Happy to be in Amsterdam

Here we are in Amsterdam with Heather and Ewan having a very pleasant time! Heather, Ewan and I set off separately from James, who was working in Birmingham today. Our journey involved changing planes at Heathrow and although all went smoothly the last couple of hours from Schipol Airport to our hotel seemed to take a long time - our luggage was about the last off the plane and we had to wait for a train that was delayed to get into the centre of Amsterdam. However after a brisk walk from the station (extremely well navigated by Ewan) we were glad to arrive at the Toren Hotel. I'm glad to say that it is a lovely hotel, very traditional in a  couple of 17th century buildings on the Keizersgracht. The hotel owners had very kindly arranged for champagne, chocolates and strawberries to be put in our room because I had mentioned to them that we are celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary.

Meanwhile James was having a hair-raising day which involved falling down the steps of his plane in the morning, nearly missing his flight to Amsterdam because his meeting ran late, and then being delayed as the plane sat on the tarmac. He arrived at last and met up with us at a really nice café called Spanier & Van Twist at Leliegracht situated just round the corner from the hotel. We all sat outside and had a tasty dinner in the beautiful evening sunshine beside the canal. Let the weekend commence! 

St Tropez

I have never in my life had a fake tan. Until yesterday. A very good friend recently had her first fake tan and I was intrigued. Going back to my school days, the fashion in the 1970s was to be as tanned as possible, I don't remember anyone in those days mentioning skin damage or skin cancer. To my chagrin, my lily white skin was incapable of becoming tanned and I was very envious of my classmates who would appear back from the summer holidays a beautiful nut brown. Admittedly I was one of the only girls in my class at school who holidayed in Scotland, but even if I had been able to go to the Mediterranean I still wouldn't have got a tan! As I got older I tried to tan by using little or no sun cream when abroad but needless to say that led only to dreadful burns - I still have really bad scarring on the skin of my shins. 

Luckily extreme tanning gradually fell out of fashion and I came to terms with my pale skin. Now I use factor 50 in the sun and am very happy just not to burn.

However I was intrigued by the idea of getting a fake tan. Quite a few of my colleagues and friends get fake tans regularly and appear to have a healthy glow - maybe I would look glowing too!

So I bit the bullet and made an appointment to get sprayed with a "St Tropez" tan yesterday after my hair cut. And I mean literally sprayed with a hose as I turned around and around so that all angles could be covered. I was given instructions to wait 12 hours before showering and to moisturise my skin liberally. 

Reactions at home were unanimously negative. James has been singing the Oompa Loompa song from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Davie says that my face is the same colour as my hair and that I look much older. When Ally and Cat skyped from China this afternoon Ally was gasping with horror and laughter. Even lovely Cat couldn't help mentioning that I look as if I have no lips.

As for me, I'm quite relaxed about it. It is quite drastic and I look a bit silly but it's fun and I know that it will only last a few days. In fact it has inspired me to do something that I haven't done for more than 25 years - yes, this evening I have painted my toenails! Whatever next?

Cats and phone return

It was great to get Tom and Ruby home from the battery although they cried really loudly in the car. Ruby broke her way out of the cat basket while I was driving and I had to pull into an industrial estate to put her back in because she was walking around the parcel shelf yelling. Alasdair once did the same thing when he was a toddler! Tom stayed in the basket and just stuck his head out, mewling pitifully. No amount of reassurance helped and they were only happy when they got home. They spent the afternoon going in and out of the cat flap and inspecting their territory. 

To my surprise and pleasure I found my phone, which has been missing for about four weeks. I had it right beside me on the couch one evening and by the time I got upstairs I couldn't find it. I searched everywhere I could think of including the outside bins (which was a disgusting experience) and James and Davie and Ally searched too, for days and days. Then the holiday intervened, but on returning I had to start thinking about replacing it. Then on Monday morning I went to put on my blue trainers (which I had not taken on holiday.) And there was the phone in one of the shoes. I just sat there and stared at it for a while. All that I can think is that I popped the phone into a shoe to carry it upstairs, although I have no recollection of it. I charged the phone up and texted James "Surprise!"

The weather has been rainy since we returned from holiday and we are told that it was wet all of the time that we were away - wettest July on record apparently - however it has brightened up today. I am in town getting my hair cut and doing a bit of shopping.

Goodbye America, we love you!

We spent our last morning of our holiday at the hotel pool. There was not a cloud in the sky and the mountains all around us were green and beautiful. I felt sad to leave and would love to return to Steamboat Springs. The car journey to Denver took us right through the Rockies, which were spectacular and we crossed the Colorado River. The highest that the road reached was more than 12000 feet. Then came a long downhill section with lots of warning signs about the steepness of the slope - half way down there was another warning sign saying "Truckers, you are not down yet!" which I thought was funny. 

The journey home all went according a to plan and I managed to get about five hours sleep between Denver and Reykjavik. It was still a long haul - we worked out that it took us almost exactly 24 hours from leaving Steamboat to arriving home - but I read my book and watched programmes that I had loaded onto my iPad. We had a lovely lunch at Jamie's Italian in Gatwick. When we arrived in Glasgow we were a bit dismayed by the grey, rainy weather - apparently it has been like this since we went away! 

There were no kittens to greet us at home because they are in the cattery; we put on a washing and settled down with sausage suppers (James and Davie) and a large donner kebab (me) How nice to get back to Scottish food! 

A job for Ally

We have heard some amazing news from Ally, who has been offered a law job two years in advance of gaining his Diploma in Law! 

James suggested earlier this year that that Ally should get some work experience by applying for an internship in a law firm this summer. It hadn't crossed my mind that it was necessary at this stage (he has only just completed 3rd year so still has a year left at university and then his diploma year). So Ally applied for and got himself an internship. Jolly good, useful experience I thought. 

It was hilarious seeing him all dressed up in a suit and heading off to work like a little city gent. And he seems to enjoy office life; my favourite story was when he was sitting at his desk one day and cold water kept landing on him. He kept looking around suspiciously at the senior partner who was sitting behind him, wondering if he was flicking water at him for a joke. Eventually he realised that the water was from the air-conditioning system which was leaking!

Then last week Alasdair phoned to tell us that he had been asked to attend an interview for a graduate job at the end of his internship. Not even James had expected that this might be a possibility and of course it was a long shot because they were interviewing lots of fourth year students too who have more skills and will be available a year sooner. 

But the wee trouper came through and was indeed offered a job! With a proper contract and everything! The firm will even pay for his diploma fees and give him a generous grant to support himself during the diploma year as well as the salary that he will earn once he starts his traineeship. We were very pleased for him and gratifyingly so were his brothers, I love how they cheer on each other's achievements, they are like a wee Anderson gang.

I wonder what the law firm will do if Ally turns up in two years time completely unrecognisable with waist length hair and a tattooed face? I dare say there must be some sort of get out clause?

Rodeo!

I spent all of today swimming, reading and lounging around the hot tubs, while James and Davie went on a manly hike up the Thunderhead trail, which is the main ski mountain in Steamboat. I had a lovely time and so did they. We all met up at the pool in the afternoon.

In the evening we went to the local rodeo which was brilliant. We went to the Calgary Stampede years ago but I think I preferred this one because it was smaller and the setting was amazing, in the valley with the mountains all around and a spectacular sunset in the west. Barbecue food and beer was served and everyone was very friendly. Again this was a very patriotic experience, we all sang The Star Spangled Banner as a cowgirl rode around with a large American flag. The commentator also asked us to listen to a song called "God Bless America Again", a very patriotic country music song asking for God to bless and guide America, which was half sung and half spoken. The commentator and the rodeo clown engaged in some banter in between the contests which was good-natured and quite amusing, for example when the coal train went by and tooted very loudly, they joked about it and then played the start of Folsom Prison Blues "I hear the train a comin' / It's rolling round the bend / And I ain't seen the sunshine since I don't know when, / I'm stuck in Folsom prison, and time keeps draggin' on / But that train keeps a rollin' on down to San Antone.." which made the crowd laugh. The contests included bull riding, team roping, steer wrestling and tie-down roping. I was impressed by how carefully the animals were treated, and there was a great atmosphere; the children were very much involved and the under sixes got the chance to chase Rambo the Ram and pull a ribbon from him to win a prize. Rambo the Ram was not at all perturbed by the experience and the rodeo clown was very funny with them, inciting them to lie down and make "dirt angels" in the earthen floor of the rodeo ground, much to the groans of their watching parents. Although it was dark when we headed back to the hotel it was still a very warm, balmy evening.

Around Steamboat Springs

We have had a lovely relaxing time at Steamboat Springs around the hotel and the town. The town is in two parts; downtown where there are lots of shops and restaurants, and the mountain village which is at the foot of the ski slopes. It's strange to see a ski resort in the summer; you can see all the lifts and slopes and ski hire shops but it's still hard to imagine it all covered with snow. Our Yellowstone healthy habits are still with us and as well as doing lots of swimming in the pool, we went on a hike on Thursday to nearby Fish Creek. It was really hot but we were well covered in the Factor 50 sun spray which Davie hates (although he uses it because he knows that he needs it!) There is more variety of trees here than at Yellowstone, where 99% of trees were Lodgepole Pines - or "pinus monotonous" as one of the Rangers called them! The trail was pleasant, zig-zagging up the hill through the trees with beautiful views of the waterfall. 

It was good to cool off back at the pool later. We met a pleasant couple who have lived in Steamboat since 1983 and when we told them that Davie was hungry for a really good burger they recommended the Back Door Grill - although at first they didn't understand my Scottish pronunciation of burger which was quite funny. Anyway the restaurant was indeed excellent with interesting and unusual toppings for its burgers - I had the Twilight Zone which was topped with Cheddar, Peanut Butter, Bacon and Creamy Sriracha which is a Thai sauce. It was delicious.

• 8.

The Wagon Wheel of Time Turns

As I sit relaxing by the pool in Steamboat Springs, I have been reflecting on how our American Road Trip of 2015 has been closely linked to the Black Hills War of 1876 to 1877, between the American Government and the Lakota Sioux and Northern Cheyenne Native Americans. Of course conflict had been going on between Native Americans and European settlers since the earliest days of settlement and continued into the early years of the 20th century, but 1876 to 1877 was probably the last time that the Native Americans really hoped that they could be victorious and reclaim the lands that were being stolen from them. 
This was a time of great change in America. After having a bitter civil war from 1861 to 1865, the USA was trying to rebuild itself and move forward, and for many settlers that meant moving west, claiming land, or even finding gold.
Deadwood was a prime example. The American Government had promised the Black Hills of South Dakota to the Lakota people in the Laramie treaty of 1868. However in 1874 George A. Custer led an expedition which discovered gold in the Black Hills, and this triggered a Gold Rush. The illegal and indeed lawless town of Deadwood soon had a population of 5000 inhabitants with more arriving all the time. It was during this wild time in 1876 that well known gambler and gunman Wild Bill Hickok was shot and killed while playing cards, by another gambler with a grudge. There was no way that the American Government could stop the influx of gold hunters and keep its promise to the Lakota people. Instead they offered to buy the land and move the Native Americans to reservations but most refused to go.
Many battles ensued, both large and small, and the best known was the Battle of the Little Bighorn, also known as Custer's Last Stand. Crazy Horse was there. It was a decisive victory for the Plains Indians but also their last big win, because the U.S.A. Had so many more resources and by 1877 the Native Americans were forced to surrender. It was in September 1877 that Crazy Horse was bayoneted to death at Fort Robinson in Nebraska while evading arrest. 
Meanwhile the amazing Yellowstone with its geysers and wildlife and canyons had become the first American National Park in 1872, and tourists started to visit (just like us 140 years later!) But it too was affected by the conflict between the American Government and the Native Americans.  In June 1877, several bands of the Nez Perce were resisting relocation from their native lands in Oregon, and attempted to escape to the east through Idaho, Montana and Wyoming and over the Rockies to the Great Plains. This route took them through Yellowstone National Park, hotly pursued by the U.S. army.  
They entered Yellowstone near where the west entrance is now, in August 1877 and had several hostile encounters with tourists. There were about 35 tourists in the park at the time; several were wounded and two were killed. Needless to say the rebellion of the Nez Perce didn't last long and they were forced to surrender in the autumn of 1877. 
It was strange to hear about this when we were in Yellowstone, it brought it home to me that the Cowboys, settlers, gold rushes, and wars with the Native Americans were not that long ago. After all, as my Dad used to tell me, when he was a young man working in 1930s Glasgow, he met an old man who, when he was a young man, had used to sell stoves in the U.S.A. and had met the gunfighter Wyatt Earp. And guess where Wyatt Earp (who was a restless soul) spent the winter of 1876-77? Yes, Deadwood, South Dakota. 
We looked forward to finding out about the history of the Black Hills when we planned our holiday, and I feel that I have learned a lot about how the past is so closely entwined with the present in South Dakota, Montana and Wyoming. 

Steamboat Springs

We still had a bit of driving to do today to reach our last destination of the holiday - four days of chill out time at the little town of Steamboat Springs. First of all we had a Skype call all the way from China from Ally and Cat, who are having a great time in Shanghai. Ally pointed out that Wyoming is actually nearer to Shanghai than Scotland is! We have also heard from Jamie who kindly took Ally to the airport for his holiday and also took the kitties to the cattery for the last week of our holiday because with Ally now in China they would have been home alone.

We crossed the state line from Wyoming to Colorado and then broke up the four hours of driving by stopping at the town of Craig, where we visited the small town museum. It's a town that is very proud of its Western heritage and there was a big display of saddles, guns, and cowboys clothes, including some amazing huge chaps made of angora. We turned towards the Rockies and the countryside became greener and more hilly until we finally arrived at Steamboat Springs and, as I had hoped, it is very like Whistler in facilities and surroundings. It's a ski resort by winter, so in the summer they promote it as a summer resort with cycling, hiking, hot springs etc. I LOVE our apartment in the Trailhead Lodge! No offence to the perfectly nice and clean rooms in Yellowstone, but this is SO good! We have three bedrooms, three bathrooms, a huge living room, kitchen, washing machine, dishwasher, four televisions! I know, it's totally unnecessary and I'm no stranger to roughing it (D of E expeditions for example) but I can't help it, I love luxury! I keep getting lost on the way from the living room to the bedroom! Davie is thrilled to have a room (and bathroom) of his own for the first time in the holiday. The Trailhead Lodge is on the edge of town at the foot of the ski slopes and has an outdoor swimming pool and three hot tubs. We explored the town a bit and had a Mexican meal in the popular Cantina restaurant - oh the joy of having a choice of eateries!

Cowboy Boots!

Today was a big driving day. We left Yellowstone National Park after a brilliant week and headed south. We drove through Grand Teton National Park whose landscape is much more alpine than Yellowstone, with jaggedy mountains which are very beautiful. Just south of Grand Teton we came to the town of Jackson which was very smart and clearly geared up for the winter ski crowd. We continued south on the west side of the Rockies and the countryside opened up wide and flat, with lots of horse ranches. 

Our destination for the night was Rock Springs, a mining town with a chequered history. We checked into our hotel, then visited a big warehouse which had been well advertised as we approached the town, which sold cowboy boots and western workwear including jeans, belts, jackets, spurs, chaps etc. James had rightly supposed that this would offer us a better choice (and better prices) than tourist shops and soon he and David were happily buying some Levi's jeans at a fraction of the cost of Scotland prices. I have long wanted to own a pair of proper cowboy boots and there was a huge selection. James treated me to a lovely red pair and I bought myself another pair as well as a sort of cowboy shirt - I was delighted! 

Boat trip on Lake Yellowstone

On Sunday we had a quiet day around Lake Village, exploring the woodland paths and walking along the shore of the lake. Unusually, James wasn't feeling well so he went for a nap in the afternoon. The scenic boat tours of the lake are not running this summer due to some sort of technical dispute between the lake authorities and the company that operates the boats, so Davie and I decided to hire a wee speedboat instead. We were shown the controls and warned sternly not to damage the propeller on the many rocks that lurk under the water near the shore. We chugged off sedately out of the harbour and then opened up the throttle when we moved out into the bay, it was great fun bouncing along the tiny waves. However when we rounded the island into more open water the waves were distinctly larger and the wind rose alarmingly. I must admit to getting quite perturbed as we were tossed around, slapping back down on the water between waves. My hero, Davie, was not at all worried and took the wheel, in fact he was laughing wildly, enjoying the "thrill" as he steered us back to calmer waters. We got some lovely views of the Lake Hotel from the water as well as seeing some fumaroles along the shore - Lake Yellowstone is within the caldera that comprises much of the national park.

We sat in the hotel lounge later having a drink before dinner and again listening to the resident string quartet. I really enjoyed their mix of light classical and popular music; as well as Strauss and Mozart they played tunes like Disney's Under the Sea, Bohemian Rhapsody and even Game of Thrones, which were beautifully arranged and all sounded great. At about 9.30 p.m. the American flag was lowered on its flagpole just outside the window. and everyone stood and sang as the string quartet played The Star Spangled Banner, then applauded enthusiastically - another example of the patriotism that we have observed here. 

Mystic Falls and Biscuit Basin

Mystic Falls was our destination today - what a great name! First of all we went around the hot springs and geysers in Biscuit Basin, then up we went about a thousand feet to the top of the waterfall. The waterfall was very pleasant and did everything that a waterfall is supposed to do, however the really amazing thing about the walk was the view southwards of the upper geyser valley - we could see the plumes of a line of about ten geysers along the valley with Old Faithful at the end - it must be a fault line with the geysers all connected. The walk had quite a lot of mosquitos which I kept having to slap off my arms, but more pleasantly there were lots of really cute chipmunks and squirrels. 

James and Davie decided to walk the.couple of miles to Old Faithful while I drove along and got myself a cup of coffee which I drank while reading my book in the lobby of the Old Faithful Lodge.

These old Yellowstone resorts, Old Faithful and Lake, used to have no middle range of accommodation between the posh hotels and camping. So to make the park more accessible to people who were neither very rich nor very hardy, big lodges were built with lots of cabins around them in the woods, in the early 1900s. This made, and still does make, Yellowstone National Park accessible to a wide range of people from all over America, which I think is a really good thing. On the other hand, I do think that a lot of the accommodation could do with some extensive refurbishment or even rebuilding, which is currently underway in the Canyon area. The is nothing wrong with the accommodation, it's perfectly clean, but it looks kind of tired and needs updated. That's just my opinion, for all I know the people of America like it just the way it is because it is traditional.

Elephant Back Mountain and more geysers!

It didn't take us long to pack up this morning and leave our comfy room at Canyon Lodge; we were moving to our second accommodation in Yellowstone, only 18 miles south at Lake Yellowstone Hotel. We had to move because when I booked this about 11 months ago it was already too late to get seven nights in the same place but I managed to get four plus three. Once we had checked out we drove to the Lake area - the lake is huge! It was nice to see an expanse of water, and in order to appreciate it better we did what the Andersons always do and climbed up something! Elephant Back mountain is only about 800 feet of ascent and I presume that it is so named because the top is wide and flat. The trail was a pleasant series of the switchbacks so beloved by Americans. We were rewarded with fine views of the lake with our hotel nestling on its shore.

When we checked in to the hotel later we were very pleased; it's an old-fashioned wooden hotel painted pale yellow, with porticos and an elegant lounge area on the ground floor. It was designed by the same architect who designed the Old Faithful Inn and is in fact the oldest hotel in Yellowstone, built in about 1880. Our room is in the annex rather than the posher main part, but it's right next door and of a good standard so we were quite happy. 

In the afternoon we visited the West Thumb Geyser basin which was amazing. It's right beside (and partly in!) Lake Yellowstone, so the setting is fantastic. The hot springs, geysers and mud pots were all simmering and steaming away, all unique. A couple of hot springs actually in the Lake were called Fishing Cones, sticking out of the water shaped like tiny volcanoes. In the old days fishermen used to boast that they could catch a fish in the lake, and then, while it was still on the line they could cook it straight away in the fishing cones. Also amazing were the Artists' Paint Pots which were colourfully bubbling away. I could go on and on, they were all stunning, but my favourites tend to be the bright blue ones that look like inviting jacuzzis but in fact would boil you alive!

After a delicious dinner at the Lake Hotel we sat in the lounge and listened to the string quartet play as we sipped our drinks.

Geysers

Thursday was a geothermal sort of day - we started off by heading to the Norris Geyser Basin. Before we even got there we pulled in to the side of the road (on seeing other cars pulled in, as often happens when something exciting is happening) and saw a grizzly bear and a wolf squabbling over some sort of carcass at the edge of the woods. This was pretty amazing.

Just as we arrived at Norris a friendly Park Ranger called Emma asked us if we would like to join in her guided walk which was about to start. We said Yes Please and she took us and the rest of the group on a very informative walk around the Back Basin for about a mile and a half. It was great to listen to her chatting away because it meant that we didn't need to consult our guide book, and she also told us anecdotes about events that happened here. For example, the early tourists in the 1870s that were captured by a group of Nez Perce Native Americans who were fleeing from the American army. We saw lots of hot springs and geysers including the great wee Vixen Geyser which slowly fills up with water and then shoots into the air every fifteen minutes. They are all different in size, timing, colour - brilliant! After our tour we walked around the Porcelain Basin area which has a brand new board walk that just reopened today, there were so many geysers to look at.

We had a leisurely picnic lunch beside the Firehole River. When I put my feet into the river while reading my book I found that it was remarkably warm. When we continued on to the Grand Prismatic Spring we found out why - the river is fed by several large hot springs.

I have never seen anything like the Grand Prismatic Spring. Rather than visit it by the official boardwalk route, we followed a tip in the guidebook by parking further up the road and walking the first part of the fairy pools trail. Then, ignoring warning signs, we climbed up a small but steep and dusty hill to view it from above. I'm so glad that we did, we could see all of its bright colours; blue in the centre of the spring which became turquoise and green at the edges, then the ground around it was ringed with yellow and orange where the acidic mineral waters spill over to stain the ground. With the steam rising above it the spring is a very beautiful sight. 

Our next port of call was Old Faithful - well we couldn't miss that out could we? It isn't the biggest or most frequent geyser in Yellowstone but it is very regular (about every ninety minutes) and very, very famous. We noticed that crowds were gathering so we got ourselves ice creams and sat down to wait for about 15 minutes (information boards in the surrounding buildings predict the time of the next eruption). Sure enough the cry went up of "There she goes!"and jets of steam and boiling water shot up hundreds of feet into the air for about five minutes. Very impressive.

The day was rounded off by dinner at the Old Faithful Inn, which is very old-fashioned and built entirely of wood - it's a tourist attraction in its own right and rather crowded. Luckily I had booked dinner from home about a month ago - or so I thought. In fact they couldn't find my booking on the system at all but they found a table for us anyway. Afterwards we had coffee outside on the first floor terrace of the hotel where we could observe Old Faithful erupting for us again. 

Mount Washburn - 10243 feet

Today I climbed my first 10000+ feet peak! Sounds amazing doesn't it? However it the interests of honesty I have to admit that the car park is so high up that the ascent of Mount Washburn is only about 1400 feet! Still, I plodded up the whole way without stopping and was quite pleased with my fitness, which I feel is definitely improving during the course of the holiday. It helped that James had prodded us to another early start so the morning air was quite cool, it would have been another story if it had been too hot for me. I like that the high elevation of Yellowstone seems to result in these refreshing mornings so that you can exercise in lower temperatures then relax later as it heats up. Unsurprisingly the views were gorgeous; lodge pole pine forests all around and Yellowstone Canyon in the middle distance. At the top is a little observatory reminiscent of the disused one at Harney Peak. On our way back down we split up so that I could return the three miles to collect the car, and James and Davie went down the seven mile hole trail to extend their walk. It extended it even more than they had meant because there was a lot of ascent and descent and they arrived back exhausted at about 4 p.m. Meanwhile I had spent the early afternoon happily washing and drying our clothes at the very well equipped and friendly camp laundrette, while reading my book. There was no need to look very far for wildlife today; in addition to the various critters and birds that I saw on the trail there was a large bison hanging about right outside our lodge scratching itself against the log walls! James and Davie walked right past it on their return and rushed back outside to see it when I told them it was there.

Yellowstone Canyon

Yellowstone Canyon was our destination today; we are spending our first four nights in the park at nearby Canyon Lodge. James had us up and organised early and we were on the trail by nine. The morning air was crisp and cool, which was a nice change after the hot afternoon at Mammoth yesterday. The trail took us along the edge of the canyon which was absolutely amazing; dramatically steep drops with a massive waterfall crashing into the river far below. We could see rainbows in the mist rising from the water and the trail was very peaceful and quiet. It seems to be mainly the parking areas that get busy in Yellowstone; only a select few actually go for a longer walk! When we meet people along the trail we usually say hello to them and compare notes on wildlife in the vicinity; for example a couple of bison up ahead, a grizzly rumoured to be on a nearby trail.

We walked along to the well-named Sublime Point then Lily Pad Lake and Ribbon Lake, both of which were very pretty and covered with lilies but also plagued by mosquitos as the day warmed up. Then we looped round though an area with geothermal activity where "mud pots" were boiling away merrily; it looked so prehistoric. Then came perhaps the most beautiful parts of the walk; Clear Lake which was turquoise in colour with little bubbles of hot air from fumaroles rising up though the water, and the meadow next to the lake, full of colourful wild flowers, where bison were grazing.  

The variety and beauty of Yellowstone astounds me; Davie is so happy to be here that he has a permanent grin on his face, and he and James chat away about plants and volcanoes. It turned out to be a longer walk than we planned at about six miles, and I found the last hour or so rather hot and sticky, however it was all worthwhile when we arrived back at Canyon Lodge for a cool drink. 

Thermophiles

Before we left Montana we had a very pleasant evening. We went for dinner to the Montana Rib and Chop, a meat lover's paradise which seems to be a bit of an institution in these parts. It had a relaxed atmosphere and there were lots of people wearing cowboy hats; James manfully munched his way though an entire rack of ribs, he was like a caveman. And after dinner we sat out in the hotel's lovely garden for ages, reading our books as bunny rabbits hopped around. 

Anyway this morning we were back on the road again, heading for Yellowstone National Park, the central part of our holiday around which all the rest has been planned. We had asked Davie where he would like to go on holiday this year (since his brothers are both working and have other plans) and he chose Yellowstone because as an avid watcher of the Discovery Channel he has seen various documentaries about it and has dreamed of going there. It took us about three hours to reach the north entrance to the park and our first port of call was the amazing Mammoth Hot Springs. Reminiscent of Pamukkale in Turkey which we visited in the 1980s, the hot springs gush forth from limestone which builds up into ridges and basins. The algae and plants that flourish in such intense heat are called thermophiles. I am not a thermophile. There is an extensive system of boardwalks which we walked around in the blazing heat. I quaffed so much water that I was in urgent need of a visit to the toilet. Those who know me will understand that I am not shy about going to the toilet outdoors, but alas there was no opportunity because it was forbidden to leave the boardwalk in case you fell through the thin crust to a horrific death by melting. Luckily there was a decent (chemical) toilet at the top of the trail. James and Davie were in a happy frenzy of science combined with photography; at one point while waiting for them in a shady spot I was amused by the vocal dismay of many Americans when they realised that there was a car park at the top and they could have avoided the hot walk uphill.

Wild Montana Skies

Well here we are in our 5th State of the holiday. Montana"s skies are not wild on this hot, sunny day but I still sang Wild Montana Skies in the car because it is my favourite John Denver song. Our hotel in Billings is extremely comfortable and we are relaxing in the garden area just now. This morning we visited Custer's Last Stand - the memorial site of the Battle of Little Bighorn. We went on the battlefield tour, rightly supposing that a guide would be able to explain it all more clearly. Our guide was excellent - she is a great great great grand-daughter of Curly, who was one of the Crow tribe. The Crow tribe joined in the fighting as scouts on the side of the American army, because they thought that this was the best way to secure their lands. They figured that because they had always been fighting the Sioux tribe anyway, it didn't really matter. Hmmm I'm not so sure. - sounds a bit like the Campbells siding with the English at the Glencoe massacre to me. Anyway she gave us a lively account of the battle, in the course of which Custer made every possible mistake he could, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. The battlefield is a sad place and it's hard to imagine the slaughter that took place, although there are markers dotting the landscape where each soldier fell. It was the Native Americans' last victory in their resistance to the huge tide of European settlers - so in a way it was their last stand too.

High Plains Drifters

According tho the Kiowa tribe, a long time ago, eight children (seven girls and one boy) were playing in a forest in Wyoming, when suddenly the boy started to grow claws and fur and turned into a bear! He started to chase the terrified girls who ran away, but just as he was about to kill them the land beneath the girls rose up into a tall column and the bear could not reach them, although he left long claw marks all around the sides. The seven girls became the stars of the Pleiades and the column is still there today, in fact we visited it this morning. 

The Devil's Tower, as it is now known, is a very striking landmark. In the 19th century it was thought to be the core of an ancient volcano but it is in fact a sort of spur of magma which cooled and fractured into columns beneath the surface of the earth, and was eventually revealed by erosion.  For James and I and others of our generation it is instantly recognisable as the place where the aliens make contact with humans in the film "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" from the 1970s. It was very, very hot as we circumnavigated it, humming the tune from the film "dum de dum, da dum!" as we went. As well as being able to see the tower from all angles, we could see the beautiful rolling plains all around. My head was frying, so after walking around the lower path I headed to the nearby café for a cool drink while James and Davie pressed on to the higher trail where they had some close encounters with prairie dogs and pronghorns. And so we have continued west across the high plains of America; tonight we are in Sheridan, Wyoming and can see the Rockies distantly to the west. 

Gunfight in Deadwood

Today we said goodbye to Custer and continued our road trip, heading north to Deadwood. On the way we visited the Crazy Horse sculpture, which has been progressing very slowly for more than sixty years. A Polish-American sculptor called Korczak Ziolkowski was asked by a Lakota elder called Henry Standing Bear to create a memorial along the lines of Mount Rushmore, in order to commemorate the Native Americans. They chose Crazy Horse as the hero to represent them. He dedicated the rest of his life to the project, and his (many) children and grandchildren are continuing it. It's such a massive (over-ambitious?) project - only the front part of Crazy Horse's head has been completed so far, and the intention is to end up with a huge Crazy Horse riding along on his trusty steed with his arm stretched out, pointing at his lands. I think we are talking centuries to finish it! It is also controversial; some Lakota feel that Crazy Horse wouldn't have wanted the mountain to be carved up for a memorial.

I have been feeling a bit under the weather today - a persistent wee headache and my arms and legs felt really heavy. Maybe I'm dehydrated or just exhausted - we are doing a great deal of walking on this holiday! When we checked into our hotel in Deadwood we found out that it is part of a huge gaming resort called Cracker Jack's. The hotel is absolutely immaculate and a short walk from the centre of Deadwood. Having watched the 2004 HBO series "Deadwood" in preparation, I loved visiting the town. It hasn't changed much from the photos in the museum which show it 150 years ago, because it is built in a narrow "gulch", so although the buildings were rebuilt in brick rather than wood after a fire destroyed most of the town in the 1890s, it has been built on exactly the same footprint and in the same style. Luckily the streets are now paved instead of mud. As our hotel proves, the gold may have gone but it is still a big gambling town and nearly every building houses a saloon and a casino. However the prostitiutes are gone - the last of the brothels was shut down in 1980 and apparently the locals came out to line the streets in protest, thus re-enacting the scene of a hundred years before, when the first prostitutes arrived and the locals lined the streets in celebration! 

The first thing we saw as we walked along the Main Street was a gunfight! This was one of many that are staged around the streets every day. The actors were well rehearsed and good natured. They were giving out sheriff's badges to kids but we couldn't persuade Davie to go up and get one! We strolled through the town and up the hill to the Mount Moriah cemetery, to pay our respects to Wild Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane. It was hot, hot, hot and the hill was steep, which made me a little grumpy. 

Back down in the town we had dinner in the restaurant above Saloon Number 10, which is where Wild Bill got shot by the cowardly Jack McCall. Actually it's across the road and down a bit from the original location of Saloon Number 10, but that doesn't stop the local troubadours from re-enacting the assassination several times a day! We had a lovely Italian meal then went downstairs to the bar for a drink, where we found Wild Bill about to play cards with some friends while interacting with the tourists. It was great (well not so great for Wild Bill of course!) and we all enjoyed it. I asked Davie why this evening was more enjoyable for him than yesterday evening and he explained "This is History." I am finding the American people extremely friendly and they keep saying to us "I love your accent!" Often they have a Scottish ancestor or have visited Scotland, like "New York James" the taxi driver that we met in Denver,, who had visited Dunoon in an American navy ship many years ago. And so we have now wended our weary way back to the hotel. It is only nine o'clock in South Dakota and we were planning to go downstairs to the beautiful bar and pool but James is fast asleep on the bed and I think I will join him!

Why the stony face?

Mount Rushmore was our destination today. I expected it to be hot and busy and touristy and so it was, however it was still impressive to see. What an amazing project it was, and the well organised "presidential trail" boardwalk has information boards that tell you all about the four presidents whose heads are immortalised in rock. I recognised Washington and Lincoln of course, but I have never been sure who the other two are. Well now I will remember; it's Jefferson and T. Roosevelt. I found it all very interesting, although I was nearly melting by the time we got to the café for much needed coffee and ice cream. Full marks to the U.S.A. for the clean and cool air-conditioned café and toilets. We met a family who had three tiny boys, much as ours once were, who were called Luke, Brooks and Jack; they were so sweet.

It was time for some peace and quiet so, consulting our Custer State Park Guide, we made our way along a very scenic (and twisty and windy!) road called the Iron Mountain Road, to picturesque Center Lake. This was perfect for the afternoon, we relaxed, read our books and went for a walk along the small river that runs into the lake. In true James style it was not long before he spotted a family of minks alternately swimming along the stream and running along the bank. It was a mummy and four little ones and they were all making loud squeaking noises to keep track of each other. We walked along the other bank of the stream from them. 

The evening saw us return to Mount Rushmore for the sunset ceremony, which was very patriotic. First of all one of the park rangers gave a talk about how everybody had come together from all over America this evening as part of their holiday to this special place. He spoke about how Americans have explored the wilderness and made it into the greatest nation on earth, and how the four presidents represented on Mount Rushmore embody these ideals. Then there was a film about American achievements culminating in the lighting up of the presidents' faces to the tune of "America the Beautiful" and we all stood up to sing the Star Spangled Banner. Admittedly it was very pro American but I hadn't expected anything else and as a visitor to the U.S.A. I felt quite honoured to be part of it. Davie did not feel the same way and argued very convincingly against nationalism all the way back to the hotel! James and I pointed out that in the UK we have events like Armed Forces Day and the Edinburgh Tattoo, but to be fair to David he was consistent and said that he doesn't like any country's nationalism including our own.  

Minutemen and Jackalopes

On Wednesday we went on an aeronautical road trip to the South Dakota Air and Space Museum, just east of Rapid City on the edge of the Badlands. As I am a bit hazy on the details, I have asked James to summarise our experience as follows:

"During the Cold War, Ellsworth Air Base (beside which the museum is located) was the headquarters of the U.S. Minuteman missile nuclear deterrent, with over 150 missiles located throughout South Dakota. Within the museum we were able to see a replica of the command centre complete with the two keys required to be turned simultaneously in order to launch the missiles. These were twelve feet apart to prevent one individual from initiating the launch. On the command centre door there was a Dominoes pizza logo with a sign saying "We deliver anywhere in the world in thirty minutes or less or your next one is free!" On a short trip onto the base we were able to visit a missile training silo and descend for a closer look at the missile. This brought to life what it must have been like during the Cold War; the missiles lurking in their silos dotted across the prairies; the missileers locked down in their underground command centres awaiting the signal to launch." Thanks James! 

On the road back to Custer we noticed lots of signs for "Wall Drug" which is an institution in these parts. We visited it and had some very nice, freshly made sandwiches there. It is a family business started in the 1930s by a young pharmacist and his wife. At first business was slow and they were worried that they wouldn't be able to make ends meet, however they had the idea of offering free iced water to the many motorists who were passing on the nearby road (now the interstate I90) on their way to the newly opened Mount Rushmore. They made road signs with this offer and as a result their trade increased dramatically; the original drug store is now huge and sells all sorts of gifts and memorabilia, it has a restaurant, and for some reason it has a giant dinosaur outside it. It also has a huge moving dinosaur head to amuse children, (reminiscent of the Time Capsule in Coatbridge), and various exhibits including a mythical giant animal called a jackalope which is a combination of a rabbit and an antelope. Yes I know, it sounds awful, but in its own way it's kind of magnificent!   

Critters

On Tuesday we decided to go for a hike after our long drive the day before; we were all looking forward to exploring the Black Hills of Dakota (sung of so fondly by Doris Day!) With the help of our trusty guide book we chose the Harney Peak Trail in Custer State Park, described as a seven mile, moderate to strenuous round trip, with 1,100 feet of ascent. It starts at the pretty Sylvan Lake which is only seven miles from our hotel in Custer. We packed water and trail mix and off we set. It was great! I found it quite difficult and am told that I did some complaining during the ascent (I don't remember that at all!) but it was well worth it when we got to the top and had stunning views all around us. Harney Peak is the highest point in South Dakota and is allegedly the highest point between the Rockies and the Pyrenees! The Black Hills National Park is beautiful with lots of pine and spruce trees, forest meadows and streams, however its most outstanding feature has to be the amazing granite outcrops among the hills, I have never seen anything quite like them. We saw lots of flowers and fungi along the trail and Davie was so enthusiastic about these that I wondered aloud why he has not chosen to do pure Biology or Botany - he dismissed this with a very definite "I also like Chemistry!" Thank goodness that we brought plenty of water; it was really warm although there was a pleasant breeze at the top. At the top there is a fire tower which is no longer used but you can climb to the top for optimum views. We found a sunny spot to relax for a while and munch on our trail mix. At this point we were joined by some rather cute "critters" - gorgeous wee stripy chipmunks approached us and we shared our nuts and raisins with them. When we arrived back at the trailhead all dusty and sweaty, there was only one thing for it - a swim in Sylvan Lake! Oh boy it felt cold at first! But once my body had become totally numb I quite enjoyed it!

Talking of critters, James was woken during the night by the screeching of car tires on the road outside our hotel. It's a very quiet road, so he knew that something was up. He then heard a loud thud, a car door opening, and a voice saying "Oh DAMN!" When he looked out of the window he saw that the vehicle was a police patrol car, which left the scene shortly thereafter. There was no sign of anything this morning so we presume that it was some poor forest critter, perhaps a mountain goat or a pronghorn, who had met its end. If it had been a buffalo (what we call bison) there would surely have been serious damage to the car, and if it had been a tourist there would definitely have been more fuss.  

Four State Day

Today we headed north out of Colorado on the first leg of our road trip. Our route will take us to the Black Hills of South Dakota, across Wyoming, into Montana and then to Yellowstone National Park for a week. Then we will head south-east to Steamboat Springs for a few days before returning to Denver for our flight home. When we came to hire our car I persuaded James to upgrade to an SUV; great excitement ensued because we got to choose between a Jeep and a Ford. Davie chose the Ford Escape because it has more leg room in the back, and so our road trip began. 

The journey from Denver to Wyoming was uneventful; the roads were quite busy, the landscape was flat and the light was quite hazy. After a couple of hours we stopped for a quick lunch at a MacDonald's (not my normal choice of dining experience) at a tiny and kind of scruffy town; the new manager was holding a get-to-know-you meeting with his staff at the table next to us and I could tell that he was onto a loser because several of the staff complained at having to come in for it on their day off, and one of them had brought her tiny children who were quite rightly kicking off. 

When we set off again we spontaneously decided to make a detour into Nebraska, on the grounds that it was only about thirty miles to the east and that it's unlikely that would ever visit it otherwise. So off we went, despite the anguished protests of the sat nav, and were soon excitedly posing for photos at the state line! This whim did add two hours of extra driving onto our day, but it was really interesting to see west Nebraska which had beautiful rock formations called buttes, and we also visited Fort Robinson. This was a little fort dating back to the rather sad and fruitless attempts by the Sioux Indians to retain their land in the 1870s. Crazy Horse was killed there in 1877 while trying to escape arrest. Basically the settlers broke all their promises about land to the native Americans as soon as the gold rush started, and due to sheer numbers and weaponry the native Americans didn't stand a chance. I've got a feeling we're going to see a lot more examples of this over the next week.

Onwards and northwards to South Dakota, more posing for photos as we entered our fourth State of the day, and we arrived in the verdant and beautiful Black Hills. We saw deer and buffalo grazing right beside the road, and turkeys jumping around wild. And after nine hours (including stops) we have arrived in Custer where we will base ourselves for the next four days. 

A day in the Mile High City

The flight from Reykjavik to Denver took seven hours. We passed over Greenland and Canada, and could see icebergs twinkling in the water far below us. The last part of the flight was quite bumpy; there were a few storms about. On arrival at Denver we attempted to catch a city bus into town but after waiting about a bit, we gave up and jumped into a taxi which took us right to our hotel. The friendly receptionist told us that we would be able to see the 4th of July fireworks from outside the hotel at 10 p.m., which was only about 20 minutes after we arrived. So we found ourselves standing on a grassy slope overlooking Elitch Park on a warm evening watching a very decent firework display. A nice welcome back to America!

We all slept well and woke to a hot and humid day; after a hearty breakfast (the Andersons love a waffle maker!) we set off on a self-guided walking tour which James had downloaded onto his phone. It was sweltering, but we dutifully made our way around the main sights of the town. It's not a very old town; the state Capitol and government buildings were only built in the 1890s. We popped into the Art Museum very briefly and I was very excited by my visit to the toilet, where the wash hand basins sang "Row, row, row your boat" in all different voices when you put your hands under the taps - I had them all singing at once, it was great! James and Davie must have wondered why I was in there for so long! The shopping street (16th Street) had a lovely atmosphere; there were live bands and street performers, and people were playing giant chess and other games. I was also impressed with the large performing arts centre which had lots of different theatres. We chose a beautiful bar / restaurant for lunch called Baur's; the waitresses were very friendly and helpful. In fact we liked it so much that we returned there for dinner later. However it turned out that a show was about to start in the bar; it was Leif Vollebekk who is a singer/songwriter based in Montreal. As a result dinner was served in an adjoining little room which felt a bit odd but the food was delicious and we could hear the concert too. After dinner we moved through to the bar area and thoroughly enjoyed the music. I couldn't help noticing a very amorous couple right in front of us, who were all over each other until they had an unfortunate tiff and the girl stormed out. When we left, the boyfriend was forlornly ordering another glass of wine and the girl was standing outside the bar making a phone call. We will never know whether they got back together, I hope that they did.

Lupins, lava and lagoons

After a restful night's sleep in Reykjavik the three of us were up bright and early, ready for our trip to the Blue Lagoon. As an aficionado of swimming outdoors and hot springs I have wanted to visit this place for years and it did not disappoint!

The lagoon is set in the middle of a barren landscape of lava and the waters are turquoise blue, full of minerals, and very warm. In the background a geothermal power station belches forth steam, adding to the otherworldly feel of the place. It's large enough that it didn't feel crowded, in fact most of the tourists congregated around the water bar. We were given several wise pieces of advice when we arrived. Firstly, to put conditioner on our hair before going into the water because all the silica in the water is abrasive, so we did that. Secondly, to keep drinking water to ensure that we stayed hydrated, so we did that. And thirdly to put on plenty of sun cream - but, because the sky was light grey rather than sunny, we foolishly didn't bother with that, and ended up rather burned. We swam and floated around happily for about four hours, covering ourselves with mud from time to time and having drinks. Excellent fun. Even though I showered very thoroughly before our flight to Denver, I felt as if I was covered with a fine layer of dust for the whole of the journey! Our last sight of Iceland was the same as our first - fields of blue lupins. 

Long haul to Reykjavik

A quick blog from the excellent Solon Restaurant in Reykjavik, which also has excellent wifi. It has been rather a long haul to get here. James, Davie and I got up at the ghastly hour of 4.30 a.m. and flew down to London, then waited about Gatwick until our Icelandair flight - we then flew over Strathclyde Park Loch (5 miles from our house) as we headed back northwards at about two o'clock - a mere nine hours after leaving home! I slept during most of both flights, my sleeping on transport skills are finely honed after the Germany trip last week. 

So here we are; we checked into our hotel then walked ten minutes into the centre of Reykjavik. First impressions - I'm not sure really - it's very modern and utilitarian looking but quite pleasant, all fairly low level and with lots of shops and restaurants, bars and cafés. We have done a wee walking tour of the historical sites that we found in the guidebook; these consist of the few old buildings like the "oldest timber building" and Government House (which used to be a prison so some people say that the criminals still haven't left the building ha ha!). We have also visited Hallgrimskirkja cathedral which is modern and bright (coincidentally I happened to read on the BBC news website that today Iceland has repealed its antiquated blasphemy laws in response to the Paris Charlie Hebdo attack.) Outside the cathedral stands proudly the statue of Leif Erikson who discovered Vinland aka the USA five centuries before slowcoach Christopher Columbus, in fact the statue was presented to Iceland by the USA to say thanks! 

Royal Celebrations

It has been rather a nice few days. Jamie had some time off and came through to spend some time with family and friends. Ally has started his internship at a law firm so he has been around in the evenings. And Davie has finally received his unconditional offer from Dundee University to study his dream course of Biochemistry so we are delighted for him. And the weather has been hot and sunny interspersed with a few thunderstorms - I had forgotten what really warm summer weather is like!

Today was an exciting day - David's Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award presentation at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh. It started off a bit TOO exciting - we set off a bit late (my fault) and then caught up in busy traffic as we approached the centre of Edinburgh. We were supposed to be in place by 10.45 (the ceremony started at 11) but instead Davie and I leaped out of the car at about 5 to 11 and ran up to the barriers while James parked the car. The police on duty were very nice to us and told us "relax, you're here now!" An army lady took us to our group and went back to get James, we were the very last to arrive! Our group presenter was the stand up comedian and radio host Fred Macauley who was very personable and friendly, we have some friends in common so we had a wee chat with him at the end. An army band was playing and the setting in the grounds of Holyroodhousehouse was beautiful, with Arthur's Seat in the background. And then Prince Philip arrived looking very fit and energetic. He came right over to where we were standing with the other parents; he was so close that I could have reached out and touched him (I didn't!) Then he went over to the young people and talked to one or two of them including Davie! I was so proud of David's confident and pleasant manner and he looked really tall and handsome in his kilt! Prince Philip asked if anyone had done their expedition outside Scotland and Davie told him that he had done his in the Lake District, to which HRH wittily replied "Did you get lost then?" Davie laughed politely.

After the ceremony we walked up the Royal Mile to have lunch with Jamie at Wedgewood, a small and smart restaurant. The food was modern Scottish and very tasty. There were a couple of Edinburgh University graduates in the restaurant wearing their distinctive white bow ties - today was also Andrew's graduation in Law and he was celebrating with his family in Edinburgh too! We had an ice cream beside the Scottish Parliament in the sunshine, dropped Jamie home to Stockbridge then headed back to Glasgow quite exhausted! We are all packed for tomorrow because we set off on holiday very early.