Drive to Spokane and Grandparenting

 Jon and I left Saturday afternoon, May 9th, to start driving to Spokane. The purpose of our trip is to watch the granddaughters while Rebekah and Anna travel to Las Vegas for a baby gear convention. Jon will drive home, probably heading back on Monday, May 18th. He hopes to do some fishing and check out some distilleries on the way.  I will stay in Spokane until May 30th, when I will fly to Tucson with 5 year-old Rinleigh for our church's vacation Bible school (VBS) and "grandparent camp". 

Saturday Jon and I drove five hours to Kingman, AZ. We stayed in a Baymont, which wasn't fancy, but was neat and clean. It was a motel (outside rooms). We had dinner at Rickety Cricket Brewery, where Jon enjoyed a flight of beer. This brewery was unique b/c they gave Jon a marker and had him write his beer order on the flight holder. 

Jon got a chicken sandwich with a salad and I got a burger that came with a salad. We commented on how big the salads were for sides. Jon's sandwich was ok - he thought the chicken was a little dry. Mine burger was great - a Hawaiian burger with pineapple, ham, swiss cheese and, if I remember right, a peanut butter sauce. It sounded very different, and was delicious.  

Sunday, Mother's Day, we drove 7 1/2 hours to Well's NV. It was a very relaxing day for me. I enjoy these long trips. I get to read, spend quiet time with God, nap, do my Duolingo, and relax. Somewhat like a mini-retreat for me. I did listen to our church's service. Never the same as being there, but better than not having anything. The only pictures I took along the way were of these circles in the landscape. I used Google search and it's what I suspected...ants make them. They were prevalent for a long stretch. 

For lunch we stopped in Ely, NV. I found a Pizza Inn with a lunch buffet. Jon loves pizza buffets when he's driving. He can get a big salad and a couple pieces of pizza - a perfect driving meal. Pizza buffets are hard to find, now that Pizza Hut doesn't have them any more. So we always love when we find one. 

In Wells, NV we stayed at a Super 8. Nothing else there in the Wyndham chain (we get lots of points with our Wyndham credit card, which is great for hotels). It was another motel, simple but clean. The weather was beautiful there when we arrived in the early afternoon, so I went for a walk. And took this picture of the mountains. 

For dinner we went to a little Indian restaurant very near the hotel. Nothing fancy, but good food. Jon got something different (we can't remember the name, somewhat like chicken karahi). I got the chicken korma. I got medium and Jon got spicy. They were both spicier than usual. The naan was also fantastic. 

Monday we drove 8 1/2 hours to Kennewick, WA. Beautiful scenery along the way. I took some pictures of the Wallowa mountains and the Snake River (I missed the opportunity to get a really good picture of a valley with the Snake river. When we are driving and see a picture, it's gone before I can pull out the phone). 

Here's some pictures of the Grand Ronde River. This whole drive was very pretty. I love being back in the Northwest (I grew up in Pistol River OR, just north of the California border, on the coast). 

We had lunch in Boise, ID. Jon found a distillery he wanted to try, Bardenay. It turned out to a distance from the freeway, so probably added half an hour to our trip. He ended up not trying any of their whiskey. It also turned out the distillery had three locations, and this one didn't sell bottles to go. But the food was good. Jon got their lunch special, soup and a half-sandwich. I got a delicious spinach salad with salmon. 

Here are some pictures as we drove through the Pendleton valley after lunch. 

In Kennewick we also stayed at a Super 8. Kennewick is part of the "Tricities", Kennewick, Richland and Pasco. It is a pretty populated area with lots of Wyndham hotels, but the fancier ones were all booked. This Super 8 was more upscale than any other place we stayed on the trip (inside rooms, for one thing). It compared to a typical LaQuinta (our favorite of the Wyndham properties). When we were checking into the hotel, I realized that I had a good BSF friend who lived nearby (Lisa Baldridge - she had been the STL [substitute teaching leader] at our Falls Church class in VA, where I attended for nine years). So I texted her about meeting us for dinner or a walk in the morning. We decided on a walk along the Columbia the next morning. I did get  She suggested we try the Rattlesnake Mountain brewery, which Jon had already decided on (about a mile from our hotel). I went for a short walk before dinner (8 1/2 hours is a long time to sit).

Rattlesnake Mountain brewery had a sample of all of their beers (14) for $21. Jon couldn't resist that (and yes, I drove back to the hotel). He got their chicken parmesan, and I got a half taco salad. Then while he (tried) to finish the beers, I got their ice cream sandwich. I saved the top cookie, and had it with the granddaughters on Tuesday. Jon was absolutely stuffed, even eating only about half of his meal and not finishing the beers. I was full, but not stuffed. 

Tuesday morning, Lisa picked me up at the hotel and drove me a few miles to a park by the Columbia river. We had a very nice visit and 3 1/2 mile walk. 

Lisa and Trish

Some condos that Lisa loves along the river path

Geese with babies were very prevalent along the path. We had to dodge a lot of goose poop. 

The American West river boat was parked at the dock. 

I love the trees and flowers in this area!

I saw this snail and had to take a picture. Then realized that a lot of goose poop I had been avoiding, was actually snails. Lots of snails crossing the path all along the way. 

Jon had planned the trip so we had only a couple hour drive Tuesday morning. Which was perfect for the walk with Lisa, and getting to Spokane by lunchtime. It was great to see everyone, of course. We had a relaxing afternoon with the girls. Jon took us to a new pizzeria for dinner. Then we went on Rebekah's typical 2 mile walk before bedtime. I took a couple of pictures of the foliage. 

Now it's Wednesday. Rebekah and Anna left very early this morning. I took Rinleigh to school this morning (it's a Waldorf school. She's been attending for a couple years and loves it https://windsongschool.org/). The I took Beau (the dog) and Elodie on a walk and we pulled weeds in the yard. A friend dropped by, and here I am reading to Elodie and her friend. 

 Jon made a charcuterie board for his lunch, which he got to share with Elodie (she loves olives, it turns out). 

Some friends of R&A brought Rinleigh home from school. I put Elodie down for nap, and now we are doing quiet time. Jon and I both took mini naps....

By the time I have finished this, Rinleigh is finished with quiet time and we are going to play Uno (her favorite game). 

More to come, I'm sure....

Agua Caliente Hill Trail hike, Friday, May 1, 2026

 Last week I hiked the Caliente Hill Trail with my friend, Barb Taylor. I know her from BSF (we were children's leaders together in Tucson, 2004-6). It's been fun to hike with her a few times a year. She knows most of the trails, and often takes me somewhere I've never been. This is one of those places. I loved it, and it will be one of my favorites. I love climbing, and there is plenty of that. And new and different views from other locations where I hike. 

I accidentally paused my AllTrails and didn't notice. So Barb sent me her record. 

Aqua Caliente is in the Catalinas mountains, close to the Rincons. So the views are to the south and west, mostly. 

This is a view of the Catalinas as we hiked in. 

the sign at the saddle, where we turned around. The trail continues, but Barb said that gets much more difficult, and not fun (scrambling, which I don't like). 

I think this picture is of our toal, the saddle, on top of the far ridge. 

We had been talking about Gila monsters, because this is the season. Barb had seen one on the Tanque Verde Ridge trail the week before. I stopped for a bathroom break, and on my way to a secluded spot, I saw this guy walking up the hill. We both got several pictures, but he blends in so well, it's hard to see him. We were both thankful I chose that spot to go looking for a bathroom. 

This is the view as we come up from the trailhead. I took a picture of it, because one of those houses belong to friends of ours. I sent her a picture and told her which house I thought was hers. I was right. This is looking southeast, so the mountains are the Rincons (and some of that is Saguaro National Forest, where we often hike). 

Again, it was a really fun hike. I am so grateful I can hike like this. My next post will probably be from Spokane, if I get some fun pictures of the grandgirls. We leave May 9th. 

Two hikes on the Tanque Verde Ridge Trail in two days

 I came back from Moab motivated to get a couple hikes in before my next trip. Yesterday (Friday, 4/24) a friend and I set out to hike the Tanque Verde Ridge Trail to the Tanque Verde Dome. I've hiked this trail numerous times, but because of time constraints never made it to the dome. I was finally going to get to do that. But my friend had some work commitments come up, so we decided we needed to turn around a little over halfway there. As I thought about it, I realized I had nothing on Saturday, so I got a different friend (who had to work on Friday) to join me. I am so grateful I finally got to do this hike. It's a great one. I love elevation gain (coming down, not as much. But with two poles I've learned how to protect my knees). Both days we hiked pretty rapidly. The views are amazing!

These were my setpes at the end of Friday. 

This is how far we made it on Friday

We saw this Collared Lizard sunning on a rock

Linette and me at one of the many good viewpoints. 

I saw this house and it looked pretty big, so I zoomed in for a picture. 

These were my steps after the hike (before lunch). As of typing this (3pm) I'm at 16,277. So I anticipate having a lot of steps today, since I'm going to a church function and that always means lots of steps. 

Here's our completed hike. It felt incredibly good to finally do the whole thing. It was also fun to do it quickly - we hiked faster than this shows, b/c I didn't pause it for our breaks. I do love a fast, climbing hike. It makes me feel alive!

My friend today, Jessica, pointed out this cute little cactus and said the fruit is very tasty, like a tart strawberry. She told me all cactus flowers and fruit are edible. I didn't know that. 

We saw another collared lizard today! This was was more brilliant in color (you can't really tell from the pictures. Yesterday's was more green, this one more blue. 

Jessica at one of the viewpoints. 

One of the views from the top of the dome. We had a clear 360 degree view of the valley and it was very cool. 

Jessica pointed out that we could see Picacho Peak! I had never seen it from Tucson. I zoomed in to get this picture. 

Jessica and me with the crested saguaro in the background. That crested saguaro is one of the reasons I wanted to complete this hike. It's at the saddle right next to the dome. 

I love these two pictures, and how the sky turned out. 

Bottom line, I'm very grateful that I live in Tucson, that I can hike, and that I had two days in a row to do these hikes. If all goes as planned, I'll get one more hike in next Friday with a different friend. We are planning to hike at Agua Caliente park. I've never been there. Should be fun...stay tuned.