It’s going to be so hard to leave this amazing,special place. Beyond having Sam, Melissa and Clare here, the place is stunningly beautiful and the activities are endless!

We have climbed, bicycled, caved, kayaked, swam, slacklined, and best of all, made new friends.

I’m so impressed with melissa and Sam and the warm, generous, kind, 💕 ng, fun, place they have created!

I’m leaving Sunday for more adventures. I’m sure going to miss them.

I had a chuckle about my shoe choices for this trip. A far cry from those travelers on White Lotus.

Bottom to top:

Shoes for riding a motorcycle, approach shoes, water sport and trekking.

Running shoes: enough said,,,,,I always have these with me.

Flip flops: hostel, hotel, belay, going to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Rock shoes: I’m leaving these behind to become rentals, but right now, they are my favorite shoes….ever!! The rock routes I have been doing are challenging and f!$@ awesome!! I’m 62 years old and can still follow a 5.10. Wow does that feel great.

And of course bare feet! The best of all in a place that’s warm, tropical and footloose!

I’m sitting in my hut drinking coffee, listening to the rooster crowing today’s sunrise.

What I’m noticing most, in my Laos travel adventure -so far-, is that I have time…..There is no schedule, no return ticket to worry about, no pre-planned activities. I just get to be totally relaxed and take my time with anything I wish. What a gift!!!

Yesterday, Sam, Melissa and I, along with couple other guys from camp, went to rock climb. It has been at least three years since I tied into a rope. It felt great! Hooray for muscle memory!!

Scott and I taught Sam to climb when he was about 12 years old. He is now an incredible rock climber. Watching him sail up extremely difficult routes is a joy. It’s so gratifying knowing I helped expose him to something that he lives every day of his life!

Today will just unfold. A bike ride? More climbing? Read a book? I do love the “open to all options” vibe of my trip so far. A good start to all that lies ahead.

SEA-SFO, SFO-Hong Kong, overnight HK. Hong Kong-Bangkok (BKK) shuttle bus from BKK airport to KOP airport, KOP-NAK (Thai/Laos border) then a shuttle 1.5 hours to Green Climbers Home and Sam and Melissa.

Every of the 48 hours of travel was worth it.

The karsts/mountains here are so beautiful, it’s impossible to find the words. it’s smells great, the temperature is perfect (80’s), and I’m so super thrilled to be here!

Home is a place that fills my heart and my soul. When I am in Seattle I feel grounded, whole, and “normal” (I know, there is nothing about me or my life).

I have been able to connect with friends and family. Westie is dry, safe, and in storage.

Flying Charlie Mike with Ephraim was a definite highlight of my week home. Wow! We made some changes to the aileron and elevator linkage. What a difference! It’s flying like never before! Thanks to Ephraim for continuing the improvement journey of CM. It just keeps getting better!!

Feels so good to connect, laugh and enjoy my Seattle friends and roots.

I’m not off to SE Asia on a one-way ticket this Sunday. Not sure when I’ll be back, but probably early April (so not too long).

Can’t wait to see you all again soon!!!

Alex came to visit! What fun. He flew his shiny, new “Pistachio” (Kodiak) to Cal Nev Ari.

We had great food, lots of music, and dancing in CC’s new “nightclub” living room.

The next morning all of us climbed into the Kodiak and headed to Death Valley to experience Chicken Strip! A place I have wanted to go to for a long time.

The runway appears to be about 2000′ long and the gravel is in good shape thanks to RAF and their support of this very special place!

The hot springs are luscious! There are several pools, a tub, a plunge pool, and places to stretch out and play in the shade.

From Chicken Strip, we flew to Lone Pine for fuel. When there was no Jet A we went on to Bishop, then back to Cal Nev Ari.

What a treat to see Alex, fly in his new airplane, and get to enjoy a magical place in the desert with two of my favorite people!

Thank you Alex!!

The first time I met Janet, I was in Brevard NC to skydive, with Scott, into his 10-year high school reunion.

A few years later, I was back in Brevard to marry her youngest son. She made our wedding happen for us.

She did all the heavy lifting: from choosing the tablecloths to finding a baker willing to make a wedding carrot cake (no small feat in Appalachia in 1988.)

She stayed in my life after Scott’s death. Emailing, texting and calling me to remain current with my life.

This last month has been a difficult one for her, in and out of the hospital, and finally hospice and her passing.

She had a great life full of love. She birthed and raised the person I loved most in the world. I am grateful to her for so many reasons. I believe she thought she would rejoin her son in her afterlife. I hope, for her sake, that is true. 💕

I have been up spirit mountain several times. It overlooks Cal-Nev-Ari and I’m pretty sure no one in town has never climbed this peak.

CC really wanted to join me for a climb, so off we went – along with Kat- one of CC’s good friends.

He had never hiked anything in his life. This was a big bite……I kept saying “this is going to kick your ass” and he was all-in.

Kat has been hiking 3 days per week since March 2022, and I have been biking 10 miles to the trail-head, climbing and then biking back. CC was in tough company.

Yet, he summited!!! With sheer determination and a lot of swear words!! He made it to the top!

I was blown away. Approximate 3000’ elevation gain and loose, often unsure rocky footing, CC gritted it out. The story of his life.

I felt bad for putting him through the torture, but he’s already bragging about his accomplishment.

An amazing human. Go CC!!! The only resident of Cal-NevAri to ever scale the mountain that overlooks his town.

Candice agreed to accompany me on my trip from Cal Nev Ari to Seattle. It’s a long drive, and I was so happy she agreed to accompany me.

Prior to the trip, I called her to let her know about Westie having a few “issues” that could leave us stranded. I assured her, that if something happened, we would rent a car and get home one way or another. Candice was a fantastic travel partner! Flexible, game for anything, curious and FUN!!! Thank you, Candice, for being my travel buddy!

I picked her up in Vegas and let her know that our first stop was the auto shop. The oil pressure sensor was acting up, so I had it replaced. It gave us an excuse to stay the night in Vegas, which is always fun.

Day 1 on the road, first south to drop off my bike at a friend’s so I would have it upon my return in one week. Then North, on a Google Map that I mistakenly had put in a destination we were not planning for. Oh well, we ended our night in Fallon, NV. (BTW: nothing in Fallon to speak of that’s very nice – especially the place we stayed).

Foggy weather engulfed us for about 50 miles along this route. At one point, a trucker passed us on the RIGHT – pushing us into the oncoming lane in fog so thick, we had our flashers on. WTF! No one was coming in the opposite direction, lucky for us, but that truck was insane!!!!

Day 2. Reno. We stopped for coffee with Audrey (my burning man boss from 2022), and a short run. Then, off to Summer Lake Hot Springs! The springs are fabulous and this place is gorgeous! Add in a full moon and it just doesn’t get better!

Day 3. On to Bend to see Alex (burner, airport manager for a couple of months before me) and a friend. His Alpaca Ranch sits above the Deschutes River and has two houses and a lovely runway!

Alex asked if we wanted to go flying in his brand-new Kodiak – YES!!!! Off we went.

As we were driving out of Bend, we had the brilliant idea of staying at Timberline Lodge on our way through. They had a room!!

Oops, the damn oil pressure sensor started going off again……we stopped at Marks Auto in Madras (a great place), and they told us to just keep going. It was a LOOOONNNNGGGG 60 miles to the Lodge, but we made it!

The next morning, the car was having trouble running. Ugh. The last thing I want now is to be stranded on the side of the road. I called UHaul and asked if they had a truck and a trailer I could put the van on. They had one 30 miles from the lodge. Yes, hold it for us. We are on the way!

We drove into the Uhaul lot, drove onto the trailer, and were on our way in less than 30 minutes. No more worry about the van dying. What a relief!

Westie is now parked at Boeing Field in my airplane parking spot. A couple of westie friends are going to see if it is capable of one more drive to my Dad’s to be put away until I can get a new engine and transmission installed.

I love Westie! I love Candice! Road trips are the best – any way you get home……safely!

As I scroll through the posts on this blog for 2022, I realize what a great year I have had.

So many amazing experiences, and even more importantly, I have so many, absolutely, THE most fabulous people in my life.

As 2022 closes, the word that comes to mind is gratitude. Thank you for being in my life, and for being my supporter and friend. My love for you is endless. Here’s to a great 2023!!