Roadside Architecture

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Day 45: the Journey Home to Brooklyn

All good things must come to an end. I aborted the trip a couple days early because of the snow in Colorado & the Midwest. I can take decent photos in the rain but snow makes for ridiculous white blobs that ruin the image. Just as well, lots of stuff to deal with back at work before I return to my Real Job (nothing to do with this roadside stuff).

Reflecting on the math of this six-week trip: we covered 16,304 miles and it cost about $5,000 -- the bulk of that was gas (~ $3700) plus some "hidden fees":

one speeding in school zone ticket in NM ($63)
one speeding ticket in Houston, TX ($200)
one seatbelt ticket in L.A. ($93)
one parking ticket in downtown L.A. ($70)
one parking ticket in Pasadena, CA ($37)
[these expenses were cheap and so worth it considering the number of stop signs I rolled through, the illegal U-turns I made, the speed limits I ignored, the stop & shoot double parking/hydant parking violations, etc.]

And considering the amount of photos (about 6,000), the memories, good times had by me and the dogs = priceless!

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Now to catch up on a few photos that I took on the way home. The weather was brutal and I was exhausted from the stress of driving in the snow and quite eager to get home. I understand it's still snowing in Denver and raining in the Midwest. So I'm thrilled to be home in the sun and relative warmth. The dogs were positively gleeful to be back running in their familiar park this morning.

Going back in time... to the April 9th when my flash drive bit the dust (thanks Nik). Here's a place in Duchesne, UT that was known as the Bottle Hollow Resort. Some interesting and sad ruins of a mid-century motel and gas station.





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Here's proof of the awfulness that befell me during the last couple days of the trip:



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Sparkle was anything but sparkling. Some interesting hubcab formations:



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A dip in a hot spring (there were lots of them around) sure seemed like a good idea:



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My last sustaining bit of road junk food from a Safeway. There were fewer marshmallows than the label implied. It was pretty much all cream (can't complain) with mostly bits of coconut & pineapple. I'm not sure about the pistachios -- but the product was this lovely shade of green. Hey, it's the small pleasures in life that get us through the hard stuff. Happy to be home & I hope you'll join the dogs & I again this Summer when we will head off on another marathon trip to the Pacific Northwest.

19 Comments:

  • Debra Jane, it was truly a fascinating roadtrip, I loved reading your updates every day.

    Glad you got home safely! I'm sure the pups are saying: "There's no place like home."

    16,304 miles, wow. It takes me over 2 years to put that many miles on my car!

    6,000 GOOD photos like you shot? I still haven't shot half that amount in 35 years.

    Still so bummed I missed you when you were in Newport. Maybe we can meet up at the Chuck Wagon Diner when it reopens in Princetown, NY.
    In the meantime, see you on flickr!
    --Gale (galechicago)

    By Blogger Gale, at Sun Apr 13, 09:31:00 PM PDT  

  • Can't wait to cross paths when you head out here to the NW.

    Good luck adjusting back to the "working" world this week!

    Jeff

    By Blogger Vintage Roadside, at Sun Apr 13, 10:40:00 PM PDT  

  • gale: Hey, thanks! Do you have plans to come to NY to see the Chuck Wagon? If so, definitely, let's find a way to get together.

    By Blogger Debra Jane Seltzer (aka agilitynut), at Mon Apr 14, 04:44:00 AM PDT  

  • vintage: Yes, it's gonna be fun to do the PNW. I've never been to OR or WA before -- just love seeing brand new territory. And I will definitely schedule you in.

    By Blogger Debra Jane Seltzer (aka agilitynut), at Mon Apr 14, 04:46:00 AM PDT  

  • (SamWibatt from Flickr)

    Glad you made it home OK! You had a very successful trip with a ton of great shots.

    Best,
    ..s.

    By Blogger Unknown, at Mon Apr 14, 10:34:00 PM PDT  

  • Hey "sam" -- thanks! Let me know if you ever make it out this-a-way so I can buy the next round.

    By Blogger Debra Jane Seltzer (aka agilitynut), at Mon Apr 14, 11:44:00 PM PDT  

  • Darn, I love reading your blog and I wish I'd realized you were coming to Boulder. I could have sent you to a better dog park for one thing (though the park you were at is o.k.). I'm looking forward to seeing the photos you came up with for Boulder. I know a few good things to photograph but I'll bet you found them plus some I don't know about.

    I've also got a photo of the Glenwood Springs pool though I was focused more on the pool than the building: http://daysofspeed.blogspot.com/2007/09/glenwood-springs-triathlon-2007.html

    By Blogger Elayne, at Tue Apr 15, 12:18:00 PM PDT  

  • elayne: I'm pretty sure the Hot Springs that I shot was in Glenwood Springs. The building doesn't fit in with the themes of my website but I thought the steaming pool was a fun sight and thing for the blog esp. on such a miserable day. I've been to Boulder before in better weather and taken a number of photos for the website. This time, it was more of a pitstop before the big trip home. The snow ruins the photos and I needed to get going anyway.

    What's the better dog park that I missed? I definitely want to check it out the next time. It made for a fun diversion on this trip to try to see one every day or two in different cities. The East Bouder Dog Park was fun because it's next to a big playground and the kids came over to throw Nik's ball for him. They are always amazed at his speed and tricks. A few had dog training questions and I hope I might have planted a seed about positive training and the intelligence of dogs. (Glancing at your blogpage, I see you have Border Collies.)

    By Blogger Debra Jane Seltzer (aka agilitynut), at Tue Apr 15, 01:18:00 PM PDT  

  • There's a dog park in North Boulder, I think the city calls it Foothills Community Park. There are directions to it here: http://www.bouldercolorado.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2409&Itemid=1926
    There are 3 separate fenced areas, one is for small dogs and the other are for whomever. One of the areas is huge and the other is maybe an acre or two, the little dog park is maybe 1/2-3/4 an acre. It's right up against the foothils and arguably more scenic than E. Boulder plus it's typically quieter. It doesn't have a swimming area like E. Boulder but that swimming area is a cesspool. I had a coworker who's dog got bit there then it went in swimming and ended up with maggots coming out its wound.

    The Valmont dog park is the worst, there have been a couple of deaths there (small dog and puppy I think). It's often crowded and it's in an industrial part of town right near the prison. They're supposedly going to move it someday but for now it's not a place I'd send visitors (or anybody I liked).

    Aside from the parks there are tons of trails that allow dogs off leash, some in the foothills (Mesa Trail is the main one) and some on the plains. There are rattlesnakes in summer though.

    Weather is always iffy in CO in March/April. Today it's in the 70's, tomorrow maybe snow. I was at an agility trial once in May and we had 4" of snow in the morning and sunny skies by afternoon. Those spring snow storms are horrible if you're in the mountains though and I know that one you had to drive through was awful, I'm sorry you had to go through that. Better luck next time.

    By Blogger Elayne, at Tue Apr 15, 02:32:00 PM PDT  

  • Oh and that is definitely the Glenwood Springs pool in your photo.

    By Blogger Elayne, at Tue Apr 15, 02:37:00 PM PDT  

  • Elayne: I don't see the park you recommend at this site (which is one of my favorites for finding places):
    http://ecoanimal.com/dogfun/colorado.html

    So I will add it to my list for future trips. I always take my dogs to the Big Dogs area although they are definitely small dogs. A bigger area and my guys are well-socialized and handle all types of personalities well. I am always on the look-out for pushy/aggressive dogs though -- esp. with my 8 pounder who doesn't back off from anything. I'm also more careful on weekends at dogs parks (including my own) as that's usually when clueless owners bring their unsocialized dogs out and fights break out. My dogs didn't go in the water at East Boulder (way too cold). I used to love to go hiking with my dogs -- but now that I have two that are hunting obsessed, it's not an option. I'd rather not encounter any snakes either!

    I'm wiser about Midwest Spring weather now and will probably aim for May rather than April from now on. Thanks for all the tips!

    By Blogger Debra Jane Seltzer (aka agilitynut), at Wed Apr 16, 07:24:00 AM PDT  

  • Now that you're done with your trip I've just found your blog through flickr. Will enjoy reading the stories behind the photos. If pistachio-flavored desserts & hubcap formations are any indication, I'm in for many treats.

    By Blogger kookaburra, at Wed Apr 16, 05:37:00 PM PDT  

  • kookaburra: I'm glad you're enjoying my subject matter. I'm always looking for novel desserts and interesting natural & man-made stuff. The roadside photos are at my website (www.RoadsideArchitecture.com) with a sampling of them at my flickr agilitynut account. The blog is story of the roadtrip venture itself (with duplication of photos at my flickr roadsidenut account). I hope there's something for everybody to enjoy in there somewhare.

    By Blogger Debra Jane Seltzer (aka agilitynut), at Wed Apr 16, 11:42:00 PM PDT  

  • I must say I have enjoyed reading your site... I do love the odd roadside stuff... take care

    By Blogger Fliss and Mike Adventures, at Thu May 22, 03:07:00 PM PDT  

  • Glad you enjoyed looking at my blog. The blog is the day-to-day of my "hunting expeditions" for the website. I'm hard at work adding stuff from this trip to it now. If you're into roadside stuff, you'll definitely want to check it out:
    http://www.RoadsideArchitecture.com

    By Blogger Debra Jane Seltzer (aka agilitynut), at Thu May 22, 11:42:00 PM PDT  

  • I love the Bottle Hollow Resort, from the pictures- or really any building that looks both "futuristic" and as if it was built in the 60s.

    By Blogger Rufus, at Sat Jun 07, 06:54:00 AM PDT  

  • I've got a bunch of futuristic 1960s buildings at my website that you'd probably enjoy:
    http://agilitynut.com/modarch/main.html

    By Blogger Debra Jane Seltzer (aka agilitynut), at Sat Jun 07, 08:08:00 AM PDT  

  • having temporarily abandoned my flickr page (Clock Work Orange) during threats of unemployment, i missed your comment/invite about the Foster's Freeze photo... and, only now stumbled upon your phenomenal photos/travels. oh, yes... i'll be wasting valuable company time here.

    and, bless you for being able to travel when gasoline is over-the-moon.

    scott

    By Blogger ReggaeVibrations_WTJU, at Mon Jul 14, 01:18:00 PM PDT  

  • I'll be doing another big trip starting July 31 -- so check back at this blog then. Trying to get these two whopper trips in before gas hits the $6 mark. I've been working hard (62 days straight) to pay for this previous trip -- and still am not there yet.

    By Blogger Debra Jane Seltzer (aka agilitynut), at Mon Jul 14, 01:30:00 PM PDT  

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