Chug Chug

Where in the world is that gal!? Well, I am finally back...if there are any of you left out there..I will try and carry on.

Tom and I have been on a tour of Western Canada

 

View of downtown Vancouver from Stanley Park

We usually pride ourselves on being independent travelers, and not like the old folks taking escorted tours.Well, never say never...after all we are all allowed to change our minds. We met up with several friends in Vancouver for the start of a real adventure.

The tour company put us up in The Westin Bayshore, which is right on the harbor. This view was spectacular from our room at night,

as was the view out to the left during the day. There were even sea planes taking off every now and then.

After a city tour of Vancouver (and Stanley Park) our last stop was beautiful Queen Elizabeth Park, where we had dinner at a restaurant called Seasons with a fabulous view over the city.....Then it was time to board a train for an overnight  to Jasper in the middle of The Jasper National Park.

This was not the fancy Rocky Mountaineer, but a Canadian train probably built in the 1950's....I had visions of  Marilyn Monroe in the movie River of No Return. Above was our sleeping room.

This being on the other wall... There was also a very small toilet room...The shower being down the hall.

It wasn't so bad after all. The dining room was very cheerful where they served plentiful and delicious meals. We did have to walk through several other train cars to reach this destination though.

There was also a dome car near the dining car. As you can see the weather went downhill as we headed east from British Columbia to Alberta.

This was another dome car, that they referred to as the panorama car, but it was even a longer walk.

Did I enjoy the overnight on the train. YES I did! I would not want to stay on the the whole way across Canada, but an over night was fun....I could hear the couple in the next cabin (some of our friends) laughing hysterically ...seems they both kept bumping their heads on the beds.I hung my curling iron near the sink when I was getting ready...and backed into it twice.

Oh, I forgot to show you what the room looked like with the beds down. Actually the bunks were very comfortable. We arrived Jasper the next afternoon.....I will return and tell you about Jasper...where the sun made an appearance for the rest of the beautiful  week!

Lodging

Even though we are back in Texas, Tom keeps getting pictures from his Hiking group. I think the pictures are interesting, so I will pass them along.

You may click on any picture to enlarge

This picture was taken on a hike while Tom was still there. I am always amazed at the beauty of an Aspen Forest.

 This is a picture of one of the two Yurts we have in our county there (high in the mountains). Hikers or skiers can reserve a bed to sleep here for as little as $20.00 a night.

 Part of the hiking group stopped in to have a look.It is rather crude, but has the necessities. There are cots for sleeping, a stove for cooking, a sink, table for eating and a wood stove for heat. I am thinking it would be a welcome sight on a cold night.

I am going offline for a couple of weeks....will have pictures when I return, and will visit your blogs to let you know that I am back. Janey

The Wood

Tom and I were sitting in a coffee shop having a conversation. I  wasn't paying any attention to the wainscoting (wood decorating the lower part of the wall).....

that is until this message stamped on the wall caught my eye.

Only then did I notice all of the scuff marks on the wood. Kind of nice being surrounded by wood that has known such joy. Okay, this sounds corny, but I could almost image people dancing all around us.Tom inquired what I was doing when I stopped on the way out to take a picture of the wall. He should know by now that I will pull my camera out for anything I find interesting!!

Hobbies

I was going to ask all of you what your hobbies are, but I venture to guess most of you would say photography and blogging. 

I saw this old car on a trailer around the corner from me today. So, I think someone must  enjoy restoring old cars. My guess is that it is a very costly hobby. I have no idea what year or type of car this is. Maybe someone else knows? I would  love to see it when it is finished.....or ride in it, which would be even better!

The Big Hike

Hello from Texas. We made it home today, arriving with mixed feelings. Love where we live in the winter (Fort Worth, Texas), but will miss our Colorado home and sweet little mountain town where we spend five months out of the year. Before I switch gears on you, I simply must tell you about my Tom's hiking club.

You see, Tom is one of the organizers of a weekly hiking group in the summer. The club is made up of both men and women, but I am not a regular. I only made  it on the first hike this summer.The regulars are pictured here on the biggest and longest hike of the season....put together by my Tom. In this picture they had just been dropped off by a shuttle service operated by a sports store in town. They are about to hike parts of the Colorado Trail starting at about 12,000 feet high in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado

They headed out with Tom leading the way on what at first seemed like a easy level walk

but pretty soon...there was a lot of up! Notice anything?

Yes, that is a snow field in the shape of a heart in the distance

They came across three moose along the way, including this young bull moose,

and some interesting formations, like the above that they refer to as The Clay Pots.

Finally they arrive at the high mountain lake that was their destination

and four miles further they arrive at the Falls. It has been seven strenuous miles to get here, and then another five miles down to where they had left vehicles to drive back into town. The hike ended up being 12 treacherous miles....It was not exactly what my Tom had remembered. He did admit that he was much younger when he did this hike the first time...like 21 years younger!!Everyone did finish (you don't have a lot of choice). ....and they have all recovered. Hopefully  in the future it will become a fond memory.

If you are ever in Lake City you are welcome to join the hiking club on a hike (hopefully and easier one :)

Sorry...I do not know who to give credit to for all of these wonderful pictures documenting the hike.

Packing

I know that I have been neglecting my Blog lately, but we are departing for Texas earlier this year...so I am busy packing. I will return...and hope that you will too. Janey

Scratch scratch

The following is an article in our weekly newspaper, about a scary encounter.

A local woman always lets her cat out of the  window beside her bed when he scratches on it during the night....which she did one night this week. Hearing him scratching on his return, she opened the open to gather him up and help him back inside.

It is not unusual for her to do this when she is only half awake, which is why she didn't notice that it wasn't her cat....that is until she wrapped her arms around a bear estimated to be 250 lbs! Luckily she was able to slam the window before she was injured. Yes, I will have to inquire about the whereabouts of the cat....