The Graduate

The big reason for the timing of our trip out west was to be able to attend Addison's graduation party on Sunday, May 23. We enjoyed a chill weekend in Longmont hanging out with family celebrating our niece's accomplishment.  Congratulations Addison!

Garden of the Gods 2026

When we were last here in 2008, we had only a very brief time to explore this amazing place. Today, Debbie and I were able to spend hours visiting the welcome center, enjoying a picnic, wandering around the formations, and taking lots of photos. It was a good day!

"Kissing Camels"

Half the Fun?

While our journey out to Colorado was uneventful and even enjoyable in parts, I certainly hope it is not true that - as the old adage goes - getting there is half the fun. If that saying is correct, this may not be an overly fun trip!

Debbie and I had an important decision to make before setting out on our western odyssey. Would we take Debbie's 2010 Toyota Sienna minivan or Jon's 2015 Honda CR-V? Originally, we were planning to take our van, as we had done on previous trips, to ensure that we had plenty of cargo space. However, with gas prices skyrocketing as a result of Operation Epic Fury (why do these trips always end up happening with $4+ gas?), we did some recalculations. Without taking any kids this time, we would have more room. Even with taking the stuff for Adam and Patti, we knew the CR-V could work, and with about 50% better mileage efficiency. That really made the decision for us. A couple of days before our trip, Jon got the Honda serviced with an oil change, tire rotation, and new front brakes that it had been needing. 

On Wednesday, May 20, with all the preparations made and shopping done and packing completed, we left our home at 12280 Beeson Street shortly after 7 am. We made it over an hour before our first stop for a fine breakfast at the Bob Evans in Wooster.

When we got to the Dayton area, we knew we had to make a stop at the legendary Buccee's!

Sadly, Debbie wouldn't let us stop here in Indiana:

Debbie made the call for lunch. She happily picked one of her favorites - Culver's.

The rest of the day continued without incident. We ate at a Raising Cane's for supper. Our stop for the night was in Columbia, Missouri, logging 697 miles for the first day.

After a hotel breakfast, we continued west. Topeka was a little challenging in that we were looking for the cheapest gas which wasn't easy to find. We ended up stopping for lunch at a Chick Fil A there. Then it was time for our looong drive across Kansas. Supper was at an Arby's in Goodland where we also filled up before crossing the border into Colorado. It felt like a marathon to make it all the way to Manitou Springs where our night's stay was booked. I experienced a little nausea and headache after supper which may have either been from two full days of driving or possibly some altitude sickness setting in. Maybe both? In two days, we had travelled 1,431 miles and gone from 1,181 feet to 6,306 feet for an increase of 5,125 feet. Whew!

We went to bed on Thursday evening looking forward to spending some time the next day at the nearby Garden of the Gods before meeting up with the Lees in Longmont for Addison's graduation weekend.

Go West, Old Man!

America's West beckons once again, and Debbie and I are heeding the call. Thus we are embarking upon a 17 day, 5000+ mile driving adventure starting Wednesday, May 20, through Friday, June 5, 2026. We figure this will be a great way to celebrate our nation's 250th birthday!

The impetus for the trip is our niece Addison's high school commencement and graduation party.  The Lee Family has been there for important moments in our family's life, and we would like to be able to celebrate the achievements of their oldest daughter with them in Longmont. There are also some heirloom items from the Immel house that we can deliver to them since we are driving.

We will be revisiting some of our favorite destinations from previous trips (Colorado Springs, Yellowstone) as well as journeying to some new sites from our bucket lists (Jon's: Dinosaur National Monument, Craters of the Moon, Theodore Roosevelt National Park, and Debbie's: DeSmet.) Our route is anticipated to be I-70 from Ohio through Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas and Colorado, then on various roads through Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin before returning home via I-80.

With Debbie now retired, traveling in late May and early June is possible, so the timing works.  We hope that the earlier trip will mean lower crowds. Of course, with some of our elevated altitudes and latitudes, that also might mean colder weather and even snow. We'll have to see!

ALASKA ADVENTURE 2024: Wrap-Up and Reflections

At approximately the midpoint of our Alaska Adventure, during our last night aboard the Royal Princess among the many glaciers of College Fjord.

I know what you're thinking. Just how much ice cream did Jon eat on this trip?

A lot, my friends. A lot.

But fortunately - and unbelievably - the scale revealed that I actually lost two pounds in Alaska rather than gain fifteen like I had feared.

So, what did we learn from our time in Alaska?

In no particular order:

Going forward, I'm going to minimize my flying as much as possible. Some of our flights were miserable.

I told a few folks before this trip that I was curious how I would like a trip planned by others versus the kind that I plan for myself. On the whole, I prefer doing it myself. For one thing, flexibility is important. Perhaps destinations could have been re-arranged and Denali salvaged had I been in the driver's seat. 

Vastness. Probably the most striking thing about Alaska is the sheer scale and scope of its land. There's a lot of it. It was amazing to come across mountain range after mountain range, large river after large river, lake after lake in our travels. There is a lot of wide open space up north. And we only saw a piece of it.

Correspondingly, there was a shocking lack of wildlife. One of our main reasons for traveling to Alaska was to have encounters with wildlife. Certainly missing out on Denali had an impact. But even taking that off the table, I was expecting to see more animals. We did get to see three moose and one bear, many bald eagles, some sea otters and seals, and a wonderful group of whales on our whale-watching tour. I think we saw more than many others on our voyage. We overheard (more than once) a reference to Jurassic Park: "Do you have any dinosaurs in your dinosaur park?" Perhaps things would have been different if our trip had been shifted slightly later in the summer when the salmon were more active.

Our tour was called "Off the Beaten Path," and I did enjoy exploring some parts of Alaska that are not widely visited. Seeing Copper River, Valdez, and Fairbanks was a treat.

The weather, especially while we were on the ship, was surprisingly cool and wet. The interior was warmer and drier and about what I expected. Debbie is fond of saying that one thing she learned on this trip is that Alaska's coastal region is a rain forest, temperate not tropical. We had lots of precipitation.

I've been asked which portion of the tour I enjoyed more - the cruise or land? That's a tough question. I think the cruise has the edge with the wildlife that we did see, the meals and entertainment, and the shore excursions. 

One decision that I really wrestled with in booking the trip was the question of a balcony. An unobstructed balcony for the week added approximately $3,000 to the cost to the trip. Researching the issue showed that most people strongly recommended getting the balcony. In retrospect, I'm certainly glad that we had it, and it did enhance our experience. But, in the final analysis, I would have to say that was a corner we could have cut. There are other areas on the ship suitable for watching the glaciers on those special days. But it's a fairly close call.

Towards the end of our trip, I began wondering if I would need to venture up to this land again, to return to Alaska someday. While there is certainly more to see, and I would always love to visit additional National Parks, including those in remote regions, I do feel like we did Alaska well in the thirteen days we had there. I think we're good.

Finally, I once again feel drawn to give glory to God for His amazing creation. Witnessing the interaction of land (mountains and glaciers and coast) and life (migrating humpbacks and spawning salmon and hibernating bears) testifies to God's incredible, intricate design. Voyaging to new lands always brings home to me to a deeper appreciation and wonder of God, and I think that's the way it is supposed to be.