2014 summary

January 1, 2015

Happy new Year !!!

But first let's step back and review what we did last year.  2014 was a great travel year, it will be hard to top it, but we will try.  We have covered the far west extensively now, our travel map looks pretty crazy, but there are still have many blank areas to see or places to return to,

In summary, we traveled through the states of Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, New Mexico and the corner of Colorado during the year. 
We put a moderate 3,016 miles on the RV and a much rambling 22,750 miles on the Jeep.  
We stayed at 74 different campsites along the way.  We dry camped for 74 days and boondocked for 12 days. We stayed at several National Parks, State Parks, County Parks, Fairgrounds, Casinos and one Walmart parking lot. 
We visited 8 National Parks and many National Monuments or National Historic Sites. Also lots of great small towns, museums, hiking trails, and the cities of Albuquerque, Salt Lake City, Boise, Seattle and Portland. 
I tend to find something of interest everywhere I go and it is about impossible for me to pick favorites, so browsing through past blog posts, I compiled this short list of memorable places from our 2014 travels: 

Tucson, AZ - best rodeo, rodeo parade and gem & mineral show

Casino del Sol, Tucson, AZ - most realistic sky scenes on ceiling

Payson AZ - best Zane Grey museum

Holbrook, AZ - best route 66 nostalgia and the Tee Pee Motel

Petrified forest National Park, AZ - The colorful Blue Mesa trail and the Painted Desert Inn

Navajo country - Gallup, NM - murals and great Indian trading posts 

El Moro, National Monument, NM

Canyon de Chelly and Canyon de Muerto, AZ - the White House cliff dwellings and Spider Woman Rock

Monument Valley, UT - best red rock landscape vistas

Valley of the Gods, UT - a best kept secret for monumental red rock formations and vistas

Grand Staircase-Escalante, NM - Paria and the Toadstools was fantastic

Glen Canyon Dam, AZ 

Kanab, UT - best cowboy (little Hollywood) movie town

Pipe Springs National Monument, UT

Bryce Canyon National Park, UT - Peekaboo trail was great

Kodachrome State Park, UT

Burr Trail Grill in Boulder, UT - best restaurant in the middle of nowhere 

Burr road - best boondocking campsite

Capital Reef National Park, UT - best overall hiking trails and fruit orchards

Price, UT - best prehistoric museum

Helper, UT - best original architecture, signs and great museum

Salt Lake City, UT - most inspirational history, the Temple, the Tabernacle and cleanest city center

Urban Lounge in Salt Lake City - great live music venue  saw "Old 97" band show

Garage Bar in Salt Lake City - more great music in Salt Lake City

Park City, UT - great old buildings, film festival and best ski museum

Golden Spike National Historic Site, ID - Transcontinental railroad site

Pocatello, ID - Portneuf Brewery, the First National Bar, great old signs and the Museum of Clean

Craters of the Moon, ID - best lava rocks

Twin Falls, ID - Snake River Bridge and Shoshone Falls and Evil Knevil

Boise, ID, downtown, great downtown, best farmers market and river bike/walkway 

Egg Factory - Boise - best breakfast

Boise blues Society - best blues society jam

Riggins, ID - best Salmon fishing

Lewiston, ID - great library, museum and river views

Coeur D'alene, ID- best lake views, most upscale and boring downtown

Grand Coulee Dam, ID - largest Dam in US

North Cascades National Park, WA 

Anacortes, WA  - best boat marina, Ferry to the San Juan Islands

Poulsbo, WA - possibly the best bakery in the world and the Sons of Norway

Seattle, WA - great history, market, architecture, seaport and Ferry

Tacoma, WA - A best well kept secret, great downtown restaurants and museums

Dungeness Spit County Park, WA  - best driftwood and lighthouse hike

Sequim, WA - best Lavender farms

Olympic National National Park, WA

Forks, WA - best Timber museum

Hoh Rainforest, WA - incredible lush greenness

Washington Coast - amazing ocean views, surf and rocky coastline

Astoria and the Columbia River, WA - best observation tower, bridge, nautical museum and general weirdness

Scappoose, WA - best car and airplane show at county airport

Portland, OR - best weekend market, rose garden, shopping and restaurants

Tillamook, OR - best cheese factory, WWII blimp base and museum

Lincoln City, OR - whales, ocean surf and the Devil's Punchbowl

Florence, OR - beautiful harbor, classic Conde McCollough bridge

Coos Bay, OR - best summer concert park series

Grants Pass, OR - shakespeare Theater, murals and It's a Burl store

Crater Lake, OR - the bluest water and amazing views

Klamath Falls, OR - great old buildings, murals and Egyptian Theater

Winnemucca, NV - the Martin House music concerts, David Strain blues

Elko, NV - best cowboy poetry and old western gambling halls

Ely, NV - best opera house and great old buildings

Great Basin National Park, NV

Fillmore, UT - original Mormon capital and great museum

Canyonlands National Park, UT

Moab, UT - best extreme outdoor sports town

Arches National Park, Ut

Cortez, CO - fabulous restored community center

Mesa Verde, CO - best cliff dwellings

Durango, CO - best tourist town and steam railroad excursion train

Albuquerque, NM - best hot air balloon museum, murals and Unser Racing museum

Route 66 Casino - best interior casino design

Socorro, NM - best small downtown square and heritage park signs

Chloride, NM - best original general store and ghost town story
Deming, NM - another best museum, the "Luna Membres"

Silver City, NM - best small art town vibe and old buildings

Pinos Altos, NM - best restored Saloon

Gila Cliff dwellings National Monument, NM

Wilcox, AZ - best singing cowboy museum and BBQ

Globe, AZ - old downtown most likely to succeed and the "Drift Inn"

San Carlos, AZ - most poverty level Apache town

Miami, AZ - best restored ice cream parlor and most deteriorated wasted downtown area

Superior, AZ - best old mining town setting, great murals and the Boyce Thompson botanical gardens 

Phoenix, AZ - most hated city, worst traffic with great downtown and best blues music club

There was so much more !

Now, we can move on with the New Year !

Twinkles and Slick