Rachel Lokelani Mueller and Family

Well we did it again. Grandparents for the third time. We feel blessed with the arrival of Rachel Lokelani (Rosalie in Hawaiian) born to Eric and Melissa at Queens Hospital on October 16,2009.
Rachel is a beautiful healthy baby and a a true Mueller! She gained 2 pounds in 15 days and now weighs over 9 lbs! Wow!
Of course Oma and Opa had to visit Oahu ( I know it's tough, but someone had to do it) to celebrate this momentous occasion.
Our stay included lots of baby time, lots of "Swimming" "Elephant (Opa) rides" dinners in and dinners out and a few beers and Mai Tais along the way.
Oh I almost forgot Eric and Opa did mange to get some diving in as well and one of them was a drift dive along the Porthole Wall near Hawaii Kai!
The Hawaiians are busy and their construction project while not done yet is making progress.
The new garage, carport, lanai addition will be really nice along with having the whole house painted in the process.
Another Highlight was our Family lunch at the Royal where our friend Dottie waited on us for the 15th time!
Of course Mom and I had to climb Diamond head which was fun as always!
Little Megan is a good big sister and very loving indeed. We all had a great time trick or treating with her as a Hoola girl and Rachel as a Bumble Bee! ( One wonders who thought of that outfit?)
We are now back in DP and fell blessed to have some more wonderful memories of our ever growing family.

Havasu Falls Supai Hike and bike

Well as Mitch our hike leader says he loves to hike with us even though we are a little crazy. Could it be that Philip and I add to the 5 day adventure by riding our trusty bikes, or that we rarely shy away from challenges even though the elder Mueller is in his mid sixties. Well enough of that let's talk about Havasu Falls region of the Grand Canyon area.
What can you say about a hike that begins at 5600 ft on a cliff in a windstorm of up to 70MPH and ends down around 2400 ft surrounded by rushing aquamarine waterfalls ranging in height from 50 to over 200 ft. with colorful names like 50Ft, Havasu, Mooney and Beaver Fall.
Camping out, dining at the reservation Cafe on treats like Indian Tacos and Fry bread seeing wild Bighorn Sheep and swimming in the pools around the falls.
All of us took many pictures but I do not think that you can do justice to the grandeur of the surroundings.
The ride up there and back was great and an adventure of its own, but the hikes were the main event.
We averaged over ten miles a day with packs ranging up to 60 pounds that was quite an achievement but well worth it at the end.
And so it goes:
Approaching the end of the trail I was greeted by a Supai Indian:
"you've done good, Grey Hair!" so now you know my Indian Name.

The Great Alaska Cruise

Well folks we've done it. Mike and Bea went off to sea..... to see exactly what?
Southeastern Alaska of course a place you can only visit by boat, cruising or on the Alaska Ferry system.
Our choice was the MS Amsterdam a beautiful ship by any standard with all the comforts of a 5 star hotel and the food ranging from scrumptious buffets to fine dining and best of all room service at no extra charge. This we made use of every morning of the cruise by having our breakfast in our room looking out over the ocean or the beautiful coast line gliding by. The cabin was right aft of the Navigation bridge and thus I got to rate the nav crew's performance. ( only kidding of course) It is amazing how these experts handled the 61,000 tons ship in some very tight quarters.
Enough of the ship though, let's talk a bit about the landscape and the tours we did,boat rides to canneries and a salmon hatchery a float plane flight of the Taku Glacier and 5 of its counterparts and the highlight of the trip Glacier Bay.Hubbard and Turner Glaciers are actually advancing and threating to close the channel to Yakutat. What that will mean is that the river will reverse course after filling up a lake and run south into a different bay. So what you say, well the salmon from the Yakutat river will no longer be able to find their way to their spawining grounds and unless the local hatcheries introduce samon to the newly formed lake and river, this species will die out. We cruised to within 1000 ft of the Ice walls and heard the thunder of the calfing process and did actually see some huge chunks of ice break off into the water.
If you melted the ice and drank the water you would be drinking 5000 year old water because that is how long it takes for the ice to reach the sea. Seeing all this beauty makes you humble and you really want to make sure we keep nature so generations after us can enjoy it as well.
The towns along our route were small and fun to walk. It was interesting to note that jewelry is a bigger item than salmon for the local merchants. The stores there are the same ones you might find in the Carribean and that's where they ship their inventory after Sept 30, when the last cruise ship departs for longer days and warmer climates.
Highlights in Juneau were the tram to MT Roberts the governors mansion. Sitka boasted St Michaels Russian Orthodox church and too many shops which mom like and made me a bit grumpy (imagine that)
Ketchikan is a fun town to walk and shop but we only had a few hours there though we did visit Creek Road built on stilts and saw the salmon run up the river.
Last not least Victoria BC. we were late getting in due to rough seas but did get to enjoy HIGH TEA at the Empress Hotel and a stroll through this quite European town.
Alas it is over now and though mom did not gain weight I am now paying for the sins of eating a bit much.
All in all a great and relaxing trip, one we really enjoyed and would recommend to all of you.

Butterfly Trail vs mini camera

Well, Sunday;s paper described a beautiful high altitude hike in the Catalina mountains.
It is called the Butterfly trail and it leads you from the visitors center on Catalina Hwy past the peak of Mt Bigelow to the eastern flank of the Catalinas. Philip had done this hike before and I used his description and advice to plan a 4 hr hike and try out my"new"mini camera that was sent to me after the failure of the last one failed about 1 hr into my Alaska trip.
In the Valley it was in the 90's but at 7800 feet a comfortable 78 F. Fortified with food and lots of drink I set off camera in hand, and yes you might have guessed it it just did not work right and of course without glasses ( in the truck) I could not figure out how to fix what was wrong. I lost this one!
So I went on down the trail which leads you through some badly fire damaged areas with great views of the San Pedro valley and the Galiuro Mountains to the east. I went from 8000 feet elevation down to about 7200 and reached my destination for the day a little stream and a trail to an a crashed F86 super saber jet that crashed in the late 50s. The engine, some canopy parts and a bit of fuselage is all that is left from what in its day turned the air battles over Korea in favor of the US and its allied forces.
As I stopped for lunch at the creek I pondered just sitting here peacefully and a multi-ton object crashing near by. An unsettling thought to say the least.
Well it was time to turn around and since I had my I pod with me I listening to some of the songs I have recorded. This made the climb back up to 8000 feet that much easier but a thought occurred to me.
Imagine you walking along a quiet mountain trail and all of a sudden you see and hear an Old Geezer schlepping his tired butt up the mountain singing the Marseillaise at full volume! Because that was what I was doing. Realizing what was happening I toned it down so other hiker would not be put off ( all 7 of them that I saw that day)
Reaching the saddle below the peak and the way down to the parking lot a sign beckoned to go to the top of Mt Bigelow. So off I went for the extracurricular activity and was rewarder by a beautiful 360 view of the area.
One question remained as I got back into "Opa's truck"
Why is this trail called the Butterfly trail? I saw about 5 butterflies but at least 100 lizzards.
So I vote to have the trail renamed Lizzard trail! A nice if a bit strenuous hike. but next time I will bring 2 cameras my glasses and instructions for my little camera with me!

Fathers Day 2009

What a day it was indeed. Celebrating with a wonderful dinner at "Sur Real" a new south American restaurant close by, then on Sunday all of us Tucsonians taking a hike at the nature conservancy at Ramsey Canyon in the Huachuca mountains lead by the Great Maxini and his dad. Follow this with a fun luncheon at Sonoita and Max's antics on the ride home you have a good day.
The evening ended with a dinner for my Bea and me at "Carrabas" Italian Grill and a nice phone call from Hawaii and all I can say:
THIS FATHER IS PROUD AND HAPPY TO HAVE YOU AS MY FAMILY AND I LOVE YOU ALL VERY MUCH!
THANK YOU FOR MAKING ME FEEL SPECIAL NOT ONLY YESTERDAY BUT EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR!

The Ride The Epigolue

Well it's over now, memories or a dream doesn't matter but a wonderful experience altogether.
My biggest regret is that I could not share the awesome beauty of nature and its creatures with all of you at the time it happened. No matter how hard I try I cannot verbalize well enough the feelings that I had on this trip.
Whether it was an animal by road that I had only seen at the zoo before, the sun rising over a glacier or setting over the ocean it was simply overwhelming at times.
I thought of all of you and I am thankful for your wishes and prayers that saw me safely back home.
Just a few Facts about the trip:
Total Mileage on Bike: 7112 miles or 547 miles per riding day!
Fuel used: 178 gallons
Boat rides (ferries) 16.5 hours
Animals seen: Grizzly & Black bears, Caribou (wild reindeer)bison,moose,
wolf,eagles,elk, deer, humpback whales & porpoises!
The land creatures are best seen early or around sunset!
What I Learned about a long motorcycle trip:
Study all the guide books, talk to folks who have been there
done that!
Never start in the morning with less than a full tank of gas!
Never pass a gas station if you are below half in your tank!
Take whatever gas they have. Bikes run on all types even 87 oct.
Ask people for advice along the route, they are glad to help!
Rooms, even in a hostel will cost you between 60 to 120 dollars!
Electronic/gear can and will break over time so don't count on
them too much.
Provincial Campgrounds are the best to stay at. Private grounds
are more geared to RV guests!
Take clothes for all weather conditions! Saw temperatures from
27F to 89F! Rain sun fog but thankfully no snow!
Take 2 cameras one might fail as it did in my case!
What was my favorite moment:
Aside from coming home and seeing my Bea and Heidi down by the
mailbox it would have been a black bear sitting up on his
haunches, wave as I rode past!
What was most impressive:
Bear and Matanuska Glaciers BC & Alaska
What would i do different:
Reverse the route as Vancouver Island Hwy 16 and 37 through
BC deserve more time than I was giving!

So that is about it, I am home, happy for having done it safely and looking forward to more adventures on the bike!

The ride day 15

Anyone ever hear of Williams California? Well I had not until last night when I stayed there at the luxurious Motel6!
It's a little town 450+ miles from Dana Point and is the Olive capital of California.
So if olives are your thing go there. After a quick dinner at the local eatery and a chat with my Bea, I fell in bed and was sound asleep when all too early I was awakened by a neighbors alarm clock.
So Pack up and ROLL!
The goal is HOME and my BEA! My speed is around 80+ miles as I head south until LA and there of all places I run into a rain shower but by the time I reach the Orange County line it clears up and I ride on home. 2:13 PM I ride up the drive and Bea and Heidi greet me "El Scruffo" at the mail boxes. 7112 miles of ride plus about 300 miles on 2 ferries!
One more picture, unload and shower throw everything in the laundry and it is over.
Seems like a dream now, a good one for sure but the preparation, the adventure of the ride they are but a memory.