I crossed the Continental Divide just to the northwest of Fitzpatrick Peak on a little dirt track called forest road 267 that runs between St. Elmo & Tincup, Colorado. The pass itself is called Tincup Pass and the western side of the pass has possibly some of the most delightfully horrible sections of road I have been on to date. Some bits had two or three tracks and I had to get out & walk them to decide which of the choices was least likely to damage the vehicle.

But it was beautifull nonetheless. I don't think I will ever tire of driving amid woods of birch and aspen trees, but that was earlier in the drive and the road was in much better shape when I was amongst them. Once I got to Tincup it was rather late in the day the crossing had taken quite a bit longer than anticipated, which is just how it should be... Many miles yet to go.
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From Limon, Colorado I headed west. Back across the plains, through the forests of Ponderosa Pine. There was a bit of business to conduct in Castle Rock and then onward to the West. A dirt road "short cut" surpriosed me with this formation... Upended strata , almiost standing free.   ...Read more

"The Windmills of Colorado" sounds poetic doesn't it? There are a whole lot more windmills in the Midwest since the last time I wandered through the area, Two of these pictures were taken from the ground... the rest from the air.   ...Read more

"Wyoming?" You ask... "Weren't you just in Canada?"

Well, um, yes... but you see... There was something I needed to get done in Wyoming,so....

"What about Montana?" You coninue, "What happened to Montana?"   ...Read more

I am driving through the stunning landscapes of the Canadian Rockies. They are huge! Not just in stature, but in the volume of the area, If you are looking for an "Endless Summer" experience, try driving all of the roads up here. You will discover that there will be a lot of roads yet to cover by the time the Aspen & Birch trees begin to turn.   ...Read more

Coming into Canada the second time I was asked a lot more questions. Was I headed home? Was I going to be staying down there for a while? Whatcha got in the back of the vehicle? I almost felt I was going to be given a limited hall pass: "This guy has five (5) days to get down to the States or else we will find him and ship him south ourselves." But, after all of the questions, I was allowed in with a cheerful, "enjoy your trip."   ...Read more

OK, so you took a ferry to Alaska, spent a few days around Haines and drove up through the Yukon to the big part of the state. What now? Well... sha... drive around, find backroads, what else?

Maps come in handy at this point. Cell phone maps really don't work up here where there can be hundreds of miles between towers... Seriously you can drive five or six hours with no connection. (There are actually people up here with no connection to the internet or cell network, Geepers! How do they survive?) ...This is why God gave us paper maps. Well, OK, I got mine from Delorme... They have the best maps. One, giant, $20, book-sized map per state. Topographical, pretty darn good resolution.... They show all of the roads, even the itty bitty ones. But there must be something wrong with the Alaskan map, it doesn't show all of the tiny sub highwys between the big ones. That's OK I'll just start driving & they will show up.   ...Read more

It seemed to take forever. The endless snail's pace of dealing with one's parents deaths. Handling the estate, remodeling the house & selling it... Paperwork... lawyers... contractors... realtors... details. Did I forget something? Better check again. Suddenly it is done. Over. Pardon the language, but it is a shitty deal. Not the work, but the result. I lose my parents and sister & end up with a little cash. It sucks. I really don't care how much money. I would rather have my family. I'm sure my brother feels the same way. But that is the way of life. If you are lucky, you have a good relationship with your parents and they die first.   ...Read more

There is an area of California known as the Lost Coast. Somewhere north of Fort Bragg, south of Ferndale and west of highway 101. There are a few ways to get there but fewer people who will tell you how. Some places you can drive to, much of it is accessable only by foot if at all. It is one of the remaining places that Sasquatch can run free. I found one of the routes in, a little side road that almost looked like someone's poorly maintained driveway.

If you are lucky, you will find the road.If you are lucky, it will be sunny & clear with view that reach to forever. If you are lucky it will be drizzling & overcast with dramatic skies and moody, fog-shrouded forests. With 100 - 200 inches of rain per year, you have a good chance of it being one way or the other.
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The plains of Western Montana go on forever. The horizon is ever in the distance and it seems you can never reach it. And that is traveling in an automobile at 70 mph. Imagine how it must have been for the pioneers. Endless weeks of walking behind a covered wagon. You are tempted to wonder how many of the decided to settle in a specific spot simply because they were weary of the travel & "this place seemed good enough."   ...Read more

Nice little town, Cohagen. I took the day to go out into the Hell Creek area to read & write a little. The weather was still unsettled, overcast and a cool breeze was blowing... every once in a while the wind would blow a spot of sunshine my way for which I was quite grateful.   ...Read more