On the way out we stopped at Stateline to see the Bonnie and Clyde car
Pretty scenery in Utah
More pretty scenery
And more
We stopped at Arches National Park on a whim. We happened to be going by it, so we stopped and it was pretty cool!
Daniel and me at the Arches Visitor Center
Colorado at Buffalo Bill's Gravesite, which overlooks Denver
The Eisenhower Presidential Museum was amazing! Out of the four that I've been to (Nixon, Reagan, Eisenhowe, and Truman), this one is the coolest (Reagan runs a close 2nd because you get to tour Air Force One)! If you're ever in Kansas, you should see it
Parents and Daniel in front of an Eisenhower statue
After Eisenhower's museum, we went to Truman's Presidential Museum in Independence, Missouri. Apparently, Truman had something against my brother...
...but he liked me! High Five!
This is Liberty Jail in Liberty, Missouri where Joseph Smith was held for a very long time, under particularly bad conditions, on bogus charges. I had heard the stories about this all of my life and it was awesome to see it in person and feel the unique feeling that is there.
My parents, Diane, Daniel, and I are standing in front of the cut-away wall of the jail.
This is the Valley of Adam-Ondi-Ahman. We got SO lost trying to find it, but once we did, it was really awesome!
Daniel and Dad together at Adam-Ondi-Ahman
Carthage Jail. Wow. This was probably the most amazing place we visited. The Spirit there was SO strong. It was here that Joseph and Hyrum Smith were martyred and sealed their testimonies with their blood. Inside, and even outside, you can still feel the gravity of what happened there.
The beautiful Nauvoo, Illinois Temple! It looks exactly like the original and we were told by some missionaries there that even the rugs inside are exactly the same as the originals. The company where the original ones were ordered (back in the 1800s) is still in business and still had record of the original order. So, they just reordered the same stuff! I thought that was super cool!
This is the mouth of the Mississippi River at the end of Parley Street, where the pioneers crossed it on their way out of Nauvoo. It's amazing to me that such a huge river froze over, all the way across, so that everyone could cross it safely. Definitely a miracle! Just as we got to the river, a huge storm kicked up and soon waves were splashing up like at the beach. Here, you can see a little bit of the action.
Awwww! My daddy! He often refuses to be in pictures, so I put this one up so that he is represented on my blog.
This is the Kanesville Tabernacle in Council Bluffs, Iowa. It's a replica of the building in which Brigham Young was sustained as the 2nd President of the Church. The replica is built on an underground spring, as was the original, and so the whole building is moist. There were even mushrooms growing out of the wood in the rafters and high up on the walls. That was crazy! In Iowa, we also visited Garden Grove and Mt. Pisgah where some family members were long ago. It was cool to see their names on monuments.
Ummmmm...can I just say that the people of the midwest LOVE Buffalo Bill! Here I am, at yet another Buffalo Bill site (this time in Nebraska).
The Winter Quarters, Nebraska Temple. I took this shot as the sun was going down and the whole sky was amazingly beautiful!
My dad made us pose for a bunch of pictures in the Winter Quarters visitor center. lol
This was the motive for the whole vacation. On the 4th of July, we were able to participate in the dedication of a monument for some of our Campbell ancestors who died along the Oxbow Trail. The monument is in Ashland, Nebraska and, though it was weird to have a family "reunion" with a bunch of people, from all over the country, that we had never before met, it really was a great experience to honor some relatives who sacrificed so much in trying to be obedient. That is a great legacy and I'm grateful for it.
In Wyoming, we visited Martin's Cove where the Martin Handcart Company huddled together and waited for horrific snowstorms to subside. This passageway is called Devil's Gate and they came right through there. This is a really rugged place and Daniel and I actually ran into a huge snake just slithering around.
Just a marker at Martin's Cove
Fort Bridger, Wyoming was pretty cool! Brigham Young actually met with Bridger, himself, to find out about some of the terrain in the area.
Lastly, but not least, we visited Utah, where we spent some time with Diane and Dad did some Geneology. Daniel and I pretty much just hung around and saw the sites. We got to meet two of his mission friends for lunch and that was awesome too! Here's the amazing Salt Lake Temple, which is, of course, as beautiful as ever.
That sums up July! 18 days on the road! Whew! Exhausting, but well worth it!
No comments:
Post a Comment