Category Archives: USA Trips

Bend Trip, April 2012

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Jim and Ione Darmiento was nice enough to invite Linna and I for a three day weekend in Bend, Oregon with their daughter and her husband. Bend is home to one of many microbreweries and to Mirror Pond which where our four bedroom rented house was located, right on the Deschutes river. We drove down on Thursday which was around 6 hours of driving from Seattle. They were barbecuing up chicken and hamburgers when we showed up.

Friday was mainly checking out the city starting with breakfast at a local cafe. I stopped at REI to get some local hiking maps and get the inside scoop on snowshoe trails and where dogs are allowed. After spending money at REI we headed for the local Safeway, Linna wanted to cook a huge pot of chicken thighs and vegetables that night for everyone. After Linna marinated the chicken, we decided to adventure out some and check out the snowshoe trailheads and determine if there was enough quality snow or not. After checking out three snow-parks, I was leaning toward this summer trail next to a snow-park which was directly across the highway from Mt. Bachelor. It had good snow and elevation, but it didn’t allow dogs. Jim and family went skiing as Linna and I were exploring, but we both made it back about the same time. Jim and I checked out the neighborhood micro-brewery before dinner, 10 Barrel Brewing www.10barrel.com that had outdoor seating…we didn’t have much time but we able to down two powerful pilsners before dinner was served.

Next day was snowshoe day and I decided to snowshoe up the summer trail on Tumalo Mountain even though dogs were not allowed. As we were getting our equipment on, a sheriff in a large Dodge Ram pick-up pulled in and parked for about 10 minutes, by the time we were ready to go he took off. We quickly got Macho out of the kennel and headed up. The climb was steady and straight up….almost perfect conditions for snowshoeing. The higher we got, the less trees there were to take cover from the warm sun. The whole weekend was in the mid-seventies and sunny, so waterproof sunscreen was a must. We made it to the top in about 1 1/2 hours and spent about a hour on top having our peanut-butter sandwich and taking pictures. That night we all went out to Chris’s Grill www.gregsgrill.com for dinner.

San Francisco Trip, January 2012

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Linna and I got lucky this weekend in San Francisco with the weather and had a chance to soak up some sun for a couple of days. This was a short trip down South for a little shopping and of course some wining and dining. We flew late afternoon on Thursday and both of us were upgraded to First Class on Alaska Airlines; no dinner was served, but we did munch down the cheese plate with a couple of glasses of wine. Since we flew into Oakland due to lower cost flights, I booked our hotel in Concord, which was ½ hour East of Oakland. On our way to the hotel, we decided to have dinner at this Italian restaurant that I found on OpenTable during our flight from Seattle using the airline internet GOGO. Ottavio www.ottavio.com, is a local favorite in Walnut Greek and the place is so cozy…the Chef would come out to check on you.

Friday was pretty much a shopping day in San Francisco followed by dinner at a hip Japanese restaurant in Oakland. Ozumo www.ozumo.com is a lively young cool place serving authentic Japanese dishes along with premium sashimi. I would recommend using the valet, parking in the area was a challenge. Saturday was sleep in day followed by a visit to the Golden Gate bridge. Of all the visits to the Bay area, I have never actually walked on the bridge; actually you get more of a sense of the size, age and discoloration of the bridge. We flew out late Saturday afternoon to make it home to see a little snow in Seattle.

Georgia Trip, November 2011

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Linna and I flew down to Atlanta to visit AJ Hudgins and Colleen Favinger, old friends of mine that moved to Hartwell, Georgia about six months ago. I use to work with AJ and Colleen back in Cozad, Nebraska at Tenneco Automotive in the eighties. This was only a three day trip, but…the drive from Atlanta to Hartwell was warm with beautiful fall colors.

We arrived Friday afternoon and later had dinner at a local Mexican restaurant. After dinner AJ and I stayed up late getting caught up on gossip, life, and work. Linna and I slept in on Saturday and eventually woke up to AJ’s homemade breakfast. For dinner, AJ wanted to check out a new restaurant that was being featured in the “Food & Wine” magazine, “Five and Ten” located in Athens Georgia. Before we headed to Athens, we drove around Hartwell, AJ and Colleen’s new home for many years to come. It’s a quaint little town, but…bigger than Cozad, Nebraska where we all lived for many years. We stopped in at a local art gallery; you never know when you might find a piece of art that you might like. The owner and artist, Diane Geiger moved from Atlanta a few years ago to open her own studio “Hang it up Gallery and Studios”. I bought a small piece from Diane that I knew would be managable to travel back to Seattle with. It’s a small world, Diane’s sister lives in Bellevue, just a few miles from Linna and I.

After exploring Hartwell, we took the back highways to Athens. As we were getting close to our destination, we noticed it was college game day for the Georgia Bulldogs; our restaurant “five and ten” was walking distance from the stadium. After locating the restuarant, we decided to cruise the campus area which happened to be an eye opener. I haven’t been to a campus before that allowed open containers on campus, not only on campus…but walking on the street, sidewalks and all over. The campus reminded me of the movie “Animal House” with all the empty containers all over. After the campus fun, we headed to our dinner spot www.fiveandten.com, it was definitely a five star dinner. We got stuck in the football traffic after dinner, which was a total drag. Sunday was another sleep in, but eventually got on the road back to Atlanta after lunch; we wanted to stop at the Aquarium, but our departure was to close. It was a great to see AJ and Colleen again.

Seattle, Live Painting, August 2011

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My wife Linna and I had the distinct pleasure of hosting a live painting in our back garden area by artist Sayoko Hirano from Kyoto, Japan. She was visiting Seattle and New York with other artists, Bosshiko, Gan-Ghan and Chiaki. I met Sayoko through an Japanese Art Auction on Facebook.

My friend Allan Leal was posting the artist website on his Facebook page and I thought it was the least I could do was to purchase a piece of art; all the donations were for the Japanese disaster relief campaign that generated from the tsunami devastation. The piece of art I bought “lovers” is placed above our Buddha in the landing with a beautiful frame around it. I befriended Sayoko on Facebook and found out that she was going to be in Seattle for a few days before she went on to New York for her own art exhibit. So I asked if her group would be up for a barbeque and fire-pit party at my house, her reply was “yes, could we do live a painting?”, and of course I am like “oh hell yes!”

Linna and I invited twenty-five guests over to enjoy the festivities in our backyard garden, we had it catered by Duos Catering www.duoscatering.com, which I highly recommend. Even though we started the fun around 6:00 p.m., the live art didn’t happen until 9:00 p.m. which actually gave the event more drama with the spot light on the live 30 minute drawing.

After the drawing, Gan-Ghan provided a story telling event with prizes; he spoke in Japanese…but with his facial and body expressions you could still follow the story. Chiaki performed a 5 minute dance that incorporated hip-hop and martial arts. This was a perfect evening and to top it off, Sayoko Hirano gave me her live painting!

Lake Oahe Trip, July 2011

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It has been three years since I have been to Lake Oahe, South Dakota. This is an annual fishing trip that I started going on with a few of my Nebraska buddies; the first year I made the trip to Lake Oahe was in 1995. I went year after year and then took a 3 year break after the 2007 fishing trip. The early years, it was a trio that consisted of John Dorsey, AJ Hudjins and myself. AJ and John live in Cozad, Nebraska (my hometown) and the last few times Scott Diehl has been joining us, he lives in Brady, Nebraska about 30 miles from Cozad. This year, AJ didn’t make the trip due to his moving from Cozad to Hartwell, Georgia to start a new job.

My wife Linna had the pleasure of waking up at 4:30 a.m. to give me a ride to the airport. I flew from Seattle to Minneapolis and then back to Pierre, South Dakota. The flight from Minneapolis to Pierre was on a small turbo-prop plane….which was loud and slow. John and Scott were waiting for me at the Pierre airport with a cold beer. John picked up Scott in Brady about the same time my flight took off from Seattle. John and Scott pretty much just had to drive due North, a 5 hour drive to Pierre. As usual we headed to Dakota Mart to pick-up a few items, a store that carries guns, fishing equipment, liquor, clothing and groceries. We stayed at the West Prairie Resort www.westprairieresort.com, a place we have been doing business with for the last 4 fishing trips. The owners Terry and Tammy Nelson are some of the nicest people you will ever meet; Terry is considered to be the best guide on Lake Oahe by his peers and customers.

Each morning consisted of breakfast at the lodge and out on the lake by 9:00 a.m. We usually had our limit by early afternoon, which was a good time to get off the lake. Fishing in mid-summer on Lake Oahe, temperatures can reach over 100 degrees, which must have reached each day for us! When we got back to our air conditioned cabin, it felt like you walked out of an oven into a refrigerator. Seattle hadn’t had a full day over 80 degrees yet and my body was acclimated for the low 70’s. After each day of fishing, Terry would clean, pack and put our fish in our cabin freezer. He treats you like a king on the boat and makes sure you are having a great time. He will even bait your hook and take your fish off….as he did for Scott all three days; of course John and I were making fun of it! This resort goes beyond the usual customer service, since my flight was in the late afternoon and my Nebraska buddies wanted to take off in the morning, Terry gave me a car to drive to the airport. So I stuck around the resort and used the wireless until I needed to catch my flight.

San Francisco Trip, July 2011

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It has been a while since I have been to San Francisco and after spending a three day weekend….it was a good reminder why I love this city. Linna and I flew Alaska Airlines down to Oakland airport which is just a 20 minute hop over to San Francisco. We stayed at the Hilton hotel in the Union district; this area is close to highend shopping and walking distance to plenty of sightseeing. We had dinner the first night at Jardiniere’s restaurant, this is a neighborhood hotspot and the dinner reviews were spot on, the place excelled.

Next day we met up with a friend at the Butterfly located in Embarcadero, this was more of a business casual dining….but, I would definitley hit this spot again if I come back to this area again. That night I had a craving for Italian food, so I picked Palio d’ Asti which was a little more than a mile from our hotel. I wanted to walk so we could do a little shopping along the way. After living in Seattle for 15 years, the shopping is a little stale and every shop seems to offer the same things. Palio d’ Asti dishes were delicious, but the service was a little weird….our server would never look at you when he spoke. After dinner we hit a Chinese massage place to relax our feet after a long day of walking. The foot massage was okay, but….I would be looking for something better next time in San Francisco.

The last day was more shopping and we finished the day off at Scala’s Bistro in the heart of some major shopping. I ended up with a couple of cool shoes and three new jeans and Linna ended up with three full bags of expensive apparel. Our flight was delayed from Oakland to Seattle, so I wrote this blog up during three cold Stella’s.

Nebraska Trip, April 2011

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I haven’t been back to my hometown (Cozad, Nebraska) since my class reunion in September 2009.  The main purpose was to spend Easter with my sister Nova Walker, she was diagnosed with cancer 6 months ago.  Linna and I flew direct from Seattle to Denver on Alaska Airlines, just a little over 2 hours.  Cozad is located on Interstate 80 halfway between Denver and Omaha; taking a direct flight from Seattle is much easier than flying into Omaha with a connection and still driving 4 hours.  The Eastern side of Colorado is not much to look at and all it does is encourages you to drive as fast as you can through it.  Speed limit is 75 and I usually drive 85 to 95 to make sure I get to Cozad for dinner…..well this time I had Mr. State Trooper stop me to say hi. 

After we settled in with my good friend AJ Hudgins and his girlfriend of 27 years, Colleen Favinger in Cozad we headed out to Bella Italia for dinner.  There isn’t much in Cozad, but I have to admit I am totally impressed with this Italian restaurant located in my small hometown.  After dinner, AJ and I sat up until 4 a.m. gossiping about the 4,000 residents in Cozad.  The next two days AJ and I spent driving around Cozad seeing old friends and neighbors.  We stopped in to visit with Mark McKeone, Scott Diehl, Eric Seaman, Marty Munster, Verna Story, Ardi Wilcher, Heidi Bazata, John Dorsey, Scott Hergenrader, Sherry Armagost and even dropped off a dozen tulips to Ardi Wilcher.

Linna and I spent Easter Sunday with my sisters Nova and Alicia and their families.  We started the day off with church service at the Nazarene; I haven’t been to a church service for 9 years or so…..and it might be another 9 before I go back.  After church we drove over to Gothenburg, ten miles west of Cozad for brunch at Walker’s Steakhouse.  After munching down the Midwest buffet, we headed back to Nova’s house for pictures and an Easter egg hunt for the kids. 

Most all small towns in the Midwest, especially Nebraska….the towns are pretty much closed down on Sundays….which means there is no place to dine.  The nearest town for a decent dinner on a Sunday is Kearney, a college town 50 miles East of Cozad.  We first stopped at Hunan’s, a Chinese restaurant that Linna rejected after taking one look at the menu.  After another late night, we got up Monday morning and headed back to Denver.  I took a small detour to Sidney, Nebraska and stopped in at Cabelas to pick up a new shotgun case for my over/under Browning Citori 12 guage shotgun that I was flying back to Seattle with me.

Turtlehead Peak Hike, March 2011

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Turtlehead Peak
Date: March 27, 2011
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 5 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 2,000 ft.
Time: 2 to 3 hours
Location: 20 Minutes From Las Vegas
Users Group: Hikers Only
Permits: $7.00 Park Fee
Trail Conditions: Dry
Hiking with: Linna Freeman

Linna and I had some extra time in Las Vegas during the day and a sunny hike was in order.  I did a quick search for hikes near Las Vegas and Turtlehead Peak had the most elevation gain with a 360 view on top.  This hike is located in the Red Rock Canyon area with numerous other hikes located along the one-way 12 mile route that loops through the canyon.   The trailhead parking was overflowing with cars so we had to park along the road, which I suppose is normal during a weekend. 

We got started on the gravel trail with the sun beaming down overhead.  The trail starts off fairly easy on a river bed and soon picking up some elevation.  Once you get to the gully, it;s a scramble until you get to the ridge.  Once on the ridge, pretty much just follow a couple of trails to the summit.  The 360 view on top was worth the steep scramble in the gully.  Las Vegas was off to the East and the surrounding mountains were glowing red from the sun.

Las Vegas & Zion Park, March 2011

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Linna and I was due for some sunny skies and warmer weather; Seattle was getting dumped on this month and it had been cooler than normal.  I was already down in the Vegas area for work, so Linna joined up with me on Thursday.  After picking her up at the airport, we did a little shopping before heading to St. George, Utah.  We wanted to explore Zion National Park in Utah and St. George was only one hour away from the park.  St. George in the first city you come to when traveling north on I-15 from Vegas.  After checking in at the hotel, we heading off to the local attractions and we couldn’t miss the Dinosaur Tracking Museum.  This site is described by many paleontologists as “one of the ten best dinosaur track sites in the world” and is one of the most important discoveries in early Jurassic paleontological history.  To finish our day off, we headed off to Snow Canyon State Park, this is a quick 30 minute drive through the park, but….filled with beautiful Red Mountains.  While a few miles away are the White Hills, and eroded sandstone rocks of both colors make up the cliffs at either side of the valley.

The next day was exploring Zion National Park, just another beautiful day of mountains.  It started off cloudy and just got worse and soon it was down pouring.  We wanted to hike Angels Landing, but cloudy weather just got worse and soon it was down pouring.  Even though we had our rain gear with us, we wanted a sunny day for a pleasant hike and great pictures.  About the  time we pulled in the trailhead parking lot, it stopped raining…..cool.  After a great day hiking and playing in Zion for the day, we headed back to St. George for the night.  I have an old friend, James Jorgesen that I haven’t seen for 25 years from my hometown that was living in St. George, so we met up for some beers and chat.

The next day was a bust, we headed off to Bryce Canyon, but all we hit was snowy roads and mountains.  We actually drove all the way Bryce Canyon Park entrance and almost paid the  $25 fee, but…my better judgment said no.  From there, we drove all the way  back to Las Vegas.

Phoenix, Uncle’s Memorial, January 2011

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Many times a funeral or a memorial is the only time when long lost relatives get together.  It has been quite a few years since I had seen my aunts and cousins.  My uncle, Ron Adle passed away and his memorial was on January 22nd in Phoenix.  The last time I saw Ron was about 6 years ago in Cozad, Nebraska for his grandson graduation, Brandon Hudgins.

I took a direct flight from Seattle to Phoenix on Alaska Airlines and made sure I had a window seat because of the fantastic scenic views at 30,000 feet.  I landed on a warm sunny day and not a cloud to be seen.  The memorial was at Bonnie’s house, Ron’s wife of nearly 50 years.  My aunts, Lucille and Gladys showed up a little after I did…..they didn’t know I was there, they were pleasantly surprised.  We watched videos of years past, it brought back many good memories.  I stuck around until 1:00 a.m. and then Brandon and I took off to Kim’s and Darren’s house.  Kim Adle is Ron’s daugther and she just recently married Darren Potter in July, which she was fortunate to have her father attend before his death.  After seeing the house, checking out a few guns and another cocktail or two, I took a cab back to my hotel.  I finally hit the sack around 4:00 a.m.

The next day was another warm sunny beautiful day.  Darren, Kim and Aunt Bonnie picked me up in my rental car and we went back to Darren and Kim’s house for lunch and lounging around in the sun.  I had a 5:00 p.m. flight, but it was delayed and I landed later then I wanted to.  I made dinner reservations for Linna and I at the Waterfront Seafood Grille for 8:00 p.m. which I wasn’t going to make with my delayed flight; today was our seven year anniversary.  I met Linna at Miyabi’s after I landed, our favorite sushi restaurant.