Follow me around the world
Expedition Team: Dave Miller, Rosie Miller Date: September 30, 2019
We drove to Beehive Trail and soon viewed petrified logs, white domes & sandstone formations shaped like…beehives, which were eroded by wind & water. We hiked the .5-mile trail and climbed some rock formations. The parks name came from the way the sunlight hits the red sandstone and gives it a glow.
Expedition Team: Nick Kelly, Jacque Kelly, Holly Eller, Rosie Miller, Dave Miller, Matt Miller, Breanna Miller Date: June 2020
The advertised 18 mile Rail to Trail was a huge disappointment as the bike/hike trail was only about 1.25 mile long as collapsed train trestles over creeks were yet to be made into trail bridges. The parking lot was small and there were no portajohns. We hiked east to the across Racoon Creek to Moonville Tunnel which was only a quarter of a mile from the parking lot. We climbed up old concrete stairs to the top of the tunnel and did the famous “O-H-I-O” pose. Your voice echoed loudly inside of the haunted tunnel. Outside of the tunnel the bike/hike path turned from smooth to large gravel and ended in a creek where the railroad bridge was gone and only the stone abutments remained. Matt & Holly climbed up onto a fallen tree. Many large monarch butterflies flew around us and we waded across the creek on a treacherous stone path. The overgrown hiking trail led us another quarter mail to another creek without a bridge where we explored and then turned back around. Nick, Jacque and baby Kelly posed by Moonville Tunnel.
Expedition Team: Dave Miller, Rosie Miller Expedition Date: September 30, 2019
Attended a wonderful Catholic Mass in Cedar City, Utah & then drove 125 miles to Valley of Fire State Park . Just when we thought we have seen every rock formation possible, we hiked the 2 mile Fire Wave Trail past red sandstone formations formed during the age of dinosaurs. At the end was incredible, smooth, beautiful wave looking formations.
Expedition Team: Dave Miller, Rosie Miller Expedition Date: September 17, 2019
This was a fun outdoor Roadside Attraction. Rosie & I enjoyed the zip line and steep climbing bridges. One funny note, on the last long zip line going over the woods and the Meramec River, Rosie came up a yard short at the end. The guide failed to grab her hand and I watched Rosie slide backwards 100 feet where she came to a stop over the river. I thought that was it. I would have to finish the vacation by myself. Luckily, the guide had to crawl all the way out on the cable, wrap his legs around Rosie and hand over hand pull them both back. The Meramec Caverns and our KOA Campground are just off famous Route 66.
Expedition Team: Dave Miller, Rosie Miller Expedition Date: September 16, 2019
Rosie and I camped at the Stanton, Missouri KOA and toured Meramec Caverns just off Route 66 where Jesse James and his brother Frank once hid out after robbing a train. The caverns, a 4.6 mile cave system opened in the 1930’s, were beautiful with colored stalactites, rock formations, underground spring, a 50 ft. by 50 ft. ballroom & a consistent temperature of 58 degrees.
Brief Jesse James Cave History: Jesse & Frank escaped Meramec Cavern through a water filled passageway and out the back of the cave. At Loot Rock, four items (lantern, two parts of a rifle & a strongbox dating to the Gadshill, Missouri train robbery) were found. Jesse had been familiar with the cave since back in the Civil War as his gang of Confederates in 1864 raided a squad of Union soldiers who were mining the cave to make explosives.
In 17 years, the Jesse James gang robbed more than a quarter of a million dollars from banks, stage coaches and trains. He was shot in the back and killed in 1882 by Bob Ford, a fellow gang member, whom collected the reward money. However, a man in Lawton, Oklahoma named Frank Dalton claimed to be the real Jesse James and lived to be 103 years old Photo #11). Do you think he looks like young Jesse (Photo#12).
Expedition Team: Nick Kelly, Jacque Kelly, Dave Miller, Holly Eller, Justin Eller
Expedition Team: 2017 & August 3, 2019
This is an astounding Roadside Attraction. It’s not a normal zip line because after the first test zip line, the remainder are in the dark cave. Holly & Justin joined me the first time with Jacque & Nick joining me two years later. The Louisville Mega Cavern, is a former limestone mine that extends under the Louisville Zoo and the Waterson Expressway. Year around temperature is 58 degrees. Nine zips total plus a Indiana Jones like swaying walking bridge across a deep gorge which is quite challenging. We highly recommend it.
Expedition Team: Jacque Kelly, Dave Miller Expedition Date: April 2018
The week we were in Athens, twice Jacque and I hiked a wooded trail, one of Athens seven hills called Mt. Lycabettus. It was a 908 foot hike up the moderate to strenuous trail to the summit where the Chapel of St. George and a restaurant were located. Photo#1 shows a unique modern art of a person jogging and in the top right corner is the Chapel way up on top of the mountain. Photos#3 & #4 show Jacque leading the way up the mostly wooded trail.
The Chapel of St. George sits atop the summit of the trail which is the highest point in Athens. The whitewashed Orthodox Chapel, built in the 19th century, has a beautiful bell tower (Photo#5) and is surrounded at the base by pine trees.
On one morning hike I helped a 90 year old woman clean up the grounds around the chapel. On the second hike Jacque followed (stalked) a group of soldiers who, twice on a daily basis, made the trek in order to raise and lower the Greek flag by the chapel (Photo#6).
I have to admit, by the bell tower on the summit you have the best panoramic views overlooking all of Athens (Page #7 & #8).
Discovered an ancient olive tree on the hike down (Photo#9). We had to stop and could not cross the street to our hotel as a half mile log group supporting the communist party protested down the street because USA had just bombed Syria. Our hotel was in lock down since many Americans were staying there. Surprise – on the hiking trail we ran into Hall of Fame Horror Movie Host “The Creeper” who was also vacationing in Greece (Photo#11).
Hiking Team: Rosie Miller, Dave Miller
Hiking Date: June????20????
To celebrate our 30th??? anniversary, we spent a week at a Sandals resort near Fort Rodney, St. Lucia in the south Caribbean. Hiking the famous world heritage site Pitons was our #1 goal.
THE PITONS: The Pitons are two volcanic plugs or large lava domes located by the small town of Soufriere on the western coast. The Gros Piton is 2,530 feet high (90 feet higher than the Petit Piton). Scientists have recorded 148 plant species, 27 bird species and 8 rare tree species on Gros Piton.
THE HIKE: The van ride through the winding St. Lucia roads took 1 hour 45 minutes to travel 32 miles. Rosie got car sick. The driver stopped the van, took his machete and cut a coconut from a tree in the rain forest. He made Rosie drink the juice and she immediately got better. Good native medicine. The small town of Soufriere was quaint and hundreds of grade school children were cute wearing their Catholic uniforms. A small village was at the base of the Pitons. We waved and spoke to several families with cute small children with big smiles. Our group consisted of three native guides and 12 hikers.
The strenuous trail up Gros Piton began at sea level and climbed all 2,500 feet. Hiking up the mountain side was very tough, steep and rocky going up. Half way up the rocks turned to a dirt trail. Hiking through the trail we were surrounded by rain forest conditions and 90 degree temperature. I carried a backpack with water and cliff bars. A large tarantula scampered across the trail in front of us. At the summit the visibility was breathtaking. You could look east and see the island of Barbados. It was a very treacherous and challenging decent along the trail but worth every ache and pain. The whirlpool, the swimming pool and a few drinks back at the resort restored us.
Expedition Team: Dave Miller, Rosie Miller Expedition Date: July 1, 2018
After hiking Kenai Fjords National Park, we drove on toward Seward, Alaska. A fatal car accident stopped all traffic for one hour. Being the only road to Seward we were stuck. We took a walk and at one isolated house we saw some unique yard art including a stuffed man. Once traffic began we drove to Portage Glacier. Rosie along with Marsha from Switzerland took a ride on the Portage Glacier Cruise around the large lake. The remainder of the group and I hiked the Trail of Blue Ice in the Chugach National Forest, a two mile trail trail where, at the end, you could see the glacier in the distance. The trail (Photo#5-#8) gave us scenic opportunities to take photos of snowy mountains reflecting off the water and small artistic shaped icebergs floating in the lake.
By 7pm we finally arrived at the coastal city of Seward. Pioneers settled here in the 1890’s and the town was incorporated in 1912. Work began around this time to build the Alaskan Railroad. Seward is nicknamed the “Mural Capital of Alaska” which were seen on many buildings (Photo#9). We spent the night at Murphy’s Alaskan Motel, two blocks from the wharf. Dinner was salmon and hot soup at a restaurant while watching sea lions (Photo#10) float in the harbor.
Expedition Team: Jacque Kelly, Rosie Miller, Justin Eller, Holly Miller, Dave Miller
Date: September 15, 2018
The 5K Run course took us through downtown, out onto a trail between the floodwall (with beautiful, historical painted murals) and the Ohio River and then through the Tue-Endie-Wei State Park past Chief Cornstock’s grave . All four of us runners placed in our respective age groups: Holly and Dave finished in second place; Justin and Jacque finished in third place. Holly was the 3rd place overall female runner in the entire race. I was so happy that I won a medal as this was my last running race as my cancer came back five weeks later.
