Erica is not writing this blog post. Erica is lying crumpled up on the bed after two intense days of the wonderful Edmonton Fringe Festival. Were she here and even vaguely conscious, she would tell you they were two perfect days full of time with friends, delicious street food, and nine different beautiful gems of […]
Read MoreBanff or bust, part 6: Calgary
The bad news: we were forced to re-route our trip. Originally, our game plan called for us to take a 7-hour drive through Alberta’s Jasper National Park, which I have been led to believe is heaven on earth. The wildfire smoke has persisted, which would have made our drive overly long and tedious instead of […]
Read MoreBanff or bust, part 5: Banff National Park
For those of you playing at home, no, the wildfire smoke did not magically drift away overnight. We had one full day in Banff National Park, and we made the most of it. We spent the morning exploring downtown Banff. Last night, after assuming it would be too hazy to really enjoy hiking, we booked […]
Read MoreBanff or bust, part 4: Kootenay National Park
Today was a haunting day to be driving through British Columbia’s national parks. Over 600 wildfires are burning in BC alone, and our trip continues to be besieged by smoke and haze as a result. The bulk of today’s drive took us through Kootenay National Park, on roads which only days ago had been completely […]
Read MoreBanff or bust, part 3: Idaho Falls
This morning found us in Idaho Falls, Idaho. We had rolled into town late the night before, and so hadn’t seen much of the area, so we woke up early this morning to explore before we hit the road again. Do you recognize Dan’s “clown bike“? The Brompton folds up and has been riding along […]
Read MoreBanff or bust, part 2: Craters of the Moon
(If you missed it, our 3,400 mile road trip began with part 1.) Today started just outside of Grand Teton National Park. Dan discovered a bike trail from downtown Jackson Hole straight into the park, so he took an early ride and we met up for breakfast at Dornan’s Chuckwagon in full view of the mountains. (All […]
Read MoreBanff or bust, part 1: Jackson Hole, WY
It’s summer road trip time. Banff or bust! Dan and I are headed to Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies, for a few reasons: We are road trip people by nature; in fact, we will be hitting a few cities that we have driven through before; We have had our eye on Banff for […]
Read MoreWinston-Salem, North Carolina
By the time you read this, I’ll be on my way back home to Colorado — but for a few frantic and fun days, I found myself in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on business. My employer put me up in the Brookstown Inn, an enormous, historic hotel that was once (eons ago) a cotton mill. My […]
Read MoreSalt Lake City, part 2
Yesterday I published a blog post about Dan and my hijinks in Salt Lake City, Utah. However, there was no way to include as many photos as I would have liked without making the post run on for days. I found SLC to be a vivid and beautiful city –if quiet, especially as our main […]
Read MoreSalt Lake City, part 1
Back home in Ohio I worked for the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, conducted by John Morris Russell. When I was leaving Cincinnati, John reminded me that he guest-conducts the Utah Symphony in the summer, and that some time Dan and I ought to come out for a concert. Not the type to turn down that kind […]
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