A Visit to Heaven: Jackson, Wyoming and the Grand Tetons

Backroads Discoveries, Bakeries, Bucket List Trips, Cross Country Road Trips, Dream Highways, Eateries, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Fox, Geologic Formations, Idaho, Landscapes, Mountains, Murals, National Parks, Roadside Attractions, Rocky Mountains, Selfies, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Eatery, Unique Places, US Highway 89, Vintage Neon, Wall Art, Wyoming, Yard Art
Grand Tetons[/caption] March 13, 2013:  Today was heavenly...WOW!! I spent the day with my niece and her husband and we traveled east from Rexburg over Teton Pass to Jackson, Wyoming and then north to Grand Teton National Park. Jackson, WY and Grand Tetons [caption id="attachment_2123" align="aligncenter" width="199"] "Mountain Man" by Steve Horn - Horn Mountain Gallery in Tetonia, ID[/caption] Our first stop on the road to Jackson was in Tetonia, ID. We made a stop outside of Horn Mountain Living to get the shot of the "Mountain Man" sculpture above, which was done by Steve Horn.  Steve moved to Teton Valley over 30 years ago and lived as a mountain man prior to that. He is completely self-taught and gives his Creator full credit for his abilities. He has since…
Read More

Road Trip to Idaho – Day 2: Savage, MN to Miles City, MT

Backroads Discoveries, Bison, Bridges, Bucket List Trips, Cross Country Road Trips, Dream Highways, Enchanted Highway, Family Travel, Farmland, Found Metal Sculptures, Geese, Geologic Formations, Giant Things, Landscapes, Large Statues, Lewis and Clark Sites, Minnesota, Montana, Murals, North Dakota, Place Names, Post Offices, Roadside Attractions, Selfies, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, US Highway 2, Wall Art, Yard Art
Rural Scene on Enchanted Highway, South of Gladstone, ND[/caption] I embarked on Day 2 of my trip to Idaho - left Savage, MN in the midst of snow and fog.  The roads were scary heading northwest to Fargo, ND. [caption id="attachment_1818" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Snowy highways in Minnesota[/caption] Today (March 9, 2013) was the second leg of my trip to Idaho.  Today I drove from Savage, MN to Miles City, MT.  I drove 781 miles over a 14 hour stretch.  Following is the map of the trip. View Larger Map My first stop along the way was for gas.  I stopped in Avon, MN.....which, I discovered, is also the home of the Lake Wobegon Trail.  The trail is 46 miles long and 10 feet wide.  It opened in 1998.  Avon is…
Read More
Oregon's got Talent!!

Oregon's got Talent!!

Backroads Discoveries, Bucket List Trips, Cross Country Road Trips, Found Metal Sculptures, Oregon, Place Names, Post Offices, Roadside Attractions, Town Names, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Houses, Unique Places, Yard Art
Welcome to Talent, Oregon[/caption] I am currently on another business trip in Oregon and was down in the Ashland area in Southern Oregon.  Just near Ashland is a small town called Talent, OR.  I first heard about it when there was a participant from Talent that appeared on America's Got Talent. [caption id="attachment_223" align="alignleft" width="256"] Welcome to Talent[/caption] Called "The City of Talent",  I am not sure how much talent there actually is here.  The community does have nearly 7000 people.  According to the Talent website, the story of Talent begins in 1852 with the arrival of the first recorded settler, Jacob Wagner. Jacob completed his homestead in 1853 and named his settlement "Wagner." In 1854, the military came from Yreka and set up a fort on Jacob's property. The…
Read More
An Alien in Mars

An Alien in Mars

Backroads Discoveries, Cross Country Road Trips, Found Metal Sculptures, Giant Things, Pennsylvania, Place Names, Post Offices, Roadside Attractions, Town Names, Travel Blogging, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Yard Art
Famous Spaceship in Mars, PA[/caption] On a trip between Canada and Lexington in April 2008 I took a trip to West Virginia and Pennsylvania and made my way to Mars (see full report). [caption id="attachment_168" align="alignleft" width="227"] Welcome to Mars[/caption] Mars is a small town in western Pennsylvania.  From what I could locate there is not really any history as to how the town got its name.  The town was founded in 1873 by a Samuel Parks, where he eventually had a Post Office added to his home and had assistance from a certain Samuel Marshall.  The original name was Overbrook, but in 1882 it was changed to Mars since there was already a train station along the way called Overbrook. Speculation has it that the town was a shortened…
Read More
Where on earth is Earth?

Where on earth is Earth?

Backroads Discoveries, Cross Country Road Trips, Family Travel, Found Metal Sculptures, Murals, Place Names, Roadside Attractions, Texas, Travel with grandchildren, Unexpected Discoveries, Unique Places, Vintage Neon, Wall Art, Water Towers
Earth is that way[/caption] When returning from a trip to Arizona in May 2011, we came back through NM, visited Roswell and then, from all the UFO stuff in Roswell, we found ourselves arriving in Earth, TX. [caption id="attachment_135" align="alignleft" width="300"] Earth is only 6 miles away[/caption] According to a Wikipedia article, "Earth was established by William E. Halsell, who laid out the townsite in 1924. Originally Halsell named the town Fairlawn, but in 1925 it was renamed Earth when it was learned that there was already a town in Texas by the name of Fairlawn.In order to find a new name the townspeople sent in suggestions, and the agreed-upon best name was chosen. The name Earth was submitted by Ora Hume (O.H.) Reeves, who became the owner of the…
Read More