Road Trip Conclusion - Part 7 - CONCLUSION

The next and final stop on our road trip is... SAN DIEGO!

Here I am at the Bob Hope Memorial in San Diego. Bob Hope was a wonderful and talented entertainer who loved performing for the troops. He did a lot of USO Tours around the world to lift the morale of troops stationed abroad.

Everyone can use a good laugh, right? So many people were touched by Bob Hope's work.

Behind me is the USS Midway Museum, which is actually an aircraft carrier! We will go onboard shortly.

But let's take a look around and see what else is on the shore. There is a really cool ship behind me here. I'm not sure what it is exactly, but Coronado is just across the bay and that is where the Navy SEALS do a lot of their training. I'm still waiting for the Navy BEARS program to open up...

And this is... woah. This status is called "Unconditional Surrender." This statue resembles the famous "V-J Day in Times Square" photo. We'll leave them alone for now, heh...

Ok, time to get onboard the USS Midway! I'm in the hangar and there are so many planes like this one. We also went into the auditorium and watched a brief film about the Battle of Midway - it's a fascinating, action-packed story! The average age of sailors on ships like these was 19 years old.

Now we're going inside the deck to see some of the other exhibits. If you're claustrophobic, maybe you should wait outside. And watch your head and your knees! We will be climbing through some small entryways that are designed for sealing off any water leaks.

Here is what one of the officer's work areas looked like. Some desks, filing cabinets, and they also had some decent personal living spaces.

But if you're a low-ranking sailor, then here's your bunk. I call top bunk!

There are offices full of binders and charts with task assignments. This is a very busy ship.

We have things to do and places to go - so meet me in the ready room!

This is your Captain speaking! We have Sandy on refueling duties, Little Fox in the pilot's seat, Jerry & Ben cooking up a storm in the galley, and Droopy in the anchor room!

What? You don't like your assignment? Well, too bad! You don't want to be thrown overboard, do you? 😉

Captain Ajdin here at the controls. I wonder what all these buttons do.

There are several teams within the navigation control room of the ship, with many radar supercomputers and communication devices. In the middle of the room, the captain sits on a stool so he can see everything that is going on. It's not an easy job! Many important decisions must be made quickly here.

We will head down to the anchor room. If you're new on the ship, you'll most likely start out working here. Each anchor link chain weighs 156 pounds, with the anchor weighing 40,000 pounds. I think I will need Uncle Tibbs' help here.

We will be tying knots on this ship. Lots of them. So study up!

Okay, time to go up to the flight deck. It's a beautiful day!

There are dozens and dozens of helicopters and aircraft on the flight deck here!

Do you think anyone will mind if I ride in one and fly it away?

This one looks like it has a saucer on its back. It's actually a radar and this plane would be tasked for surveillance missions. Very cool!

Time to take off!

And this is the plane of John Glenn, Jr., the first American to orbit the earth in 1962. Prior to being an astronaut, he was an aviator in the United States Marine Corps. Cool

Well, that does it for this super road trip! Time to go home and rest up for our next trip! 

Mega Road Trip, Part 4 - Hoover Dam

 Our road trip continues!

After we left Williams, AZ, we headed to... THE HOOVER DAM! Now I really feel like this is National Lampoon's Vacation.

The Hoover Dam was built between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression. It was dedicated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936. It cost $49 million to build back then in 1931, which is about $675 million in today's money.

The Hoover Dam is a type of concrete arch-gravity dam and holds back Lake Mead, providing hydroelectric power to millions of people in the area. It's possible to tour the power plant below, but it was closed due to the pandemic.

It's a looong way down this dam! I'm looking over the edge - don't let me go, mom!

Here is the official plaque. It used to be named the Boulder Dam but was renamed to the Hoover Dam after President Herbert Hoover in 1947.

And just across the way is the Mike O'Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge which was more recently built in 2010.

Mike O'Callaghan was a former governor of Nevada, and Pat Tillman was a former NFL player who served in the U.S. Army and gave the ultimate sacrifice.

The construction of the dam was such a significant milestone, as such a large concrete structure had never been built before. The work was dangerous and an estimated 112 people lost their lives while building it. Here is a memorial for all the brave workers who died.

The artwork in the memorial has an art deco theme, and I see the state of California's flag here too. Do you see the bears?

Stay tuned for our next stop on the road trip!

Mega Road Trip, part 3 - Route 66

Our Super Duper Road Trip continues! After leaving the Grand Canyon, we headed south and stayed at a town called Williams, Arizona. This town is known as the "Gateway to the Grand Canyon" and has a train station with trains going to the Grand Canyon Village.

This is me in front of one of the trains. We didn't ride on it, though.

Williams also lies on the historic Route 66 highway, one of the original highways in the U.S. Highway System. Let's take a look around!

You'll see lots of flags flying in this town.

And classic cars like this one...

Maybe I should paint my car this color?

We also walked by Pete's Gas Station Museum. It was closed and we could not find Pete, but we did peek inside and saw lots of memorabilia. I can't believe fuel pumps used to look like this!

Me in front of a nice, rusty, old kerosene pump.

I ran into a fellow bear as well. Hello there!

And here's another classic car just parked on the street!

In one of the souvenir shops, there was an Elvis Presley "The King" fortune teller. Pure Americana!

That's our visit on this part of Historic Route 66! I wonder where our next stop will be...

Mega Road Trip Part 2: Grand Canyon

Our road trip continues...

DID YOU KNOW... You can get a national park pass for $85 and it will give you an annual membership to over a hundred national parks? That's well worth the price, as some park admission fees are $35 per vehicle.

Today we are heading to Grand Canyon National Park! The main parking lot here is just a 5-minute walk away from Mather Point, which offers tremendous views.

The Grand Canyon National Park covers a whopping 1,217,262 acres and shows off layers of red rock that reveal millions of years of history.

"Make sure you get my best side," said a familiar voice.

"Let me guess... DROOPY?" He was asking his photographer to take a photo of him. See? I told you we would run into each other again on this trip.

Here's a photo of Grand Canyon from Mather Point - what a beauty!

I don't know about you, but suddenly I feel very, very small standing here in front of the Grand Canyon. And I bet even Uncle Tibbs would feel small also! It is just a breathtaking sight.

If you look closely, you will see some people standing on the outcrop at the left of this photo. Look how tiny they are!

This park is so huge that they have different shuttle buses taking visitors to other parts such as the North Rim and the South Rim, to name a few. But I heard the views here are one of the best!

Did you know only 12 people have thru-hiked the entire 700-mile full length of the Grand Canyon? The terrain is very difficult, requires rock scrambling, the heat can be intense, and it's difficult to resupply on the thru hike.

 

Alright, one more look at this beauty and then we're off to our next stop!