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07-18-2020 Great Way to End our Trip

When we planned this trip, we decided 3 nights in the mountains was just about right for being away from home during the hot summer. We always have watering season in mind, and a low producing well requires paying attention to water levels in the well cistern and in the treated water cistern. This time of year it is a delicate balance. We are lucky enough to have Grandson Matthew nearby for the daily hand watering and checking of the wells, hose connections, and various levels of the system, but I hate to expect too much of him. Still, when Mo suggested that instead of driving all the way home from Cascade Lakes that we could stop off for a night at the Kla-mo-ya Casino in Chiloquin I agreed. Another day shouldn’t make much difference and we would be home by Saturday mid day to make sure all was watered as the temperature crawled into the expected triple digits.

Confluence of Spring Creek and the Williamson River at Collier Memorial State Park

The temperatures were heating up as we left camp and drove south on Highway 97 and as we discussed boondocking at the casino, I felt hesitation creeping in. Even if it was open, did I really want to go in and touch slot machines and eat in the restaurant? We had been carefully social distancing for the entire trip and this suddenly felt a bit crazy to me. It also was building toward a very hot day, and keeping the MoHo cool when it is in the low 90’s on generator power isn’t much fun, and is terribly noisy.

Site number 4 at Collier Memorial State Park

Bingo! An idea. Why don’t we stop before Chiloquin at the lovely, shaded Collier Memorial State Park, nestled in at the confluence of the Williamson River and Spring Creek? We drove south knowing our new plan might not be feasible with all the people on the road, the fact that it was a Friday night, and that the park was no doubt fully reserved. Still, it was worth a try.

Sure enough, when we pulled in, the camp host told us all was full and completely reserved and there would be no space for us any time that weekend. I showed her my newly acquired disability car tag, mentioning that perhaps there was an ADA space still open? She looked at my card and my gray hair and my walking sticks and said, “Just a minute, let me ask the Ranger. He just drove up.” I smiled at him, sweetly, saying, “We live in Grants Pass and are returning from Cascade Lakes and I am not sure we can drive all the way back home this late in the day.” He talked with the camp host a bit more, and then said, “Hey, just put them in Number 4. Why not?” I have no idea why space number 4 was a “why not” space unless it was saved for the camp hosts for some reason. There are 4 camp hosts in the park, all lined up at the entrance, and site 4 was next to the last camp host site.

The host was worried that there wouldn’t be room for our car, but no problem. With a short rig and a shorter car we slid in just fine. Within minutes we had full hookups,including a sewer dump and plenty of power to turn on the AC. It was a welcome sound, noise and all, since things were beginning to heat up.

Our main reason for staying close to Klamath Falls was to take flowers to the cemetery where Mo’s parents are laid to rest. We stopped off at the local Fred Meyer for some flowers and drove south to the open and quite lovely grounds. Mo said there was water at the site, and nice heavy vases for filling. Turns out the water was off, but a bottle in the back of the car worked fine with just enough for the flowers.

On the way home we stopped in at the Williamson River Campground about a mile north of Collier State Park along the river. It was also very nearly full, but there were just a couple of sites that were still open for one night only. This FS campground has no hookups, but would have sufficed for us if we hadn’t been able to get into Collier State Park.

Back home in the rig at Collier State Park, we ate the last of the home cooked meals I had prepared for our trip and settled in with cards and books for the rest of the evening.

Collier is a lovely park, with moderately spacious sites on some loops and closer sites on others. It is shaded by a dry pine forest, and during our visit we noticed that there was no sign of the famous mosquitoes that can be such a plague in this part of the world.

The night was pleasant and quiet, but certainly not as dark as our nights had been at Crane Prairie with a few lights marking the entrance kiosk nearby and porch lights on some of the rigs.

The next morning we had a leisurely breakfast before taking Mattie for a nice walk down to the river along the Williamson River Trail. The river campsites are the best, along the southern end of the campground if one wants to make a reservation. I think that like most campgrounds, if it is not in full summer season, it might be easy enough to find a spot for an overnight on a weekday.

I had forgotten how fresh and clean a dry pine forest smells. This is a landscape similar to some that I mapped when working in the Klamath Basin, and it was fun to see familiar plants along the trail.

Mo and I have kayaked Spring Creek in the past, but have never had our boats on the Williamson. From the trail, the part of the Williamson that we could see looked perfect for our boats, but there are riffles and rocky shallows in parts of the river as it approached Klamath Lake that we aren’t sure about.

Mattie was NOT interested in going swimming this time

In addition to the Williamson, Mo and I have never kayaked the Wood River which is a few miles west, and are hoping that possibly we can get on either or both of these rivers with soil scientist friend Katie, who knows both rivers fairly well. Another plan for a future summer day. We hiked along the Williamson and the lower part of the Spring Creek Trail south of the bridge crossing Highway 97.

After our walk, we packed up for the last leg home, leaving the park around 11:30 AM. It was a familiar trip for us, south to Chiloquin on Highway 97, and across the Wood River Valley toward Rocky Point. Once in Rocky Point we decided it was worth it to unhook the Tracker for a little trip up Easy Street to check out our previous home nestled in the trees. We were delighted to see that the current owners have completed a lot of big tree work. There were several huge pines cut up and lying around on the ground, and the remaining pines and firs had been limbed to at least 30 feet above ground. They also had lots of cute farm signs tucked around and a big pile of firewood in the front yard. It wasn’t as gorgeous as it was when Mo had her beautiful lawns but at least it looked cared for. It still looks like the owners are using it as a second home, which makes me wonder if they will ever leave their million dollar house in the Bay Area for life in Rocky Point.

It was an excellent trip, and ended on a nice note as we drove around Rocky Point recounting old memories. It was even nicer to get back to Sunset House in Grants Pass, where the air conditioning had turned on as scheduled. I have finally decided that it is our wood floors that make the house smell so incredibly good after we return after being away for a time. That first waft of air as we open up the door is such pleasure.

In addition to managing to get in and out of the kayak, I discovered that I could manage a decent flat trail for almost 3 miles if I had my walking sticks. Very encouraging for me.

Not sure what comes next for us. We are back to our daily life of watering the gardens, working on small projects that are pleasing but not terribly intense, enjoying a good supper before settling in to some truly entertaining Netflix evening entertainment. Getting hooked on a series now and then isn’t a bad thing during this time of quiet isolation at home.

07-16-2020 Exploring the Lakes and an Evening Kayak

Our plan when we went to bed was to rise early, eat a decent breakfast, and get on the road quickly. We wanted to arrive at Elk Lake, our chosen location for a morning kayak, before the winds started up and the sun got too hot. Even though the temperatures in this part on the east side of the Cascades are a bit more moderated than the part of Southern Oregon where we live, it can still get hot. Predictions were for another gorgeous sunny day with highs in the upper 80’s.

Elk Lake Sunset View Day Use Area

I completed a lot of internet research on most of the lakes in the chain before we left home. There was no way to do any last minute research however, since I had no access to the internet at the campground. I had 2 bars of 4G which could manage telephone calls and text messages, see emails but not their complete contents, and see some posts on Facebook for random moments in the early part of the day.

My research pointed me to Elk Lake, which in internet photos looks deep and blue surrounded by the gorgeous peaks of South Sister and Broken Top. I was at least smart enough to download the google maps for the area before we left home in Grants Pass so we could navigate properly along the entire length of the Byway.

We were on the road by 8:30, with only a slight breeze, and decided to skip exploring any of the lakes and campgrounds along our route so that we could get on Elk Lake early. The road into Elk Lake Sunset View Day use area from the north is rough gravel, with some steep areas and sections of washboard. I’m glad we didn’t plan to take the MoHo back there.

When we arrived at the site, it was gorgeous as expected, but the winds were kicking up and to our great surprise, there were a lot of people already in the parking lot, at the picnic tables, and launching all manner of kayaks and paddle boards. I had no clue that many paddle boards are now of the blow up variety, and the whooshing sound of the pumps was a bit startling.

We looked around a bit, checking out the outlandishly beautiful people with their beautiful rigs and boats and thought, “Hmmm, a LOT of well to do people around here.” That was to be our refrain for the entire day as we traveled to the several lakes and view sites along the Cascade Lakes Highway, and the closer we got to Bend, it seemed the people were even more fit, attractive, and on the young side. I have nothing against young, attractive, fit people, in fact it is great to see so many humans enjoying outdoor pursuits, but it was still a bit daunting, and not particularly our scene. In addition, the lake was another big round body of water without a lot of interesting shoreline.

We decided instead to continue south back toward the Hosmer Lake Loop and check out some of the campgrounds along the way. We thought maybe we could launch on tiny Hosmer Lake before continuing our explorations. We checked out Little Fawn campground on the south end of Elk Lake, but it was dusty and rocky, completely full, and quite a distance from the water. The day use area by the campground was also full of cars, and more people packing their paddle boards and kayaks the several hundred yards across exposed lakebed toward the waters of Elk Lake. Nope, not our spot for either kayaking OR camping.

When we arrived at the South Campground near Hosmer Lake we found more dusty, rocky, gravel roads and more people packed into the cramped sites with all sorts of watercraft. Ah well, we weren’t planning on camping, just hoping to get on the waters with our boats before the day got too warm to enjoy.

What a surprise when we arrived at the tiny, cramped boat launch to discover at least 50 cars, all packing in and lining up one by one as we arrived all the way back to the intersection between the launch and the campground. The lake looked like a playground of boats, paddleboards, fishermen, and people! I walked down to the launch and talked to a few people, asking if they knew the lake. Five of the several people I talked to said it was their first time on this particular lake, and 3 said they had never kayaked before and this was their first kayak!. Much like RVing, I think active people who want to get out and about have discovered kayaking.

Sadly, we decided to let this lake go as well, but as we were leaving Mo said, “I wonder when all these people will go home?”. Since it seemed most were on day excursions from Bend, the likelihood of the place being this crowded in late evening was slight. We decided to take our chances and finish our explorations of the other lakes and campgrounds in the area before going back home to our camp.

We checked out the campgrounds and RV resorts at Lava Lake, at Little Lava Lake where the Deschutes River begins, and then turned back north to find Sparks Lake at the base of Mt Bachelor near the northern end of the Cascade Lakes Scenic Byway.

Little Lava Lake

Little Lava Lake was quite lovely, and a few campsites were a bit tempting. We also thought if we didn’t find somewhere else to kayak we might return to the shallow beach at the boat launch site. I started keeping track of the campsites that we would choose at Little Lava Lake Campground if they became available for the next time we wanted to camp and kayak in the area. If one should wish to camp, the good level sites at Little Lava Lake are #10, #11, #13, and #15. Others are small and very uneven.

Lava Lake

The Lava Lake campground also had just one site along the edge of the lake but I didn’t write down the number because the lake was a lovely shade of green! Maybe we didn’t want to camp there ever.

Back north again toward Elk Lake, we checked out the Elk Lake Campground and found sites #7, #8, and #13 to be the only acceptable sites that would tempt us away from our home base at Crane Prairie some time in the future.

We drove on north again toward Sparks Lake, and there was a beautiful wide viewpoint at the Green Lakes trailhead that climbs toward South Sister. Only problem was that cars were lined up all along the road for about a mile on either side of the trailhead.

A very popular place on a Thursday in July! We pulled into the parking area across from the trailhead, noticed the sign saying parking allowed for 15 minutes only, and took every precious minute to hike into the meadow full of penstemon and sedges with Mattie. The view of South Sister to the north and Mt Bachelor to the southeast were breathtaking. No wonder this is such a popular place only 30 some miles from Bend, Oregon.

After our little walk, we traveled the very rough and rocky road from the highway to Sparks Lake. The campground is called Soda Creek, and is a few miles from the lake. We chose sites #4, #6, #10, and #13 for future reference. We discovered a few rigs parked in a dispersed camping area on the extremely dusty and busy road to the boat launch on Sparks Lake. Even free, with a view of the lake, wouldn’t tempt us to camp there in all that dust and noise. The lake itself was also incredibly crowded with kayakers and paddleboarders, and the water was quite low. Pretty, but not for us. With the crowded parking lot and thick dust, we didn’t get out of the car for photos, but this website has some lovely pictures of the lake and the area nearby.

As the day progressed, and we viewed so many lakes and campgrounds, we decided that we were really lucky to be in the lovely, spacious, open, and reasonably quiet campground at Crane Prairie Reservoir. From the internet research, I never would have chosen Crane Prairie, but after visiting, it will no doubt be the campground to which we return in the future. Just for reference, our favorite sites at Crane Prairie are #103, the ADA site #107, and #113. All of these sites are on the Blue Loop, but for big rigs and family groups the Red loop at the upper edges of the park have the most privacy and space, but no view of the water or easy access to the beach. The Red loop also has several large nice pull through sites.

By the time we returned back to camp, it was 1 or so, and again we settled in with our books and cool drinks to enjoy the breezes and shade as we read. I spent more time gazing at the water than actually reading I think. We also took Mattie for another swim. She went in at first, but wasn’t as enthusiastic this time as she was yesterday.

We ate an early supper and planned to leave after dinner in time to arrive at Hosmer Lake around 6:30. This time our plans worked out perfectly. When we arrived at the boat launch there were less than half a dozen cars and only a few people coming off the lake, and only a very few launching for an evening on the water.

Hosmer Lake turned out to be everything I had expected to find in the Cascade Lakes. The water was crystal clear, and the lake meanders from a small lower lake, through a narrow channel lined with bullrush and wocus and then meanders northeast toward a rugged area of lava which hides a waterfall.

We didn’t get out of the boats to see the waterfall. A fellow boater told us that it was pretty, but not spectacular, and required some hiking through the rocky jumble to see it. We sat awhile trying to hear it to no avail.

We continued back to the main channel and continued north to the lake. I asked a couple of returning kayakers if the lake was very far away. One person said it was a long distance, and another said it was just ahead. My trusty google map wasn’t exactly visible in the bright late evening light and the lake shows quite dark and green on the current google image. To our surprise we arrived at the large part of the lake within 15 minutes and it was truly gorgeous. The water was clear and somewhat shallow, surrounded by nothing except timber, mountain views, and marshland.

One lone boat with two men fly fishing were spotlighted by the early evening sun. Hosmer Lake is exactly the kind of place we love to kayak, and we will definitely return in the future, hopefully during a time of year when there are a few less visitors.

After only an hour and a half on the lake, we were back home at our camp by 8:30, as the winds started to die down and the sun set at 8:47. I knew the exact time of the sunset because I also knew that the comet Neowise was expected to be visible in the northwest sky about 90 minutes after sunset. Mo built another nice campfire and we sat with our wine and marshmallows waiting for darkness and a chance to see the comet.

We weren’t disappointed. Walking down to the beach, we hunted the skies for the Big Dipper which seemed to be in the wrong place compared to what we are used to in Grants Pass. After a bit of searching, we saw the comet. It was somewhat faint in the still glowing northwestern skies, but we could see the comet and the tail if we looked carefully. There was no way I could get any kind of photo, but there are so many great ones that people have posted that I didn’t feel like we missed much. At least we got to see in in person. Later, when we returned to Grants Pass, even though the comet was supposedly visible, we never saw it again. In Grants Pass we are in the western part of the time zone and at the time that the comet is visible, there is still considerable light. There also was a bit of haze from a California fire and of course the lights from the small city of Grants Pass are still bright enough to cause some interference. I was glad we were in the mountains with less ambient light for at least one night so that we saw the comet. I doubt either of us will be around in just under 7,000 years when it returns.

After three days we deemed our Cascade Lakes National Scenic Byway trip to be a great success. We settled into bed after our long day and evening knowing we had until noon to have a leisurely breakfast the next morning before breaking camp and traveling south toward Klamath Falls for another night out before going over the pass toward home.

07-15-2020 A Day at Crane Prairie Reservoir

Crane Prairie Reservoir is a large, shallow reservoir created in 1922

We woke slowly after such a dark and quiet night. There are so many different lakes in the chains of Cascade Lakes that we had to make a decision whether we wanted to explore or to stay home on our firs day. After spending yesterday driving, we decided that we would stay home and enjoy our local campground and lake for a day before attempting to explore any more of the beautiful Cascade Lakes that were scattered along the Cascade Lakes Highway

Kayaking in the early part of the day always seems best. Usually the winds aren’t strong and the sun is still not high overhead. It can get really hot out on the water in a kayak without much protection. We launched right after morning coffee with a plan to stay out on the water for a reasonable amount of time and then return home for a more substantial breakfast.

It was a personal test for me. Could I still manage to get in and out of the kayak? On the previous day, when we loaded up the boats at home, I was relieved to find out that lifting the boat and strapping it down didn’t cause me any problems. My arms are still strong enough and my legs can still hold me up ok for that job, especially early in the morning when I am strongest. The test yet to come was getting back out of the boat, and that thought was in the back of my mind as we slid out onto the water. Getting into the boat wasn’t a problem at all with the shallow, sandy beach.

Notice the underwater fire pit

South Sister on the left, Broken top in the middle, and Mt Bachelor (famous ski mountain) on the right

Before the dam was built in 1922, the area was covered by prairie and served as a habitat for cranes, which was the inspiration for the name of the lake. The construction of the original rock-filled dam flooded most of Crane Prairie and parts of the nearby forest, killing many trees. In order to recover timber, the reservoir was drained on a regular basis. Because of leakage through the original rock-filled dam, in 1940 the Bureau of Reclamation rebuilt the dam as an earthfill structure 36 feet in height and 285 feet in length. When full, the reservoir has a capacity of 55,300 acre feet.

Crane Prairie Reservoir is part of the larger Deschutes Project by the Bureau of Reclamation, which also includes Wickiup Reservoir, Haystack Reservoir, the Crooked River Pumping Plant, and North Unit Main Canal. The project was created to supply irrigation water for a total of 97,000 acres of land in the vicinity of the town of Madras which is north of Bend, Oregon.

In late summer, the reservoir is lowered as water for irrigation is withdrawn from it, leaving large areas of the lakebed exposed. We were especially lucky on this trip because our timing was just right. The lake was very full, and yet as we drove past Wickiup on our way south, that reservoir was so low there was no water at the west end. Both lakes have moderately alkaline water with a high mineral content, slightly higher than the waters of other lakes in the region. Sometimes during the summer the water’s pH level is exceptionally high, caused by the algae that often reach bloom proportions. Much like Klamath Lake, phosphorus concentration in the lake is high and the lake will sometimes turn green as pea soup. Our camp host told us that about two week previous to our visit the lake was completely green. One of the issues with having to make reservations to camp at any of the local campgrounds is that there is no way of knowing when you make the reservation whether the lake will be low and the water might be green.

We discovered that Crane Prairie Reservoir is one of the most important wildlife viewing areas in central Oregon. The lake is dotted with tall stumps of the flooded trees which now provide nesting places for osprey and the reservoir is home to the largest nesting colony in the Pacific Northwest. Other species of birds include bald eagles, cormorants, blue herons, kingfishers, sandhill cranes, and Canada geese. In 1970, the Crane Prairie Osprey Management Area was established here to protect this special haven.

On our first morning kayaking the lake, we paddled south toward the outlet of the Deschutes River. Our plan was to stay out only an hour before turning back, making sure that all my parts were working properly and that I wouldn’t get worn out so much I couldn’t get out of the boat.

It was a lovely paddle, with mostly calm winds and clear water until we approached the southern end of the lake where algae was accumulating in the water and the bugs found us. As the sun rose higher, it was time to turn around. We didn’t make it all the way to the river, but there is always next time. We did see an eagle, cormorants, ospreys, and several types of ducks.

Once we got back to our little beach, I made a small attempt to rise from my boat, and realized that my original plan for getting out of the kayak was needed. I simply slid my legs over the side and rolled into the water on my knees. It worked perfectly. Looks like I will be able to continue kayaking for a bit longer without having to worry about getting in and out as long as we find nice smooth launch sites with no current to take the boat away while exiting. I was thrilled to say the least, and all that underlying worry was gone.

We settled in after our late breakfast in our chairs, opening our awning for some nice shade and read our kindles to while away the hours until we decided it was time to do a bit of exploring in the car. Cultus Lake wasn’t too far from where we were camped and it looked like an inviting place. Within a few miles, we were driving up the graveled road to the resort and were shocked to find a completely different atmosphere from our laid back family campground. Cultus Lake Resort was busy and crowded, and the beach was full of people with all sorts of water craft and kids. It was noisy.

The lake itself was quite lovely, deep and dark blue and I would imagine with it being a lake rather than a reservoir it might not turn green or lose water to an irrigation project. We checked out the nearby campground, which was incredibly tight and crowded, and completely full. I think it might be a nice place at a different time of year, but in spite of the beautiful lake, we weren’t particular entranced and made no plans to return. Our favorite kind of kayaking includes inlets and side streams and waterways that we can explore and this pretty blue lake seemed to have every shoreline completely visible from where we stood at the parking area.

Back to camp after our foray we had another easy supper of great food brought from home. As evening approached the afternoon winds died down a bit and we again launched at our little beach. This time we paddled in the opposite direction, around the small peninsula at the other end of the campground toward the Crane Prairie Resort and a full hookup RV campground. The camp looked quite extensive through the trees, and the little store was small and tidy. We had visited the resort the previous afternoon so had no need to get out of the boats. When we checked it out we saw that on the door was a sign saying only 4 people at a time were allowed inside and only if they were masked.

It was a perfect sunny warm day in a quiet campground with a great view and a sweet little beach. Perfect kayak weather, dark night skies, and a roaring campfire and roasted marshmallows to complete the evening. We needed a good night’s rest because our adventure for the next day included an early departure with plans to kayak the beautiful Elk Lake as early in the morning as we could manage.

October 11, 12, 13, 14 2018 Our last days in Firenze

Thursday, October 11

After all we did in the last few days, it was good to stay home for a day and try to recuperate. There were enough provisions in the apartment for dinner, breakfasts, and snacks, with half a bottle of wine as well. It rained all day, so was a perfect time to simply hang out, do photos, and relax a bit with no agenda.

We settled onto the terrace as the rain let up toward evening and enjoyed the last of our wine while we made phone calls home. I talked to Mo and Deborah, and Deanna called her husband, Keith. WiFi calling works well on my Galaxy S9 phone. We haven’t turned the phones off of airplane mode even once on this trip, and yet still enjoy excellent quality “real” phone calls. Such a treat.

Friday, October 12

We enjoyed another good breakfast at home, with eggs with cream cheese and zucchini, our favorite potatoes sliced up and sautéed, and Nescafe, our daily home coffee fix. Worked diligently on photos for a time before embarking on a mid day walk. We decided to go back toward the part of town we visited on our first day here to buy some groceries for the our couple of days, to exchange a few US dollars since we are out of euros, and get back home in time to prepare for an evening on the town.

We enjoyed the quick walk to the main street on this side of the river, toward the east where we went the first day here. Found the meat market/grocery combo just in time before it closed for afternoon siesta, had a gelato at the nice little place nearby, bought something that looked like pizza but was tastier than most, with tomatoes and zucchini, our standby foods while in Italy.

What was most fun about this particular walk was how lost I was. Even with the GPS on the phone, I couldn’t get my bearings. Somehow everything seemed to be in the wrong place and didn’t match up with my memories of our first day walking around in this area. It was especially funny to both of us because I am the map maker with a great sense of direction and Deanna has no clue which way is north or south. Yet she knew exactly where we were and where to find the Carni! Made for some funny moments for the two of us.

Before coming to Italy, thanks again to Two to Travel friends Erin and Mui, I learned about The Three Tenors performing n the auditorium of Santo Stefano. In the heart of Florence, just steps from Ponte Vecchio, Santo Stefano al Ponte is a church built in 1100 that was deconsecrated and reopened to the public in 2015 as exhibition space. Deanna purchased tickets for us online several months ago. At the time we decided that this might be a nice way to end our Italian visit and chose to see the show toward the end of our time in Italy.

The day was a bit chilly, and we planned to walk the mile or so along the river rather than taking a taxi. After watching people walking around our neighborhood after dark for the last couple of weeks, we were no longer concerned about walking home when the show was over.

We were, however, a bit worried about the chill. We both wore jammie bottoms under our skirts, and long sleeves under our dressy tops. The night was absolutely perfect, with no rain to cause any problems, and a slight breeze to keep us comfortable in all those extra clothes. It was a lovely walk, and we arrived a bit early, in time for an apertivo before the show at a little bar in the church piazza.

Deanna had purchased VIP seats, so we had a perfect view and great acoustics from our forward location in the church. We did know, of course, that the Three Tenors were not the original “Three Tenors”, but the music was wonderful. Amazing music emerged from the the mouths of those three men, no microphones, all acoustic with the tall chamber of the church amplifying it perfectly. Just amazing.

Once again, the song “Time to Say Goodbye” brought tears to my eyes. I can’t believe that stupid song made me cry again. There is no reason whatsoever for it to affect me so, except the beautiful melody itself. I have no connection at all to the song, no memories generated from it or anything, but the melody is just so incredibly beautiful it always makes me teary. The three men sang in Italian, lots of songs we didn’t know, some opera, and some old favorite songs that were also famous in America made popular by Dean Martin. It was a delightful experience.

Friday night on the Ponte Vecchio. I guess it is the same no matter where you go

Our walk home was wonderful, breezy and cool but not chilly. We walked through the Ponte Vecchio with all the shops closed but still many people enjoying the river and the evening camaraderie. There was a busker playing “Proud Mary” and then Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here”, and he was really really good! I guess the song choice indicates the audience of tourists. The walk home felt perfectly safe, with lots of people strolling and eating at the restaurants. We had no reason to worry at all about walking at night in this part of town at 1030 PM.

Saturday October 13

We were excited to visit the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens. The guidebooks all lauded the beautiful gardens as a wonderful respite from the city, and the Pitti Palace as a place filled with the over the top examples of the kind of luxury afforded by one of the wealthiest families in the world, the Medici.

We saved this excursion for Saturday, hoping the rain would lighten up enough that we could enjoy the gardens. The day dawned beautifully, and we once again walked the mile toward the Ponte Vecchio, then turning south toward Piazza Pitti.

The piazza was crowded and the lines were long. There are several things to see that are part of the complex, and once we looked at all the options, we decided that there was no need to see one more fancy palace with lots of rich stuff. Instead we opted for focusing on the gardens.

Here is an example of the flowery words that led us to this decision.

“More than a garden, more than just a “green lung” in Florence, the Boboli gardens are one of the greatest open-air museums in Florence that embraces another site of culture in Florence, the Pitti Palace. The park hosts centuries-old oak trees, sculptures, fountains and offers peaceful shelter from the warm Florentine sun in summer, the beautiful colors of the changing foliage in the fall and smells of blooming flowers in the spring. The Boboli gardens are a spectacular example of “green architecture” decorated with sculptures and the prototype which inspired many European Royal gardens, in particular, Versailles.”

Sadly, the reality left a lot to be desired. The first hint of what was to follow were the Medici Fountains at the entrance to the gardens. The sculptures were filthy, covered in dust, and bleeding black mold . Cherubs floated in the dirty water inside the dingy grotto. Ok then.

Walking through the gates and up the stairs beyond the entrance led us to more sculptures lining the paths, again covered with black mold and looking very old and unkept. It was terribly disappointing.

We withheld judgment for a time, following the maps and trails, searching for fountains and sculptures and views. There were a few charming spots, but most of the gardens consist of huge very old shrubs that are meticulously manicured. Too bad whomever is in charge of the place didn’t attempt to clean it up a bit rather than just cut back all those shrubs.

There was no color, with fall leaves already gone and not a flower in sight. The lawns are not watered, and were brown and scrubby. I have seen many winter gardens that are incredibly charming and colorful, that are designed well and a delight to visit no matter how drab the weather. This was not one of those places. It was very claustrophobic, and we wandered the paths looking for something to lift our spirits to no avail.

At the upper end of the gardens we found a viewpoint, and the other attraction included in our ticket, the Porcelain Museum. The view from the rose garden was the nicest part of the Boboli, and yet even there, there were no flowers and everything looked tired and not very well cared for.

Deanna found a few faded roses in the upper rose garden

We were a bit sad that our last adventure in the great city of Florence should be such a disappointment. Maybe we were just tired, or maybe overloaded, who knows. We did know that after days and days of so much input, our tiredness seemed to accumulate a little bit more each day. After leaving the gardens, we ambled a bit through Pitti Piazza, checking out the booths selling tourist wares, and then ambled back past the Ponte Vecchio toward home. Once again, the busy, noisy, and full restaurants we passed didn’t tempt us much and we enjoyed cooking a great supper of fresh cut pork, fresh tomatoes, and a great bottle of inexpensive wine.

Written on Sunday, October 14 our last day in Firenze:

(I didn’t edit this original text from my journal so you could get a sense for how we were feeling)

It is our last day in Firenze, tomorrow morning we will leave “A Birdseye View” and take a taxi to Santa Novella for the train to Naples. Neither of us is looking forward to tomorrow, and yet both of us are basically DONE. At one time or another this afternoon, one or the other of us said, “I want to be hooooommmmmme”. Deanna was looking at photos of her beautiful property in Northern Washington, a photo Keith sent today of gorgeous sunshine and the beautiful view over the river. Unlike me, she is not retired, and when she returns she will only get a short 3 days at the property in Lincoln, and then will have to get back out on the road in the big truck, crossing the country hauling jet engines all over the place so people like us can travel all over the place.

We are tired. We keep making excuses to each other on this, our last day, for not getting out of our jammies and at least going downstairs to view the lovely Sunday sunshine and watch people walking along the river. We stayed inside, worked on packing up our stuff, and ate simple breakfast. We thought about going out to dinner, and instead cooked up the last of our pasta, garnishing it with the last of Sara’s tomato sauce, the last of our olives, and made another side of sliced tomatoes in olive oil and balsamic. Traditional Italian fare that has served us well.

We thought about walking up to Michelangelo Square for one last look at the city or going for an evening walk along the river for one last view, but decided again that we have done enough, we don’t need that one last view at all, we need instead to lie here in the almost comfortable sofa bed, look at photos and Facebook, play stupid Candy Crush and wait impatiently for it to get late enough to go to sleep.

Late in the afternoon a thunderstorm rolled over the city and we were glad we weren’t out walking somewhere. Neither of us slept well again last night, and the last few days have recorded at most 3 or 4 hours sleep on our watches. Ugh. Tonight will be the rare sleeping pill for both of us. When can we take it? When can we go to sleep??? We do have a good reason, since the next two days will be long and grueling.

On a happy note, however, the middle photo in this collage is the ceramic piece I returned to purchase on the way home from Boboli Gardens. Shipped direct from Italy home, it arrived safe and sound. The photo on the left is where Deanna found her keepsake ceramics in Siena, and the one on the right is where I found a sweet small watercolor in Siena as well.

10-10-2018 Day 16 The Uffizi

The Uffizi is the large building just to the right of the Ponte Vecchio Bridge

I knew a long time before we arrived in Italy that I wanted to see the Accademia Museum. I also knew that I probably wanted to visit the Uffizi, but with so much to see in Florence I wasn’t at all sure that we might not suffer such museum fatigue that we wouldn’t get there. I bought our Accademia tickets online several months before the trip, but saved the decision to visit the Uffizi until just a few days before we left for Siena.

The timing seemed right. I went online and booked a Skip-the-Line ticket and 3 hour tour with CAF Tours. Skip-the-Line is imperative but I also thought that with such a big gallery and so much to see it would be smart to have a guided tour as well. It was a smart choice.

The Uffizi is huge and could be incredibly overwhelming without a guide. We booked an early tour and arrived at Door Number 1 looking for the person in the yellow vest. There were about 20 people in our group, minus two who had mistakenly booked the tour for 2019 and had to step out of line. An easy mistake, and glad I didn’t make that one.

If you really are an art buff, here is a link to the paintings of the Uffizi Gallery. Real photos of the paintings, no people in front of them, with artists and dates and the proper names of the paintings. Then again, if you simply like to read my version of visiting the Uffizi, continue onward. You also have the option of wandering around in my SmugMug gallery to see many of the paintings and descriptions that I didn’t put in this blog.

My recent posts about our trip to Italy have been fairly wordy. I think this time I might give myself a break (as well as my readers) and keep the words few and let the photos do most of the talking.

Located in the heart of Florence, adjacent to the Palazzo Vecchio, the palace which houses the Uffizi Gallery was built between 1560 and 1580 as a public administrative building (hence its name, uffizi which means offices in old Tuscan language).

This enclosed walkway that connects the Uffizi, across the Ponte Vecchio, to the Pitti Palace on the opposite side of the river was built by the Medici’s. They needed a protected way to get from their offices to their homes without having to endure the street riffraff below.

In 1590, a part of the palace was converted into a private exhibition space, known as the galleria, in order to accommodate the large art collection of the House of Medici. In 1769 it was transformed into a publicly-open museum. It is believed that the modern term gallery, used to identify a space where works of art are on display, originates from that of the Uffizi’s original galleria.

Follow me now into one of the greatest art galleries in the world.

The Return from Egypt 1540 Oil on Wood by Agnolo Bronzino

Madonna of the Pomegranate 1487 Tempura on Wood by Sandro Botticelli

Annunciation 1472 Oil on Wood by Leonardo da Vinci

Coronation of the Virgin 1439 Tempura on Wood by Filippo Lippi

Madonna and Child with 2 Angels 1460 Tempura on Wood by Filippo Lippi

Madonna of the Magnificat 1483 Tempura on Wood by Sandro Botticelli

Primavera 1482 by Sandro Botticelli

Our guide explained the mythology behind each of the characters in this complex painting

Birth of Venus 1482 by Sandro Botticelli

Yes, that one. This one was especially hard to photograph because as you can imagine, the room was filled to bursting with people trying to get photos of the well known painting.

Holy Family with Young St John the Baptist 1505 Tempura grassa on wood by Michelangelo Buonarroti.

Yes, you are right. We stood in front of this one for a very long time. Notice the strength in Mary’s arms, painted by the great sculptor. OF course, as he often did, Michelangelo included his own likeness in his art.

Venus of Urbino 1534 Oil on Canvas by Titian

Baccus 1597 Oil on Canvas by Carraveggio

Sacrifice of Isaac 1603 Oil on Canvas by Carraveggio

Raphael, Rubens, and countless others

Good Fortune 1617 oil on canvas by Gherardo della Notti

Are you exhausted yet? We spent several hours in the Uffizi, trying to absorb the magnitude of great art there. Standing in the very presence of great art, especially art that is imprinted on one’s brain from our collective consciousness is a bit overwhelming. Of course you can’t touch anything, thanks to very loud infra red alarms that will screech very loudly if your hands get too close. But you are close enough to touch the paintings, to look at the fine detail, to appreciate what it takes to make art like this. An experience neither of us will forget.

It was a long day. I actually have no idea what we did that evening, what we had for dinner, and I don’t remember the walk home. However, I do remember this moment, when we reached our little street and I could see the door to our apartment. It was a wonderful day and it was even more wonderful to know we had no plans for the following day except resting up a bit and reviewing and remembering the last few days of amazing experiences.