Friday Harbor, WA to Houston, TX

 Location:  Houston, TX

We stayed in Friday Harbor, WA until May 19 when we started our road trip to Houston, Texas.  The map below shows our route and our stops.

Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada

January 12 - May 19, 2023, Friday Harbor, WA:  We covered most of our stay in Friday Harbor in the last blog.  After my mom, Louise, left mid-April, we continued to enjoy our stay on San Juan Island.  Bodhi and Bijoux, the two cats we were taking care of, kept us entertained.  We kept up with our daily hikes and I continued my volunteer time at the local animal shelter.  The weather changed from winter to spring and we spent a lot of time outdoors enjoying the sunshine and the spring flowers.

Bijoux enjoying the spring weather.
Up a tree near the porch.  Selecting swiss chard.
Helping us pack the truck.  Up a tree in the garden.

Bodhi being his adventurous self.
Helping us pack the  truck - Don't forget me!  Packed in a box.
Chasing the geese near the pond.  Preparing the garden for planting.

Highlights from some of our hikes

A fox on the Mt. Finlayson Trail.  
We stood quietly and she finally went around us and back onto the trail. 

Flowers around the property at Willow Pond

Late April we took the ferry to Anacortes and spent a day on Seabiscuit with Bill and Deb, the new owners.  We started with a few hours dockside at Cap Sante Marina, then went over to the pump out dock and to the fuel dock.  We finished the day with a short cruise around Fidalgo Bay, then took the ferry back to Friday Harbor.  Bill moved Seabiscuit from Anacortes to Portland, OR mid-May and is planning to do the Baja Ha Ha in November.

Deb on Seabiscuit's stern.  Bill and Dave in the pilot house as we leave the slip.
Coming back into Cap Sante Marina after a cruise around Fidalgo Bay.

Friday, May 19, 2023 - Friday Harbor, WA, USA to Penticton, BC, Canada (306 miles, 492 km):  We caught the 8:05 ferry from Friday Harbor to Anacortes.  Dave drove our pick-up and I drove June's van.  We met at a hotel near the Bellingham airport to drop off June's van so that it would be there when she and David flew home from Mexico.  We crossed the US Canada border south of Abbotsford, BC.  The route from there to Penticton, through the EC Manning Provincial Park, was a beautiful drive - lots of winding  mountain roads through the forests and along the rivers.

We arrived in Penticton early evening and stayed in a hotel overnight.  Saturday morning, we met up with Madri and Chris and their three Jack Russell Terriers: Spud (dad), Milo (mom) and Magnum (son).  Madri and Chris were headed into the mountains for three days of camping while we watched their dogs.  

We spent three days exploring Penticton including the downtown Farmers Market, the waterfront on Okanagan Lake, several local restaurants and pubs and the Kettle Valley Rail Trail.  

Spud and Milo with Dave.  Magnum on his dog bed.
The view of the Penticton marina from the Kettle Valley Rail Trail.

Monday, May 22, 2023 - Penticton, BC to Kelowna, BC (40 miles, 62 km): It rained most of the day on Monday.  Madri and Chris got home mid-morning and we headed north to Kelowna.  We stopped and ate lunch at a restaurant on the lake front in Peachland and picked up some goodies at a bakery.  We drove into Kelowna mid-afternoon and checked into our hotel.

Tuesday morning we took a tour of the Naramata Bench Wineries on the east side of Okanagan Lake.  Our driver, John, picked us up at the hotel at 10:00 and we headed south towards Penticton for a day of wine tasting.  The first stop was Moraine Winery, a small family owned winery.  We sat outside on their patio over looking the lake and tasted a variety of wines.  We liked what we tasted and purchased a few bottles before heading to our next stop, Laughing Stock Vineyards.  The founders of Laughing Stock used to work in the financial industry and their wines are named using financial/Wall Street terms.  They used a unique blind tasting method for their wines.  We were given three different white wines to try without being influenced by knowing the type of grape varietal or blend involved.  After tasting, the host came over and we shared our thoughts with him.  Our favorite of the three whites was the Viognier.  We repeated the process with three red wines and enjoyed the Blind Trust red blend the most.  We purchased a few bottles and hopped into the van to go to our next stop.

After a morning of wine tasting, we were ready for some lunch.  John drove us to Poplar Grove.  We tasted a few wines and we each selected a favorite to enjoy with our lunch in their restaurant.  After lunch, we went to our fourth and final winery, Roche Wines.    They are another small, family winery, making wines in the "French tradition".  We did a wine tasting and bought a few bottles then got back into the van for the drive to Kelowna.  It was a wonderful way to spend a day.

A day touring the wineries of the Naramata Bench, Okanagan Valley, BC, Canada

Wednesday, May 24, 2023 - Kelowna, BC to Banff, AB (300 miles, 480 km):  Today we drove from Kelowna to Banff.  We ate lunch in Revelstoke and took a hike along the Kicking Horse River.  We stopped at Lake Louise for a hike to the end of the lake and back.  The last time we were here was +/- 25 years ago and it was more beautiful than we remembered.  After our hike, we drove into Banff and stayed at a hotel downtown.

Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada

Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada

Thursday morning, we went out for a walk along the Bow River which runs along the edge of the town of Banff.  We spent the afternoon and evening exploring the town and enjoying the refreshing mountain air.

The Bow River, Banff, Alberta, Canada

The Bow River, Banff, Alberta, Canada

Friday, May 26, 2023 - Banff, AB to Calgary, AB (80 miles, 127 km):  Today we drove from Banff to Calgary to visit our friend Gilbert for a couple of days.  We went to a small cafe to have western sandwiches for lunch.  Dave and Gilbert worked in Newfoundland together many years ago and enjoyed many western sandwiches while they were there.  After lunch, we went to Bowness Park and walked along the Bow River.  We spent the rest of the afternoon visiting with friends then grabbed a bite to eat before going to our hotel for the night.

Dave and Gilbert, Bowness Park, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

The Bow River, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Saturday, Gilbert drove us out to Drumheller and we spent the morning touring the Royal Tyrell Museum.  The museum has one of the most extensive displays of dinosaur bones in the world and it was fascinating to learn about prehistoric times in the Drumheller Valley and throughout Alberta and BC.

Dave and Gilbert inside the Royal Tyrell Museum 

Black Beauty skeleton of a tyrannosaurus rex

Looking out at the badlands in the Drumheller Valley

Looking down at the Royal Tyrell Museum.

After our museum visit, we drove to Pioneer Acres in Irricana to look at the old tractors and farm equipment.  Gilbert's friend, Jim, stores his John Deere Model B tractor there.   When we arrived, there was a tractor pull in progress so we stayed to watch.  There were some interesting old tractors in the competition including many John Deeres, a Minneapolis - Moline and an Oliver Cockshutt.  We stopped for an ice cream on the way back to Gilbert's, then called it a day.

Tractor pull in progress, Pioneer Acres, Irricana, Alberta, Canada

Gilbert and Dave at the tractor pull, Pioneer Acres, Irricana, Alberta, Canada

B and Dave at the tractor pull, Pioneer Acres, Irricana, Alberta, Canada

Sunday, May 28, 2023 - Calgary, AB, Canada to Great Falls, Montana, USA (316 miles, 509 km):  We left Calgary at 9:00 and headed south towards Montana.  We ate lunch in Lethbridge and crossed the US Canada border at Coutts, Alberta / Sweetgrass, Montana.  We arrived in Great Falls mid-afternoon, checked in our hotel and went for a walk along the Missouri River.

Sunset on the Missouri River, Great Falls, Montana, USA

Monday, May 29, 2023 - Great Falls, Montana to Sheridan, Wyoming (350 miles, 563 km):  We spent the day driving, mostly two lane roads, from Great Falls, MT to Sheridan, WY.  We saw lots of antelope along the way.  We stopped in Billings, MT for lunch and fuel.  We checked into our motel in Sheridan at 16:00.  They had a laundry so we washed a load of clothes.  We celebrated happy hour in our room and ate supper at a local Mexican restaurant.

Tuesday, May 30, 2023 - Sheridan, Wyoming to Hill City, South Dakota (285 miles, 459 km):  On the way out of Sheridan, we stopped at the Post Office to mail our passports in for renewal.  We drove Interstate 90 to Gillette where we stopped for lunch.  Everything along the way was beautiful and green and we saw a lot of antelope and deer.  From Gillette, we drove to Devil's Tower and hiked around the base of the rock formation.

Devil's Tower, Wyoming

Looking up at Devil's Tower from the walking path that circumnavigates the rock formation

Looking up at Devil's Tower from the walking path

We drove the scenic route from Devil's Tower to Hill City, South Dakota.  There were thunderstorms all around us and we got caught in a hail storm with quarter-size hail as we were driving between Spearfish and Deadwood.  It felt like we were in a tin can that someone was beating with a spoon.  The storm was moving quickly in the opposite direction of our travel so we were only in the storm for ~15 minutes.  We stayed the night in Hill City.

Wednesday, May 31, 2023 - Hill City, South Dakota to Wood, South Dakota (205 miles, 330 km):  We started our morning with a drive around the wildlife loop in Custer State Park in the Black Hills of South Dakota.  We saw lots of buffalo, prairie dogs, birds and the "begging burros" - a pack of wild donkeys that like to beg for food. 

Buffalo on the Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park

The begging burros

Red winged black bird (top) and meadowlark (bottom)

We drove up the gravel road to the Mount Coolidge Lookout Tower.  It was built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC).  At an elevation of 6023 feet, the views of the  surrounding mountains are stunning.

View from the lookout at the top of Mount Coolidge.

We ate lunch at a campground visitor center, then drove through the southwestern corner of the Badlands to Wood.  

The South Dakota Badlands

We arrived in Wood late afternoon and went out to "Poverty Flats" to visit with my Uncle George.  We went to the local bar, Karla's Last Kall, for supper.  Karla's place includes a bar and grill, small motel, hunting lodge and a cabin.  We stayed in her cabin.

Poverty Flats - the farm in Wood, SD where my Uncle George lives. 
This is the farm where my mom grew up.

Thursday morning we met up with Uncle George, Karla, Charlie and a few others for a cup of coffee before going to work.  Uncle George had a few projects he needed help with and we were happy to oblige.  The first project was to check the wooden fence posts around the farm to make sure none of them were rotten.  The folks with the adjoining property raise buffalo and the buffalo and their calves watched us closely as we drove around the farm.  We stopped to fill up a watering trough for the cattle in the pasture and went to look at a prairie dog town.

Hard at work checking fence posts.  Uncle George drove us along the fence line and Dave tapped each wooden post with his stick.  If the post was rotten, I sprayed it with orange spray paint so Uncle George would know which ones needed to be replaced. 
We refastened some barbed wire (bottom left) and filled a watering trough (bottom right).

Buffalo on the adjoining property.

After laboring all morning, Uncle George took us to White River for lunch at the cafe.  Our afternoon project was to get the skid-steer running so that it could be moved from the field back to the house.  Dave and Uncle George removed the fuel filters then went into town to find replacements.  Since Uncle George knows everyone in town, they were able to find something that would work.  An afternoon thunderstorm moved in while they were in town, and they finished their project out in the rain.  We went to Karla's for supper and had a good chat out near the firepit on the front porch.

Dave and Uncle George working on the skid steer.

Friday, June 2, 2023 - Wood, SD to Oakley, KS (352 miles, 563 km):  We had coffee at Karla's and said our goodbyes.  A quick stop at the Wood cemetery to pay our respects to my Uncle Kiki who passed away in November 2022 and to visit my grandparents' grave site.  From there we drove south through Nebraska and into Kansas.  We stopped in Oakley, Kansas for the night.

My grandparents' gravesite (top) and my Uncle Kiki and Aunt Monica's gravesite (bottom)

Saturday, June 3, 2023 - Oakley, KS to Woodward, OK (252 miles, 405 km):  It was raining this morning when we left Oakley.  We headed south to Dodge City, Kansas where we were hoping to meet up with Marshall Dillon and Miss Kitty.  At the Boot Hill Museum we wandered through the historical exhibits, walked up to the Boot Hill Cemetery, peeked inside the old original jail and walked through the replicas of the old downtown businesses.

Pictures from the Boot Hill Museum
The replica of the old town including the Long Branch Saloon; The Welcome Sign to the Boot Hill Cemetery and a description of the Winchester 1873 rifle.  At the bottom of the Winchester description is the explanation of why a shot of whiskey is called "a shot".

After spending a few hours in the museum, we hopped back in the truck and drove ~100 miles south to Woodward, OK where we stayed the night.

Sunday, June 4, 2023 - Woodward, OK to Mineral Wells, TX (300 miles, 483 km):  We kept to the back roads and drove south to Mineral Wells, TX for the night.

Monday, June 5, 2023 - Mineral Wells, TX to Weatherford, TX (15 miles, 24 km):  Today we started a pet sit in Weatherford, TX.  We checked out of our hotel, stopped for a few groceries and drove out into the country near Weatherford.  We arrived ~10:00, met Brownie and Pixie, the two mini-Aussies we would be taking care of, plus Banjo and Balti, two Great Pyrenees.  We were given a tour of the property, shown where the food was for the two barn cats and shown the pasture with the five horses.  We settled in for a three day stay and enjoyed the country and the animals.

Brownie and Pixie in the yard and in the house.
Dave with Banjo and Balti; Pixie; Brownie.

Thursday, June 8, 2023 - Weatherford, TX to Austin, TX (219 miles, 352 km):  We packed up our stuff this morning, said goodbye to Brownie and Pixie and headed south to Austin.  We stayed in Austin for 2-1/2 weeks, visiting with family, pet sitting and working on a few projects.

One of our major projects.  We moved all of our worldly goods from one storage unit to another.  The old storage place kept raising our monthly rate.  We found a new climate controlled unit for half the price.

Fun times with the grandkids
Ben with Oreo; Maggie
Maggie on the trombone and Ben on the guitar; Archie on the ukulele

Another project - we replaced the seals and bearings on the left rear trailer hub.

Our Austin pet sit - Oreo (the dog) and Zoey (the cat)

Austin Chores - B repacking suitcases and Dave mowing the lawn

A day on Lake Travis
Cat and Archie; Maggie
Ben; Ben, Heather and Dave

Monday, June 26, 2023 - Austin, TX to Houston, TX (170 miles, 274 km):  We finished up our pet sit with Oreo and Zoey on Sunday and moved to a hotel on the east side of Austin so that we could avoid the Monday morning traffic.  Monday morning, we left Austin and had a leisurely drive to Houston.  We stopped at Hruska's in Elgin for lunch, wandered around the Katy Mills Mall, stopped to pick up our mail, hung out at the library and went to the dentist for a check-up.  Early evening, we drove into the EADO (East of Downtown) neighborhood to start our next pet sit with Davey and Faust.

Davey (the dog) and Faust (the cat)

We're here in the Houston area until mid-July.

Until next time...