Great day with Barbara and the Lamberts, February 10, 2026

The hotel we are staying at doesn't have a restaurant but offers breakfast via a partnership with several restaurants in the Auckland harbor area. We took advantage of this and chose a small Cafe near the hotel. We presented our hotel tickets at the Cafe, and got wonderful fresh breakfasts and coffee-- way better than most hotels' breakfast selections. 

We had gotten esims for our phones to get decent cell signals and internet access, so we were able to use Android Auto to find our way to Barbara and Matt's lovely home in Kumeu, about a 25 minute drive from our hotel.  After chatting a while, Barbara took us out to a couple of scenic spots nearby. One was Bethells Beach (Te Henga), about 23 miles west of Auckland,  a beautiful black sand beach. Another was Muriwai, another black sand beach, and a nesting site for a large colony of gannets. It's a popular spot for surfers. I was surprised at how few people were at either spot. It's summer here! 

After checking out these spots, we headed back to Barbara and Matt's for a fantastic dinner  prepared by chef Matt and were joined by Matt's mom and grandmother. We really enjoyed this opportunity to spend time with family.

The scenery all around is green, green, green, and rolling hills, and we're loving the weather.  It is warm, about 80+ degrees, with a bit of humidity, but not so much it's uncomfortable. 

Impressions: prices here are mostly reasonable.  At restaurants,  no tipping is required or expected. Servers are paid a normal wage. The city is VERY clean, with little to no litter.  Where we are staying is a revitalized part of Auckland, with many new buildings. The architecture is striking. They roll the streets up early here! We returned from Barbara and Matt's a little after 9 pm, and stores and restaurants were closing or already closed. We managed to get the last order of the day at a Gelato shop and sat outside and enjoyed the evening.

Pictures here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/y3wGnavAXJKsb45J6

Exploring a new place, February 7-9, 2026

 Off to NZ. We took an evening flight from Phoenix to LA, and cooled our heels for 5 hours at LAX waiting for our late evening flight to New Zealand. We had a great surprise when we approached the Delta Sky Club to relax for that time, and were told that since we were flying Delta One, we should go down to the Delta One Lounge. Oh my... This was a level of luxury we had not expected. This was a very quiet and comfy lounge where we were offered free alcoholic drinks, full sit -down meals, desserts, beverages at no extra charge. The personal service was awesome. 

Of course the Delta One tickets were a bit more pricey than regular. But the whole Delta One experience was fabulous. 

In spite of the fact that our seats to Auckland allowed us to lie down, while WAY better than being in a too- narrow seat with no leg or shoulder room for 13-14 hours, weren't panacea. I think both Ray and I got 2-3 hours of sleep. We left LA at 10:30 pm on the 7th and arrived in Auckland on the 9th at 7:45 am local time. Customs and car pick up went fine, and then we set off for our hotel, a great place near the harbor.

After settling in to our room and watching the Super Bowl 😭 (it was on TV here) , we went  to check out the area of Auckland by the harbor. I was impressed by how clean and also quiet the city is. The traffic coming in from the airport wasn't bad, and it was notably quiet in the area we were in, by the harbor. The weather is delightful, with a moderate (by my standards anyway) and comfortable humidity. We're looking forward to seeing Barbara and the family tomorrow. 

Florida to Arizona trip report from I10, January 27, 2026

 

The trip from Florida to Arizona is mostly unremarkable but today we traveled over a unique structure in Louisiana that's worth noting. The Atchafalaya Basin Bridge is a pair of parallel bridges between Baton Rouge and Lafayette that carries I10 over the Atchafalaya Basin. At 18 miles long, it is the third longest bridge in the US.

It was opened in 1973, and it took 2 years to build. I'm amazed at the construction process:

"They drove concrete pilings up to 148 feet long through 95 feet of swamp muck into a sand base. Engineers dredged a 125-foot-wide construction canal for barge access and used a, “production line,” method, placing precast concrete deck slabs onto pile caps to complete 350 feet of road daily. "

Pretty cool.

Traffic was insane in FL and ultra insane in Houston! Onward to Arizona!

Denver Botanic Gardens, July 4, 2025

Our last stop on this trip was Denver Botanic Gardens. There is a large conservatory there featuring tropical plants, and it seems that most of the gardens are informal (which I love). It was an enjoyable visit.

photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/QDND8iyjcz6vrJRn6

 

Glen Eyrie, July 2-3, 2025

Glen Eyrie began as the estate of William Jackson Palmer, a railroad magnate and founder of the city of Colorado Springs. He built it about 4 miles north of the city, bordering Garden of the Gods. In 1867, he purchased 10,000 acres at $1.25 per acre to establish the colony later known as Colorado Springs. He later bought an additional 2,225 acres on which he built the estate. In 1909, he died as the result of a fall from his horse at the age of 72. At that time, the estate was valued at $3,000,000. His wife had passed, and his daughters were not in a position to take care of the estate. The girls offered the estate to the city of Colorado Springs at the time, but they refused because of the expense to maintain it. It was sold in 1916 to home developers. But it was the time of WWI, and sales were lacking. The property was purchased in 1938 as a summer home and cattle ranch. In 1950, it was again placed on the market for $500,000 and purchased in 1953 by The Navigators, a non-denominational Christian group that is the current owner. They use this as a retreat and conference center and international offices. To enter the grounds, you have to have a reservation for lodging.

Because of their mission to bring people closer to God, The Navigators have not placed TVs in rooms here, and they do not serve alcohol in the restaurants. The place is meticulously maintained, and the setting is gorgeous, being adjacent to Garden of the Gods. Hammocks and benches have been placed around the estate as places of quiet reflection. There are trails on the estate that were used by Palmer himself, and pathways to walk and enjoy the surroundings. In addition to the main castle (17 rooms), there are 6 other lodges, including the one where we stayed.

On the 3rd, we headed down to the castle for breakfast. It is served buffet style with lots of choices. My favorite was French toast with berry compote and walnuts. Soooooooooo good. When we arrived for breakfast, the patio was full, so we started inside in the dining room. After a bit, as people left, we were able to sit outside on the patio and enjoy the wonderful setting.

Since we could stay on the property until 5 pm, we decided to take one of the trails here. We discovered that he trails were not particularly well maintained, and the maps were sketchy at best. As a matter of fact, we agreed that the trail map was one of the worst we'd ever seen. There were some nice views from the trail, though.

After the hike, we descended to Glen Eyrie grounds, where we lazed in a hammock for maybe close to an hour before moving on.

Photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/MPjAEdEB6GPUqHvR6

Shelf Road to Glen Eyrie, July 2, 2025

 

It was Ray's thought to take the "scenic" road from the place we were staying in Canon City up to Cripple Creek. From there, we were heading to Glen Eyrie in Colorado Springs.

Red Canyon Rd starts out pleasantly enough as a paved route that winds past ranches. Then it turns into Shelf Road, the old Stagecoach trail from Canon City to Cripple Creek back in the mining days. You half expect Indians to come charging over the hill, or stagecoach robbers to be around the next bend. The road is very narrow, and the road has a significant drop off on one side and step uphill on the other. This image (not mine) captures the flavor of it: https://maps.app.goo.gl/MfVr1ymzBmvhGec88. I don't imagine that Hertz thought that their 2025 Nissan Altima was going to be driving on Shelf Road.

The fastest you can go in a normal car is about 10-12 mph. The rocks and ruts and the narrowness of the road are the gating factors, along with rocks sticking out into the road. BUT- OMG what a ride. The scenery is ____ (fill in the blank with a superlative). After driving on the road for maybe a half hour (we weren't really watching the time), and dealing with the lumps and bumps, we came to a sign:

Rough road ahead/ 4WD or High clearance vehicle recommended/ limited maintenance

No kidding. This might have been helpful a few miles back. Not that we would have turned back...

But this drive was definitely a highlight of our trip.

From Cripple Creek, site of a large casino, we headed to Glen Eyrie, our accommodations for tonight, and a new place to explore.

Photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/iFHABw54aJNpR6vo6

Royal Gorge Railroad and Bishop Castle, July 1, 2025

The bridge above the canyon

We had early reservations on the Royal Gorge train that runs along the Arkansas river through a canyon whose sheer rock walls plunge into the river. A highlight of the gorge route is the 1879 hanging bridge that is  suspended on one side under A-frame girders that span the river and are anchored to the rock walls. At one point, the train stops under the Royal Gorge Bridge 955 feet above the river, and the highest bridge in the United States. In addition to the spectacular scenery, we saw many rafters float by on the river.

In the afternoon, we opted to drive down to Bishop Castle, about an hour from Canon City where we were staying. It is located in a pretty remote area. Jim Bishop bought the land in 1959 when he was 15, and started building a home there in 1969. A neighbor had mentioned that the rocks he had surrounded the cottage there looked like a castle, and that comment sparked Jim's imagination. The castle grew from there. He placed the rocks, made the iron stairways for 55 years until he died at the end of 2024 from cancer.

For most of the time he was building he had disputes with the federal government over the rocks he used to build the castle. He took them from the National Forest surrounding his property, and he felt that they were his for the taking. The feds wanted to charge him by the truckload. The government disputed his use of unsanctioned road signs that pointed to his site. Ultimately, official road signs were placed. 

We had been here with Alex in 1992, and we were amazed at how much more had been done on the castle in the interim. It's tallest tower is 160 feet, and he built the whole thing with mothing but his hands. It's an amazing work of art and human patience and industry.

Photos are here: Royal Gorge--https://photos.app.goo.gl/zyYr87g9DCWg7gp67

                            Bishop Castle--https://photos.app.goo.gl/vL31dAQY9m9bJ1ZW8