2026 Road Trip - Summary and Fun Facts

There were many times leading up to our departure date that I wanted to back out of this trip.  I haven't traveled since before I got goats in 2009 (I think my last road trip was 2003) and home is my secure, quiet place.  I worried about the animals, even though they would have good care - and they did.  Jess, Cory, Tammy, and Emily did a great job, and Bex and Aaron checked in on them when they could.

I jolted myself out of my comfort zone and away from work and home and it was good.  I feel like the trip changed me in a good way.  I can do hard things.  And Dad and I had great fun and navigated some challenges and made it a great pilgrimage with Mom seemingly along for the ride.  We got closer.  We learned to listen.  We learned to be vulnerable with each other.  It was a grand adventure.  We learned that we're pretty compatible as traveling companions, and the areas in which we needed to negotiate, we found good solutions.  

Except for the toilet paper thing.  But Dad is stubborn and even if he realizes he's wrong, I doubt he will ever admit that the TP should hang from the top of the roll.

Oliver the cat hid from every person who came to make sure he was okay.  I began to worry a little, but  the food was going away so I knew he was alright.  Soon as I got home, I walked in the house and called for him.  It took him a while to show up, and he was standoffish at first, until he sniffed at my hand, then he came in for scratches and has hung out with me ever since.

The foxes left the hens alone, though they pooped and peed in Barney the Barn Cat's feed dish (thankfully not being used while I was gone and they seemed to leave the automatic feeder alone).

Dad and I both had annoying altitude issues, despite hydrating and resting as much as possible.  I got a bloody nose as soon as we hit altitude that didn't fully resolve until the day after we got home.  Dad's fingers got so dry that his phone wouldn't recognize his fingerprint, no matter how much hotel lotion he used.  That resolved a day after we returned home.

Not all hotels provide coffee machines.  There was at least one that didn't.  But that's okay, because all but one had free coffee, both caffeinated and decaf, plus hot and cold water, available 24/7 in the lobby, and all but one provided a full breakfast.  The casino hotel had the lowest room price and charged extra for fries with your sandwich.

Only the casino hotel provided travel sized shampoo, conditioner, lotion, and soap bars.  Everywhere else had large sizes with pumps mounted on the walls and in the shower.  Which was fine.  I don't need a ton of this stuff, but I did take the casino loot.

Most people are nice and helpful and eager to share their stories.  We met some wonderful individuals on this trip and are so grateful to our friends for making time for us to visit with them.

Metrics

Elevation range:  from near sea level to over 11,000 feet.  Lowest in Novato and the highest at the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel on I-70 in Colorado - 11,158 feet.  One of the highest points on the US interstate highway system.  We spent most of our time at 6,200 to 6,800 feet in Evanston and Castle Rock.

About 45 hours plus in drive time (not including driving around Evanston and Colorado).  Shared!  Dad shared the wheel!  In his truck!

Five states.  Sierra Nevada crossing, Nevada basin and range, Great Basin desert, Bonneville Salt Flats, Wyoming high plains, Continental Divide, Front Range, Rocky Mountains, canyon country, Utah desert, Nevada ranges, Northern Nevada basin Country, Sierra Nevada western descent.

3,000 miles on Dad's truck.

Dad hasn't done all his calculations yet, but estimated 110 gallons of gas.

Low temp about 20 degrees Fahrenheit.  High, about 92.

What a great adventure.  Thanks for letting me and Laramie tag along, Dad.

2026 Road Trip - Day 12 - Heading Home

On May 14 we had no nice free breakfast waiting for us and we weren’t keen on waiting in a huge line at the Starbucks in the casino, so we decided to hit the road.  

Before we left, Dad told me that he rarely dreams or remembers his dream, but he had a dream the night before.  He was driving on a freeway and a white car pulled in front of him, then suddenly turned to the left and crashed.  

I called down for a bellhop and waited and waited while Dad got the truck from the far end of the parking lot to the front door.  I let him know I was still waiting and Dad found a bellhop to inquire about the delay.  Billy Bellagio hopped right to it, made a call, and headed my way.  But.  Right before good Billy arrived at the room, I farted. And it was Been on the Road Almost Two Weeks ripe.  I hoped it wasn't noticeable, and Billy was sweet and got all our bags on the cart quickly.  He asked what we were driving and where it was, and I told him.  Then he said he'd meet me at the front because he had to "turn down the room."  I was confused.  And then I watched from the door as he went to the windows and ... opened the vents. OMG

Soon as we got loaded up, we headed for California.

But then, soon as we got on the freeway, the traffic came to a full stop. We took the above selfie in the traffic jam that wasn't going anywhere.  Then we saw emergency vehicles flying in to our right as we started to slowly move forward.  Not very far up the road, we saw a white van on its side in the middle of the freeway and another dented vehicle on the side of the road.  

We believe the bellhop delay helped save us from being closer to that when it happened.  We were both shook by the near miss.  And then remembered Dad's dream about a white vehicle pulling in front of him on the freeway and then crashing!

We stopped by Mandi’s to deliver some donuts and gifts and then made it to Novato at about 2:30 p.m. without further incident.  

I stopped to drop some things off to Jess and picked up a grocery order so I would have food, then was home around 5:00 pm.

2026 Road Trip - Day 11

I was able to see the sunrise at Elko on May 13 as we headed out to Reno.  

This was a shorter drive, so we took it easy getting started.  These early mornings may seem deliberate because of our drives, but Dad and I typically get up between 5:00 and 6:00 a.m., so it’s easy to get on the road early.

We stopped at Battle Mountain for gas at 9:00 a.m.  Dad got a drumstick ice cream and accidentally smeared it on the inside of the windshield trying to get a picture.  It was not easy tot wipe that up!

We stopped at a rest stop to make sure the restrooms were in order, and Dad made a new friend in a snake the crossed his path on the way back to the car - not the venomous kind! 

We needed more music as we’d listened to my 10 hours of songs on shuffle for a while on the trip.  I added some fun ones like Convoy and Red Solo Cup so we had a high energy drive on the way to Reno.

We arrived at our hotel, which had been selected by the AAA agent who helped Dad arrange reservations, and it was a mess.  It is a hotel casino with massive construction going on.  It took us awhile to figure out where to check in, then had to wait an hour because we were early.  After our calm trip and small hotels, walking into a full blown casino was a shock to the senses. 

We had a mediocre lunch at one of the casino's restaurants and then checked in.  We got to our room and settled in after figuring out how to request a bellhop for our bags.  We had become accustomed to using a cart to bring them up ourselves.  

I had been looking forward to playing the slots.  Dad gave me $20 to play for Mom.  I headed down to the casino while he stayed in the room and started with Mom's money first.  I quickly got up to $78.  I played until it got down to $70 and cashed in for her.  Not bad for a few minutes of play!  I was hopeful as I played my own money, but gradually just saw it all go away - the price of entertainment.  Dad was surprised when I handed him his $20 plus $50 in winnings!

When going downstairs to explore and look for a dinner place, we happened to share an elevator with a fella who’d been staying there a few days and was headed to the burger joint for their Caesar salad with chicken.  That sounded good to dad.  He directed us to a floor we didn’t know existed, away from the casino floor, and to a good place to have dinner.  It was a 50s/60s era diner all in red and white and I enjoyed another root beer float with dinner and the oldies music playing in the background.  I was surprised to hear the song Got My Mind Set on You because the only time I'd heard that was the George Harrison version from 1987.  Apparently it was originally recorded when I was 4 months old!

The room was nice.  Not impressive until we slept in those amazing beds.  They were the best beds on the trip and the best night’s sleep yet!

2026 Road Trip - Day 10

We left early on May 12 for our drive to Elko. Laramie did a handstand!

I texted the kids we were on our way to Elko and I would keep Dad away from the brothels.  He wrote "Fat chance 😊"  

We were directed by "Jill" to a Starbucks in a grocery store, that wasn't, but it turned out to be very good.  We got our coffee and snacks and made sure the restrooms were working.  While walking through the store I noticed raspberry filled powdered donuts - something I haven't seen in forever.  I sent a picture to the kids and asked if they weren't available anymore or if I just wasn't walking the pastry aisles?  They'd never heard of them but they sounded like they would be a new favorite, so I bought donuts for everyone.  You get donuts!  You get donuts!  You get donuts!  

Dad and I (separately) resisted buying a rubber band gun and slingshot for the grands.  They are at the age they're fighting so often, I thought someone would be sure to get hurt.  I also resisted buying firecrackers, though I did pick them up - twice - and put them back.

When we arrived at the same hotel in Elko we had stayed at on our way out, we were delighted to see bubbly Joselyn at the front desk.  She remembered us and asked how our trip had gone.  The hotel had a manager’s special that night – free soup, salad, and beverages, including wine and beer.  We enjoyed the free meal.  While we were there, the sales manager came by to say hello.  She said she’d heard about us from staff and about our trip.  We had a really nice visit with her and learned that her dad had passed recently and she'd taken a drive with her mom to visit her sister in Arizona.  The look on her face was priceless when Dad mentioned that AI had told him that El Koyote was a good restaurant.  She was trying really hard to keep a poker face and not show her horror!  

2026 Road Trip - Day 9

Early on May 11 we said goodbye to Colorado and headed out early to take 70 to Green River, Utah. 

Pikes Peak seemed to say goodbye as we lined up right in front of it at the stop sign leaving our hotel.

The drive to get to 70 was during commute hour, but soon enough we were on the open road with higher speed limits.  I seemed to get all the winding mountain drives on this trip, but that was good because it gave Dad a chance to enjoy the scenery and take photos.  I didn't want to go this route, but it was pretty.

Mountains and canyon turned to Utah desert and bluffs.  

Our room ended up having huge king beds that we didn't need but had to pay for, but they were nice.  The view was good from the room and the window opened!

I was feeling a little blue, I think from having to leave Colorado and missing another drive through Wyoming, but my mood immediately lifted when I discovered a restaurant in Green River that served fry bread.  I was bouncing in anticipation after placing our order, and wasn't disappointed in my fry bread taco!  Dad had what he said was a delicious salad with chicken and fry bread, and it looked good to me too.  I also enjoyed a root beer float –  my first in years and perfect on this 90 degree day.  It's amazing to think we were buying jackets a week before for 20 degree weather and snow.

I discovered I’d left my favorite multi charging cord and plug in Castle Rock.  Dad insisted he looked and didn’t see it before we left.  I called the hotel and it was not in lost and found.  I guess someone got themselves a nice charger. I was disappointed because staff had been so good there and I expected better.  (Yes, Dad, I have checked all of my bags now and it isn't here.) I ordered a new charger to be delivered after I returned home and made do with a hodge-podge of what I had for the rest of the trip.  I'm grateful that I overpacked charging cords!

To bed on time so we could get an early start to Elko - another long drive.

2026 Road Trip - Day 8

Sunday, May 10, was Mother's Day.  We didn't plan to be in Colorado for Mother's Day, but that's the way it worked out, and as with everything on this trip - it was the right thing.  We had an early Mother's Day gathering with my kiddos before we left.

It was a slow start to the day.  We had some time to kill before our visit.  We went to Castle Rock Park and walked partway up the steep trail toward the top.  When we lived there, you could drive to the top on a narrow, no-guard-rail dirt road.  Mom drove us kids up one day - I think in our Corvair.  She got scared halfway up and tried to back down, but drove the tailpipe into the dirt, killing the engine.  Some young men/teens came by and helped her get it started again and drive to the top and back (there was no turning around).  I remember that view as being so beautiful.  There's a flag and a large star on top of the rock.  They light the star during the holidays.  There is no vehicle access anymore and they have preserved the location as a park with well maintained trails.

We drove around old town Castle Rock after that.  We took a wrong turn and ended up finding an impressive community center and park.  We roamed the building, which included an indoor soccer field, trampolines, indoor swimming pool, gym, and amphitheater (apparently Cheap Trick is playing there this summer - the only performer I recognized).  After making sure the bathrooms worked properly, we headed to the park area and discovered, in addition to a great playground, a fun hillside slide that people were going down on cardboard, zip lines, climbing towers, and a ninja training area.  It was amazing and a fun find from an unexpected wrong turn.

The last picture above shows the steep and long set of steps up the hillside that go to a zip line platform at the top of the hill - one of many.  That's some dedicated people climbing that!

We got Chipotle for lunch to go to eat in our room. Then Lynda, her husband Jim, and their daughter Darcy met us at the hotel.  They got lunch to go at MAD Greens - which I wish we had here! - and we headed to Whispering Pines Park for a picnic.  We drove them by the old house on our way to the park and had a fabulous time visiting.  There's never enough time to be with these friends and I missed them as soon as our visit was done.  

Dad and I never can finish Chipotle burrito bowls, so we had our leftovers for dinner and got ready for our drive heading home the next day.

2026 Road Trip - Day 7

On May 9 we had some time to kill before heading to Littleton to visit another good friend from 50+ years ago.  We drove around Douglas County, through Parker, which has also grown tremendously.  We tried to find the barbecue that Dad helped build but couldn't locate the old building/park.  

We stopped at our old church outside Castle Rock.  A huge addition has been added that functions as the current church as their parish outgrew this part and it's been turned into their gathering place for pancake breakfasts and the like.  It's perfect with the huge windows behind where the altar used to be - looking out on the Rockies.

We drove out to Dad's old work place at Martin Marietta and made our way to Flo's beautiful home surrounded by massive red rocks.  We were happily surprised that her daughter Beth joined us.  Beth and I were friends and we reminisced about sleepovers and visits to our country home and playing kick the can in the street at her house together.  We were treated to lunch by Flo and had a wonderful time catching up and reminiscing.  I was heartbroken to have to leave so soon and didn't remember to take a photo together before we left.  I am so grateful for the time we had then and the ability to catch up now.  It was a wonderful reconnection.

Dad called Jack to ask if we could again visit his property to spread the rest of Mom's ashes.  Dad couldn't sleep the night before and as hard as this call was, he had to make it.  We were immediately and graciously granted permission.  Though Jack and his wife were away at the time, he said to go anytime.  He must have been on speaker phone, because Jack's wife got on the line and said that she'd heard such good things about us and our visit with Jack the previous day.  She was sorry to have missed us.  We talked about their upcoming visit to California and reiterated our invitation to let us know if they made it this far north.  

No one was around when we went back to the old house and Dad spread the rest of Mom's ashes.  As before, I allowed him the space for this sacred task and a chance to talk with Mom privately as he did so.  Because the truck wasn't blocking my way, I was able to capture a photo of Dad looking at Pike's Peak where he laid Mom's ashes.  She loved that view from her kitchen window.

I admit that I edited this photo to remove the powerlines.  They didn't belong there.

We had dinner at a local spot in Castle Rock that advertised local organic and scratch made food.  It was good and our server was awesome.

When we got back to the hotel, the first thing I did was turn on the desk lamp, and I turned it on every time we were in the room until we left.  After spreading the balance of Mom's ashes that we'd brought to Colorado, the lamp functioned properly every day.  Of course.  

We were spent from a long and emotional day and slept well.

2026 Road Trip - Day 6

May 8.  We discovered that making mini waffles at the hotel was easy and delicious and it became a tradition with breakfast while we stayed in Castle Rock - and to the end of our trip.

Even though we didn't have to be up early, Dad and I are early risers so we had some time to kill before going to our first visit of the day, so we hit the road early again.

We drove by the park Dad helped get started before we moved. They’ve done great things there.  I was a bit shocked to discover that the brick and mortar bathrooms were fancy outhouses, though I shouldn’t have been given their remote location.  I have a thing about outhouses, and it is very very difficult to relax enough to do business!

We visited with dear friend Lu at her home in Franktown.  We had a great visit catching up and looking through her photo albums, reminiscing and remembering the good days we had together.  I snapped some photos of pictures of my brothers in their baseball team photo, one that includes both brothers and Stacy, and one at the 4th of July picnic with me and my parents at the left and Dad's brother Mick in white shirt and black pants with sunglasses to the left of center.

We loved spending time with Lu and there is never enough time to be together!

When we got in the truck to leave, Mom sent another message by song:  Send Her My Love.  So I sent Lu a text letting her know Mom was sending her love.  They were such good friends.

We had some time to kill before meeting the current owner of our house, so looked for a place to have lunch.  I was rather excited to go to the Stagecoach for lunch!  It's a bar and was off limits to me as a kid.  The lunch was delicious and service fantastic.  If we lived there, we'd be regulars.

We then headed up to our old house to meet with the current owner.  The road was paved just last year and for the last 50 has been the dirt road I remember sledding down to the highway.  Tim and I used to walk down to catch the bus for school until the later years when they'd pick us up at the end of our property.  Unfortunately, the video I took is too long for the blog.

We had a wonderful visit with the current owner, Jack, who's owned the house for about 16 years.  He said when he saw it, the place was in bad shape with a partial renovation, but the view is what grabbed him.  He called his wife and said this is where they are going to retire - and they did.  The house has been changed on the inside completely, but the soul of the place is still there.  Many of the trees Dad planted as saplings are still there and growing strong. 

We had brought some of Mom's ashes and Dad asked permission to spread them.  Jack graciously and immediately said yes, anywhere.  Dad spread some of Mom’s ashes where you could perfectly see Pike’s Peak.  There were workers there this day that blocked my view of Dad doing this, but another opportunity to come.  

For reasons not known, Dad didn't spread all of the ashes that day.  He couldn't explain why, but we brought a portion back to Castle Rock.  When we got to the hotel room, I turned on the desk lamp so Dad could do some computing.  And it started flashing intermittently like it had a short.  Dad and I looked at each other.  The light over Mom's chair has been going off and on since she passed, and this seemed to be a message.  More to come on this on the next day.

2026 Road Trip - Day 5

We headed straight to Colorado on May 7 and left about 6:30 a.m.  

The skies were gloomy and foreboding, but we saw light at the edge!

I loved the drive through Wyoming - love Wyoming! - though it was very windy!! The windmills that we passed made perfect sense.

Dad and I had been listening to my massive Spotify playlist on our trip.  I had difficulty getting it synched up with the truck for a couple hours but finally connected somewhere in Wyoming.  The list was set to play randomly as we drove so what happened next seemed like pure Mom Intervention.

As we drove across the Colorado-Wyoming border and saw the Rockies for the first time, already an emotional moment for us, I noticed a song had randomly come up on the Spotify playlist…  Rocky Mountain High by John Denver.  I kid you not.  Mom was definitely on this road trip.  Dad and I both teared up in that homecoming moment with the perfect soundtrack.

We stopped at the school my friend Lynda teaches at in Denver, a fabulous CEC Early College facility for high school students.  Lynda teaches in their nursing program.  We had a fun and spirited and heart-filling visit with Lynda and her wonderful students.  A crazy coincidence - Mom Intervention? - was that Lynda's student had started singing Landslide during their class break just before we arrived.  Not many teens know that song, and that song has a long history in my life that continues today.  Some of the girls overcame their shyness and sang some of it for us.

We then headed to Castle Rock and our hotel to settle in.  I caught a glimpse of the namesake rock on our way in - the first time I've seen it in decades.  

The town of Castle Rock stunned us.  We knew that it had grown from its 1,500 population 50 years ago when we moved away from the area, but were unprepared for the explosion of houses and shops and a population of over 83,000.  I had been surprised to learn they had a grocery store (the nearest had been Denver, 30 miles away), but that they also have an outlet mall!

Mom made her presence known again when The Little Old Lady from Pasadena started playing over the hotel's intercom while we started checking in.  It was a favorite song of Mom's when we lived in Southern California and while it's on my playlist, it is a rare song that I would not expect to be playing at a hotel.  Dad and I noticed it at the same time and just looked at each other and smiled.

Dad could not be so close to Franktown and not go, so we headed out.  We were shocked by the developments all over what used to be open prairie land.  

We drove by our old house – missed the turn the first time – and had dinner at a Mexican restaurant next to what used to be our friend's welding shop where Dad helped build a trailer he designed to carry live trees for transplant.  We are spoiled for good Mexican food in California, though it was good enough.  

We were spent by the long drive and emotional day and Dad fell asleep as soon as we got back into the room.  He woke up in time to get ready for bed proper.  

2026 Road Trip - Day 4

May 6 we stayed in Evanston to make sure the storm cleared before we left.  I saw a post from a trucker on FB and was glad that we had decided not to go through Wyoming the day before!

We needed to replenish supplies, such as lemons (my morning vice is lemon water - got Dad hooked on it this trip), more peanuts for snacks on the road, and night lights.  A little surprised to see ashtrays for sale - something else we're not used to living in California.  The organic section was a surprise because it was so tiny, but they did have organic lemons.

Yes.  That's it - that little island in the produce section.

We roamed around downtown Evanston and went to a museum.  Met some lovely people at the museum and enjoyed seeing some of Evanston's history.  The railroad roundabout wasn't really accessible to us, but we drove to it and enjoyed seeing the old trains in the area.  This was an interesting old timey electric hair curler at the museum.

We went to a bison preserve and saw the bison and some prairie dogs.  Took our selfie with Laramie there.

Yes, those are white bison, but not albino bison.  They are the product of cross breeding with a cow.

We saw a coffee shop called For Pete's Sake and had to go.  Mom and Dad's nickname for each other is Pete (you'll see that nickname on Mom's headstone), so it was a perfect place for lunch.  We had a great visit with the owner and staff, and I picked up some items to bring home.  

We walked around town and saw an attorney's office with a sign that said Jamaica Bobsleigh Federation.  That was unusual!  We tried to go in to ask more about it, but the office was locked up.  I did a little online research, and apparently Paul Skog was inspired to invite the Jamaican bobsled team to Wyoming to train for the Olympics after watching Cool Runnings.  I wish we'd had a chance to talk with him about it.  We tried to get Cool Runnings on the tube at the hotel but were unsuccessful.  Dad hasn't seen it yet.

Evanston is a fun and friendly town.  Loved this rock shop's outside decor of dinosaurs!

We had dinner at Legal Tender, a mob-themed restaurant, and it was good.  

When we got to the hotel room the previous day, we sat down and replanned our route, making changes to our hotel reservations since we were delayed a day.  We decided to head straight to Colorado and skip Laramie, then reroute to Highway 70 for our return drive.  I was not a fan of 70, but this is Dad's trip and I went with it.  We got to bed on time for another long drive the next day, excited to get to Franktown.

2026 Road Trip - Day 3

We left early May 5 for Laramie and navigated our way in light rain through the nightmare of Salt Lake City highways and byways and freeways.

By 7:00 a.m. we discovered that it was snowing in Wyoming.  By 8:00 a.m. I got a notification that Highway 80 was closed between Rawlins and Laramie.  We stopped in the nearest town, Evanston, Wyoming, to avoid the snow and road closure.  Even though we had chains, neither one of us wanted to use them, chance a highway closure, or possibly no rooms available further up the road.

We were able to get a hotel room for two nights to wait out the storm.  We were super early and had to kill time before the room would be ready.  We had coffee at a cute coffee shop called Gigi’s in town and Laramie and I considered shopping at a store that offered prairie dresses as their primary window dressing.

Just as we finished our coffee, it started snowing so went back to hotel.  Dad did some tai chi in the snowfall and sent the video to his teacher.

We hung out in the breakfast dining area until the local Boot Barn opened and the snow stopped so we could get some warm jackets.  We had only light sweaters with us.  Dad did have a beanie and gloves in the emergency supplies we'd put in the truck.  The truck was covered in snow when we went out, but at least it wasn't actively snowing at that time.

We went back and hung out at the hotel again waiting for our room to be ready.  The desk clerk, Matison, was awesome our whole stay.  We confirmed with her that we could order Door Dash to the hotel, so we ordered pizza.  We finished lunch just as our room was ready for us. Dad was pooped.  We both were, even though we hadn't driven that far.

Apparently this was the first snowstorm of winter – it’s been very dry until we decided to come through!  I can't remember dinner that night and think we just finished the leftover pizza before getting some sleep.