Time to Travel

This was a gray weekend on the Gunflint Trail. We had a fair amount of rain. At this point all the swamps in the area are full. This means that any additional rain immediately overflows and raises the lake levels. Since Gunflint is already higher than it was last spring, who knows how high it will get. Lee estimates that 4 more inches will bring it above the top of the main cribbing. Of course, our hope is that the rain stops now and starts again in late November in the form of snow.

As fall moves on, Bruce and I are getting ready to take another trip. On the 17th of October we are off for six weeks. The first two and a half weeks will be in eastern Turkey with a group of 15. The next two weeks will be in Egypt with a group of 10. Finally just Bruce and I will spend 10 days in England alone. All of the people in each group are friends of ours. It should be a great time.

Right now we are in the preparation stage. One of the most difficult things to understand is the new limits and rules on luggage on airplanes. The rules change depending on whether it is a domestic flight, an international flight with one stop in the U. S. or an international flight with no stops in the U. S. Luckily that is Bruce’s problem to solve. We did, however, buy new lightweight luggage to help keep us under the weight limits.

Meanwhile I have been reading guide books and collecting maps. I must admit to being a little overwhelmed by all the pharaohs of Egypt. Turkey is of great interest to me because my parental grandparents were from that area. My father was Armenian and my mother was Norwegian. I am the Norwegian and my sister is the Armenian. So it will be fun to see an area that my family has roots in. Our trip in England will be centered in the Cotswold area. We have been there before and particularly like the walking paths from village to village.

It is my hope to find regular internet connections during the trip. I’ll try to find something interesting to write to all of you. Isn’t it wonderful the way we can all communicate with each other from almost anywhere in the world?

Back here at Gunflint, Bruce and I are busy buttoning up the outside for the winter. Bruce has hauled enough fire wood under the roof of the front porch for the next two years. I am pulling out the remains of this summer’s garden. Our green beans are still bearing vegetables. The parsley is also doing really well. Next on my list is the clean the annual flower gardens.

As our trip approaches, the must-do list seems to be getting longer. Pretty soon I might panic. I’ll let you know what gets done and what is undone before we leave.