Monday, September 28, 2026 It was a picture perfect day and we explored the Muncie, Indiana trail system. We parked in Gaston, Indiana and rode the Cardinal Greenway to Muncie. The trail is washed out west of Muncie due to recent flooding. The Cardinal Greenway is touted as Indiana’s longest rail trail. The main greenway runs about 62 miles from Marion through Muncie to Richmond, with a road section from Gaston to Jonesboro that adds roughly another 15 miles, so our Gaston-to-Muncie day was one slice of a much bigger trail system. The best parts were the long green stretches, the many little bridges around Muncie, and having such an easy path to follow. The memorable wrinkle was the washout west of Muncie, which turned the day into a little bit of trail exploring instead of just a straight out-and-back. Ride facts Date: Monday, September 28, 2026 Route: Gaston to Muncie on the Cardinal Greenway, with a washout west of Muncie. Distance: 34.64 miles. Time window: 3:23 pm to 8:45 pm Trail note: Cardinal Greenways describes this as Indiana’s longest rail trail, running from Marion through Muncie to Richmond. Photo log We parked at the beginning of this section of the Cardinal Greenway in Gaston, Indiana. The trail is nice with lots of benches and informational placards. The trail mixed between these kinds of views and forest canopy. The trees are just starting to turn. You can see how nice a day it was. The temps were in the mid-70s. The trail had sections of gravel. We didn't remember that from 2 years ago when we last did this trail. They built this to stop cars from driving on the trail. Lots of fences and little details were put into this trail. It is very nice. There are several parking lots to allow for easy trail access. They claim that this is Indiana's longest trail, but it has a huge discontinuity between where we parked in Gaston and the northern section of the trail which starts in Gas City. It is several miles of road travel in between. More and more we see painted rocks along Indiana's bike trails. There were a lot of forested sections on the trail. You can see leaves on the ground, but you have to look hard to see the start of the color change. Lots of trail info along the way. The folks that do the Cardinal Greenway are very organized. As you get into Muncie the Cardinal Greenway links up with the extensive Muncie trail system that meanders along the river. You know the bridge is old when it is riveted together :) This is a picture of the White River, which hit an all-time high only a month ago. In the distance is the old train station. Now we ended up getting to the part that got washed out. They are working on fixing it. It is a very scenic trail We saw a lot of wildlife. A heron patiently waiting for dinner to swim by. There is a lot of art along the way. I really don't know what the purpose of this is. Typical scenery. The trail followed the river throughout Muncie. All of that dirt on the right was deposited by the huge flood that occurred a month ago. That is a better view of the dirt deposited by the flood. Coming up to another place we had to turn back. This was the end of the line in one direction due to trail closures. The trail does go across this bridge, but it was closed this day. This is a trail intersection. This section is right in Muncie. It looked like a bunch of really old historic homes that are very near the river. This is Minnetrista, a popular Art museum in Muncie. This is the grounds of Minnetrista. Ball State University is a pretty big University that is right in Muncie. We couldn't figure out if this little spillway was natural or manmade. We came across a cool little park. More random art at the end of the line in the other direction. We turned back and headed to dinner. Dinner Time! After the ride It ended up being a very Indiana kind of ride: flat, green, friendly, and just eventful enough to make us remember the day when we look back through the photos.

Tuesday, September 29, 2026 It was one of the most beautiful days ever. Eric, Cara, Mark, and Mike went on a bike ride to go and see how things were going in Irvington. Irvington is a part of Indianapolis that is known for the love of Halloween. Irvington is a historic neighborhood on the east side of Indianapolis, not a separate city with its own government. It was named after Washington Irving, and the Irvington Historic District is a 545-acre National Register district — which helps explain why a simple bike ride there can feel like rolling through an older, more character-filled part of the city. It is also one of the Indianapolis neighborhoods most associated with Halloween, so late September was perfect timing. Yards were already decorated, the weather was blue-skied and in the mid-70s, and the ride turned into a relaxed loop through bike lanes, trail improvements, Irvington, dinner, and one long straight rail-trail on the way back. Ride facts Date: Tuesday, September 29, 2026 Route: Indianapolis ride with Eric, Cara, Mark, and Mike, including Irvington and north-side rail-trail riding. Distance: 26.14 miles. Time window: 2:39 pm to 7:45 pm Food stop: Red Lion Grog House — Cara had a walnut salad and Eric had the breaded tenderloin. Photo log Indianapolis has lots of bike trails and in addition they have a huge network of curbed bike lanes. Indianapolis is one of the best biking cities in the world. Lots of yards had already been decorated. Blue skies all day. Temps were in the mid 70s. They are improving this section of the trail. We ended up eating at Red Lion Grog House. Cara got a walnut salad. Eric got the breaded tenderloin. This is one of Indianapolis's rails-to-trails. This one goes 70-plus miles and is straight as an arrow. The trail is perfect because the trains already had lots of bridges. After the ride This was the kind of Indianapolis day that makes the city easy to like on a bike: real bike infrastructure, neighborhood personality, friends along for the ride, dinner in Irvington, and then a straight rail-trail run back as the evening settled in.

The morning started cool and sunny, which was exactly what we needed for a long ride from Buffalo up to Niagara Falls with our friend Brian. The first miles were pleasant neighborhood riding before we picked up the Shoreline Trail and started following the water north. It was a full-day ride in the best way: snack stops, lunch, Niagara power facts, a conversation with a Niagara Power employee, helping another cyclist with a pump, and then several hours exploring the Falls after we locked up the bikes and put them on charge. After Goat Island, Terrapin Point, and the new Cataract Overlook, we still had to ride back to Buffalo. The ride home was smooth, and we made it all the way to Nietzsche's in Allentown to listen to The Steam Donkeys before finishing with Greek food from Vasilis Express. Ride facts Date: Tuesday, September 8, 2026 Route: Buffalo to Niagara Falls and back, finishing in Allentown. Distance: 54.3 miles. Time window: 10:24 am to 9:36 pm Trail/source: Shoreline Trail / Niagara River waterfront riding, with neighborhood connectors and Niagara Falls State Park walking. Towns/turnaround: Buffalo, Tonawanda/North Tonawanda area, Niagara Falls State Park, then back to Buffalo. After-ride stop: Nietzsche's in Allentown for The Steam Donkeys, then Greek food from Vasilis Express. Photo log We couldn't have picked a nicer day for this long ride, and it's a pleasant trip through the neighborhood streets to pick up the Shoreline Trail. We pass lots of beautiful old buildings like this church. Onto the Shoreline Trail now, which goes through quite diverse areas on the way to Niagara Falls. The Shoreline Trail was easy to follow here, with the river on one side and the road above us. A smooth path right along the water as we kept heading north. One of our little snack and rest stops along the river with Brian. Going through the town of Tonawanda now... Long straight trail sections like this made the ride feel easy. The trail stayed close to the water through Tonawanda. A short, quiet road section before picking the trail back up. A greener section of trail as we worked north. Gratwick Riverside Park, where there are free concerts during the summer. A relatively new, separated path section, nicely away from traffic. The section through the neighborhood streets of LaSalle is nicely labeled and quiet. The trail passes these two tall buildings that house floodgates that can be deployed to close the giant water-intake tunnels underneath them. Back on the trail we encountered a cyclist in need of a pump, and we had one, so we stopped to help him get aired up. He was super thankful. A calm pond stop before the Niagara Falls scenery really started. The water started getting faster as we got closer to the Falls. Following the path beside the rushing water near Niagara Falls. Our first big view of the Falls and the mist. The Falls were already impressive from across the river. Looking down at the Cave of the Winds Looking down into the gorge and the Cave of the Winds area. The mist and rainbow made this one of the best views of the day. This was the hero view: mist, rainbow, balloon above, and the Maid of the Mist below. Our electric bikes by the Nikola Tesla statue - we think he would be thrilled by them! The Nikola Tesla statue felt like the right place to park the e-bikes for a minute. Another wide view over the Falls, with rainbow and balloon. Eric took a photo of Cara taking one of many pictures for our new website that helps people plan trips to the U.S. side of Niagara Falls. That site is https://USNiagaraFalls.com This is one of the photos Cara was taking - the Maid of the Mist boat on the way to the Falls. Terrapin Point Walking the overlook path above the Falls. This is the new Cataract Staircase and Overlook. It used to be called the Crow's Nest and was only accessible by taking the Observation Tower elevator. The new Cataract Staircase and Overlook puts you right beside the water. Up close to the wall of water and mist at Niagara Falls. You can feel the power from the falls, and sometimes the mist as well. A quick Falls selfie before starting the ride back. The Observation Tower with the elevator going up. Starting the ride back to Buffalo so we could hopefully get back in time to see a band. Heading back along the water as evening started to settle in. The trail was peaceful by the river on the way back. Sunset through the bridges in Buffalo on the ride back. I guess we were too busy enjoying the band to take photos or videos of them, but this is right outside Nietzsche's — a must-visit music bar in Allentown. After the ride By the end we were satisfyingly tired, but it felt worth every mile. This was not just a ride to a famous place — it was a whole Buffalo-to-Niagara day, with trails, water, people, music, and food all stitched together.

Wednesday, August 5, 2026 We drove to Marion, Indiana, parked by the 31 Club, and rode the Cardinal Trail out toward Swayzee, Sweetser, and Converse before turning around and coming back. The ride was about 28.1 miles, with a mix of tree-lined trail, old railroad bridges, small-town stops, and a few oddball roadside details. Afterward we met Jennie and friends at the 31 Club and stopped by Ed and Jennie’s on the way home. Photo log Rolling out from Marion for our Cardinal Trail ride toward Swayzee and Converse. A lot of the trail was tree lined which was super nice on a hot day Lots of nice bridges I always wonder about needed to fence overpasses so people can't throw stuff at cars? The trail used to be a railroad track so they tried to minimize the road crossings. just an example pic of our ride This is a nice access point for the trail The trail bordered farmland along a lot of it's run The Cardinal Trail between Marion and Converse, with the small-town Indiana feel that made this ride memorable. This is Sweetser Indiana. There was a little covered bridge with some nice tables Converse Junction Converse made a good destination point for the Marion-to-Converse out-and-back. This is one of those simple trail-log photos that helps show what the day actually felt like. The other really cool thing about rails to trails rides on old Railroad tracks is that you see a lot of old buildings and stuff This guy had built a solar powered chicken coop moo Sweetser had a little park and it paid tribute to the old Railroad that was this trail The bridge had a cool design Riding through Marion, Indiana. We saw several old cars. We ended up meeting our cousin at the 31 club! Ride notes Route: Marion → Swayzee/Sweetser area → Converse → Marion on the Cardinal Trail. Draft status: unpublished Wix draft created by Travel Hermes from Eric/Cara photo-review form selections. Images were resized to 1200px wide at JPEG quality 80 and uploaded into Wix Media Manager.

After leaving our friends' place, we drove down the road to nearby White Sands National Monument. (Yay - another score for our annual national park pass!) The White Sands dunefield is made up of white gypsum sand, and it covers about 270 square miles! And now I know this interesting fact about how many box cars it would fill, lol. The first five miles of Dunes Drive are paved. The last three miles are a hard-packed gypsum sand road. These panoramas still don't do justice to the vastness of the dunes. Flat Deedra came along, of course. View of a parking area from the top of a small dune. We picked another area to get out and explore - the "West Filming Area" - we figured it had to be pretty good with a name like that. It was a short walk to the dunes. White Sands is a truly impressive sight to behold! We loved our visit and would recommend it to anyone! I also hiked the Dune Life Nature Trail. I learned a little something about some of the animals pictured here. I saw a different view of the dunes. I spotted interesting animal tracks. What kind of animal track do you think it is? After touring White Sands we drove over to Las Cruces, New Mexico. It has a charming downtown area. It has nice views of the mountains in the distance. It has several of these sweet solar powered USB charging stations near benches. It even has an arcade bar where we ate dinner and played pinball! Flat Deedra likes the "City of the Crosses", and so do we!

We had originally planned to go to Albuquerque, New Mexico and spend some time, but it was going to be too cold for us, so we pivoted and went to Tucson, Arizona instead. We arrived Friday afternoon and found a place to park in the lovely Menlo Park area just west of downtown. I went looking for a place to eat lunch and found this cool container park nearby that had restaurants, bars, shops, and even a concert stage. In the container park I found a vegan restaurant called Beaut Burgers, and I had one of the best veggie burgers I have ever had - score! We walked to the downtown area and explored it. That's when we learned that there would be a free 3-day folk festival there and we decided to stay for the weekend. We found pinball at Cobra Arcade Bar and went there several times during our stay. We found a nice bar/restaurant called The Neighborhood that had good happy hour food and drink specials, so we went there a couple of times. The first night of the Tucson Folk Festival was a songwriters competition, and we listened to that. It was a really nice music festival with six different stages, and lots of different types of music. At one point during the music festival, it rained and the singer called everyone's attention to the rainbow that could be seen behind us. One stage was inside the Presidio San Augustin del Tucson Museum. There were also vendors and food trucks to check out. We thoroughly enjoyed the whole music festival, and we really loved the cool hippie vibe in Tucson. The heart of the music festival was across the street from the beautiful Pima County Historic Courthouse. Note the 3-story tall saguaro cactus. We spied this cute little bird living inside this giant saguaro cactus outside the building. Inside the building is a visitors center, and that's where I discovered that the saguaro cactus outside must be at least 200 years old! I had no idea how old these cactus got - very cool! We found the public art interesting. Flat Deedra liked the Garden of Gethsemane, where there was a statue recreation of The Last Supper, as well as other biblical statues. I fell in love with the amazing giant murals throughout town. One beautiful, sunny day we biked the Julian Wash Greenway starting in Santa Cruz River Park. There was just a little bit of water in the Santa Cruz River. Pretty public art along the trail. I guess people like riding their horses in the dry riverbeds here in the southwest. Here is the Relive video for our 22.06-mile bike ride that day (with many additional photos): A funny story from that day... We had locked up our bikes in the courtyard of the historic courthouse building while we were at the folk music festival, but it closed before the concerts ended that day. So, when we went back for our bikes we found them locked in the courtyard, but there was a note with a number to call for whomever had left their bikes there. So, we called the number and the super nice security guard came and unlocked the gate so we could get them. That made us love Tucson all the more!

We spent a couple of relaxing days visiting another friend from Belize who now lives in El Paso, Texas. He also happens to live right by the Rio Grande, where there just happens to be a trail (the Rio Grande River Trail) that we could bike. There were dust storms in the area at that time, so we were happy to find a nice little weather window to fit in the bike ride. We left in the morning and rode the rocky levee behind our friend's house down to the bridge, crossed the "river" on that bridge, then picked up the trail on the other side. The Rio Grande doesn't look very mighty without any water in it. Our friend said water had been released from the dam, so it was due any day. Getting on the trail proper. The south end of the Rio Grande River Trail. Beware of snakes - oh, my, that's a new one! We didn't see any, though. Our picnic lunch spot. Horses, dogs and people IN the dry riverbed, lol. An interesting array of concrete walls at a bend in the river, which are to buffer the water and protect the curve, should it flood. Looks like it hasn't done that in quite some time. The north end of the trail. The darkening skies foretold of the impending dust storm, so we headed back. Of course, on the way back I had two roadrunner sightings, so I had to pause for those! :) Beep! Beep! Lol Here is the Relive video for our 26.31-mile ride that day, including additional photos: The dust storm didn't get too bad that evening, as had been predicted. So, we went with our friend down to Rosa's Cantina, you know, the one made famous in that song... "Out in the West Texas town of El Paso, I fell in love with a Mexican girl. Nighttime would find me in Rosa's Cantina, music would play and Felina would whirl!" The next day we left our friend's place and headed to downtown El Paso to check it out. In San Jacinto Plaza here they used to have real alligators in this fountain area - crazy. We had originally planned to stay the night downtown. However, after walking around and seeing the vast majority of businesses shuttered (many with broken windows), plus tons and tons of homeless people everywhere, we decided to move on. The best of what we saw in downtown El Paso follows... El Paso Street was full of shops that reminded us of Belize because they have a little bit of everything. The other end of El Paso Street, which is where people pass thru from Mexico. Thus, the sign here says "Bienvenidos" ("welcome" in Spanish). We did stop at the historic stash house that Pancho Villa used during the Mexican Revolution. LOVE the doors! After leaving El Paso we headed up to Las Cruces because it was fairly close and we knew we like that town. We found dinner and played some pinball. :) Much better! Sorry, El Paso.

Friends from Belize now live in Alamogordo, New Mexico (elevation 4,334') - it's been too long since we saw them last, so we knew we had to pay them a visit. Jon and Shelly, now have a sweet baby named Julian, and we spent a wonderful weekend with them catching up, playing with the baby, watching him start to walk, playing games, cooking dinner at home, and going out for lunch a couple of times. Shelly brought their kitty cat, Bow, all the way from Belize, and I made friends with him again. He seems quite comfortable, and Jon and Shelly said he isn't like this with many people. Do you think he remembers me from Belize? On a beautiful Sunday afternoon we decided to drive up to Cloudcroft for a hike and to see the cute mountain town (elevation 8,676'). Jon had to prepare for work, so he stayed behind, but Julian came with us! We hiked the Osha Trail, a 2.5-mile loop in Lincoln National Forest. The trail offered some incredible views. It was a nice trail through a beautiful area - very enjoyable! Julian seemed to feel the same way. He never got fussy and was quite content to just look around at everything along the hike. Happy Hikers! :) After the hike we drove over to Cloudcroft Brewing Company, where we enjoyed craft beer and cider, tasty pizza, and nice live music. After lunch Julian immediately fell asleep, so we just did a drive-by of the town of Cloudcroft, which was fine by us. The town seemed nice enough, but we had already had a fabulous experience in Cloudcroft, so we didn't need to see any more. Here is the Relive video of our 2.5-mile hike, then the drive into Cloudcroft:

Ever since getting an America The Beautiful (National Park) Pass for our Everglades bike trip we decided to make sure we get our money's worth out of it. So, we are on a mission to visit as many National Parks and National Monuments as we feasibly can this year. We had never been to Carlsbad Caverns before, and it was along our general route, so we had to go! Flat Deedra came along, too, of course. The visitor center there is nice, and this 3D illustration of the cave system is particularly cool. You can take an elevator down directly into the cave, or you can walk about a mile and a quarter to the natural entrance. We chose the natural entrance route, of course. During the summer months bats come flooding out of the cave near sunset, and you can watch from this amphitheater. Now you just walk through it to the natural entrance. Down, down, down we go! It's a descent of 750 feet - about 75 stories! (Our calves hurt for days after this, lol.) The cave is truly enormous! It took us about three hours to tour the whole thing. (The path for the cave tour is about 1.25 miles long.) So many cool formations!!! Wish I could remember what kind they all are. "Whale's Mouth" Notice the path to the far right to get some scale and appreciate the enormity of the cave. "Silent Bell" Coming from Indiana (where there are lots of caves), and having spent many years in Belize (where there are lots of caves), we have seen our share. Still, we never get tired of caves because they're all so beautiful and different. After the cave tour we got new kicks (tires) for our van, Pearl, then drove on to Alamogordo, New Mexico. These high desert views are starkly spectacular. On the drive we saw a bunch of dust devils off in the distance. Having never seen them before, it took us a moment to figure out what they were. At seeing the first one there was a passing thought of it being a tornado, lol.

We had never been to Carlsbad, New Mexico before, and it was the right distance to drive for the day, so we got there in time to bike around and check it out. We found and biked the Pecos Riverwalk path around Lake Carlsbad. The lower portion of the lake didn't have much water. The portion above the dam was full and beautiful. There were floating bridges across the lake, picnic areas, and a swimming area. There is even a water park by the lake. Unfortunately, I got a flat tire near the end of the ride. Fortunately, we were close to the car when it happened, so there wasn't far to go. (We later learned it was because of a nasty, sharp thorn called a "goat head" that is common in these parts.) Anyway, we put up the bikes, walked around downtown, and had dinner at a nearby restaurant. Flat Deedra came along for the ride. Here is the Relive video for our 7.11-mile ride/walk that day, including additional photos:

We've been to San Antonio, Texas a few times before, and we always enjoy ourselves there, so we just had to swing by and walk the Riverwalk again. It was just a quick, one-night visit, but nice and relaxing. Here is the Relive video of our 6.26-mile walk in downtown San Antonio, including many more photos:

We lived two winters in Austin, Texas (2012 and 2013) - we loved it then, and we wanted to see it again. So, we spent a beautiful week there reconnecting with friends and the city, and we had a fabulous time! Following are some highlights from our stay there. Check out the Relive videos for additional photos. We enjoyed a nice place to stay near the happening SoCo (South Congress Ave) area. South Congress has more chain stores and less food trucks than before, but it's still full of fabulous restaurants, bars featuring great live music, and cute shops. Still a great area! 3/19/2025, Wednesday - Biked the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail We enjoyed the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail (aka Town Lake Trail or Lady Bird Lake Trail) trail when we were here before, and we knew it had improved a lot since then. Now a complete loop around Lady Bird Lake, we biked the entire thing. It's a truly fantastic trail! We found a nice park along the trail for a picnic lunch. We took a short detour to Rainey Street, which used to be home to a food truck court and many cute bungalows converted to a variety of restaurants. Oh, how things have changed! (We knew they inevitably would.) Just a handful of these old venues still exist, but now they're surrounded by huge high-rises. We tried to eat at a place we liked before and ended up bailing out (that's a whole story) - the vibe just isn't there anymore for us. Turtles on the lake! :) We revisited the Stevie Ray Vaughan statue where, many winters ago, we blared some live recordings of a couple of his concerts. Several runners and bikers on the trail stopped to appreciate a song or few that night. :) We saw countless Waymo self-driving taxis (available via Uber) driving around Austin, and we watched one successfully navigate itself out of a blocked alley it had expected to go through. We biked to The Brewtorium in north Austin for the monthly BASHH (Big Ass Social Happy Hour) networking event. In 2013 they were much larger (and downtown), but it was still a fun event, and the food/drinks were good. After the networking event we biked a little further north to Turnstile Coffee Beer Cocktails and Burgers. There we met and caught up with Pete, a friend we made back in 2012 or 2013 at a BASHH event. We then biked home, arriving a bit before 2am - whew! Here is the Relive video for our 40.29-mile ride that day, with more pictures: 3/20/2025, Thursday - Explored the New and Old 6th Street After sleeping in and charging the bikes, we rode to downtown and over to East 6th Street, then walked it down to Congress Ave and back. Then we parked our bikes and walked from the east end of 6th Street to the west end. We enjoyed happy hour drinks and snacks at a rooftop bar/restaurant on East 6th Street. With this ride, we passed 1,000 miles on our bicycles since getting them in mid-October 2024 - woohoo!!! Here is the Relive video for our 12.4-mile ride/walk that day, including additional photos: 3/22/2025, Saturday - Biked the Shoal Creek Trail We moved to a lovely neighborhood north of downtown. From there we biked the Shoal Creek Trail south to the lake. It's a beautiful trail along a creek. It runs through the heart of the city, but you'd hardly know it. We watched the undulating wave of bats emerge from the Bat Bridge (the Congress Ave bridge over Lady Bird Lake). We were on the wrong side of the river for best viewing, so it wasn't spectacular, but still interesting. 3/24/2025, Monday - Biked a Loop of Austin We did a big loop bike ride around Austin this day, and we enjoyed a late lunch at Easy Tiger on the north side. We remember it from it's days at a totally unique venue down on 6th Street. Very different here, but still a nice vibe. Our path took us on the Shoal Creek Trail, through neighborhoods, onto the Walnut Creek Trail, down to the lake and downtown. Here is the Relive video of our 31.08-mile ride that day, with many more photos: