Golden Ears Park Hikes, Arizona and New Mexico, Another Spring Trip to the Rockies,
Diamond Head, Powell River and Vancouver Island, A Photography Road Trip in Washington State,
The Lake Lovely Water Hut, Whistler, The Rockies, Spain and Morocco

The next sight on our list was Canyon de Chelly National Monument just east of Chinle. We wanted to see "Spider Rock" in the eastern part of the area, then hike down into the canyon and see the "White House" made famous by Ansel Adams. Being lower now, it was an enjoyable warm walk down a well maintained trail.

The next day, we drove south and spent some time at the Petrified Forest National Park, then drove west and made a stop at Meteor Crater between Winslow and Flagstaff.

Chris Cooper, Bob Needham, and I made another trip to Canmore to enjoy the Canadian Rockies. I promptly hurt my back by picking up a pair of shoes in the motel room. So this is what it is like getting older! Either that or I need to do the exercises that the physio therapist later suggested.

We spent our first day around Lake Louise. Bob and Chris went up to the Lake Agnes Tea House and I hobbled around the Chateau Lake Louise. Another day Chris hiked up the trail to the top of Sulphur Mountain at Banff. Bob and I were welcomed at the Banff Springs Hotel to walk around and do photography. Really. I had never been inside before. Many of the rooms were wonderful bits of cultural history. I went away that this hotel is a great piece of Canadian history.

Chris and I made a couple of trips up to Diamond Head for skiing this winter, although the trips are getting noticeably few each year it seems. There was a lot of snow at the Red Heather shelter.

For some time I had been thinking that I should head up to visit my old haunts and friends in Powell River. I had started my teaching career in Powell River in 1971 and left in 1973 to go to Nepal. (Journal write up on my Nepal trip) I finally got in gear and packed up the CRV with camping and photography gear and caught a ferry. If people weren't home, they weren't home. My timing was impromptu and so I just wanted to take things as they came.

After briefly stopping in Powell River and James Thompson Elementary where I taught, I headed for Lund and a campsite. It poured that night but waiting out the rain nand lightning under an awning of "Nancy's" restaurant bakery proved fruitful. I ended up having good visits with my old room-mate Dave and his wife Leslie, and dropped in for brief visits on a number of people I knew from my teaching days but hadn't seen literally for decades. It was a hoot knocking on a door and seeing if they remembered me.

I then went over to Comox via the ferry and had a visit with my cousin John who I hadn't seen, you guessed it, for decades. I investigated the old mining town of Cumberland and the few remnants of its history. Perhaps the most interesting artifact was the Japanese/Chinese cemetery. I spent the night at a local motel and realized I could watch past episodes of "House" on my Global TV app on the iPad!

I then headed south to Parksville to camp for the night. A coffee at Starbucks, catching up on my email, and then a walk on the beach to discover driftwood constructions reminding me of what stranded sailors might build on barren Arctic beaches. Ok, it's a bit of a stretch. You had to be there. :-)

Chuck wanted to see the Grand Coulee Dam again, and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about in the Palouse. Needless to say that called for a road trip. Ken couldn't go so it was just the two of us. After finding an "acceptable" motel in Grand Coulee we headed to the dam for a movie on the history of the area, and then a laser light show beamed on the dam. The next day we headed south-east to Palouse Falls. As a result of the movie at the dam explaining the geological history of Washington state we had a much better appreciation of what we saw on our drive the next day. Water scouring was clear. The strange fields of out of place boulders was better explained. During glacial times, glaciers formed a huge lake - Lake Missoula. When pressure was too much, biblical volumes of water rushed out of the lake, across the state, and found the Pacific Ocean. This evidently happened numerous times, leaving the landscape forever changed. Palouse Falls shows some of the results.

A cross in the Phoenix graveyard.

After spending the night in Spokane we drove north and made a minor detour to Trail and Rossland. It was great to learn more about the history of the Le Roi Mine. We drove on to Grand Forks that night and enjoyed some Russian food. The next day we drove through Greenwood and visited the cemetery for Phoenix, one of the largest cities in Canada at one time. So many grave stones marked the deaths of young men, probably killed in the mine. We then walked about the old chimney of the smelter that was at Greenwood. I remember my visits to Greenwood with my parents to visit our friends, the Cox family and finding it interesting that there were so many Japanese Canadians there. I later learned that this was the result of the forced relocation during WWII. What is worth remembering is that the wealth of these Canadian families, their fishing boats, their land, their cars, was stolen from them by our government. What a shameful part of our history. These were Canadians that were imprisoned and robbed. By our government. Yes I know it was war time.

On our last day, we visited a couple of wineries and stopped in at the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory just south of Penticton.We ended up meeting and talking with a scientist working on a small dish only to learn that he had worked at the VLA in New Mexico that we had visited a couple of months previous. Another scientist came out and the conversations just got better. I even learned a tiny tiny bit about interferometry. Dangerously little. :-)

All told, it was a great trip with a great friend. I sure like being retired. :-)

In two flights, we were all deposited on a snowy hump close to the outhouse to find a very comfortably large cabin with two propane stoves. The lake was almost all covered with slowly melting ice and snow.( link to a picture on flickr) .

We all contributed to various parts of our dinners, whether it be the appetizers, main course, or dessert. We did our own breakfasts and lunches.

In the past, I have almost always gone into the mountains with a small group of well known friends. That has always been a very nice way to do a trip, as knowing one another often makes for not only a more enjoyable trip, but sometimes a safer one. I joined this group mainly because of my good memories of being with Dennis those many years ago when we went off on our adventures with a minimum of gear and experience but a maximum of desire to get out there and have an adventure. I find myself in a different stage of my life where I enjoy new things and time to do them. I am grateful for the group allowing me to come along as I know that sometimes a new person to a group can change it and not always to the better. For their accepting me I am very grateful. I am also glad that I decided to get involved in a group I was unfamiliar with. A high end cabinet maker, a lawyer that specializes in maritime law, and economist who works for the federal government, an artist and fisheries expert, an extremely experienced alpinist and former alpine guide instructor, an emergency room physician, an operating room nurse, a digital media specialist, and an elementary school counsellor. What a diverse and interesting group. Thank you all for a rewarding time.

Dave, Ken, Chuck, and I made a trip to the Rockies to do some hiking but mainly for Dave to do his drawing and painting and the rest of us to do photography.

The Willis's and Rajalas spent to the month travelling throughout many parts of Spain and four nights in Rabat Morocco. It was a privilige to be able to go to yet another new country for us and learn a little of their culture.

Sampling Barcelona Tapas	We spent close to a week in Barcelona enjoying the sites around the Plaça de Catalunya and the Plaça d'Espanya. We saw the outside and inside of the Sagrada Familia along with Gauidi's apartment building, the Casa Mia. slide show of Barcelona. We then took the fast train to Madrid for just under a week.Warm days and cool nights were a welcome change from the heat and humidity of Barcelona. Madrid was just as enjoyable as Barcelona. Besides great museums and neightbourhood walks, we came across parades celebrating the Spanish speaking world and had many evening walks. Fast trains (300 kph!) made day trips to Toledo (and its church) and Segovia easy and convenient. Town squares and outdoor restaurants were common. slide show of Madrid. slide show of Toledo and Segovia. From Madrid we took another fast train to Cordoba to see the famous Roman bridge and even more famous Mesquita with its famous arches. slide show of Cordoba.
In Cordoba we rented a car and travelled to the Andalucían hill towns of Arcos and Ronda. These towns were on the frontier between Muslim and Christian forces many years ago. Ronda is famous for being the home of bull fighting, which is now not nearly as popular as it once was. From Ronda we made a day trip to Gibralter and saw the famous monkeys. Ken and the famous Rock of Gibralter. The tacky British tourist district was just across the jet runway we had to get across before the next flight landed! Honest! slide show of Arcos, Ronda, and Gibralter.
From Ronda, we drove to where we were going to stay for a week - Granada. The apartment we rented was in the hill town of Guejar Sierra which was about thirty minutes east of Granada. The town of Granada itself has a very interesting old section, especially the cathedral with its ornamented apse, but the main draw of the place is the incredible moorish palaca of Alhambra. It consists of many buildings, rooms, pools, walkways, and gardens and is one of the most visited places in all of Spain. slide show of Guejar Sierra, Granada, and the Alhambra Palace. After a week of relaxation, we drove down to Malaga and took a flight to Casablanca Morocco. We then took a couple of trains to Rabat, the administrative capital of the country where we got a gentle taste of present day Muslim culture. Our hotel was across from the parliament buildings where well organized and peaceful demonstrations took place most afternoons. We walked through the souk and kasbah and enjoyed the view from the beach. We also did a long days walk and visited the mausoleum of Mohammed V and the ancient Roman ruins at Chellah. Before very long, it was time catch our plane back in Casablanca to head back to Barcelona. We spent our last two nights in Barcelona to avoid a very long return to Vancouver. It was a very good trip with very good friends. slide show of our trip to Rabat and last two nights in Barcelona.