June 28, 2022

Stumbling upon History

Our annual cross-country journey never grows old. Even though we move at a fast pace, especially on our way East, there are always surprises. This year’s trip, in early June, provided a good example. A last minute decision to push beyond Toledo, Ohio had us camping beside the highway at a Law Enforcement Training Center for police dogs, which is part of Harvest Hosts, about which you may recall we wrote last year. Despite the possibility of horrific encounters between Piper, our sweet but territorial Great Pyrenees and the German Shepherds in residence, all was quiet except for the hum of the highway and an occasional train whistle. A quick…

May 23, 2022

East Coast Greenway

Today’s post will be a bit different than our usual. Not too long ago, I came across a YouTube video called “Not So Scary After All – Biking the East Coast Greenway“, by Regina Yan, a 20-something who is decidedly NOT a Senior Ripper, but who, as you will see in the video, embodies the Senior Ripper spirit of adventure. I was inspired by Regina’s willingness to venture outside her comfort zone, and accomplish an amazing feat or riding the entire East Coast Greenway over 3,000 miles from the northernmost part of Maine to the southernmost tip of Florida. And Regina’s ability to tell her story was captivating. I reached…

April 28, 2022

Traveling with Tulips

Even though the world seems to be in turmoil, Spring arrived here right on schedule. The mini daffodils that my class planted in November popped open just before we dispersed for Spring Break and the forsythia was blushing yellow. A quick stop at Trader Joe’s, that same day on my way home, produced a pot of tulips and I bought them even though I knew we were leaving the next day. At $3.99 who could resist? Sure enough the tulips ended up in the truck the next morning, tucked in precariously between bicycle helmets and ski gear. We headed south to Santa Fe, in the Land of Enchantment, and it…

March 1, 2022

North to Canada, Part 1

A wise friend once told me that when you receive a nice invitation, you should try hard to accept. So last winter, when the ultimate planning Ripper cast out an invite for a Canadian Powder Adventure for 2022, My fellow Ripper and I happily agreed to be part of the posse. At the time we accepted, we hoped beyond hope that the whole world would be vaccinated, and Covid would be in retreat. Fast forward to 2022, the coronavirus stayed put and we started to wonder why we were leaving the country. Crossing the border takes preparation. Canada is serious about testing. It requires a negative PCR test within 72…