Five Minute Vacation

wtm442 · #1 (**permalink**) 03-04-2008, 04:22 PM

Why travel outside the USA when you have scenery like this?

America's Treasures, Our National Parks

Silverback51 · #2 (**permalink**) 03-04-2008, 04:35 PM

I have to agree. When I retire I'm buying a 40' motorcoach and I'm going to drive the wheels off it. So many things I want to see right here in the good old USA.

Excaliber · #3 (**permalink**) 03-04-2008, 07:00 PM

Or at least drive till the gas tank goes empty and it's ANOTHER $200 bucks to fill it half way...

3 day drive to the Grand Canyon, four hours to set up the 'Coach', an hour to figure out WHERE to park the rental or tow car IN the canyon, 15 minutes looking at the view and saying, "Wow, thats nice." 2 hours after dark trying to figure out why the toilet on the coach won't flush, morning comes,,, exhausted!

Ron61 · #4 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 02:19 AM

I agree with Silverback except for the Motor Home. I don't want to drive one of them. But this country has some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. I have been to several places already, including the Grand Canyon, Painted Desert, Royal Gorge, and Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks just to name a few. I live so close to Lassen, Mt. Shasta, and Mt. Rainier that I have been there many times. Also out thorough the desert to the old cliff dwellings, Death Valley, Dodge City, and numerous other off the trail places. You could spend hal of of your life and not see all of the wonders in just our country.

I did see in the news that they are going to open the gates to the dam and flush out the Grand Canyon. There is some concern that it may do more damage than good.

Ron

RICK LAKE · #5 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 06:26 AM

Ron61 Shasta Lake was or still is a beautiful place to go. Don't they have houseboat you can rent on the lake? I do want to see the Redwoods before they die from our stupid ways. The other thing is get a ride in a P-51D mustang down in Fla. This is a once in a life time air plane ride. Ron do they still have great partys on the lake???

I hear they are better than any Hollywood "A" list one.

Rick L.

Ron61 · #6 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 08:36 AM

Rick,

Yes they still have houseboats for rent on the lake. The past two years have been bad because of the low water and they had to restrict so many of the places that boats could go. This year the water is up, but with the economy the way it is, I don't know if they will do much better. The Redwood Trees are unbelievable as are the Giant Sequoias.
And Oregon University was still coming down each year and having their week long orgy, but they have had so many drown and get killed by stupid stuff on water skis and those ski mobiles that they have really cracked down on them. Last year the bunch that came down was just a minor amount compared to what they normally are. But if the water gets anywhere near normal and they can afford it I am sure they will be back this Summer.
I would like to ride in a P-51 too. They did a show on them in Florida some time back on the History channel and showed some of the old war footage from when they were dog fighting. Also had a few of the surviving pilots who flew them on the show for interviews and that was quite an airplane.

Ron

4RE KLR · #7 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 08:50 AM

Warren,

Great link. I have been to quiet a few of these parks and some of the pictures do not do them justice. The Grand Canyon for example. It is breathtaking to say the least.

I think Sequia is the best place to see the Redwoods. The Sequia trees are truly magnificent.

Ron61 · #8 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 09:03 AM

Steve,

They are quite a site aren't they. And the age of some of them is staggering. I never realized when we were planting them that they would be around this long.

Rick,

Another nice place to go is Hoover Dam. We have a lot of nice places up in this area as we have the volcanoes and other wilderness places and I love some of the canyons and history. But if you get a chance, by all means see the Grand Canyon and I think they have closed off the cliff dwellings so people can no longer climb up to them because of vandalism and such, but when I was young, They used to tie a rope around you and a guide would go first and you could climb up the old holes they had cut in the cliff wall to use as a ladder. New York has some beautiful places especially along the St. Lawrence Seaway. This country has so many places it would take all of us to name them all as I am sure that none of us have been to even half of them. Arkansas has Hot Springs and the diamond mine that they will let you walk around and if you find a diamond you can keep it.

Ron

Ron61 · #9 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 09:13 AM

This is an interesting thread. Why don't we get everyone that has been to any of the great places to tell us about them and their impressions. I know that many of you have been to places that I haven't and I have been to so many it would take a page just to list them. I haven't been to Yellowstone Park thought I have been near it and just never got around to going. I should never have put that off.

Ron

4RE KLR · #10 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 09:18 AM

Ron,
When we were kids we rode pack mules down into the canyon. It was a hard trip even on a mule. It is not for the faint of heart.

There have been so many people die from stupidity there. If you get a chance read the book, "Death in the Canyon". Whne we were there with the kids we picked it up thinking it was not real and someone had just written a story about the Canyon. Heck no it is for real.

We went the to stay for a couple of days and see many of the look outs. The first night when we got back to the room we started reading this book. It scared the living hell out of me with the kids there, we left the next morning and went some where else.

It is a beautiful but DANGEROUS place.

So many people have just walked up to the edge and over it. I remember a couple stories about one guy waking up in the middle of the night, told his buddies he was going to go pee over the rim. They found him the next afternoon some 800 feet or so below the rim.

Some people die walking DOWN to the river.

Ron61 · #11 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 09:38 AM

Steve,

I used to have a set of the old Zane Grey (Spelling) Books and one of them was titled Roping Lions in the Grand Canyon. I remember that one in particular because it was mostly in one of the spots that I saw. And boy are you right about those narrow trails. I never had time to take the trip down but walked a little ways down one once. I had always planned to go back and spend a week camping along the river at some of the places, but just never made it. I just wonder if this flushing of the canyon they are going to do will destroy a lot of the beauty as some of the geologists are afraid it will. I hope not.

Ron

imagine2frolic · #12 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 12:08 PM

When we sailed into Florida from the Caribbean, and decided to stay. We had to get back to Oakland Ca. to get my truck, and personal belongings. My wife is from the Philippines, and her idea of America was blue eyes, and snow everywhere.

We drove all over California, so she could see where I was from. We did Hearst Castle, Yosemite, Up, and down hiway 1. Then we left the state, and drove to Vegas. From there we went to the Grand Canyon, and roamed around for 2 days. We went to Hoover Dam, and did the tour. Drove up into Utah to see Bryce Canyon, and walked down into the Canyon. Almost died walking out....LOLOLOL.

We drove up through Salt Lake City into Pocatello Idaho where we spent the night. We then drove over the mountains into Yellowstone where we stayed 3 nights in a cabin. Driving all over the park for 3 days. We woke up one day covered in snow at the end of June.

We drove down through the Tetons, and Jackson Hole. On our way to St. Louis. We came out of the mountains, and drove the flatlands of Nebraska. Once in St.Louis we drove all around the area. I lived there for about 6 years in the late 60's, and early 70's. We went up in the Arch which scared my wife, because you could feel it swaying. From there a straight shot home to N.E. Florida.

In the fall we drove up to Washington D.C., and stopped along the way to, and from D.C. we spent several days in the Smithsonian, and walked around the White House, V.N. Vet memorial. I believe it was the WWII memorial they were just finishing. Lincoln's memorial. We drove the Blue Ridge Mountains on the way up, and I95 on the way down.

I made her navigate the roads, so she would get an idea of how immense, and spread out our country is. Now when she looks at a map she can see a very tiny pencil line across the United States that we drove, 7000 miles. She also realizes how diverse our geography, and our people are in this country. She also knows how VERY LITTLE she has actually seen. This country is so diverse in it's people, and it's geography that to miss it is a shame. Thanks for the post on the Parks. It brought back a lot of good memeories of our cross country drive.

Ron61 · #13 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 12:36 PM

John,

That was interesting and quite a trip. That is the only way to enjoy going places. I never did plan any set route or time for any of my trips as I never liked having to keep to a schedule. If I got some place I really enjoyed I wanted to stay until I was ready to leave and if some place wasn't really interesting I could just leave when I wanted. I guess that is one of the main reasons that I have never taken one of the overseas tours. Besides there is just to much right here that I haven't seen. I am more or less thinking about taking a trip back to Arkansas next Spring and visiting a relative and seeing the Ozarks again. I haven't been back there since 1962, so I know a lot has changed.

Ron

Excaliber · #14 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 12:44 PM

I've crossed the country many times on all the major routes, I-10, I-40, I-70, I-90. I think the most interesting for me was 90, extreme North. Head waters of the Mississippi, Yellow Stone. An excellent adventure. Broke down in North Dakota, met the nicest folks there while we held up for a few days getting parts (Chevy truck blew the timing gear).

mrmustang · #15 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silverback51

I have to agree. When I retire I'm buying a 40' motorcoach and I'm going to drive the wheels off it. So many things I want to see right here in the good old USA.

Haulmark Trailers

Starting at around $199,995 and going up from there, diesel powered.....I'm looking at one of their 300K items with a matching 24 foot stacker trailer for the daily driver and the toy for once we retire (10-15 years, maybe)......Been viewing these at the West palm beach BJ auction for the last few years and really like what I see......

Silverback51 · #16 (**permalink**) 03-05-2008, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrmustang

Haulmark Trailers

Starting at around $199,995 and going up from there, diesel powered.....I'm looking at one of their 300K items with a matching 24 foot stacker trailer for the daily driver and the toy for once we retire (10-15 years, maybe)......Been viewing these at the West palm beach BJ auction for the last few years and really like what I see......

Those are nice for sure.

My wife really likes the American Eagle. Must admit, I really like it myself.

2008 American Eagle