Wonder and Wander Together!!

April 2016 was our 30th anniversary!! Several things crossed our minds to celebrate the event. I brought up the crazy idea to purchase a used pickup camper, pull the motorcycle on a trailer and travel to great riding places. After some thought, Loren agreed and searched Craigslist to make Terri's new adventure come true!!

What follows is a little peek into our Yellowstone Adventure and how it inspired the quilt blocks I designed and entered into AccuQuilt's Barn Block contest.
Click the link here to see all the contest blocks. Or click the name under the block on this post to take you directly to the voting page for that block!! You can vote for more than one block--but only once a day.

Here we are all loaded up and ready to hit the road!! The sun was just coming up. The colors of God's paintbrush that morning were just exquisite!!

Watch for those colors.....

At the East gate into Yellowstone we go...along with lots of other motorcycles. We had been here over 15 years ago with the kids. I remember them saying--there was just too many trees and can't we see something different--so that is what I was expecting to see again--but there had been a fire, so lots of the trees were gone. But out of the ashes comes beauty!! There were so many wild flowers and the smell was intoxicating!! Red, blue, purple, pink, yellow, and white.

Most of my photos are taken while riding--so pretend you are riding the back of a motorcycle with me!!

Wildflower Meadows

There is just nothing quite like enjoying God's great big beautiful world from the back of a motorcycle. The smells and sounds are intensified and just too amazing for words.

We rode back to the Big Horn mountains the next day--up Highway 14 through Shell Canyon and back down Highway 14A. Most of the time I am just soaking in all the sights that I forget to take out the camera.
The towering red rocks of Shell Canyon were gorgeous. The green irrigated fields of hay had such a sweet smell. The fast running creek along side the road made me smile. All of it is stored on the memory card in my mind!! Along with coming down 14 A with 13 miles of 12% grade curves!!

Free range cattle!! Who knew that was a real thing?!?! No fences!! There were 2 young calves on the road right along a curve--interesting event on a cycle!! They let us pass without incident.

Shell Canyon Road

Bear Tooth pass is considered one of the top 5 riding roads, so we had to go!!

I kept the kids informed along the way--love the ways technology can keep us all connected!!

Saw lots of snow and these curve signs!!!

The views were 360 degrees around--I didn't know where to look first. Since I wasn't driving I could look anywhere!! Loren on the other hand--had to keep his eyes on the road--as looking out to the sides messed with his depth perception when he looked back to the road--so best I take pictures for him!!

The classic photo op!! We had made the kids take this photo years ago--so we did it this time!!!

Such gorgeous color!!

Vacation selfie!!!

Our rides in Yellowstone and surrounding areas of Wyoming far exceeded what we imagined!! Just beautiful!! We LOVED the pickup camper--like a little home away from home! I have a tendency to get homesick--even with all my family around, I can still miss my home. This trip that never happened!! I was so relaxed and enjoying the adventure of it all that I was so not ready for it to end. All was well with my soul!!!

Resting Place

We stayed a night in Spearfish, SD on the way home--beautiful place too--next's year's plan--Sturgis here we come!! Heading east on I-90 to home, we stopped at the Chamberlain rest stop. There is a giant stainless steel statue that I wanted to see.

Dignity is the name of this Native American woman wrapped in a Lone Star quilt. It was as inspiring as I had hoped it would be!! Well worth the turn off and drive up the hill.

Up To It

Wonder.

Wander.

Repeat.