[
"I love you for what I am not
I do not want what I have got"

- Nirvana, Radio Friendly Unit Shifter
]

truk Rambles - Read truk's Blog! RSS Feed


Damn, That's a Big Dam!
2010-07-27 17:13:51

image

image

image

On our way out of town, we made time to swing by the Hoover Dam, so we could check it out from the ground. I found the tour a bit ho-hum (we only did the standard tour, not the $30 one that features the modern art and takes you through large parts of the dam), and the one hour of stop-and-go traffic to travel the last four miles get near the dam really sucked. However, standing up on the observation deck of the dam offers an amazing view of the structure and explains why it is one of the modern architectural wonders of the world.

The standard tour takes you into one of the thru-way tunnels and one of the generator rooms, which are impressive and worth seeing. Even though the more expensive tour has more of the modernist art on display, you can still see a bit of Oskar J.W. Hansen's and Allen Tupper True's work, particularly the tile and statues, on the standard tour.

Upon leaving, we drove along Highway 93, over the dam, which will supposedly (and hopefully) be closed to traffic some time later this year. The number of cars looking to cross the dam really far exceeds the capacity (and occasionally the width) of the road, but I hope they leave the dam open for pedestrian traffic, as it really helps to walk beside it in order to grasp the sheer size of the thing.

After that, we headed for I-40 and the 1550 mile trip home, which we drove straight through, except for a 7 hour nap last that night. The bright lights of Memphis appeared over a shimmering Mississippi River at a little after 1 AM Saturday morning, and we reunited with our dogs, exhausted but happy.

View more truk blog entries





Into the Canyon
2010-07-27 17:11:38

image

image

image

image

Thursday was a long, fun day. It started at 4 AM, waking up way, way too early to meet our transportation to the Boulder City airport, just outside of Las Vegas, to take a helicopter trip into the Grand Canyon.

We signed up with Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopters to take a ride into the Canyon, including a flight over Lake Mead, Hoover Dam, and a stop down into the canyon for a light meal and champagne. If it sounds decadent, well, that's because it is. I think we could have skipped the quick meal and booze before 8:30 AM, but it was part of the package, so who what I to complain? (Thank you, Elaine and Larry, for the gift of one of the tickets!)

To me, a helicopter turned out to be a great introduction to the wonder and sheer size of the Grand Canyon. The flight takes about 20 minutes to get into the Canyon, and then you are flying into the western part of the Canyon (as the central region, in the national park, is off-limits to helicopters flying below the rim), looking up at the rim and getting a good view of the ancient layers of rock as they zoom by.

We landed in a prepared area on Native American land, and even though it was early in the morning, the heat and sun already felt brutal. We walked around, took some pictures, and tried to take it all in. Way too soon, it was time to leave, so we took off and looked about a bit more of the Canyon before zoom across desert, back to our hotel in Vegas, with just enough time to check out.

All in all, a stunning trip, one that rivals our helicopter trip over Kauai from a few years ago. If you want to experience the Grand Canyon from all angles, a helicopter tour is the best way to go.

View more truk blog entries





105 in the Shade
2010-07-21 23:10:20

image

image

image

image

image

We mostly took it easy today, as we know all too well that directed, purposeful action in Las Vegas turns the city into a vacuum cleaner for your money.

Since we were last here in early-2006, malls (well, shopping in general) has exploded on the Strip, so we checked out the newer places (like M), while also taking the time to revisit some old favorites (the Venetian is a lot less impressive, once you've been to Italy).

This was our first trip on the Vegas Monorail, which I expected to hate but actually liked, though $5 per ride is a bit much.

We also got to feel the full effect of the afternoon heat by walking back the last mile to our hotel under the full sun. I didn't really sweat until we stopped to cool off in casino, where they had the humidity over 5%.

View more truk blog entries





The Rambling Continues:
Read All truk Blog Entries Here

truk and kath and friends

What is truk.com? It covers the travels and thoughts of truk, this guy that lives in Midtown Memphis. More questions? Contact me...

2010 - Still in Memphis
January
San Francisco Bay and Wineries
April Douglas Family Visit | End of the Road
July - West and Central US Badlands | Black Hills, SD | East Glacier National Park (1, 2) | Polebridge, MT | Northwest Glacier | Missoula Anniversary | Yellowstone (1, 2, 3, 4) | Grand Tetons | Spiral Jetty | Park City | Vegas | Grand Canyon | Hoover Dam

2009 - Still in Memphis
January
Sydney and New South Wales (pics)
May Douglas Visit
July - Italy (Amalfi Coast with text | Capri | Herculaneum | Southern Tuscany with text | Florence with text | Northern Tuscany | Rome | Vatican)
August Otha Turner Family Goat BBQ Picnic
October Ozark Trail Ride day 1 | day 2 | day 3
November Dave Gets a KLR 650 | Hot Springs Honeymoon | Rhodes Cajunfest 2009
December Memphis Walk North(east) | Savannah Off-Road Motorcycling | San Francisco with Jeff, Katy, Larry, and Michelle

2008 - Still in Memphis
April
Visiting Jeff and Katy
May - Spain and Morocco with Dave and Christina (Segovia | Casa | Central, Northern Spain | Picos de Europa | Bilbao and San Sebastian | La Roija Region | Madrid | Marrakech | Fez | Southern Spain)
October Memphis Walk South
December Sydney (pics)

2007 - Memphis
February
Snowboarding in Tahoe
May Memorial Day at the Parker's Lakehouse
June Larry and Michelle's Wedding on Shelter Island, NY
July Hawaii (Oahu | Big Island (plus kayaking at Captain Cook) | Kauai text 1 and text 2 | Hawaii (Mostly Budget) Accommodation Review)

2006 - Memphis
January
Las Vegas
April Jacob Born
July Douglas Visit in Rhode Island
September Iowa Visit
October Urban Wolf River Trip
November and December Costa Rica (Volcan Arenal | Monteverde | Montezuma | Uvita | Porto Jimenez | Corcovado | Aerial Photos)

2005 - Memphis
January
New Years at Dave and Christina's
May Kath's PhD Graduation from Duke University
June Kath's PhD Graduation Party at the Shack-Up Inn

December New Zealand and Australia (Tahiti and Wellington | Marlborough and Kaikoura | Abel Tasman and the West | Manapouri and Milford Sound | The Catlins | Dunedin and Christchurch | Sydney)

2004 - Memphis
January Jeni's Baby Shower | Birth of Emmett
February Snowboarding in Park City
May Memorial Day at the Parker's Lakehouse
July Yucatan Movie [QT 7] (Isla Mujeres, Tulum, Chichen Itza, Valladolid, Merida, Celestun) | Paris
October Visiting the Douglas's in Boston

2003 - Memphis
January New Years

February Aaron's Snowboarding Bachelor Party

June Jaymie's Bachelor Party

October Dave & Christina Wedding Shower

September Dave's Bachelor Party

October Dave & Christina's Wedding

truk and kath in australia

2002 - Australia - Memphis
January Tasmania - Port Arthur [1st] | Tasmania - East Coast [2nd]
April Queensland [1st to 15th]
June Sydney Opera House [11th] | Broken Hill [15th] | South Australia [20th] | Western Australia [26th]
July Darwin, Litchfield, Katherine Gorge [16th
] | Arnham Land [19th] | Kakadu National Park
September Prague Wedding Reception, People, More People, Buildings | Croatia Mainland, Vis
November Kath's Surprise Birthday Party
| Thanksgiving
December Christmas

2001 - Australia
September Peyton's Baptism [2nd] | Apartment [9th] | Cliffwalk [18th] | Footy Final [23rd]
October Koori Knockout [1st] | Vigoro [20th] | North Sydney Beaches [30th]
November Sports Awards [9th]
December Tasmania - Cataract Gorge [30th] | Tasmania - Cradle Mountain [30th] | Tasmania - West and South [31st]

1999 - Southern Africa
Cape Town | Garden Route | Jo'berg | Victoria Falls | Stellenbosch

1998 - Peru
Lima | Huancayo | Ayacucho | Cuzco | Machu Picchu/Puno | Lake Titicaca | La Paz | Arequipa | Colca Canyon | Nazca/Pisco/Lima

1997 - Prague, Greece, Turkey
Prague | Cesky Krumlov | Romania | Alexandropolis | Samothraki | Ruins | Prague

1996 - Australia
Sydney

1995 - Asia, Silk Route
Turkmenistan | Kyrgyzstan | Kashi/Urumqi | Iron Rooster | Beijing | Great Wall | Hong Kong | Philippines

1994-1995 - Prague

Other Trips - Greers Ferry Lake (2001)






Arkansas Expats
A collection of friends


Peebo.net
Jeff Parker's blog


Knurd.com
Stephen Espy's blog


Issafly
Brad Sim's blog


Jim's Astrophotography Page
My uncle's cool collection of pics from around the galaxy


truk.com
truk and kath's website


The Tackle Box by Matt


The Adventures of Pete Big Bear
Follow the adventures of Pete Big Bear while he roams around the US


Crotchfish
A witty (and true) look at all things library, political, and trivial.


A Foolish Consistency
CinemaApprentice's blog; great advice on movies and books


From a Place Near a River
Lady Di is online and loving it


Dave and Christina
Dave and Christina are building their own house!


Life Beyond Expection
Kath's CF blog


dodo.com Travel Community
Place to meet other travelers and post your travel stories


Jethro Williams Travel Blog
A man from England, working his way around the world


Travelogues

please: contact truk

©1996-2010 • All Rights Reserved | dedicated to Sara Low