Bob and Jane's Excellent Adventure

~ Retirement on the Road

Bob and Jane's Excellent Adventure

Monthly Archives: May 2021

The Oregon Trail: Hendrickson Style

27 Thursday May 2021

Posted by Jane R Hendrickson in Travel

≈ 1 Comment

Since we began our travels seven years ago, we’ve rarely taken the most direct route. Instead we tend to see what there is to see between where we are and where we are heading and then zigzag among the sights! Ah, the luxury of having all the time in the world. We have reservations for the month of May in Portland followed by June in Seattle so our detour to Minnesota from southern New Mexico was going to add a few miles. Next question was what’s to see in between?

The landscape continues to change as we head north, leaving the desert and moving into the high country. New Mexico is a really interesting state. But for me, it would take some time getting used to all the open space. I think you’d have to be pretty self-sufficient to live here. Unless your home is in one of a few cities, you definitely can’t make a quick run to the store.

We had planned to spend a couple of days in Santa Fe and the surrounding area but then I read that high elevations increase demands on the heart. Doesn’t seem to be a smart decision to dawdle here given that our whole purpose of the Minnesota detour is to get Bob a pacemaker. So we made a quick trip through the downtown, enough to make us realize we definitely want to come back to experience more of this beautiful city and check out the historic mountain pueblos as well.

Leaving Santa Fe we continued our trek north. After driving through hundreds of miles of barren land we decided to make a stop in Trinidad, Colorado, an old mining town with a lot of history. In the early 20th century the owners of the coal mines made a lot of money and the town has many huge Victorian homes reflecting that wealth. But life wasn’t quite so good for the miners and in 1914 the horrific Ludlow Massacre was the result of the conflict between the two sides. https://www.britannica.com/event/Ludlow-Massacre There are several monuments honoring the minors including the iconic canary! The last local mine closed in 2012 but an Australian company was trying to buy the mine and reopen it in 2020. Then the pandemic hit so I’m not sure where it all stands today.

Just a couple hours beyond Trinidad we came to Colorado Springs, a pretty city, made all the more beautiful with Pikes Peak hanging as a backdrop. We spent a morning driving through the Garden of the Gods.

The altitude was still high but we figured we’d not be doing a lot of walking and only spending a few hours there. We’d visited several times but it never fails to impress. We were thrilled by all the bighorn sheep that came down to greet the park visitors!

From Colorado Springs we headed east and into the flat endless plains. Throughout the plains we were nearly blown off our feet whenever we stepped out of the car. No wonder there are so many windmills!

Next stop: Hays, Kansas, the home of Fort Hays State! Years ago Bob taught with a guy who went to Fort Hays State. We decided to check it out. We really enjoy murals we see in our travels. Hays has an interesting one that depicts the city’s past.

There are currently 13 presidential museums and libraries. We have sort of seen seven of them. I say sort of because while we visited Jimmy Carter’s Museum and Library in Atlanta last November, because of Covid we weren’t able to do more than tour the grounds. We also have visted Jerry Ford’s Museum in Grand Rapids, but he is the only president to have his library and museum in two different locations. And we have not been to his library in Ann Arbor.

President Eisenhower’s Museum and Library are located in Abilene, Kansas. So that became our next destination. Again, because of Covid we could only wander through the grounds. But in this case I thought it added to the provenance. It was a cool drizzly Sunday morning in this little town that pretty much defines itself as Eisenhower’s home. Trees and bushes were just beginning to blossom and the grounds are spread out among his childhood home, his library, several monuments and his burial site. With the exception of a lone security guard we were the only ones there.

The silence enhanced reflection on the world and how it evolved during Eisenhower’s lifetime: from his earliest years in Abilene during the late 1890s (less than a decade after Abilene was known as part of the “End of the Chisolm Trail,”) continuing through his years as commander of the expeditionary forces of the allied troops during World War II, on through the years when he was president of Columbia University, and continuing through the years when he was president of the United States and finally during his years of retirement on his farm in Gettysburg. I don’t think we’ve had many presidents whose greatest has been defined outside of the presidency, a few perhaps but not many. I definitely believe Eisenhower’s was. And the fact that the statue of him has him in his military dress suggests that perhaps others believe this to be true as well! I think about all the streets and boulevards we’ve seen in Europe named after him. Ah, but I digress!

Driving on to Manhattan Kansas, we stopped long enough to drive through the campus of Kansas State University. We were pleasantly surprised by this lovely campus. The grounds are hilly and nicely landscaped and definitely have the feel of a collegiate atmosphere.

Next stop: Kansas City. I’ve always thought it was strange that there is a Kansas City, Kansas, and Kansas City, Missouri, and that the larger city is in Missouri. But that’s the one I wanted to see. I had entered a list sights on Google maps so my phone could efficiently guide us on a half day tour of the city.
  • Claes Oldenburg’s, Shuttlecock at Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
  • Charlie Parker Memorial (Bird Lives) by Robert Graham
  • Abraham Lincoln and Tad by Lorenzo E Ghiglieri in downtown Kansas City, MO
  • Headless Men by Polish artist Magdelena Abakanowicz at Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
  • Kansas City Monarchs mural on Paseo YMCA building in Kansas City, MO
Kansas City Parking Garage Library Facade, Kansas City.

Those of you who know me and my connection to literacy will not be surprised when I say the library facade is my favorite. The books are each 25 feet tall and 9 feet wide. I thought it was a wonderful idea that they had community members and library patrons vote to decide which 22 book covers should be included! Again, Kansas City is a city I want to return to after things open up. Truly, had we not had a taste of it on our cross country odyssey I never would have considered it a destination!

We were nearing Minnesota but we still had one last place to visit. That was West Branch, Iowa, a tiny hamlet of 2,000 people that was the home of Herbert Hoover. Just like Abilene, Kansas, this is a town that totally identifies itself with its famous native son. In a much more modest fashion, but similar to Eisenhower’s complex, an area has been preserved in much the same way it was during Hoover’s time there. The graves of President Hoover and his wife are atop a hill that overlooks the town. I could remember seeing Hoover occasionally on TV when I was a child but couldn’t conjure up any memories of his wife. When I looked it up I realized that’s because she died before I was born. And he lived twenty years more, until 1964.

  • President Hoover’s childhood home
  • President Hoover’s Museum and Library
  • Graves of President Hoover and wife, Lou
  • Gravesite

After more than 1700 miles we reached Rochester, Minnesota. The weather had cooperated and while we had encountered a bit of rain, we’d not had anything horrendous. But it was cold! When it began to snow just a couple of hours south of Rochester, I realized how optimistic I had been when I chose to wear sandals that morning!

Bob had his preappointments at the clinic and then his surgery to get his pacemaker. I continue to be amazed by the Mayo Clinic. This quote of Dr. William Mayo, posted on one of the clinic walls, reflects the institution’s philosophy still today!

Bob’s surgery took a bit more than two hours but throughout his operation I received updated text messages. First he had gone into surgery. Then the surgery had begun. Next the pacemaker was inserted. The wires were being attached. It was really phenomenal. About 7 hours after we had arrived we were headed back to our hotel room. And the next morning at 9 am we had a meeting with a “technologist” who charted the data received from the pacemaker. We were told that there was an app we could download on his phone that would transmit the data back to his doctors periodically. He doesn’t need to return for three months. We were good to go. One catch, he can’t lift anything heavier than 5 pounds for 4 weeks nor can he drive for 10 days. As a result you’ll notice there are fewer pictures than usual for the remainder of Oregon Trail trip. It’s difficult to drive and take pictures at the same time! But Portland here we come!

Our reservation in Portland was scheduled to begin Monday, May 3. That gave us three full days and two half days of driving. We’ve have to travel about 450 miles a day; that seemed doable. We decided to follow I 90 which is the most direct way. This interstate roughly follows the path of the Oregon Trail. We’ve traveled to Seattle more times than we can count so there weren’t a lot of stops we planned to make along the way. But when we approached Badlands National Park we couldn’t just drive on! There’s a loop through the park that starts at one exit on I 90 and then about 35 miles later we met up with I 90 again at Wall Drug and yes, we made a stop there too, for an ice cream cone!

More than 30 years ago when we first visited the Badlands our oldest son commented that he thought the landscape looked like he envisioned walking on the moon. And I think of that whenever we return. Like so many other places we’ve visited, it’s hard to imagine what the pioneers must have thought when they first came upon this unusual landscape! Even today visitors are warned to watch out for rattlesnakes and stinging insects and not to get too close to wild animals noting that bison can run as fast as 30 mph. But the views are amazing and there were plenty of places to pull off and contemplate all that we were seeing.

Sights along the loop drive in Badlands National Park

I 90 across Minnesota, South Dakota, and cutting up through the corner of Wyoming and then into eastern Montana is pretty flat. We found Spotify to be a welcome addition to our travels across this barren countryside, and we chose western music to complement the scenery. We half expected a group of cattle rustlers to come riding in but with the exception of a few pheasants and a couple of pronghorn antelope, we didn’t come across any other wildlife, human or otherwise!

But the rest of Montana? This was worth the wait! Just as we approached Butte, the landscape began to change. This is where we met up with the Rockies! As we first glimpsed the mountains, we found ourselves, saying, “Wow! Look there! And there!” And the fact that the Rockies are snowcapped this time of year makes them all the more beautiful.

We continued across Montana passing through Bozeman and Butte and Missoula. And the scenery only got better. Crossing into Idaho we went over the Shoshone Pass at 4,725 feet that climbs through the Coeur d’Alene Mountains, part of the Bitterroot Range. Not only was the scenery magnificent but the 80 mph speed limit allowed us to make really good time.

We had planned on stopping in Spokane but it was still early so we drove on to Kennewick, Washington, and the Columbia River. Kennewick is the largest of the tri-cities of Paseo, Richland and Kennewick. Archeologists have found evidence that Native Americans have lived in this area for thousands of years. The population increased considerably in the 1940s when people moved here to work on the Manhatten Project. Richland is the location for the Hanford Site, part of the Department of Energy and in the middle 1960s the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (also part of the Department of Energy) was constructed in Richland and is now the major source of employment. Until we drove into Kennewick, we hadn’t realized how big a city it was!

On our final section of our drive we followed the Columbia River from Kennewick all the way to Portland.

Views along the Columbia River Gorge

As we continued down I 90, Mt. Hood came into view directly in front of us. I find the Cascades really interesting since they have so many iconic volcanoes lined up in a row from California nearly to the Canadian border: Mt Shasta, Mt Hood, Mt Saint Helens, Mt Rainer, Mt Baker!

We started our trek less than 40 miles from the Mexican border, traveled to the midwest and are now in Portland, Oregon, where we’re approximately 300 miles from the Canadian border. It’s been a journey of nearly 4,000 miles since we left Las Cruces less than two weeks ago. We’ve had fun, and we’ve seen a lot, but I have to admit, I have no desire to get in a car for a few days!

Our Portland home for the month of May

Las Cruces and Beyond

20 Thursday May 2021

Posted by Jane R Hendrickson in Travel

≈ 4 Comments

We’ve rented a condo for six weeks in the Old Mesilla, just on the outskirts of Las Cruces, New Mexico. The steps to the second floor are a major chore when unloading the car (and will be again when we pack up; this time without Patrick’s help!) but the view from the balconies is worth the effort. From one balcony we have a view of the courtyard and pool of the complex and from the other balcony we can see the mountains and watch the sun set. It feels very Mexican here. We hear lots of Spanish everywhere we go; signs are in both Spanish and English; radio stations are often in both languages and the food, oh the wonderful Mexican food! We are about 50 miles from the Mexican border. As an added bonus all the trees were beginning to bloom just as we arrived! What a great March surprise!

We’ve passed through New Mexico on several trips but never spent a lot of time here. I’ve always sort of lumped it together with Arizona even though I’ve been told the two are very different. I chose a location in southern New Mexico because the temperatures would be warm. But the first thing that hit me was the history…

I remember studying the Gadsen Purchase and The Treaty of Guadalupe in school but there’s something about actually seeing the markers in person that makes it all come to life. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hildalgo ended the Mexican American War but left the possession of the Messilla Valley in question. The Gadsen Purchase, signed in 1854, resulted in the US paying Mexico ten million dollars for more than 29,000 square miles of what today is part of Arizona and New Mexico. Even after the treaty was signed, tensions still existed as a result of differences in maps and surveys but the purchase did establish what today is still the border of the southwestern United States and Mexico.

We’re definitely not used to the desert climate. When we first arrived we were shocked to learn the humidity was seven per cent. We lather up with cream each day but still find that our skin often feels dry and itchy. We can’t figure out why the temperatures feel warmer than the same temperatures do in Michigan. For instance, it was 68 degrees one afternoon when I was sitting on the balcony reading, and I finally had to go inside because it was so hot. Perhaps it has to do with the direction of the sun? On the other hand, we often experience very windy conditions, sometimes making it feels downright wintry! On my birthday weekend we had planned on going north to Taos and Los Alamos, but the weather refused to cooperate and we decided we didn’t want to encounter the snow predicted for that area. So we chose to sightsee in Mesilla. It was really chilly here as well. But the upside was we didn’t have to face any crowds when we spent the afternoon in Mesilla Square wandering through shops. We stopped for a drink and a snack in a local hotel and opted, because of Covid, to sit in the courtyard. Thankfully, they had heaters above and next to tables making it tolerable.

We also drove out to Organ Mountains Desert Peak National Monument. So bleak but beautiful. The wind was so strong we could hardly get the car doors open! But we we stayed warm and toasty in the car. We got back to the apartment and enjoyed a birthday cake Stephen and Sadie and the kids had surpised me with! Yummy!

The Organ Mountains provide a beautiful backdrop to the city of Las Cruces. On one of our first weekends we decided to visit White Sands National Park. Patrick had been there once before while visiting a friend. But for Bob and me, who grew up familiar with huge sand dunes on the southern shore of Lake Michigan… well, we weren’t sure what to expect. It’s only about an hour’s drive from Las Cruces to the park across the mountains. It appeared, when we arrived, that a lot of other people thought this was a good outdoor activity as well.

At the gate of White Sands we were greeted with this sign. It was absolutely huge and the date made no sense to us. Why wouldn’t it be year round? Bob suggested perhaps Spring Breakers?

The line to get into the park went quickly and we found families hiking, picnicking, even sledding in the sand. It isn’t really what we think of as sand but gypsum. And it’s snow white. In fact it looks far more like snow than sand! There is one road that meanders through the park with lots of places to pull off. We walked out on a boardwalk for perhaps a quarter mile but I couldn’t get used to the idea that it was just dunes and more dunes. I kept expecting to see a body of water appear!

Pat decided it was time for him to head back to DC. One plus of the pandemic has been the opportunity to be able to spend time with at least a couple of our kids. First, back at the start, now more than a year ago, when Cary got stuck in the US for a couple of months. And for the past few months we’ve been able to enjoy Pat’s company as working remotely has provided him the opportunity to travel with us. Having extended periods of time with two of our adult kids has truly been a gift! We found that Patrick could get a direct flight from Phoenix and since it’s not like we have a busy social schedule, we decided we we’d make the 5 hour trek and that way, he’d be back in DC a few short hours after leaving us.

By staying off the interstate once again, we saw some great Arizona countryside. And even some saguaro cacti!

Since we are big Cubs fans and also grew up near Chicago we really wanted to see the Wrigley Mansion. There’s also a great view of the city of Phoenix from the climb up to the residence.

Finally, we made a stop at the Japanese Gardens but were interrupted by rain. We also encountered rain on our drive back to Mesilla the following day. It only rains about 43 days a year in this part of the country, and they count the precipitation if it measures as little as .01 inch. We found it disconcerting to read about the fire warnings repeatedly. It appears that if something caught fire it would be difficult to contain it, particularly with all the wind!



During our travels we often come upon some curious sites. The southwest is definitely the home of the chili pepper. So I guess we shouldn’t have been surprised to see a giant-sized chili in front of a local motel.

And then there are the things sold on the street corners:
We often pull off to the side of the road to read historical markers:

And the state license plate, doesn’t instill a lot of faith in the understanding of US geography by its citizens. Really? You have to add the country? No other state on any of our borders needs to!

Like many places we’ve visited Las Cruces has a local market. There’s not a lot available in March and April, a few handmade crafts and of course, the the ubiquitous chilis. What huge sacks! And I was amazed to see how the heat level of the chilis was marked on each. (We’ve learned that the Scoville Scale measures the heat or spiciness of chili peppers!)

But while we weren’t surprised with the presence of all the chilis we were astonished at the number of pecan groves we saw. They seem to be everywhere! We couldn’t help but wonder where all the water came from to irrigate them! According to the state of New Mexico website pecans are the number one commercial food crop in the state. More than 67 milion pounds of pecans (in the shell) are sent to market each year. The website says that’s more than the combined weight of 67 Boeing jumbo jets. And it accounts for nearly 41 million dollars in sales! Who knew? We always thought of Georgia as the pecan state!

Sometimes we find we just have to make a trip to check out locales with unusual names like Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. It seems in the 1950s Hot Springs became Truth or Consequences, as part of a publicity scheme to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the radio show, Truth or Consequences, hosted by Ralph Edwards. Evidently, Ralph Edwards, who was popular in days past, used to visit the town annually to celebrate the Truth or Consequences Fiesta. And while Edwards passed away many years ago, the Fiesta celebration continues to this day. It’s a town of only 6,000 and they definitely make the most of the name year round.

Wikipedia describes Truth or Consequences as a small resort town in New Mexico. That seemed like a stretch to us! The town has an ancient hot springs but the biggest draw is the dammed up resevoir on the Rio Grande where people come to boat and swim. We drove out to the resevoir and Elephant Butte Lake State Park. As we paid the fee to get into park, we asked about what to see in the area. We really stumped the guy. He didn’t seem to know how to respond. I guess all the residents don’t seem to think of their locale as a “resort” area.

When I think of the Rio Grande I think of the border between the United States and Mexico and frankly, I didn’t know much more about it than that. We were surprised to learn that its source is in western Colorado and it gets much of its water from the snow runoff of the San Juan Mountains. It flows through Las Cruces as well as being the source of the resevoir described above. I always picture the Rio Grande as providing a welcome respite from the hot sun in the arid desert areas of the southwest. In reality most of the places we met up with it, the river looked very little like that description and more like the picture below. And we were visiting in March and April not during the heat of the year. But I did read that southern New Mexico is affected by the North American Monsoon Season (NAMS) from June 30 – September 30. I had no idea there is a monsoon season in the United States!

We’ve spent quite a bit of time in the southwest over the past few years, southern California, Arizona, Texas and now New Mexico. We are often befuddled by the number of border security stations we encounter. No where along the northern borders have we seen anything that resembles that. As I’ve mentioned in previous blogs, I continue to be confused about their purpose. If it’s to prevent human trafficking that’s one thing, but it sure seems like the quick way the authorities do a visual scan as you pass through, that it’s more like profiling. And again as I’ve mentioned before, if I weren’t caucasian, I’d be really frightened.

We’ve had a wonderful six weeks in New Mexico. The weather has been great and we’ve had a lovely stay in a wonderful spacious condo. Our original plan was to head from here up the west coast of California ending up in Seattle for June but we’ve decided to take a detour. Bob has known for a while that he needs to get a pacemaker so we’re going to head from here to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, just a slight detour and then continue on our way west. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate as we make our way across the plains!

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