Chapter 3: The Mystery of the Two Waterfalls

~Dwylin and Nathan began stirring around 5 AM this morning hoping to catch the sunrise, and they found one.

~It was around 7:30 that we pulled out to an overcast and drizzly morning. We were in Banff National Park, which is the days planned leg which would also take us to the town of Jasper located in Jasper National Park. 

We've been driving through the Canadian Rockies enjoying the mountaintop views with jagged cliffs and pristine looking bodies of water that have a beautiful robins egg blue color and are clear enough to see to the lake bottoms. This morning though, most of the view was hidden behind the clouds, as they unloaded their rain on us.

~We drove a couple hours till we hit the big tourist attraction of Lake Louise.

~Definitely a beautiful setting as the lake lies at the bottom of several mountains that still have snow on them, but we were looking for some excitement away from the crowds. The best way to find adventure is to make your own. So, spotting a lookout high up amidst the trees we were off to try and find it. The trail began flat a just followed the edge of the lake, but finally, the ascent began. Before we reached the lookout we came to a clearing with a rock overhang and we, of course, had to climb up for an even better, more dangerous view of the lake.

Back on the trail we did some more climbing and finally reached the lookout high above the lake, able to catch our breath from the physical climb but losing it to the view of the lake below.

~By now the clouds were beginning to dissipate giving us a better view of the creation we were driving through. We may have looked like six guys with bobbleheads as we looked up to see the uniqueness of each snow-covered peak declaring this one looked better than the last, but also looking to the lowlands and any wildlife that may be hanging by the rivers and lakes created by the snow melting off the mountains. We rose and fell through kilometer after kilometer of the Rockies rising to elevations as high as 6800 ft. Seeing a waterfall gushing down a mountainside we pulled off for a better view. Quickly, Jon and Matt slid down the embankment in search of a better view. Nathan, Dan, Dwylin, and Jared soon followed and another waterfall was found where we could practically walk underneath. 

After a couple more hours of exploration we were off in search of a campsite for the night.

~With all of the wonders of God's Creation that we have witnessed on this day.  The only thing we kept wondering was... where are all the stinking animals? Then, just like a "Hardy Boys" book, It happened. 

While driving we again seeing vehicles pulling off to the side of the road, but usually, it seem like all the other tourists in these parts were impressed by the smallest of animals. This was probably not gonna be worth our time. Then driving past the cars, Hello Dolly Parton there he was! Dan squealed his way to a stop, and everyone jumped out so fast that they forgot for a second that Dwylin was still in his back bunk napping. With our camera's in hand we crested the hill to find that this was not a simple Elk, but a flippin' huge one. 

Upon our return to our 'Mobile Housing Unit.' We discovered that Dwylin was on his computer editing photos for this very blog. We could have felt bad for him, but in his lack of sleep and being unable to see the elk as we drove by he elected to stay and guard the unlocked RV... But don't worry we won't let him forget what he missed anytime soon!

~We pulled into Wild Horse Campground at 7:30 and immediately set to work preparing some supper as all the exploration, while giving some much-needed exercise, had worn us out and worked up an appetite. Steaks, potatoes, asparagus and baked beans were the menu tonight.

 We went to the lake after supper. We walked the shore, skipping stones and taking pictures as the sun slowly set behind the mountains in the distance.

Back at camp sleep came quickly came to our tired bodies as we fell asleep to the call of the common loon(That is a bird. Not a drunk Canadian).

Bonus Picture of the DAY!

OFFICIAL GRADE for this segment:
A+

Chapter 2: North by Northwest

~After a mad dash from Middlebury to Wild Horse Plains, MT in 31 hours, now begins a slightly more relaxed travel plan. A day off on Sunday and a good, long sleep Sunday night was very welcomed. Jon and Dan own a wonderful little bakery/restaurant/deli called The Butcher's Nook. Closed for the 4^th of July but they generously opened for all the guests at their place and provided us with hash, sausage, pancakes, eggs, gravy, and bacon. A big thanks to Dan's mom Lydia and sister Miriam for rustling up all that grub.

With everyone satisfied we left Plains at 1:30 headed towards Kalispell to pick up some final supplies.

~Shopping done we fired up the RV at 3:30 to head out.

Nathan decided to check for one more thing in Walmart so we shut her down during the wait and to our dismay, there was no response when trying to restart. Dan and Jon began checking fuses, parts and making several phone calls. Upon his return, Nate started to help out as well. Meanwhile, Dwylin's phone is practically useless and he needed to get to a Verizon store for a new one. The only working transportation was the two bikes strapped to the back of the RV. One was loosened from its rack and Dwylin pedaled off in search of a new wireless connection. He returned 30 minutes later disappointed they had already closed for the day. Meanwhile, back under the RV, a loose wire to the starter was found and refastened. The RV now has connection even if Dwylin's cell does not.

~Another delay but not major enough to deter us from our final destination. We finally left Kalispell at 6 PM headed for Eureka and a final fill-up of fuel before crossing the border in Roosville. Supper was made on the road; bread, ham, cheese, tomato, avocado, cucumber. Simple yet effective. Our horror stories of long waits and thorough vehicle searches to cross the border ended up being a couple questions, never leaving the RV and taking about five minutes. The biggest concern from our border control seemed to be when Dan absentmindedly shoved a cookie in his mouth and tried to answer a question. “You just had to have lunch while crossing the border eh?” was her next question, but it was the priceless answer that Dan gave to her question, that got me. “I know right” replied Dan with a mouth full of cookie, as he laughed away. Once we left the checkpoint Jon asked, “Hey, where is my cookie at!?”

~So here we are now, parked at a rest stop about 20 miles south of Radium Hot Springs, British Columbia. We head to bed with our starter issues behind us, anticipation of new adventures before us and the gentle patter of rain on the roof.

OFFICIAL GRADE for this segment:

Solid B

Chapter 1: A River Runs Through It

So....where are we going again? Dude, we're going to flippin' Alaska! And with that, Dan, Dwylin, Matthew, Nathan, and Jared embark on a once in a lifetime trip to Alaska via Plains, Montana to pick up Jon. A few family and friends dropped by for a proper send-off (Buddy, Ruby, Michael, Mindy, Linda, Mia, and Landon) and at 1:30 AM on Saturday, July 2^nd, five guys and a yet to be named RV were on the road. With thousands of miles between Middlebury and Fairbanks, the unexpected is expected, yet with the wild west beckoning, the only thing on our minds is, “adventure is out there.”

~So five miles into the trip the check engine light blinks to life...minor concerns but the wheels continue rolling. The first stop for gas is Rogers, Minnesota. Sure is nice to run 8 hrs on one tank of gas, not even stopping to switch drivers.

The unexpected strikes again though, a turn of the key and yet unnamed RV does not respond. Hot Dan crawls underneath to get to the bottom of this new twist. After 15 minutes of tinkering, another turn of the key and she roars back to life.

~With lingering questions to the delay on our minds, we're back on the road again.  Passing the time by sleeping, singing and guessing state nicknames. 

(Dwylin rocked, Matt just guessed a lot)

~Belfield, North Dakota is the evening stop for more gas and some grub.  Once again, she won't start after the refuel but a 15-minute wait and all is well.  Thanks to Nathan, our stop for supper is the Trappers Kettle.  Watch your hands as all the doorknobs are made of traps.  Thankfully we were not seated underneath the wall of traps.  I was tempted to try the soup of the day, Borscht, but not knowing what it was decided a road trip wasn't the place to find out. 

We instead filled our bellies with quality Angus burgers and jumped back into our home for the next three weeks.
~With daylight fading our day can be summarized by open skies, open road, open windows, great tunes, great guys, the smell of fresh mowed hay and refreshing rain showers, a beautiful sunset and a powerful lightening show to light up the night sky.

Sleep just brings more dreams of the adventure tomorrow will hold.

~So apparently the adventure of driving through the night was rain, hills, and wind and some more wind. Oh, did I mention there was some wind last night while driving through the darkness?

~Even so, we made it to Dan's parent's house. Just in time for a cup of coffee and then off to church. In one of the coolest cars, I've ever gone to church in... 

... Don't even think about calling us VAIN 

~To our surprise Mark and Mary Lou Smith from our home church of Griner were already here awaiting us. A pleasant surprise seeing some more familiar faces

We had to go and change out the rotors before we head out tomorrow, and now we can continue... for now

The Unofficial First Leg

of our trip is done. 

1,790 miles- Already in the books

and roughly 7,331 more to come(Round Trip) 

OFFICIAL GRADE for this segment:

B-

(Off to a good start, but there is always room for improvement)

WE'RE GOING TO FLIPPIN' ALASKA!!!

Bonus Coverage
Some of the boys raced around the property
Nate Won