What a fun year we have had. Our travels have taken us from the far Northwest parts of our country to the Southeast.
We spent the winter in Las Vegas where we visited (and hiked) many of our National Parks. Zion is always a favorite as is Death Valley after a rare rain. There was a reunion of the Irish Wives Garden Club in Arizona (a lively group of two), we shared the Las Vegas we know (away from the glitz) with Don and Kathy on their visit, Brent joined us for a few days to escape the winter, there was a reunion with Karin and Chris from our days in Hawaii and a short visit with Lindy, also from our time in Hawaii. It was so much fun seeing these friends, whom we hadn't seen since the late 70's!
Our return trip in April had us spending a few days near Page AZ where I photographed Horseshoe Bend while extending myself over a cliff. I was fortunate to get space on a photography tour of Antelope Canyon which I would recommend to everyone with a camera (and requisite tripod). On to Monument Valley (John Wayne's favorite) and other parks featured in my favorite old western movies.
We returned to the Midwest (and our storage unit) long enough to visit family and friends, unload the car and repack for our next adventure - Alaska. The drive out had us staying a few days on Victoria Island - Butchart Gardens lived up to the rave reviews! The next six weeks involved a lot of driving, time on car ferries and beautiful scenery. We managed to traverse most of the paved roads in this beautiful state. Glaciers, bears, moose, bears, whales, bears, etc.
Our return trip took us from Jasper BC to Waterton NP. The beauty of these Canadian Rockies is incredible. We re-entered the U.S.A. at Glacier NP on July 4th. On to Yellowstone NP and a week in Bozeman MT.
The fall took us to the SE coast. We spent a month in Myrtle Beach (getting out hours before the rains and floods). October we were in Asheville NC (and another reunion with the newly re-named Irish Wives Travel Club). November we traveled back to Raleigh NC where Ron and Mary put up with us for two full weeks. The Villages, FL were next visiting my cousin Kevin and Adele.
Our last stop was in Hot Springs, AR visiting Paul and Janet. Janet loves to decorate for Christmas, so I felt right at home! Her home was transformed, but the real eye stopper is her yard. I really thought I had taken pictures to share, but they are not in the camera so I must have been too in awe to actually take them. She does a beautiful job. They did take us to Garvan Woodland Gardens to see the light displays, and I have been sharing those pictures in this year in review.
Merry Christmas, Everyone!
