Van goes down

Our van (Big Red) quit on us yesterday. After a diagnosis of bad battery and failure to recharge, we have an appointment for a new alternator tomorrow morning. Just glad it didn't happen in South Dakota.

Our eagerness for bloggin has truly gone by the wayside. Facebook seems to fit us better. Our trip is winding down and we are getting ready to re-enter VA.

Thanks to all who have prayed for us. We look forward to sharing our stories.

the big tree sighting

Friends,

We are well into Oregon and I am still thinking about the Redwood forest. What I thought was cool was that we stopped at the visitor center and began asking about the big trees. The topic of the National Geographic came up and the ranger told us that if we hike this particular trail, we will come to a rotary monument. If we would then stand beside the monument with our left hand at 9:00 we would be looking at the tree at the 11:00 position. We then got to another visitor center and started asking about the National Geographic tree and everyone at this center treated the topic with secrecy. They didn't want anyone to know which tree it was. So we started hiking and as we walked through this particular part of the forest, we discovered a rotary monument. Annette then remembered the instructions of the ranger and bang, we were looking at the big one! As we concluded our hike, we met up with the original ranger and she confirmed our sighting. I will attach the live footage from my flip. Two days later and I am still pumped. This tree is known to have the most complex crown of any tree that has been mapped. Also, in this part of the forest, there is more bio mass per something than any other place in the world including the rain forest in South America. The only thing about the Redwood Forest that I didn't like was the cold and lack of sun. Kind of dreary and chilly.

Yosemite

On our way to Yosemite, we passed the bus tour that our friends Roy and Lovina Yoder were on. The next day when we arrived at the Park, we saw Roy and Lovina walking down the road. We pulled over for a quick chat and Roy confirmed that he saw us on the road as well. We have visited 3 Parks on 3 days and traveled one day and saw these people on all four days in a row. How strange is this? We are now in San Fransisco where we will be touring the city, going to 6 Flags and then enjoying a bit of down time in the confines of a nice hotel suite that comes with a kitchen, pool and wireless internet. It will feel good to get out of the tent and to ease our hike weary bones.

Pondering thoughts from the magnificent Mariah

Woo-Hoo, chilly-Willy!!!through the narrows the Martins went forward with one goal in mind...there was no goal in mind except to go as far as we could and then turn around.:)well we were soo excited about hiking the treacherous white water narrows. before we started we ate some energy snack that gave us strength to go on. while we were eating some of us kids went to feel the water. well lets just say the most encouraging words that were spoke were "i'm sure we will get used to it"(with wincing faces). well the martins went forward through the narrows. Olivia tripped a couple of times falling into the river, there were rapids that walking sticks were really helpful for,and of course the one last fall of the day. it was one of the last stretches of the hike when dad suddenly fell into the rapid river. falling scraping his knee....we were all in fear will he be OK?(we all knew he would be OK):) then the very scariest of all falls. it was when it was just Mom, me(Mariah), Nerel and Olivia.We were walking through this very rapid part of the river when Nerel slipped, falling into the river. she grabbed on to Moms leg before she headed down river. the only thing that escaped her hands was her walking stick that she was very attached to. well the rest of the trip was pretty much a cinch. we were going with the current so it was really easy. what a fun day!!(my favorite hike of all times)well i hope you enjoyed the low down of June 20th. i will now leave you with these last few words.

ADIOS AMIGOS EN LA V.A!!-MARIAH MARTIN-

reflections from Mariah the Magnificent on june the 15th

tsk,tsk,tsk,tsk. The first 4 words that come to my mind when i ponder on June 15, 2010. we were on a hike through arches when we look up to see an older man with his Nikon in his hand shaking his head at something we could not figure out. As we got closer we found out that he was not too happy about a plastic pipe coming out of a rock. we then asked him what is so wrong about a plastic pipe?he said "i work at a national park and at the place where i work this plastic pipe would not be acceptable. tsk,tisk,tsk,tsk." at that point we thought that that was a little over the top. our family would not have even noticed it. but that all changed when we really got to know him. we went on a couple of little trails and kept meeting up with him. so we started having conversations with him. we came to a point in the hike when we had the choice weather or not to go on a long hike or not. we chose to go on the primitive hike. about 5 minutes into the hike this man looking at a map started to pass us. the man was Wayne!!!!!!! so for a long time on the hike he was known as our tour guide. he guided us through the narrow paths and the wide paths up the rocks and down the rocks.by then we had pictures with him and we considered him as a very good friend. we came to a point in the path that was flooded. our family decided to take that time to climb a rock...but not Wayne!!! before we know it Wayne has his shoes off and up to his shorts in water. our whole family was cheering for him. r he made it across that way but our family went over this huge rock. then it happened Wayne knew his limitations he knew that he could not make it over this next rock. we were devastated. for the rest of the hike the story of Wayne constantly came up and tears were in our eyes. And from then on Wayne has always been in our conversations. we miss him so much. he will forever be called friend in our family and maybe some day we will meet again with Wayne whether we are climbing mt. Everest or shopping in Wal-Mart (its a small world who knows if we will see him again?)well if Wayne is reading this (we love you Wayne!!) thank you for your time to read this.-Mariah Annette Martin-

A note from Nerel about our friend Denver

Denver... We actually did not know his name but we called him Denver because he was from Denver. I felt bad for him because he was taking a big trip all by himself.:( he was going around Colorado on his motorcycle. We met him at Mesa Verde .Our ranger Shannon asked us if we had family almost everybody raised their hands and he was one of the people that didn't rise there hands.:( Right then and there, I wanted to take him on our own trip because I felt so bad for him. All he had was a little bag on his motorcycle.

We then met Wayne in Arches National Park on a primitive hike we took. Mariah will tell you the story about him. When he had to leave, I had tears coming out of my eyes. And while I am writing this, I continue to feel tears within me.

Whenever we see metal or plastic in nature, I think of the words Wayne said to us tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk. Mariah the rest.

So far the trip has been great. See you soon

Nerel

A note from Nerel about our friend Denver

Denver... We actually did not know his name but we called him Denver because he was from Denver. I felt bad for him because he was taking a big trip all by himself.:( he was going around Colorado on his motorcycle. We met him at Mesa Verde .Our ranger Shannon asked us if we had family almost everybody raised their hands and he was one of the people that didn't rise there hands.:( Right then and there, I wanted to take him on our own trip because I felt so bad for him. All he had was a little bag on his motorcycle.

We then met Wayne in Arches National Park on a primitive hike we took. Mariah will tell you the story about him. When he had to leave, I had tears coming out of my eyes. And while I am writing this, I continue to feel tears within me.

Whenever we see metal or plastic in nature, I think of the words Wayne said to us tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk. Mariah the rest.

So far the trip has been great. See you soon

Nerel

I'm getting all the days mixed up...but here we are at the Grand Canyon...THURSDAY! IT'S VERY AWESOME. Our campground is very peaceful. And even though we rolled in with some high winds last night, our tent was secure and not to be moved...until this morning when we had to change campsites to down the road. Today we took hikes to some very scenic vistas! We were all in awe of the enormity of this giant ditch! Stunning! God is such an awesome Creator King!

On Wednesday we traveled and traveled to get to where we are now...we got to drive through Navajo reservations and buy jewelry handcrafted by a beautiful Navajo woman.

On...Tuesday/Monday (I guess that's when it was...) we were at Arches National Park. All the rocks and arches seemed larger than life! Very magnificent. We ended up on a "primitive hiking trail loop" in Devil's Gardens that took us over alot of "slick rock" to escape flooded puddles...it ended up being 7.2 miles! It was great, though and the finishing stretch on a fin gave us a 360 degree panorama that was spectacular as our eyes fell onto miles of rigid mesas and rocky terrain with green, stubby shrubbery. This campsite was so awesome because we were in the middle of rocks and could go out and explore on our own over the massive red rocks...Mariah and Abi even sun-bathed on them! Oh, and on the hike we met Wayne! He ended up hiking with us and is now a great friend and cherished memory! He had a very big stand on the use of plastic in national parks and said "tisk, tisk, tisk, tisk" whenever there was a spot of that "unacceptable" disgrace. He helped us out navigation-wise, big time, and even today as we were hiking in the Grand Canyon National Park we smiled and said, "Where's Wayne at?"

We love you all! Adios para ahora.

Mariah, Nerel and Olivia preform on stage at Whit's End...notice how Nerel gets a little shy when people start to come watch. :)

We went to the Colo. Springs Olympic Training Center today.

Wednesday wearabouts from marvalous Mariah

Wednesday- according to Mariah:)

well what a day. It started out with a honk out side. Then with zac in our room shouting "do you guys want to ride the gator? i will take you on a ride!!(moans and groans from the girls).Ok so now we were all wide awake and on the seat of the AMAZING gator. I have to say for a going into 7th grade i am a very advanced acomplished driver:). lets just say that when i took the wheel nobody was screaming. now nerel driving was a very different story. "Zac we are going 1 mile per hour slow down! slow around the turns!potholes!!zac i am in the grass!!!!!"that is what you would hear from her the whole ride. but i know by the time she drives (hopefully)she will take after her siblings. but i have to agree that zac was a wonderful driver. he drove smooth as silk. then when olivia drove the silk turned into stones. my theme song for her is "to the left to the right to the left to the right...literally:)it turned out that the sisters in the back were having a conpetition who could keep there hands up without falling. what a compitation:)the winner was of co urse always welll balanced ABI!!i did not last very long before falling. thank you so much for your time to read this! i will now leave you with these words....Asta lavista!!!

Driving Down Memory Lane + IHOP

Wednesday: Every time I come to Versailles, I remember all the good times I had growing up there! It's hard to believe that it's already been 12 years since we lived there. Today we went to Wal-Mart and Dad saw people he knew (Surprise!). We visited the church, our old house (The swingset was still in the back!) and good friends! Oh, and we got ride an ATV...every single one of us! Next time you see Livvy, you'll have to ask her about it. We got to stay with Dale and Kathy. They are really good friends and I appreciate them so much! Wednesday was a peaceful day and Mom saw a dead armadillo.
Thursday: We traveled to Denver, CO and arrived about an hour and a half ago. It felt like the longest day I've ever traveled in my whole entire life. But, this morning I had a huge dream come true...I got to go to the International House of Prayer! It was so amazing and I would love to go back sometime...like really soon! Today I also got to drive for like two and a half hours (interstate!) and I DON'T LIKE DRIVING FAST. My hands were clenching the steering wheel so tight that I had cramps in my hands after I pulled over. Also, this guy honked at me! I think Kansas is beautifully flat. The sky just seems so much grander and the land looks like God just rolled a rolling pin across it all. We came through this crazy storm (again!) with hail and heavy raindrops; half the sky looked like it was on fire and the other half was dark with heat lightning! It was awesome. Awesome. Awesome.
*This is contributed by Abi.

Mariah memories

Tuesday according to Mariah:)

Yes we did get a very early start to tuesday morning. attitudes were great, wonderful family bonding, then it hapened. jut like that my day of traveling went from great to horrific. when dad said these words(youngest three in the back) i knew that just like that yes i was going to have to travel for 8 hours with my VERY loveble, friendly,touchy sisters:)oh joy well like Abi said it is very, very,VERYVERYVERY!hard to go to sleep when i myself was volenteered to sit in the middle where my sisters were guarenteeded to lay there heads on my lap. but as usual:) i layed the law down that there was no way whatsoever that i would tolerate this behavior. well me and Nerel went on strike meaning when mom and dad would tell us it is time to go to sleep we would answer"it is not our shift yet" so when me and Nerel made it to the front we were as jolly as ever but most of all very tiered! so we took a nice long nap. after that nap i felt as though my attitude instintly was a very recognizable difference. well i really enjoyed the time i had on this computer writing to all my beloved Virginians. i will write again soon but for now i leave you with thes words "ADIOS!"-Mariah the magnificent-

Warheads on Tuesday

Tuesday: WE WOKE UP SO EARLY! We were on the road by 3:30 a.m.! Zac and I got the front bench seat and were able to fall asleep, but the girls in the back went on strike. They refused to go to sleep because they believed it was absolutely impossible to get any sleep while all three of them were crammed in the back. Zac and I easily proved that myth to be wrong when we got moved back...to what we now call the "party bench". We stopped at the St. Louis Arch and had to walk through this museum about history...hopefully my appreciation for this kind of activity will deepen on this trip! The museum had these wax people that actually moved and sometimes if you'd watch them long enough it would look like they were actually looking right into your heart! Olivia was NOT excited about this and she was by Dad's side the whole time! Oh, and today Nerel introduced me to Warheads. So, I've never had one before and I thought I could trust her when she said, "Don't worry, they aren't bad at all!" It didn't help that everyone else was saying the same exact thing to me! I put it in my mouth and I had tears streaming down my face within five seconds...it was awful! And sour like crazy! Then, we arrived in Versailles, MO (to Dale and Kathy's house) that night with an awesome storm. There was constant lightning everywhere and sometimes it sounded like the thunder was going to crack open the roof of our van. It was magnificently thrilling!
*This post has been contributed by Abi.

Packing up and getting ready.

After planning this trip for several years, we are finally packing and getting ready to go.