Brtual Day of Fishing!!!

Brutal day fishing! Overcast, no sun until 10:30, wind blowing 15 mph, gusting to 20 mph, temps in the 60's.....thank goodness for our rain gear....we put it on just to block the wind and stay warm! Ended up with 3 nice reds.....half a limit! Even with our drift anchor out we were sailing across the water! Saw three Whopping Cranes on the ride back into the dock! Now to clean fish, load boat, drive home, and wash boat before dark! Fishing is work!!

Deadly Duo Big Bend Bound!

Long drive today, but Karen and I made it safe and sound! Stopped at Balmorhea State Park and checked it out! On to Fort Davis, where we promptly got lost, but finally checked into our B&B, and then went to explore the old Pioneer Cemetery!

Wow.....what a day! After breakfast we went to the Fort Davis National Historic Site.....a great place for photos and lots of interesting Texas history. After that we drove the 75 mile scenic loop thru the Davis Mountains....a drive that should take 2 hours....took us 5.....with lots of photo stops. Our first stop was at the Fort Davis State Park and a visit to Indian Lodge where we watched a inquisitive roadrunner mess with a really big snake. McDonald Observatory was next of the agenda and we watched a thunderstorm brewing over the Davis Mountains...but somehow we avoided the rain all day! Lunch was under a big shade tree with a gentle breeze blowing and the birds singing. We arrived back at the B&B to visit with other guest, relax on the back porch, and check in with our husbands. In town we did our good deed for the day and drove an elderly couple to a local Mexican restaurant...it was just to far for them to walk. I had to do it one at a time because the back end of my car was loaded down....but they were very appreciative. Dinner tonight was in town at the Bistro, where we toasted the adventures of the day with a cold beer for Karen and the best margarita or two for me. Tomorrow we head to Presido, drive the River Road and then on to our Far Flung Casita outside of Big Bend!
 
After breakfast with all the other guest we loaded up the car and took off for Presido.... then on to Big Bend driving the beautiful, scenic, River Road. On the way we spotted a small herd of antelope grazing, and stopped to take a few photos. A large, slow moving object in the sky caught our eye and we discovered it was a blimp....kinda strange to see. Leaving Presido we took River Road and found some old abandon adobe buildings and a large cemetery with hundreds of graves marked only with a pile of rocks. Some had a well worn old wooden crosses. If only they could speak, I'm sure the story of so many graves would be very interesting. Next we spotted some unusual rock formations down by the Rio Grande and took off on the trail. We took photos and enjoyed the rugged beauty of the landscape. A young man from Australia joined us and we chatted with him..... he related his adventures in Canada and the USA! When made him promise rescue us if we got injured climbing over the rocks or falling off a cliff. I'm sure he thought we were crazy. Lunch stop was a tepee along the Rio Grande and where we watched a couple of rafts floating down the river. Looking forward to our raft trip on Friday. So to summarize the day....we spotted antelope, a blimp, climbed in and around old adobe buildings, met a cute Aussie that promised to rescue us and had lunch in a tepee. Tonight we are at Far Flung Adventures in Casita #6 outside Big Bend!
 Up early and off to Big Bend for the day! After a few stops for photos we headed up into the Basin...... Stopping in at the information desk to ask about the bear activity we had been hearing about.....all the high trails were closed because of the bears and he advised we might run into a bear on the Windows Trail. Told Karen all I had to do was run faster than her....no problem. The Ranger said to stand tall and make a lot of noise. With our backpacks, water, sunscreen, camera, and binoculars we hit the trail. Big Bend has received a bunch of rain and the landscape is so much greener that a year ago when we were here. It was a long day on the trail and met lots of folks hiking. After the hike we immediately went into the Basin Store for a cold ice cream....we thought we deserved it since we had burned off lots of calories on the hike. We drove around a little more and headed back to our Casita for dinner, a hot shower, and a alcoholic beverage! Tomorrow we float the river....so up bright and early!
PS.....we never saw a bear!

We had a all day river float booked today on the Rio Grande....pulled out about 8 am with 3 rafts and 4 Ducky canoes and guides. The trip was to include 2 beautiful canyons and cover about 11 miles. It was a beautiful day, clear skies and cool in the morning. Karen and I plus two other gals had a young woman named Deja as our guide. First stop was for a hike up a canyon on the Mexico side of the river....with guides pointing out the flora and fauna. Back in the raft we proceeded to enjoy the beautiful Rio Grande. About noon we stopped and the guides set up lunch, even had a tablecloth......which we all enjoyed sitting on the edge of the raft. Back on the water we proceeded down the river thru another canyon. At one point all the guides stopped and gave us a chance to paddle the raft! Of course, I had to give it a try.....those big oars in a big raft require a lot of strength in the arms and shoulders. We completed the 11 miles and made our way to shore, then back to Far Flung and our Casita. Tomorrow is our last day and we plan to spend it in Big Bend!
Into Big Bend before the sun came up! Stopped to chat with the Park Ranger......who we now know on a first name basis! Decided to try Old Maverick Road to Santa Elena Canyon....Wow a genuine goat trail. Slow and steady was the name of the game, but we conquered it! I will be getting Big Bend dust out of the nooks and crannies of my car for years. Santa Elena Canyon was beautiful with lots more water than last year in May. We checked out some old ruins of homesteads and decided it took a pretty tough person to have survived out here. Big Bend is truly rugged country!
 

Froggy Morning!

Fishing Was Work Today!

Six reds today....and one trout for Mom....sorry Karen, Mom ranks higher than you on the trout list! Bay fishing was work today....higher tides had fish scattered! But we kept at it and got our six, including a really
nice 25 1/2 incher! Nothing better than sight casting in the flats!

1,000 hours for Miss Ice Tea Too!

Miss Ice Tea Too logged 1,000 hours on our flight to Port Aransas for lunch....and she still flies great! In November she will be 14 years old....Happy Birthday Miss Ice Tea Too! 

We had a great flight, a delicious fried shrimp lunch at Finns and a walk on the beach before heading home!

Catching Day!

It was a catching day at POC with 6 nice reds in the ice chest! It started off kinda slow with no keepers in our favorite spot! Then someone who shall remain nameless forgot our breakfast peanut butter and honey sandwich.....so OJ and a cookie were substituted......Oooops! Then Dale proceeded to have two nice reds break his line....bad words followed! Then I managed the bird's nest from hell....which I couldn't get out! Dale had to cut the line and re-rig my pole! We finally caught a couple keepers and knocked off for lunch about Noon when we had four on ice! Lunch was great, but the traditional after lunch peppermints were missing.....the boat was searched only to discover the mints in a different spot! Finally we landed the final two reds and headed in at 2.....now to clean fish....then home to clean the boat! Great day catching six!

Junkin Fun in Warrenton!

Junkin Fun in Warrenton/Round Top! A hint of Fall air made our morning shopping trip enjoyable.....The hunt is always fun when you are junkin! So many booths and so little time.....and energy! Lunch was in Carmine at JW's Steakhouse.....a delish chicken fried steak, mashed taters, and green beans....with a couple gallons of ice tea. Then it was back to Round Top in search of a few treasures! The afternoon grew warmer, the crowds grew larger, and we headed home!Junkin Fun in Warrenton/Round Top! A hint of Fall air made our morning shopping trip enjoyable.....The hunt is always fun when you are junkin! So many booths and so little time.....and energy! Lunch was in Carmine at JW's Steakhouse.....a delish chicken fried steak, mashed taters, and green beans....with a couple gallons of ice tea. Then it was back to Round Top in search of a few treasures!

The afternoon grew warmer, the crowds grew
larger, and we headed home!

Colorado Springs and the USAFA

Dale and I decided to combine a visit with Ross at the USAFA in Colorado Springs and a Rocky Mountain vacation.  Flying into Denver, we picked up our rental car and drove to our rental outside Colorado Springs.  The next morning we were up early to attend the Parent's Day Parade and meet up with Ross.  Usually it is warm and sunny.....but this morning was cold and brutal!  The fly-overs, gliders, and jump team were all cancelled because the ceiling was to low! The parade was impressive, with over 4,000 cadets marching onto the field!  Ross was not marching and joined us in the stands for a while.

After the parade we walked around the Academy for a while and then joined Ross and his squadron for lunch they prepared for all the families visiting.  Later Ross took us around the Academy, pointing out points of interest, memorials to fallen cadets, airplanes, and told us stories of his first weeks there.  We must have walked miles and miles....up and down......round and round! Finally we got in his truck and toured other places including the airport he flies out of.  We were dragging, it had been a long day, with lots of walking and we finally said our goodbyes!

Ross was busy most of the next day and we didn't meet up with him until dinner in Colorado Springs at a pizza place he picked out.  We spent most of Saturday touring Garden of the Gods!  It was a beautiful day and I took lots of photos! Sunday morning we decided to hike at Red Rock Canyon before meeting up with Ross and his sponsor, Mr. Thornton for a late lunch.  Mr. Thornton proved to be a great guy!  The hike was nice, the weather cool, and the scenery beautiful!
Monday was Pike's Peak or Bust.....and Ross decided he didn't want to go as he had already done that...so we said our goodbyes and headed to Pikes Peak....only to find out the road was not open all the way to the top because of high winds.  We waited and finally it did open, but boy it was still plenty windy and cold up on top. The drive was spectacular and we did see some snow up at the top.

The next day we were off to Buena Vista, Colorado and our stay at Mountain River B&B which was on the Arkansas River. Our B&B was very nice and the host....Erin and Mark were great folks.  The breakfast they served every morning was wonderful.  We spent our time in Buena Vista exploring......St Elmo an interesting old ghost town,  Princeton Hot Springs, Cottonwood Pass and Taylor Reservoir, Monarch Pass, Leadville, and Independence Pass. Our last night we had dinner at a steak house in Leadville called Quincy's ......very good food! Our final day we drove back into Denver to catch our flight to Austin.....another great Colorado trip in the books!

500th Dive on the Brac with Lady Go Divers!

It was time to head to Grand Cayman for my yearly trip with the Lady Go Divers.  I had to leave a day early and spend the night on Grand Cayman before flying to the Brac.  Cecilia, my roommate came in early so we had a couple days to relax, settle in, and chill out. Beth and Bonnie showed up the next day and the rest of the group arrived on Saturday.

Cecilia, Bonnie, Beth, and I rented a car on Saturday and toured the island with the most interesting stop at the home of Mr. Foots, a well know Brac resident.  He is in the process of building an Atlantis scene underwater on the island.
 
Diving started on Sunday morning bright and early.  We had Tom and Caz for the week as our divemasters...they were great and the valet dving was a nice touch!  We usually had three dives a day, then pool time before drinks and dinner.
During the week we went to Little Cayman and got to dive Bloody Bay Wall..it was nice, but the ride over and back was pretty rough.  We also had a chance to dive the Tibbett's wreck during the week and it was interesting to see the changes since I was there last.
It was during our week of diving that I made my 500th dive!  The crew drew a special board noting my accomplishment and the Lady Go Divers squirted me with little toys furnished by Patty.  It was a fun day!

As usual Cecilia and I had a great time....lots of laughs! 
The great trip came to an end with Cayman Airlines cancelling our flights out of the Brac....causing most of us to miss our flights back to the USA.  We spend most of the day in the Brac airport before flying out about 6:30 pm.  A group of six of us got hotel rooms in Grand Cayman, went out for a really nice dinner at Luca, and flew home the next day. 
It was a great week sharing lots of laughs!

Pokeman Go at Port A!

Karen and I needed our beach fix so we headed to Port A for the day with the golf cart in tow! We cruised the beach, had a seafood lunch at Finn's on the marina, and soaked up some sun on the beach! We saw a Pirate boat, a big Octopus kite, and lots of folks enjoying some beach time. Being the hip folks we are, we played some Pokemon Go.....and found a Pikachu on the beach! We stopped for a picture just to prove our Pokemon find! Also met the talented artist, Joaquin Cortez that created the sand sculpture!

Lunch Ladies!

Diane and I took Raenice to lunch at Paradise Key
between Rockport and Aransas Pass. We enjoyed
some great seafood and lots of laughs. It was a fun day!

Alaska Bound!

Packed and ready, we flew from Houston to Vancouver, and boarded our ship for the week, the Celebrity Millennium. Our veranda stateroom with Concierge Service was very nice and our cabin attendant, Ofelia welcomed us! We left Vancouver late in the afternoon and everyone was on deck as we left. Our first day was spent cruising with a chance to check out the ship.
Our ports were Ketchikan- Misty Fijords Cruising in the rain. Icy Strait Point - Whale Watching, Lunch in Hoonah, Juneau - Scenic Flight over Ice Fields and hike to Mendenhall Glacier hike, Skagway - White Pass Railroad, Hubbard Glacier - Cruising Hubbard Glacier Seward- Our cruise ended and our land tour started. Land Tour...Bus and Train Seward - Windsong Lodge...toured the Alaska Sealife Center, did a great whale watching tour, had lunch at Fox Island Anchorage-Marriott....we walked around the Summer Soltice Festival and went to a museum, ate dinner at Humpy's Talkeetna-Talkeena Alaskan Lodge....ate at the Wildflower Cafe and walked around in the rain Denali-Denali Park Village....traveled by train, The Wilderness Express to Denali, enjoyed lunch on the train Denali-Denali Park Village....did the 60 mile tour into Denali National Park Fairbanks - Pike's Waterfront Lodge

The highlights of our trip was the awesome flight over the ice fields and glaciers around Juneau with near perfect weather conditions. Seeing the whale continue to slap it's tail over and over again.....with a final breach on a great excursion out of Seward. Our Celebrity ship captain being able to give us a great view of the Hubbard glacier on a picture perfect day. The final treat was all the wildlife we saw in Denali National Park on the bus tour. The trip home was a killer......Fairbanks to Chicago....then Chicago to Houston.....then a 2 1/2 hour drive home! We needed a vacation to recover from our Alaska vacation!
 

Elusive Sixth Red!

The elusive 6th red! Five nice ones....but couldn't get a legal sixth one! Had the five before 11 am....still another great trip. Underwater or on top of the water.....love it!!

Blowing Bubbles in the Caymans!

Houston to Charlotte, Charlotte to Grand Cayman, Grand Cayman to Little Cayman was my itinerary for the day.  I met up with the dive group in the Grand Cayman airport, and jumped on the puddle jumper to Little Cayman.  We settled into our rooms, had dinner and crashed!  We were assigned to a boat, met the crew, and began our week of diving on Little Cayman.  The weather was very windy, and the seas were rough at times, with not great viz! Only got to dive Bloody Bay Wall 2-3 times because of conditions.  Our rooms were nice, the boats were new, big, and very nice..... and the food was amazing!  All they had to do was ring the dinner bell and we filed in like cattle to find some delicious dishes.  Our spare time was spent in the hot tub, chilling in the pool, holding down a hammock, or hanging out at the bar with a Mojito or Mudslide! Tammy was my roommate and we got along great!  I enjoyed diving with Lisa.....she would hang out with me under the boat hunting for creatures if my knee needed a rest. It was a great trip and I enjoyed meeting the other divers.

After spending the week with this group it was time to fly back to Grand Cayman and meet up with my friends, Dennis and Tamara for nine more days of diving.   Tamara and I arrived, as Dennis had flew in earlier....unpacked and settled into their condo.  I took the next day off to rest my knee, wash clothes and get my dive gear and camera together.  We did two morning dives, then had the afternoon off to chill out by the pool.  Dennis had planned all the menus, shopped and spoiled us with his delicious meals. Mojitos delivered to the pool were .....Awesome!  The weather was good most of the time and we got in some good dives, saw lots of marine life, and had a great time. We indulged in yummy ice cream by stopping the ice cream truck on Sunday....it was delish...my treat!!!
Finally after sixteen days it was time to head home....back to my hubby!  We said our goodbyes and I thanked my gracious host for a wonderful nine days in Grand Cayman.

What a Crowd!

Parking lot was full when we pulled in...had to drop Dale and the boat off and park out on the road! Every gut, cut, and bay was packed with fisherman and boats! We did alright....5 nice reds by lunch! Now I know why we fish during the middle of the week! Also caught boat load of little ones (illegal)! First fishing trip with new knee! Great day!

Bionic Woman-Part II

Off to San Antonio and time for a new knee!  On February 22 I had a right total knee replacement.  Everything went great and we were soon back home recuperating.  I went to physical therapy and was making great progress.
Almost two weeks after my surgery I developed a problem and had to return to San Antonio for an additional surgery on my knee. A night in the hospital and I was back at home on the road to recovery.
After  a brief setback I am back at physical therapy and working hard. 

Celebrating Eight Years!

After many years of not going to one of our favorite little gems in Mexico, we decided to celebrate our 8th wedding anniversary in Huatulco, Mexico at Villa Pacifico. A short United flight and we

landed, only to be surprised to find Hugo and Chano at the airport to pick us up. It was so good to see our old friends. Rebecca, the heart of the villa was waiting for us when we arrived. We settled in our room, enjoyed a snack and drinks around the pool.
The villa was just as beautiful as the last time we were there.....and the staff as awesome as ever.  Rebecca is a talented chef and her meals are always delicious. She spoiled us the whole week.

We enjoyed hanging out at the villa as well as two trips to the beach at La Entrega.  I always love spending the day at the beach with the locals and watching all the families having fun.  I snorkeled several times and the water was crystal clear.....but a little chilly for Dale.  We made a couple trips into La Crucecita to mingle with the locals and sit in the square.



The morning of our 8th wedding anniversary, Dale surprised me with a beautiful flower arrangement
that Hugo designed, a bottle of wine, and a lovely card.  WOW!  That evening we went into town for dinner at a French restaurant, L'Echalote. The owner greeted me with a beautiful long stemmed red rose for Valentine's Day.  It was a lovely dinner....very romantic!
We enjoyed a wonderful, relaxing vacation at Villa Pacifico.

Veggie Time!

Dale and I picked up some wonderful fresh veggies from Knopp Branch Farm.  Looking forward to some healthy eating!