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Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area
Cold, extremely windy, cloud speckled skies greeted me in, or maybe followed me to, Lovell, Wyoming, my stepping off area to the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. I booked a hotel for two nights, and prayed the weather would cooperate when I would be driving up to the canyon ridge. I woke up to a colder, gray, cloudy morning, which actually turned out to be a good hiking day. The wind had died down a little, but I decided to spend the first day checking out an historic ranch site and hike a canyon that didn’t take me up into…
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White Sand Dunes Everywhere
Have you ever visited a place that is strikingly white everywhere you turn? White Sands National Park in New Mexico is just such a place. But I had the privilege to witness it both in storms and in sun. White Sands National Park was a National Monument for 86 years, and was designated a National Park in 2019. It protects the world’s largest gypsum dune field, with its 275-square-miles of glistening wave-like dunes of white gypsum sand and unique plant and animal life. Interesting that gypsum is actually selenite crystals that have been broken down by wind and weather. Selenite…
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Pottery Play in North Carolina
Even though I am out and about, I am keeping up on my pottery skills. I found a pottery studio here in Wilmington, North Carolina, called Bookworm Pottery & Co. filled with fun people who have incredible skills. When I was looking for a place to play with clay, I stopped in to check it out. I was greeted by Alyssa, a kind, vivacious newbie to the pottery world. She started classes a year ago, and fell in love with pottery. Now she works at the studio, even leading some classes. Her enthusiasm about both pottery and the Bookworm Pottery…
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Wilmington, North Carolina
Leaving the mountains and forests, I made my way to Wilmington, NC, where I have the privilege of staying with my daughter Robin’s family. I have been here about 3 weeks now, sharing a bedroom with my 6-year-old granddaughter, Tilly. It has been pretty chill, with a lot of hanging out and just living. There have been a couple of trips to spend time at the beach with family friends, a trip to Cape Fear Museum with Robin and Tilly, a visit to the North Carolina Aquarium with Tilly, cribbage games with friends, dance and gymnastic classes with Tilly, and…
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Bike Ride – The Adventure Begins
My life is exploding with change, a glorious firework of freedom and the unknown in front of me! As I approached the sale of my home in mid July, everything felt just a little bit off, though heading in the right direction. The adventure actually began the week before the closing with a bike trip in the Black Hills of South Dakota. I joined my girls, Joy, Robin and Sarah, on an unforgettable excursion with the plan to bike 109 miles of the George S. Mickelson Trail, beginning in Deadwood. Through planning, we knew the first 16 miles or so…
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