Three Years Later - Medical Update

My posts have become intermittent. 

This is an update and provides an explanation for my intermittent posts, and gaps. In 2022 I became gravely ill.  After diagnosis the doctors said that my illness was inoperable, and that I had at best a 15% chance of survival.  In Spring 2023 it was suggested that I go into hospice, but I declined.

What followed was several years of radiation therapy, chemotherapy and immunotherapy.  It was a very difficult two years.  My life had been upended, and casual travel was completely suspended, with none in 2023.  My 'medical leash' was very, very short.  In that year the 4,000 miles of travel via automobile was for medical purposes.  There were radiation treatments 5 days a week, frequent chemotherapy, then immunotherapy and many hospital stays and several trips to the emergency room. 

More recently I was diagnosed as "stable" and I continue to challenge my condition and attempt to live as normal a life as possible.  So, in 2024 we resumed some short-duration RV travel.  In 2025 we took a much longer trek, both in time and duration.  These trips were accomplished by scheduling certain medical procedures to provide windows of opportunity.  My spouse now does about 20% of the driving, sometimes less.  

The nephrostomy tubes are my primary physical limitation, although my stamina and strength also took a hit.  At one point my body weight was 20% below my "thin" weight.  Tube flush occur daily, and wound care is a regular routine, usually every other week.  These can performed at home or on the road, unless there are issues such as infection.  I carry a large plastic bin with the necessary medical supplies, some of which are not readily available at the pharmacy. Because of this, and to accommodate other procedures I do have a medical leash, and there is always the possibility of unforeseen problems including tube failure, kidney failure, infection etc. Discomfiture is a constant companion but is the least of my concerns.  Plans for travel include an abort if there are medical issues.  While air travel is a possibility, I have a compromised immune system and airplanes are a petri dish I prefer to avoid.   That does restrict travel opportunities.  I have a procedure coming up in a few weeks; this is a regular nephrostomy replacement, which occurs every few months.  Then CT and MRI scans, blood work, etc.  Medications can be filled while on the road, so that has never been an impediment.  I am on minimal medications.  An iron supplement, blood pressure medication to protect the kidneys and vitamins.  That's it.  I avoid paid meds.  I prefer the awareness of what's going on with my body.

Typical Nephrostomy Wound Care Bandage

However, while I've had a miraculous recovery, I am not healed.  I am in continuous decline.   "Stable" does not mean level. Tests in October may determine how serious that decline is. There was an expression "One foot in the grave" and I now more completely understand the meaning. 

Nevertheless, we continue to plan for a future, although it is indeterminate.   In fact, I'm quite fortunate.  According to family history, I've lived longer than might be expected.  Keeping all of this in mind we are beginning a patio project, which will take place in October, and we are in the midst of some drainage improvements on the property.  We do have some travel ideas for 2026, but nothing concrete.  That's the way it has been since 2022.  We discuss ideas, but plans are tenuous.   I do have a 200W solar panel to install on the Roadtrek. This will occur when the monsoon season ends. I don't think farther into the future than 6 months. 

I've made other changes, too.  My formal writing gig has ended.  That's another subject altogether and the reasons were not only medical.  Let me simply state that recent events, both political and otherwise have made it impossible for me to remain silent and "non-political".

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Note: No AI tools were used to produce this blog. Most photos are unretouched.

(c) 2025 N. Retzke 

2025 Route Total 7,279 Miles

This year we did a much longer trek, which made up for 2023 which was a year in which we did no trekking.  This year we travelled from Arizona east, then headed northwest to the eastern shore of Lake Michigan.  After a longer stop in that area we continued to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, returned to the eastern shore.  We eventually returned to our starting point via a more direct route.   The total distance was 7,279 miles and the duration was 81 days.

Several factors determine our choice of routes.  Weather is one. RV campgrounds and resorts is another.  Interesting things to do and see is a factor.  We tend to avoid certain cities because of traffic or construction.  We also avoid areas where crime can be an issue, but many campgrounds are gated and with someone on site 24/7. 

We do prefer interstate highways, but we've travelled portions of old US Route 66, and some of the historic trails in Colorado.   Be aware, some of these are narrow highways with no median and no shoulder. 

Route for 7,279 miles trek

The trip included stays at 19 different locations.  This is the longest annual trek we've ever done.  Our first was in 2013.  Typical treks are about 2,500 to 4,000 miles.

Earlier posts provide some of the details for this trek.  A segment of 1,956 miles was planned using an AI tool and insights gained are in an earlier post.  

We have been back for 14 days and I'm doing some work on the Roadtrek,  A larger solar panel is ready for installation, as soon as the Monsoon season ends. Ever the optimists, we have begun to discuss next year!

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Note: No AI tools were used to produce this blog, although one was used for a segment of the route depicted. Most photos are unretouched.

(c) 2025 N. Retzke 

Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Trip Planning

 

Our Actual Route, 1,956 miles

People are using AI for all sorts of things these days.  One of the relatives has decided to use AI as a tool for making his stock picks.  After decades of variable success trading stocks he is very excited by the possibilities.

I'm not going to promote any one tool or AI method here, but I have found AI to be useful.

I’ve been using various AI tools for other purposes, and I decided to run a query to plan a trip.  I wanted to see how an AI tool would compare to my route planning.  I chose a trip I had taken many times in the past, so I had an ample amount of real-world information about the possible routes. I compared the AI suggestions to my various route plans.

Now, before going further, it is important to understand how AI tools and more specifically how Large Language Models (LLMs) actually work.  These software tools "generate responses by analyzing input text, predicting the next words based on learned patterns from vast datasets, and utilizing complex algorithms to ensure coherence and relevance. "

What are those datasets, you may ask?  LLMs glean data from the internet and other sources.  This gleaning, called “scraping” means that they can and do repeat garbage.  They can make errors and can provide made-up answers, called "hallucinations". Some experts say that these hallucinations occur because AI will "guess" when it doesn't know the answer.  AI, you see, is trained to provide an answer, so when it doesn't know or can't find an answer it will provide that guess.   Sources for AI may include Google, Facebook, Google Maps, YouTube, other websites and online data. Obviously, the internet contains errors and falsehoods, and these may be selected and used by the AI when providing an answer to a query.

This short segment was part of a longer trek. The actual driving distance for this segment was 1,956 miles. I thought it would be a good trial for AI planning. At the completion of this trek the odometer read 74,875 miles. The total distance for the entire trek, spanning several months was 7,279 miles. 

I am aware of the pitfalls of AI. I made a general query.  The questioning can be very specific, but I decided to be simple.  Tightening up the query would have given different responses.  For example, I did a second query with one additional requirement in which I stipulated my maximum driving speed would not exceed 70 MPH.  The response to that second query required 8 days of travel. 

I used the results of the first query for my trip, after reviewing it for accuracy and suitability.  The results of the first query were similar to my usual trip planning, which requires at a minimum 4 days of travel time for this route. We usually make stops for a several of days along the way which will extend the trip.

Here is the first query and the AI response:

My Query: “Plan a driving route from Grand Rapids, MI to Tucson AZ. Travel via interstate highways, no more than 6 hours daily driving time with RV stays overnight.” 

Note that during this trip the posted speed limits on the highways ranged from 45 MPH to 80 MPH.  Frequently the highway posted speed limits were 60-70 MPH. Construction zones reduced this to 45 MPH.  We drove in the center or right lane, with prevailing traffic or below the posted speed limits. My maximum continuous speed was 70 MPH.

The LLM I used provided this Response: “Here is a possible five-day driving route from Grand Rapids, Michigan, to Tucson, Arizona, designed for an RV with driving days of six hours or less, focusing on interstate highways.” It included highway details and route for each day of driving as well as a campground to stay each night.

Using other tools I checked the hours required by the route if I drove continuously each day at 65 MPH. The route in the response did exceed the stipulated daily driving times.  Dividing the miles per day by 65 MPH gave daily driving times of 4.6, 7.0, 5.8 and 7.7 hours.  As can be seen two days exceeded the requested 6-hours of travel.  (I've determined after years of trekking that 60-65 MPH is a realistic average speed for a 7-8 hour day of highway travel if I include time spent on gasoline stops and bathroom breaks.  A mid-day meal will add time.)

G and I discussed the trip alternatives and after reviewing with my usual planner we agreed to follow the AI suggestion with a few minor changes. She was excited to visit Santa Fe; it had been a few years since our previous visit. In this post I have included the AI suggestions and my actual experience driving this route. 

The response included specific instructions as well as suggested overnight stays.  I checked these for accuracy. Some of the suggestions were very good.  There were some inaccuracies.   We did stay at the four suggested campgrounds.  We had previously stayed at two, but two were new to us.  All of the campgrounds were very good.

Our actual driving distances included stops for gas, usually when the tank was about 2/3 empty.  It also included stops for a meal along the route coordinated with a gasoline fill-up, unless noted otherwise. 

We travelled using our usual routine. There were additional stops for bathroom breaks and to stretch our legs.  

There were three time zone changes on the route, and we gained an hour with each occurrence. This meant we arrived at the campgrounds earlier on the clock than had there been no time zone changes.  We prefer to arrive at 3-4 pm, which is why I use a 6-hour driving day when planning.  The time zone changes were beneficial.  Had we been going east instead of west we would have lost an hour each day. 

Day 1: Grand Rapids, MI to Springfield, IL

• Driving Time: Approximately 4 hours was estimated by the AI.
• Proposed Route: Take I-196 to I-94 to I-80 W, then I-74 to I-474 W around Peoria, and finally I-155 S to I-55 S into Springfield.
• Actual, correct route:  The proposed route does not go to Peoria.  In fact, we travelled around Bloomington-Normal, IL.
• Actual distance:  About 300 miles.  At a constant 65MPH this would require about 4.6 hours driving time.

      Day 2: Springfield, IL to Tulsa, OK

• Driving Time: Approximately 6 hours was estimated by the AI.
• Proposed Route: Continue on I-55 S to I-44 S, which will take you directly into Tulsa.
• Actual Distance: 504 miles. We deviated and took I-270 to bypass St. Louis, MO. This added about 15 miles distance. At a constant 65 MPH this route would have required 7.0 hours point-to-point driving time.

Day 3: Tulsa, OK to Amarillo, TX

• Driving Time: Approximately 5.5 hours was estimated by the AI.
• Proposed Route: Take I-44 W out of Tulsa and continue on it until you merge with I-40 W in Oklahoma City. I-40 W will take you to Amarillo.
• Actual Distance: 377 miles. At a constant 65 MPH this would require 5.8 hours driving time.

Day 4: Amarillo, TX to Santa Fe, NM

• Driving Time: Approximately 4.5 hours was estimated by the AI.
• Proposed Route: Continue on I-40 W from Amarillo. Near Clines Corners, NM, take US-285 N directly into Santa Fe.
•  Actual Distance: 301 miles. At a constant 65 MPH this would require 4.6 hours driving time. However, actual distance from campground to campground required 4.3 hours driving time. The distance travelled included an excursion into town, which added 24 miles to this segment.
• We didn’t specify going to Santa Fe, and doing so added about 118 miles of additional driving to this trip.  However, I didn’t specify “shortest route”. This slight addition was necessary to get us to the campground.

      Day 5: Santa Fe, NM to Tucson, AZ

• Driving Time: Approximately 6 hours was estimated by the AI.
• Proposed Route: From Santa Fe, take I-25 S to Albuquerque. In Albuquerque, merge onto I-40 W. In Holbrook, AZ, take AZ-77 S to US-70 W, then AZ-77 S again to Tucson.

·        Actual route. Day 5:  We did not go to Holbrook AZ.  Doing so would result in a driving distance of 532 miles and require 8.2 hours driving time.  In fact, the route we took was I-25 to Hatch NM Hwy 26 to I-10 West.  This was a distance of 500 miles.  At a constant 65 MPH this would require 7.7 hours driving time.

On the 5th day we departed the campground at 7:55 AM local time and arrived at our Tucson Destination at about 4:00 PM Tucson time.  We “gained” an hour because of time zone changes. We did encounter an intense thunderstorm, which delayed us 20 minutes. Start to finish the day was 9 hours. 

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Note: No AI tools were used to produce this blog, although one was used for the route depicted. Most photos are unretouched.

(c) 2025 N. Retzke

Picture Rocks National Lakeshore

 

Kayaking is popular

We took the "Spray Falls" Pictured Rocks Cruise at 11:00am on a Tuesday.  Lake Superior was calm with partial overcast and haze from Canadian wildfires.  This is our second cruise of this type.  The first was a "sunset" cruise in 2012.  I've also hiked and camped on the bluffs. 

At 8:00am we picked a choice street parking spot near the cruise departure docks and then walked to Earl E. Byrds for breakfast.

I've added a few photos of the earlier Sunset Cruise, taken in July 2012.

Munising Dock 8:12 AM

Looking Astern at 11:06 AM

People at the Lookout Point

Calcium, Magnesium, Iron, Copper and other minerals create the colors

I've taken a few videos, including the falls.  Perhaps I'll edit and upload on my YouTube channel.

All smiles after the cruise

History:  Picture Rocks trek in July 2012

History:  On the Sunset Cruise

History:  Sunset on Lake Superior July 19, 2012

Note: No AI tools were used to produce this blog. Most photos are unretouched.

(c) 2025 N. Retzke

The Big Texan, Amarillo and Santa Fe

Our recent trek included stops in Amarillo, Texas and Santa Fe, New Mexico. This was along a route we have travelled many times.  Our first visit to Santa Fe was in 2006. Much has changed since then.  The streets downtown are as narrow as ever!  We were able to squeeze our Roadtrek through with no difficulty, although caution is always advised on narrow streets. 

Canyon Road, August 2006

These were brief , but leisurely stops on this trek. We arrived at the Big Texan at about 2:30PM, and that was in time for the lunch specials. I had a salad with ribs and brisket.

Big Texan Restaurant

After dinner we went to the nearby campground for the night.  The next day we continued on to Santa Fe, New Mexico.  We found street parking ($2.00 per hour) and walked a short distance to Cafe Greco, where we had an open air lunch. There was a pianist playing light music.  The weather was mild, but rain was forecast.  It was a lovely time.

Soup, Grilled Chicken Salad and Cherry Pie

After lunch we took a walk down Canyon Road and visited several of the art galleries.   This gave us the opportunity to stretch our legs and talk to some of the gallery owners and the artists.   I generally don't take photos of the art, because thieves will download the images from google or my blog and make unauthorized copies.  This is a much larger problem than many are aware of.

We made a stop at the Sun & Dust Gallery

With storms rolling in and the parking meter expiring we decided to dash through the rain and return to the Roadtrek. We then proceeded to the campground.

Our site was quite pleasant, with sculpture and flowers.

After a good night's rest we were up at dawn and ready for the day!

Note: No AI tools were used to produce this blog. Most photos are unretouched.

(c) 2025 N. Retzke

Munising and the Picture Rocks National Lakeshore

 

Morning in Munising

8:12 AM

As part of our recent trek to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan we went to Munising and took a Picture Rock boat cruise.  We took such a cruise back in 2005.  That was the Sunset cruise.  This was to be the 11:00 AM departure.  There are also kayak tours and wreck tours available.  

It was a mild, partially sunny day.  Canadian wildfires had created a haze which was visible. Lake Superior can be cold, and summer water temperatures are usually in the 50s, but can peak at 60F. 

The town is walkable and there are a variety of murals and art on display.

There is ample street and lot parking, but the best street parking is at about 8:00am.  We picked a spot with easy in and out.  By 10:30am parking was filling up.

Street Parking 10:45 AM

Art in the Alley walk

I definitely recommend a stop at the Picture Rocks Interpretive Center.  It is very enlightening and the 13 minute video is worth watching.

I'll post photos of the cruise on a separate blog, but here is G, ready to roll:

Departing Munising

Note: No AI tools were used to produce this blog. Most photos are unretouched.

(c) 2025 N. Retzke

Sleeping Bear Dunes

 

Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive

While on our trek to Michigan's Upper Peninsula we made a stop at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.  This is on the east side of Lake Michigan. We visited on a Sunday in Mid-August, which is not the most opportune time to park at the most scenic stops.  Many visitors such ourselves. We generally opt for a weekday visit early in the morning, but we were enroute to our overnight campground, so we didn't have the necessary flexibility.

I've hiked along the Dunes and camped along the shoreline in the Upper Peninsula, so I was very familiar with this.  The Warren Dunes State Park, in Sawyer MI are only 12 miles north of the Indiana State Line and offer similar walks and climbs.  Also notable is the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado.  That was part of another trek and is in an earlier blog.

We had an enjoyable few hours of walking and touring via the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive. 

Heritage Trail Map

Some of the hikes include steep climbs but there are other, gentler ones.  We did not walk to the crest of the challenging "Dune Climb".  A Park Pass is required for all trail use within the national lakeshore. There are walking and cycling paths nearby.  One thing to keep in mind is the distances can be deceiving.  It is recommended by the Park Service to have ample water, good shoes and sun screen when attempting these walks. 

For a complete list of the Hiking Trails information, including alerts, regulations and safety information go to the official website.  Here is a link which was in effect on September 2, 2025:

Sleeping Bear Dunes Hiking Information

Gentle Hike near the Dune Climb

At the Dune Climb

Up the Dune Climb

Another view of the Dune Climb

Note: No AI tools were used to produce this blog. Most photos are unretouched.

(c) 2025 N. Retzke