I have wanted to visit Mt. Rushmore for many, many years, but the opportunity never presented itself.  I was so excited that I woke up early; I mean really early.  I'm like a kid on Christmas morning.  Gene got up early as well and we walked to the local “Our Place...

Our drives each day have been filled with beautiful landscapes and mostly mountain views. We are now about to head through eastern Wyoming where the population is sparse and there is a quiet beauty to the landscape (as long as you don’t have to cross it in a covered...

 We get ready to leave the hotel for our trip south to Buffalo, WY when I ask Gene what the plan for the day is.  “I want to stop at Little Big Horn Battlefield if you don’t mind,” he says.  Of course I don’t mind.  I know about Custer and Little Big Horn – some.  ...

We followed the Yellowstone River all the way to Billings, MT and appreciated the mountain views to the south and plains to the north.  We made a last minute decision to take a side trip to Bozeman because we had the time and the highway speed was 80 mph, so as Gene...

After our last night at the Dude Ranch and a hearty breakfast, we start our day with a plan.  We will go to Yellowstone when it opens and head straight to the bison herd and waterfalls before the crowds get big.  We know we have to run the “bear dinning gauntlet”...

Second day at the Dude ranch and I’m still calling Gene Dude.  He is mildly amused.  Just mildly. But he didn’t hide the bear spray, so I think he still has my back. We started our day with a “Legendary hearty biscuits and sausage” breakfast and coffee at 7 a.m.  We...

Several years ago, I met a wonderful woman named Trudie.  She learned that I was going to start treatment for breast cancer and she offered to help me in any way she could.  Unlike many offers of help people made, she meant it.  She contacted me several weeks into...

Day 2.  Casper to Cody, WY We took the opportunity to take a two mile walk on the Platte River Parkway trail, (oddly enough along the Platte River) through Casper, and enjoyed the cool morning and crisp air.  It was a bit of a climb in some places, but it was paved...

Gene and I have been trying to get to Montana for about five years now, and something always comes up and we put it off for another year.  This year, he had a meeting scheduled in Colorado Springs and I suggested we spend a couple of weeks with Steven, then head north...

I don’t know about the rest of you, but the first time I wore a mask into the grocery store, I felt like a bank robber. I remember looking around and watching people do a double take when they saw me, and feeling uncomfortable. To make matters worse, Gene sat out in...