Thursday, November 17, 2011
OOOOOklahoma, where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain…
17-Nov-11
Howdy Dear Reader!! Hope all is good with yall! So, here we are at Lake Murray, OK. A nice side trip for us hehe.
I left you at the border a couple of weeks ago and we have put a few kms on since then. We had planned a somewhat direct south trip through Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado then into Texas… well, Mother Nature decided to see how flexible we are in our trip planning! Severe weather warning with large amounts of snow was in the forecast for CO. I got a facebook message from a friend saying, watch out for the weather there. Well, lucky for us, our plans are always written in water rather than stone! So we turned left after Wyoming and ended up seeing Nebraska and Oklahoma. So other than that little adventure, our trip to better weather was good. No bad weather while traveling and not really any cold nights either. We have been good about not traveling til we are exhausted and getting to unknown destinations in the daylight. So, overall a good run for us this year.
We spent a few nights in Ponca City, OK and got treated to their wonderful weather. On just our first day there, there was an earthquake a few miles away, then a massive thunderstorm complete with a tornado warning!! A tornado did touch down and take out a sports center or something, but not really all that close to us. I guess it was OK State just saying hello to its newest visitors… on our side trip we also got a chance to get together with our friends Robbie and Alice. A pleasant turn of events to say the least.
After Ponca City, we made a small trip south to try and find what appeared to be a nice little spot on Lake Guthrie. Well… that didn’t work out but we ended up at a decent spot outside Guthrie, OK. A nice spot to kinda relax a bit and scope out the next leg to get to Mike and Leslee. We did learn that Guthrie was the original capital city when Oklahoma was a territory. It was yoinked from them a couple years after they became a state by Oklahoma City. There are a lot of amazing old buildings there to see. Sadly I saw them while I was lost and didn’t have a camera. I’m thinking I need a USB port on my head to download mental images to my puter! Hehe
We have decided not to travel long distances this year. Stop more, maybe see more and take more pictures of our adventures. So far, we have done all that minus the picture taking :( Not having planned on being in Oklahoma for this long, we are somewhat at a loss for what to do and see. The lake we are at right now is beautiful. I’m guessing it would be amazing in the summer with all the trees in full foliage and flowers blooming. But right now it is quite quiet here. Not many folks winter camp I guess. The nights are cool, if you call 5C a cool night! Today looks like it will be awesome. The sun is shining and it is slowly warming up. I’m enjoying the state parks we have been visiting in the US so far. Most have power and water and clean shower houses. We have a nice view of the lake and a lot of feathered visitors. I am happy!
So, with that Dear Reader, I believe I will go out and soak up some sun and maybe let Jack chase some sticks in the lake. I do hope you are keeping warm and safe. Loving and missing you as much as ever!!
Monday, October 31, 2011
Border boredom...
31-Oct-11
HAPPY HALLOWEEN Dear Reader! I hope you have some great ghoulish plans for this day! We are sitting near the border watching the weather along our planned route. So far, it all looks pretty good.
So, the last time we chatted we were in Peace River… Gary finished up the job there on Sept 11th and we headed back to the farm for a bit. We needed to drop off our fishing gear and stuff we won’t use while we are down south. We managed to sort out a lot of crap this time and took a lot of things to Andrew in his new place. Then we headed back to Gibbons to get all our ducks in a row. Getting all the last minute crap done is a pain but necessary. So, with all the bills paid and dentist visited (eeew), we headed to Red Deer to scout out some RV lots that we thought we were interested in buying. We drove around and checked out one that Gary was quite interested in but I’m not sure. I really hate building restrictions lol. We have some more to scope out in the spring when we get back. I’m thinking we may just find the perfect little spot then.
So, here we sit for a couple days at Milk River. We met some nice folks and got talking about the whole snow-bird situation. Turns out that there’s a form we need to file so that the US IRS won’t come hunting us down to file with their tax department. Or worse have to turn to some silly treaty that was designed with snow-birds in mind. We have that all filled out ready to go for January.
We are taking a new route this year as our initial destination is a new one. We are heading to Texas to see my dear brother Mike and his lovely wife Leslee! I’m soooo excited I could burst! I have got to see them a fair bit in the last couple years but not down at their place. Its gonna be great. We haven’t looked too much into what all we want to see in Texas but we have lots of time I think. We also will be meeting up with our wonderful friends Alice and Robbie along the way as well. Not sure exactly where yet, but somewhere for sure. We actually have quite a few new friends that we really want to make sure we see. Most I’m sure we will see when we head back to the Montana circle in Quartzsite.
Once we head over the border we won’t be answering our Canadian phones anymore. Feel free to text them though! We are setting up the US cell phone but not sure what the new number will be. I’ll post it here and on facebook, or text me in a few days and I’ll text it back to you! Whatever makes you happy I will try to do!
So I know this seems like a rather short update Dear Reader, but alas, we have had a boring month! I’m pretty sure I’ll have much more to say the next time we meet. Betcha never thought I’d be lost for something to say!?! LOL Me either. And with that I will say to you Dear Reader, talk to you soon. Loving and missing you as always!
HAPPY HALLOWEEN Dear Reader! I hope you have some great ghoulish plans for this day! We are sitting near the border watching the weather along our planned route. So far, it all looks pretty good.
So, the last time we chatted we were in Peace River… Gary finished up the job there on Sept 11th and we headed back to the farm for a bit. We needed to drop off our fishing gear and stuff we won’t use while we are down south. We managed to sort out a lot of crap this time and took a lot of things to Andrew in his new place. Then we headed back to Gibbons to get all our ducks in a row. Getting all the last minute crap done is a pain but necessary. So, with all the bills paid and dentist visited (eeew), we headed to Red Deer to scout out some RV lots that we thought we were interested in buying. We drove around and checked out one that Gary was quite interested in but I’m not sure. I really hate building restrictions lol. We have some more to scope out in the spring when we get back. I’m thinking we may just find the perfect little spot then.
So, here we sit for a couple days at Milk River. We met some nice folks and got talking about the whole snow-bird situation. Turns out that there’s a form we need to file so that the US IRS won’t come hunting us down to file with their tax department. Or worse have to turn to some silly treaty that was designed with snow-birds in mind. We have that all filled out ready to go for January.
We are taking a new route this year as our initial destination is a new one. We are heading to Texas to see my dear brother Mike and his lovely wife Leslee! I’m soooo excited I could burst! I have got to see them a fair bit in the last couple years but not down at their place. Its gonna be great. We haven’t looked too much into what all we want to see in Texas but we have lots of time I think. We also will be meeting up with our wonderful friends Alice and Robbie along the way as well. Not sure exactly where yet, but somewhere for sure. We actually have quite a few new friends that we really want to make sure we see. Most I’m sure we will see when we head back to the Montana circle in Quartzsite.
Once we head over the border we won’t be answering our Canadian phones anymore. Feel free to text them though! We are setting up the US cell phone but not sure what the new number will be. I’ll post it here and on facebook, or text me in a few days and I’ll text it back to you! Whatever makes you happy I will try to do!
So I know this seems like a rather short update Dear Reader, but alas, we have had a boring month! I’m pretty sure I’ll have much more to say the next time we meet. Betcha never thought I’d be lost for something to say!?! LOL Me either. And with that I will say to you Dear Reader, talk to you soon. Loving and missing you as always!
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Hello from Peace River!
9-Oct-11
Ahhhh My Dear Reader!! How have you been? I bet you were thinking that I completely forgot about you!! Never fear, I am always out here somewhere. Not sure why I got lazy on the updates, but I do apologize for that.
So, after sorting thru a few things at the farm we decided it was fishing time again. Like we really need a “time” to go fishing lol. We enjoyed our time at Dolberg Lake last year so we decided to head back out there and see if it was still any good. We arrived there to discover that the silly place was packed! I scooted in first in the jeep and saw only 1 spot left, and I thought that we might be able to squeeze into. So I radioed Gary to come on in a take a peeksee! Well, it was definitely a close fit but once we were in and sorted out, it was actually perfect. Of course this is from the short person who just stood back and pointed this way and that, hehe. Gary may have a different story about that, but, well, he’s not typing this now is he!! So, ya, it was perfect. Unfortunately the fishing wasn’t as great. We got settled in and then the rain started…again… it just kept on and on and on!! I went out for a drive to make a phone call and much to my dismay saw that the road appeared to be flooding. I turned around and headed back to the campground. A few minutes later some county workers stopped by and told us that the road would be closed for a bit til they could repair the part that had washed away. They told us we should think about moving or plan to stay for an undetermined amount of time. We took stock of supplies and decided we were good for a couple weeks at least. We could get in and out with the jeep if we needed to but the road couldn’t handle the trailer if the rain didn’t stop… and it didn’t for 2 more days. So our week planned turned into almost 3 weeks of rain, fishing and general relaxing. Needless to say, all was good.
So, after our little stay there we were somewhat undecided as to where to go next. I noticed a Facebook update that the family of Jeremy Der, the young man who drowned last year, were having a gathering/memorial out at the Big Horn Dam again. So… off we went. We arrived and drove in circles looking for Brenda and her crew but to no avail. We stopped and saw the memorial post that was put up for him and reflected for a moment. I’m sad to say we moved on to Fish Lake for more fishing. The mosquito population was overwhelming right down by the dam and we had had enough of bugs and rain for a bit. We didn’t get to park on the lake but we were quite happy where we were. The weather was decent enough to get out and throw some hooks at the water a few times, but alas, a few bites but no fish feasts for us. But as the saying goes, the worst day fishing is always better than the best day working!!
From there we picked a few spots to hit on our slow journey up towards Edmonton to go see the boys and some friends and sort out more stuff, meaning: order more solar lift parts. We stopped at some parks on the way up and kept getting the same reply, sorry we are all booked up or , my fave, “go check out these 2 sites and let us know which you are in” only to see a site that was about 25 feet long and 8 feet wide. I spent a lot of time scratching my head wondering if people could not see the 38 ft fiver parked in front of them and not realize that a 25 ft site just wouldn’t work? Apparently Darwinism isn’t doing its job sometimes…just saying…
Needless to say we were getting tired and annoyed. We stopped for dinner and decided to head to Longriders by Gibbons. We like to think of that as our home park lol. I called to make sure it wasn’t full and was told by Ken, the owner, “We always got room for you guys, call when you’re close or just find a spot you want when you get here and we’ll square up when we see you.” Gotta love it. We spent a couple weeks getting Garys’ parts sent in and getting our satellite tv finally ordered and set up. We also had time to help Andrew a bit. After getting his stolen truck he had a lot of crap to sort out. I’m happy to report that the insurance company finally got their shit together, after more than 2 months, and got him settled and he’s now the proud owner of a new truck. Grats sweetie!! <3
Gary had been keeping an eye out for a job coming up in Peace River, and finally they started hiring. So we packed up and trundled off… We came up through Slave Lake and stopped to see how the rebuild of that poor town was going. It was sad to see the town but the people seem to be pushing forward. Between the fire and the flooding there is a lot of activity there. You can still see the tree stumps the size of cars bumped up to the highway at all the bridges. And there seemed to be as much heavy equipment as vehicles all over the place. It looks like they have accomplished a lot, but still have much more to do. Our thoughts are definitely with them all.
We spent a couple nights in Faust in hopes of maybe getting some fishing in, but that didn’t happen. We just did some relaxing and Gary worked on his panel lifts…again…
On 20-August, we made it to Peace River finally. Gary started work on the following Monday and we have been here since then.
I got to head over to Wembley and visit with my sisters twice. Once for a wedding shower and then again for Devin and Sandi’s wedding!! What a lovely couple. My nephew did good!! It was fun to see all the family and meet some of the newer twigs that I hadn’t met yet.
So we are still in Peace River now and I have started some rough planning of our trip south. We are headed to Texas first and then will probably swing around to Arizona in the new year. We will be taking a new route so it will involve a slight bit more thought that last year. All will be fun and I can’t wait to spend some more time with my favourite brother!!
So that’s it for now Dear Reader. I hope all is amazing with you still. Love you miss you as always!!
Ahhhh My Dear Reader!! How have you been? I bet you were thinking that I completely forgot about you!! Never fear, I am always out here somewhere. Not sure why I got lazy on the updates, but I do apologize for that.
So, after sorting thru a few things at the farm we decided it was fishing time again. Like we really need a “time” to go fishing lol. We enjoyed our time at Dolberg Lake last year so we decided to head back out there and see if it was still any good. We arrived there to discover that the silly place was packed! I scooted in first in the jeep and saw only 1 spot left, and I thought that we might be able to squeeze into. So I radioed Gary to come on in a take a peeksee! Well, it was definitely a close fit but once we were in and sorted out, it was actually perfect. Of course this is from the short person who just stood back and pointed this way and that, hehe. Gary may have a different story about that, but, well, he’s not typing this now is he!! So, ya, it was perfect. Unfortunately the fishing wasn’t as great. We got settled in and then the rain started…again… it just kept on and on and on!! I went out for a drive to make a phone call and much to my dismay saw that the road appeared to be flooding. I turned around and headed back to the campground. A few minutes later some county workers stopped by and told us that the road would be closed for a bit til they could repair the part that had washed away. They told us we should think about moving or plan to stay for an undetermined amount of time. We took stock of supplies and decided we were good for a couple weeks at least. We could get in and out with the jeep if we needed to but the road couldn’t handle the trailer if the rain didn’t stop… and it didn’t for 2 more days. So our week planned turned into almost 3 weeks of rain, fishing and general relaxing. Needless to say, all was good.
So, after our little stay there we were somewhat undecided as to where to go next. I noticed a Facebook update that the family of Jeremy Der, the young man who drowned last year, were having a gathering/memorial out at the Big Horn Dam again. So… off we went. We arrived and drove in circles looking for Brenda and her crew but to no avail. We stopped and saw the memorial post that was put up for him and reflected for a moment. I’m sad to say we moved on to Fish Lake for more fishing. The mosquito population was overwhelming right down by the dam and we had had enough of bugs and rain for a bit. We didn’t get to park on the lake but we were quite happy where we were. The weather was decent enough to get out and throw some hooks at the water a few times, but alas, a few bites but no fish feasts for us. But as the saying goes, the worst day fishing is always better than the best day working!!
From there we picked a few spots to hit on our slow journey up towards Edmonton to go see the boys and some friends and sort out more stuff, meaning: order more solar lift parts. We stopped at some parks on the way up and kept getting the same reply, sorry we are all booked up or , my fave, “go check out these 2 sites and let us know which you are in” only to see a site that was about 25 feet long and 8 feet wide. I spent a lot of time scratching my head wondering if people could not see the 38 ft fiver parked in front of them and not realize that a 25 ft site just wouldn’t work? Apparently Darwinism isn’t doing its job sometimes…just saying…
Needless to say we were getting tired and annoyed. We stopped for dinner and decided to head to Longriders by Gibbons. We like to think of that as our home park lol. I called to make sure it wasn’t full and was told by Ken, the owner, “We always got room for you guys, call when you’re close or just find a spot you want when you get here and we’ll square up when we see you.” Gotta love it. We spent a couple weeks getting Garys’ parts sent in and getting our satellite tv finally ordered and set up. We also had time to help Andrew a bit. After getting his stolen truck he had a lot of crap to sort out. I’m happy to report that the insurance company finally got their shit together, after more than 2 months, and got him settled and he’s now the proud owner of a new truck. Grats sweetie!! <3
Gary had been keeping an eye out for a job coming up in Peace River, and finally they started hiring. So we packed up and trundled off… We came up through Slave Lake and stopped to see how the rebuild of that poor town was going. It was sad to see the town but the people seem to be pushing forward. Between the fire and the flooding there is a lot of activity there. You can still see the tree stumps the size of cars bumped up to the highway at all the bridges. And there seemed to be as much heavy equipment as vehicles all over the place. It looks like they have accomplished a lot, but still have much more to do. Our thoughts are definitely with them all.
We spent a couple nights in Faust in hopes of maybe getting some fishing in, but that didn’t happen. We just did some relaxing and Gary worked on his panel lifts…again…
On 20-August, we made it to Peace River finally. Gary started work on the following Monday and we have been here since then.
I got to head over to Wembley and visit with my sisters twice. Once for a wedding shower and then again for Devin and Sandi’s wedding!! What a lovely couple. My nephew did good!! It was fun to see all the family and meet some of the newer twigs that I hadn’t met yet.
So we are still in Peace River now and I have started some rough planning of our trip south. We are headed to Texas first and then will probably swing around to Arizona in the new year. We will be taking a new route so it will involve a slight bit more thought that last year. All will be fun and I can’t wait to spend some more time with my favourite brother!!
So that’s it for now Dear Reader. I hope all is amazing with you still. Love you miss you as always!!
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Another day... another blog! lol
2-July-11
Well hello there Dear Reader!! And Happy Canada Day!! We are sitting at the farm shuffling through some more of our old junk. And might I say, a lot of it is just that! I can’t believe the stuffs we hang onto “just in case”. O… guess I need to backtrack to where we last chatted.
So, we spent some time in Irricana, AB while Gary was working. He had picked up a 2 week+ job at nearby Crossfield and the campground was decent enough. I managed to keep the tanks empty and the water flowing while he slaved away. He actually took a job as a journeyman and was working his ass off on the tools. I hate to admit that I laughed a little bit everyday when he stumbled home. The physical labour definitely took its toll on him. The 2 weeks turned to 3, then looked like maybe another 1 or 2 and we decided to move a little closer to the job and hopefully a bit further from the trains! And off to Carstairs we went. After just about 6 weeks working like a dog, Gary decided it was time for a lay-off! It was a good run but I think he was itching for some fishing.
We headed up to Red Deer to get the axles checked and aligned if necessary (it was). While talking to the fellow there we found that in his opinion, any new trailer should get an alignment done before pulling anywhere. He feels that the manufacturers are clueless when it comes to that sort of thing. Something I’m pretty sure we will keep in mind the next time.
While we were there we decided to try to get in touch with Shane and Darlene and the boys grandparents. Well, the Carritts were out of town but we did get to see Shane and Dar and meet the most adorable Elena (15 mths). It was a great visit and catch up with them. They appear to be taking to parenthood quite nicely!! Elena already has her daddy appropriately whipped into shape!! LOL and Darlene looks as amazing as ever. Oh, and thanks for the jam!!
So, we had planned to head from there to the farm to visit Garys folks and our junk… but then I talked to Deb and Berry and of course our plans changed. We headed back out to Prairie Creek to spend some time with them and maybe toss some hooks at the water. We arrived the day before them and lucky thing we did! We had planned on staying on the south side of the creek as Deb and Berry were expecting all the kids to come out as well. When we arrived, I scooted ahead to see how wet it was. There has been an amazing amount of rain all through the southern part of the province and everything is so waterlogged! I think I am even developing webbed toes… Anyhoo, needless to say we couldn’t park where we did last year. I popped the jeep into 4wheel and had some fun in the mud!!! We decided to drive around to the north side of the creek and see what we could do over there. Well, we were able to park there but not down by the creek, we had to stop up the hill, just off the road. It’s a quiet road with little to no traffic. While we were figuring out where we actually wanted to set up 3 more trailers pulled up. Lo and behold!! It was our neighbours from last year there. Richard and Natasha are some amazing people!!! We said hello and how ya been and continued to park. We managed to get hold of our darling friends and redirect them to the new spot. Who knew how much it could rain!! The whole weekend was soaked. A little part of me felt bad for their kids in tents (a very little part hehe) but all in all, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.
Needless to say the whole 10 days or so that we were there, I think Gary pulled his fishing pole out once. The creek had so much runoff it was at least 3 feet higher that before and so murky even Jack didn’t want to swim in it!!!! So we just relaxed and enjoyed the peace and quiet.
I guess the lack of fishing motivated us to move on and head to the farm. We have managed to sort through a few things and move out some stuff we haven't touched since we moved in here. We did get the bits from the factory that they shipped out to us. So we now have a completely repaired unit. Or do we… while we were replacing a leaky tank valve we noticed that the one tank had a tiny little leak. Seems its just kinda wearing out near the valve. Not enough to have to replace but annoying none the less. We patched for now and Mr. Gary researched a better patch idea which we will do somewhere along the road. No real rush, it’s not like we are flinging poo into the wind or anything :P
This brings us to today!! Our niece, Tamara is out for dinner with the grand folks and us, so we will have a great visit with her to be sure! Maybe a bonfire and some required Canada Day drinkies!!
And there you have it Dear Reader. Another update, and might I say that I truly enjoy our little visits!! Love you, miss as always!!
Well hello there Dear Reader!! And Happy Canada Day!! We are sitting at the farm shuffling through some more of our old junk. And might I say, a lot of it is just that! I can’t believe the stuffs we hang onto “just in case”. O… guess I need to backtrack to where we last chatted.
So, we spent some time in Irricana, AB while Gary was working. He had picked up a 2 week+ job at nearby Crossfield and the campground was decent enough. I managed to keep the tanks empty and the water flowing while he slaved away. He actually took a job as a journeyman and was working his ass off on the tools. I hate to admit that I laughed a little bit everyday when he stumbled home. The physical labour definitely took its toll on him. The 2 weeks turned to 3, then looked like maybe another 1 or 2 and we decided to move a little closer to the job and hopefully a bit further from the trains! And off to Carstairs we went. After just about 6 weeks working like a dog, Gary decided it was time for a lay-off! It was a good run but I think he was itching for some fishing.
We headed up to Red Deer to get the axles checked and aligned if necessary (it was). While talking to the fellow there we found that in his opinion, any new trailer should get an alignment done before pulling anywhere. He feels that the manufacturers are clueless when it comes to that sort of thing. Something I’m pretty sure we will keep in mind the next time.
While we were there we decided to try to get in touch with Shane and Darlene and the boys grandparents. Well, the Carritts were out of town but we did get to see Shane and Dar and meet the most adorable Elena (15 mths). It was a great visit and catch up with them. They appear to be taking to parenthood quite nicely!! Elena already has her daddy appropriately whipped into shape!! LOL and Darlene looks as amazing as ever. Oh, and thanks for the jam!!
So, we had planned to head from there to the farm to visit Garys folks and our junk… but then I talked to Deb and Berry and of course our plans changed. We headed back out to Prairie Creek to spend some time with them and maybe toss some hooks at the water. We arrived the day before them and lucky thing we did! We had planned on staying on the south side of the creek as Deb and Berry were expecting all the kids to come out as well. When we arrived, I scooted ahead to see how wet it was. There has been an amazing amount of rain all through the southern part of the province and everything is so waterlogged! I think I am even developing webbed toes… Anyhoo, needless to say we couldn’t park where we did last year. I popped the jeep into 4wheel and had some fun in the mud!!! We decided to drive around to the north side of the creek and see what we could do over there. Well, we were able to park there but not down by the creek, we had to stop up the hill, just off the road. It’s a quiet road with little to no traffic. While we were figuring out where we actually wanted to set up 3 more trailers pulled up. Lo and behold!! It was our neighbours from last year there. Richard and Natasha are some amazing people!!! We said hello and how ya been and continued to park. We managed to get hold of our darling friends and redirect them to the new spot. Who knew how much it could rain!! The whole weekend was soaked. A little part of me felt bad for their kids in tents (a very little part hehe) but all in all, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.
Needless to say the whole 10 days or so that we were there, I think Gary pulled his fishing pole out once. The creek had so much runoff it was at least 3 feet higher that before and so murky even Jack didn’t want to swim in it!!!! So we just relaxed and enjoyed the peace and quiet.
I guess the lack of fishing motivated us to move on and head to the farm. We have managed to sort through a few things and move out some stuff we haven't touched since we moved in here. We did get the bits from the factory that they shipped out to us. So we now have a completely repaired unit. Or do we… while we were replacing a leaky tank valve we noticed that the one tank had a tiny little leak. Seems its just kinda wearing out near the valve. Not enough to have to replace but annoying none the less. We patched for now and Mr. Gary researched a better patch idea which we will do somewhere along the road. No real rush, it’s not like we are flinging poo into the wind or anything :P
This brings us to today!! Our niece, Tamara is out for dinner with the grand folks and us, so we will have a great visit with her to be sure! Maybe a bonfire and some required Canada Day drinkies!!
And there you have it Dear Reader. Another update, and might I say that I truly enjoy our little visits!! Love you, miss as always!!
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Slacker poster Surfaces!!!!
21-May-11
Ahh Dear Reader, I am so glad you have stuck with me though all of my meanderings and whining! And I must say WOW!! I didn’t realize how long since I last updated you. So here we gooooo…
We headed to Jackson, CA for a Montana/Keystone RV rally, which we thought at the very least would be interesting since our Keystone issues seemed to be a popular topic. The rally itself was a good time. We got to see some familiar faces and meet some new friends too. Basically we were at a beautiful campground that is part of a casino just outside Jackson, CA. It was a good week. I have discovered that I love wine touring, but I think it may have been safer has Gary come with me! But really, who wouldn’t love a wine named Rapscallion?? I made a few purchases and was surprised that they were well received when I returned home! One of the guest speakers was a fellow from Keystone. I feel I have now met the ultimate RV salesman. What a twit. But as a rep of Keystone, I guess I shouldn’t have been surprized. Nuff said…
After our week there we had to head north to Pendleton, OR for our date at the factory. We made the trek in tandem with one of our favourite couples, Dave and Kelly. They were headed home after being in the south for the winter and were headed our way. So, we followed along and found some more great overnight spots. A casino one night (our first time in a casino parking lot) and then on the banks of the Columbia River. What a treat!
We decided to hit Pendleton early so we could scope out the place. It’s not very big, but I managed to get lost a few times (damned one way streets!!) so we found a little park near the Keystone factory and reviewed our list of repairs that we were told to bring. I was hoping that they knew what the main reason was for us to be there was. Well, um, ya… thumbs down to Ms. Kristy Anglemyer once again. We arrived with our list of 25 items that needed attention. Out of all that they knew of 3. So we parked the rig in their capable hands and discussed wtf would happen. It seems that head office (Kristy) forgot to mention that the side of our rig needed replacing as it was missing from the tire incident. Grrr but we said ok, what now? The guys in that shop were amazing, they took our list and went “Ok, we will have to order a lot of this but lets get the critical shit dealt with” They proceeded to talk with Gary about the front flex issue and were more than happy to have him there watching and questioning. These guys know their shit. Kudos to Lonnie, Delvin (aka Gummy Hair) and that other quiet guy. O and thumbs up to their boss Bob Payant who said “These guys will do whatever you need done” and walked away. It was impressive, they measured, sized up and ordered away! No questions asked, no run around, just good old fashioned customer service. I was in awe. So they had the rig for 2 days and repaired what they could and ordered what they needed to. It was going to be a week to 10 days for everything to arrive so we went out to the local casino that had a very nice park nearby. Found an awesome restaurant there and sat back to relax, knowing that we were finally getting shit done. We returned the unit when they called and said almost everything was in. the table top never showed and they sent some wring materials. But Bob told us that rather than sit and wait that he would simply ship it to us when it arrived. Which reminds me I should check on that! So having spent a lot longer in Oregon than we intended we planned our route home. Sadly, this meant not getting up to Washington to visit Dave and Kelly. But, I’m guessing they will forgive us and the offer will be there again another time!
So off we headed to the border! We kinda had a plan although we start with good intentions then, well… isn’t there some good somewhere paved with good intentions? We can claim a large stretch of that LOL! We only made it to Coeur d’Alene, ID. Not far but we did stick to our rule of avoiding travel on weekends! It also gave us a chance to make sure we had our list of crap to claim at the border. We did know that we would rather cross at Alberta, but B.C. was closer and out time was running out. Gary had picked up a job and we needed to find a campground nearish to it. Well, the border crossing was quick and painless. The guy misunderstood what Gary has said and when I approached the gate he asked for my papers, asked about Jack and told me to have a nice day. Well, when I went up to Gary as we headed in to pay our dues he asked for my claim forms. I told him I didn’t have any and he quietly said “go wait in the jeep”. And me, being the obedient (ROFLMFAO) lady that I am, waited in the jeep til he was done. Ok… fine… me and Jack went for a walk and wondered what was up. It wasn’t til we were about 5 miles up the road that he pulled over and explained that we were officially rum smugglers!! The guy thought Gary was claiming for us both. O well, we figgered that kinda paid for the extra charge that B.C. has on booze hehe. But at least now we know. Enter thru Alberta, even the border guy asked if we wanted to turn around and do that! I must say though, our border crossings have, for the most part, been uneventful compared to the stories that we have heard. I am sure though that the one time I forget to toss out that evil American lettuce, we will get strip searched.
So, home at last! Well, in country at least! What a beautiful drive! I guess after six months of beige desert, the Canadian Rockies are pretty amazing. It was nice to stop and get fuel and not have to worry if you have enough cash or if your credit card will work at the pump. A young kid came out, pumped our fuel as we lounged and watched, then went in after the fact and paid. A nice welcome home IMHO. So we continued on our trek. After a few miles, Gary pulled over, out of the blue. Great… his pressure pro said he was losing air in one of the trailer tires. We inspected the tire and found the leak. He jumped in the truck to back up a bit so we could repair it easier. By the time he got to the truck I noticed a second leak starting. Then, when he started to fixed the first a third started and the tire was bulging oddly! He told me to get behind the trailer in case it blew or did something equally odd. So I got a lesson in how to change a flat on the trailer. Upside… it was a beautiful day! Onward we trekked.
The park we stopped at was nestled in the mountains on the Alberta side of the mountains, what a view! We got their card and may have to take another look at the sites they are developing to sell. We spent most of the evening trying to find a tire shop en route to our destination. Since we had to get the tire replaced we opted to upgrade them all. So, we picked up one in Pincher Creek and headed to High River where the other 3 and an installer waited for us. Another wonderful day in our RV nightmare log! There was unusual wear on all the tires so we are going in to get the alignment checked and springs inspected and a bunch of other technical guy stuff done. I have been in contact with our friends at Keystone yet again. I did ask on facebook if getting the run-around was exercise. I’m guessing since all I got smart ass replies that the answer is yes! :P to you all LOL.
So we are now sitting in Irricana, AB. Small little town, but close to Crossfield where Gary will be working for the next bit. Andrew stopped in for a visit for Mothers Day. We had a great time, thanks again sweetie!
Last weekend was the infamous Sister Weekend. It was fun. Yup, that’s all you get to know about it this year lol.
I guess that catches us up Dear Reader! I do forget that when we are back in Canada our southern family and friends wonder what we are up to as well! I do promise to try to post more often. And I swear that that promise is better than the ones to post pictures!!
And so I wish you all the best Dear Reader, miss you, love you as always!!
Ahh Dear Reader, I am so glad you have stuck with me though all of my meanderings and whining! And I must say WOW!! I didn’t realize how long since I last updated you. So here we gooooo…
We headed to Jackson, CA for a Montana/Keystone RV rally, which we thought at the very least would be interesting since our Keystone issues seemed to be a popular topic. The rally itself was a good time. We got to see some familiar faces and meet some new friends too. Basically we were at a beautiful campground that is part of a casino just outside Jackson, CA. It was a good week. I have discovered that I love wine touring, but I think it may have been safer has Gary come with me! But really, who wouldn’t love a wine named Rapscallion?? I made a few purchases and was surprised that they were well received when I returned home! One of the guest speakers was a fellow from Keystone. I feel I have now met the ultimate RV salesman. What a twit. But as a rep of Keystone, I guess I shouldn’t have been surprized. Nuff said…
After our week there we had to head north to Pendleton, OR for our date at the factory. We made the trek in tandem with one of our favourite couples, Dave and Kelly. They were headed home after being in the south for the winter and were headed our way. So, we followed along and found some more great overnight spots. A casino one night (our first time in a casino parking lot) and then on the banks of the Columbia River. What a treat!
We decided to hit Pendleton early so we could scope out the place. It’s not very big, but I managed to get lost a few times (damned one way streets!!) so we found a little park near the Keystone factory and reviewed our list of repairs that we were told to bring. I was hoping that they knew what the main reason was for us to be there was. Well, um, ya… thumbs down to Ms. Kristy Anglemyer once again. We arrived with our list of 25 items that needed attention. Out of all that they knew of 3. So we parked the rig in their capable hands and discussed wtf would happen. It seems that head office (Kristy) forgot to mention that the side of our rig needed replacing as it was missing from the tire incident. Grrr but we said ok, what now? The guys in that shop were amazing, they took our list and went “Ok, we will have to order a lot of this but lets get the critical shit dealt with” They proceeded to talk with Gary about the front flex issue and were more than happy to have him there watching and questioning. These guys know their shit. Kudos to Lonnie, Delvin (aka Gummy Hair) and that other quiet guy. O and thumbs up to their boss Bob Payant who said “These guys will do whatever you need done” and walked away. It was impressive, they measured, sized up and ordered away! No questions asked, no run around, just good old fashioned customer service. I was in awe. So they had the rig for 2 days and repaired what they could and ordered what they needed to. It was going to be a week to 10 days for everything to arrive so we went out to the local casino that had a very nice park nearby. Found an awesome restaurant there and sat back to relax, knowing that we were finally getting shit done. We returned the unit when they called and said almost everything was in. the table top never showed and they sent some wring materials. But Bob told us that rather than sit and wait that he would simply ship it to us when it arrived. Which reminds me I should check on that! So having spent a lot longer in Oregon than we intended we planned our route home. Sadly, this meant not getting up to Washington to visit Dave and Kelly. But, I’m guessing they will forgive us and the offer will be there again another time!
So off we headed to the border! We kinda had a plan although we start with good intentions then, well… isn’t there some good somewhere paved with good intentions? We can claim a large stretch of that LOL! We only made it to Coeur d’Alene, ID. Not far but we did stick to our rule of avoiding travel on weekends! It also gave us a chance to make sure we had our list of crap to claim at the border. We did know that we would rather cross at Alberta, but B.C. was closer and out time was running out. Gary had picked up a job and we needed to find a campground nearish to it. Well, the border crossing was quick and painless. The guy misunderstood what Gary has said and when I approached the gate he asked for my papers, asked about Jack and told me to have a nice day. Well, when I went up to Gary as we headed in to pay our dues he asked for my claim forms. I told him I didn’t have any and he quietly said “go wait in the jeep”. And me, being the obedient (ROFLMFAO) lady that I am, waited in the jeep til he was done. Ok… fine… me and Jack went for a walk and wondered what was up. It wasn’t til we were about 5 miles up the road that he pulled over and explained that we were officially rum smugglers!! The guy thought Gary was claiming for us both. O well, we figgered that kinda paid for the extra charge that B.C. has on booze hehe. But at least now we know. Enter thru Alberta, even the border guy asked if we wanted to turn around and do that! I must say though, our border crossings have, for the most part, been uneventful compared to the stories that we have heard. I am sure though that the one time I forget to toss out that evil American lettuce, we will get strip searched.
So, home at last! Well, in country at least! What a beautiful drive! I guess after six months of beige desert, the Canadian Rockies are pretty amazing. It was nice to stop and get fuel and not have to worry if you have enough cash or if your credit card will work at the pump. A young kid came out, pumped our fuel as we lounged and watched, then went in after the fact and paid. A nice welcome home IMHO. So we continued on our trek. After a few miles, Gary pulled over, out of the blue. Great… his pressure pro said he was losing air in one of the trailer tires. We inspected the tire and found the leak. He jumped in the truck to back up a bit so we could repair it easier. By the time he got to the truck I noticed a second leak starting. Then, when he started to fixed the first a third started and the tire was bulging oddly! He told me to get behind the trailer in case it blew or did something equally odd. So I got a lesson in how to change a flat on the trailer. Upside… it was a beautiful day! Onward we trekked.
The park we stopped at was nestled in the mountains on the Alberta side of the mountains, what a view! We got their card and may have to take another look at the sites they are developing to sell. We spent most of the evening trying to find a tire shop en route to our destination. Since we had to get the tire replaced we opted to upgrade them all. So, we picked up one in Pincher Creek and headed to High River where the other 3 and an installer waited for us. Another wonderful day in our RV nightmare log! There was unusual wear on all the tires so we are going in to get the alignment checked and springs inspected and a bunch of other technical guy stuff done. I have been in contact with our friends at Keystone yet again. I did ask on facebook if getting the run-around was exercise. I’m guessing since all I got smart ass replies that the answer is yes! :P to you all LOL.
So we are now sitting in Irricana, AB. Small little town, but close to Crossfield where Gary will be working for the next bit. Andrew stopped in for a visit for Mothers Day. We had a great time, thanks again sweetie!
Last weekend was the infamous Sister Weekend. It was fun. Yup, that’s all you get to know about it this year lol.
I guess that catches us up Dear Reader! I do forget that when we are back in Canada our southern family and friends wonder what we are up to as well! I do promise to try to post more often. And I swear that that promise is better than the ones to post pictures!!
And so I wish you all the best Dear Reader, miss you, love you as always!!
Monday, March 28, 2011
Pokey Bloggin'...
28-March-11
So Dear Reader, where were we last… oh ya, Joshua Tree. So we found some awesome BLM land right outside the park itself and proceeded to set up camp. The place was perfect and if you’re looking to go cheap then this is the spot! Staying in the park itself might be appealing to some, but honestly, why pay to park somewhere with no services for $15+ a night when you can be literally 20 yards from the park for free! We had a nice little spot with a tree. Trust me… a tree is a big deal! And to our surprize in our tree was a nest of 2 sweet little hummingbird babies. They were only a week or so from flying when we parked so we got to watch then getting fed and loved everyday. What a treat that was. Then, we enjoyed them taking their first flights and trust me, that was special! Funny how you get attached to little things around you. Even the Mama didn’t mind us peeking in and getting some amazing pictures and video. An awesome treat for us. So, we spent close to 3 weeks in and around Joshua Tree. We scooted around the park and found some fun trails, got lost… (or so I felt). Hopefully I can get some pictures sorted out and posted here or on facebook.
We did a day trip down around Saltan Sea and saw some interesting towns. Apparently we went on the wrong side to see Slab City, but I know we will be back and it will be there.
Gary spent a lot of time working on his remote solar lift system thingy and I think it‘s actually looking promising! He’s got a video on his facebook page I think… o and um, I’ll get one up somewhere near here too…
So after almost 3 weeks near the park, we decided it was time to move along. We took the scenic route and drove the road through the park and headed to Barstow, CA. Spent a couple days at a KOA and cleaned up. We didn’t see much around there, if there is much to see LOL We wanted to spend more time but when we went to pay for a couple more days were told we had to leave as the park was booked solid the next day. Not the same story we got when we checked in… KOA got an email from me and I await (haha) a reply.
Since we didn’t have any immediate plans we decided to head to Death Valley early. And let me say, the weather it threw at us was definitely death worthy. Our first day it was above 90F. The next day was in the 80s with winds over 40 mph! then more wind. We had it with the wind so we headed out and drove through a snow storm!! Like I said an appropriately named park for sure. We did tour around the jeep trails and down through the salt flats. It was very different, it looked like dirty snow drifts but was just salty crusty drift things. Worth seeing and worth going back, maybe once more. We did find a great BLM spot that I would rather have stayed at, so next time!!
So off we went trying to get away from the wind. We weren’t exactly sure where we headed other than towards Bakersfield…ish… We did have an idea of a park near Mojave, so we punched that in and thought we’d play it by ear as to how we felt. Needless to say, after driving though the Death Valley mountains in snow and rain, the park with full hook-ups was certainly enticing. We arrived to the neat little park and paid for a week and settled in. Funny how a week with services and cable TV can seem like an RV Hilton! We had spent most of the last 2 ½ months boon-docking so this seemed like heaven! Not having really looked into much for the area, we just spent some time cleaning and organizing and staying out of the cold wind. It wasn’t much fun to say the least. The weather just wasn’t being very cooperative, so indoor activities prevailed.
With our week in Jackson, CA for the Montana rally creeping up, we thought we would see what was on the other side of the mountains. So here we are just south of Fresno between Kingsburg and Selma. Selma looks like an interesting little place. The park…ooo the park! LOL Nothing overly special but it has GRASS!! And for those of you who are chuckling over my excitement over California grass… I mean LAWN not weed :P It’s warm and sunny with just enough humidity to be pleasant. I’m hoping that this weather stay with us until we head to the border.
So, that’s us, updated, for what it’s worth LOL And with that Dear Reader, loving you and missing you as always xox
So Dear Reader, where were we last… oh ya, Joshua Tree. So we found some awesome BLM land right outside the park itself and proceeded to set up camp. The place was perfect and if you’re looking to go cheap then this is the spot! Staying in the park itself might be appealing to some, but honestly, why pay to park somewhere with no services for $15+ a night when you can be literally 20 yards from the park for free! We had a nice little spot with a tree. Trust me… a tree is a big deal! And to our surprize in our tree was a nest of 2 sweet little hummingbird babies. They were only a week or so from flying when we parked so we got to watch then getting fed and loved everyday. What a treat that was. Then, we enjoyed them taking their first flights and trust me, that was special! Funny how you get attached to little things around you. Even the Mama didn’t mind us peeking in and getting some amazing pictures and video. An awesome treat for us. So, we spent close to 3 weeks in and around Joshua Tree. We scooted around the park and found some fun trails, got lost… (or so I felt). Hopefully I can get some pictures sorted out and posted here or on facebook.
We did a day trip down around Saltan Sea and saw some interesting towns. Apparently we went on the wrong side to see Slab City, but I know we will be back and it will be there.
Gary spent a lot of time working on his remote solar lift system thingy and I think it‘s actually looking promising! He’s got a video on his facebook page I think… o and um, I’ll get one up somewhere near here too…
So after almost 3 weeks near the park, we decided it was time to move along. We took the scenic route and drove the road through the park and headed to Barstow, CA. Spent a couple days at a KOA and cleaned up. We didn’t see much around there, if there is much to see LOL We wanted to spend more time but when we went to pay for a couple more days were told we had to leave as the park was booked solid the next day. Not the same story we got when we checked in… KOA got an email from me and I await (haha) a reply.
Since we didn’t have any immediate plans we decided to head to Death Valley early. And let me say, the weather it threw at us was definitely death worthy. Our first day it was above 90F. The next day was in the 80s with winds over 40 mph! then more wind. We had it with the wind so we headed out and drove through a snow storm!! Like I said an appropriately named park for sure. We did tour around the jeep trails and down through the salt flats. It was very different, it looked like dirty snow drifts but was just salty crusty drift things. Worth seeing and worth going back, maybe once more. We did find a great BLM spot that I would rather have stayed at, so next time!!
So off we went trying to get away from the wind. We weren’t exactly sure where we headed other than towards Bakersfield…ish… We did have an idea of a park near Mojave, so we punched that in and thought we’d play it by ear as to how we felt. Needless to say, after driving though the Death Valley mountains in snow and rain, the park with full hook-ups was certainly enticing. We arrived to the neat little park and paid for a week and settled in. Funny how a week with services and cable TV can seem like an RV Hilton! We had spent most of the last 2 ½ months boon-docking so this seemed like heaven! Not having really looked into much for the area, we just spent some time cleaning and organizing and staying out of the cold wind. It wasn’t much fun to say the least. The weather just wasn’t being very cooperative, so indoor activities prevailed.
With our week in Jackson, CA for the Montana rally creeping up, we thought we would see what was on the other side of the mountains. So here we are just south of Fresno between Kingsburg and Selma. Selma looks like an interesting little place. The park…ooo the park! LOL Nothing overly special but it has GRASS!! And for those of you who are chuckling over my excitement over California grass… I mean LAWN not weed :P It’s warm and sunny with just enough humidity to be pleasant. I’m hoping that this weather stay with us until we head to the border.
So, that’s us, updated, for what it’s worth LOL And with that Dear Reader, loving you and missing you as always xox
Monday, March 14, 2011
Better Late than Never!
02-Feb-11
Let me guess… lol tired of me apologizing for late updates and lack of photos? Lol Well, then I won’t do that now! The slow posts have mostly been due to the lack of anything exciting going on.
We spent almost a month in Huachuca City, AZ waiting on repair work. While we were there we got new brakes and drums and a fridge recall done. We did a bunch of geocaching and a lot of relaxing. Much as we wanted to see a lot of the area, we had to spend most of our time close to the phone and the dealer in case parts came in. Somewhat disappointing, considering there is a lot to see in that area. I guess the upside is we have a few more winters to visit!
We did get over to Tombstone and poked around some. Interesting little tourist trap! The Birdcage was the highlight for me though. It is the only original building left in town and still boasts some original billboards and other unique items. It still has the original bar and organ even. A nice touch in a place that really doesn’t offer much more than over priced re-enactments and fake store fronts.
We did have a nice visit there with Dick and Jackie, and enjoyed lunch with them. Poked around town and watched Dick take some great pics! You need to check out their blog (hehe) and there you can see some of the great places we have been and many that we hope to get to!! http://talesfromthedriversseat.blogspot.com/
We left Huachuca and headed west towards Yuma. Over nighted at the John Wayne RV park. Kinda had to because of its name J
Got to the BLM land outside Yuma, just over the CA border and parked for awhile and enjoyed the nice weather. We didn’t get to see as many people as we intended while we were there. Terry and Gail stopped out for a nice afternoon visit. It was great to see some hometown faces for a change! We poked around Yuma a bit and did a day trip to Los Algodones with Robbie and Alice. We broke down and finally bout one of the beautiful stained glass windows for the 5er. I didn’t think we would find something that we both would like but lo and behold we did!!
So after our near 2 week stint in Yuma it was time to head out again. Back to Quartzsite for the Circling of the Montanas. We got there a bit before rally time and enjoyed some smaller happy hour visits. It was fun to not be the newbs this year! Normally there’s a group that arrives early and gets the location set up and so on, this year was no different. However, a couple of folks from our group decided to check with the BLM office as to how some people were allowed to over stay the 14 day limit. This had been overlooked by the officer for the area as a courtesy to some of the rally groups, “don’t ask, don’t tell” was pretty much how it went. But I guess when you point out that this might not be right, well then it gets back to the book time for everyone. As no one was immediately aware of all the commotion, a lot of us that had arrived early to help out the wagon master also had to leave before the rally was over. We did manage a mini circle in town and drove out for a couple of happy hours. But it just wasn’t the same…
After all the rally stuff was over and we got bored with Q, it was decided to check out some new territory-ish. We headed out to Lake Alamo for a week near some water. Again we did a lot of relaxing and some exploring. Found a few good spots for some great boondocking next time we are in the area. Jack enjoyed his daily swims and defended us from the evil burros. We found some fun trails and poked around for the week then decided it was time again to head out.
Which found us outside Parker, AZ. A couple miles past Earp, CA, BLM land again! Met some nice people from Alaska and extremely unusual couple that live in a tent. I think Gary appreciated them more than I did. They thought he was a genius!! I know it would be easy to say, “well, the economy has hit us all pretty hard” but then theres just lazy people who are happy to have an excuse to be slackers to the extreme. So, after 10 days there it was time to find some new neighbours!
We headed down the road a bit and spent a couple nights at Lake Tamarisk Desert resort. Got cleaned up and took a day to scout out our next boondocking spot. We are now parked just outside the Joshua Tree National Park. Did some peeking around for the usual stuff. Once I know there’s drinking water available close I can settle down better. The park has a station about 5 mins from us so all is good! Fresh water, garbage bins and dump station for when we are ready to leave. There is a lot to see around here, besides the park itself. I’m hoping we take a trip to Slab City and see what its like. Saltan Sea is just south of us as well. We have a few weeks to explore. Our next scheduled event isn’t until March 30 for another rally in Jackson, CA. then off to the factory to get our rig fixed!
So hopefully I get this uploaded for you to peruse soon Dear Reader! And until next time, love you, miss you as always!
Let me guess… lol tired of me apologizing for late updates and lack of photos? Lol Well, then I won’t do that now! The slow posts have mostly been due to the lack of anything exciting going on.
We spent almost a month in Huachuca City, AZ waiting on repair work. While we were there we got new brakes and drums and a fridge recall done. We did a bunch of geocaching and a lot of relaxing. Much as we wanted to see a lot of the area, we had to spend most of our time close to the phone and the dealer in case parts came in. Somewhat disappointing, considering there is a lot to see in that area. I guess the upside is we have a few more winters to visit!
We did get over to Tombstone and poked around some. Interesting little tourist trap! The Birdcage was the highlight for me though. It is the only original building left in town and still boasts some original billboards and other unique items. It still has the original bar and organ even. A nice touch in a place that really doesn’t offer much more than over priced re-enactments and fake store fronts.
We did have a nice visit there with Dick and Jackie, and enjoyed lunch with them. Poked around town and watched Dick take some great pics! You need to check out their blog (hehe) and there you can see some of the great places we have been and many that we hope to get to!! http://talesfromthedriversseat.blogspot.com/
We left Huachuca and headed west towards Yuma. Over nighted at the John Wayne RV park. Kinda had to because of its name J
Got to the BLM land outside Yuma, just over the CA border and parked for awhile and enjoyed the nice weather. We didn’t get to see as many people as we intended while we were there. Terry and Gail stopped out for a nice afternoon visit. It was great to see some hometown faces for a change! We poked around Yuma a bit and did a day trip to Los Algodones with Robbie and Alice. We broke down and finally bout one of the beautiful stained glass windows for the 5er. I didn’t think we would find something that we both would like but lo and behold we did!!
So after our near 2 week stint in Yuma it was time to head out again. Back to Quartzsite for the Circling of the Montanas. We got there a bit before rally time and enjoyed some smaller happy hour visits. It was fun to not be the newbs this year! Normally there’s a group that arrives early and gets the location set up and so on, this year was no different. However, a couple of folks from our group decided to check with the BLM office as to how some people were allowed to over stay the 14 day limit. This had been overlooked by the officer for the area as a courtesy to some of the rally groups, “don’t ask, don’t tell” was pretty much how it went. But I guess when you point out that this might not be right, well then it gets back to the book time for everyone. As no one was immediately aware of all the commotion, a lot of us that had arrived early to help out the wagon master also had to leave before the rally was over. We did manage a mini circle in town and drove out for a couple of happy hours. But it just wasn’t the same…
After all the rally stuff was over and we got bored with Q, it was decided to check out some new territory-ish. We headed out to Lake Alamo for a week near some water. Again we did a lot of relaxing and some exploring. Found a few good spots for some great boondocking next time we are in the area. Jack enjoyed his daily swims and defended us from the evil burros. We found some fun trails and poked around for the week then decided it was time again to head out.
Which found us outside Parker, AZ. A couple miles past Earp, CA, BLM land again! Met some nice people from Alaska and extremely unusual couple that live in a tent. I think Gary appreciated them more than I did. They thought he was a genius!! I know it would be easy to say, “well, the economy has hit us all pretty hard” but then theres just lazy people who are happy to have an excuse to be slackers to the extreme. So, after 10 days there it was time to find some new neighbours!
We headed down the road a bit and spent a couple nights at Lake Tamarisk Desert resort. Got cleaned up and took a day to scout out our next boondocking spot. We are now parked just outside the Joshua Tree National Park. Did some peeking around for the usual stuff. Once I know there’s drinking water available close I can settle down better. The park has a station about 5 mins from us so all is good! Fresh water, garbage bins and dump station for when we are ready to leave. There is a lot to see around here, besides the park itself. I’m hoping we take a trip to Slab City and see what its like. Saltan Sea is just south of us as well. We have a few weeks to explore. Our next scheduled event isn’t until March 30 for another rally in Jackson, CA. then off to the factory to get our rig fixed!
So hopefully I get this uploaded for you to peruse soon Dear Reader! And until next time, love you, miss you as always!
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