#183 Canoe Bay

I emailed Canoe Bay about possible dinner reservations or a tour a few months ago.  They never responded.  

So, I detoured by there on my way to the Apostle Islands, and let's just say....they don't want visitors unless you can pay by the $$$$$$$$ weekly rate.

#182 Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness

"BWCAW is the largest U.S. wilderness preserve east of the Rockies ... It's a pristine labryrinth of 1 million acres and seemingly as many lakes, with more than 1500 miles of mapped canoe routes running through it, but not a single road.  Since it's almost entirely off-limits to motorboats as well, it's easy to imagine the area as it was in the 17th century."

I was absolutely terrified to do this.  Canoes are not known for their stability and I was so scared we'd capsize. Or that I'd slip and bash my head in on a rock, or that I'd lose a contact, or my glasses and I'd be literally in the middle of a giant wilderness, completely blind.

Ultimately, I found an awesome outfitter/guide - Peta at Women's Wilderness Discovery who was just what I was looking for.  She specializes in women's canoe trips whether it's for a day (me) or a week (not me), and planned a super beginner route.  She also promised that I would NOT fall into the lake.  Peta also was a fantastic cheerleader.  She understood how afraid I was, and was constantly providing reassurance and coaching.  

By the end of the day, I was sure we wouldn't capsize in the lake, but getting in (and especially out) of the canoe is among the most terrifying things I've ever done.  I'm incredibly proud of myself for crossing this one off The List.

As we neared the landing we passed a family in two canoes heading the opposite direction.  The dad called out asking if they were nearing landing 30.  "Yes," Peta said, "but you can't see it yet.  Follow us."  Turns out they had capsized one their canoes, and were lost.  Despite being probably 50 rods from the landing they were heading the wrong direction.  This is why you hire a guide.  I certainly would've been lost forever in a thousand miles of lake shore.

And last, but not least - driving back into town we passed Red Cabin Custard and Peta recommended I stop there at some point.  They always have vanilla and chocolate, plus a flavor of the day.  It was across the street from my hotel, and it was delicious.  

#181 Iowa State Fair

"Iowa's is the classic state fair, and on of the largest, a quintessentially American event that attracts a million revelers each August to the massive Iowa State Fairgrounds ... One of the symbols of the century-and-a-half-old fair: the beloved Butter Cow, sculpted annually since 1911 from 550 pounds of butter."



Since Iowa is traditionally the first state to caucus in Presidential elections, all candidates are invited to the fair to participate in the Political Soap Box - sponsored by the Des Moines Register.  Each candidate gets 20 minutes, a microphone, and many eyes and ears on them.  I saw Amy Klobuchar, Kirsten Gillibrand, John Hickenlooper, and Elizabeth Warren take their 20 minutes.  I missed Cory Booker, by wandering off too far away to get back for his time slot.



The bottom right picture was pulled from Elizabeth Warren's campaign...see that lamp post with all the balloons?  I was at the bottom of it, mostly without a line of sight, but I did get a couple of decent pictures.  (Mostly because I spent Hickenlooper and Gillibrand's time on the soapbox figuring out how to get the shot through the crowd.)

#180 Rocky Mountain National Park

"Rocky Mountain National Park boasts 191 craggy peaks within its 415-square miles - 113 of them more than 10,000 feet and 78 above 12,000 feet...[that] likely inspired the well-known lyrics that celebrate America's purple mountains' majesty.  Views of these peaks are unsurpassed on the Trail Ridge Road, billed as the highest continuous highway in the United States, raising to over 12,000 feet at it apex. Three miles from the eastern entrance is Estes Park and the well-known Stanley Hotel, inspiration for Stephen King's spine-tingling thriller The Shining, much of which was written by the vacationing author in room 217."

Please take special note of the purple nearoadia that I spotted whilst traveling the (very, very crowded) Trail Ridge Road.

#179 Cheyenne Frontier Days

"The Cowboy State's capital city was once nickname Hell on Wheels, and during the annual ride-'em-cowboy Frontier Days celebration you'll understand why."

Today's CFD features a huge PRCA rodeo, wild horse races, carnival rides, big name country music performers, and a free pancake breakfast.

I am very irritate with myself because I didn't bring my "real" camera, just my cell phone.  So the rodeo pictures are not great, but my cheese curds and red velvet funnel cake were delicious!

#178 Aspen

"You can match the beauty of the great outdoors with that of the great indoors at the Little Nell....located a snowball's throw from the Silver Queen, the world's longest single-stage gondola, which hoists skiers up 3,257 feet in just thirteen minutes [spoiler: it felt more like 30]."

I also took a bus to Maroon Bells.  They don't allow private cars up the road to the Bells during daytime hours, but if you get up for the sunrise you can drive there to see it.

During the bus ride up, the driver cautioned us to drink only from approved sources or risk Giardia. This is where I found out my seatmate had Giardia before.  He noted how unpleasant it was, and perhaps the basis for the bathroom sign, below.

Our driver also pointed out all the broken trees and "paths" down the slopes.  These are results of the winter avalanches.  In fact, one avalanche in this canyon this year actually jumped the road and torn up the trees on the other side....uphill.

And last, but not least, my bus back to Aspen Highlands, included the guy in the last picture. Transporting a giant instrument and a stool to sit on.  And, in fact, he was joined by more musicians with giant instruments, but I was able to snap a photo of them.