Square Dancing RV'rs

Eagle near Leavenworth

2012-02-06T08:10:00.000-08:00

Bob snapped this picture of an eagle on the Wenatchee River

Winter Wonderland

2012-01-17T13:44:00.000-08:00

Tumwater campground snowshoe

Buddy and Bob

2012-01-17T13:42:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T08:05:00.001-08:00

Hard to believe it's already the last day of 2011. We hope everyone has had a good year. Now that Bob's health issues are under control, we're having easy times. We've been to several movies in the past month. We saw the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo about a week ago. This movie is great, long, and can be confusing if you haven't read the book. I would highly recommend the trilogy. They are a little hard to start, but once you do they are a great read. Last night we saw War Horse. We really enjoyed the movie - bring tissue!

We had a nice Christmas Eve dinner here at our house with Brian, Toddi, Hudson, Michelle, and our neighbors. We also had Christmas dinner at Brian and Toddi's home. We're still waiting on snow. It's sunny and 31 degrees and no snow at all on the ground. Maybe it will happen in January.

Just let me at those quail says Buddy

2011-12-25T15:00:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas Tree

2011-12-25T14:58:00.000-08:00

Not too bad of a tree considering it comes from the National Forest

Table set for Christmas Eve

2011-12-25T14:56:00.000-08:00

Hudson in front of the tree

2011-12-25T14:55:00.000-08:00

Hudson helping Granpa open Hudson's present

2011-12-25T14:52:00.000-08:00

Hudson on Christmas Eve

2011-12-25T14:50:00.000-08:00

Christmas tree cuting 2011

2011-12-15T08:08:00.000-08:00

Bobcat - photo by daughter-in-law, Toddi

2011-12-15T08:04:00.000-08:00

while on our annual trek to get our Christmas tree, Brian spotted this cat eating alongside the highway

Brian, Toddi, and Hudson with their tree

2011-12-11T20:50:00.001-08:00

Christmas tree

2011-12-11T19:10:00.001-08:00

Today we went up into the mountains to get our tree from the national forest. We went with Brian, Toddi, Hudson, Michelle, and another couple who are friends with Brian and Toddi. On the way up to where turn off of the main highway, Brian and Toddi spotted a bobcat with a fresh kill alongside the highway. We all thought that was pretty exciting. Toddi got a great picture and I'm hoping to get it from her and post it here on the blog.

We had a nice fire, enjoyed homemade (by Brian) scones and soup. There was some snow, but not too much. We found 3 trees - using our tree cutting permits. All in all a very great day.

Aunt Michelle and Hudson

2011-12-11T19:10:00.000-08:00

Our Fire on our Tree Cutting trip

2011-12-11T19:08:00.000-08:00

Hudson and Dad on our tree cutting trip

2011-12-11T19:06:00.000-08:00

Home in Wenatchee

2011-12-08T10:05:00.001-08:00

We drove through the Redwoods taking the Avenue of the Giants - a scenic 31 mile drive. The weather was perfect for our trip home. Lots of sunny skies. We drove up 101 through northern California and along the Oregon coast as far as Newport, then headed inland to I-5. Over on I-5 it was very foggy and by the time we made our way to the RV park we were staying it was dark and foggy. That's quite a combination when you're driving a truck pulling a 32 foot fifth wheel and never been where you're going!

Wednesday morning we were up bright an early for our last leg of the journey to Wenatchee. We were home by 2:30 and spent a couple of hours unloading the fifth wheel. Now most of the stuff is sitting on the kitchen table. Oh fun - getting it all put away. Plus so much laundry saved up from the trip to be done. We went out to dinner with Brian, Toddi, and Hudson last night. Hudson was so excited to see us. He didn't know we were back. He had been telling his mom and dad that he missed Grandma Connie and Grandpa Bob (oh so sweet).

Central California Coast

2011-12-08T10:03:00.000-08:00

Central California Coast

2011-12-08T10:01:00.002-08:00

Redwoods next to our fifth wheel

2011-12-08T09:59:00.001-08:00

Driving over the Golden Gate Bridge

2011-12-08T09:59:00.000-08:00

650BC Greek Pottery - Hearst Castle

2011-12-08T09:48:00.000-08:00

Hearst Castle Library

2011-12-08T09:47:00.000-08:00

Hearst Castle Tapestry - circa 1500

2011-12-08T09:46:00.001-08:00

Outdoor Pool at the Hearst Castle

2011-12-08T09:46:00.000-08:00

Two male elephant seals fighting on the California Coast

2011-12-08T09:45:00.000-08:00

Male Elephant Seal along Central California Coast

2011-12-08T08:56:00.000-08:00

Hotel del Coranado inside the couryard

2011-12-08T08:53:00.000-08:00

Fire Extinguisher at Hotel del Coranado

2011-12-08T08:52:00.000-08:00

Our home in San Diego

2011-12-08T08:51:00.000-08:00

Crown Room at Hotel del Coranado

2011-12-08T08:50:00.000-08:00

Hotel del Coranado

2011-12-08T08:49:00.000-08:00

Polar Bear at San Diego zoo

2011-12-08T08:27:00.000-08:00

Sunset at Hotel del Coranado

2011-12-08T08:26:00.000-08:00

TigerCub at the San Diego Zoo

2011-12-08T08:24:00.001-08:00

Panda at the San Diego zoo

2011-12-08T08:21:00.001-08:00

Central California Coast

2011-12-05T06:28:00.000-08:00

After leaving San Diego we drove up the coast, first stopping near Lompoc overnight. Next stop was San Luis Obispo where we enjoyed their Thursday night farmers market. Next stop was at San Simeon State Park. From there we took the evening tour at Hearst Castle. We really enjoyed our tour. This evening tour is only offered during a few months in fall/winter. The other great thing about our tour was that the castle was decorated for Christmas, plus they had people wandering around all dressed in 1930's period costumes. The first thing we saw on the tour was the outdoor pool and it is beyond beautiful. We saw the main castle including the kitchen, library, and bedrooms. We also toured one floor of one of the guest cottages (5500 square feet).

During the day we saw the elephant seals. The males were starting to come ashore after having swam down from the Aleutian Islands. Some females were also arriving - they are getting ready to give birth in late December.

After leaving San Simeon we drove up the winding coast to Monterey where we spent the night. We visited Cannery Row and had a meal on the waterfront. Sunday morning we were up bright and early for our drive north and over the Golden Gate Bridge. There was a fair amount of traffic by the time we arrived in San Francisco, but not too bad. It was a beautiful day - no fog. We continued up 101 to Santa Rosa where Brian and Toddi lived for a short time. We stopped at the Bottle Barn for some wine and then on the road again making it up to about 80 miles south of Eureka. The highway goes through some beautiful country with lots of wineries and vineyards. The leaves on the grape vines had turned to beautiful fall colors.

We're now almost to the state Redwoods park. More in the next blog.

Flamingos, San Diego Zoo

2011-12-05T06:00:00.000-08:00

Studebaker Farm Wagon, Old Town San Diego

2011-12-05T05:58:00.000-08:00

Widows Walk, Old Town San Diego

2011-12-05T05:56:00.001-08:00

Victorian, Old Town San Diego

2011-12-05T05:55:00.000-08:00

USS Midway, San Diego

2011-12-05T05:53:00.000-08:00

San Diego

2011-12-04T17:31:00.001-08:00

We have had a wonderful time visiting San Diego. We arrived Saturday, November 26th, at Marina and RV park located on a spit of land about 2 miles south of the Hotel del Coronado. The RV is backed up to the water with the marina and the Coronado Bridge and the lights of San Diego as our view. Evidently, this park (military) was going to be redone, the remodel was started, and then stopped due to some permit issues. Anyway, there are no hookups. But, we’re all set. With our 6 batteries and our solar panel and the sunshine that recharges the batteries, we really don’t need to be hooked up to electricity. The weather has been around 70 degrees since we arrived.
On Sunday we went to the USS Midway – a retired aircraft carrier. We really enjoyed the tour. They have lots of docents available to give tours and answer questions. In the afternoon we went to Old Town San Diego. It was pretty busy and we had to park about ½ a mile away. We especially enjoyed touring the Old Town State Historic Park. Inside the park there is original adobe mansion that was the heart of social and religious activities during the Mexican Period. Also, here we enjoyed the Seeley Stables a museum that had original state coaches, Studebaker wagon, and freight wagons from the 1800’s.
Monday was our day for the San Diego Zoo. We started our day bright and early – arriving at opening time at 9:00am. We walked most of the zoo. We enjoyed seeing koala eating breakfast, the pandas – one who was eating bamboo, baby lions eating beef scraps, elephants, kangaroos, giraffes – you name it – I think we saw it. After walking around for about 3 ½ hours, we hopped on a bus tour and saw a few things we had missed. After arriving back at Coronado we took a walk on the beach. And, since it was almost sunset we enjoyed a glass of wine and appetizer outside at the Hotel del Coronado.
Tuesday we took a tour of the Hotel del Coronado. The tour was two hours of interesting information about the hotel. The hotel was built in 1878 and originally had 450 rooms. A power plant was built to supply electricity to the hotel during the construction and this was the first place in the United States to be completely powered by electricity. This afternoon I took a bike ride leaving our RV park and riding along a bike path to the ferry landing. Bob came and picked me up. He didn’t ride his bike as his bike tire was totally flat.

Palm Creek, Casa Grande, AZ

2011-11-26T09:16:00.000-08:00

Acorn Woodpecker at Palm Creek, Casa Grande, AZ

2011-11-26T09:15:00.000-08:00

Sunset at Palm Creek, Casa Grande, AZ

2011-11-26T09:13:00.001-08:00

Dad and Me on Thanksgiving

2011-11-26T09:12:00.000-08:00

Sunset, Salton Sea

2011-11-17T18:30:00.000-08:00

Salton Sea sunset

2011-11-17T18:26:00.000-08:00

San Jose, Indio, and the Salton Sea

2011-11-14T20:13:00.001-08:00

We left Washington state on November 6th heading south to Indio, CA for a huge square dance festival (over 1000 dancers). Along the way we stopped in San Jose and were able to visit with several of our relatives - from my mom's side of the family. We arrived in Indio at the Date Festival Fairgrounds and spent 3 days dancing there. Now, we're at an RV park on the Salton Sea with square dance friends. The RV park is called Fountain of Youth. There isn't anything around here for miles. It's a nice relaxing park with several mineral hot tubs. We'll do a little square dancing, chill out, probably go to the local VFW, and on Friday head towards Casa Grande,AZ to see my dad.

Winchester House, San Jose, CA

2011-11-14T20:13:00.000-08:00

San Jose, California

2011-11-14T20:10:00.001-08:00

With my Uncle Ron, Aunt Loraine, and me

Hudson at pre school in his costume

2011-10-28T13:29:00.000-07:00

Hudson with his Grandpa, Mike, from Alaska

2011-10-28T13:28:00.000-07:00

Appleland Promenaders

2011-10-25T13:40:00.000-07:00

Our square dance club went on a caravan to Marysville. We had quite a good turnout.

2011-10-16T18:47:00.000-07:00

Same slope late afternoon snow melted!!

2011-10-16T18:45:00.000-07:00

Now this............. IS BEAUTY !!!

Icicle Gorge trail near Leavenworth, WA

2011-10-12T08:03:00.000-07:00

We took a hike along the Icicle Gorge Trail. This is one our favorite fall hikes. Unfortunately it was raining the whole time!

Mt. Stuart

2011-10-09T07:53:00.000-07:00

Top of Ingalls Pass

Ingalls Pass

2011-10-09T07:52:00.000-07:00

I did a hike with friends from the bank where I used to work. It was a beautiful day in the mountains of Washington

Wallace Falls

2011-10-03T19:52:00.001-07:00

2011-09-20T15:37:00.000-07:00

HUDSON SCORES!!!! His first (offical???) goal............at Grandmas house!!

Brian and Hudson on our hike

2011-09-05T09:01:00.000-07:00

Icicle River

2011-09-05T08:59:00.000-07:00

Lunch on our hike

2011-09-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

Ellensburg Rodeo

2011-09-05T08:49:00.000-07:00

We attended the Rodeo in Ellensburg on Saturday. We've never been, but certainly enjoyed it. We watched calf roping, bronc riding, bull riding, and steer wrestling. The guys doing this are certainly in great shape. The women did the barrel racing. Our friend, Marilyn, bought two tickets for us on the street. They were superb seats and the price was right, too.

We usually go to Circle 8 square dance ranch over labor day weekend. Because Bob has been having some trouble with his heart we weren't able to go. He is in Atrial Flutter. So, for now we won't be dancing as he is out of breath and back on coumadin.

I went on a bike ride/hike with Brian, Toddi, and Hudson yesterday. We went up the Icicle River. Part of the road is washed out, so we rode our bikes to the trail head, did a 4 mile loop hike, then rode back to the truck. It's great using the bikes as it saves 2 1/2 miles of walking. The weather was great, the river was in full force, the chipmunks were out - all in all a great day to be outside.

2011-09-04T19:35:00.000-07:00

Connie did it AGAIN.........how's this for stop action????

Toddi, Hudson, and Brian

2011-08-31T17:05:00.000-07:00

We took a little hike today up the Leavenworth ski loop.

USA West Square Dance

2011-08-24T17:36:00.000-07:00

We just returned from some of the best 3 days of square dancing we have ever done. There is a regional event called USA West held during the summer during the years that the national convention is on the east coast. This year it was held August 18-20th in Longview, WA. We stayed in our RV right at the convention center with 30 amp hookups. We were parked with our friends from Oregon, Loyce and Wendell, and with our other friends, Marilyn and Jerry from Snohomish, WA.

The dancing went from 10 in the morning to 10 at night. The band the Ghost Riders were there Friday and Saturday nights. The next USA West is in Boise, Idaho. We definitely plan on attending.

We had a beautiful trip home over White Pass. Mt. Rainier was out in all of it's glory.

Mt. Rainier from White Pass

2011-08-24T17:32:00.000-07:00

On our way home from Longview, we came over White Pass back to Wenatchee

A close up of our grandson on hike

2011-08-03T20:03:00.000-07:00

Daughter in law, Scarlett, and Hudson

2011-08-03T19:56:00.000-07:00

Hike at Ingalls Creek with grandson, daughter-in-law, and Scarlett (a little girl watched by Toddi on Wednesdays)

Hike with our 3 year old grandson

2011-08-03T19:52:00.000-07:00

Ingalls Creek near Blewett Pass

Our first overnighter with grandson

2011-07-26T17:53:00.001-07:00

We took the fifth wheel up to Bridgeport, WA - about 45 minutes northeast of Chelan to meet my brother, Steve, and his wife, Nancy. We took our grandson, Hudson, on his first overnighter without mom and dad. He had a great time at the campground riding his bike and playing at the playground. That evening we drove to Grand Coulee dam to see the Laser Light show. Hudson really enjoyed it, but was pretty tired when it ended at about 10:40. That was a really late night for him.

At Grand Coulee Damn

2011-07-26T17:53:00.000-07:00

Hudson with Great Aunt Nancy and Great Uncle Steve in the background

Hudson squatting over the top of the sprinkler

2011-07-26T17:51:00.000-07:00

Us at square dance in Oregon

2011-07-13T15:18:00.000-07:00

Horesetail falls, Columbia Gorge Oregon

2011-07-13T15:16:00.000-07:00

Oregon Summerfest Square Dance

2011-07-13T15:14:00.000-07:00

Here we are in our National outfit

Home in Wenatchee

2011-07-13T14:55:00.001-07:00

We made it home after almost 5 weeks on the road. We spent about $2100 on fuel! Yes, that is a lot. Diesel prices ranged from a high of 4.29 to a low of 3.68 per gallon. I would say the average was around $3.90 per gallon. It's a lot of money, but we saved where we could by using our Passport America 1/2 price campground membership for which we pay about $45 a year.

After leaving Great Falls, Montana we drove over Rogers Pass to Missoula, and then to Lolo Pass and along highway 12 which follows the Clearwater River. This is the route that Lewis and Clark took and it is really scenic. We think this is one of the prettiest drives in the United States.

We ended our trip by driving along the Columbia Gorge to Portland, Oregon where we attended the Oregon Summerfest square dance weekend. We had a fun time dancing with our friends, Loyce and Wendell. Sunday, July 10th we drove home to Wenatchee.

So, now we're home ready to enjoy the rest of the summer. Grandson, Hudson, was very glad to see us. We've been out riding the loop trail with our daughter-in-law, Toddi, several mornings. She tows Hudson behind in a bike trailer which makes us sort of even since she is almost 30 years younger. We saw both osprey and eagles on our bike ride.

Prickly Pear Cactus Theodore Roosevelt NP, North Dakota

2011-07-04T19:27:00.000-07:00

Badlands of North Dakota (National park)

2011-07-04T19:26:00.000-07:00

Our trip home

2011-07-04T18:59:00.001-07:00

We're now in Great Falls, Montana. We left Mackinac City, drove over the Mackinaw Bridge, and through the UP (upper peninsula) of Michigan. We found a cute little township RV park for $10 a night in Michegan. Next we drove through Wisconsin, and into Minnesota. We stayed at a campground near Detroit Lakes. And, boy was it hot and muggy. Once we setup in the campground I never went outside.

After Minnesota we drove through North Dakota. We were driving on I-94 and decided to stop for the night in the Badlands National Park (Theodore Roosevelt NP). In one of the tourist magazines there was information about the Medora Musical. We called and ordered tickets and were sure glad to we did. We went to Burning Hills ampitheater where the musical was performed. The show started at 8:30. It was a really nice evening - although we were glad we had our coats. It offers a breathtaking extravaganza of fireworks, horses, and outstanding professional entertainment. The music ranged from Patsy Cline to Kenny Chesney to a fiddler playing the Orange Blossom special. They danced, they clogged, they sang, and kept us thoroughly entertained.

The next day we moved from the commercial campground in Medora to the National Park (for $5 a night). We took a drive around the 36 miles south unit loop to see the badlands. We did a nature walk that had lots of blooming wildflowers including many Pricly Pear Cactus.

Sunday morning we drove to Great Falls, Montana. We are staying at the AF base family camp. It's a beautiful RV park with full hookup sites for $19 a night. We decided to stay over for the 4th as we heard from a friend that driving on the 4th would be difficult with the holiday drivers. So, today we did a bike ride along the Missouri river, saw two falls along the river, saw the Lewis and Clark Interpretive center, and in the afternoon saw the C.M. Russell museum. Charles Russell completed about 4000 during his lifetime. He was the first Western artist to live the majority of his life in the west.

We would highly recommend a visit to Great Falls, Montana. It reminds us a lot of our home area of Wenatchee. I think the weather if fairly similar.

C.M. Russell Museum, Great Falls, MT

2011-07-04T18:59:00.000-07:00

Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center,Great Falls, Montana

2011-07-04T18:58:00.000-07:00

Commemorative quilt

Falls near Great Falls,Montana

2011-07-04T18:57:00.000-07:00

Theodore Roosevelt National Park - North Dakota Badlands

2011-07-04T18:55:00.000-07:00

Prairie Dogs

Stage in Medora, ND

2011-07-01T21:54:00.000-07:00

We attended a musical in an outdoor ampitheater

Mackinaw Bridge, Michigan

2011-07-01T21:53:00.000-07:00

Superior, Wisconsin

2011-06-30T10:26:00.001-07:00

We here in Wisconsin, but not for long. We'll cross into Minnesota in a few minutes. We went to Mackinac Island on Tuesday. We took our bikes on a ferry to the island. There are no cars on the island - only bikes and horse drawn carriages. They island is about 8 miles in circumference. We saw Fort Mackinac on the island. It's very well done. This was the first place attacked by the British in the war of 1812. The American troops immediately surrendered as they were completely overtaken and surrounded by many more British and Indians than they had at the fort.

We've had a busy few weeks. We're heading west and hope to make to Theodore Roosevelt NP in North Dakota tomorrow (Friday).

Ford Museum, Detroit, Michigan

2011-06-30T10:26:00.000-07:00

Greenfield Village

2011-06-30T10:24:00.000-07:00

Earlly 1900 village near the Ford Museum in Detroit,Michigan

Bagley Street

2011-06-30T10:20:00.000-07:00

Greenfield Village, Detroit. My maiden name is Bagley

60th Square Dance Convention

2011-06-27T05:28:00.001-07:00

We just finished attending the 60th National Square Dance Convention in Detroit, Michigan. They had approximately 3730 dancers. We are working on the 61st National as Secretary for the Registration Committee. While in Detroit we worked our registration booth to get those attending in Detroit to sign up for our convention in 2012 in Spokane. During the course of the convention our committee signed up about 400 dancers to come to Spokane. We now have about 3210 dancers already registered for 2012.

We also had some time to dance. We danced on Tuesday night to Jerry Story, Tony Oxydine, Ken Bower, and Gary Shoemake - all really great callers. We found that the afterparties - dances at 10:00 were the place to dance to lots of national callers all in one place.

We stayed at the Detroit Marriott Renassaince Center. We used their People Mover (a monorail) to get back and forth to the convention center. Sunday we drove back to the campground where the fifth wheel and Buddy were staying, loaded up and headed north. We'll be in Mackinac City today where we'll spend a couple of days.

RVMH Museum, Elkhart, Indiana

2011-06-20T15:50:00.000-07:00

Camping vehicle early 1900

Badlands National Park, South Dakota

2011-06-20T15:48:00.000-07:00

Bob at Wall Drug

2011-06-20T15:46:00.000-07:00

The only time he can get away with leaning on a boob

Me at Wall Drug

2011-06-20T15:45:00.000-07:00

Summer trip

2011-06-19T15:03:00.000-07:00

While in South Dakota we visited Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Wind Cave, Jewel Cave, and the Mammoth Site. All of these places are very interesting. We never knew there was so much to do in such a small area of South Dakota.

After leaving the Black Hills of South Dakota we stopped at famous Wall Drug. It's not really all that exciting, but since the freeway is so close you have to stop. We continued on through South Dakota and stopped at the Corn Palace, Mitchell, South Dakota. Another one of those stops you have to do at least once (but not terribly exciting).

Next we drove to the ice cream capital of the world, Le Mars, Iowa. It's the home of Blue Bunny Ice Cream. They have a fancy new ice cream parlor right in the middle of town, so yes we did have to indulge! Iowa has some of the worst roads we have ever used. Of course, we were on highways and not on the Interstate.

We continued on east through Illinois and Indiana and are now in Michigan. Whew - that was a long drive. We'll be attending the National Square Dance convention in Detroit while Buddy stays behind in a campground about an hour from the city. The campground owners will watch over him.