Thoughts About Vacation

      I don't know about you, but I haven't been on a vacation in a long, long time. With the coronavirus pandemic going on, it has not been possible to really go anywhere or do much. I am hoping that in the near future, things will get back to normal, and I can maybe go on a trip somewhere just to get away and do something different. 

     As I've been thinking about going on a vacation for the past few days, I remember all of the trips that I had the privilege to take with my friend Toby when he was with me. We went a lot of different places together, but the two trips that stand out the most in my mind are the trip we took through the Rocky Mountains and the trip we took through South Dakota. 

     My family went every year out to Cheyenne to visit my grandma. On one trip, we decided to visit some sites in the mountains. We stopped off at Colorado Springs and went up in the Rockies. That is, we went a ways up in the Rockies, because my Dad always got scared in the mountains, so we would turn around and come back down. 

      Colorado Springs is a pretty town right up against the mountains. One of the best times I spent was sitting on the hotel balcony with Toby as we watched the training gliders by the Air Force Academy circle in large loops with the mountains in the background. 

     We also had the chance to go up part way to Rocky Mountain National Park. There was a river along the path of the road. While we were exploring along the river,  Toby jumped in after a trout. I had to go in after him because I was afraid we would be swept away by the current.

    We had a lot of fun in South Dakota. We traveled from one end of the state to the other stopping to see the sites in Sioux Falls, Mitchell, Chamberlain and Rapid City. Along the way, we explored the Badlands. Rapid City and the Black Hills are nice places.

     I always wanted to go back up to South Dakota and explore more and take more time to enjoy the area there. Toby and I liked that place the best of anywhere that we traveled. Unfortunately, we never got the chance to get back up there before he passed away. 

     If you want to do something fun with someone you care about, find time to do it before time gets away from you.