Vacation

How I Spent My Writing Vacation

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Last week I was on a writing retreat/vacation in the Wisconsin Dells. Not the west, but a place I’d never been before. I confess I had preconceived notions about the Dells. I thought it was a tourist town full of water parks and resorts and geared to kids and families. Well, to be honest, the Dells are a tourist town full of water parks (20!! Supposedly the most water parks in one town in the world) and geared to kids and families. But you know what? It turned out to be fine because we saw some gorgeous natural sights, drank some amazing wine, and enjoyed some remarkable scenery while we were there.

The resort where we stayed was pretty family-oriented, but it was lovely and clean and pretty luxurious really except there was no swimming pool, which was a disappointment because I had counted on getting my exercise in at the pool. There was only an indoor water park that was rather overrun with kids on fall break from school, so we avoided that and got our exercise was walking around the resort grounds, which were lovely.

The history of the area was most fascinating and what I mainly want to share with you today. The gorge that the Wisconsin River flows through is a wonderland of sandstone cliffs formed some 19,000 years ago when a glacial lake burst an ice dam and unleashed a flood that cut deep narrow gorges into the sandstone. What was left were all kinds of  unusual rock formations, sone as high as 100 feet.

We took a tour boat ride up the river to view the incredible cliffs and even walked through a formation that was called the Witch’s Gulch—a fascinating moss-covered slot canyon that was spectacular with different-colored striated layers of sandstone. At one point, we had to squeeze through two sections that were very snug together. Beautiful trees, ferns, and other plants grow out of the sandstone cliffs. We also learned about the photographer H.H. Bennett (he invented the stop-action shutter for catching motion in photography), who made the Dells famous with his photographs of the area. We discovered the history and culture of the Ho-Chunk Nation, who’ve lived in the region and across Wisconsin for thousands of years.

On our way home from the Dells, we stopped for a night in Kenosha to visit with my travel buddy’s family, and I got to see the west side of Lake Michigan for the very first time. The magic is there, no matter from which side I view that glorious body of water. I’ve always maintained that my address is in Indiana, but my home is Lake Michigan. It was on the shores of that vast great lake that I learned about the possibilities of life and began writing at the age of ten. The feeling of coming home was just as intense from the Wisconsin side as it’s always been from the Michigan west coast.

I got words written on my WIP, my travel buddy got a blanket made for her college-age grandson so he’ll be warm in his Wisconsin dorm this winter, so all in all, a successful trip. If you’ve never been to the Wisconsin Dells, I recommend a visit, but unless you’re looking for a waterpark experience, I’d make it in late fall after the tourist season. The town may be known as the water park capital of the world, but it’s also full of history and natural wonders that are must-sees.

Tell me, what is the most fascinating place you’ve visited recently?

~*~*~*~

FYI and apropos of nothing I’ve been talking about: If you love sweet cowboy romance, Forever Cowboy is on sale for just $1.99 for a short time.

From Midwest Lakes to Ocean Views by Pam Crooks

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At this stage in my life, spending time with my children and grandchildren takes far more precedence than most anything else I can think of. Especially in this day and age when a quick text message suffices over a phone call and even a physical visit. Everyone is busy, and if not for pictures snapped on smart phones and sent sailing onto MY smart phone via cell towers (which is a really simplistic way to explain it but you get the idea), I might not see much of my children and grandchildren at all.

I actually blame those cell towers for that. My life was much simpler without those darned cell phones everyone is so obsessed with–and I suspect yours was, too.

Thus, in my quest to spend more time with my family, we have turned toward taking nice family vacations together. The whole bunch. All twenty of us. Every year. It’s my husband’s and my treat, and it’s great incentive to get 100% attendance. These family vacations have been some of my most special memories ever.

Okoboji

One of the earliest vacations we took with the kids was Okoboji. Located in northwest Iowa’s Great Lakes region and only three hours away from us, Okoboji has long been a family friendly favorite around here. Lake Okoboji is a big, beautiful lake, and nearby Fillenwarth Beach offers their “Million Dollar Home Cruise” and “Booze Cruise” with special drinks for kids and adults alike, including platters of crackers and cheese to snack on. Of course, there’s biking, hiking, and even an amusement park in nearby Arnold’s Park. Something for everyone.

Honey Creek Resort

Honey Creek Resort is a southern Iowa lake retreat on Rathbun Lake, offering lodge rooms, cottages, outdoor recreation, golf, trails, and family-friendly amenities in a state-park setting, again only a few hours away. We rented cottages and had our own cul-de-sac for bike riding, cooking out, and game-playing. I do know they have been having some financial troubles, and if so, I’m hopeful they get those worked out soon, if they haven’t already. We loved going there over several summers.

Ponca State Park

For our more rustic vacation, we drove up north to Ponca State Park and rented cottages all tucked into the bluffs above the Missouri River. We enjoyed great river views, hiking, biking, kids activities, and so on. Again, only a few hours away from us and kid-friendly.

Bahamas Cruise

Last year, my husband and I celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary with our biggest vacation yet – a cruise to the Bahamas. Oh, my goodness. It didn’t get any better than that, especially since no one in the family had been on a cruise before. Seeing their wide-eyed amazement at how BIG the ship was, all the food they could eat, the shows, the pools…

It was so wonderful, we went again. In fact, we only got home a couple of days ago, and since I’m still on a cruise euphoria, I was inspired to write this blog and share our vacations with all of you!

Now that this year’s vacation is over, I’d love to hear about your vacation favorites. (I need ideas for next year, and the year after that . . .)

How I Spent My Summer Vacation: Montana!

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When Jane Porter, my publisher at Tule Publishing asked me to switch settings and write sweet, small-town romance in Marietta, Montana, I have to confess, I was more than a little apprehensive. Right off, leaving safe, familiar River’s Edge, where “everybody knew my name…” was a little sad, although I’m not sure I’m done with RE forever. Also, it was daunting to come to a setting that was already created, and by amazing writers who are way more experienced in the ways of the West and cowboys than me. Frankly, I’d never been to the West before and I knew nothing about cowboys. Oh, I’d spent lots of time in California and I’d been Oregon, but those were family and vineyard vacations. I was intrigued with the whole idea of moving to Montana, though, and joining authors I love in Marietta.

The first order of business was to read—I was already a Marietta fan, so I knew some about that little fictional town in Crawford County, Montana. With the help of my amazing editor, Sinclair Jayne, and all the great online information available at Tule, I began to know the town even better. But it occurred to me that if I was going to write more than one book in Montana, maybe I’d better go see it for myself.

I called my friend and fellow Tule author, Carol Light, and said, “Hey, wanna go to Montana?” Carol was an immediate, “You bet, when do we leave?” We picked Big Sky country because it was not too far from Bozeman (neither is Marietta), and the VRBOs there were out-of-season, so fairly reasonable. To be honest, Big Sky, the town, is a winter playground for snow skiers and snow boarders, but all around the area are ranches and not far away is Virginia City and Ennis and other towns that reeked of cowboys and Western life.

In late July, I left my local airport at 8:30 a.m.; Carol left her local airport 10:15 a.m. and we met up in the Denver Airport. Then we flew together to Bozeman–one of the cutest airports I’ve ever seen! There are bears and moose everywhere and some crazy huge bird hanging from the ceiling! The whole airport was mountain stone and cedar beams–really pretty and lodge-y (If that’s not a word, it should be). We also saw the coolest ad for a fishing outfitters that felt like the universe was telling me that moving from River’s Edge to Montana is a capital idea! Take a look!

There are 64 mountain ranges in Montana and our condo was nestled right in the middle of the Madison Range at an altitude of 7000 feet. Lone Mountain was visible from Big Sky as well as several other mountain ranges, including the Gallatin Range and the Absaroka Range, which are part of Marietta lore.

We spent two days of our week at Yellowstone National Park, which is just overwhelming and spectacular! Carol used the term “moonscape of boiling mud and geysers” to describe the Fountain Paint Pot thermal field and Old Faithful. I can’t think of a better way to say it. It was awe-inspiring and this little Midwestern gal couldn’t stop saying, “Wow!” What a spectacular experience that national park was!

When we drove west to Virginia City the first thing I noticed was that the landscape was so very different from Big Sky. In Big Sky, it’s all huge mountains and pines. As we headed west, the terrain changed to rolling hills and pastures and wheat and hayfields. Junipers dotted the landscape and there were lots of ranches and fences and sagebrush. I absorbed it all–even-saw a ranch that reminded me of what I imagined Del Foster’s ranch to be–and oh, the cows and horses! Virginia City and Ennis were real Old West towns and just steeped in history!

I think the most important thing that we discovered there is how big the world is–Big Sky indeed! The mountains overwhelmed us every time we went outside even though we were only halfway up. We loved tramping to Ousel Falls, so I would have a picture in my head (and on my phone) of what I imagined Juniper Falls to look like. I absorbed Montana and imagined the little town of Marietta in each place we visited. We saw enough cattle ranches and guest dude ranches that I can add some authenticity to my Juniper Falls Ranch stories. The Big Sky area wasn’t as cowboy-centric as I imagined it would be, but the vibe was definitely Western.

All in all, this move to Marietta is going to be a fun journey. I can’t wait to share my cowboy/Western romances with you! Hope y’all will come along with me to Marietta and Juniper Falls Ranch!

All My Best,

Question: Have you ever had to change course and do something entirely different? How’d it go?

Hometown Hoedown – The Heart of the Berkshires

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Welcome to my hometown! But to be perfectly honest with you, I haven’t lived there for more than fifty years…and I’ve never really given much thought to the history of Pittsfield, Massachusetts until the Fillies suggested doing a blog about our hometown towns.

So, here goes…

Pittsfield, Massachusetts, located in western Massachusetts, is a city rich in history and culture. Situated in Berkshire County, it encompasses a unique blend of natural beauty, significant landmarks, and a vibrant community.

The city can trace its roots back to the colonial era when it was first settled in 1752. The city was named after British Prime Minister William Pitt the Elder. Initially, Pittsfield relied on agriculture, with crops like corn, oats, and wheat being important for the settlers. However, during the 19th century, the city experienced rapid industrial growth, transitioning from an agrarian society into a thriving manufacturing hub.

By the end of the Revolutionary War, Pittsfield had nearly 2,000 residents. While mainly a farming area, because of the many brooks that flowed into the Housatonic River, the land was dotted with mills that produced lumber, grain, paper (Eaton & Crane writing paper was known worldwide), and textiles. When Merino sheep from Spain was introduced in 1807, the area became the center of woolen manufacturing in the U.S. for nearly a century.

By the late 1800s, the town was a bustling metropolis. In 1891, the City of Pittsfield was incorporated. In that same yar, William Stanley Jr., who had recently relocated his Electric Manufacturing Company to Pittsfield produced the first electric transformer. Stanley’s enterprise was the forerunner of the internationally known corporate giant, General Electric (GE). Thanks to the success of GE, Pittsfield’s population in 1930 had grown to more than 50,000. Though it continued to be one of the city’s largest employers until the 1980s, a workforce that once topped 13,000 was reduced to less than 700 with the demise of General Electric. On a personal note, I worked at GE after college for two years, made some great friends, and learned how a big conglomerate operated…which made me turn to public education for the remainder of my working career!

Weather in Pittsfield has four distinct seasons…however, winter often begin around Columbus Day in mid-October and can last to Mother’s Day in May. Spring is nearly non-existent, and summers can be cool & rainy or hot…however, nothing compares to the Berkshires in Autumn. It is glorious!!!

       

Pittsfield and Berkshire County is less than three hours from New York City to the south, and Boston to the east, making the area home to a myriad of world-class art, theater, dance, music, film, and historic sites. The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Arts in North Adams and Tanglewood in Lenox and Stockbridge have long drawn the culturally inclined to Western Massachusetts. Berkshire Theatre Group in Pittsfield and venues like the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge also draw tourists from around the world.

       

Pittsfield can lay claim to a number of famous residents who have made significant contributions to our nation’s history, including Herman Melville, author of Moby Dick, written at his Pittsfield home he called Arrowhead. Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., lived in Pittsfield for 7 years. His poetry put him in the company of other writers living in the area in the mid 1800’s. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, poet, educator, linguist, owned a home which is now the site of Pittsfield High School.

Other notables include

  • Robin Williams, actor, maintained a summer home in Pittsfield
  • Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric
  • Brian Piccolo, Chicago Bears halfback, subject of movie Brian’s Song
  • Marshall Field, founded Chicago’s Marshall Field’s department stores, took first job in 1853 as a clerk in Pittsfield
  • Silvio O. Conte, congressman (He and my dad were good friends during their school years)
  • Niraj Shah (born 1973/74), billionaire CEO and co-founder of Wayfair

If you, like me, are surprised by the city where I was born and raised, I have one more interesting, albeit, tragedy that occurred in Pittsfield.

At approximately 10:15AM, President Theodore Roosevelt’s motorcade was travelling along South Street when the mounted troopers assigned to protect him noticed the speeding trolley. As the streetcar turned onto the street with the presidential carriage, the driver rang the trolley bell and attempted to stop. Two cavalrymen flagged down the motorman, ordering the trolley to stop, but it nevertheless collided with the back left wheel of the carriage, smashing the carriage’s back and striking the front wheel as well. The impact sent the carriage into the air briefly.

William Craig yelled for the president to “Look out! Hold fast!” before they were both thrown off the wagon. Craig was thrown under the streetcar and killed instantly while Roosevelt was thrown out and hit his head on the sidewalk. Cortelyou sustained serious injuries. Governor Crane escaped uninjured. Pratt, the driver, struck his head, resulting in a fractured skull. One carriage horse was also killed in the collision.

Like many of New England’s manufacturing centers that experienced an economic decline in the latter part of the 20th century, Pittsfield has been forced to redefine itself. With the reconstruction of prime industrial property at the heart of the city, and an energized arts and entertainment scene in the downtown, Pittsfield has established itself as a cultural center in Berkshire County with the prospect of renewed economic vitality.

Thanks for coming along on this portrait of an American city — my hometown, Pittsfield Massachusetts.

 

To stay up on our latest releases and have some fun, too, join our Facebook Reader Group HERE!

 

Sasquatch – Legend, Hoax, or Something More? by Pam Crooks

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Last month, we enjoyed a family vacation at the breathtakingly beautiful Ponca State Park in northeast Nebraska.  The park, and the nearby town of its namesake, are named for the Native American tribe who once claimed the land.  While traveling along the Missouri, Lewis and Clark passed right through, and the National Park Service has since designated this state park as part of the Lewis and Clark Historical Trail.

Even though it’s only two hours from where I live, except for one family member, none of us had ever been there.  The get-away promised to be relaxing, and with ten grandkids in tow, family-friendly.

Since we were only going to be there for a few days, the #SelfieSasquatchChallenge soon became a priority.  Once a week, park rangers move a seven-foot tall Sasquatch figure to different locations throughout the park’s trails.  The fun is to find him, take a selfie of you and your group (if you’re in one) and post the photo on their State Park Facebook page.

My husband hamming it up with Sasquatch.

We were up for the challenge, I tell you!  My three sons-in-law found Sasquatch first while mountain-biking, and the news upon their return was so exciting!  It wasn’t long before we hit the trail to find him, too – and of course, take a photo of him.  I have to admit, seeing that hulking figure against a tree shrouded in shadows on a heavily wooded trail was startling!  Even though I knew Sasquatch was just there for fun, well, he’s not something one normally sees while hiking.

Sasquatch’s fame comes through in many names – Bigfoot, Yeti, the Abominable Snowman, Sokqueatl, or Sesquac, as spoken by Native American tribes in the Pacific Northwest, but whatever name you give him, his name will mean “wild man.”

Sometimes depicted as covered in black, dark brown, reddish brown, or even white hair, he is ape-like with feet believed to be two feet long.  Hulking, with no neck, eyes that glow red or yellow, too.  Some describe him as much as eight feet tall, others even ten.  Supposedly, he makes hair-raising sounds like howls, screams, grunts, or roars.  Still, others claim the sounds are simply mis-interpreted and actually made by animals such as owl, wolf, fox, or coyote.

A US Navy cryptologic linguist, Scott Nelson, said of audio recordings from the early 1970s that “It is definitely a language, it is definitely not human in origin, and it could not have been faked.”

In another report of Sasquatch’s realism, the owner of the Bigfoot Discovery Museum in northern California claims to have smelled the beast, saying, “Imagine a skunk that had rolled around in dead animals and had hung around the garbage pits.”

Others, however, have completely different theories.  Scientists and non-believer professionals claim the Sasquatch sightings are simply large bears, hermits or feral humans living in the wilderness.

And then there was the group of researchers in Washington State who used 200 pounds of plaster to take impressions, ultimately named the Skookum Cast, which is 3 1/2 feet wide and 5 feet tall. As quoted from an article written by Kelly Milner Halls, Rick Spears, and Roxyanne Young, “A Bigfoot by Any Other Name,”

“Measurements of the imprints indicated that whatever creature made this impression was 40 to 50 percent larger than a 6-foot-tall human being. When the cast was cleaned, hair samples were extracted. All of them turned out to belong to deer, elk, coyote, and bear—all but one. One hair had unique primate (ape) characteristics. Dr. Henner Fahrenback, a biomedical research scientist from Beaverton, Oregon, has labeled it “Sasquatch.”

So there you go.

What do you think?  Are you a believer or a non-believer?  Is Sasquatch real or a hoax?

And that question reminds of UFOs and how the Pentagon has been holding historic hearings on supposed sightings of UFOs just this spring.  Sure makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

What about UFOs?  Are they real or a hoax, too?

The Dreaded Vacation Pictures

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Well, I’m usually much more organized and on top of my game than I currently am. Comes from being on deadline (new book and edits on another one are due within days of each other) and squeezing in a four-day vacation to visit my daughter in Seattle. As a result, I didn’t think much about my blog this month. Sorry. So, as a result, you get to look at pictures and hear about my trip. It really was a lot of fun 🙂

On my first full day, we went to the county fair. I can’t tell you how long it’s been since I’ve been to a county fair. Yes, the rides were as rickety as I remember. I thought I’d be okay going on the ferris wheel, but I admit I was kind of scared. We were up pretty high, and the ride didn’t look all that secure. The haunted house was lame, which was great for a laugh. The fun house was my favorite next to the livestock barns. I loved seeing the draft horses (some of you may remember my recent post about the different kinds of draft horses). And the little guy on the lower right is a miniature mule. We had lots of the big ones. This fellow was about a fourth of the size.

Another highlight of the trip was a visit to Easton’s Books. If you’re a book lover, which I am, this place is a dream. There are all kinds of books, from recent releases to classics. I could spend the entire day there and still not see everything. I was able to purchase four books for my favorite childhood books collections. The Black Stallion Legend was an exciting find for me. It’s one of the less popular Black Stallion books, and there aren’t many copies floating around.  The Year of the Black Pony was an especially wonderful find as it’s signed by the author! How cool is that?

Lastly, there are pictures of our stroll along the walkway outside of a seafood restaurant where we had dinner. My bad, I can’t remember the name of the small town, but the water is a “finger” of the sound. And best of all, besides time spent with my daughter, was getting to see my fur grandbabies. Tsuki the dog and Bandit the cat are both elderly now and having their share of health problems. They both belonged to me when they were babies. Bandit was a rescue saved from a cat hoarding situation. My daughter took both pets with her when she moved out of the house at eighteen to attend college. I’m always amazed that Tsuki remembers me even though I only see him every couple of years. Or, maybe he doesn’t and just likes me!

Thanks for letting me share my trip with you. I promise that next month I’ll be more prepared.

My Branson Vacation

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Hello everyone, Winnie Griggs here. A few weeks ago we took a family vacation to Branson, Mo.

Some of my kids had been there before but I hadn’t so I wasn’t sure what to expect. As it turned out, we had a fabulous time!  Nine of us took the trip and seven of us stayed in one condo while two stayed at another which helped extend the time together.

We tried to cram as many of the attractions as we could into the three days we were there. Here’s a list of how we spent our time.

We spent a day at Silver Dollar City (Unfortunately no one took pictures). Several members of the group took advantage of the rides – I didn’t. But there were lots of craft demonstrations ( glass blowers, wood working, pottery, etc.) and fun shops to keep me happily entertained.  One of the things I found that I just couldn’t pass up was this dragonfly puzzle box. I love dragonflies and collect trinket boxes so it seemed custom made just for me 🙂

 

We caught the Sight & Sound Theater’s production of Jesus. The production value was absolutely AMAZING! I had an aisle seat and there were live animals – sheep, pigs, horses, camels, birds – some of which ran up and down the aisles close enough to touch. And the sets themselves were active, realistic and altogether fabulous.

 

We toured Wild World where there were many more animals than I expected – sharks, reptiles, birds, creepy crawlers and lots of furry critters. The highlight of this particular outing was when three members of our group were able to get up close and personal with some lemurs.

 

We also stopped in at the Titanic Museum. The tour started with the staff handing everyone a bording ticket complete with the name of an actual passenger who sailed aboard the Titanic. The ticket contained personal info on that passenger including name, position, ticket class and some other notes. At the end of the tour you found out if ‘you’ survived or not. I was the ladies maid for a dowager and assigned to second class.
I learned so much during the tour. At one point we were able to stick our hands in a vat of liquid that duplicated the temperature and density of the water surrounding the wreck – Brrrrr!

Here I am standing in front of a reproduction of the grand staircase. (By the way, my character was among the survivors. 🙂 )

 

Another place we visited was the Butterfly Palace. It was so fun to go inside the plant conservatory and let the butterflies approach and feed on the blossoms the staff provided.
There was also a great little mirror maze tucked inside the same building. I would probably still be wandering around looking for a way out if I hadn’t had my daughter and grandson there to help me find my way 🙂

 

But my favorite part of the whole trip was our visit to Top of the Rock. There is a two and a half mile nature trail that you can navigate on your own via a golf cart. The scenery was fabulous – rock formations, a cave, waterfalls, wildlife, streams, covered bridges.

There were also these wonderful wildlife medallions embedded in the metal fencing and bridge headers along the trail that I found were so intriguing. I’ve been trying to do a little research into them but so far haven’t had much luck.

 

We capped off the vacation by having a game night our last evening there. We ordered pizzas and played a rousing game of Mexican Train dominoes. Since we are a highly competitive bunch it was loud and energetic and fabulously fun!

 

So there you have it, our first family vacation since before the pandemic.

What was your own favorite vacation? Leave a comment to be entered in a drawing for your choice of any book from my backlist.

 

And don’t forget to come by on Thursday to help us celebrate our 15th birthday!!

 

Spread  the word – there are going to be BIG prizes and BIG fun!

Play Fifteen Filly Fact or Fib? and you could win!

Happy Birthday to us!

Visiting the Frontier – Disney Style

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This past December, the Witemeyer family escaped Texas for a family vacation several years in the making. With a wedding and college graduation this spring for my son, and my daughter knee-deep in research and conferences for her PhD program, our window of opportunity for family vacations has been dwindling. Thankfully, the stars aligned just right for us to squeeze in a trip to Disney World before we all start going our separate ways. We invited my son’s fiancé and my youngest son’s girlfriend to join in the fun, and we had a fabulous time. So many photos and memories.

Of course, my favorite land to visit in Magic Kingdom is Frontierland. My western-loving heart enjoyed hearing the piped in oater music, seeing the Liberty Belle riverboat, and getting absorbed into the wild west atmosphere. My favorite ride is of course Big Thunder Mountain, and it was so much fun reading all the signs posted around the mining company as we waited for our chance to ride.

If my next book happens to feature a terrible twosome named the Hash Knife Outfit known for tomfoolery and habitual bungling, you’ll know where the idea came from. Or maybe my next heroine will take a job in the Hard Times Café. Lot’s of possibilities there.

Some other fun frontier moments came at Epcot where we visited the American Adventure theater to relive America’s past with Mark Twain and Benjamin Franklin as our hosts.

And you know I wasn’t going to miss everybody’s favorite cowboy in Toy Story Land in Hollywood Studios.

So many fun opportunities for inspiration. Like this masked gang of suspicious characters heading to the shooting gallery to stir up trouble.

It’s a good thing I found a pencil to make notes for my next book idea!

Did you travel at all over the Christmas break? Where did you go?
Have you been to Disney World or Disneyland? What are your favorite rides/experiences?

My Favorite Small Town Getaway

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Last summer after dropping off our youngest son at college in New Jersey, we visited wineries on the return trip to break up the endless miles. Once home we discovered quite a few wineries in our area. Now I had a goal I could really get behind–visiting local wineries!

I found Valley View, Texas because of a billboard advertising its local winery. What I never expected was to also find a Texas getaway gem in this town of seven hundred fifty-seven people.

The minute I drove into Valley View, my tension drifted away with the warm Texas breeze, and that was even before I had a glass of Firelight Vineyard’s sangria! The town reminded me of my childhood spent at my grandparent’s farm in northeastern Iowa. There was open space, trees, horses and cows. Often all in one front yard. There life doesn’t speed by. Neighbors know each other. Everyone’s friendly and laid back. Whenever I’m there I run into someone who wants to talk. Whether it’s someone at the winery, a local business owner, or an Army/Air Force Veteran. Whenever I hear Josh Gallagher’s “Pick Any Small Town” Valley View’s the one I’d pick.

The last year has been stressful, so for our anniversary, my hubby and I headed to Valley View for a getaway weekend. We wanted to spend time away from email, texts, social media, and other city commitments. For us, when we’re away from the city and in the country, life’s troubles fade away and we focus on what’s important—each other and family. The drive to our B&B, Towering Oaks Haven, took us on a gravel road, once again reminding me of my childhood. The fast-paced-need-to-get-ahead-world disappeared. We spent the weekend wandering around antique stores, shopping at my favorite boutique Rustic Ranch, and becoming reacquainted with each other. We weren’t on our phones constantly. We weren’t worried about spotty internet service. We connected with those around us, rather than those on social media sites. We listened to stories, told some of our own, and were simply in the moment. We ate fantastic gourmet pizza from Lil’ Brick Oven delivered to us at the winery. After that, we listened to the David Alexander Trio while sitting on the Firelight Vineyard’s patio chatting with someone my husband knew from years back and a wonderful couple from Oklahoma.

Life was simpler, personal and connected. And I loved every minute of it.

I remembered why I write stories set in small towns, because of the feelings I rediscovered in Valley View. Because of the way I felt at my grandparents’ farm and in their small town.

I can back rejuvenated and my head spinning with story ideas! A Texas winery owner heroine and a rancher in a small Texas town trying to revitalize the town square. Hmmm. It’s a start.

Now it’s your turn. Tell me about your favorite getaway spot that rejuvenates your body and soul. Enter a comment for a chance to win the wine charms and a wineglass from FIrelight Vineyards.

 

 

My Southwestern Vacation

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Hello everyone, Winnie Griggs here.

I’ve just recently returned from a week long family vacation to Arizona where we had an absolute blast.  There were twelve members in our group, though we didn’t all travel together. Me, my husband and two of our kids flew together into Flagstaff.  My oldest daughter and her husband flew into with plans to drive to the Grand Canyon from there.  And my youngest daughter and her extended family (a group of 6) decided to drive and make several stops along the way.  All through the week our groups came together in a very fluid way, different combinations breaking off on different days to do things of particular interest to them. But by mid-week we were all together at Bright Angel Lodge on the southern rim of the Grand Canyon.  For about half the group it was their first time to view this awesome wonder in person and they were blown away by the views.  For the rest of us, revisiting the place had almost as big an impact as seeing it for the first time.

Anyway, I thought I’d give you all a little taste of what we experienced by sharing just some of the many pictures we took.

Flagstaff was our home base for this trip. Our first full day there, we took the scenic drive from Flagstaff to Sedona, stopping at several points along the way to admire the scenery and take pictures.

When we returned to Flagstaff we decided to take a trip out to the nearby Lowell Observatory. We were lucky in that there was a cloudless sky and we were able to get clear views of the sun, moon, Saturn and  Jupiter through the many telescopes they had set out.  Seeing the actual rings of Saturn as well as the pencil dot moons was VERY cool.

The next day we all headed out to the Grand Canyon Notional Park.  Six of us decided to take the two hour train ride out of nearby Williams to get there. Williams is a fun place right on Route 66. They are set up to entertain tourists and there are fun little Wild West shows at the train station you can watch while waiting on departure time.  The train ride itself was fun (it was my first time on a train) and as you can see from the photo below it was quite comfy 🙂

We spent two days at the park itself, staying in cabins at the wonderful Bright Angel Lodge which is located right on the south rim itself.

Our first day there we  just enjoyed the area around the lodge and got the lay of the land. Our second day, we all headed in different directions.  Four of our group decided to hike down into the canyon along the Bright Angel Trail (it goes without saying I wasn’t one of their number!).

The rest of us went on various exploration trips. Hubby and I saw both the Desert View Watchtower and Hermit’s Rest, two structures designed in the early twentieth century by Mary Colter, one of the few females architects of her time.

We also stopped at a lot of the viewing sights along the way. At one particular spot hubby spotted a rock formation that resembled a human profile. I took a photo of it – can you make it out? We also spotted several elk along the roadside and folks in our group managed to get photos of two of them.

After two days at the Grand Canyon, we headed out, again splitting into two groups, those that were driving the whole way started home, the rest of us headed back to Flagstaff. Along the way, though, we visited a wildlife park called Bearizona.  There were lots of different kinds of animals there – mountain goats, buffalo, wolves and more – but my favorites were the bears. And we got photos of two especially enterprising ones that found a way to cool off.

Our last day out we revisited Sedona for a jeep tour of the area.  It was a teeth-rattling bumpy ride but so worth it for the views.  Here is a picture our driver took of the four of us.

When we returned to Flagstaff we decided to cap off our vacation with a trip to the Snowbowl. It’s a ski lift that operates in the off season to take tourists up to the top of the peak. It’s a thirty minute ride that carries you up to an ear-popping elevation of 11,500 feet.

And then it was time to head home.

As I said it was a wonderful vacation, one that will make me smile whenever I remember it.

What about you? Have you ever visited this part of our country? And do you have a favorite vacation you look back on fondly?

 

 

 

Petticoats & Pistols