After an action-packed week in London, we headed to Scotland starting in Glasgow. We picked up our car at the airport and began our tour of Scotland.  While waiting for our Glasgow walking tour to start, the men had their first “full” Scottish breakfast at a fantastic cafe that was  recommended by our helpful hotel concierge.  It included eggs, toast, beans, mushrooms, haggis, pork sausage, bacon and a grilled tomato. …

Lake Tahoe straddles the border of California and Nevada.  It is the 2nd deepest lake in the US at more than 1600 feet, second only to Crater Lake.  It is 22 miles long, 12 miles wide and is a destination for approximately 17 million visitors every year.   It is fed by 63 tributaries but only one going out of the lake, the Truckee River. We spent a gorgeous day in…

Many people are not familiar with Theodore Roosevelt NP and we knew little about its attractions or how it was created.  As president (from 1901-1909), Teddy created the US Forest Service, 18 National Parks, and worked with Congress to create an additional 5 National Parks.  The park was created in 1947 in recognition of his contributions to land preservation and conservation.  Teddy Roosevelt came to love the rugged beauty of…

We found New Zealand (NZ) to be a magical place with lush fields, snow-capped mountains, turquoise lakes and rivers, rugged coastlines, fjords, and glaciers.  We began our three week journey in Auckland which is on the North Island and is NZ’s largest city with 1.7 million people.  A walking tour led us through interesting gardens, enormous trees, and a bustling downtown area with a little history thrown in.   The next day, we took…

Although we often group Australia and New Zealand together, they are certainly different in many ways.  While both belong to the wider British Commonwealth, and English is their primary language, the land itself is unique to each nation. Geographically, NZ is a small mountainous country of two long islands that features nearly 10,000 miles of shoreline. The climate ranges from warm subtropical in the far north to cool temperate in the…

Much of our Fall 2023 tour prior to Thanksgiving encompassed 4 different areas; Washington DC, Upstate South Carolina, Jekyll Island, and lastly an oldie-but-goodie, Myrtle Beach. We had not been to DC for several years after Jessie’s family moved to CT so was nice to be back and revisit some of our favorites as well as take in some new sites.  The newly remodeled Air and Space Museum was well…

Nova Scotia in Latin means New Scotland, and is reflective of the origins of the early settlers.  It is the second smallest province in Canada and includes a large island called Cape Breton northeast of the mainland.  It is often said that both the landscape and the climate are comparable to those of Scotland.  We spent two wonderful weeks touring this province of rolling hills, forests, countless rivers and lakes,…

Lassen Volcanic National Park was established in 1916 yet seems to be relatively unfamiliar to many and not at the same level of destination as some of the other popular parks.  I was unsure of what to expect but like all of the national parks we have visited, it has something truly unique to offer its visitors.  It is home to 4 different types of volcanos; plug dome, shield, cinder…

I had only seen photos of Crater Lake and was skeptical that any body of water could be that blue but my first siting of the lake dispelled any such notion.  Needless to say, it was a stunning, breathtaking, bluer than blue color that was unforgettable.  Our good weather goddess continued to follow us, with warm temperatures, clear, sunny skies, and no wind.  The lake was a nearly perfect mirror…

Wow, wow, wow!  I am not sure what I expected from Mt. Rainier NP but was a bit surprised by the overwhelming beauty of this wonderful park.  It was the 4th national park, established in 1899.  Our ancestors knew what they were doing to protect this fabulous, unique resource.  It has everything; rivers, streams, waterfalls, alpine meadows, old growth forests, wonderful hiking, great roads and of course the mountain itself. …