ships and critters

Two things I love to watch are ships and critters in the wild. Are
there any suggestions out there for good places to go in the US to
view either of these? I am a major airlines retiree so transportation
is not a problem.

A couple of specific questions:

1. Is there any location along the Houston Ship channel for watching
ths hips go by and is there enough traffic to warrant going there?

2. When I say critter watching, the place that turned me on was
Jackson Hole at the end of winter when we saw elk, mountain sheep and
other animals grazing within half a mile of our car. Are there any
other places such as that?

I know these are somewhat naive questions but bear with an elderly
couple, please.

"It Wuznie Me" <jillandgordon@> wrote in message
news:17abc339-bc14-4813-988c-1babb1dbb1ad@s13g2000prd..com...
> Two things I love to watch are ships and critters in the wild. Are
> there any suggestions out there for good places to go in the US to
> view either of these? I am a major airlines retiree so transportation
> is not a problem.
>
> A couple of specific questions:
>
> 1. Is there any location along the Houston Ship channel for watching
> ths hips go by and is there enough traffic to warrant going there?

When I'm home (Houston) my wife & I sometimes go to a nice place for Sunday
Brunch. It's on the ship channel, with large windows overlooking the
channel. In all the years we've gone there, I've only seen one ship go by
and a few tugs. there's a lot of loading & unloading going on, but that's
about it. About 15 minutes away, is the Battleship Texas, and the San
Jacinto Monument which is a nice tour for a few hours.

> 2. When I say critter watching, the place that turned me on was
> Jackson Hole at the end of winter when we saw elk, mountain sheep and
> other animals grazing within half a mile of our car. Are there any
> other places such as that?

I service a company in Loveland, CO, north of Denver. A few times Hotels
were full, and I stayed in Estes Park, a few miles away. It's on the edge
of the Rocky Mtn. National Park. It's a small tourist town with a lot of
small shops. The longhorn sheep and elk walk the streets there. Beautiful
country too. The last visit, I had to wait for the elk to move so I could
park in the Holiday Inn lot.

On Mar 5, 2:29 pm, "Jim Davis" <sky.danc...m> wrote:
> When I'm home (Houston) my wife & I sometimes go to a nice place for Sunday
> Brunch.  It's on the ship channel, with large windows overlooking the
> channel.  In all the years we've gone there, I've only seen one ship go by
> and a few tugs.  there's a lot of loading & unloading going on, but that's
> about it.  About 15 minutes away, is the Battleship Texas, and the San
> Jacinto Monument which is a nice tour for a few hours.
>
> I service a company in Loveland, CO, north of Denver.  A few times Hotels
> were full, and I stayed in Estes Park, a few miles away.  It's on the edge
> of the Rocky Mtn. National Park.  It's a small tourist town with a lot of
> small shops.  The longhorn sheep and elk walk the streets there.  Beautiful
> country too.  The last visit, I had to wait for the elk to move so I could
> park in the Holiday Inn lot.

Thanks for the information on the Houston Ship Channel and the
recommendation on Estes Park sounds like exactly the type of place we
want to visit. Is there a best time of year for watching the animals?

In article
<17abc339-bc14-4813-988c-1babb1dbb1ad@s13g2000prd..com>,
It Wuznie Me <jillandgordon@> wrote:

> Two things I love to watch are ships and critters in the wild. Are
> there any suggestions out there for good places to go in the US to
> view either of these? I am a major airlines retiree so transportation
> is not a problem.
>
> A couple of specific questions:
>
> 1. Is there any location along the Houston Ship channel for watching
> ths hips go by and is there enough traffic to warrant going there?

I don't know about Houston, but in New York City, you can see lots of
ships go by beneath you by walking across the Brooklyn Bridge or if you
take the ferry from Battary Park to Ellis Island and the Statue of
Liberty.

> 2. When I say critter watching, the place that turned me on was
> Jackson Hole at the end of winter when we saw elk, mountain sheep and
> other animals grazing within half a mile of our car. Are there any
> other places such as that?
>
> I know these are somewhat naive questions but bear with an elderly
> couple, please.

Not at all. New England, up in the White Mountains in New Hampshire is
home to lots of wild life, including Moose. If you go camping along the
Delaware River Gap, such as Worthington State Park in New Jersey,
there's a chance you'll find beers out in the wild, but its also
something most people try to avoid doing!