Butterfly pavilion near Denver.

The pavilion is actually located in Westminister CO. We have gone there a few times. Lost of butterfly’s floating and flying around. It is very very warm inside, so best not to go in the middle of summer.

I don’t remember how many different types of butterflies and moths they have, but it was worth the time and trip. If your trying to take pictures, my suggestion would use a burst mode if your camera allows it and also a fast speed. Some butterflies can be seen relaxing on various plants, others seem none stop and always on the move. Kids of all ages really seemed to have fun there. If your in CO and have a little spare time I would recommend this for the family.

I believe they are open every day. To contact them visit there web site at:

https://www.butterflies.org/

The Sound of Music

While traveling along the Eastern part of the U.S. of A. I heard about a place that I knew my wife would love to visit. It is located in Stowe Vermont. It is the Trappp Family lodge. This was the family that was portrayed in “The Sound of Music” movie many years ago.

SONY DSC — One of many signs along the way

I had scheduled dinner reservations ahead of time. The food was wonderful, the atmosphere was very relaxing and very beautiful. There was a gentleman that was playing the piano and selling some of his cd’s, he was a very talented individual. We also went on a wagon ride of the property which was relaxing.

We went during the fall (Early Oct.) so the trees were all very nice and bright.

We did not stay the night there, as we had other travel plans, but many people were. If your travels take you through Vermont I would recommend this place to visit, especially if you or someone who your traveling with enjoys that movie.

Alaska wild animal Sancutary

So if you get to Anchorage Alaska, and want to go for a drive and possibly see some wildlife, take highway 1 south about 30 miles and right across from Whittier. It’s at mile marker 79. There is an amazing wildlife sanctuary.

They have almost any animal that you may see in the wild parts of Alaska, moose, brown bears, reindeer, elk and many others. During the summer I believe they are open every day and during the winter they are open on weekends. You can drive around the area or I suggest to see the animals the best and to get some incredible pictures park your car and walk around the area. The animals are behind fences, but nothing like a zoo.

This is definitely a place to take the kids, and they will enjoy it. If you go let me know what you thought. Then when your done you could drive to the Portage Glacier which is very close and also worth seeing.

Their web site is: https://www.alaskawildlife.org/

Crab Boat Tour Ketchikan AK

One of the tours that many people go on, while in Ketchikan is the crab boat tour. It’s about a 3.5 to 4 hour tour. I have been on it 4 or 5 times, usually taking someone who is visiting us. The ship is the Aleutian Ballad. The crew takes you out, shows you how crab pots work, they have some preset ones that they pull you for you. They show you different types of crab also from small ones to kings. The tour is very informative and the crew is very friendly.

At one point they attract some bald eagles. I have seen over 30 flying around the ship and feeding from the water, but toward the end of the season I have seen less than 10. They give you the opportunity to hold various sea creatures, if you want. This is a rain or shine tour. Best place is on top deck to get some good eagle pictures, on the bottom deck if you want to handle stuff. I believe that there are age restrictions for small kids.

Shrine of St Therese, Juneau AK

So a year ago my wife and I went to Juneau AK, so that i could take my drone license test and become a certified drone pilot, which I did. While there we went for a drive north of Juneau, and came across “The Shrine of St. Therese”. We are not Catholic but decided to check out the place, especially after we read some reviews of the place on-line. The atmosphere was very peaceful, though there were a lot of birds squawking ,trying to divert of attention away from the peace that God had in store for us.

There was a path that we had to follow to get to the shrine. It was raining lightly, however the tree coverage kept us mostly dry. My wife had hurt her leg and it was hard for her to walk very far. We were impressed and thankful that they had a few free wheelchairs that people could use while they visited. This really helped a lot.

There were several monuments that you could spend time at.

Here also was an interesting rock garden.

This was a very peaceful area, and I believe that you can rent out the area for events, lie maybe weddings. If you get to Juneau Alaska, then stop by here and get relaxed.

Legoland CA

Who hasn’t played with Lego’s at least once ? Most kids in the USA I would guess either have some or know someone who has some. A few years ago I found out that Lego’s aren’t just for kids. We took some of our family to S. CA and one of the stops was Legoland in Carlsbad. SONY DSC

There was so much to see there, especially the miniature section. They had New Orleans, San Francisco, New York, and many other places all made out of Legos.

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They also had a Star Wars Section when we were there.

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It was a place definitely on my must-see-list. They even had their own water park and aquarium.

Saratoga Springs NY

In our travels, a few years ago, we went to Saratoga Springs in New York and stayed a few days. We had never been there before. Saratoga Springs is wildly known for its mineral springs all over he town.

And for it’s famous horse racing.

Near the horse racing track are some old big mansions that were very photo worthy.

There were many many more interesting and incredible places to view and see there. I don’t know if we will ever make it back there, but we enjoyed our time there and would recommend visiting there if you get a chance.