Showing posts with label 2020 Spring. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2020 Spring. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Going Home

There was no breakfast at the hotel. Not even coffee. Unlike any other place we had stayed in the last 10 nights, this place was packed and I'm assuming there were a lot of hungry people.

Remember that cooler we were toting around back in Dallas on the way to retrieve our rental car? That thing rocks! We actually had a nice amount of food with us the whole way and everything was nicely chilled. And we have this little food warmer for our car, so we were able to have hot meals on the road...you just had to plan ahead because it takes 2-3 hours to "cook" a frozen meal.

As for our trip home...the Governor had closed everything down the previous day, so things were pretty quiet. Even the wind wasn't blowing in the Columbia Gorge.

Notice the flat water of the Columbia River.
We had left our hotel and were determined that we would not stop or be around any people until we got home...so we found this facility in The Dalles.

Great riverside location.
The drive through Portland was uneventful aside from a heavy rainstorm and a LOT of semi-trucks. The closer we got to Eugene, the fewer cars were on the road.


Our intended vacation was a civil rights tour of the south but we ended up on an unintended road trip across America. Why did we go? At the time, things were worse in Oregon than they were in the south. How bad could it be? 

The night before we left.

We watched the New York Time's Coronavirus in the U.S.: Latest Map and Case Count and routed ourselves home as safely as possible. If we had to drive through an infected region, we kept on driving — gas and food were obtained 100 miles out, just to be on the safe side.

The day after we returned.

We got to see how different people in many different places reacted to a pandemic. A couple of reflections on this...In Arkansas, we saw a total disregard for others, at least in Hot Springs. As we drove north, we were mainly in small, uncrowded towns. People were polite and it was easy to navigate if you needed groceries. 

When we got to Ogden, and again our only stop was at the botanical garden, people were everywhere and paid absolutely no attention. Maybe that's what you get when too many people living together in a large urban area. Who knows. I just know that it wasn't comfortable.

Would we do it again? Probably not. 

Did we enjoy our trip? Absolutely. 

Did was see awesome things? For sure.

Were we glad to get home? YES! 

Ordered to stay home by the governor...no problem!

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Location: Eugene, OR, USA

Monday, March 23, 2020

Botanics @ the Pen

Next stop: Idaho Botanical Garden located adjacent to the old penitentiary. Now these people know how to do a pandemic the right way! We had called ahead to verify that they were open and could use our Mt. Pisgah Arboretum membership card for reciprocal entry. When we arrived, the kiosk was gated off to ensure safety of the ticket taker. She just had us show our card from afar and off we went.

Oh, and first stop was the bathroom...they had a stand of paper towels out front so that you could use one to open the door. So thoughtful!

The arboretum was AMAZING. It was very large with a variety of art pieces. We took the self-guided tour of the Garden’s features and sculptures and listened to information at each stop using their online site, idgarden.oncell.com.

Sculpture made of found items.
Tree made of scrap lumber.
We were on the last leg of our trip and had planned to drive home via Burns, Oregon. As we were getting ready to leave Boise, a friend texted us that a storm was due to hit the Cascades. Ugh. We were in a rental car, had no chains, and did not want to take any chances when it came to snow and ice. Our trip was rerouted and we headed off to Pendleton, Oregon for our last night on the road.

A walk along the Umatilla River
The Governor had just closed all parks.

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Location: Idaho Botanical Garden, 2355 N Old Penitentiary Rd, Boise, ID 83712, USA

Sunday, March 22, 2020

Don't Step In It...

This is what we saw in state after state...

CORONOVIRUS
GET THE REAL FACTS
HEALTH.WYO.GOV
Interesting that they included "REAL" in the wording...I suppose were were driving through red states, so maybe there are more people who believe that Covid-19 is hoax. Who knows.

Anyhow...as you can see, we had some great skies and very empty highways.


Being on a cross-country arboretum tour, we were headed for a quick stop to see the Ogden Botanical Gardens. So far, all of the other gardens we had stopped at were relatively quiet and had lots of space for maneuvering around the Covid-19 disbelievers. Well...this was a tiny arboretum and it was nice, but it was right near the river path, so we thought we would take a walk. OH MY GOODNESS. Given that the path was not wide enough for the proper 6' of space between people, we kept moving onto the grass. I've never seen that much dog poop in my life. I don't think that anyone picked up after their dog! Note to self...no more visits to Ogden. Sigh.

And we were off, headed to Twin Falls, Idaho for the night. It had been both an great adventure and a very stressful trip: sanitizing rooms, finding restrooms along our route, avoiding people in nature. That was all about to change...

We have stayed in many different places, but I do believe that Artdoorsy UnCommons in Twin Falls is our all-time favorite Airbnb. Every single detail has been attended to...when we arrived, the outdoor fire pit was lit and soft flute music was playing in the background. What a lovely welcome...all of our stresses just melted away. 

The Artdoorsy UnCommons
The other thing that we really enjoyed about our stay was the design and layout of the space. We felt like we could just stay there looking at everything for a couple of days. And the donuts...wow.


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Location: Ogden Botanical Gardens, 1750 Monroe Blvd, Ogden, UT 84401, USA

Saturday, March 21, 2020

80 on the 80

It was a new day and time to move on...we gathered our belongings and made our to the highway. Blue skies and COLD summed it up.

We were on route to Rawlins, Wyoming with a single planned stop in Cheyenne to see the arboretum. I think that most of the plants were indoors, so we didn't get to see that portion, but the arboretum was next to a huge park, so we were able to take an extensive walk with a number of other people.

There was no problem keeping our 6' distance. The only disappointment was that all of the bathrooms were locked up.
Boots were all over town.
Rabbit Sculptures



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Location: Cheyenne Botanic Gardens, 710 S Lions Park Dr, Cheyenne, WY 82001, USA

Friday, March 20, 2020

Dr. Deb

We had enjoyed the tiny house and all of its amenities, but it was time to move on. I noticed a really dry patch on my face, which was odd and Therese had gone to bed not feeling well. She woke up with a good case of congestion. As the morning progressed, she felt worse and worse. I kept asking, do you have a fever? Do you have sore throat? No. Just congestion.

We headed north. Temps were nice, hitting 75 degrees in north central Kansas, and we were loving the fresh air streaming through the windows.

We passed Minneapolis, Kansas which according to the sign was the home of George W. Carver...he had gone to high school there.

We drove some more. And then, we weren't in Kansas anymore.

And the temperatures were dropping...in fact, they dropped about 40 degrees in an hour!


North Platte was to be our home for the next two nights. Therese really needed to rest and there was a BLIZZARD that shut down I-80. We checked into the Holiday Inn Express, which was one exit away from the gate that was closed across the interstate. Oh, and there would be no hot breakfast.


The next day, we woke up to about 15 degrees. It was cold, but after lunch I headed out for a trip to the park and some Geocaching. Or at least photo caching because I was not touching a container much less signing a log. Can you see the caches in these photos? Look carefully.

Remember the Halt spray from Amazon that was waiting for us in Dallas? That stuff, or just the threat of it, is pretty great. Seeing a pitbull type of dog charging me, I pulled out the spray and pointed at the dog. Turns out, someone was "running" their dog while driving their car through the park and when they saw what I was going to do, they got their dog under control. Great stuff.

I arrived back at the hotel and talked to Therese about that dry patch on my face. It was now hot and inflamed and was the size of a silver dollar. It did not look good and it was Friday at 4pm in a small town in Nebraska where there had been no reported cases of Covid-19. This was my chance to see a doctor! 

Fortunately for me, Dr. Deb was in. Before she or the receptionist could get within 6' of me, I was clear about where I had travelled just to ensure that they were aware of any potential exposure. Dr. Deb was not too concerned and finally asked if I'd like her to wear a mask. Well, yes. I would feel terrible if I was the one who brought this virus to North Platte. She obliged somewhat grudgingly it seemed, took a look and said infection due to insect bite and prescribed antibiotics. Phew. Across the street to the Depot Drug Store I went for my prescription -- the door was locked and they came outside to serve you, where I waited with an old farmer for service.


Let the healing begin!

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Location: Cody Park, 1601 N Jeffers St, North Platte, NE 69101, USA

Wednesday, March 18, 2020

In Search of...

Well, I had a great night of sleep in that stone cabin...according to Therese, there was a violent wind and rain storm during the night, complete with thunder and lightening! Good thing that cabin was made of stone.

After a leisurely morning, we made our way toward our destination for the night, Hesston, Kansas. It was a beautiful drive, and we were trying our best to stay hydrated...which meant that we needed several bathroom breaks along the way. By now, we had been gone from home for four days and Covid-19 had gotten a lot worse. The breakout maps were showing that our route was basically untouched, but we were NOT going to take any unnecessary chances, meaning no gas station bathrooms. We found this blue bad boy in Shawnee, Oklahoma and although the Sonic was open, we were having no part of it!

Why use an indoor bathroom in a building full of people
when you can use a random portapot?
Another place we found was this awesome park in Pona City, Oklahoma. Great bathrooms (with soap!) and fine walking trails. It was a gorgeous day with temps in the 70s.

Loved the water options!
Getting hot out here!
Kansas, with its wide-open views, is also home to cotton fields and lovely warm temperatures.

We pulled into "The Shed," our Airbnb around 4pm. It was an adorable tiny house that had everything in it that one could possibly want...including ice cold beverages.
The Shed

Arboretum
After getting settled, we heated up some soup and had a nice dinner before walking over to the Dyck Arboretum of the Plains.

The arboretum was small, but lovely, and there were a few locals out walking in the early evening.

Funny thing about our Airbnb...turns out our hostess was originally from Oregon and her family knows the family of one of my colleagues. Funny how small the world can be!




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Location: Dyck Arboretum of the Plains, 177 W Hickory St, Hesston, KS 67062, USA

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

It's All OK


Well, we had made it to Hot Springs NP and before we left, we made sure that we got a few miles in on the trail. The morning was warm and we saw maybe a couple of other hikers. But we mostly had the park to ourselves.

Knowing that we were re-routing our trip, we decided to make the best of it...here is what we decided:
  1. Look for arboretums. A good chance to stretch and people can easily be avoided.
  2. Avoid going into any public buildings. We had all the food we needed and gas could be obtained without human contact.
  3. Sanitize everything. When we arrived for the night, I'd go in and spray down all of the surfaces, open the doors/windows, and let my CDC-specified bleach solution do its job.
  4. Eat in. Make sure that everywhere we stayed had a microwave or more so that we could make our meals.
  5. Pee safely. Figure out how to use public restrooms without other people around. 
  6. Choose a safe route. Take the route home that is least affected by Covid-19 and no stopping in communities with outbreaks.
  7. Find interesting places to stay (if possible). 
  8. Have fun on the adventure.
We found a state park in Oklahoma that had cabins complete with bedding and towels. Score! That would be home for the night. But first a trip to the arboretum, Garvan Woodland Gardens in Hot Springs. This place was magical and is the result of the collision between a college of architecture and an arboretum. The paths and bridges were absolutely amazing. We especially liked the fairy garden and the super cool treehouse!

Leaving the arboretum, we took back roads and two-lane highways to Oklahoma's Greenleaf State Park. Our cabin was rustic on the outside and made of stone.


On the inside, it was warm and cozy, complete with television, kitchen, bathroom and THE most AMAZING bath towels ever!


I was a little curious about the lard container on the stove...we also encountered a GIANT wasp in the cupboard! Dinner was sweet potato, carrot and tofu curry and a salad...yummy!

There were quite a few RVs and most of the other cabins were in use. The small lake seemed to be the draw, as many people were fishing or had boats. But, being a fishing lake meant that it was a pretty quiet group. We walked the park, enjoyed seeing the little floating bar/tackle shop and made our way back to our cabin for a good night of sleep.


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Location: Garvan Woodland Gardens, 550 Arkridge Rd, Hot Springs, AR 71913, USA

Monday, March 16, 2020

Hoping for Diamonds

I think if I had to sum up the trip so far with regards to Covid-19, I would say stressful. We were stressed to be near people, we were stressed to touch anything, and we washed our hands constantly.

But here we were, in Hope, Arkansas at the NPS Boyhood Home of Bill Clinton. We were the only people there; a volunteer took us into the house and we were clear that we did not want him near us. It worked. We watched a video in which Clinton spoke about his childhood, how his grandparents treated people, how if you wanted to be a good storyteller, you had to be a good listener, about how caring for people was the right thing to do.

Clinton's Grandma made him count his numbers every morning. They are clipped on the curtain.

We purchased the obligatory coffee mug and headed off to find some diamonds at Crater of Diamonds State Park in Murfreesboro.


Inside the visitor center, we asked how much it was and told the lady we would set the money on the counter. We don't want to be in her space.

Apparently, everyone else thought that it was a good day to hunt for diamonds as well - after all, it had just rained making surface searches easy. We bought some gloves and a small trowel and headed out into the mud!

And there was a LOT of mud. Plenty of space to avoid people...especially when you walked WAY out to where it was so muddy that your feet got sucked down into the mud a good 6." Fortunately, they had an excellent cleanup area and high pressure hoses!
What else do people do when they need to stay 6 ft away from each other?
Why they did for diamonds of course!
So far, even though the germ aspect of the trip had us freaked out, we were still able to navigate people without a lot of concern. That was about to change.

We were headed to Hot Springs National Park and were staying at a really old hotel called the Park Hotel. It was old (some would say historic). It was off the main street, there wasn't anyone around and in fact, I'm not sure if there were even any other guests...we didn't see any. Our room was plain and heated with an old time ceramic heater. The window looked out onto the one way loop road that wound through the park; being up on the 3rd floor, we had a nice park view. 

It was still early, so we headed off for a walk to the Hot Spring National Park Visitor Center. Once we got off the path and onto the sidewalk, we were astounded at how many people would get right up close if you were not careful. We were constantly asking people to give us space. Finally, I just decided to tell folks I'd just come from SFO and that I wanted to give them space so that I didn't expose them to anything. That went over a little better.

Once in the visitor center, the park ranger told us that all tours were cancelled for the following morning due to the new 10-person group limits. She handed us a self guided tour map and we walked through a portion of the Fordyce Bath House -- we skipped the upper and lower levels -- too many people on the stairs. At that point, we took a long walk down a side street to figure out our course of action. This was the first place where we had really encountered people who had no idea of what they were in for given their behavior. We called the rental car place and decided that afternoon that we would be re-routing our trip and instead of touring the south and then flying home, we would be taking a road trip across America.

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Day 1: Coffee & Robots!
Day 4: It's All OK
Day 6/7: Dr. Deb
Day 8: 80 on the 80
Day 11: Going Home



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Location: Crater of Diamonds State Park, 209 State Park Rd, Murfreesboro, AR 71958, USA

Sunday, March 15, 2020

A Trip to Target

We greeted downtown Dallas with a walk down to THE grassy knoll before gathering our things and making our way to the train for a short ride to pick up our rental car.
Disclaimer: Here's how we roll...we plan for everything on our trip, so sometimes we have a strange assortment of things with us. For example we're going to have an overnight backpacking adventure, so we didn't bring suitcases. But we were renting a car, so we wanted cooler. ...and a couple of other things like lotion (hand washing 20 times = dry hands), Halt dog spray (just in case) and snacks. Amazon delivered.

Now we just had to get from our hotel, to the train station, and walk to Enterprise to get our car! The cooler by the way, is awesome (no ice needed). We made a run to Trader Joe's for groceries and then headed off to the Dallas Arboretum.


WOW.

Spectacular.

Walking the trails, we saw people, but we were able to maintain a safe distance. The most unique thing about the arboretum were the musical instruments that they had created with succulents. We loved the giant toad sculptures!

Succulents
Our Airbnb host in Texarkana cancelled on us a few days before (he sold his house?) and we ended up at the Residence Inn (we loved the Dallas one so much, we thought why not?). The MOST beautiful thing about it was that there was a Target just across the parking lot. It was early evening and the lot was fairly empty, so we headed in for some essentials.

Dealing with Celiac, we prepare our own meals, so some paper plates, etc were in order for this trip. We also knew that we had to find cleaning supplies because we were almost out of wipes.

The young lady at Target was so helpful and had suggested that maybe we would want bleach since they didn't have any of your typical cleaning products. Did we luck out or what...we found the second to last bottle of bleach, the last package of cleaning clothes, rubber gloves and a spray bottle.

When another lady saw my bleach in hand, she asked were I had found it; I pointed it out and said it was the last one...she blessed me and happily made a dash over to make the grab.

CDC says: 1.5 teaspoons bleach to 12 oz. water.

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Location: The Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden, 8525 Garland Rd, Dallas, TX 75218, USA
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