Starting from zero

Eighteen days is usually not long enough, but we will try to fit in a quick fall road trip to Colorado and Utah. This may sound like a lot of time, but we have to drive about 60 with the camper. I remembered to take a picture of the dash data center so I can demonstrate the time we spend on the road. 

Long days in the car are my favorite way to travel. There is plenty of time to watch the scenery flow by and think. We are heavy into tech so we are switching back and forth between two football games. Both North Dakota and Iowa State are losing. UND is playing #9 Washington so there was no hope for that. Iowa State is losing to Iowa so this game is more disappointing. Wait, I found gopher football. I think we have a winner. 

We also have plenty of cell data to burn so we can do pretty much whatever we want online. I am thinking we will watch Vikings football tomorrow. Of course, the driver will just have to listen. Maybe a glance now and then. 

There is not that much to see in Iowa and Nebraska so tomorrow will offer few photographic opportunities. Maybe a picturesque shot of a big cornfield against the setting sun or a picture of those giant wind turbines would be impressive. Yes, I may have said this to miff our many friends in Iowa and yes, we did spend most of our adult lives living in North Dakota with the exception of those funny hills in the west of the state is about as flat and uniform as it gets. I also have friends in Iowa who take some very nice photos so good photographers can find interesting shots anywhere. We will see.

Houghton Falls and some app recommendations

Today it rained, but we did a short hike. I survived because it was shorter than yesterday. I still don't like walking in slick conditions going downhill over tree roots. We never did find Houghton Falls, but we saw some interesting things along the way. The Falls may come and go with the season and I am guessing that the falls are not the reason people make the effort with this trail.

Along the way, I saw a couple of women examining and photographing a strange looking plant. They said the plant was quite rare and was called Indian Pipe or Ghost Flower. The totally white plant did have a pipe-like appearance so I also took a couple of pictures with my iPhone. 

I tend to explore apps I think may have educational value and I have been using several apps or services that make an effort to identify what appears in an image. I tried them on the strange flower I had photographed and both made successful identifications.

The first service is part of Google Photos and is called Google Lens. It is available to all at no cost.

The second app is called PlantSnap. I tried this app in Hawaii with mixed success, but it worked fine with the Ghost Flower. This flower has such a unique appearance that the identification services probably have an easy time finding a match,

The Ghost Flower has such a strange appearance because it lacks the chlorophyll that gives most plants their green color. This plant is parasitic and is able to get nutrients from other plants. 

Settle for pickled herring

Hanging out with younger folks can be a challenge. For today's activity, our group decided to hike to an overlook near the sea caves. You have probably seen the photos of kayakers exploring these caves or maybe the brave souls who walk out to the caves when the lake freezes in winter. We decided on a hike - a 4.6 mile "moderate" difficulty hike. I am not much of a hiker. I consider myself a city stroller and walk 1.3 miles or so to my coffee shop (and back) frequently. I have difficulty with hiking conditions - sharp downhills with steps are a particular problem - bad feet/ankles from too many years of basketball I claim as the cause for my problem. Moderate turned out to be more difficult than I could handle and rather than slowing the young folks down, Cindy, Kaia, and I turned around after a mile or so. I did make my 10,000 steps today. The good photos were at the end of the hike, but I am a purist and only post the images I take.

All I could come up with is this picture of pickled herring. I ordered this delicacy a few years ago and may have posted a similar picture, but I am a fan of pickled herring and I ordered this appetizer again today because I remembered how good it was. My feet may be in decline, but my memory is great. Same reaction to the delicacy this time. Last time we tried to find a place to purchase some to take with us, but could not find an outlet in Bayfield.

I recommend iBuprofen for sore feet.

Wisconsin - Up North

We haven't really spent much time travelling since Rome, but we had the opportunity this week to take a quick trip up north (about 100 miles north of our lake place) with the Tanners. We brought both of our campers - the rPod for Grandma and Grandpa and the popup for everyone else. We are in Washburn, WI, on the shore of Lake Superior. I think we are just south of the Apostle Islands.

We used to take more road trips in the summer, but that was when we had to travel this time of year. It is nice to avoid the busy travel season as much as we can. It is hot and typically very crowded especially if you like to camp. The Internet allows folks to book ahead of time in national parks and this makes it nearly impossible to just go when you want. Most parks have a 48-hour cancellation policy so there is little penalty for making a reservation just in case. The sites with hookups (electrical, water, and sewer) go first. I have reached the age at which I don't sleep on the ground anymore. Our location for the next few days has electrical and wifi (actually television too, but I can get by with just wifi) so we are in good shape for these short stays. 

This seems a great location. Washburn is very close and a nice tourist town. A couple of coffee shops, a great bakery (above), and some artists. It is a small community so things are not out of hand when it comes to tourism, but a very nice place. I assume every lakeshore community in this area is similar. Just right.

I have posted pictures of our rPod several times before, but I don't remember showing what the inside of the camper looks like. If you can imagine me sitting on a short queen bed taking this picture, you should have a sense of the size of our camper. We have a television/video system, shower/toilet (on the left), table/couch/second bed (on the right), and a kitchen area with fridge, microwave, two-burner stove and sink. This is a nice setup for two people. We looked at larger rigs, but wanted something we could pull with a four-wheel drive suv allowing us to unhook get around pretty much as if we were travelling by car. We pay $28 per night which seems reasonable. Did I mention we have WiFi?

Hot, (not) flat, and crowded

I apologize for the delay in posting any comments and photos from Rome. I ran into a problem uploading photos to this blog so I decided to wait until I reached home.

Rome was a challenging experience. I understand the interest that many have in the ancient. It is challenging to consider how life then would have been so different and yet so similar. Beyond having this insight into the passage of time and the realization that Europe has so much more history than North America, I did not have the reaction of others when confronting the history present in Rome. I think I am more appreciative of the information than the experience. The experience itself is hot, dirty, and extremely crowded. It is difficult for me to be reflective in this setting. The following image may give you a sense of what I mean by crowded - this is a photo of the Spanish Steps. What you see here is nothing in comparison to Vatican City (which we did spend time viewing) and the Colosseum which we did not enter. This would have required several hours standing in line.

I process my travel experiences with a camera. This is a personal thing and I know some believe you just look and appreciate. This just does not work for me. I also prefer taking pictures of things other than people. Cindy always complains I take too few pictures of people. So Cindy - I did take a few pictures of you.

Here are a few more photos.

Vatican City

I liked the flare.

Swiss Guards (guys and women with automatic weapons were also very visible)

Not the Sistine Chapel (no photos allowed)

One of the Colosseum (as many people cropped out as possible)

Trevi Fountain

A few others I like

I won't push any more pictures on you. If you are interested, all of my photos are public.  

This is all for now. We are resting and hope to hit the road (or water) again soon. Thanks for connecting.

Oh, the title? A derivation of the title from one of my favorite authors (Tom Friedman - Hot, flat and crowded). Friedman also writes about the connected world and the foolishness of those who believe we can isolate ourselves.