Monday Oct 16: waiting for the trash pick up before we head out. usually they come by 10:30, today they came at 11:00! We left the driveway by 11:05 but stopped about 1/2 mile down Long Lake Road. We seen a Snow Bunting in amongst the Juncos. took us a few minutes to locate and photograph it!
Back on track by 11:20. Cloudy skies and a bit cool until we got close to Minnesota. We stopped a few times before arriving at our hotel in Bloomington MN at 3:40. We settled in, then met brother Ray in the Lobby. (he was in town for a reunion).
Hazelwood for dinner, niece Hanna and partner Erik met us for a wonderful dinner. We really enjoyed their company. I had the short ribs with pasta. It was so good that I can never order it again.
Tues Oct 17: met up with Ray for breakfast before his flight home. We headed out about 8 am for Ames Iowa. Sunshine and cool temps until we arrived in Ames where the temp was 69! I was a bit overdressed for our walk around Ada Hayden park.
We arrived at our hotel at 4:00, settled in, then walked across the street to Azteca Mexican Restaurant. Only 4 vehicles in the parking lot. Food and service was good. By the time we left the restaurant was packed and no parking spots left! The economy in Iowa is in good shape.
Wed Oct 18: off to Lincoln NE after breakfast.
Pumpkin Spice Waffles!
A cool start to the day, a bit of rain while driving but uneventful journey. We stopped a number of times to walk etc. We left the hotel about 7:15, arriving at the Embassy Suites in Downtown Lincoln at 4:00. We went back to Ada Hayden park for a 2 hour walk, leaving Ames at 9:15. One stop was at HyVee to pick up sandwich bread and meat for our lunches on the road. We usually end up at a park or rural area right around lunch time, so rarely eat lunch at a restaurant.
We went to a local brewery for a beer, the place was across the street from our hotel in a very old building. the beer was just ok..
Managers reception in the Embassy for dinner.
Thurs: beautiful day to walk around Lincoln. We visited a few wetlands and parks. stopped at Bierhaus for a beer,
dinner at Lazlo's began with wonderful onion rings
and a drink at Rosies.
All within walking distance of the hotel. Beautiful night to walk the streets of Lincoln.
Friday: off to Paxton NE for 1 night. Time to put the shorts on! the temp started out a bit cool but ended up at 87! We left the hotel at 7:30 arriving at our hotel in Paxton NE at 2:40 as we gained an extra hour when we entered Mountain Time.
One stop at the International Crane Sanctuary. I am just a few inches taller than the Whooping Crane!
Dinner in Paxton at Ole's Big Game Restaurant. And yes lots of Big Game on the walls! Rocky Mountain Oysters on the menu, and no we did not order them.
Sat Oct 21: Up way too early... we are off to Denver today. It normally takes a day or two to acclimate to the new time zone. Another beautiful day to head west. It did start out a bit cooler than shorts weather but we were able to change into them by noon. We stopped at a few birding hotspots only to find there was not too many birds! A bit of disappointment driving through Colorado. Driving through Denver on a Saturday afternoon was a bit scary, too much traffic. We are staying in Centennial, just south of Denver.
We were able to walk to a nice restaurant for dinner. There is a little patio right by our room that we were able to sit outside and listen to the radio before retiring for the night. All in all a very good day.
Sunday we spent the day about 25 miles from our hotel. Lots of hiking and birding. some places had closed the trails we wanted to go on but we found other trails.
one place had these signs:
dinner from take out a place across from our hotel, we were able to eat on the patio. another banner day, we started out with flannel lined jeans but by lunch changed into shorts again!
Oct 23: off to Trinidad CO. never been there before.. new adventures. Our journey was pretty uneventful, another sunny, warm beautiful day. Boy we sure have been lucky this year on our trip. We stopped a few times getting to the hotel by 3:30.
Air Force Academy and a glider being pulled by a small plane..
Finding the parking lot to the hotel was a bit hard as it is a brand new hotel, with a brand new road that is not on GPS. We ended up taking the grooved dirt road to the hotel, where we found another way out!
We went to Downtown Trinidad for dinner, 2 of the places we planned on going (suggestions by the staff at the hotel) were closed on Mon and Tues! We found a cute little place for a bite to eat.
Allergies are beginning to kick in! big bags under the eyes, dry throat and skin, gotta love the desert!
Oct 24: after a very lame and expensive breakfast we went to Trinidad State Park for a bit of hiking. The sky was clear, the temp a bit cool at the beginning. The sun warmed us up pretty quickly, then some clouds came in. Rock Wren
While we were taking a break in our room the clouds came in with thunder and rain! Good day to do a load of laundry while we wait for the rain to stop. A quick walk on a nice path near our hotel before walking to Club 14 for dinner.
Wed Oct 25: off to Albuquerque. We had a little bit of rain on our road today. Up and over the mountain was pretty uneventful. not too much traffic until we got to Albuquerque.
We stopped at one trail for a hike:
Luckily we did not see any critters.
Dinner at a fun place The Range, good food and service. Recommended by our hotel staff. So far almost all of our hotels have been sold out! including this one. Not sure where everyone is going but they are all staying in our hotel!
Thurs Oct 26: we went to the Rio Grande area for hiking and birding. lots of people out and about today. We went to Old Town for a pizza lunch and a walkabout. A stop at Albertsons for a cup of soup for dinner in our room.
Friday Oct 27: we are off to Deming NM today. We made a few stops on our 235 mile journey today. Left the hotel at 7:15 arrived at the Hampton Inn in Deming at 4:15. another beautiful day for a drive!
We drove through Hatch NM once but this time we stopped to get some salsa and pictures!
Not sure what you do with 40 lbs of peppers
there is a brewery right behind the pig! we stopped in for beer to go!
Wow, finally getting caught up. Enjoy your winter☀️☀️
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