WORKING ON THE HORNED OWL

I have a chance to carve on my project of the great horned owl…This has been a busy week working with the sound system…Monday we had the board work shop…Thursday was the board meeting…I was able to put together my new toy from Ram Products…It will help on my detail work…It can be used with 110 V or off its battery…Mary Ann said it was my birthday, Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Years, Anniversary, Easter, and anything else that might come up…I can’t believe we have been in Arizona for fourteen years…Time is flying by entirely too fast…Mary Ann and I will be celebrating our seventeenth anniversary January first…We will be traveling to California and watch the Rose Parade in Pasadena…We have reserve parking and reserve seating…We felt fortunate to be able to secure the tickets…Mary Ann loves the parade and the activities that are involved…We were there in 2000 and had a great time…We now have to start getting the motorhome ready for the trip…We try to keep duplicate items in the motorhome that we have in the house (tooth brush,cooking utensils, clothes, etc.)… Mary Ann is going with a group today that have lunch together at least once a month…They seem to have a lot of fun together…The call themselves Red Hat Ladies, but it is just a bunch of old women having a good time…Well if I am going to do any carving today I better get with it…By the way, if you are interested I have now lost 61 lbs… Mary Ann has lost 45…I still have a long way to go…These holidays are killing me but I am still watching the calories…Talk to you later…Philip

The Plate Is Now Installed

I had to get up early to make my appointment to have the Blue Ox plate installed…I didn’t know how long it would take…So I took a lunch consisting of two apples and a coke…The appointment was for eight a.m. this morning…The installment was completed by ten forty-five…This is the third plate that I have had installed by this company…I have been totally satisfied with their work…Here are some pictures of the installation…AFTER INSTALLATION

BEFORE INSTALLATION

Talk to you later…Philip

BACK AGAIN

I went to Facebook and started posting…I did not get the satisfaction writing on that as I have received on my Blog…So today I will start over and renew my efforts…We need a plate installed on our new car for towing behind the motorhome…We use the Blue Ox system which we have been very satisfied…This is our fourth car that we have installed a plate…We have probably pulled our vehicles over 124,000 miles with the Blue Ox system…I will try to take pictures, before and after, of the installation…Trying to do a better job on the blog…Talk to you later…Philip

SOME MORE PICTURES

These pictures were taken by a neighbor at valley view…I am still working on the buffalo

The water marks were made by my neighbor…I glad someone thinks I am a master carver…Philip

JUST SETTING HERE CARVING AND TURING

Today we went to Idaho Falls for supplies…I have been busy carving several pieces this summer…I have carved a Marlin Hawk, a buzzard, a turtle, a Snow Owl, a buffalo, and getting ready to carve a horned owl…We have spent time exploring the areas that we have traveled…I didn’t realize how much enjoyment I would receive by traveling and carving as the mood struck me…I love retirement…I will publish some of the pictures of the carvings…I will research some now…Philip

STILL AT ISLAND PARK

Last week end we had family from Utah and had a great time…They had to leave Monday and head back to work…We have made plans to go to Idaho Falls each Thursday for supplies…If we don’t have enough food to feed an army, Mary Ann feels that we might starve…I have been busy carving several items that I have wanted to create for some time…I have a Snowy Owl that I am working on now and am wanting to try some changes that I have been thinking about…Tonight we are going over to Flat Ranch to a lecture on birds of pray…My next project is another owl, but a larger one than the Snowy Owl…I have lined up to do a buffalo after that…That should keep me busy until we get back to Happy Trails about the middle of September…It is always with mixed feelings about leaving the mountains and returning home…As most of you know our anchor is firmly attached to Happy Trails…It is easier to carve when I have all my tools that are in my shop…The most important is the friendships that are missed each summer while we are gone…I will try and take some pictures tonight during the lecture and demonstration of live birds of pray…Talk to you later…Philip

I WAS HACKED

I tried to write everyone on my e-mail list to let them know that my address book had been violated…I hope this has not been to much of a hassle for anyone…Well hello George…We are in Island Park, Idaho…Just over the mountain from you…We have family coming in this week and our schedule is pretty full for the next two weeks…We really want to visit you and it will probably be some time in August before we can get away…I washed the motor home yesterday and put some pork chops on the grill…It was a good day…Slept like a baby last night and looking forward to breakfast of bacon and eggs…As you know on Sunday I am allowed eggs…We both have lost weight and are having to buy new clothes…Of course this is just another excuse for Mary Ann to buy clothes…We went to the head waters of the Missouri River, where the Gallatin, Madison, and Jefferson merge with the Missouri…We had a picnic lunch in the State Park…Of course this is in Montana…The trip was just about a hundred miles from Island Park…This is beautiful country here and we really enjoy exploring every nook and cranny…I have a picture of our picnic…The only problem with the trip was the mosquitos…We have tickets to the Play Mill in West Yellowstone Thursday…We always look forward, each year to one of their plays…Talk to you later…Philip

Mary Ann and the picnic

I WAS BAD…

Well we made it to Old Faithful Inn and got the ice-cream…You guessed it…I got two scoops…Probably won’t get any dinner tonight…Here are the pictures I promised…Enjoy…Remember to click to enlarge the pictures…Mary Ann standing in line for ice-creamYellowstone is recovering from the fires of 1997…I rode the motorcycle through here during the fire…We were trying to get to the West exit then, but it was blocked…Could hardly breath the smoke was so thick…Another recovery pictureThe Madison RiverAnother Madison pictureThe Madison This is a view from our camp…Looking out the windshield

Mary Ann is going shopping in Idaho Falls tomorrow…I will probably stay with the motor home and carve…I am working on a turtle…Still starving…Philip

GOING INTO THE PARK TODAY

This past week has been a joyous one…Have heard from those that are from my past…Caught up with news from those that I thought a lot of…Life changes and we move on…Well, today we woke up to our regular Sunday breakfast of bacon and eggs…Mary Ann only lets me have eggs on Sunday…If you knew how much I love eggs you would know that this is a real sacrifice…Breakfast is usually cereal…I checked my e-mail and took my shower…So now I am ready to do some scouting around…We come to Yellowstone almost every year and still have not been over a lot of trails…We have a favorite activity and that is when we have scouted a destination we will go to Old Faithful Lodge and get some of their ice-cream…Since I have cut back on calories I can only have one scoop…By the way I have lost about 50 lbs. this summer…I will try and get some good pictures today and try to put them in the blog tonight…I don’t know what we are having for lunch but, Mary Ann said if we are eating ice-cream this afternoon we were going to eat very light…I guess it will be ice tea with a straw…Sunshine is eating better than me…I will talk to you later…Starving Philip

OUT OF TOUCH

For the last four days we have been dry camping on the Gallatin River in Montana, just north of Yellowstone…We could not get internet or any phone service…I always worry about any emergency messages that may come my way…It was a beautiful place to camp by the river and in the valley between two mountains…We did not go anywhere during the time we were there…We just kicked back and carved, watched the people floating through the white water, watching the river flow…The sound of nature was relaxing and made the nights very restful…We took some pictures so you could experience nature as we did…I know it is impossible to let you hear the sounds, feel the coolness of the weather, smell the fresh smells of the evergreen forest, and listen to the sounds of the wild life…Hope you enjoy the pictures…We have traveled to Island Park, Idaho for the next month…I don’t believe we will be out of touch electronically for the next thirty days…Talk to you later…PhilipJust meMary Annour camp siteThe river behind the motorhomeSome raftersThey are having funMore rafters

 

As you see, we are having a real adventure

I JUST TOOK THESE PICTURES

The sun finally peaked throughElk Grazing

Our Space In Custer GulchSome Pictures Of The Park

I really hope to be able to write more each day…Philip

GETTING READY FOR THE FOURTH

We have been in Custer for almost a month now…It has been  a good time ,except for the weather…It has rained every day that we have been here…My wood carving class was a very good experience…Each time I go to a class, I learn something useful…The park is filling up with holiday visitors and it will probably be full by this afternoon…The buffalo seem to be in larger numbers this year…It has rained so much that there is an abundance of grass for the wild life…There should be a very good reproduction in wild life if there isn’t a fire to destroy the food supply…I am constantly thinking about my sister and her husband, David,…There son, David Wayne is the reason for my concern…David Wayne has fought a courageous fight and has not given up…His wife has shown a devotion to their faith and faithfulness to David Wayne…Sometimes lemon aid is hard to make when life has dealt a specially hard hand…Prayers continue to be lifted up…I will publish some pictures if it stops raining long enough…I think it has stopped raining now so I will hurry out and be back in a few minuets and put them in the blog..Talk to you later…Philip

ON THE ROAD BREAKDOWNS

It will happen at home or on the road…We got up yesterday to a beautiful, cloudless day…Got our early morning chores done and Mary Ann decided to wash the clothes in the Laundromat…When she finished the car had a dead battery…She got a jump from a maintenance man and came straight to the motorhome…She left the car running and we unloaded the clean clothes and took off for Wal-Mart in Colorado Springs…We bought a new battery and some groceries and headed back to the motorhome which was 20 miles away…Each day brings on adventure and solving those problems is really part of the fun in traveling…Well today we got up to cloudy skies and the prediction of strong winds…We were not planning on leaving until 10am but decided to leave as soon as we were ready…Fortunately the strong winds never developed and the ride to Chatfield was a very pleasant scenic morning…The day starts at 12noon and we arrived early…We have waited in the parking area before waiting for the space to clear, but today the space was opened when we arrived and we took our reservations immediately…We hooked up, had lunch, took a massage and took a nap…This life is really tough, so Mary Ann wants to go to the Texas Road House for dinner…Texas Road House is a steak restaurant with excellent selections of beef…Don’t go if you want a quiet dinner…Loud music and waiters are always line dancing and singing anniversaries and birthdays songs…Well I will let you know how it works out for us tonight…I will try and take some pictures…Talk to you later…Philip

RAIN, RAIN, RAIN

Well it is not freezing…It has been raining now for three days…I am not getting cabin fever yet, but Mary Ann is beginning to feel the walls closing in…I am watching the NASCAR races and writing the blog…I have my Spanish Lessons and my woodcarving keeping me happy…We have been cloistered by the rain for the last three days and have not been able to take pictures that would be of interest…I brought my woodcarving dvd’s with me and still learn a lot from watching the various techniques of each carver…When I am waiting for Mary Ann while she is shopping for groceries or other shopping, I can wait in the car and listen to my MP-3 and practice my Spanish…I cannot carve in the motor home because of Mary Ann who cannot stand wood chips all over the motor home…It is predicting rain to stop this afternoon and not rain tomorrow…We will pack up and leave Tuesday for Chatfield…We will stay there for two weeks and then move to Rocky Mountain National Park and dry camp for three days…I think I have brought you up to date and will talk to you later…Philip

NO MORE SNOW

Well today started out with no snow on the ground…I got up at 6am so that I could connect the water…If it looks like it is going to freeze we disconnect the water…The furnace keeps the fresh water tank from freezing…When we disconnect, we still have water for whatever is needed…The mail forwarding service from Escapee has given us excellent service through the 12 years that we have used them…There have only made 2 or 3 mistakes in that period of time…We received ours today…The next service will be next week in Denver…There are a group of children (about 35 or 40) camping…They seem to be having a great time…It must be a school activity…Mary Ann is working on some music for the variety show for next year…I have been watching some DVD’s on carving…I will talk to you later…Philip

GOT THE CAR REPAIRED

I looked for the weather forecast on the computer for todays forecast…It was raining when I woke up…Forecast was for rain, sleet, and snow…guess what…It did all three…By the time I finished getting the forecast, it was 6am…I wanted to download some of my Rosetta Stone (Spanish lessons) to my MP3 so I would have something to do while I was waiting for the car to be repaired…My appointment was for 1pm…By the time we finished with morning chores, it was time for lunch and then leave for Colorado Springs…Colorado Springs is 20 miles from Mountain Dale RV park, traveling hwy 115 just West  of Fort Carson…We were not sure the part had arrived until we got to the dealership…The part had arrived this morning…Things just seems to work out which makes for a pleasant day…Wait just a minute…It was snowing with both hands and we had to purchase fuel and pick up some groceries…It snowed on us most of the way back but things always work out…The ground was still warm and the snow was not sticking…Well, Mary Ann prepared and outstanding dinner of Salmon and sweet potatoes while I sipped hot apple cider and checked my e-mail…Well here I am with a full stomach, writing on the Blog, warm as toast in the motorhome…I didn’t take any pictures today…Snow flurries are forecast for tomorrow…Will let you know how good the weather persons are…Talk to you later…Philip

PICTURES OF OUR MORNING VISITORS

From the front window with the sunscreen in placeThrough the windshieldLove the early morning

I hope you get a thrill of the wild life as we do…Talk to you later…I am sorry about the reverse of the sequence…Philip

CAR REPAIR

It is inevitable…As much as we are on the road, vehicles will require some maintenance…As hard as we try to keep all vehicles well maintained, something will happen…We woke up to fine the break warning light would not turn off…Checking the fluid level and looking for leaks and the brake pedal was very firm, it was time to take The Saturn to the Chevy dealer here in Colorado Springs…We are use to working with computers and felt that we would find something wrong with the sending unit…Sure enough the sending unit had been literally broken off…Well by having a Saturn (they don’t make them any more) an orphan car, the part had to be ordered…We will go in tomorrow after lunch and have a new sending unit replaced…Another experience with computers…Well this morning we woke up to a heard of deer grazing all around the motorhome…I have already had my massage and have taken my morning walk…Mary Ann was able to take the following pictures of our morning visitors…Hope you enjoy  the pictures…Talk to you later…Philip

WE ARE IN TOUCH AGAIN

We left Happy Trails April 24th.  Our RV group from Happy Trails was having a rally at Lake Powell on the Arizona, Utah border in the Navajo Reservation…Such a beautiful location…Was able to observe cliff dwellings,and learn more about the history and culture of the Navajo Nation…I was able to sit and talk with a Native American and learn from a well educated person a lot of intellectual insight from the past and present…Was able to discuss feelings of the past and future plans and hopes of the future…I have always wanted to do something like this…I wish I could have done this in my youth but probably did not have the insight then to ask the proper questions…We left Lake Powell on the 29th and drove to Navajo Reservoir in extreme southern Colorado…We had snow for two days and temperatures in the 20’s F…When it cleared it was beautiful and the sun came out and the snow was gone with temps in the 50’s, 60’s…We were worried about getting through Wolf Creek Pass…The snow plows kept it very clear and we proceeded to Royal Gorge…Spent the night and left this morning for our present destination…Mountaindale..We will be here for the next ten days…Here are some pictures of our recent days…               on lake Powell

Lake Powell DamSandstone formationInside Antelope Canyon

We are getting ready to go and have dinner out in Colorado Springs…Talk to you later…Philip