When you first encounter Helena, Montana, you might wonder how such a diversity of architectural lines could happen, from minaret to mansion in cowboy country. We drove into town on Prospect Avenue. About the time it intersected with a street called... Read More | Share it now!

For our final day in Helena, Montana, we moved from an early mass in Cathedral of Saint Helena to Gates of the Mountains Boat tour on the Missouri River. In a way, the architecture of a Gothic cathedral with the nave and transept below soaring arches... Read More | Share it now!

For patrons of the Utah Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City who want to explore the state a little between performances, be sure to visit Utah’s unique Pando Forest in September while the aspens are displaying fall colors. I’ve enjoyed the beautiful... Read More | Share it now!

I hadn’t recognized stolid forbearance as a national quality until I waited in a silent line of passengers that snaked back and forth over a concrete floor for over three hours at US Customs in Washington-Dulles International Airport. Date: Tuesday,... Read More | Share it now!

Detailed travel plans have the advantage of efficiency, but less often do they encompass the thrill of serendipitous discovery. If you turn down one road and not another as a spur-of-the-moment choice, and then discover unexpected loveliness, your most... Read More | Share it now!

Visiting Seattle from Bainbridge Island is an everyday event for many residents, since the island is something of a bedroom community for workers commuting to Seattle. For us, however, the ferry ride held all the delights of a rare experience. The... Read More | Share it now!

Exploring the many pleasures of Bainbridge Island included attending the musical, Peter Pan, as produced by Kitsap Forest Theater. It began raining lightly in the parking lot, but the trees protected us for the most part as we walked down the trail to... Read More | Share it now!

Since our duties were very light, exploring Bainbridge Island while house-sitting became a pleasurable afternoon event. Whether it was sprinkling, drizzling, raining, or merely overcast, we ventured out. The Scenic Byway road seems to be carved from a... Read More | Share it now!

The pleasures of house-sitting on Bainbridge Island turned out to be many and varied. I recently joined a website that lists house-sitting opportunities worldwide. After searching by date and destination–the Puget Sound area–we found the... Read More | Share it now!

If you’re heading to the Puget Sound, is it better to fly or take a road trip into the Pacific Northwest? When time is less a factor and if you’re coming from the south, the entire west coast is too beautiful to miss by flying over it. However, if... Read More | Share it now!