Jordan's ring ceremony & final parents weekend at The Citadel

Every parents weekend is special but THIS one was extra special. The senior cadets receive their class ring. This is a symbol of their commitment and the accomplishments they have made along this path.

We spent our first day in Charleston cruising the Ashley. It was a perfect day to be out with all of the boats and to get to see the Citadel from the water.

    

Ayden was able to join us because it was also her parents weekend and she wanted to be with Jordan when she celebrated the Ring ceremony.

   

The Boat House, The Citadel

Charleston, SC

The Citadel's ring ceremony, known as the Band of Gold, is a deeply symbolic tradition where senior cadets receive their class rings, representing years of hard work, shared experience, and a lifelong bond with alumni, often incorporating gold from previous generations' rings to forge a tangible link to history and service.  The event, held during Parents' Weekend, culminates in cadet reversing their rings to face outward at the graduation, symbolizing their readiness to serve the world as alumni.  The rings are worn upside down until they graduate in May.

   

Significance for Cadets:

Milestone: Marks the culmination of their demanding journey at The Citadel.

Legacy: Connects them to the "long gray line" of alumni and the college's distinguished heritage.

Personal Growth: Represents overcoming challenges, developing leadership, and a commitment to service.

   

Chris and I spent the morning running along the battery and over the Ravenal bridge.

The weather was perfect

 

Garrett is also a cadet at The Citadel, but was unable to join us because he was in Washington, DC doing an internship for the semester.

  

Jordan and her best friend and roommate, Rhiannon!

The Ring Ceremony

Love the tradition of the seniors having having their name painted on a step in their barracks.

 

 

 

We are tremendously proud of Jordan. This was not an easy decision to make for college. It is has been a joy watching her develop her leadership skills and grow into the driven woman she is today.

 

Jordan’s rank:

Supply Officer

Colorado/Utah Overlanding trip September 2024

Chris and I have been doing a lot of soul searching with our upcoming year of empty nesting.    We have been fortunate enough to be able to travel throughout Asia but since we returned to the states in 2014 I realize that I have not had the opportunity to see much of what the US has to offer and boy did it not disappoint.    Living in South Florida does not give us any opportunity to hike so we knew our adventures were going to take us to the mountains.    Chris outdid himself with this trip and I am left with a full week of nature, a feeling of calm, and a better appreciation of a very comfortable bed.

We started off our trip landing in Grand Junction, Colorado where we picked up our Colorado overlanding vehicle. It was equipped with two roof top tents (One King the other Queen)  and any emergency equipment we needed to get us out of most sticky situations.    It also had Refrigerator cooler that ran off of a generator and all the supplies you would need to live off the grid.    Minus wifi and cellphone service.

Once we got our rig we headed to Montrose for two days of fly fishing with a guide.  The first day we spent on the lower Gunnison river in a drift boat and the second day we waded in the Uncompahgre river.   We caught, rainbow trout, brown trout, rountail chubb.    

We stayed in a beautiful campground, in Ridgeway State Park and our campsite overlooked a lake.  It was there that we became familiar with our rig and the gear and set up so that we had it down when we set off on the Rim Rock Trail (Colorado) then the White Rim Trail (Utah).

Rim Rock Trail:   Montrose,  Colorado to Moab, Utah

 Ironsprings Campground on the Rim Rock Trail

Buckeye State Park Campground on the Rim Rock Trail

Our shower is the black circular device in the lower left side of the picture below.  You pump it with your foot while you hold the sprayer over your head. 

We had two tents on top of the rig that a houses a king tent and a queen.   The LED lights came in handy at night if you need to go to then bathroom.   The stairs weren’t tons of fun but the comfort of the tent was really nice and the blackout exterior came in handy this night in particular with the crazy thunder and lightening storms that came down the canyon.  

The Rim Rocker trail takes you from Colorado to Utah.   

Coming out of the mountains and into Moab the topography drastically changed… from green mountainous trails to red rock.

Moab was the perfect stop to spend the night in between the rim rocker trail and the white rim trail.   We were able to enjoy a regular shower and do some laundry.    

White Rim Trail:   Moab, Utah back to Moab Utah

Canyonlands National Park/Island in the Sky

Labriynth Campground on the White Rim Trail

Ok not sure if I completely knew what the road down into the canyon was going to be like, I would have truly put my seal of approval on this trip.    I felt like I was on a roller coaster for five straight hours —holding my breath.  These photos don’t do the ledges justice.   Thank god we did not have to pass anyone on the way down into the canyon.

We finally arrived at our first camp spot directly on the Green river, Utah.  We got to see rafters and fisherman cruising down.  This was one of my favorite places to set up camp.   NO sounds, NO internet, NO cell phone service (this was pretty much the full trip) and NO people.   We had the place to ourselves.

Spent the remainder of the day exploring Canyonlands hiking 13 miles through the red rock.   We were grateful to get back to camp and have a warm shower (our pump shower heated in the sun while we were gone) and a fantastic dinner we made from Trader Joe's.   

                    

 Gooseberry Campground on the White Rim Trail

We left camp early the next morning and made the long trek to our next camp.  We passed a few bikers

doing a guided canyon tour and some other off road vehicles exploring like us.

 

It was a very good thing there was no cell phone service because this is the kind of driving that you CANNOT be distracted.  YES that is a cliff!!!!

We traveled BOTH of these roads.  Hard to believe.   

While I have been fortunate to travel through a lot of different countries in Asia, this trip was absolutely one of my all time favorites.    Our country is huge and full of amazing nooks that are worth the flight, walk, travel to see.   I especially loved being off grid and the incredible peace it brought me.    I am also extremely grateful for my best mate and friend to travel with.    While we went to bed as the sun went down and got plenty of sleep, I was also very happy to be home in my own bed relaxed and ready to prepare for our next adventure!