Cap'n Bob & the Damsel

Retirement

Vacation Summary

Here’s the rundown of the summer 2025 excursion; we traveled through twenty-one of the of the forty-eight contiguous states and camped in all but four of them (Illinois, Maryland, Tennessee, Texas). We enjoyed much scenery, local culture, oddities, skyscapes and other interesting landmarks. The map below shows the states in which we traveled and/or camped.

Clickable map created with MAPCHART.NET

We won’t get into all of the details about the numerous places visited and all that, but will summarize by saying that we visited the resting places of several ancestors and visited the birthplaces of some of them and their ancestors. We were gratified to enjoy the changes in climate, vegetation, livestock and other interesting flora and fauna along the way.

Here’s the specific itinerary of each leg of the trip; not mentioned is the duration of each stop, but you will get the idea of the magnitude of our travels on this trip. We left home on July 8th and returned on August 12th, a total of five weeks.

  1. Wickenburg to Monument Valley, Utah
  2. Monument Valley to Grand Junction, Colorado
  3. Grand Junction to Cañon City, Colorado
  4. Cañon City to Limon, Colorado
  5. Limon to WaKeeney, Kansas
  6. WaKeeney to Lawrence, Kansas
  7. Lawrence to Poplar Bluff, Missouri
  8. Poplar Bluff to Paducah, Kentucky
  9. Paducah to Salt Lick, Kentucky
  10. Salt Lick to Sutton, West Virginia
  11. Sutton to Morgantown, West Virginia
  12. Morgantown to Shenandoah Valley, Virginia
  13. Shenandoah Valley to Greensboro, North Carolina
  14. Greensboro to Wilmington, North Carolina
  15. Wilmington to Charleston, South Carolina
  16. Charleston to Kingsland, Georgia
  17. Kingsland to Tallahassee, Florida
  18. Tallahassee to Montgomery, Alabama
  19. Montgomery to Starkville, Mississippi
  20. Starkville to West Memphis, Arkansas
  21. West Memphis to Horseshoe Bend, Arkansas
  22. Horseshoe Bend to Eureka Springs, Arkansas
  23. Eureka Springs to Lake Eufaula, Oklahoma
  24. Lake Eufaula, to Elk City, Oklahoma
  25. Elk City to Tucumcari, New Mexico
  26. Tucumcari to Albuquerque, New Mexico
  27. Albuquerque to Holbrook, Arizona
  28. Holbrook to Wickenburg, Arizona

Even though we have most of the comforts of home in our motorhome, there is something to be said about being at home and enjoying the good retirement life without the chores of setting up and tearing down while on the road and the sometimes tedious driving between campsites in the various weather conditions. It’s good to be home.

15 Aug 2025 by Ancestors Notions Retirement Wanderlust

Monongahela River

We’re still roaming around the land of ancestors on this excursion. Today, we visited the place of my paternal grandmother’s birth in Barrackville, West Virginia. One of the major landmarks in this area is the Monongahela River, which is in northern West Virginia and Southern Pennsylvania.

Some facts about this river from Brave Leo AI:

The Monongahela River is a 130-mile-long river that flows through north-central West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania. It is formed by the confluence of the West Fork River and the Tygart Valley River in north-central West Virginia. The river flows northward, joining the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh to form the Ohio River.

The name “Monongahela” comes from the Unami language and roughly translates to “falling banks”, referring to the geological instability of the river’s banks. The Monongahela River is an important waterway for industry, carrying coal, coke, iron, and steel. It is made navigable by a series of locks and dams operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The upper reaches of the Monongahela River basin are known for their whitewater kayaking and rafting opportunities. The river also has a significant history, including being the site of the Braddock Expedition during the French and Indian War in the 18th century.

Clickable image.

23 Jul 2025 by Notions Photography Retirement Wanderlust

Wilson Arch

We stopped to water the dogs and take a break from driving at Wilson Arch along US 191 south of Moab, UT. We’ve seen this arch many times over the years as we navigate through Utah. Photo from my Samsung Galaxy. Clickable.

From Brave Leo AI:

Wilson Arch is a natural sandstone arch located in southeastern Utah, just off U.S. Route 191 in San Juan County, 24 miles south of Moab. It has a span of 91 feet and a height of 46 feet. This arch is easily accessible and can be viewed from the road, with turnouts and interpretive signs available.

For those interested in exploring further, a short 0.4-mile hike offers a spectacular view of the majestic rock formation and the blue Utah sky beyond. The hike is considered easy and rewarding, with a chance to stretch your legs and explore the natural marvel up close.

Wilson Arch is also a popular spot for photographers and nature enthusiasts, with the changing light and shadows around the arch providing endless inspiration. Its imposing structure, set against the vast desert sky, creates a striking contrast that begs to be captured.

11 Jul 2025 by Photography Retirement Travel Wanderlust

2025 Concealed Carry Map and
  Winterizing the Small Arms

At some point in 2025, Damsel and I, along with the dogs, will be travelling in the RV, the purpose of which is to visit some of the places where our ancestors lived and died. Since we both wish to be armed wherever we go, it is helpful to know where our permits to carry will be recognized, so we visit USA Carry to consult their interactive concealed carry maps. After clicking on Arizona and Utah (where we have permits), our map looks like this:

There are 39 states (in blue or green) that recognize our Utah or Arizona permits. Fortunately, most places we intend to visit accept our CCWs. There is one small exception in one of the no-carry states on our proposed route. We’re thinking about how to handle that one, but I’m sure it will work out. Perhaps National CCW Reciprocity will happen by our travel date (not holding our breath).

The other arms-related issue here is getting everything winterized. Today, I inspected, dusted off and oiled up several of the inventory. At this point, we’re about halfway done with them. The (clickable) image below shows my semi-auto long arm and the maintenance setup on the patio atop the Spa cover.

The winterization of the rest of the inventory should be done by next week. That effort will include several pistol-caliber carbines which have yet to be taken to the range (by us). Maybe we will take them out and get them dirty before their winterization.

30 Dec 2024 by Arizona CCW Firearms Notions Retirement Wanderlust

Coming Soon

OK, OK, I know – I haven’t posted the final chapter about my service in the Navy.

We’ve been caught up in the political season with all that’s going on, plus our usual very busy retirement schedule. Regarding the politics, we’re extremely gratified with President Trump’s apparent victory. But (I know about big buts) there are still battles to be fought. Keep up watching your six, ’cause there are many crazies and demons at large.

Thanks for your support. The fourth service post should be here before Thanksgiving.
07 Nov 2024 by Retirement

Retirement Milestone Fifteen

Today marks the fifteenth anniversary of my official retirement. I say “official” because I had already retired ten years prior, but returned to the workforce at another company to continue my career in aerospace. This turned out to be an important step in building up our “nest egg” savings in the new company’s 401K program. I believe we were able to put away about a quarter of our income during those final ten years, with much of the savings “sheltered” from the IRS. That was a good thing.

So, in the coming year, we are contemplating more travel in the big RV. We both have ancestors in many states and we would like to travel to our places of origin – at least on this continent, since many ancestors further up the family trees were from European nations which we would like to visit but are unable at this time. First things first – we will visit the places we can by motorhome. As for the motorhome, we have several maintenance items and improvements to accomplish beforehand.

As we prepare for more years of retirement, we are placing our efforts in God’s Hands to provide for us as He has in the past. We anticipate that this coming year will be as blessed as our first fifteen years of retirement.

p.s. Register to vote and then vote. Bring ten other voters with you. This could be the most important election in the history of the Republic (NOT a democracy, but a REPUBLIC, if we can keep it).

01 Oct 2024 by Aerospace Ancestors Retirement Travel Wanderlust

Nine Squared

Having competed yet another orbit around the sun, the total of my years is equivalent to the title and graphic shown. In spite of that rather large-ish sounding number, I am still in very good health with only minor symptoms of arthritis and a slightly under-performing kidney. I still see a dermatologist who eliminates some skin carcinoma from time to time, thus reminding me of my younger days of over exposure to the sun’s UV radiation.

Here’s a brief summary of life to this point:

  • Born during the second world war in Long Beach, California.
  • Graduated High School in the early 60’s
  • Active duty US Navy – Avionics Tech School for a year
  • US Naval Missile Center, Point Mugu, CA Targets Dept. 2 years.
  • Went into Aerospace industry for the next 40 years.
  • Retired in Wickenburg, AZ.

I may have left out a few details. There are a couple of blog posts in the works that detail my Navy service – coming one of these days.

22 Jul 2024 by Notions Retirement

Categories

Archives