there is a problem – they don’t keep well. They ripen here in July and August but must be used in season. As a consequence, today there aren’t very many commercial orchards left like the one picture above. Sadly, there are abandoned orchards like the one below.

What has moved in to replaced the Gravenstein orchards? Vineyards – miles and miles of grape vines that crawl up and over the hills. This is Wine Country, although not as sophisticated as the neighboring county of Napa. The town of Sebastopol is the heart of Sonoma County and it still holds an Apple Festival every year to celebrate this special apple. That’s a good thing so if you are going to be in Northern California during July/August, keep this in mind. It’s a beautiful rural area with both orchards and vineyards. It’s one of our Favorite Places.

*If you would like to join us in this weekly feature, please do. Post a picture on your blog, go to the comment section here and leave your link. Visit others who share their Favorite Places. Feel free to borrow the button.

The purpose of this weekly feature is to share some of the places we’ve been. They are places that stay with us for one reason or another. This week we are focusing on Yellowstone Lake.

Almost everyone thinks of Old Faithful when they think of Yellowstone National Park. I’m not one of them. Old Faithful has become a side-show attraction with thousands of people gathered around for the regular eruption. Thousands of people seeing the eruption through their camera lens is not my idea of spending time with the wonders of nature at Yellowstone.

My favorite place at Yellowstone is the lake. Most of this is nostalgia for the old days. At Yellowstone Lake there used to be a fantastic campground called Fishing Bridge. Nearby people could actually fish at Fishing Bridge. My favorite memory here involves my  brother Brian and I, some Cracker Jacks stuffed down in our sleeping bags and a bear.

We had our sleeping bags outside the tent and had planned to eat the Cracker Jacks after everyone else went to bed. We forgot, and at some point a bear came wandering through our campsite. We thought he wanted the Cracker Jack so we threw them at him. This scared him and he ran off. It was very exciting to us and we had a bear paw on one of our sleeping bags as a souvenir. We were lucky, but then back in the 1950′s the bears were more afraid of people than they are today.

Now the campground is gone and fishing is not permitted on the Fishing Bridge. But the lake is still there and still as beautiful as ever. Fishing for cutthroat trout is very good here. They allow some restricted boating as well. There are plenty of places to simply sit by the lake and read or have a picnic lunch. It’s still a favorite place of mine.

It’s that time of year when many people start thinking about lakes. What’s your favorite lake – today or in the past?

**If you’d like to join us in this weekly feature, please do. Post a picture on your blog, go to the comment section here and leave your link. Visit others who share their Favorite Places. Feel free to ‘borrow’ the button.

The purpose of this weekly feature is to share some of the places we’ve been. They are places that stay with us for one reason or another. Our Favorite Place this week: Mount Rainier

I’ve mentioned quite a few times now that I have a real thing for mountains. This is one to send anyone over the top. Mount Rainier can be seen for miles and miles. The closer you get to the mountain, the more impressive it is.

Where is this mountain, you ask? It is east of Seattle in Washington state. It’s approximately 60 miles away. It makes a nice day trip but better yet is a stay of several days or a week or two.

What can you do in Mount Rainier? Besides just the incredible mountain gazing, this is a great place for all sorts of outdoor activities. Hiking is possible on the Wonderland Trail. That is a 93 mile trail that circles the mountain and crosses old growth forests and subalpine meadows with beautiful wildflowers. 

No, we did not hike that trail but I do have some pictures of some of their wildflowers. We saw a section of an alpine meadow that had been severely over-used. The area is strictly off-limits except from a distance. It was interesting to see how the plants, grasses and flowers are very slowly coming back to life. 

Mount Rainier is a great place to camp with tents or small RVs. Our RV is too big (36 feet long) for any of their campgrounds but Mount Rainier is surrounded by numerous forests managed by the National Forest Service. We stayed at one of their campgrounds, Iron Creek. 

If you are on a quest to see the National Parks, put Mount Rainier on that list. The scenic drives, the hiking, the interesting geology makes this park spectacular. I like it for the mountain air.

If you would like to join us in this weekly feature, please do. Post a picture on your blog, go to the comment section here and leave your link. Visit others who share their Favorite Places. Feel free to ‘borrow’ the button.

This week’s Favorite Place** is The Grand Canyon.

This is a place I’ve been to so many times, both as a child and as an adult.  For me it never changes. Seeing this place makes my mouth drop open. It’s that awesome. Here’s a picture we took on our last trip to the canyon.

 Almost every part of the canyon is protected by the National Park Service. I’ve seen a few changes since I was a child. The main change is that now the edge of the south rim has been cordoned off with railings. I can remember my mom being in a panic. She was sure each of her children would fall over the edge.

The last time I was here I sat on one of the benches for awhile and marveled at the various languages all around me. The park is a draw for people from all over the world.   For a person with more ‘ummph’ than me, there are great hikes or burro rides to the bottom of the canyon.

Also, for a different, quieter view or the canyon, go around to the North Rim. It’s a beautiful drive with much less traffic. You won’t find the usual tourist attractions there. There is a short hike out from the peak that gives a spectacular view of the canyon. But, if you can, leave the nervous moms back on the south side.

This is one of those sites that, really, every American should see at least once. Located in northwestern Arizona, there are other things to do and see in the area. Maybe this year will be your chance to see it.

**The purpose of this weekly feature is to share some of the places we’ve been. They are places that stay with us for one reason or another. Join us. Post a picture on your blog, go to the comment section here and leave your link. Visit others who share their Favorite Places. Feel free to borrow the button.

According to one of the rangers on a special hike, fireweed is the first flower that will grow back. We saw lots of that plus a few others. It was so nice to see flowers blooming in the middle of the decay and standing tombstones. 

We stayed in the nicest old-time campground called Iron Creek. They have wide campsites surrounded by huge old trees, but no hookups. It is about five miles south of Randall, Washington. From the campground Mount St. Helens is about 15 to 20 miles. Visiting Mount St. Helens was a good reminder of how Mother Nature operates. There is the devastation but it’s followed by signs of hope. I thought these reminders were appropriate ones for Easter. 

The purpose of this weekly feature is to share some of the places we’ve been. They are places that stay with us for one reason or another. If you would like to join us, post a picture on your blog, go to the comment section here and leave your link. Visit others who share their Favorite Places. Feel free to borrow the button.

The purpose of this weekly feature is to share some of the places we’ve been. They are places that stay with us for one reason or another. Join us. Post a picture on your blog, go to the comment section here and leave your link. Visit others who share their Favorite Places. Feel free to borrow the button.

It was so strange. It looked like a movie scene from a post-nuclear era story. And – this was 27 years after the eruption. We’ve seen the aftermath of horrific tornadoes and major fires. But this was worse than any disaster we’ve seen. It was death for miles is all direction.

The good news is we were able to see the start on the reforestation program. Join us next Sunday when I’ll show you a couple of those pictures. Until then, keep looking for those Favorite Places.