Washington DC Cherry Blossoms 2016 - Hike Around the Tidal Basin

Decided we would do a little urban hiking and visit the Cherry Blossoms at the Tidal Basin in Washington DC.  24 March 2016 was predicted to be the peak and it looks like the guessers came pretty close.  The weather was beautiful and the blossoms looked great.  We took a bunch of photos along the way from the Metro at Washington Reagan National Airport to the Smithsonian stop and our “hike” around the Tidal Basin. On our way around, we stopped at the Japanese Stone Lantern Plaza, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, and the Jefferson Memorial. I was most moved by the FDR Memorial and it’s definitely worth the walk off the main drag to see that one.

The walking distance from the Smithsonian Metro stop to the Tidal Basin, counterclockwise around the Basin, and back is 3.5 miles. There were a bunch of people there and more were piling out of the metro when we left at noon.  Made for a great morning walk after we dropped our son off at the airport to go to Japan.  Although there are no Yeti here, you should beware of them anyway!!

Watch my other hiking videos:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdxYynz7DmRoLfGNWYRI5wsvPi-WJ_OIa

2011 Ford Taurus Clicking in the Dashboard – Repair of the recirculation door motor (easy)

This is a quick video showing how to change the air recirculation actuator motor assembly on a 2011 Ford Taurus.  This is a common failure in the 2011 Taurus where the embedded actuator sensor stops working causing clicking noises in the dashboard.  The clicking is caused by the motor trying to turn past the stop points and allowing the gears to jump. The part number from Ford is AA5Z19E616C and costs $32.  The number on the package is YH-1779 AA5Z-19E616-C MOTOR. In this case, the motor failure was for the fresh air recirculation door, which fortunately is easy to get to right behind the glove compartment. Because the repair was so easy, I posted a real-time video. There are two other motors, one for the hot/cold blend door and one for the vent settings, both of which are much harder to get to, but not impossible.

Watch my other hiking videos and gear reviews:  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdxYynz7DmRoLfGNWYRI5wsvPi-WJ_OIa

Check out these other great channels:

https://www.youtube.com/user/PeakbaggersForCancer

https://www.youtube.com/user/wmwood2001

https://www.youtube.com/user/sintax77