Heading West
I am sorry it has taken so long for the update. Internet has been sporadic and poor. 

We left Palo Duro and headed across the Texas Panhandle through the northeast corner of New Mexico. We stopped for the evening at Raton Pass, New Mexico just at the border to Colorado. The next day we headed on to Colorado Springs

Even though Colorado Springs is the state's second largest city with defense and high-tech as its major industries, it is still a tourist town, and a lot of stuff happens there and in its tourist-trap suburb, Manitou Springs. The towns are at the base of Pike's Peak and the Cog Railway to the mountaintop. 

Colorado Springs is home to the Air Force Academy, the world-famous Broadmoor Resort, a park of unique rock formations called Garden of the Gods, the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, the U.S. Olympic Training Center and a variety of museums. There is a lot to see and do there, and a lot of people come to see and do it.

Pikes's Peak Cog Railway
It is sort of a rite of passage. If you head west and go through Colorado, you are expected to go to the top of Pike's Peak, either by driving a twisty road or riding the Cog Railway. Well, there are also some adventurous (crazy?) types who actually hike to the peak. We spend plenty of time driving and we're certainly not going to walk, so the Cog Railway was our choice.

Since the mountain is steep, a normal train would not be able to gain traction. To overcome the problem of steep grades, railways designed for steep slopes use a "rack and cog" system with a third rail that is a toothed-rack and a large gear on the train - the cog. This provides a positive, non-slip, drive for steep grades.

The ride up Pike's Peak was great fun and was the first time I had ever been at an altitude that is above the treeline. Pike's Peak is 14,115 feet above sea level while good old Houston measures out at about 35-50 feet.

My only complaint is that you travel in the same seat going both up and down the mountain. That means you see the same views both ways. The good news is that the scenery is pretty much spectacular. 

The ride up Pike's Peak climbs some 8,000 feet and the temperature drops about 35 degrees over the course of the ride. Girls who get on the train with spaghetti-strap tops were wearing their guys' hoodies by the time we reached the summit. We were there only about 15 minutes when a thunderstorm with HAIL chased us all back to the train.

When we reached the top of the mountain we could really feel the altitude. They tell you to drink plenty of water and we did, but it does not fully prepare you for the thin air. Linda and I both felt a bit shaky and lightheaded when we left the train car and began walking around.

A highlight of the trip for me was seeing the bighorn sheep. Last year, in Alaska, it seemed as though the bear, the elk, the eagle, the everything, was just there yesterday. Well this time the sheep were there today! In fact, our tour guide told me he generally sees them only about once every 10 days. So this time luck was with me. 

Rather than trying to describe everything, I have put together a small gallery of photos.

Right here in the middle of a city of over 400,000 people is this neat public park with unique red sandstone formations jutting up from the ground. When you are in the park you really have no idea you are also in a city.

There are two main driving loops through the park along with a number of short hiking trails that allow you to get up close and personal with the rock formations. It is spectacular, and it is also busy. We actually drove through the park on two different days and thoroughly enjoyed both visits.

There is so much more to tell and so many more photos to show, but it will all have to wait until later. 

Every year I post a photo on our anniversary which occurs while we are on our annual road trip. This year our anniversary was also our departure day, and all I posted was a picture of our RV ready to go.

Now two weeks late (can you really be late when you’re retired?), here is our Official 49th Anniversary Portrait. It was taken for us by some very nice young lady at the Pike’s Peak Cog Railway.

So what could be better than to be heading into our 50th year with a ride to the summit of what is known as “America’s Mountain.”  

By the way, I haven’t become a biker in my old age, the hat is turned around because I was taking pictures. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.

The major difference (other than one is the canyon) is that you experience Palo Duro from down on the floor of the canyon looking up, while at the Grand Canyon you are up on the rim looking down. That, and lovely Texas summer temperatures that can reach over 100 degrees (102 for us) down in the canyon.

Palo Duro is known for the color of its rock layers, its caves, and its "hoodoos," interesting vertical rock formations sometimes known as fairy chimneys. Palo Duro's most famous hoodoo is Lighthouse Rock, but you will not see a picture of the Lighthouse here. It seems that to see Lighthouse Rock you must hike for 3 hours up the side of the canyon, and we are too old for that - especially in the summer heat. Be satisfied with the unnamed hoodoo in the picture to the right.

Along with the interesting rock formations and colors, we saw plenty of caves, and several different wildflowers. The wildlife we saw consisted of tarantulas, spiders, a few birds, and over 12 million grasshoppers. Below is a small gallery with some photos I thought you might enjoy.

Palo Duro is one of more than 50 Texas State Parks built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) during the 1930s. In fact, the CCC started the state park system in Texas. 

The CCC workers built things to last, and at Palo Duro, along with the Visitor's Center and the road to the canyon floor, there are still four CCC-built stone cabins available for reservation. One of these cabins is in the photo to the left.

One of the summer highlights at Palo Duro is the outdoor musical theater with its annual production of Texas!, an idealized version of the history of the Panhandle. The amphitheater's outdoor setting means the scenery is real - and beautiful. The show was lively and energetic and provided summer work for lots of theater majors. And the production doesn't miss a trick with special effects with everything live horses to lightning splitting trees. The night finished with dancing waters and fireworks. 

Palo Duro was an interesting stop, but if we go again someone needs to remind us not to do it in July. Now we are off to (a cooler, I hope) Colorado Springs to ride up Pike's Peak and do some other neat things.

Thanks for visiting, and, as always, we like to hear from you.

Most years on July 9 I am posting a photo of the Linda and I somewhere in some place like Meteor Crater in Northern Arizona or next to a giant can of Spam at the Spam Museum in Minnesota. It is always our anniversary photo.

This year - our 49th anniversary - we're not even in the picture.  What you see is our RV, Bam-Bam, and tow car. They're in front of the RV shed, ready to head out on our 2015 Road Trip to Yellowstone and other parts west. 

We expect to be on the road for a while; seeing all sorts of things, see the wonders of America. Of course we'll be back for football season and tutoring at the beginning of school.

Stay with us. We'll keep you posted along the way.

I just returned from the graduation party for one of my ex-students. After four years and a full high school experience, they remembered me - a middle school teacher - with an invitation to their graduation party. I felt honored.

Look at these kids. These are our future. I taught these students four and five years ago when they were in seventh and eighth grades. I taught them algebra and geometry. Now they have graduated high school and are on their way to college and then off to right the world's wrongs. 

They have some big plans, and they are on their way to some big, important universities. I won't even try to match careers and colleges with the students, but I will bore you with a few facts. The group in this photo includes Texas Science Bowl Champions, Texas Math League Champions, a National Geography Bee champion, perfect score SAT testers, perfect score AP testers, the valedictorian and salutatorian of the district's Math & Science Academy, and who knows what else.

Their colleges include Brown, Carnegie-Mellon, Colby, Columbia, Cornell, MIT, Northwestern, Princeton, Rice, Texas A&M, and the University of Texas. Those are some pretty heavy places to do your studies.

Their career plans include biological engineering, business, computer science, environmental science, mathematics, medicine, physics, engineering, and urban planning. These young folks are aiming high, very high.

Best of all, these were my kids. I was fortunate to teach them for two years. They were my favorite class from my twenty-some years of teaching. They were not only extremely bright, but they were inquisitive and involved in their learning. They were also fun, lots of fun. With them, I was in some kind of middle-school teaching nirvana. 

So here is where I wish them well. They are off to conquer the world, and the world will be better for them. I leave them with these words from the great Leonardo da Vinci:

“I have been impressed with the urgency of doing.
Knowing is not enough; we must apply.
Being willing is not enough; we must do.”