Category: Travels

My new WalMart GPS arrived today and I like it! It replaces a Garmin that really let me down last Summer, which caused me to travel blind around the U.S. on vacation.

The problem with the Garmin was the custom car adapter that broke because it was hard-wired to the plug and just wore out. I replaced it with an adapter bought on-line which had the wrong pin assignments, which fried the GPS.

This new TomTom is a WalMart special, in fact you can’t even find the model at the TomTom online store. It was $70 and arrived here at $80 after tax and shipping.

It’s menu is simpler than the Garmin, and easier to get around. It’s currently sitting next to me downloading the current maps, which is unlimited (the Garmin is not…). The number one thing I like so far is that the connection to the car adapter is a USB cable! If it wears out I’ll just replace the cable.

I’m taking off Friday on a little jaunt and I’ll report back here on how it works.

I shot this video of Upper Mesa Falls when Riley and Jess were here. My camera has this cool mode that reverses video based on the direction the camera is moving.

Life is simple, all you have to do is keep moving forward, one step at a time. Sometimes the wind of change knocks you over, so just get back up and keep going. As forks in the road appear, don’t worry. The road you wander down is the one you were meant to take.

When death is near, look back at your life and smile :-)

Update: This post is dedicated to my friend Ilya, who’s still alive after one interesting step…

Steph flew over to Sacramento today for some Suburban Propane customer service training. Her tech geek boyfriend decided to track the flight. Watch the SlideShow

Spent the afternoon at the Armory in Rigby. Guns, ammo and more guns… I happened into their bullet loading shop and found these two serious ammo machines.

We drove down to Rexburg today to purchase auto parts and ammo. I’ve hired an Idaho Falls guy to come up here and work on our vehicles for $45 an hour, if we supply the parts. Sure beats the rate of the local car jockeys that think their wrenches don’t stink!

As to the ammo, Riley and Jessica are coming to visit this month and he needed some exotic 45 caliber for his old rifle so we could do some shooting when they get here. Found some… I might even buy a sweet little Mossburg 500.

Just before Newdale there was a water wheel that wasn’t going anywhere due to the fact that the temperature was 15 degrees. It made for a great photo shoot though!

SlideShow (Ice Water)

This Park is an Idaho Falls anomaly. It’s a Rest Area off the old Yellowstone Highway which once was the main road through Idaho Falls. I-15 now has that honor.

The city has been nice enough to keep the park open for free overnight camping, one night only. Unfortunately, it was being abused this summer. I came through here one day recently and it had turned into a homeless camp. Tents, kids and dogs everywhere. Everyone glared at me as I drove through, like new outsiders are not allowed, were full!

The place has since been seriously cleaned up by the local gestapo and is now back to it’s original charming purpose of providing a convenient place to stay overnight.

It’s bordered on the north by a gravel plant and to the south by the old SkyVu drive-in theater. The great Snake River flows serenely to it’s west.

My sister Lorelle invited Steph and I to the Bite down in Jackson, WY today. Beautiful day, good crowd, great food, and a nice way to wrap up my Summer vacation. Sis drove so I was even able to hit up the Cowboy Bar for a quick drink.

btw: If you have an interest in the people running our government, check this out!

Drove down to the Eastern Idaho State Fair in Blackfoot today. Got there early, ate a Pronto Pup, saw a lot of stuff, took a bunch of pictures, and then left…

SlideShow (Fishin)

Tasted my first chicken sandwich from this joint today, down in Idaho Falls. I had never heard of them before the CEO made his intolorence to same-sex marriage known, and the subsequent outcry that occurred during our Southern trip.

I was going to take a more staged photo at the start of the meal but I was hungry so I dug in first. They even gave us a free breakfast thing to try out. Overall, not bad :-)

Drove up to the Targhee National Forest via S Leigh Canyon Rd out of Tetonia today. Took us about 30 minutes from the house to be deep in bear country.

Great scenery, found an old sawmill, then ran into a small community of campers that offered us food. If it was more than just cake and pastries I’d of taken them up on it.

Here’s a Map of the area. Actually, if you drag the map down a little there’s another road above that goes even deeper into the forest. Have to check that out one of these days…

I visited one of the worst slums in Idaho today, it’s a place called Newtonia. Truly an ugly depressing place, full of excrement, scraps of metal and leaky pipes.

The folks here are so poor they have to use dirt for their roofs and the unemployment level is tragic. There’s just not many jobs per acre in this barren, forsaken land!

SlideShow (Newtonia)

SlideShow (Palisades)

We were coming back from a Walmart expedition in Rexburg today and I stopped to take some photos of the insanely spacious land that exists out here.