Sept 8-Long drive HOME

We left Troy IL for HOME. We left at 8:30 am and got home at 11pm. So it was a very long drive.

Not much to see but trees and greenery. We did miss that.

We have to say there were many highlights to the trip (Lake Tahoe, Jackson Hole, WY, Yellowstone, Rocky Mountain National Park) but we met so many great new folks too a long the way and got to see some old friends and old family members (not chronologically old :) )

The Corgi's were celebrities everywhere we went.

Part of Kelly's favorites were when she hit the Midwest and western states as she had never seen them before. Texas, New Mexico, Arizona left a big impression. Driving to Acoma Pueblo (Sky City) on the Indian reservation and the scenery. Awe inspiring. Dipping her toe in the Pacific ocean, and driving the Pacific highway. Surprises were how much we liked Utah and Wyoming. We saw the most wildlife in Wyoming. Everything from Coyote to Elk and Moose. We got tired of the desert pretty fast. Ray sneezed through Nevada. Las Vegas was great to see one time but not sure if we ever want to go back there.

We think the pictures say it all.

Surprising too is how much we longed for home the last few days. Being stuck in Fort Collins Colorado having the car fixed made us long to just get home, but because we stayed there, we got to see Estes Park and the Rocky Mountain national park. Something we want to see again for sure.

We are sure when we look over the pictures again, we will remember more. Right now we are tired but it's a good tired.

Sep 7th

We left Burlington Colorado and crossed into Kansas pretty quickly.

We followed a storm all the way to Illinois but never got into it. Glad because these states need rain.

The corn crops look sad. We took a minor diversion to Cawker City, Kansas to see the World's Largest Ball of Twine.

The town was a happening place (sarcasm). There was a lovely lake we at lunch at nearby.

I guess the world's largest ball of twine did not help revitalize the town or what we've learned a lot on this trip is just because a town or place LOOKS abandoned, does not mean that it is :/ I guess we can say the Largest ball of Twine is a good finale to our RT 66 tour (although not officially along Rt 66).

We really pushed hard today to make it then to Troy IL. We are in the hotel and plan to leave early to try to make it home tomorrow if all goes well. We have been listening to a great book on CD about the old west, Indians, pioneers, etc.

Goal for tomorrow.....HOME.

We have many mixed feelings although we definitely miss our own bed and Baxter is more than ready to not ever see the car again.

Sept 6-Stuck still in Fort Collins, CO

We took the SUV back to the Suzuki dealer after Ray took it for a drive last night after our expensive tire replacements and we STILL had the whirring sound. Kelly hoped to get there before Ray (Kelly had the rental car) and Kelly had little coffee...but Ray beat her there and the manager ran out immediately as Ray arrived and he and a technician took the car immediately for a ride. Of course then THEY heard the whirring sound and offered to pay the day rental fee and hurried to get the parts needed and ended up replacing 3 wheel bearings. What a surprise since we told them the OTHER garage had said that was what was needed to begin with! UGH. Well, we ended up returning the rental and picking up Suzie the Suzuki around 5pm and took off out of Fort Collins. We appreciated the hospitality there (not all the red lights) but we wanted to get some distance between us. We drove 3 hrs and are now in Burlington Colorado for the night.
We took the rental and headed to Estes Park which was a recommended site. We loved the town. In the mountains, lovely lake that we COULD walk the dogs around and we met a nice couple from Missouri who gave us suggestions on what to see. We saw Elk laying under a tree and Kelly jumped 2 feet but didn't run when she saw a baby snake (this is huge improvement on her part). We then headed for Rocky Mountain National Park. What gorgeous mountains, valleys, etc. It was in close contest with Yellow Stone. We saw more Elk there but alas, no bears, big horn sheep or cougars. These are the 3 critters we have not seen yet.:{

I think Estes Park is a definite place to return to someday and spend some time there.

Gorgeous mountain town.

We are heading tomorrow for to see the World's Largest Ball of Twine in Kansas. If all goes well we will be home on Sunday.