Family & Friends in the Midwest

After the Grand Canyon we stopped in 

Okemah, Oklahoma where Woody Guthrie was born.

They have a few murals and a statue in the city park.

Then on to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma in time to see 

the Memorial Day ceremony. 

Our friend Dale, plays in the Tulsa Community Band.

  It is always a treat to go to Cruise Night, which they

 host weekly, to see over 150 cars. Nelda and I 

shopped at The Old Time Pottery store where 

I found some green ceramic pots. 

They will be perfect for the variegated 

Agave I have in Arizona.

Back on the road to Des Moines, Iowa for just a few days. 

It is fantastic to see our son Joel!
We miss him so much! 

 We are celebrating my birthday.

We were blessed to be able to attend 

Mark & Luke’s ordination ceremony. 

The room was filled with love and admiration

 for what God is doing in these young men’s lives.

When we return to Iowa we see so many friends and family. 

Definitely feel loved! Thanks everyone!

One of the places we have wanted to see is the 

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. 

We spent over seven and a half hours there 

and could have stayed a little longer.

Besides seeing guitars and clothing of The Who

and Beach Boys, there are several American Bandstand
videos and hours of audio clips to listen to and so much more!
If you are in the Cleveland area it is worth the time!

Over the years we have had some amazing and crappy
places to camp, but I think this one is the most unusual yet. 

On the pier next to, not on
 the Steamship William C. Mather Maritime Museum.
 Look to the left, way in the back.

The blue dot is where we stayed and it is
  a short walk to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

  Quiet location and great sunsets.

Before we left Cleveland we went
to the West Side Market.

Hundreds of vendors in two buildings.

We found some goodies at the bakery!

Our next stop was  

 The Christmas Story House.

Of course you can't forget the leg lamp. 

Yes, now Scott owns one too in the form of

a pressed penny!

Hiking Bright Angel Trail

Here we go!

Just a little way down the trail you go through
the first archway.

We would have missed these petroglyphs because 

you are always looking down watching your step. 

 Another couple had stopped and pointed them out to us.

Second archway.

Move over for the donkeys!
They are bigger than I thought.

Yes, they have rest houses in the canyon.

 We found a great spot to have our lunch after
over 1 1/2 miles down into the canyon.

Before we could finish a ranger came over and told us that

we needed to move so a medical helicopter could land. 

A man had a heart attack and was air lifted out. 

Now the hard part - two hours of climbing up!

Look at the top of this photo and you can see the Kolb House.

 Slowly we climbed on the shuttle and went to see

 Hermit's Rest which is an 80 minutes round trip on the shuttle.

Then we took our car and found where we 

stayed when we honeymooned here 35 years ago.

 Surprising it looked the same.

The Hopi House is a now a gift shop

and the famous El Tovar Hotel.

Our 35th Wedding Anniversary!

 We started our day riding the Grand Canyon Railway train
from Williams to the Grand Canyon-approximately 60 miles. 

Walked around the southern rim,

and checked out the Kolb Studio. The studio operated
 from 1905 until 1976 as the photographic studio of brothers
 Ellsworth and Emery Kolb.  They were pioneer photographers
and filmmakers at the Grand Canyon.
Check out this link Kolb Brothers

We saw several elk.

We took a four-hour sunset tour with
Canyon Ministries .

Our first stop was Desert View Watchtower.

It was a cloud covered day which wasn't ideal for a sunset tour.

Surprisingly there are three scriptures 

posted around the Grand Canyon.
Psalm 66:4

This is a great place to view the Colorado River.

Mary Colter's Desert View Watchtower

is 70 feet tall and built in 1932.

There is so much to learn about this amazing place. 

 Bob, our guide, was very knowledgeable.

He showed us evidence of the biblical flood 

in this majestic place.

 This was a fantastic way to spend our anniversary!

 The clouds broke just enough to get
 a few beautiful sunset pictures.

God is faithful!
This is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World.

A must-see if you are able. 

We are blessed!