Road Trip 2006

The fire and destruction of Skilpad will not stop us going to Alaska and out west later this year! The 2006 road trip is still on..........we will get a new set of wheels and keep on going....thats just who we are. I will update the site as life happens.

FIRE!

My favorite photo - Skilpad sure looks happy to see that Fireman! So we decided to take a trip down to Florida Panhandle for a gentle week of beachwalking, sunshine and bike rides. It was not meant to be. Right before Birmingham, Alabama, at around 4.30pm on Christmas Day, Skilpad caught alight and burned to a crisp. We had stopped along the road for a bathroom break and the smoke poured out from under the hood. All gone in less than 20 minutes. Everything! Now we are hunting our new 'home on wheels' for the Alaska Trip of 2006.

Niagara Falls!

Niagara Falls! 14th June 2004 I don’t want to write this email - I want to keep looking at the stunning photos we took today! I remember as a kid undoing the wrapping on a gift and trying to see what’s inside - just a peek in one corner. This is what we did yesterday by driving through the Niagara Falls area. We did not get out, we did not walk around, we just drooled a little over the thought of going back today – just a peek in one corner of an amazing place. This did not make for easy sleeping last night and I felt like a child expecting an enormous gift the next day. It thundered and lightening-ed last night so I was convinced that today would be rainy and dull. Fortunately I was very wrong. When we were driving through Buffalo, NY, we saw this cloud/plume of mist, and realized that it was Niagara Falls mist. All this added up to an incredible sense of expectation. And it was met, more than met...... Nothing we saw could have prepared us for the sights of today. We were up early and at the Horseshoe Falls by 7 am - that in itself is nothing short of a miracle for me. The cameras heaved enormous sighs and 350 pictures and a few short videos later, we could easily go and see it all over again! There is no way one can describe the thunderous noise, the ‘coolth’ of the constant mist falling, the sight, the enormity and beauty of this place. The sun was blinking on different sections of the falls, highlighting it through the spray/mist of the others. The water falls, and then bubbles, foams and sprays, boiling almost all the way back up to the top. One can stand right at the top of the falls, at the very place where it drops over the edge. It makes one quite dizzy while watching this and had the ability to make my mouth drop open in absolute awe every time I was drawn back there. The water is so clear that at the top before it races over the edge and one can see a few feet down to the bottom of the river and see the rocks on the riverbed! Both of us just stood and looked at the power that is humanly impossible to stop. Right at the very point where the water goes over, the water is green/blue and this lines the rim of the Falls all around. The water boils its way down, catching on rocks on the way, creating the most amazing effects. One can see big rocks and boulders being swept down the falls. It was wonderful being able to share this moment on the phone with you Mom. It is quite possible to sit on one of the many benches and just “feel the falls” for a long, long time – it’s just truly fantastic. The seagulls float and coast all along the river, above and below the falls and dart down wards to catch the dropped food of all the tourists. Some will even eat out of your hand. They are very healthy, plump birds. We were very fortunate that we were there so early - there were hardly any people and we were able to ride all along the viewing area without any problem at all, stopping wherever and whenever we wanted to. Later on during the day, when thousands of people were wandering around, it became totally impossible to ride around there, but by then it was time to go.... We thought that we would go on a boat ride to the bottom of the falls, but then watched from way up, and saw that the boats did not really go as far into the mist as I would have liked. It might be far enough when one is on the boat, but from the top looks like it’s still far away from the actual falls. The helicopters stayed waaaay up in the air, so that was ruled out too. Both of us were content just to keep going between the top of the falls, and the other viewpoints. The Niagara Falls is actually made up of 3 different falls: The American Falls, the Bridal Veil Falls and The Horseshoe Falls. 90% of the water from the Niagara River goes over the Horseshoe Falls, the other 10% over the other two. The Niagara Falls stopped once in recorded history - it was in 1848 when millions of tons of ice got lodged at the source of the Niagara River and stopped the falls for 30 hours. The story goes that there was quite some panic and praying and that it was quite an incredible roar that occurred when it all opened up again, although some folks were brave enough to walk across the rocks while it was dry - that would take some guts too! That must have been quite a sight. Some more information: 300 years ago, the Horseshoe Falls was located 11 miles further downstream than today. The water eroded the rock at the rate of one meter a year. Now, with major water diversions for power generation, the erosion rate is “only” about 36 centimeters over ten years. And I love these words, written in 600 BC by a Chinese philosopher, Lau Tzu: “Water is fluid, soft and yielding. But water will wear away rock, which is rigid and cannot yield. As a rule, whatever is fluid, soft and yielding will overcome whatever is rigid and hard. This is another paradox: what is soft is strong.” Quite some thoughts and teachings in those words. So, we got to the falls at around 7am, rode around on the bikes for over 5 hours, only occasionally getting off to nurse our aching rear ends! I got my feet in the rushing waters of the Niagara River, although I have to admit that it was nowhere near the falls – safely a good way upstream, and there was only a good, gentle flow to the clear, cool water at this point. I also picked up some stones out of the river itself. Something just keeps me picking these up. There are trails for a long way all alongside the river. These were perfect for the bikes and were fairly level all the way with much shade and many benches to rest on. Sometimes the trail took us right next to the river and at other times through pine forests where some serious bikers went whizzing by. It was just plain wonderful. We now notice that we gained a gentle tan along the way. We had bought some sausage rolls yesterday, which we took along for snacks. We have not found these sausage rolls in USA, so were really happy to find them again here. We are also back in the land of smarties, crunchies and aero chocolates - all those things that make my willpower, and hips, shudder. But they taste SO good! So, after a wonderful sleep when we got back, some darn good coffee, and the weather pretty muggy with thunderstorms coming in, we both feel pretty good. And we are still totally in awe with the photographs now playing as a screensaver on the computer. What a day - Totally Awesome! I have this ‘thing’ for photographing water (the proof is in last years photos), so I was totally in my element today - I am sure even this abundance of water will not dampen my need to respond when Frank yells “Water, Annie, water!!” Lovely phone calls from both Joleen and Lisa - thanks my girls. J And Steven, we will have to start calling you “Spiderman”. J We will be heading out tomorrow morning towards Toronto and then up towards Hudson Bay. Thanks for all the emails - we love getting them. With lots of love to all Especially U3 - please stay safe. Annie and Frank XXXXxxxx

Photos from Are We There Yet?

More photos from "Are we there yet?" Overflow steps at Radisson Power Plant, Quebec Skilpads (motor home and S10), Banff

Twin Falls, Canada

Boats at Chisasibi, James Bay

Gull in Niagara River

Mackenzie River Ferry and duck family.......

Final Chapter.........Book ll

This is the last chapter in the book ........ "Are we there yet?"

Are We There Yet? 29th July ‘04 In what looks like an enormous and very wobbly circle, we have once again, boomeranged ourselves across this amazing continent in what feels like days, and at the same time, like years. After us both quietly feeling this for a few days, Frank started the conversation: “Are you ready ………?” My answer? “Yeah - I am!” And that was it. So, after driving past Frog Holler Road and Bug Scuffle Ave in Texas (I am serious!), we looked at the map for the most direct route back to Chattanooga. The road was a dull gray ribbon winding through gentle hills, disappearing into the rain. It was a wonderful, cool drive all the way back through Oklahoma, Arkansas and Tennessee along the interstates - even right through the center of the big cities. And today, Thursday 29th July, we pulled back into our driveway and just sat for a while, soaking this in too with a smile. How do I tell of the feelings, emotions and excitement that have been permanent and constant companions over the past two months? I have tried to put the adventures, the sceneries, the places and the colors into words, but they just don’t come close enough so many times. We took photos as fast as our fingers will allow – over 7000 in total! But they don’t tell the story the way we have seen it - they don’t come close. The awe and wonder, the amazement and gut wrenching beauty just defy acceptable explanation so much of the time. So many people have tried to explain what they have seen. Their words hang in the National Parks and at many of the stunning viewpoints across the country. Not even their brilliant words paint the true picture. We were talking just the other day, naming our ‘best places’ along the way. They added up to just about all the places we have been to. Except Saskatoon when Skilpad suffered her ‘temporary malaise’. Even that has created some lovely and fun memories for both of us. It was interesting to see that neither of us got ourselves tied up into knots, even with that. What will be - will be, and every day, every situation just added up to make for two months of total wonder. I look at the photos, trying desperately to label and explain them and keep them in some kind of order. The colors are the most amazing. I don’t have to see each photo individually at all, I just look at them all while they are in thumbnail format and the color tells me where they were taken - from the powerful, whitewater and gentle mist of Niagara Falls, through the green of Canada, to the bluest blue of Crater Lake. The ocean colors, the sand dunes and the multi color cliffs and canyons of Utah - Bryce Canyon was totally awesome. The colors……. And those snow covered mountains! All too amazing. Standing in so many of these places, just thinking about where I was, stunned me to tears at times. So many places had been just a place in a geography book a long time ago, a scene on television or a name on a map - a place others had seen and ooh-ed and aah-ed about and tried hard to describe. A dream. Now I had been there too, soaking in the wonder, and I can also not explain them in a way that would give them enough credit. Some places we just breezed through, others we felt as if we were glued to and had to drag ourselves away. The wind pinned us down at times, as did the heat, but nothing took the wonder away. More often, the beauty pinned us in place, as did the thin air in many of the high elevations, giving us even more time to enjoy the scenery. I have had my feet in the Niagara River, the Great Lakes, James Bay, the Yukon River, the Mackenzie River, Slave Lake at Yellowknife, in the Colorado River, Green River, the Pacific Ocean, in underwater dinosaur footprints and any other piece of water that I could find - and yes, in Crater Lake’s icy waters too! We still have not figured out quite what this thing is about me and water, but my feet have recovered well from some of the freezing waters they have been subjected to and keep looking for more. The one piece of water that was totally unexpected was the one that came in ‘snowball format’ accurately delivered by Frank - he is still laughing about that, but only when he is able to make a quick getaway. My time will come………. We have seen quite a bit of wildlife along the way - bear, moose, caribou, big horn sheep, mountain goat, deer, little critters, enormous beavers, bison, and even a gorilla. Ok, ok - that was a plastic one. We saw almost any kind of animal, including a troop of elephants, in the hoodoos and spires of the canyons, but I am sure those really won’t count either. We saw cheetah, rhinos, giraffe antelope and ostrich, amongst others, in Texas. We have walked, hiked and biked and driven many places that have shown us more beauty than we could have dreamed of. At times we moved at a slower pace, and other times at full speed, keeping the camera working full time. Yes, we overdid some of the hikes and biking trips, but that simply and sorely at times, added to the enjoyment of the trip. That feeling of being totally muscle numbingly tired, so that the only thing you can do is lie limply on the bed with your heart still pounding at the energy used and beauty of the surroundings, and play the wonders of the day over and over again in your head - what a joy! We have been in wonderful places. From hugging a plastic duck on the banks of Lake Erie; North East to the banks of James Bay; North West to Yellowknife; hiking down the inside of a stunning volcano and floating around on its indescribable water; ooh-ing at the amazing length of a giraffes tongue; 4x 4 driving on top of 2000 foot cliffs; skidding around the Colorado river in a jet boat or bouncing madly in the dunes of Oregon on a speeding dune buggy. And so much more. We even stroked a polar bear - yes, he was stuffed - but very real looking, and big and beautiful too. We learned so much about the tribes of Northern Canada and also those in the west of the USA. We saw the amazing results of the tremendous upheavals of the earth millions of years ago and the layers of fossils in what is now solid rock. So much history, so much to learn, absorb and appreciate. It is all so much bigger than we are, and we can only wonder at the comparable insignificance of our “daily troubles”. When looking at a photograph we took in Bryce Canyon, the people in the photo look like specks of dust against the towering, wonderfully colored surroundings - it had an incredibly humbling effect on me and yet brings a deep sense of freedom too. The Skilpads have performed perfectly despite us pushing them both beyond their requirements at times. We have only had one flat tire, and that was due to a broken valve core, discovered while in camp - easy fix. We have huffed and puffed up mountains higher than 12 000 feet, only to scream downhill again, seriously trusting that the tires will all hold tight, as will everything else too. We have driven for over 12 hours a day and come close to only giving her the smell of gas rag until finding the next fill up point. They have not let us down at all, and still hum along beautifully. Our checklist to keep them both running smoothly has grown somewhat since the last trip, but we don’t expect to perfect it - that would take some anticipation and excitement away from the big picture or maybe the next trip! There have been so many times that we have thought of each and every one of you, wishing you all the chance to see at least some of what we are so fortunate to have seen and experienced. You have all been in my mind so much of the time, and have really been with us at different times along the way. Thanks for your ever-present company! I have missed the “U3” group tremendously- my three tremendous kids - oops sorry - young adults! They have all handled themselves fantastically, succeeding in what they needed to do and then adding some wanted adventures and responsibilities of their own to the mix. It is a privilege to see just how they have the confidence to deal with their daily learning and growing. A tremendous big thanks goes to them for being so darn great and amazingly capable that it has freed us up to be able to experience our own adventures. A very big Thank You! to Steven, Lisa and Joleen. I am tremendously proud of U3. And finally, Frank, who drove tirelessly for close on 11 000 miles, just enjoying and smiling all the way. It has been, once again, fantastic to share all this with you, to see the wonder and happiness in your face, that ever present spark in your eyes, and the excitement of seeing new places together. The ride has been amazing, and the company the best - the many laughs, the peace and happiness, the wonder of it all….. Thank you, sweet man, thank you! Are we there yet? I truly hope we never “get there” - the ride is way too wonderful……. With lots of love and many thanks to you all And especially U3 For now Annie and Frank XXXXxxxx