Tuesday, December 31, 2013

2013 ... A Year of Firsts!!!

This was a pretty amazing year for me.  There were more FIRSTS than I have ever experienced, making it very memorable, thanks to new RV friends and long lost best friends now found.  Has it really been a year since my first Indio trip and my first Segway ride??
 My first trip to Quartzite was amazing, as were the sunrises in the Arizona desert.  The flea market was everything everyone told me it would be ... and then some!!!
Summer came and I pulled in behind Patty and Dan heading North to Alaska.  Along the way, there was the first ride on the Sumpter Valley Railroad where I got a first-hand lesson on being an Engineer while riding in the cab!!
My first trip to Banff National Park in Canada, heading towards what came to be the best trip of my lifetime!!
Thanks to Patty and Dan Chance for letting me join them on an amazing trip up the Alaska Highway!!
The world famous Sign Forest on the Alaskan Highway in Canada.
More amazing sunrises on the way to Skagway where we spent a week with wonderful friends/employers of Patty and Dan.
My first ride on the White Pass and Yukon Route Railway from Skagway Alaska into Canada and back.
My first up close and personal experience with a bear ... although I've been very close before, I probably could have reached out and touched this guy.
My first view of Skagway Alaska, beginning of the Klondike Gold Rush.  Pictures just don't do it justice!!
WOW ... my first boat to the Columbia Glacier.  This was definitely the highlight of the trip.  We spent the entire summer in shorts and T-shirts ... except for THIS day!!
That wall of ice in the background is the glacier, calving as we are surrounded by huge ice bergs.
First time playing with Orca!!!  This was a total shock ... I never expected to see these guys in real life!!
My first sight of a Russian Brown Bear ... three times as big as the brown/black bears we saw on the road.
Not the first sight of an eagle, but probably one of the best nature images I have ever taken.
My first trip to Garibaldi, Oregon to see another gorgeous sunset.
My first trip on the Oregon Coast Scenic Railway ... dinner with lots of RV friends.
My first ever kite flying experience!!  It was amazing ... so much so that I purchased TWO kites!!
First time ever up close and personal with wild cats in Bandon Oregon.  This is Bob the bobcat.
Back from Alaska, I purchased a smoker and cooked this yummy smoked pork for the first time!!  I'm not good at barbecuing ... but I have to say this pork was amazing!!
With more awesome RV friends Barbara and Tom Westerfield, I went to the Fresno County Fair for the first time since I moved 60 miles down the road, 60 years ago.
Patty Chance and I went on my first trip to Costa Rica.  What an amazing country!!  Take a poncho ... you're gonna need it!!!
First ever sight of Capuchin monkeys in the trees above our room, screaming at the Howler monkeys.
Not the first time I got scared to death, but definitely the first time a red-eyed tree frog jumped on my shoulder.
First time ever seeing a sloth in person, let alone one scratching his chin
After all that traveling, my two baby puppies were glad to be home for a month before heading off again on adventures in 2014.
Cooper is catching up on his sleep, as we'll be starting new adventures in a few short days.
Happy New Year everyone ... I hope 2014 is good to you!!!




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