We helped celebrate 10 years of Wren House Brewing yesterday at the Südhalle. It’s our local favorite, of course, and we were thrilled when they opened—very quickly earning our Krug Club membership. If you see these bikes outside, you’ll find us inside, often trip planning with a pint. Come say hi!
Draft travel plans:
June
- Utah/Nevada/Idaho
July
- Grand Canyon camping
- Flagstaff camping
- San Diego
- San Francisco/Sacramento
August
- LA
- Canadian Rockies
October
- Los Alamos
November
- El Salvador/Hondorus/Guatemala
January
- Costa Rica/Nicaragua
February
- Hawaii
June/July
- Norway/Sweden/Finland
We had good news on our foundation yesterday, and while today’s garage door repair was way more than expected, I’m glad we invested in a long-term fix that should outlast our time in the house.
And in today’s best news, Jen’s old work schedule was reinstated (a major facet of our travel strategy)!
On this day in 2016, I wrapped up my project to visit 100 National Parks in 100 Days to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of our National Parks System.
Believe it or not, but it was a somewhat accidental endeavor. (no, really) 🤪🤣
Bringing flowers to market
I decided to try a little experiment by following some bsky friends via my micro.blog. I’ve long POSSEd to Bluesky and seen replies, but I’ve never actually followed folks there outside of the default app. I’m sure I missed many folks, whom I’ll eventually add if I keep this seems useful.
Had an excellent time last night on our moonlight paddle down the Lower Salt River. A great way to celebrate Brittany’s birthday, finally meet up with an internet buddy, and very belatedly kick off paddling season. It’s always great to spend an evening on the river.
While in Harrison County, OH, I stopped by the Custer Monument Historic Site, the old home site of the infamous general. He’s buried at Little Bighorn MT, of course. Note the horse and buggy passing by in the first photo—I sure saw a lot of that, especially early in the trip.
The pride of Newark is not what you expect. Loved finally getting here during my last trip.
On my county quest, I visited 112(!) new counties during the trip. I finished PA, made good progress in KY/WV/OH/IN. That brings my total to 2015 of 3144 (67%).
My initial goal was to reach 2000 and 50% done in each state. I just need 5 in GA + 20 in IA + 3 in IN + 2 in MN + 20 in IA + 6 in WI.
Buy the beer, get a coozie (and scan to protect your public lands). 💪
Jen’s in the home stretch for her quest to visit all 433 units of the National Park System. She’s only 50ish from finishing, which more getting marked off next week.
I’m now “current” on the 433 park units, and—mostly due to Jen’s quest—have now been to 226 of the 433 at least twice. #goquesting
We also visited Hopewell Furnace National Historical Park in PA for Jen to see:
How American Industrialization Began: Hopewell Furnace showcases an early American landscape of industrial operations from 1771-1883, Hopewell and other iron plantations laid the foundation for the transformation of the United States into an industrial giant for the time. The park’s 848 acres and historic structures illustrate the business, technology and lifestyle of our growing nation.
We also hiked a short portion of the New England National Scenic Trail, which became an official national park unit several years ago, near Castle Craig CT. Jen needed it for her own parks quest, and I wanted to re-confirm it after losing my notes on which specific section I had previously hiked.
Before visiting Carlisle School, we stopped by the Cumberland County Historical Society, which had a photo exhibit on the “contrast photos” from the school. Essentially, these were “before and after” marketing photos showing how much the Native Americans had been “Americanized” during their stay.
We also made it to Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton PA, one of the premier train-related sites in the country. If you’re a fan of trains, you need to visit.
The vignette of a railroad tycoon at Steamtown National Historic Site ain’t lying.
I’ve never seen so many sinks in a brewery before! There were only 2 urinals and 3 stalls, so 10 sinks seems a bit…overzealous. Unlike the toilet seat covers, which are only available just inside the door (I guess they spent too much on sinks to afford 2 more seat cover dispensers). 🤷♂️
