But, we saved the best for last and went to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. In a word, it was AWESOME! I've been wanting to go there for as long as I can remember. I only wish I'd gone sooner. I finally saw bears in the wild. Bison, elk, coyote, moose, owl, pelicans, and eagles too. No wolves, next time. The geysers were amazing, Old Faithful went off, the Grand Tetons were truly grand, Jackson Hole was the coolest tourist trap I've ever been to. Just a really great trip. The only downside was the torn calf muscle Karla had to deal with. No hiking or biking for her. The only upside to that was we saw a lot more of the parks than we may have otherwise. I got to do a ride that crossed 8800 foot Dunraven Pass. This sea level dweller was glad it was mostly a downhill ride. It was our first vacation in 3 years. We took 9 days. Another week would have been good. We'll be headed back within the next year or 2.
To properly enjoy the journey, we did something we resisted as long as we could. We bought a new car. I know, I know. I've railed loudly against car and consumer culture here, there, and everywhere. The combined mileage of our 2 cars was 380,000 miles. The point of diminishing returns was well behind us. We sold our 1991Toyota Previa minivan with 240,000 miles on it to an appreciative Laotian fellow for a pretty good deal and bought a 2005 Honda Element. I've gotta say, it's a really nice car. We've been staying pretty close to town for the last couple of years due to a lack of faith in the cars we had. It was nice to have a care free trip and it's nice for Karla to not worry about the car breaking down on the commute, or anywhere else for that matter. We still have the 1990 Civic wagon. It's running well. I've used it a couple of times to go mountain biking. Mostly it stays parked in the driveway. Much cheaper that way.
Goat Wall Lookout, 5000 feet, Methow Valley,
North Cascades. October 7th 2006
The Element has not been treated like most people treat new cars. The day after we bought it we drove over Colockum Pass in the central Cascades. The road is horrible. It's not paved. It has long rocky sections, deep ruts, and is quite remote. It was a hot summer Saturday and we saw 2 other cars in 25 miles. It is far more suitable for a Hummer than a little faker like our car. However, our little faker acquitted itself nicely. We decided the plastic body panels were a good thing. We visited my Dad and step-mom in East Wenatchee after the pass. My step-mom, Jackie, was amazed we would treat our new car that way. We thought we did exactly what we got it for. We have also driven it on mountain dirt roads in Yellowstone and in the Methow Valley in north central Wa. We think it's a great car.
