By this Author: Where2FromHere

This past weekend was a three day celebration with both our two-legged and four-legged friends, Saddling up for a late afternoon ride, Dean on Gringo, the "kids", Hawk "in heaven", Jeff on Amber

And then we have the two "Best ever" mares - Hawk and Amber who seem to saying .. "Hey get us outta here!"

There was a unique thawing process for "the bird" .. it's called the Western Hot Tub. Thanks to our two fantastic chefs - Dean and Trent - who made our meals in the Great Outdoors .. and contributions from all to add to the festivities - Cathy even brought her Rum Cake (and didn't leave it on the steps this time And I was in charge of my usual cinnamon pecan coffee cake (made two this time cuz it's something you don't want to run out of with a hot cup of coffee on a frosty morning).

And what's a day in the wilderness without a few "Projects"??? The boys rigged a symbol from a drum set above the fire to keep the heat from going skyward and the ladies got ready for the holidays to come with some incredible works of art.

While waiting to depart early Sunday morning from Wisconsin, to what should may wondering eyes appear ... but the most spectacular sunrise I've seen in my lifetime. Here it is for your viewing pleasure .....

It's only a month away before the trip of a lifetime. Hope you'll join us as we travel around the world. One short trip to Colorado before we begin packing (oh boy.. for 9 months!) and then we're off to Salt Lake City for our flight to Miami. As Pablo Coelho once said >

What a great time we're having being back in Wisconsin.
The family-owned company which was started by my grandfather, Fred Schwerman, celebrated 110 years in business this year. In 1913, he built his first truck and since then the business has been operated by my father, my brother and now my nephew and niece (and perhaps in the distant future ... by the next generation of Schwermans).

Following the company's anniversary celebration, we traveled to Door County for the festivitiies surrounding our Wyoming neighbor's daugher's marriage to a young man who grew up a stone's throw from where my family lived just prior to when I was heading off to college. We haven't been to Door county since we biked on Washington Island back in the 70's. So we took the ferry over to the island for the day. Below is a photo of the beautiful morning at the ferry dock where the clouds looked like mountain peaks in the distance. And what a great day we had!

First, we joined the Bitter's Club at Nelson's Hall. So you ask ... what is the Bitter's club? Well, back in the days of prohibition there was a man with the surname Nelson who owned a tavern on the island. He wanted to continue to serve alcohol so he became a Pharmacist who could serve Bitters as a digestive aid. Bitters is 90 proof alcohol and does in fact taste somewhat to mostly "Bitter". To join the club you must drink a shot of Agostura bitters .. then dip you finger in the shot glass and add your print to your Bitter's Club membership card. As the story goes, a federal agent stopped by the Tavern during prohibition and found a tipsy crowd. He wanted to close down the tavern for violation of the Volstead Act. As a result the tavern owner went before the judge, with a shot glass of Bitters and asked him to consume it. The judge determined no one would willing buy or drink the product so he allowed Nelson's Hall to remain open. Therefore, it is the longest, consecutive running tavern in the United States. Well, we'll drink to that!!

I think perhaps some patrons of Nelson's Hall built this first snowmobile back in 1930 after consuming their share of bitters....

We also went to an old maritime museum while on Washington Island. Below is a photo of an old 4 (huge) cylinder engine from one of the ships as well as a rudder (massive) from the Carolina .. as ship that just happened to sink in Lake Michigan in the storm of October 1913! Lots happening that year .. Fortunately for our family it was the start of something not only big .. but endurring! So here's to 1913!!

Although we haven't traveled much lately, we've been enjoying some fun around Wyoming! Everything from Rodeos to "Fishing"
Just a few weeks ago we had a great adventure ... a fossil dig and a visit to Fossil Butte National Monument near Kemmerer, WY

Most people don't know that millions of years ago there was an inland "ocean" nearby.

And buried in the remnants of this old body of water are some incredible finds ... even a fossil of a crocodile!

While we weren't able to find anything that huge, we did "dig up" a 50 million old fish and learned it's a Priscacara serrata -

I did an AI search and here's what I now know about this amazing find!

• Physical Description: Priscacara serrata had a deep, oval body with protective dorsal and anal spines. It had a large mouth with an impressive array of teeth and a fan-shaped tail. Its lower jaw was slightly upturned and protruded

• Habitat: Priscacara serrata is best known from the Green River Formation of Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado. This formation is famous for its well-preserved fossils from the Eocene Era, which is approximately 50 million years old

• Behavior: Mass deaths of Priscacara suggest that it formed schools. This behavior is common among many fish species and can provide protection against predators.

• Size: Fossils of Priscacara serrata have been found in various sizes. For example, there is a specimen that measures a huge 10.6 inches long (Our fish was about that big!)

• Relation to Sunfish: Priscacara serrata is considered an ancestor of today's sunfish.

Our thanks to the folks at In Stone Fossils in Kemmerer who restored our FIND! When we first found our fish you could only see a portion and the rest was buried in quarry stone. If ever in the area be sure to stop in their shop ... it's like traveling back to the Eocene Era!

We began the day by heading out of Hobart to visit Russell Falls. Once there, we hiked through an amazing forest - that's me standing in one of the giant trees that has fallen over. There was a canopy of trees overhead that stretched upward to the sunlight. Lots of birds calling to one another and eventually we reached the beautiful falls.

From there we drove through various farmlands - including this one growing hops for the beer production - to the quaint town of Richmond. We saw the old sandstone bridge and had a great lunch in one of the small cafes.

Then there was the moment Jeff has been waiting for for years - his chance to see the famous Tasmanian Devil. Pretty vicious creatures as I understand it. They live primarily on road kill and will devour 40% of their body weight in one feeding, eating the fur, skin, meat and bones. Word to the wise - don't pet the devils!

At the sanctuary we were also able to see the cute, cuddly Wombats - short-legged, muscular quadrupedal marsupials that are native to Australia. And of course, we couldn't miss the kangaroos hopping about in search of anyone who would feed them - so Jeff obliged and we saw a young one nestled next to mom for its nourishment.

The final stop was Mt. Wellington. Kind of a scary drive up to the top as the guardrails definitely did not look like they would stop a vehicle from cascading down the mountainside if it went of the narrow road. But the view from the top down to the town of Hobart, the bay and the Pacific Ocean was incredible.

Tomorrow we leave to return to Sydney where we celebrate our 50th anniversary and board our ship to take us to the islands of the South Pacific! See you then!