Closure

It has been has been over 6 months since my last post.  Though I am no longer waking up in exotic locations and driving long hours throughout the day, the past six months have just been an extension of The Zechman families Long, Strange Trip.  For those of you who will read this I hope this is refreshing and helpful to finally have an end to our story.  As I looked back on some of my previous entries I had noticed there was a lot of summarizing, sad to say I will not be able to satisfy those who crave hard facts as our final two days before heading home are a distant memory to me now.  In somewhat unofficially ending this blog I am closing one chapter of my life and beginning a new one. While on the trip, especially towards the final push home I always felt slightly homesick.   As great as waking up on the forest floor every morning was, certain commodities awaited me on my return and the yearning to see friends and my own bed was a constant presence.  Now I have been home for a while and have had time to reflect.   I can honestly say there is not a single day that goes by where I do not wish I was back in the full swing of summer, trekking across the country with my wonderful family.  Washington D.C had many amazing monuments and museums, is rich with history and has a bustling nightlife, all of which appealed to me.  The hotel was incredible and staffed with truly interesting people who seemed to genuinely want to please you.  This is a response to all who have asked me since my return to please finish the blog.  I don't think I was ready to admit it was over. By finally posting this last entry my journey is complete.  I will never, ever again be able to capture the emotions, experiences and images of this summer.  Thinking about that almost makes me want to stop writing here.  The sad realization is I had just completed the most important event in my life to date and suddenly, in what feels like the blink of an eye, it has been over for half a year.  The message in this post is seemingly one we have all heard before, don't let life pass you by, live every moment like it's your last.  But it's not.  It is how something can only be truly special when you are able to truly appreciate it.  I could not finish the blog because I had not yet learned to appreciate my experience, my upbringing and the thousands of other small details that allowed me to go on this journey.  I hope to one day become a writer, even just as a hobby and hopefully I will be able to re create this blog in a book.  To all of those who followed us, either avidly or on occasion, I would like to say thank you and goodbye.
-Silas

Mad Dash Home Continued

8/6

                We had time this morning but a long drive ahead of us so we planned on leaving at checkout.  I woke up around 9:00 and we headed to breakfast at Panera Bread around 10:00.  It was a short walk and it was nice to see some of St. Louis, breakfast was very good.  Paul and I each got cinnamon rolls which were huge but to my surprise he ate all of his.  The Arch, commonly referred to as the “Gateway to the West” was in a park right near our hotel.  We took some pictures and marveled at the size of it.  From the hotel it looked large but up close I struggled to imagine how builders could create such a giant structure.  It was also plain.  I wanted to find out whether it had been planned all along for it to become the unofficial “Gateway to the West” or if it just happened to be given that title.  A long drive was ahead of us but first we would be making a short stop outside of Dale, Indiana, the site of Abraham Lincoln’s boyhood home.  Lincoln’s family had moved here from Kentucky and Abe lived here from age 7 to age 21.  He lived in a modest cabin on the 100 acre farm cleared by his father, Thomas.  Lincoln lived a sad life and while he resided in Indiana, he outlived his older sister and mother who both died young.  We visited the gravesite of his mother and the family cabin.  The drive after that was longer than I think my parents expected but we had no specific destination in mind.  We decided on a KOA campsite in West Virginia but arrived there around 9pm.  9pm dinners had begun to be the norm though and after a satisfying dinner of chicken chili and mashed potatoes with warmed up left over French fries, we headed to bed on the last night of camping on the trip.  Hallelujah!!  

Silas in front of the entry to the park

Lincoln's mother's headstone

A replica of the Lincoln home

An exhausting trip for everyone

Except Paul, of course!

St. Louis with Pictures

8/5

                It was St. Louis day, and with it came the eagerly awaited St. Louis Cardinals baseball game (Paul).  The family was woken up around 7 and everyone was moving almost as soon as their eyes opened.  Breakfast was provided for us but we didn't have much time to enjoy it as we were on the road by 7:45.  It was a four and a half hour drive to our hotel in Missouri and in that time we managed to watch our last redbox movie Jack Reacher.  The plan was to make it to the Hotel, check in and head to the Zoo.  Doing this all in a timely fashion would be necessary to help us make it to the 6:00pm baseball game.  The hotel was very nice which surprisingly I had become accustomed to but we had major problems parking the car with the bulky “Thule” on top.  After a precarious crawl through an underground parking lot with myself directing we finally managed to park the car with only minor scratches and a couple of bumps.  That was after the zoo, though.  The St. Louis Zoo is one of the top ten zoo’s in America, what that means I don’t know but after walking through it I agree.  Finn and Paul were almost in a state of shock, for them the zoo was the pinnacle of the trip, it wouldn’t have mattered  to them whether we went straight home after today.  It is free and very big, broken into five or six smaller regions with different attractions and exhibits.  We still managed to see everything of interest in a three hour stay.  Some of my favorite animals I saw there were the Takins, which only live in Western China, a Snow Leopard, Okapi’s, a Green Anaconda (a truly massive specimen), a Malayan Sun bear and the Silverback Gorilla’s acting so human it was almost scary.  There were many more animals not found in Maine zoos and the amount of critically endangered animals was both heartening and worrying.  We left the zoo around 4pm and headed for dinner.  Paul and my dad left straight for the stadium at four as a hopeful Paul eagerly planned on getting autographs.  My mom, Finn, and I ate at a brew pub in the hotel and had wonderful food, but a bit overpriced like most hotel restaurants.  When we arrived at our seats at Busch Stadium, right before the national anthem, we discovered Paul and dad were not there.  When they finally did arrive moments before first pitch they claimed it was the first time they had been to their seats.  It was worth it though as Paul got his Cardinals hat signed and a picture taken with a Cardinal’s coach.  Paul had gone into the large crowd by himself and waited the two hours patiently and he was ecstatic.  I was happy for him even though I was disappointed my dad didn’t remember to give Paul my hat to have autographed as well.  It’s ok though it’s too nice of a hat to be ruined by pen ink anyway.  The game went by a lot slower than the Giants game but had more action.  It was another pitcher’s duel and the final score was 3-2 Dodgers.  I was most excited to see player phenom from Cuba, right fielder Yuisel Puig.  He had one booming hit and also showed off his incredible arm, gunning down a player at the plate.  Our seats were just behind the right field wall, a huge improvement from the Giants game but the crowd was slightly more lackluster, though bigger.  After the game, Finn and I helped ourselves to massive frozen yogurts on our way home and back at the hotel, watched Rocky 3, sadly, the first time I had seen a Rocky movie.  Our rollout couch was comfortable and I dreaded camping the next day but it was a jam packed day and coming home was starting to feel more and more realistic. 

Editor's Note:
Paul was very excited for the Cardinal's game.  As Silas has stated, Paul and I skipped dinner to get to the field early.  Fortunately, the stadium was within walking distance of to the hotel and we were dropped off on the way there.  We arrived an hour and a half prior to the game and went right down to the Cardinal's dugout.  Unfortunately, the Dodgers were already in to their batting practice and there no Cardinal players to be seen.  We did get great views of Don Mattingly, Mark McGuire and Davey Lopes, all Dodger coaches but meaningless to Paul.  Just prior to gametime, the Cardinal mascot came over to give Paul a fist bump and First Base Coach, Chris Maloney, of the Cardinals came out and signed Paul's hat and took a picture with him.  He was very excited.  The night would only have been better if the Cardinal's won. 

Entry to St. Louis Zoo

Finn and the Black Rhino

Family viewing the burros

Gorilla in the Zoo

California Sea Lion Show

An Asian Takin

Paul at the Cardinal's Dugout

Mattingly warming up

Paul and the Cardinal's First Base Coach

Paul rooting on his team

The Old Court House outside of our hotel

Paul giving the Redbird a fist bump

Mad Dash Home

8/4

                After everyone woke up and showered, the young children continued to run circles around us usually energetic Zechmans.  Breakfast was delicious, Michael is somewhat of a food connoisseur and even though French toast is not extremely elaborate, it was extremely delicious and I helped myself to four servings.  We did not have much time in the morning as we were ready for our race home and once we were packed we headed off to the school they had set up in Albuquerque.  It has been very successful in its short existence because of its focus on arts, apparently a weak point in New Mexico.  They had been approached by entrepreneurs in an effort to franchise their school and have been interviewed on the local news.  Visiting the new school filled me with nostalgia.  It was like walking through a time machine, the rooms had changed but Glory and Michael had covered the walls with pictures of many former Maine students and our picture was in the center I.  There were also quotes and other material from their old home.  My favorite quote was one from my friend, Rocco and I said when we were relatively new to the school, “We’re bad guys who make soup, hot soup.”  I can’t remember the context surrounding it and I haven’t seen Rocco for over 12 years, but it always brings a smile to my face.  After leaving Glory and Michael’s and leaving behind so many memories we prepared for the fifteen hour drive ahead of us to St. Louis.  Even my parents weren’t exactly sure how our next move would pan out, they had changed plans and our goal was to get as far as possible and camp somewhere in Oklahoma.  We got three movies from a Redbox, a cool fact about Redbox is that you can purchase them in one state and drop them off in another.  It was the first time we had utilized this convenience.  We watched Burt Wonderstone which we kids found extremely funny and G.I Joe, Retaliation.  These movies kept us entertained for most of the afternoon after a short lunch of fruit and other snacks.  We handled the situation surprisingly well and I felt bad for my dad who had to drive for three quarters of the time.  Dinner was at a Freddy’s Steak Burger, a fast food chain focusing on steak burgers and ice cream; it was neatly kept and had good food.  Dinner took slightly longer than we had hoped but we got on the road around 9:15.  Plans had been changed and we were now driving beyond Oklahoma City to Miami, OK to stay at an Econolodge.  The new idea was to drive as far as we could this evening so that the drive to St. Louis tomorrow would be less taxing and provide more time for the activities we had planned.  I drove the three hours it took to get there to add to my whopping 1 hour of night driving previously.  We arrived at the quaint little motel at 12am and only my mom brought her suitcase in, the rest of us went to bed in our clothes.  We had a early morning ahead of us and, in addition, to out dismay the room smelled suspiciously like pee so everyone went to bed as quickly as possible. 

Silas, Finn, Paul, Zephyr and Snowy getting a groove on

Michael and Snowy showing off a pumpkin (can't see it)

Silas and Paul at the entrance to Old Town Albuquerque

Mesa Verde

8/3

                We arrived at the Moorefield campsite in Mesa Verde National Park very late (after 9pm) and the sky had darkened considerably.   This night was totally different than what we were accustomed to and strong winds shook and buffeted the tents.  Rain began to pour just after we turned in and kept up most of the night.  In the morning, getting out of the site and on the road was slower than usual as we had to wait for our tents to dry.  The campsite was completely different in the morning sun than it had looked the night before, high rock walls covered in green and expansive meadows before us.  Once ready, we went to the visitor center to get our passport stamped.  The responsibility for this had been unofficially given to me.  My mom and dad set up our plans for the day and we made our way to the trail head around 11.  Mesa Verde is home to many Pueblo’s (Spanish word for village) of the Anazansi’s or ancient people and Cliff Dwellings, the later homes of the same people.   Our first hike was a short walk down to a large Cliff Dwelling named Spruce Tree House.  It is a very popular dwelling and is very much intact, my first sight of the sandy, yellow bricks, low doorways and tall towers made me feel as though I had walked straight into the past.  Located on the underside of a huge jutting cliff, a series of room sized houses had been built all along the inside of the cavern.  Not many of the buildings were taller than one story but the ability of the builders was amazing.  They had made these villages for large groups of their people 900 years earlier with primitive knowledge and materials and these structures were still standing today.  It was incredible to look upon a place where a whole society and way of living had existed so many years before.   Once we had seen all of the Spruce Tree House we moved on to our 3 mile hike to see Petroglyphs and more cliff dwellings.  It was the coolest hike I had done in any National Park and the rest of the family agreed.  It was a difficult climb in some areas but was far from a clear, paved path.  This trail led you through thick woods, under overhanging rock walls and above staggering canyons looking down onto beautiful landscapes rich with color.  The Petroglyphs were along a rock wall at the midpoint of the hike.  They consisted of crude designs and drawings carved into the rock face hundreds of years earlier.  All the sights we saw at the Mesa Verde filled me with wonder and a strong curiosity about these ancient civilizations.  After seeing some of the above the canyon dwellings, the pueblos still baffled me, the close confines of the buildings, the number of ceremonial pits or kivas that were built and the amount of space they took up.  As we moved on from Mesa Verde, it had left a lasting impression on me.  It is tied with the Badlands, in my mind, for my favorite of the National parks we had visited.  We had a long drive to our next destination, the home of our former pre K childcare providers at their new home in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  They had moved away about two years ago and it was our first time seeing them and their two children since the move.  When we arrived it felt as though nothing had changed and everyone hit it off instantly.  We had dinner shortly after at an authentic New Mexican restaurant, the food was very good but to my vast disappointment I was not feeling well and as I write this blog now I am filled with a craving for the food I could not stomach earlier.  The rest of the night was filled with fond recollections of the past and tales of us at our old school.  Glory and Michael had always had a soft spot for the Zechman boys and it was really great to see these people who had been such important figures in our early lives.  The mood was slightly dampened when Finn, playing a game with the two preschool age children, fell onto a small bed and snapped the frame.  Glory and Michael had much experience with us and our destructive tendencies so the night moved on without a hitch.  The kids were enthralled to have us there but we were exhausted after the long drive and headed to bed around ten.  All the kids slept in the living room in a helter skelter arrangement and I ended up very comfortable on a couch, anything is better than the ground.  It was a very good night. 

Editor’s Note:

We have been blessed with almost perfect weather for our entire trip.  The only rains that we have encountered to this point were brief showers while driving in Indiana.  As noted earlier, we had a couple of short thunderstorms the evening of our arrival at the Grand Canyon and then the serious rain while camping at Mesa Verde.  This was the first night since Ohio that Carol and I were going to be sleeping in the two man tent.  If you recall, Carol frantically clawed her way out of the tent that night in Ohio due to a bout with claustrophobia.  Paul really wanted to sleep with his brothers and this was one of the last nights to do so.  He picked a good night.  The three man tent with Silas, Finn and Paul remained dry.  The two man tent with Carol and I did not.  Thankfully the sun was shining in morning so that we could dry our tent, sleeping bags, and sleeping pads.  It was a long and not-so comfortable night.   

Welcome to Colorful Colorado

Statue of Cliff Dweller climbing, placed at Mesa Verde Visitor's Center

Spruce Tree House Cliff Dwelling

More Spruce Tree House

A narrow passage during our hike to the Petroglyphs

The Petroglyphs

Silly family at overlook in Mesa Verde

Another Cliff Dwelling Site

Coyote in Mesa Verde

Silas playing with Zephyr and Snowy in Albuquerque

Grand Canyon Continued

8/2

                The morning was relaxed and for the first time on this trip Finn and I woke up before my Dad.  It was an incredible feat but it was 6:00 o’clock in the morning so I regret not being able to fully appreciate the moment as I was exhausted.  The tents were taken down at a leisurely pace and we finally were ready to go around ten.  We headed to the visitor center to get our National Parks passport signed and look around.  They had some cool exhibits on the wildlife and after filling our water bottles we were ready to go.  The hike we would be doing was called Bright Angel and would lead us down into the canyon; we planned to walk a mile and a half to the rest house rather than the day long hike into the bottom of the canyon.  It was classified as strenuous and lived up to its name.  The path was wide enough for two people to walk side by side and was steep in many places and covered with loose soil and pebbles.  I slipped many times (I apologize to my poor mother; I’m surprised she didn’t have a heart attack with all three of us kids on that trail.  The highlight of my hike was when I reached out to a fat squirrel obviously very accustomed to humans which then proceeded to grasp my fingers with its little paws and nuzzle its nose against my hand.  I was startled and did not stick around as I did not want to tease the little guy with false promises of food but I enjoyed the moment greatly.  At the top of the trail the whole canyon seemed visible, spread out before your eyes, the vast multitudes of towering rocks and wide ridges.   The canyon was surprisingly colorful with mostly darker hues but splashes of green as well.  Walking further into the canyon, you begin to appreciate the sheer size of the cliff walls surrounding you.  We stopped our hike slightly in front of the rest house and headed back up.  Finn and I forged ahead, setting the pace, but I soon raised the bar and the weaker ones dropped off (the rest of the family.)  I made it to the top and settled down, Finn arrived shortly after and I wish I could say the same for mom, dad and Paul.  We then took a short shuttle to Hopi point which offered a brilliant view of a different section of the canyon, we then proceeded to walk along the rim of the canyon back to the Bright Angel trail head where our car was parked.  We stopped at many scenic points along the way.  Every time there was something new to be astounded by in the largest Canyon in the world, which is easily seen from space according to a picture we saw at the visitor’s center.  We took a break at a picnic table outside the parking lot to consume some snacks in a small lunch.  It was a later departure than planned and things were kind of rushed but we eventually got on the road at 4pm and drove the four and a half hours to Mesa Verde.  Tonight I’m looking forward to the last National park of our trip and it fills me with many emotions I can’t describe.  One week left, we’re almost home!!!!!

Paul looking ready for the descent

Halfway to halfway to halfway there and looking good

canyon

Paul and Carol grateful the hike has been completed

Funky cloud shadow on the canyon

Vegas and the Grand Canyon

8/1

                We woke up at 9, I would’ve slept later but we had three hours until checkout and I wanted to make the most of the time we had left.  My mom went out searching for breakfast shortly after everyone awoke.  Breakfast in the hotel was very expensive so Carol walked a decent ways away to the nearest Walgreens.  It was a very artificial breakfast with a lot of donuts and honey buns but the yogurt parfaits were a nice touch.  As soon as breakfast was over we headed to the pools.  The final hour and a half in the pool consisted of a melee between Dad, Paul, Finn and I with the sides switching constantly.  I wondered what other people were thinking as they saw us all wrestling in such a fancy pool but I was having too much fun to care.  Mom and I went up earlier than everyone else and I took a nice bath in the Jacuzzi tub with jets.  Time rolled by and the rest of our family failed to show up.  When I finally heard the frantic knocks of Finn it was 11:45, fifteen minutes to check out.  To their credit the kids washed up fairly quickly, my dad was content with his chlorine bath and declined to clean up, no surprise there.  It was a bittersweet departure.  The hotel was amazing no one would want to leave but we knew we would be seeing many more incredible things.  Lunch was at a “Sonic”, another chain we do not have on the East Coast.  I had always wanted to go.  We probably wouldn’t have gone except my mom had seen one on the way in and insisted we stop there because of the old school drive-in style.  It was a very cool experience and the food was good but finally we were leaving Vegas.  It was a four hour drive to the Grand Canyon and I drove the last two.  When we got to the visitor center, to our surprise, it was closed but we looked at a board showing the hikes available and we made our plan for the next day.  We were only a short walk from the canyon rim so we headed in that direction when a torrential downpour began.  We rushed to the car to get our raincoats.  Finn had walked ahead and when the rain came could not find the car.  He was left outside while the rest of us huddled in the car for the ten minute rain.  After the rain subsided, we eventually found him and continued on to our hike around the Rim of the Canyon to Mather’s Point.  There were many observation areas near the visitor center and my first sight of the gigantic canyon made me feel almost light headed, looking down at the dazzling depths of the canyon made you wonder how one little river could create this.  At Mather’s Point, two rainbows, side by side, penetrated the mist prevalent now throughout the canyon.  It was very cool to see a double rainbow and my mom took many more pictures than necessary.  It was hard to see the opposite bank because of the mist but it added to the otherworldly appearance, massive rock formations jutting up unevenly from the base and deep rivets pocketing the canyon.   It was getting late and we were hungry so we headed back for dinner.  Our site was very secluded and the sites very well spaced which I liked and dinner was Mac and Cheese with mashed potatoes, which I also liked.  At 8 o’clock we went to a ranger program on the natives who lived here and how they survived in this harsh desert environment.   It was very interesting and I learned a lot but we left at the hour mark because it had been another long day.

Sonic Drive-In

As Paul said, "Do we have to leave paradise?"

Double Rainbow on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon

Ooohing and ahhing at the site

More of the same

Ho hum, more of the same

Silas, Finn and Paul excited about another night in the tent