As soon as we arrived in Waterton, I immediately knew this was another special place for Dave.  The view of the crystal-clear lake with the surrounding mountains was picture-perfect.

Waterton Lake National Park is known as one of the most beautiful destinations in the Canadian Rockies.  The rolling hills of Alberta meet the mountains along the Montana border to provide breathtaking, unspoiled forests and lakes.

It is considered the wildflower capital of Canada. There are also groves of aspen, poplar, and spruce, along with prairie grasslands, and is home to many wild animals from sheep to grizzlies who all enjoy the crystal clear glacier-fed lakes.

I am happy that a little bit of Dave is in so many beautiful places, but how I wish he could have visited them in person.

Growing up in New Jersey, my idea of a “soaring mountain” was the Catskills or the Adirondacks.  Banff National Park in Canada surely changed my mind about the definition of “soaring.”  With its jagged and sharply pointed rocky peaks, The Rocky Mountains in Alberta soar high into the sky.  Gouged out from the ice fields are glacial rivers and lakes.

Lake Louise is one of those magnificent turquoise lakes.  The glacial dust reflects light creating the striking turquoise water.  The Victoria glacier and the majestic mountains blanketed with pine trees surround the lake providing a view that is awe-inspiring.

With hiking trails all around the lake–some easy and some for the young and energetic–I knew this was another perfect place for Dave.

The weather wasn’t perfect, but it didn’t lessen the joy I felt leaving a little bit of Dave in such a special place.

It has been 15 years since I received that heartbreaking phone call that Dave had died in the canyons of Utah.  The feelings of overwhelming grief, unbridled anger, and helplessness will stay with me always.  There was nothing I could do.  Nothing.  We were just a small family in River Vale, NJ.  What effect would we have? I thought that perhaps we could tell the world Dave’s real story and then others would understand our outrage. So when the Associated Press ran Dave’s story and it appeared all around the world, we finally felt like we were heard and Dave was vindicated.  The little family from River Vale just needed the truth to be told.

Once I felt Dave’s story was accurately portrayed, I needed a way to continually remember him in a special way.  This is how this website came to be and how the Remembering Dave blog shows all the places I have sprinkled his ashes; places he wanted to travel and places where he would’ve loved to travel.

 

---

 

We traveled to Niagara Falls on July 17, 2018:

The Canadian Horseshoe Falls is the largest of the three falls and is located at the end of the Niagara Gorge.  It has been the proverbial honeymoon destination because of its spectacular beauty and dramatic crashing waters; the most powerful fall in all of North America.  The nightly fireworks and the illumination of the falls further create a magical experience.

An especially touching moment for me was while we were resting before going out to dinner.  I suddenly felt an inexplicable urge to look out the window.  At that moment, there was a beautiful rainbow over the falls.  It only lasted a minute or so, but long enough for my mystical July 17^th moment.

Whether it was the first anniversary of your passing or the fifteenth anniversary, I always ask the sad question, “What if?”

Due to a year of clipped wings, I have run out of current places where I have sprinkled Dave’s ashes.  So until we can comfortably start traveling again, I will share beautiful places from the past where I have spread his ashes. They just didn’t make it into a post.  There are so many more places than what I have reported in Remembering Dave.

This trip was in 2016.

---

 
Hopewell Rocks are rock formations caused by tidal erosion by the Bay of Fundy.  It is a unique and beautiful place to visit in that, for a 3 hour period each day, you can walk along the rocky ocean floor before the tide comes rushing in.  This is plenty of time to admire to 40 to 70 ft. rock towers, but always keeping an eye on your watch for the estimated time of the highest tide in the world.  Up to 46 ft. of water fills the ocean floor at 12 ft. an hour!

You don’t want to ignore the warning siren alerting you that it is time to leave the area.  If you wait too long, there is a tower you can climb to wait for someone to rescue you, which must be quite embarrassing.

As beautiful as this area is, I could only smile to myself as I imagined Dave being one those tower people.  I can still hear him saying to me, “Ma, sometimes you have to live on the edge.”  That he did.

I sprinkled his ashes on the ocean floor and built a small cairn nearby knowing that the tide would come rushing in and sweep him out to sea.  That’s ok, he would’ve ignored the siren anyway.

Another unique, yet beautiful, place for Dave.

 

The wild horses have roamed the beaches and backwoods of the the Outer Banks for centuries.  Because of the increasing development in surrounding areas, the horses were moved to Corolla where they continue to roam free over 7500 acres. They wander through public and private land.

Whether they stop to cool off in a carport or freely trot along the shore, it is heartwarming to see these beautiful animals unfettered and running free—as they should be.

Corolla, with its beautiful sunrises and sunsets, wild Spanish mustangs, and a feeling you have left the world behind, would have been just the place for Dave.

I can see him on the beach, book in hand, watching the horses trot by.

In his words:

“It’s a simple beauty that’s found in
natural things that embrace their
natural form. It’s a beauty that loves
deeply, but resists possession.

What I call sweet grace.”

Another special place for Dave.

Click here for more images.

There are so many beautiful, scenic places in Ireland; some of which I have previously written about.  One more place is Caherdaniel; a charming little village located in County Kerry on the Inveragh peninsula.

When I looked out over the Derrynane Bay at the picturesque rolling mountains and beaches, I knew instantly that Dave would love this secluded part of Ireland.  It became one more special place for Dave.

Although I have written about all the beautiful places where I have sprinkled Dave’s ashes, I also know that Dave loved a good time and relished the fun side of life.  His trip to Ireland would have been a combination of nature’s beauty coupled with enjoying lively pubs where he could down several pints of Guinness.  With a little urging, I could see him making an hilarious attempt at step dancing!

That was Dave; full of fun and laughter.  You never knew what to expect from him.  He was a character for sure. Ireland would have surely welcomed him as one of their own.

Click here for more images.

While in Europe two years ago, I sprinkled Dave’s ashes in many jaw-dropping places; some of which I did not post.  Now that Covid-19 has clipped my wings for a while, I decided it was time to find and post some of those missing places.

Mount Pilatus is in central Switzerland and overlooks the lovely city of Lucerne. It is composed of several peaks and offers beautiful countryside views. At least that’s what they told us. It was overcast and cold.  The only picture I took was of a group of crows sitting on a railing.  It was definitely NOT a Dave-worthy place that day.  I was disappointed, but it was just a weather bump in the road.  The weather had cooperated with us most of the time so I figured I shouldn’t be greedy.

As we headed down the mountain in the cogwheel train, we stopped to transfer to a cable car in Fräkmüntegg.  Even though it was cold and rainy, we could actually see the pretty Switzerland countryside below.  Granted, it would have been more spectacular from atop the mountain and if the sun had been shining.

That’s fine because I knew the sun would come out once again and Dave would be in another amazing place.

Click here for more images.

Annecy is a quaint little town in the southeast part of France and is located between Lake Annecy and the mountains.

The cobbled streets of the Vielle Ville (Old Town) hosts a weekly farmers’ market, which offers every delicacy you can imagine and colorful fresh flowers. 

Unique little shops encircle the town while artists display their handicrafts along pathways and bridges. 

It is a lovely place to enjoy everything French.  With the lake, its three canals, and the River Thiou, it is known as the Venice of the Alps!

Little outdoor cafes spring up everywhere along the streets and canals.  I can certainly see Dave with a cold beer watching the world go by and absorbing the moment.

This quaint, unique alpine town is another special place for Dave.  J’taime mon fils.

Click here for more images.

The Hatfield-McCoy Trails consist of over 700 miles of trails and are located in the mountains of southern West Virginia.  Trails range from the scenic mountain views, to tight and twisting trails. Those with a penchant for endless ATV trails are drawn to this second largest vehicle trail in the world!

A few weeks ago, Rob enjoyed a long weekend with friends on these trails.  He enjoyed a sense of freedom and camaraderie he hasn’t felt in a long time.  With work and house responsibilities, he finds little time for himself.  Dave would have chided him for not enjoying life and doing the things he likes.  I heard it from him all the time.

This trip reminds me of Rob and Dave’s adventure in Corfu, Greece around 1999-2000. Although they didn’t rent ATVs, they did rent scooters to tool around the island. Corfu also has many winding roads, but with cliffs overlooking the Ionian Sea. I am glad I didn’t know about this until they were safely home.  As always, when Rob and Dave got together, there were many laughs and always a few mishaps.

Dave decided to give a “hefty” young lady a ride on his scooter. It didn’t quite work out as planned since they both fell off the bike. I guess they decided it wasn’t such a good idea.  Rob has really fond memories of this trip. I am sure if Dave could have joined Rob in WV, we would be laughing at their escapades.

So, with this in mind, we felt this should be another special place for Dave.  The guys found the best overlook they could and lined up all their quads in Dave’s honor.  Rob placed Dave’s boonie hat on top of his quad and sprinkled his ashes nearby.

Family, adventure, camaraderie—what could be better?

Click here for more images.

I always feel sad that Dave has not been a part of so much of our family’s history. There have been so many times in the past 13 years that our family has experienced joyful celebrations and the sadness of losing those close to us.  I feel Dave is watching over us, but I just wish he could be alongside us to share in our laughter and tears.

I remember how Dave would encourage me to slow down, quit the rat race, and start enjoying life.  He just wanted me to find peace and contentment.  This post is about his wish and how, in a small way, he was a part of it.

Fred and I were married this past January.  We dated back in high school over 57 years ago. We went on to marry others, have children, and experience a lifetime of joy and sadness before reconnecting three years ago. Young love is written about in songs and books, but senior love is just as special.  It is a comfortable companionship when you can enjoy the peaceful day-to-day happenings together, or share the excitement of world travel.  It’s knowing that someone is there for you all the time; someone on your side.  This would make Dave smile and say, “It’s about time!”

It was raining on the morning of our small ceremony.  However, as we arrived back at the B&B later that afternoon, we were greeted by a beautiful sunset. The next morning we were thrilled to see the dramatic sunrise over the Delaware with the sun’s rays streaming down the Catskill mountains.  It felt like a message of congratulations from Dave.

Dave is in so many spectacular and unique places all over the world, but this time I just wanted him to be with us on our amazing day.  And, by the way, it is a beautiful place, too.

Click here for more images.