Alabama & California

We started our trip in Atlanta for a few days with Brian, his family and his adorable dog Mugsy.

Atlanta was in full blossom with gorgeous magnolia trees everywhere.  This one was in Brian's yard.  Dave got to go to an Atlanta United soccer game, we went on a beautiful hike and had the best ice cream ever at a place called Bruster's before leaving town.

We stayed at an Airbnb in Gulf Shores, Alabama. There were some huge alligators that we spotted.

It was still chilly in the area, but the beaches had nice white sands and lots of sea birds.

Gulf Shores sunset.

It was a great family vacation, spending time with Dad, Mike, Isaac and Abby.  This was at Fort Morgan historic site.

Fort Morgan is a historic masonry pentagonal bastion fort built between 1819 - 1833.

Sunset in Alabama

Turtles in the Audobon Bird Sanctuary on Dauphin Island.  We took the ferry for the day.

Bellingrath Gardens was a huge treat after such a long winter in Alaska!

The azalea shrubs were in gorgeous pink and purple blossom all over the grounds.

Bellingrath Gardens, Alabama

Hydrangea & Lizard

We toured the USS Alabama, which was awesome!  It's a self-guided tour and you get to walk all around the ship and see some aircraft as a bonus at the end of the tour.

Inside the USS Drum, a submarine, near the USS Alabama.  This is the second submarine we've gotten to tour (first was the U-505 in the Science and Industry Museum in Chicago) and it's so awesome to see what life must have been like on board.

Pelican with Orange Beach in the background.

Abby, Isaac & Mike joined us for a week.

An outdoor dinner and family photo.

Gulf State Park Fishing Pier

Uncle Dave and Abby outside the Naval Aviation Museum, after we toured the Pensacola Lighthouse.

After another 3 weeks at work, we started our time off in Boise.  We rented an Airbnb on the greenbelt with an incredible view of the river from the living room.

I was in town for a 4 day Wilderness Medicine course.  We biked on the river greenbelt trails after class and enjoyed Boise's downtown restaurants for dinner.  Lots of fruit trees were blooming!

Headed out for a bike ride.

After my WFR class, we flew to Reno to visit family.

We had a nice time bowling, each of us getting strikes and spares... and gutterballs.

I got to see Grandma too and help her remember some crocheting patterns.

We took a springtime trip down to Auburn and the Sierra Nevadas.

There was still quite a pile of snow left on the top of Donner Pass.

We stayed at an Airbnb in Auburn, and visited the family park we frequented when I was a kid.

There were lots of beautiful springtime shrubs in bloom such as this peppermint Camellia.

Pink Camellia in Auburn, CA.

Pink Dogwood tree blossom in Auburn, CA.

We walked around the historic downtown portion of Auburn, which we hadn't done before and it was a great place for a walk.  Lots of old buildings, pretty flowers and statues.

Downtown Auburn.

Afterward, we visited Lake Clementine Dam and hiked around the area.

We had a great time sightseeing with my parents!

Dave hadn't seen Empire Mine State Historic Park so we took him there for a walk on their grounds and to see inside the mine shaft.

Flowers at Empire Mine.

Mine shaft at Empire Mine State Historic Park.

Small Gauge Rail Museum in Nevada City, California. We had a nice Italian lunch downtown after.

Mountain Lion napping at the Animal Ark wildlife refuge in Reno, Nevada.  

Springtime was incredibly beautiful with plenty of flowers everywhere we went.  In an effort to avoid snow and the cold winter in McCall, we took a trip first to Atlanta and Alabama and next time off to Reno and the Sierra Nevada in California.  We had a wonderful time seeing both our families, Brian and his family and DJ and Karen in Atlanta.  Love you all and thanks for looking at our photos!