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travel

Signs

I think it’s safe to say that I’ve seen just about every road sign known to the American driver. We navigated through prairies, bad lands, high deserts, forests, mountains, and coastlines. We endured miles of road construction and divided highways. We were warned of falling rocks, steep grades, curves, high winds and animals. We frequented […]

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travel vacation

Hauling

I’ve often wondered how much work is involved for some people to go on vacation. I can’t even begin to count how many vehicles I passed on this trip that seemed to require EVERYTHING they owned. In some cases I was surprised that the hauler’s house wasn’t also in tow on a flat bed marked […]

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travel vacation

TOMTOM vs. MapQuest

We had the opportunity to take advantage of GPS guidance on our trip (we’re first-timers), and, in most cases the TOMTOM unit my parents lent us was helpful. My wife had also taken the time to MapQuest every stop, print out detailed directions and organize everything into a nice binder (complete with state maps). It […]

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memories summer travel vacation

Leaving Cali

Our last day in California was relatively light with activity. In the morning we visited Ocean World where we learned about some of the creatures that inhabit the waters of Crescent Beach. Suddenly the idea of picking up a sea star or touching a sea anemone didn’t seem so scary to the boys. In fact, […]

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travel vacation

Mighty Redwoods

It’s an understatement to say that the California Redwoods are large trees. They’re huge. Massive. Enormous. Mighty. No picture I’ve ever seen or taken will do justice to the experience of actually being there. It’s something everyone, especially those from the flat lands of the midwestern prairie, should experience for themselves. We hiked several miles […]

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travel vacation

It’s Not Always Sunny in California

I guess none of us should have been too surprised when we arrived in Crescent City, California – unofficial gateway to the Redwoods – and instead of a vibrant, tourist-friendly, sunny, seaside town we found a dreary, cold, and foggy downerville. I mean, we were in the Pacific Northwest and the Redwoods have to sustain […]

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America travel vacation

First Pacific Encounter

After a long day of driving through Washington and half of Oregon we bedded down in Newport. There our boys caught their first glimpse (and freezing cold touches) of the Pacific Ocean. I have to admit that I expected milder temperatures, but it was really quite cold. The locals assured us that this area is […]

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travel vacation

View from the top

We ventured back downtown on our second day to visit Seattle’s most familiar landmark – the Space Needle. Not only is it an architectural marvel but there is some interesting history behind it. Bottom line was it offered the best view of the city and surrounding area with Mt. Rainier poised majestically in the background. […]

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baseball sports travel vacation

Red Sox top Mariners

Our first day in Seattle we took the Link to downtown. After spending the better part of the morning exploring the many wonders of Pike’s Public Market (fish throwing, anyone?) and forcing the boys to endure the hardy sea harbor smells, we hit the stadium district and about a million fan stores looking at licensed […]

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travel vacation

Idaho Panhandle

Thursday morning we left Missoula early for Seattle. It was another eight hours in the vehicle the boys would have loved to avoid, but surprisingly they’ve been very good sports about the long drives. For sanity’s sake we decided to stop in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho to stretch the legs and eat some lunch. We ventured […]