For my return trip to Denmark I am not really planning the itinerary like I would if I were both on my own and working mainly from train schedules. We are however aiming for a few highlights that I figured I would point out for the sake of mention, not listed in any order.
First off I really want to make sure we can visit Egeskov Slot. This is one of the trips that will definitely require the rental car to get to as it is off the island a bit. It is privately owned but still open to the public. It looks really nice and even has the functional moat.
Second would be Frederiksborg Slot which is within range of where George lives as well. I know he has visited the location but has not done the full inside tour. We should hopefully be able to do that.
Third is Rosenborg Slot. Rosenborg is right in downtown Copenhagen and I have pictures of the outside. We intend to visit it in full this time.
Last time I went we visited Roskilde but it was a holiday so the place was moderately closed down. Fortunately the Viking Ship Museum was open as was the ability to row a replica viking ship. Assuming the weather holds up I would like to do this again because I had a real lot of fun the first time but we might actually have enough people to fill the boat up as it will be true summer.
Beyond that we are going to wing the whole trip, these locations included. If we miss some of them I will not be too brokenhearted but those are the main highlights I'd appreciate.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Denmark Next in Late August
My second trip to Denmark is coming up in less than a month already. I again will be staying with George at his apartment but this time am flying KLM Royal Dutch as they had the best price for the trip. I had wished to be there for the timing of George's birthday but will end up being a week later due to pricing differences.
I am again going to Denmark with a less than fully set itinerary for a couple reasons. One, George technically knows the lay of the land and should have some good ideas of where to go on what days. I would like to try the viking boat ride again if the weather is reasonable and we have a couple castles we are planning to visit amongst other things. And two, we are renting a car so we can get around a lot easier and not be tied to specific schedules. We will of course take the trains into Copenhagen for those visits and so we can have a couple drinks here and there (looking forward to some more Tuborg Classic) and so we don't have to worry about obscene parking prices downtown.
The flight out is going to afford me a touchdown in another country I have not visited in the Netherlands. I have to admit I am not really nuts about visiting that country on its own but it will be nice to add another piece of earth to my visit list even if it is airport only.
I will be staying much longer than my last visit so hopefully I will have a better taste of the country overall. With the long weekend run from last time it was really over before it began in many respects though we did pack a lot into that short time. I still hope to pack a lot in but we should have less time constraints on what we do in general, especially with the addition of the car to get us to and from our destinations. That will afford us an entry and exit time we wish rather than being tied to the train schedules. I do like train rides around a country a lot and it is something I've experienced everywhere I have been so far (including the first run to Denmark) but the car is probably going to cost in a similar vein to any train passes and afford us more freedom. Additionally, since I don't drive stick, George will have to do all the driving... On that, I am going to force myself to learn manual by my 40th birthday so I can rent a car for my projected trip to Sicily. Still, I won't be learning in just 1 month without destroying someone's car so for this trip I am off the hook. Renting an automatic in Europe increases the price at least threefold so we would not consider that.
Anyway, that's my thoughts for now.
I am again going to Denmark with a less than fully set itinerary for a couple reasons. One, George technically knows the lay of the land and should have some good ideas of where to go on what days. I would like to try the viking boat ride again if the weather is reasonable and we have a couple castles we are planning to visit amongst other things. And two, we are renting a car so we can get around a lot easier and not be tied to specific schedules. We will of course take the trains into Copenhagen for those visits and so we can have a couple drinks here and there (looking forward to some more Tuborg Classic) and so we don't have to worry about obscene parking prices downtown.
The flight out is going to afford me a touchdown in another country I have not visited in the Netherlands. I have to admit I am not really nuts about visiting that country on its own but it will be nice to add another piece of earth to my visit list even if it is airport only.
I will be staying much longer than my last visit so hopefully I will have a better taste of the country overall. With the long weekend run from last time it was really over before it began in many respects though we did pack a lot into that short time. I still hope to pack a lot in but we should have less time constraints on what we do in general, especially with the addition of the car to get us to and from our destinations. That will afford us an entry and exit time we wish rather than being tied to the train schedules. I do like train rides around a country a lot and it is something I've experienced everywhere I have been so far (including the first run to Denmark) but the car is probably going to cost in a similar vein to any train passes and afford us more freedom. Additionally, since I don't drive stick, George will have to do all the driving... On that, I am going to force myself to learn manual by my 40th birthday so I can rent a car for my projected trip to Sicily. Still, I won't be learning in just 1 month without destroying someone's car so for this trip I am off the hook. Renting an automatic in Europe increases the price at least threefold so we would not consider that.
Anyway, that's my thoughts for now.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Jeep Jamboree Day 4 - Epilogue
Today started with a very late morning by Jeep Jamboree standards. We had to meet everyone at 9am to start on the road back. In the course of heading back we were going to stop at Blanche and Bill's Pancake House, a place where we ate last year on our way home. We had to organize something like 10 Jeeps and the people within to get going.
After cleaning up and packing up we headed down to the lobby of the hotel to check out and then ran into some of the troop at the parking lot there. We ended up having 1 Jeep with a leaky tire, another that had to reconnect the sway bar and another that ended up dropping the front drive shaft as we were heading to the breakfast place so we really didn't get there before 10, maybe 10:30. I never really checked the time. When we got there with something like 13 people they weren't ready for such a large crowd and we had to wait a bit to get in and then wait a bit to get the food. All in all the breakfast was very good though. I think I had 3 cups of their coffee to accompany french toast with blueberry sauce, sausage and bacon.
After we ate we lined everyone up and took a few pictures. I ran into the restaurant and grabbed a patron to take a couple snapshots for us. From there we started the long convoy to our respective homes dropping people off along the way.
This Jeep Jamboree was a lot more fun for me than last year. I suppose the extra 2 runs under my belt and a very accurate set of choices in trails really made it an enjoyable experience. Before the runs I was teetering on whether I would do it again next year, but now I am pretty sure I want to again.
After cleaning up and packing up we headed down to the lobby of the hotel to check out and then ran into some of the troop at the parking lot there. We ended up having 1 Jeep with a leaky tire, another that had to reconnect the sway bar and another that ended up dropping the front drive shaft as we were heading to the breakfast place so we really didn't get there before 10, maybe 10:30. I never really checked the time. When we got there with something like 13 people they weren't ready for such a large crowd and we had to wait a bit to get in and then wait a bit to get the food. All in all the breakfast was very good though. I think I had 3 cups of their coffee to accompany french toast with blueberry sauce, sausage and bacon.
After we ate we lined everyone up and took a few pictures. I ran into the restaurant and grabbed a patron to take a couple snapshots for us. From there we started the long convoy to our respective homes dropping people off along the way.
This Jeep Jamboree was a lot more fun for me than last year. I suppose the extra 2 runs under my belt and a very accurate set of choices in trails really made it an enjoyable experience. Before the runs I was teetering on whether I would do it again next year, but now I am pretty sure I want to again.
Jeep Jamboree Day 3
As with last year my second trail day was spent on the 5 Corners. Wendell again led the pack and is an excellent guide. Most of the Exploring NH troop was with me today as well so we jammed ourselves up towards the front of the pack, only stuck behind Rocodile and Wendell and had breakfast at the lodge which at least today did have bacon.
Due to his ride being better off trailered with rear differential fluid leaking due to a problem with his locker, I had Walter as a passenger on the run. He and his wife met up with us in line and he rode with me and she rode with Dave and Michal. Walter has been wheeling since 91 or so and has a much better rig than I have. He had a lot of experience and gave me a bit of advice here and there and spotted a couple times for people. He was fun to have along and he told a lot of stories. I am sure he absolutely would have rather been driving his own rig on the tougher trails he signed up for but I think he was glad to just get out and wheel rather than sit in the hotel room. His wife Linda was much happier to have a no stress day where his Jeep wasn't being dragged through body damage central so it all worked out well.
5 Corners is a lot less squishy than Vertigo though it was highly different from last year. The first obstacle was not just the short rock climb we had but rather a long technical hill climb cut out of the side of a hill. There was a rise on the right and a drop on the left and the higher we went the steeper the drop got. It was not a matter of being wedged in between trees and rocks but more just a creepier feeling about the drop which wasn't really as significant a threat as it looked I am sure. Anyway, there were a lot of rocks and roots and a bit of mud up that hill which was pretty much the hairiest experience of the day. From there it was a reshuffle of the trail from last year. We moved on to the trails through the stream beds that we finished with last year. I heard a lot of dinging on the trail as I rubbed my skid plates and Dave was sure I banged my front pumpkin on something that he hit the back one on but I didn't pull up any damage for real. We had lunch in a clearing that was obviously someone's front yard and was very near a cemetery with mainly occupants from the 1800s. We visited a couple water crossing and climb obstacles during the rest of the day that were quite enjoyable and finished all the trails with relatively little problems. In fact I am sure we spent more time in the Jeeps running rather than outside and waiting. The weather surprisingly held up very well and towards the end of the day it was fairly hot.
We got our rigs washed and aired up by the fire department for a donation. I returned and David was not back from his run at Vertigo but I got cleaned up and he eventually called me at 6, more than an hour after I was back in the room. They used a part of trail we didn't touch yesterday and barely made it through that but he said he had fun. He met us all at the lodge for dinner. I won a prize choice from ARB of either a recovery kit or some lighting for the Jeep. Concensus is to take the recovery kit which rings in at $210. After that part was over everyone came down to Chez Savard as we called it and we hung out and traded stories about the trails, had a few beers and just generally had a good time.
Due to his ride being better off trailered with rear differential fluid leaking due to a problem with his locker, I had Walter as a passenger on the run. He and his wife met up with us in line and he rode with me and she rode with Dave and Michal. Walter has been wheeling since 91 or so and has a much better rig than I have. He had a lot of experience and gave me a bit of advice here and there and spotted a couple times for people. He was fun to have along and he told a lot of stories. I am sure he absolutely would have rather been driving his own rig on the tougher trails he signed up for but I think he was glad to just get out and wheel rather than sit in the hotel room. His wife Linda was much happier to have a no stress day where his Jeep wasn't being dragged through body damage central so it all worked out well.
5 Corners is a lot less squishy than Vertigo though it was highly different from last year. The first obstacle was not just the short rock climb we had but rather a long technical hill climb cut out of the side of a hill. There was a rise on the right and a drop on the left and the higher we went the steeper the drop got. It was not a matter of being wedged in between trees and rocks but more just a creepier feeling about the drop which wasn't really as significant a threat as it looked I am sure. Anyway, there were a lot of rocks and roots and a bit of mud up that hill which was pretty much the hairiest experience of the day. From there it was a reshuffle of the trail from last year. We moved on to the trails through the stream beds that we finished with last year. I heard a lot of dinging on the trail as I rubbed my skid plates and Dave was sure I banged my front pumpkin on something that he hit the back one on but I didn't pull up any damage for real. We had lunch in a clearing that was obviously someone's front yard and was very near a cemetery with mainly occupants from the 1800s. We visited a couple water crossing and climb obstacles during the rest of the day that were quite enjoyable and finished all the trails with relatively little problems. In fact I am sure we spent more time in the Jeeps running rather than outside and waiting. The weather surprisingly held up very well and towards the end of the day it was fairly hot.
We got our rigs washed and aired up by the fire department for a donation. I returned and David was not back from his run at Vertigo but I got cleaned up and he eventually called me at 6, more than an hour after I was back in the room. They used a part of trail we didn't touch yesterday and barely made it through that but he said he had fun. He met us all at the lodge for dinner. I won a prize choice from ARB of either a recovery kit or some lighting for the Jeep. Concensus is to take the recovery kit which rings in at $210. After that part was over everyone came down to Chez Savard as we called it and we hung out and traded stories about the trails, had a few beers and just generally had a good time.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Jeep Jamboree Day 2
Day 2 would be Vertigo. I did Vertigo the first trail day last year also and remembered it being difficult and very tight in a lot of spots. I was a bit nervous about it because in talking with the guildes they all say the trails only get worse each year. They did raise the difficultly of Vertigo from 3-4 to 4-5 this year. The better point was that the weather was going to be nicer on Friday and the trails would be less torn up on the first day so it was very tactical that I chose Vertigo for Friday. I am very happy I chose it that way. The trails were fairly difficult as I remembered but I had a bit more confidence going into it this year and conditions were still fairly good. Also thanks to the rest of the Exploring NH people getting to the front of the line we were at the head of the pack. I don't envy the folks that were in the back of the line for some of the obstacles that got really mushy the more Jeeps that passed over it. I did ding the skid plates quite a bit and I rubbed a tree once trying to help pull out Rob (but failing at it, they used a log to get him out). Rob did pull me out the one time I got stuck really badly. I was able to get through most everything else. As the day progressed, Steve, the trail leader had to break out the chainsaw for a few things.
I was nervous in some spots but overall I really had a lot of fun. The people on the trail were all very nice and cool people to hang out with. We did spend some fair amounts of time waiting for people to clear obstacles so there was plenty of time to get to know people. It did start to rain towards the end of the day but we were basically done. We got in about 5.
We went to dinner at the lodge, in which I had a very average pulled pork sandwich and then everyone came down to our condo again to hang out and look at pictures. Since I'm on a sketchy wireless I will post the pictures from home.
I was nervous in some spots but overall I really had a lot of fun. The people on the trail were all very nice and cool people to hang out with. We did spend some fair amounts of time waiting for people to clear obstacles so there was plenty of time to get to know people. It did start to rain towards the end of the day but we were basically done. We got in about 5.
We went to dinner at the lodge, in which I had a very average pulled pork sandwich and then everyone came down to our condo again to hang out and look at pictures. Since I'm on a sketchy wireless I will post the pictures from home.
Jeep Jamboree Day 1
Dave, William and I started our way up towards Killington, VT around 11am. We stopped first in at the Burger King in Derry to meet up with Tri, Sean, Carol and Rob. From there we drove a bit further up the highway (though I don't remember which town) and added Dave and his family to the mix. The drive was fairly easy though we sort of had a slolem course through the highways in NH as the left then right lanes would be closed down for road work. We got up to Killington at about 3:00 or so and figured we had plenty of time to get checked into the room before tech inspection. The room is a condo in the Trail Creek compound. It is spacious, having 2 bedrooms and 2 baths plus a large living room, a dining room and a kitchenette. We did have a slight problem with getting into the room as the girl gave us the wrong kind of key card but eventually we got in.
After getting settled we headed down for tech inspection and it went a heck of a lot better than last year. We lined up early to not be stuck at the back of the line. The guides that were not leading trails all powered through the tech inspections in short order though so it was almost a non-factor. However, getting through the inspection quickly did get us to the registration line earlier which allowed us to get the trails we wanted. I picked the same two trails that I chose last year in the same order: Vertigo then 5 Corners. David chose to take a higher difficulty trail on Friday in Bullwinkle's Revenge and then Vertigo on Saturday. It turns out a fair portion of the Exploring NH Jeepers we hooked up with were doing the same trails I was so I had an instant group of people to hang out with for the actual trails.
After registration we all got together and went to Choices for Dinner. I had the Striped Bass special which was very good and followed that up with a peach and blueberry pie. The Long Trail Summer which is an unfiltered IPA was also very good.
After dinner we had everyone come over to the room to hang out before heading to bed for the night. All in all, a lot of driving but a good day.
After getting settled we headed down for tech inspection and it went a heck of a lot better than last year. We lined up early to not be stuck at the back of the line. The guides that were not leading trails all powered through the tech inspections in short order though so it was almost a non-factor. However, getting through the inspection quickly did get us to the registration line earlier which allowed us to get the trails we wanted. I picked the same two trails that I chose last year in the same order: Vertigo then 5 Corners. David chose to take a higher difficulty trail on Friday in Bullwinkle's Revenge and then Vertigo on Saturday. It turns out a fair portion of the Exploring NH Jeepers we hooked up with were doing the same trails I was so I had an instant group of people to hang out with for the actual trails.
After registration we all got together and went to Choices for Dinner. I had the Striped Bass special which was very good and followed that up with a peach and blueberry pie. The Long Trail Summer which is an unfiltered IPA was also very good.
After dinner we had everyone come over to the room to hang out before heading to bed for the night. All in all, a lot of driving but a good day.
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