Our New Years was brought in with a healthy dose of the Sierra Madre. We weathered a rainstorm at RT Rogers Brewing Co. where I enjoyed their red IPA. The next evening, we were back in downtown Sierra Madre to see the Sierra Madre Rose Float Association send off its 2023 rose parade float. Then, of course, it is never too cold or rainy for a stop at Mother Moo.
Wednesday, January 4, 2023
2023 Rose Parade -- from East Pasadena
Thursday, December 1, 2022
Road Trip to Field of Dreams - Return to Pasadena Continued
As we left our hotel in West Des Moines, we drove onto Mills Civic Parkway and saw a Scooters coffee across the street from a Caribou coffee. We chose Caribou and turned onto Interstate 35 heading south. Within a few miles, we were out of the city and back travelling through the green Iowa countryside. I liked that the city was so close to the country. I regretted that we had not seen more of Des Moines.
We charted a course to Abilene, Kansas, where we planned to see the Eisenhower Presidential Museum. I am not sure how I missed this, but Interstate 35 runs due south through Osceola, Van Wert and Decatur City and then right into Missouri. Surprise.... we were going to Missouri.
Just over the Missouri border, near Eagleville, we stopped at the Missouri welcome center. To say this was a welcome center or rest stop does not do the place justice. The usual brochures and local displays were there but also a beautiful mural depicting all things Missouri. Just off the parking lot there was an open field planted with flowers and grass. Amid all the plants was a herd of bronze buffalo. We spent some time wandering among the bronze herd. You could almost imagine what the plains must have looked like centuries ago.
Wednesday, November 30, 2022
Road Trip to the Field of Dreams -- Our Return Trip Back to Pasadena
Tuesday, November 15, 2022
Road Trip to Field of Dreams -- Day 8 - at the Field of Dreams
At the table, my big surprise came to life as our two kids walked in to join us for breakfast. They had caught a flight from Dallas to Cedar Rapids (how many can there be?), rented a car and drove out to Dubuque. Near midnight they had knocked on our door and in a sleepy groggy state, I opened the door. They were so out of context, and I was so sleepy I did not believe what I was seeing. Did they know they were in Iowa? Or was this some kind of dream? Well, the next morning in the Hancock House dining room, the dream became real. All four of us were together in someplace we had never been. We were in Iowa, having breakfast at the Hancock House mansion. And we were going to the Field of Dreams. Crazy!
After breakfast, our family headed west. It felt good to have all four of us in one car. That's a routine thing when they were young. I am probably speaking just for me, but I loved those family road trips. Once the kids grow up, those trips together are but warm memories. Getting the whole family in the car is not so easy.
We drove up and over the Dubuque bluffs. Now, with the Mississippi River behind us, green farmland all around and the Field of Dreams ahead, in many ways my trip was complete. More than I could have imagined.
We passed through the farm towns of Peosta, Epworth and Farley, then turned off 20 and headed north on Jamesmeier Rd., then left on Prier and north on Black Hills. This was rural Iowa. Endless corn fields. A few farmhouses and silos. Signage is thankfully spare. Black Hills dead-ends into Lansing Road and a left turn takes you to the Field of Dreams. The Field is on part of the old Lansing family farm.
Saturday, October 1, 2022
Road Trip to Field of Dreams Day 7 - Lincoln, Nebraska to Dubuque, Iowa
Toward day's end, we went to the Dubuque Star Brewery building which rests on the banks of the Mississippi and now home to offices, a museum and a very lively ground floor restaurant. The weather was perfect, so we (along with many others) sat outside and enjoyed a glass of wine. In the morning we would be off to our destination -- the Field of Dreams. Little did I know, but big surprises were planned. As I found out later, our two kids were on their way from California to join us. In the post-Covid summer of 2022, airline flights could be scarce. They had made it from LAX to Dallas and now they needed a connection to Cedar Rapids. It was getting late and their mother was getting worried if not acting downright districted as we enjoyed our wine, the old Brewery building and River. Would the kids make it?
Sunday, August 28, 2022
Road Trip to Field of Dreams - Day 6 - Denver, Colorado to Lincoln, Nebraska
One of our goals on this trip was to find good independent coffee places. The Bristlecone in Cedar City had been a home run and, though I am sure Colorado is loaded with such places, we had struck out in the state.
Our top Nebraska find was Black Sheep Coffee House. Getting to Black Sheep was an adventure. We exited the Interstate and almost immediately were detoured onto a dirt road. We travelled the dirt road passing farmhouses, trucks and row upon row of corn. There was nothing to do but go forward on the dirt road until finally we came to Platteview Road, which thankfully was paved. Platteview Road took us into the town of Springfield and a corner lot that supplied all your needs -- a Pit Stop gas station, Valentino's Pizza and Black Sheep Coffee. Great coffee, friendly people. Kind of the poster business for the Nebraska good life.
Our second great Nebraska find was Slow Lane Coffee in Ogallala. Again, great coffee, friendly people and more. Slow Lane is down the street from the Prairie Theater which is in the middle of a nicely preserved downtown. Photos of lakes and trees on the walls. On Spruce Street in the home of Arbor Day. Slow Lane. Nebraska good life.
There were a few Nebraska places we had wanted to visit. Fourth of July in the town of Seward was one we thought about and the timing was just not right. Another stop we wanted to make was the University of Nebraska Dairy Store at the Lincoln campus where they sold ice cream, cheeses and meats all made by university students. We just missed the 9 pm close. Next time.
Sunday, August 21, 2022
Road Trip to Field of Dreams - Day 4 - Glenwood Springs to Denver, Colorado
When we planned our trip, there were two dates we had to meet. We had to be at the FoD on July 2 for the House Tour and Ghost Players and then had to be back to Pasadena by the 12th. From there, we filled in dates and places. We planned two days in Glenwood Springs, two days in Denver, and at least three days in Iowa. No offense to Nevada, Utah and Nebraska, but those would be mostly drive through states.
Above is the National Ballpark Museum, one of the highlights of my time in Denver. More on that below.
Denver is 157 miles from Glenwood Springs. The only direct route is on Interstate 70 which winds over and through the Rocky Mountains. Along the way, the scenery is spectacular. Leaving Glenwood Springs, the road winds through Glenwood Canyon, with the canyon walls on the left and Colorado River below and on the right. This part of the Interstate was completed in 1992 and is said to be an engineering marvel because of the care taken to preserve the natural setting. After the Canyon, the views range from meadows to forests to mountain peaks. Not many Interstate drives are inspiring. This one is.
The Eisenhower Tunnel traverses the Continental Divide at an elevation of more than 11,000 feet. When built in 1973, it was the highest vehicular tunnel in the world.
We had two nights and just one full day in the city. The first night, we met with friends (California expatriates) at T Street Roadhouse in a newer Lakewood neighborhood. Highly recommend T Street. The next day I got to know Denver.
Our hotel was near a light rail stop which made travel into downtown easy. Since I had never been to Denver, I took a guided Segway tour of downtown. We covered a lot of terrain and cruised past many landmarks, including the Colorado State Capitol (above) and Confluence Park (below) where Cherry Creek joins the South Platte River. We saw the Blue Bear (which was made in California), LoDo, Coors Field and our guide, though a bit laconic (bad trait for a tour guide), was able to manage some interesting city history.