Jutta in the California Desert

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Jutta Engelhardt and Caroline Wise at Joshua Tree National Park in California

After a good long rest to get over jetlag, we were on our first getaway with a weekend trip to California.

Joshua Tree National Park in California

Our first stop was at the Joshua Tree National Park.

Joshua Tree National Park in California

We took our time strolling through the desert so Jutta gets a nice close look at the details of what lives here.

Joshua Tree National Park in California

From dragonflies to tarantulas, we spotted more than a few signs of wildlife calling this home.

Jutta Engelhardt at Joshua Tree National Park in California

I’ve said it before, but it bears saying again: it might have taken me a long time to get my mother-in-law to show us a natural smile, but she finally got it figured out.

Joshua Tree National Park in California

Along the way, Caroline has been doing a workbook so she could earn her Junior Ranger badge. While Jutta is actively participating in helping Caroline, the prize will be Caroline’s alone.

Caroline Wise at Joshua Tree National Park in California

Back at the visitor center, Caroline turned in her research and studied answers and was once again sworn in as a Junior Ranger.

Mother and Daughter

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Jutta Engelhardt and her Daughter Caroline Wise in Phoenix, Arizona

This visit with Jutta will be different than all of her previous vacations to America. This is a slow trip. During the other times in the United States, we always had epic road trips across America in order for her to catch up on a lifetime of never having been here. We wanted her to see as much as possible and so we took her to New York City and the Statue of Liberty, the White House in Washington D.C., the Florida Keys for snorkeling, New Orleans, Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Alcatraz, and a thousand points between. With her hip limiting her mobility and her strength not what it used to be, we are taking it easy and just letting her spend time with us in our normal routine. Of course, there will be some short excursions but nothing too taxing.

Jutta Back Behind The Wheel

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Jutta Engelhardt driving in Colorado

Fresh off the plane and on our way south. When I offered Jutta the opportunity to drive the car, she jumped at the chance. On a previous visit back in 2005, she also took the wheel with me out on a road trip, the first time in more than 20 years since she’d driven last. I thought she might be too jet-lagged to be sharp about things, but I guess the thought of driving once more in America was the jolt of energy that cleared away that fog.

El Camino Family Restaurant in Socorro, New Mexico

To not fatigue Jutta or have her gimp hip sitting too long in the car, we stayed in Socorro, New Mexico, for the night. This was not her first time here. During the winter of 2007, we dragged her out for New Year’s Day to Bosque Del Apache National Wildlife Refuge on an icy morning for her to witness the lift-off of some 30,000 snow geese at the break of dawn. She also ate here at El Camino Family Restaurant, as we always eat here, some days even multiple times a day.

Jutta Engelhardt at El Camino Family Restaurant in Socorro, New Mexico

After dinner, we had pie and coffee while kicking back at the diner. That’s the American way.

Boulder, Colorado

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Boulder, Colorado

Took the day to drive up to Denver, Colorado, on a mission to pick up my mother-in-law, Jutta. Earlier in the year, she fell and broke her hip. While visiting her immediately after her surgery, we told her that if she worked hard to recover, we’d have her over as soon as she was fit. That time is now seven months later, but to make traveling easier for her and as short as possible, the closest non-stop flight was into Denver from Frankfurt, so here I am on my way.

Slow Drive

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Somewhere in Colorado

Vague stuff here because this wasn’t added until February 2023. I know I stopped in Moab, Utah, on the way to Colorado, as I have quite the blurry photo of me standing in front of Steve Kenny’s old Ford Bronco with the Colorado license plate RUHAIRY. Our boatman from the Grand Canyon Dory trip back in 2010 was now working for OARS in Moab, so I stopped in to say hi. The photo is likely not too far from Boulder, Colorado, where I spent the night.