June 7th - Sun - Spokane
I took a turn making breakfast this morning. My sister Marg was supposed to accompany a friend to Ft St John for a few days but when I spoke with her this morning she said her water pump quit so she could not leave Dad & a “sitter” with no water and no electric fence. She knew the water had a problem and had made an appointment but the earliest she could get a plumber was Thursday. Cindy left about 10:30 to fly home to Portland.
EllaMae has an electronic picture frame that Terry’s brother Harry had loaded with pictures. He suggested that I add some of our pictures so I edited some that were on the chip and then added some of ours - a time consuming job followed by a late lunch.
We had made tentative plans to meet Bill & Georgia for dinner but Georgia’s Mom was not doing well so we decided to go to the Coeur d’Alene Casino for a while. I won a few dollars which kept me going until we took a break for dinner. We split the Southern Fried Steak dinner and it is so large that I could not finish my half and Terry was too full from his half to eat more of mine. The casino finally ate our “allowance”.
Georgia’s Mom passed away this evening.
June 8th - Mon - Spokane
A couple of errands this morning. The first sewing machine place did not have my bobbin case so he sent us to another store closer to town. On the way, we stopped to chat with friend Gary in his carpet store. Got the bobbin case and the very nice clerk checked out the needle threader and told me what I might have been doing wrong when it didn’t work.
After lunch, we tried a couple of places to get an oil change and ended up getting it done in Liberty Lake. Back to EllaMae’s for dinner & a quiet TV evening.
June 9th - Tues - Spokane
Skip & Kathy stopped by for a visit this morning. We went on a short shopping trip and returned just in time for lunch. Suzanne (Terry’s sister-in-law) came over to do some paperwork and we had a nice visit with her. Terry was antsy so after dinner we went to Northern Quest casino. Didn’t cost much this time for a full evening of gambling.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Saturday, June 06, 2009
June 4th to 6th - Spokane
June 4th - Thurs - Spokane
Cindy arrived last night (after I posted my blog) for her weekly 4 days to look after her Mom.
We played golf at Fairways CG this morning with good friends Mike & Mary. Weather was beautiful, the course was in good shape and the company was super - but they made us look like the duffers that we are. Then on to lunch at Northern Quest casino which is undergoing a huge expansion and remodeling. Of course we all had to try out the slot machines after lunch.
We got back in time for a nice dinner prepared by Cindy and Don.
June 5th - Fri - Spokane
We took the 5th wheel in for the slide adjustments. Made a short trip to a nearby WalMart, returned to find out & approve what needed to be done and then went to Northern Quest casino to pass the time until it was done. I lost my allowance but Terry managed to win enough to get us back to even. We had lunch there before picking up the 5th wheel. We were really happy with the work that was done and felt that the price was reasonable.
Phone calls back & forth with Marg today as her electric fence quit. We were trying to figure out if we could get a new energizer for her here.
The ball game went to 10 innings tonight before the Mariners lost.
June 6th - Sat - Spokane
Terry & I went searching for a roll-up blind for Don & EllaMae’s patio. The late afternoon sun shines under the end of the roof so it is too bright and hot to enjoy dinner on the patio. We finally found exactly what we were looking for at Lowe’s. During our shopping, we bumped into friends Dale & Patsy and stood in the aisle at Home Depot and chatted for a while. A short stop at Costco (including a hot dog) and we headed back. Decided to check out a new WinCo grocery store - nice store with good prices but some people don’t like bagging their own groceries.
Terry & I installed the blind - works great. I decided that I had to get the other 2 zippers done on Terry’s short so I ripped out the old zippers while we all watched the end of a movie. Managed to get the zippers done before dinner. But as I was trying to mend some jeans, the thread snarled up. The bobbin case pulled out when I was getting the thread out and it has a piece broken out of it. Don’t know if it just happened but we have to get it fixed.
Sleepy group here this evening. Guys are snoozing in the living room and Cindy & EllaMae are getting a little shuteye while they are not talking to me at the dining room table.
Cindy arrived last night (after I posted my blog) for her weekly 4 days to look after her Mom.
We played golf at Fairways CG this morning with good friends Mike & Mary. Weather was beautiful, the course was in good shape and the company was super - but they made us look like the duffers that we are. Then on to lunch at Northern Quest casino which is undergoing a huge expansion and remodeling. Of course we all had to try out the slot machines after lunch.
We got back in time for a nice dinner prepared by Cindy and Don.
June 5th - Fri - Spokane
We took the 5th wheel in for the slide adjustments. Made a short trip to a nearby WalMart, returned to find out & approve what needed to be done and then went to Northern Quest casino to pass the time until it was done. I lost my allowance but Terry managed to win enough to get us back to even. We had lunch there before picking up the 5th wheel. We were really happy with the work that was done and felt that the price was reasonable.
Phone calls back & forth with Marg today as her electric fence quit. We were trying to figure out if we could get a new energizer for her here.
The ball game went to 10 innings tonight before the Mariners lost.
June 6th - Sat - Spokane
Terry & I went searching for a roll-up blind for Don & EllaMae’s patio. The late afternoon sun shines under the end of the roof so it is too bright and hot to enjoy dinner on the patio. We finally found exactly what we were looking for at Lowe’s. During our shopping, we bumped into friends Dale & Patsy and stood in the aisle at Home Depot and chatted for a while. A short stop at Costco (including a hot dog) and we headed back. Decided to check out a new WinCo grocery store - nice store with good prices but some people don’t like bagging their own groceries.
Terry & I installed the blind - works great. I decided that I had to get the other 2 zippers done on Terry’s short so I ripped out the old zippers while we all watched the end of a movie. Managed to get the zippers done before dinner. But as I was trying to mend some jeans, the thread snarled up. The bobbin case pulled out when I was getting the thread out and it has a piece broken out of it. Don’t know if it just happened but we have to get it fixed.
Sleepy group here this evening. Guys are snoozing in the living room and Cindy & EllaMae are getting a little shuteye while they are not talking to me at the dining room table.
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
June 1st to 3rd - Spokane
June 1st - Mon - Spokane
We made our to-do list and started working on it today after a visit from Terry’s brother Skip and his wife Kathy. Driver’s license office was closed so couldn’t get that done. Got license tabs for the truck & 5th wheel, made a stop at Costco and went to an RV place to make an appointment to get the slides on the 5th wheel adjusted. While we were there we had to check out the Montana that has caught our eye - we’ll keep ours for a while.
Don had ribs boiling when we returned and I used leftover carrots & potatoes to put together an au gratin casserole for an easy dinner.
Don & EllaMae like to watch baseball so we are learning to commiserate with them when the Seattle Mariners blow yet another lead.
June 2nd - Tues - Spokane
I got an eye exam this morning and then spent 45 minutes waiting to get my driver’s license renewed. When we changed our address to our mail box 2 ½ years ago, 2 employees allowed Terry & I to use that address. This time, the guy who waited on me said that according to WA state law I had to have a physical address. When I said we lived in our RV he asked where it was and I told him it was parked on the street in front of my mother-in-law’s house. He asked for her address and I was surprised and unhappy to see that address on my temporary license. That means my new license will be mailed here and Don will have to forward it to us.
Visited a couple of stores, washed the truck and returned to the house. Don & I had sorted through the freezer and I used a “well aged” steak to make stroganoff while Don made a run to the grocery store.
Mariners won tonight!
June 3rd - Wed - Spokane
3 overripe bananas demanded to be used in muffins this morning. Then I had Terry haul in my sewing machine so I could replace zippers in 4 pairs of his shorts. They all have nylon zippers that split open at inopportune times. He loves the shorts and they are fairly new so I figured I would see what I could do. I was a bit of a pessimist and only bought one zipper so after I struggled through one replacement we made a trip to get the other 3 zippers.
Terry’s brother Gary came for lunch today which he does most Wednesdays. It was good to see him again. After lunch Don mowed the lawn, Terry trimmed with the weed eater and EllaMae & I sat in the shade and watched them work. But I took my turn later and trimmed some plants overhanging from the neighbor’s yard. Then I cussed my way through replacing another zipper.
We introduced Don & EllaMae to Frito Pie for dinner. I am blogging while the others watch another ball game.
The weather is lovely here right now. Breezy mornings, sunny all day. I am happy that we are sleeping in an air conditioned house.
We made our to-do list and started working on it today after a visit from Terry’s brother Skip and his wife Kathy. Driver’s license office was closed so couldn’t get that done. Got license tabs for the truck & 5th wheel, made a stop at Costco and went to an RV place to make an appointment to get the slides on the 5th wheel adjusted. While we were there we had to check out the Montana that has caught our eye - we’ll keep ours for a while.
Don had ribs boiling when we returned and I used leftover carrots & potatoes to put together an au gratin casserole for an easy dinner.
Don & EllaMae like to watch baseball so we are learning to commiserate with them when the Seattle Mariners blow yet another lead.
June 2nd - Tues - Spokane
I got an eye exam this morning and then spent 45 minutes waiting to get my driver’s license renewed. When we changed our address to our mail box 2 ½ years ago, 2 employees allowed Terry & I to use that address. This time, the guy who waited on me said that according to WA state law I had to have a physical address. When I said we lived in our RV he asked where it was and I told him it was parked on the street in front of my mother-in-law’s house. He asked for her address and I was surprised and unhappy to see that address on my temporary license. That means my new license will be mailed here and Don will have to forward it to us.
Visited a couple of stores, washed the truck and returned to the house. Don & I had sorted through the freezer and I used a “well aged” steak to make stroganoff while Don made a run to the grocery store.
Mariners won tonight!
June 3rd - Wed - Spokane
3 overripe bananas demanded to be used in muffins this morning. Then I had Terry haul in my sewing machine so I could replace zippers in 4 pairs of his shorts. They all have nylon zippers that split open at inopportune times. He loves the shorts and they are fairly new so I figured I would see what I could do. I was a bit of a pessimist and only bought one zipper so after I struggled through one replacement we made a trip to get the other 3 zippers.
Terry’s brother Gary came for lunch today which he does most Wednesdays. It was good to see him again. After lunch Don mowed the lawn, Terry trimmed with the weed eater and EllaMae & I sat in the shade and watched them work. But I took my turn later and trimmed some plants overhanging from the neighbor’s yard. Then I cussed my way through replacing another zipper.
We introduced Don & EllaMae to Frito Pie for dinner. I am blogging while the others watch another ball game.
The weather is lovely here right now. Breezy mornings, sunny all day. I am happy that we are sleeping in an air conditioned house.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
May 28th to 31st - Pendleton to Spokane
May 28th - Thurs - to Pendleton OR
Headed out past all sorts of crops to the Wild Horse Casino which also has an RV park. Set up, made lunch and went to check out the casino. Rick & Pat were going to do some shopping in Boise so we knew they wouldn’t be here for a while. Pat joined us at the casino and then we went back to the RV park for happy hour. Dinner out - seafood buffet at the casino. We all pigged out on crab & clams - very good.
Lucky Pat once again lived up to her name and stashed her winnings in Rick’s pocket before it all went back into the machines.
May 29th - Fri - to Spokane
We took advantage of breakfast coupons before leaving Pendleton this morning. We chose to take the highway route (4 hours) through Pasco rather than the windier, more easterly route through Walla Walla. Nice drive, lovely weather. We are staying at the Hughes Campground (friends Bill & Georgia’s backyard!) for a couple of days. This is not the greatest time for them to have guests since Georgia’s 96 year old Mom had 2 strokes a week and a half ago. She is out of the hospital and in a nursing home but not doing well. Georgia’s sister Arlene and her husband Joe are here from Minnesota.
Pat & Rick made some stops and were a couple of hours behind us. Bill & Georgia’s back deck is being renovated so we all gathered in the shade of the shop near the “campground”. Pat & I made dinner and Georgia provided dessert. A busy day and mosquitoes resulted in a fairly early bedtime.
May 30th - Sat - Spokane
Georgia made a pancake breakfast for all of us before she, Arlene & Joe went to see their Mom. Pat & I went shopping while Terry, Rick & Bill used the pressure washer to blast off the solid layers of bugs on the rigs. Pat & I returned in time to make lunch. Then Pat & Rick and Terry & I went for more shopping. Rick took advantage of his 3 personal shoppers to find a pair of sandals and fail to find a pair of shorts. Terry was tickled to haggle down the price on a TV mount for our new flat screen.
Got back in time for an abbreviated happy hour before dinner prepared by Georgia & Arlene. Then they went for a short visit with their Mom. Next all of us except Rick played Mexican Train dominoes and added a “Chicken Domino” twist to make the game go a little faster. We finished at midnight (latest most of us old folks have been up for a while!) and headed for our rigs. A sprinkler was hitting our truck & 5th wheel and the swing set beside us so I had to get Bill to turn it off. An incident like this might be grounds to get our money back - oh wait, we didn’t pay any money for this wonderful site!!
May 31st - Sun - Spokane
Pat & Rick headed for home this morning. I was putting a batch of Jelly Biscuits (email for the recipe if you are interested!) in the oven when Bill & Georgia and Joe & Arlene returned from church and a visit to Georgia’s Mom. After coffee & biscuits, I spent some time showing Bill how to use one of my favorite programs - Picasa. For the uninformed few, Picasa is free software to manage digital pictures.
Then on to Terry’s Mom’s house. Sister Cindy was still here (she comes to look after her Mom each weekend) so we got to see her for just a short time before her mother-in-law arrived to drive her to the airport.
We hauled in our big basket of laundry and had a relaxing afternoon. I spent time on the computer figuring out how to cancel EllaMae’s AOL account when no one could remember her password or security question. Hopefully I got it done. Don made a good dinner and then we looked at a lot of our travel pictures. EllaMae is doing much better than when we were here last year. She cannot walk but sits up straight (she listed to the left last year), uses her left arm more and participates in conversations.
Headed out past all sorts of crops to the Wild Horse Casino which also has an RV park. Set up, made lunch and went to check out the casino. Rick & Pat were going to do some shopping in Boise so we knew they wouldn’t be here for a while. Pat joined us at the casino and then we went back to the RV park for happy hour. Dinner out - seafood buffet at the casino. We all pigged out on crab & clams - very good.
Lucky Pat once again lived up to her name and stashed her winnings in Rick’s pocket before it all went back into the machines.
May 29th - Fri - to Spokane
We took advantage of breakfast coupons before leaving Pendleton this morning. We chose to take the highway route (4 hours) through Pasco rather than the windier, more easterly route through Walla Walla. Nice drive, lovely weather. We are staying at the Hughes Campground (friends Bill & Georgia’s backyard!) for a couple of days. This is not the greatest time for them to have guests since Georgia’s 96 year old Mom had 2 strokes a week and a half ago. She is out of the hospital and in a nursing home but not doing well. Georgia’s sister Arlene and her husband Joe are here from Minnesota.
Pat & Rick made some stops and were a couple of hours behind us. Bill & Georgia’s back deck is being renovated so we all gathered in the shade of the shop near the “campground”. Pat & I made dinner and Georgia provided dessert. A busy day and mosquitoes resulted in a fairly early bedtime.
May 30th - Sat - Spokane
Georgia made a pancake breakfast for all of us before she, Arlene & Joe went to see their Mom. Pat & I went shopping while Terry, Rick & Bill used the pressure washer to blast off the solid layers of bugs on the rigs. Pat & I returned in time to make lunch. Then Pat & Rick and Terry & I went for more shopping. Rick took advantage of his 3 personal shoppers to find a pair of sandals and fail to find a pair of shorts. Terry was tickled to haggle down the price on a TV mount for our new flat screen.
Got back in time for an abbreviated happy hour before dinner prepared by Georgia & Arlene. Then they went for a short visit with their Mom. Next all of us except Rick played Mexican Train dominoes and added a “Chicken Domino” twist to make the game go a little faster. We finished at midnight (latest most of us old folks have been up for a while!) and headed for our rigs. A sprinkler was hitting our truck & 5th wheel and the swing set beside us so I had to get Bill to turn it off. An incident like this might be grounds to get our money back - oh wait, we didn’t pay any money for this wonderful site!!
May 31st - Sun - Spokane
Pat & Rick headed for home this morning. I was putting a batch of Jelly Biscuits (email for the recipe if you are interested!) in the oven when Bill & Georgia and Joe & Arlene returned from church and a visit to Georgia’s Mom. After coffee & biscuits, I spent some time showing Bill how to use one of my favorite programs - Picasa. For the uninformed few, Picasa is free software to manage digital pictures.
Then on to Terry’s Mom’s house. Sister Cindy was still here (she comes to look after her Mom each weekend) so we got to see her for just a short time before her mother-in-law arrived to drive her to the airport.
We hauled in our big basket of laundry and had a relaxing afternoon. I spent time on the computer figuring out how to cancel EllaMae’s AOL account when no one could remember her password or security question. Hopefully I got it done. Don made a good dinner and then we looked at a lot of our travel pictures. EllaMae is doing much better than when we were here last year. She cannot walk but sits up straight (she listed to the left last year), uses her left arm more and participates in conversations.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
May 25th to 27th - Winnemucca to Boise ID
May 25th - Mon - Winnemucca
We returned for the $3.99 ham & egg breakfast this morning. Then we took a drive by some “in the woods” camping spots up into the hills above the town. We passed by some very nice housing areas that you cannot see from the highway area. Stopped at a grocery store on the way back to the park where we dropped Rick off. He was going to do some chores while the 3 gamblers returned to the casinos.
Once again I had a short lived lucky streak that kept both Terry & I in the black for a couple of hours. Lucky Pat struck again and made off with some money. I’m not sure what she told Rick so I can’t put the actual amount in the blog!
Back at the RV park, Pat & Rick did laundry and then I remembered that I wanted to wash our sheets so got that done just in time for happy hour and a combined dinner. We pulled out the cards for Hand & Foot Canasta and the guys let Pat & I win - sure they did!!!!
May 26th - Tues - to Boise ID
We left at 7:45 for today’s 3 ½ hour trip to Boise. Nice roads with little traffic most of the way. Up & down hills/mountains, lots of scrub land, some irrigated & isolated farms and then land that will support cattle. We drove though a stretch of road where there was an insect infestation which we think were Mormon crickets. They were swarming down an embankment and onto the road where a lot of them were run over. The road was red with squished bugs for about ¼ of a mile.
We arrived at the On the River RV park about 1 (back to Mountain Time), set up , had lunch and then scrubbed the bugs off the truck & 5th wheel before we got too lazy. Pat & Rick arrived just as we were finishing. Terry took me for a haircut and Rick took his truck for an oil change. We got back just in time to head to Linda & Steve Holder’s house for dinner. Steve wasn’t home but Linda was a great hostess and made a wonderful dinner. After dinner, we went for a walk on a path along the Boise River which is very close to their house and close to the RV park.
May 27th - Wed - Boise ID
Started today with a 9 o’clock tee time at the Plantation golf course where Steve & Linda are members. Linda, Rick, Terry & I played and Pat enjoyed a nice walk with us. The weather was perfect and all of us got enough good shots to make us want to play in the future. Then we enjoyed breakfast on the patio at the golf course. Back to the park to drop the clubs, picked up Linda and went to Camping World. Rick was looking for a bicycle rack which he found on sale - bonus!! On to Costco and then back to the RV park. Pat & Rick took off again while Terry & I set up chairs & tables and boiled baby backs for dinner.
We invited Rick & Diann Stone (spent some time with them in Mesa/Apache Junction in April) to join us & Linda for dinner.
Terry went with Rick S. to pick up a TV that we are buying from him while Pat & I took a walk around the RV park. We briefly considered playing cards but everyone was ready to crash after a busy day.
We returned for the $3.99 ham & egg breakfast this morning. Then we took a drive by some “in the woods” camping spots up into the hills above the town. We passed by some very nice housing areas that you cannot see from the highway area. Stopped at a grocery store on the way back to the park where we dropped Rick off. He was going to do some chores while the 3 gamblers returned to the casinos.
Once again I had a short lived lucky streak that kept both Terry & I in the black for a couple of hours. Lucky Pat struck again and made off with some money. I’m not sure what she told Rick so I can’t put the actual amount in the blog!
Back at the RV park, Pat & Rick did laundry and then I remembered that I wanted to wash our sheets so got that done just in time for happy hour and a combined dinner. We pulled out the cards for Hand & Foot Canasta and the guys let Pat & I win - sure they did!!!!
May 26th - Tues - to Boise ID
We left at 7:45 for today’s 3 ½ hour trip to Boise. Nice roads with little traffic most of the way. Up & down hills/mountains, lots of scrub land, some irrigated & isolated farms and then land that will support cattle. We drove though a stretch of road where there was an insect infestation which we think were Mormon crickets. They were swarming down an embankment and onto the road where a lot of them were run over. The road was red with squished bugs for about ¼ of a mile.
We arrived at the On the River RV park about 1 (back to Mountain Time), set up , had lunch and then scrubbed the bugs off the truck & 5th wheel before we got too lazy. Pat & Rick arrived just as we were finishing. Terry took me for a haircut and Rick took his truck for an oil change. We got back just in time to head to Linda & Steve Holder’s house for dinner. Steve wasn’t home but Linda was a great hostess and made a wonderful dinner. After dinner, we went for a walk on a path along the Boise River which is very close to their house and close to the RV park.
May 27th - Wed - Boise ID
Started today with a 9 o’clock tee time at the Plantation golf course where Steve & Linda are members. Linda, Rick, Terry & I played and Pat enjoyed a nice walk with us. The weather was perfect and all of us got enough good shots to make us want to play in the future. Then we enjoyed breakfast on the patio at the golf course. Back to the park to drop the clubs, picked up Linda and went to Camping World. Rick was looking for a bicycle rack which he found on sale - bonus!! On to Costco and then back to the RV park. Pat & Rick took off again while Terry & I set up chairs & tables and boiled baby backs for dinner.
We invited Rick & Diann Stone (spent some time with them in Mesa/Apache Junction in April) to join us & Linda for dinner.
Terry went with Rick S. to pick up a TV that we are buying from him while Pat & I took a walk around the RV park. We briefly considered playing cards but everyone was ready to crash after a busy day.
Monday, May 25, 2009
May 22nd to 24th - Winnemucca NV
May 22nd - Fri - to Winnemucca NV
We got an early start for the 3 hour drive this morning to the Hi-Desert RV park (PA) in Winnemucca. Set up and then started several loads of laundry. Had a sandwich for lunch while the laundry was washing - so much to do that we have to multi-task! Pat & Rick are also arriving today so after the laundry was done I did some prep for dinner, we scrubbed the bugs off the 5th wheel & truck and relaxed in the sun.
There is a motorcycle rally (Run-A-Mucca) in town for the weekend so we expect to see a lot of bikes like the 2 that moved into the RV site next to Pat & Rick.
Pat & Rick arrived about 3:30. After they set up, through dinner and after dinner we tried to catch up on nearly a year of not seeing them.
May 23rd - Sat - Winnemucca
We all went for a very good $3.99 ham & egg breakfast this morning. The casinos here are small and most are part of a hotel or restaurant. So after eating we had to try out the adjacent casino. Lucky Pat (as we call her!) lived up to her name and came out money ahead while Terry & I continued to donate.
Next to WalMart for a few items.
Pat’s turn to make dinner today. Before happy hour we napped, watched TV and/or read a book. While we were sitting out later, the wind came up and dust started blowing. We had to close all windows and move inside. There is good cable TV here at the park so we watched a couple of “Deadliest Catch” episodes after dinner since the wind was too cool for us to head back outside.
May 24th - Sun - Winnemucca
We had a 9 o’clock tee time to play 9 holes at the nearby golf course this morning. It is a full length course, in nice condition and the weather was lovely. Pat injured her shoulder last winter so she cannot play yet - just enjoyed the walk and commiserated with the rest of us when we made the expected bad shots!
We dropped off the clubs and went back to WalMart to try to find some shorts for Pat - no luck. Back to the park for lunch and then downtown to check things out.
There was a street market in conjunction with the motorcycle rally so we wandered through that before going to a casino where Pat immediately won some money. That casino and another were not nice to Terry & I until Terry won some and we persuaded him to cash out before he lost it all again. So at the third casino we started with money that Terry had won and I finally got a co-operative machine where I grew my $5 to $120. And Terry was winning as well so unfortunately we will continue to gamble!!
Hamburgers on barbeque for dinner (yum!) and then the cool evening wind sent us inside to watch more episodes of “Deadliest Catch”.
We got an early start for the 3 hour drive this morning to the Hi-Desert RV park (PA) in Winnemucca. Set up and then started several loads of laundry. Had a sandwich for lunch while the laundry was washing - so much to do that we have to multi-task! Pat & Rick are also arriving today so after the laundry was done I did some prep for dinner, we scrubbed the bugs off the 5th wheel & truck and relaxed in the sun.
There is a motorcycle rally (Run-A-Mucca) in town for the weekend so we expect to see a lot of bikes like the 2 that moved into the RV site next to Pat & Rick.
Pat & Rick arrived about 3:30. After they set up, through dinner and after dinner we tried to catch up on nearly a year of not seeing them.
May 23rd - Sat - Winnemucca
We all went for a very good $3.99 ham & egg breakfast this morning. The casinos here are small and most are part of a hotel or restaurant. So after eating we had to try out the adjacent casino. Lucky Pat (as we call her!) lived up to her name and came out money ahead while Terry & I continued to donate.
Next to WalMart for a few items.
Pat’s turn to make dinner today. Before happy hour we napped, watched TV and/or read a book. While we were sitting out later, the wind came up and dust started blowing. We had to close all windows and move inside. There is good cable TV here at the park so we watched a couple of “Deadliest Catch” episodes after dinner since the wind was too cool for us to head back outside.
May 24th - Sun - Winnemucca
We had a 9 o’clock tee time to play 9 holes at the nearby golf course this morning. It is a full length course, in nice condition and the weather was lovely. Pat injured her shoulder last winter so she cannot play yet - just enjoyed the walk and commiserated with the rest of us when we made the expected bad shots!
We dropped off the clubs and went back to WalMart to try to find some shorts for Pat - no luck. Back to the park for lunch and then downtown to check things out.
There was a street market in conjunction with the motorcycle rally so we wandered through that before going to a casino where Pat immediately won some money. That casino and another were not nice to Terry & I until Terry won some and we persuaded him to cash out before he lost it all again. So at the third casino we started with money that Terry had won and I finally got a co-operative machine where I grew my $5 to $120. And Terry was winning as well so unfortunately we will continue to gamble!!
Hamburgers on barbeque for dinner (yum!) and then the cool evening wind sent us inside to watch more episodes of “Deadliest Catch”.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
May 19th to 21st - Utah to Nevada
May 19th - Tues - to Fountain Green UT
Uneventful drive through valleys and more mountains to Burns Bros Ranch & RV park just east of Nephi in Fountain Green. Unfortunately, we made a reservation - credit card requested & given - for 2 days. When we saw the park we would rather not have stayed at all. It was in the middle of nowhere in farming country (as the “Ranch” in the name might imply!) and badly needed mowing. We decided we would stay one night and told this to the young man checking us in. He called the woman who made the reservation and she said we could get a credit for a future stay for the second night. Terry came unglued at this and she ultimately said we could stay one night. The young man said our credit card would not have been charged until we checked in.
We joined the other 5 rigs scattered about the many sites, picked up one fuzzy TV channel and wondered what to do. A huge windstorm gave us something to do for a while - wondering if we were going to be blown over!! It got so bad that we pulled in the slides so Terry could turn the rig to have the wind hit us front-on instead of broadside if it got worse. We saw later on a weather report that towns around us had wind gusts from 45 to 60 MPH.
The young man working at the park was able to answer my question about a great many metal barn-type structures along the road. They used to house turkeys but apparently the market is not supporting them now so some are used for pigs and some for sheep and the rest are empty.
May 20th - Wed - to Wells NV
Out of the frying pan into the fire - almost! Wells is a very small town with nothing much to do. I think I mentioned previously that we are meeting my cousin Pat & her husband Rick in Winnemucca so that is giving us time to spare. Mountain Shadows RV park is OK (PA) with a row of permanent rigs, a couple rows of pull-throughs and a row of back-in for transients. It was pretty empty when we arrived but the pull-throughs almost filled up by evening.
When we were approaching town, there was a sign on the freeway saying the road was closed and we had to exit so we pulled into a service station to fuel up. I called the RV park and received directions since we couldn’t get off the freeway at the given exit. We were at the intersection of Hwy 93 (N/S) and Hwy 80 (E/W) and there were trucks everywhere. Westbound traffic could exit where we did and then get back on the freeway on the other side of town. But eastbound traffic was stuck until the highway opened. We found out later that there was a high speed chase, the pursued car went the wrong way on the freeway and was stopped by a police car but then said he had a chemical bomb in his car. Turned out there was no bomb but the freeway was closed for over 2 hours.
May 21st - Thurs - Wells
Relaxing morning and then we went to check out “historic front street”. Turns out there was an earthquake here in Feb 2008 that did a lot of damage, especially to the historic buildings. They are all falling down and roped off. So we decided to go golfing. Decent full length 9 hole course. Not a lot of golfers and we were the only ones walking. After 9 holes I had developed a blister so I had to make a quick run back to the RV park to put on different shoes. Then Terry also ended up with a blister so he played several holes in his bare feet. I think it improved his game. Actually, his drives were amazing and his back nine was great until we both faded from the heat and unaccustomed 18 holes.
I had put a pork roast in the crock pot and we golfed through lunch time so I made an early dinner. Then I convinced Terry to drive to Angel Lake. The desk clerk at the RV park said it was a very pretty drive. It is also a very steep drive. 12 miles across some hills and then up the side of a mountain. The little lake is still mostly covered with ice but that did not stop several people from fishing. Didn’t see anyone catch anything.
Finally time to sit out & read/watch TV before catching up on the blog. Same scenario as yesterday - the park mostly emptied out this morning but pull-throughs are full now.
Uneventful drive through valleys and more mountains to Burns Bros Ranch & RV park just east of Nephi in Fountain Green. Unfortunately, we made a reservation - credit card requested & given - for 2 days. When we saw the park we would rather not have stayed at all. It was in the middle of nowhere in farming country (as the “Ranch” in the name might imply!) and badly needed mowing. We decided we would stay one night and told this to the young man checking us in. He called the woman who made the reservation and she said we could get a credit for a future stay for the second night. Terry came unglued at this and she ultimately said we could stay one night. The young man said our credit card would not have been charged until we checked in.
We joined the other 5 rigs scattered about the many sites, picked up one fuzzy TV channel and wondered what to do. A huge windstorm gave us something to do for a while - wondering if we were going to be blown over!! It got so bad that we pulled in the slides so Terry could turn the rig to have the wind hit us front-on instead of broadside if it got worse. We saw later on a weather report that towns around us had wind gusts from 45 to 60 MPH.
The young man working at the park was able to answer my question about a great many metal barn-type structures along the road. They used to house turkeys but apparently the market is not supporting them now so some are used for pigs and some for sheep and the rest are empty.
May 20th - Wed - to Wells NV
Out of the frying pan into the fire - almost! Wells is a very small town with nothing much to do. I think I mentioned previously that we are meeting my cousin Pat & her husband Rick in Winnemucca so that is giving us time to spare. Mountain Shadows RV park is OK (PA) with a row of permanent rigs, a couple rows of pull-throughs and a row of back-in for transients. It was pretty empty when we arrived but the pull-throughs almost filled up by evening.
When we were approaching town, there was a sign on the freeway saying the road was closed and we had to exit so we pulled into a service station to fuel up. I called the RV park and received directions since we couldn’t get off the freeway at the given exit. We were at the intersection of Hwy 93 (N/S) and Hwy 80 (E/W) and there were trucks everywhere. Westbound traffic could exit where we did and then get back on the freeway on the other side of town. But eastbound traffic was stuck until the highway opened. We found out later that there was a high speed chase, the pursued car went the wrong way on the freeway and was stopped by a police car but then said he had a chemical bomb in his car. Turned out there was no bomb but the freeway was closed for over 2 hours.
May 21st - Thurs - Wells
Relaxing morning and then we went to check out “historic front street”. Turns out there was an earthquake here in Feb 2008 that did a lot of damage, especially to the historic buildings. They are all falling down and roped off. So we decided to go golfing. Decent full length 9 hole course. Not a lot of golfers and we were the only ones walking. After 9 holes I had developed a blister so I had to make a quick run back to the RV park to put on different shoes. Then Terry also ended up with a blister so he played several holes in his bare feet. I think it improved his game. Actually, his drives were amazing and his back nine was great until we both faded from the heat and unaccustomed 18 holes.
I had put a pork roast in the crock pot and we golfed through lunch time so I made an early dinner. Then I convinced Terry to drive to Angel Lake. The desk clerk at the RV park said it was a very pretty drive. It is also a very steep drive. 12 miles across some hills and then up the side of a mountain. The little lake is still mostly covered with ice but that did not stop several people from fishing. Didn’t see anyone catch anything.
Finally time to sit out & read/watch TV before catching up on the blog. Same scenario as yesterday - the park mostly emptied out this morning but pull-throughs are full now.
Monday, May 18, 2009
May 16th to 18th -Utah parks
May 16th - Sat - Panguitch/Bryce Canyon National Park
We had a wonderful day in the park. The weather was perfect - not too hot, comfortable in long pants and short sleeves. We made a short stop at the Red Canyon info center and then decided to go to Bryce Canyon first. We drove to the far end of the road, took many pictures and then stopped at all the view points on the way back since they are then on the right side of the road. In Bryce Canyon you view the amazing rock formations from above, rather than from below as you do when you drive through Zion Ntl Park. Several view points have short trails to even more incredible scenery. The road & trails are all at least 8000 ft above sea level so even short inclines on trails make breathing difficult. We had packed a lunch which we enjoyed at a stop with picnic tables.
We had gotten an early start so we had time to continue on to Kodachrome Basin State Park. We were very disappointed there. I think you have to be a hiker and an avid photographer to appreciate this park.
After dinner I persuaded Terry to return to Red Canyon and walk some paths to take pictures since we are leaving tomorrow. The sun was just setting and there was no one else on the trails so I really enjoyed my walk. Terry took shortcuts and waited for me.
May 17th - Sun - to Torrey UT
It got very cool last night. I am happy not to be in one of the several tents in the campground.
Not a long drive today - a couple of hours. We were on Hwy 12 which has been designated a National Scenic Byway and an All-American Road indicating that it has one-of-a-kind, exceptional features. It was an wonderfully scenic drive - not so much for the driver as for the passenger who could look at all the scenery.
We climbed to 9600 feet at one point. Unfortunately, most view points were on the left side and, since we were towing the 5th wheel, we could not stop at any. One section of the road ran along a narrow mountain ridge that was barely wider than the road with steep drops on both sides.
We picked a site as instructed by a sign on the office door of the Wonderland RV park and set up. We went to a nearby visitor information center to get brochures for tomorrow when we will go to Capitol Reef National Park just down the road. We drove into the small town of Torrey and then just relaxed for the rest of the lovely warm afternoon.
May 18th - Mon - Torrey/Capitol Reef National Park
Looks like we are trying to hit all the National Parks! Just a few miles to the park boundary and a short walk to our first viewpoints. A stop to see some pictographs and then a hike to Hickman Bridge (arch). It was a mile each way and it was hot. Uphill most of the way there otherwise we would not have continued - only did so knowing the return trip would be downhill. Saw 4 bighorn sheep with full curl horns.
Then to Gifford Farmhouse to check out the homemade pie & ice cream - very good. Revived us to go on the 10 mile scenic drive into the park. The rock formations are varied and incredible. We checked out 2 dirt roads where you drive down washes & gullies, sometimes with straight, solid rock walls. There were trails at the end of each but they were classified as “strenuous” and we barely handled the “moderate” hike earlier! I will post too many rock & mountain pictures shortly.
We crashed and relaxed when we got back. After dinner we drove across the street to wash all the dirt off the truck.
We had a wonderful day in the park. The weather was perfect - not too hot, comfortable in long pants and short sleeves. We made a short stop at the Red Canyon info center and then decided to go to Bryce Canyon first. We drove to the far end of the road, took many pictures and then stopped at all the view points on the way back since they are then on the right side of the road. In Bryce Canyon you view the amazing rock formations from above, rather than from below as you do when you drive through Zion Ntl Park. Several view points have short trails to even more incredible scenery. The road & trails are all at least 8000 ft above sea level so even short inclines on trails make breathing difficult. We had packed a lunch which we enjoyed at a stop with picnic tables.
We had gotten an early start so we had time to continue on to Kodachrome Basin State Park. We were very disappointed there. I think you have to be a hiker and an avid photographer to appreciate this park.
After dinner I persuaded Terry to return to Red Canyon and walk some paths to take pictures since we are leaving tomorrow. The sun was just setting and there was no one else on the trails so I really enjoyed my walk. Terry took shortcuts and waited for me.
May 17th - Sun - to Torrey UT
It got very cool last night. I am happy not to be in one of the several tents in the campground.
Not a long drive today - a couple of hours. We were on Hwy 12 which has been designated a National Scenic Byway and an All-American Road indicating that it has one-of-a-kind, exceptional features. It was an wonderfully scenic drive - not so much for the driver as for the passenger who could look at all the scenery.
We climbed to 9600 feet at one point. Unfortunately, most view points were on the left side and, since we were towing the 5th wheel, we could not stop at any. One section of the road ran along a narrow mountain ridge that was barely wider than the road with steep drops on both sides.
We picked a site as instructed by a sign on the office door of the Wonderland RV park and set up. We went to a nearby visitor information center to get brochures for tomorrow when we will go to Capitol Reef National Park just down the road. We drove into the small town of Torrey and then just relaxed for the rest of the lovely warm afternoon.
May 18th - Mon - Torrey/Capitol Reef National Park
Looks like we are trying to hit all the National Parks! Just a few miles to the park boundary and a short walk to our first viewpoints. A stop to see some pictographs and then a hike to Hickman Bridge (arch). It was a mile each way and it was hot. Uphill most of the way there otherwise we would not have continued - only did so knowing the return trip would be downhill. Saw 4 bighorn sheep with full curl horns.
Then to Gifford Farmhouse to check out the homemade pie & ice cream - very good. Revived us to go on the 10 mile scenic drive into the park. The rock formations are varied and incredible. We checked out 2 dirt roads where you drive down washes & gullies, sometimes with straight, solid rock walls. There were trails at the end of each but they were classified as “strenuous” and we barely handled the “moderate” hike earlier! I will post too many rock & mountain pictures shortly.
We crashed and relaxed when we got back. After dinner we drove across the street to wash all the dirt off the truck.
Friday, May 15, 2009
May 13th to 15th - Pahrump to Panguitch UT
May 13th - Wed - Pahrump
I made my delicious (if I do say so myself!) jelly biscuits for breakfast which we enjoyed with coffee outside - in the shade. Next a trip to Radio Shack & WalMart to get the TV for outside. I caught up the blog while Terry ran wires from the bedroom to the large storage compartment. Terry now thinks the 19” TV is a bit small but I think it is just fine as long as he keeps the volume down so the rest of the park does not have to listen to it.
We had the leftover baby back ribs for dinner. There were so many that we were not able to finish them. Last night we had joked with our neighbors Bob & Loretta about being able to watch “Wheel of Fortune” on the TV outside so they joined us to do so and to chat for a bit.
May 14th - Thurs - Pahrump
Busy day. Before 10 we had cleaned the underside of our awning, cleaned the bugs off the front of the 5th wheel and the truck, dusted the truck and laundered a load of sheets. Then we walked over to the casino and had an excellent breakfast for a low price. We drove all over town looking for Velcro without a sticky back - could not find any. I got a piece of fleece material and sewed a cover for the new TV to protect it when we travel.
The laundry room is right across the street from our site so I decided to do a couple more loads in the afternoon. While they were washing, we walked to the pool for a cooling dip.
Nice dinner on the BBQ, chat with neighbors, relax.
May 15th - Fri - to Panguitch UT
Left about 7:30 this morning. Terry wanted to avoid going through Las Vegas so we took a slightly different route - which took us through Las Vegas! Some construction slow down but not too bad.
We stopped at a casino in Mesquite for breakfast & fueled up in Cedar City. From Cedar City we headed east on Hwy 14 which goes up to 9900 feet and then back down but I don’t know the elevation where it joins into Hwy 89 heading north. Very picturesque. We saw quite a bit of snow on the ground when we were driving along grassy, lightly wooded areas on top. There are also a surprising number of nice, mostly log construction, “cabins” along Hwy 14.
We are staying at the Red Canyon RV park south & east of Panguitch, 15 miles from Bryce Canyon National park. It is a small park, pretty basic. The weather is much cooler (75 when we arrived) and there is a slight wind. Utah is in Mountain Time so we are an hour ahead of our PDT friends.
I made my delicious (if I do say so myself!) jelly biscuits for breakfast which we enjoyed with coffee outside - in the shade. Next a trip to Radio Shack & WalMart to get the TV for outside. I caught up the blog while Terry ran wires from the bedroom to the large storage compartment. Terry now thinks the 19” TV is a bit small but I think it is just fine as long as he keeps the volume down so the rest of the park does not have to listen to it.
We had the leftover baby back ribs for dinner. There were so many that we were not able to finish them. Last night we had joked with our neighbors Bob & Loretta about being able to watch “Wheel of Fortune” on the TV outside so they joined us to do so and to chat for a bit.
May 14th - Thurs - Pahrump
Busy day. Before 10 we had cleaned the underside of our awning, cleaned the bugs off the front of the 5th wheel and the truck, dusted the truck and laundered a load of sheets. Then we walked over to the casino and had an excellent breakfast for a low price. We drove all over town looking for Velcro without a sticky back - could not find any. I got a piece of fleece material and sewed a cover for the new TV to protect it when we travel.
The laundry room is right across the street from our site so I decided to do a couple more loads in the afternoon. While they were washing, we walked to the pool for a cooling dip.
Nice dinner on the BBQ, chat with neighbors, relax.
May 15th - Fri - to Panguitch UT
Left about 7:30 this morning. Terry wanted to avoid going through Las Vegas so we took a slightly different route - which took us through Las Vegas! Some construction slow down but not too bad.
We stopped at a casino in Mesquite for breakfast & fueled up in Cedar City. From Cedar City we headed east on Hwy 14 which goes up to 9900 feet and then back down but I don’t know the elevation where it joins into Hwy 89 heading north. Very picturesque. We saw quite a bit of snow on the ground when we were driving along grassy, lightly wooded areas on top. There are also a surprising number of nice, mostly log construction, “cabins” along Hwy 14.
We are staying at the Red Canyon RV park south & east of Panguitch, 15 miles from Bryce Canyon National park. It is a small park, pretty basic. The weather is much cooler (75 when we arrived) and there is a slight wind. Utah is in Mountain Time so we are an hour ahead of our PDT friends.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
May 10th to 12th - Pahrump NV
May 10th - Sun - to Pahrump NV
Turns out that Terry & the swap meet vendor were not communicating too well so the TV mounts were not what we wanted. The detour to meet him added about 30 miles to our trip today and sent us over the Hoover Dam which is a pretty way to go and the security check takes only a few minutes.
We are staying at Terrible’s Lakeside which is a very nice park with the sites around a little man-made lake. Lots of grass & trees.
I made a late lunch after we set up and then we went driving and hit a couple of casinos where I came out a few dollars ahead and Terry didn’t lose anything - what a change!! Back to the park where we went for a bike ride, a swim and took a peddle/paddle boat for a lap around the lake. The peddles are too close to the seat so it is not comfortable to go too far or too fast. Got out the BBQ for dinner. It was warm today but the neighbor’s rig and a tree provided late afternoon shade so it was lovely.
May 11th - Mon - Pahrump
To WalMart for a few groceries and Terry checked out the TVs again. Yet another casino and Terry hit a little lucky streak this time. He ended up with enough points on his card to get “2 for 1 buffet” for a late lunch. Back to the park for a cooling swim followed by a relaxing drink. Then walked to the on-site casino for a bit. You’d think we would be tired of casinos by now! True gamblers I guess.
Since we had a late lunch, I also made us a late dinner.
May 12th - Tues - Pahrump
Sightseeing in Death Valley today. We ate breakfast, headed out shortly after 8, filled up with diesel and over-rode Wanda’s instructions for miles. She wanted us to go many miles out of the way. We stopped for a short walk to the Zabriskie viewpoint where there is different scenery every way you look. At the park Headquarters & Visitor Center in Furnace Creek (-109 ft below sea level), we watched a short, narrated slide show and went through an interesting museum of the park history. We choose to go north to Scotty’s Castle rather than south to Badwater so we missed the lowest point (-282 ft) in North America. It is quite a long drive to Scotty’s castle - 58 miles from Furnace Creek. We arrived just in time for the noon 50 minute tour of the castle which was well worth the time & money. Very briefly - Scotty’s Castle was a vacation home owned by a wealthy man from Ohio named Al Johnson . William Scott was a con artist who ended up being a good friend of Al’s after conning him into investing in a non-existent gold mine. Al built his home over a long period of time, allowed Scotty (for various reasons) to call it “his” castle and supported Scotty with a lot of money over the years.
We did not find a place where we wanted to stop for lunch on the way back (came back on Hwy 95 rather than back through the park) so had a small snack with a cool drink when we returned. Then we walked to the casino to have the $9.99 baby back rib special. You get a whole, LARGE rack of ribs so we have plenty for dinner tomorrow night. If we had seen a plate before we ordered we would have split the dinner.
We were enjoying the perfect “sitting out” weather when a new neighbor walked by. He (Bob) joined us, then a couple (Jim & Sharon) from the other side of us came over (we had spoken with Jim earlier) and then Bob’s wife (Loretta) came out. Jim & Sharon are really new (1 week!!) full timers. Non-stop talking & a buddy burner made for a great evening.
Turns out that Terry & the swap meet vendor were not communicating too well so the TV mounts were not what we wanted. The detour to meet him added about 30 miles to our trip today and sent us over the Hoover Dam which is a pretty way to go and the security check takes only a few minutes.
We are staying at Terrible’s Lakeside which is a very nice park with the sites around a little man-made lake. Lots of grass & trees.
I made a late lunch after we set up and then we went driving and hit a couple of casinos where I came out a few dollars ahead and Terry didn’t lose anything - what a change!! Back to the park where we went for a bike ride, a swim and took a peddle/paddle boat for a lap around the lake. The peddles are too close to the seat so it is not comfortable to go too far or too fast. Got out the BBQ for dinner. It was warm today but the neighbor’s rig and a tree provided late afternoon shade so it was lovely.
May 11th - Mon - Pahrump
To WalMart for a few groceries and Terry checked out the TVs again. Yet another casino and Terry hit a little lucky streak this time. He ended up with enough points on his card to get “2 for 1 buffet” for a late lunch. Back to the park for a cooling swim followed by a relaxing drink. Then walked to the on-site casino for a bit. You’d think we would be tired of casinos by now! True gamblers I guess.
Since we had a late lunch, I also made us a late dinner.
May 12th - Tues - Pahrump
Sightseeing in Death Valley today. We ate breakfast, headed out shortly after 8, filled up with diesel and over-rode Wanda’s instructions for miles. She wanted us to go many miles out of the way. We stopped for a short walk to the Zabriskie viewpoint where there is different scenery every way you look. At the park Headquarters & Visitor Center in Furnace Creek (-109 ft below sea level), we watched a short, narrated slide show and went through an interesting museum of the park history. We choose to go north to Scotty’s Castle rather than south to Badwater so we missed the lowest point (-282 ft) in North America. It is quite a long drive to Scotty’s castle - 58 miles from Furnace Creek. We arrived just in time for the noon 50 minute tour of the castle which was well worth the time & money. Very briefly - Scotty’s Castle was a vacation home owned by a wealthy man from Ohio named Al Johnson . William Scott was a con artist who ended up being a good friend of Al’s after conning him into investing in a non-existent gold mine. Al built his home over a long period of time, allowed Scotty (for various reasons) to call it “his” castle and supported Scotty with a lot of money over the years.
We did not find a place where we wanted to stop for lunch on the way back (came back on Hwy 95 rather than back through the park) so had a small snack with a cool drink when we returned. Then we walked to the casino to have the $9.99 baby back rib special. You get a whole, LARGE rack of ribs so we have plenty for dinner tomorrow night. If we had seen a plate before we ordered we would have split the dinner.
We were enjoying the perfect “sitting out” weather when a new neighbor walked by. He (Bob) joined us, then a couple (Jim & Sharon) from the other side of us came over (we had spoken with Jim earlier) and then Bob’s wife (Loretta) came out. Jim & Sharon are really new (1 week!!) full timers. Non-stop talking & a buddy burner made for a great evening.
Saturday, May 09, 2009
May 4th to 9th - Laughlin NV
May 4th to 9th - Laughlin NV
We checked in here for a week before we knew there would be an unseasonable hot spell in the weather. The 6th through today have been over 100 degrees - yesterday & today officially 103. So any plans to ride bikes around the large RV park were abandoned. We have done a lot of walking along the river walk to various casinos. The casinos have not been nice to us but you can keep cool in them. The air conditioner in our 5th wheel cannot keep up with mid afternoon heat so it gets to about 85. Any movement causes sweating! I even put my convection toaster oven outside to cook dinner.
We have also done some driving around the area but there is not much to see. We have already been to Oatman so didn’t go there again. Cars started arriving yesterday for a big car show so they have been parked all over town. We found a swap meet today and are going to meet a vendor when we leave here tomorrow to buy a couple of TV mounts that he had at home.
We checked in here for a week before we knew there would be an unseasonable hot spell in the weather. The 6th through today have been over 100 degrees - yesterday & today officially 103. So any plans to ride bikes around the large RV park were abandoned. We have done a lot of walking along the river walk to various casinos. The casinos have not been nice to us but you can keep cool in them. The air conditioner in our 5th wheel cannot keep up with mid afternoon heat so it gets to about 85. Any movement causes sweating! I even put my convection toaster oven outside to cook dinner.
We have also done some driving around the area but there is not much to see. We have already been to Oatman so didn’t go there again. Cars started arriving yesterday for a big car show so they have been parked all over town. We found a swap meet today and are going to meet a vendor when we leave here tomorrow to buy a couple of TV mounts that he had at home.
Sunday, May 03, 2009
Apr 30th to May 3rd - Hemet, Laughlin NV
Apr 30th - Thurs - Hemet
Did some shopping today. Quite a few uses ago, my convection toaster oven started burning the top of everything. We checked 4 stores before finding what I wanted at Target. Then Terry spotted an ice maker there that he just had to have so we got it too.
Barry & Yvonne invited us over for dinner amd we enjoyed a great steak meal. We also enjoyed sitting out on the front porch after dinner.
May 1st - Fri - Hemet
Worked on emails and tried to plan our next three weeks this morning before doing laundry. Grabbed a very good hamburger poolside at the RV park before Barry & Yvonne picked us up to go golfing again. We went to Seven Hills GC. Summer rates started today so it cost $14 for 18 holes and a cart. The course was in great shape. I could get used to this type & price of golf!
I put a roast into the crock pot before we left so just had to do potatoes & veggies for a great dinner for all of us. The weather was absolutely perfect to sit out after dinner and enjoy a buddy burner for a while.
May 2nd - Sat - Hemet
Barry & Yvonne took us on a big sightseeing loop today. They picked us up at 8:30 and we headed towards the coast. An hour drive took us to a huge golf store where Barry & Yvonne both bought a new club. Then on to a large outdoor swap meet/market. The weather was lovely for walking up & down the whole place.
From there we stopped for lunch and then went to Newport Beach. We took a tiny ferry to Balboa Island, squeezed through the very narrow streets and off the other end by a bridge. We intended to head south a bit and then go to Capistrano but our tour guide kind of missed the turn so we got to see more scenery and came back via Oceanside.
Back to our rig to water & feed Dolly and then to a Chinese restaurant across the street for dinner. We are leaving tomorrow so we said goodbye to Barry & Yvonne after dinner.
May 3rd - Sun - to Laughlin NV
We did one of our “change our minds as we’re driving” routines today and ended up in Laughlin instead of Pahrump as planned. We are meeting my cousin Pat & her husband Rick in 3 weeks so figured we had some time to burn.
Most of our drive today was though miles of nothing in the Mojave Desert (Hwy 40). Quite a few hills. It was very warm when we checked into the Riverside Casino RV park. We relaxed outside for a while and chatted with some neighbors. Then we went to see Robosaurus - a huge robot that shoots flames from its nostrils and crushes cars in its claws & jaws. Why? Because it was nearby and we can add it to our “quirky” list.
Of course this lead us to a casino. For a change, Terry won enough small amount at the slots that we broke even when we left at 9:15. Talked to Marg (sister) on the phone and cooked a couple of lovely artichokes for dinner.
Did some shopping today. Quite a few uses ago, my convection toaster oven started burning the top of everything. We checked 4 stores before finding what I wanted at Target. Then Terry spotted an ice maker there that he just had to have so we got it too.
Barry & Yvonne invited us over for dinner amd we enjoyed a great steak meal. We also enjoyed sitting out on the front porch after dinner.
May 1st - Fri - Hemet
Worked on emails and tried to plan our next three weeks this morning before doing laundry. Grabbed a very good hamburger poolside at the RV park before Barry & Yvonne picked us up to go golfing again. We went to Seven Hills GC. Summer rates started today so it cost $14 for 18 holes and a cart. The course was in great shape. I could get used to this type & price of golf!
I put a roast into the crock pot before we left so just had to do potatoes & veggies for a great dinner for all of us. The weather was absolutely perfect to sit out after dinner and enjoy a buddy burner for a while.
May 2nd - Sat - Hemet
Barry & Yvonne took us on a big sightseeing loop today. They picked us up at 8:30 and we headed towards the coast. An hour drive took us to a huge golf store where Barry & Yvonne both bought a new club. Then on to a large outdoor swap meet/market. The weather was lovely for walking up & down the whole place.
From there we stopped for lunch and then went to Newport Beach. We took a tiny ferry to Balboa Island, squeezed through the very narrow streets and off the other end by a bridge. We intended to head south a bit and then go to Capistrano but our tour guide kind of missed the turn so we got to see more scenery and came back via Oceanside.
Back to our rig to water & feed Dolly and then to a Chinese restaurant across the street for dinner. We are leaving tomorrow so we said goodbye to Barry & Yvonne after dinner.
May 3rd - Sun - to Laughlin NV
We did one of our “change our minds as we’re driving” routines today and ended up in Laughlin instead of Pahrump as planned. We are meeting my cousin Pat & her husband Rick in 3 weeks so figured we had some time to burn.
Most of our drive today was though miles of nothing in the Mojave Desert (Hwy 40). Quite a few hills. It was very warm when we checked into the Riverside Casino RV park. We relaxed outside for a while and chatted with some neighbors. Then we went to see Robosaurus - a huge robot that shoots flames from its nostrils and crushes cars in its claws & jaws. Why? Because it was nearby and we can add it to our “quirky” list.
Of course this lead us to a casino. For a change, Terry won enough small amount at the slots that we broke even when we left at 9:15. Talked to Marg (sister) on the phone and cooked a couple of lovely artichokes for dinner.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Apr 27th to 29th - Hemet CA
Apr 27th - Mon - Hemet
Lazy morning and then Barry & Yvonne picked us up at 11 to go golfing at Sun City. It was cool this morning but warmed up to just perfect for golf. The course is short with no par 5’s but with wicked sand traps in front of many par 3’s.
We finished our game earlier than we thought so Yvonne suggested that we check out a new casino - Pechanga - not too far away in Temecula. For a change, I did not spend my “allowance”. Then we headed back to a Mexican restaurant near the golf course for a nice dinner.
Apr 28th - Tues - Hemet
Yvonne is having a small surgical procedure today so we are on our own. First a trip to WalMart for groceries. Then Terry cleaned the truck and the 5th wheel while I finally worked on our pictures. Next a bike ride around the park - over 3 miles going on all the roads. Still cool enough that I had on long pants and a shirt jacket.
After dinner, I finished up the captions on pictures and posted them - see 2009 #3.
Apr 29th - Wed - Hemet
Another day to catch up on things. I did the expenses for April and Terry spent time surfing the internet. I got a much needed haircut. Then we drove around Hemet a bit and could not go past the Big Lots store without stopping!
We had Barry & Yvonne over for baby back ribs for dinner. A breeze came up and cooled us down just as Terry was finishing the ribs on the barbeque.
Lazy morning and then Barry & Yvonne picked us up at 11 to go golfing at Sun City. It was cool this morning but warmed up to just perfect for golf. The course is short with no par 5’s but with wicked sand traps in front of many par 3’s.
We finished our game earlier than we thought so Yvonne suggested that we check out a new casino - Pechanga - not too far away in Temecula. For a change, I did not spend my “allowance”. Then we headed back to a Mexican restaurant near the golf course for a nice dinner.
Apr 28th - Tues - Hemet
Yvonne is having a small surgical procedure today so we are on our own. First a trip to WalMart for groceries. Then Terry cleaned the truck and the 5th wheel while I finally worked on our pictures. Next a bike ride around the park - over 3 miles going on all the roads. Still cool enough that I had on long pants and a shirt jacket.
After dinner, I finished up the captions on pictures and posted them - see 2009 #3.
Apr 29th - Wed - Hemet
Another day to catch up on things. I did the expenses for April and Terry spent time surfing the internet. I got a much needed haircut. Then we drove around Hemet a bit and could not go past the Big Lots store without stopping!
We had Barry & Yvonne over for baby back ribs for dinner. A breeze came up and cooled us down just as Terry was finishing the ribs on the barbeque.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Apr 23rd to 26th - Arizona, California
Apr 23rd - Thus - to Camp Verde AZ
We are heading to Quartzsite to visit friends Clem & Marlene (from SD, met in Quartzsite 2 years ago). Said goodbye to Terry & Judy and left about 8:30. We were planning to stop at Flagstaff but the drive was easy & uneventful so we carried on to Camp Verde which is about an hour south of Flagstaff.
We stayed (for free!!) in the parking lot of the Cliff Castle Casino. Hooked up the generator so we could have dinner and watch TV after spending a little time in the casino.
Apr 24th - Fri - to Quartzsite AZ
The casino parking lot was as bright as day with huge lights and it was quite warm so not a good night’s sleep. Terry thought we would be fighting Phoenix traffic and we had just gained a hour again by going back into Arizona so we left at 5:30! But we decided to turn west towards Wickenburg north of Phoenix so we missed heavy traffic and discovered a very nice road (Carefree Hwy) that joined into Hwy 60 which goes most of the way to Quartzsite.
Clem & Marlene bought a house in QZ this winter. It is an acre with a double wide with a large covered patio, a garage with a 2nd laundry area, a bathroom and a covered patio and 3 other sheds. Lots of room to park RVs so we pulled up right beside the house, hooked up to water & electric and had a sewer dump nearby - lovely!
We all went for a good breakfast at the Quail Café and spent the afternoon catching up and playing a dice game. Out for pizza for dinner and turned in early.
Apr 25th - Sat - Quartzsite
Coffee on the patio while we watched birds & rabbits demolish the seeds put out by Clem. Back to the Quail Café for another good breakfast. We spent time looking up shipping container buildings on the internet and then decided we needed to do something so we went to the casino at Parker. We all played for quite a while on not very much money. We were waiting on Terry and he got down to 14 cents when he hit a small bonus. He ended up cashing out $35 when we HAD to get going.
Stopped at a grocery store and Terry picked up inexpensive Scotch & Vodka at the CVS pharmacy. I made chili when we got back and we had Frito Pie for dinner. If anyone wants to know what this is, send me an email. We looked at pictures on our computer, I tried to set their sprinkler system timer and we had dessert before another fairly early night.
Apr 26th - Sun - to Hemet CA
Got up early, made jelly biscuits and packed up before joining C & M on the patio. On the road about 8 for the 3 hour drive today. We checked into the Golden Village Palms RV park where we have a coupon for half off the first week. It is a very nice park - we stayed here last year in early April.
Terry went for propane & diesel after we set up and then we called friends Barry & Yvonne who live here. They came over and we made some plans - dinner at their place today, golf tomorrow, Yvonne is tied up Tues, and dinner at our place on Wed.
Barry had his “family famous” lasagna ready to put into the oven so we could just relax & chat before dinner. I helped Barry download & set up Picasa on his computer.
We are heading to Quartzsite to visit friends Clem & Marlene (from SD, met in Quartzsite 2 years ago). Said goodbye to Terry & Judy and left about 8:30. We were planning to stop at Flagstaff but the drive was easy & uneventful so we carried on to Camp Verde which is about an hour south of Flagstaff.
We stayed (for free!!) in the parking lot of the Cliff Castle Casino. Hooked up the generator so we could have dinner and watch TV after spending a little time in the casino.
Apr 24th - Fri - to Quartzsite AZ
The casino parking lot was as bright as day with huge lights and it was quite warm so not a good night’s sleep. Terry thought we would be fighting Phoenix traffic and we had just gained a hour again by going back into Arizona so we left at 5:30! But we decided to turn west towards Wickenburg north of Phoenix so we missed heavy traffic and discovered a very nice road (Carefree Hwy) that joined into Hwy 60 which goes most of the way to Quartzsite.
Clem & Marlene bought a house in QZ this winter. It is an acre with a double wide with a large covered patio, a garage with a 2nd laundry area, a bathroom and a covered patio and 3 other sheds. Lots of room to park RVs so we pulled up right beside the house, hooked up to water & electric and had a sewer dump nearby - lovely!
We all went for a good breakfast at the Quail Café and spent the afternoon catching up and playing a dice game. Out for pizza for dinner and turned in early.
Apr 25th - Sat - Quartzsite
Coffee on the patio while we watched birds & rabbits demolish the seeds put out by Clem. Back to the Quail Café for another good breakfast. We spent time looking up shipping container buildings on the internet and then decided we needed to do something so we went to the casino at Parker. We all played for quite a while on not very much money. We were waiting on Terry and he got down to 14 cents when he hit a small bonus. He ended up cashing out $35 when we HAD to get going.
Stopped at a grocery store and Terry picked up inexpensive Scotch & Vodka at the CVS pharmacy. I made chili when we got back and we had Frito Pie for dinner. If anyone wants to know what this is, send me an email. We looked at pictures on our computer, I tried to set their sprinkler system timer and we had dessert before another fairly early night.
Apr 26th - Sun - to Hemet CA
Got up early, made jelly biscuits and packed up before joining C & M on the patio. On the road about 8 for the 3 hour drive today. We checked into the Golden Village Palms RV park where we have a coupon for half off the first week. It is a very nice park - we stayed here last year in early April.
Terry went for propane & diesel after we set up and then we called friends Barry & Yvonne who live here. They came over and we made some plans - dinner at their place today, golf tomorrow, Yvonne is tied up Tues, and dinner at our place on Wed.
Barry had his “family famous” lasagna ready to put into the oven so we could just relax & chat before dinner. I helped Barry download & set up Picasa on his computer.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Apr 15th to 22nd - Albuquerque NM / RV Rally
Apr 15th - Wed - to Albuquerque NM
Terry hooked up the truck last night so we could get an early start. We didn’t know how many others would be lining up at the dump station. Turned out just to be us so we were early to meet Terry & Judy (we traveled with them in Newfoundland and afterwards last fall). We were meeting at a casino near the rally park so we played a bit while we waited. Had breakfast with them and then all gambled a bit more waiting for their friends (2 rigs- Rick & Lorraine and Chuck) to arrive at noon.
We caravanned to the rally park (Balloon Fiesta Park) as you had to arrive together to park together. There was a solid line of rigs snaking into the parking area. We had to pull out of line to allow the owners of the one motor home in our group to unhook the tow car. The large grass parking area was marked off into rows & sites with little flags. Volunteers directed the parking procedure - rigs alternated parking from each side of the double row of sites so no one had to back in. Just pull all the way through and then the next rig pulled past before any slides were out. A little backing was required sometimes to straighten out and end up right on the flag markers. We are parked on the end of a row (right on the access road) so we ended up with a large area to park our truck and Terry & Judy’s truck.
Setting up did not take long as there is no electric & water to hook up. When we were done, we had to go to the Expo Center to register. The Balloon Fiesta Park is about 10 miles from the Expo Center. We got on a bus for the trip - about a 25 minute ride. Registration didn’t take long and we were on the bus heading back - a little slower with rush hour traffic.
It was quite cool and very windy in the afternoon so happy hour (and catching up with T & J) was inside.
Apr 16th - Thurs - RV Rally
Very cold this morning and Terry & Judy’s furnace is not working. Everyone in our group put in their 2 cents worth but nothing worked to get it going. They called a repair service that would be on site and were put on a waiting list.
Today is an early bird day with some seminars so we took the bus in again and went to a seminar on making money with your laptop while traveling - not too helpful. T & J waited for someone to repair their furnace and rode a later bus.
One of the sponsors has a number match “game” during the rally. Everyone is given a large circle with a number and you try to find someone with a matching number. There are actually 4 of the same number. When you find a match, you show up on Saturday with your matching partner(s), receive a small prize (bag or cap) and are entered into a drawing. So you are always looking for someone wearing your number.
I was just starting to make dinner when Judy came over to invite us for dinner.
Each evening there is entertainment - luckily in a tent here at the Balloon Fiesta park so we don’t have to go back to the Expo center. Tonight was a local group called La-La and the Hubcaps. A wacky group with Elvis pompadours and leather jackets. Fun but cold in the tent and very cold walking back.
Apr 17th - Fri - RV Rally
We were waiting for the park shuttle to take us to the bus this morning when it started to snow! We had a 3 bus wait (about 45 minutes) in the cold. Just as we were getting close to the Expo center, Terry H got a call from the repair guy and had to stay on the bus and return to the park. We & Judy shopped and stood in a long line for a not great hamburger for lunch. Terry returned in time to join us going through additional vendor booths. About 3 I suggested that we leave the rest of the vendors for tomorrow and join the line to catch the bus. Little did we know that the line was blocks long. We ended up waiting for 1 ½ hours. Of course it had to start raining so Judy & I found shelter while the guys held our place in line!
I cooked the pork chops that I was going to have yesterday and we got together with T & J for a combined dinner.
Tonight’s show was Neil Sedaka. Hard to believe that he has been performing for 50 years - he puts on a good show. He wrote a lot of songs for other singers and performed many that were well known. Before each show, there is a half hour of rally information and updates. We were supposed to be taking part in trying to set a record for the number of people wearing balloon hats but the hat tent blew away so that was canceled.
It is still cold but we all wore warmer parkas tonight amd weren’t so chilled when the show was over.
Apr 18th - Sat - RV Rally
Sunshine!! What a welcome difference!
We decided to drive to the Expo center today so we and Terry & Judy left just before 9. We looked for matching numbers, registered with number matches and shopped. T & J bought a bunch of stuff from Camping World and then Terry H. had to go with the delivery driver back to the RV park. Terry, Judy & I spent the time looking for a number match for me and playing bingo - free with little prizes.
When Terry returned, we got some lunch and then attended the prize drawings for the day - none of us won a thing. Stopped at an ATM and then filled up the generator gas cans on the way back.
The entertainment tonight was Rita Coolidge. Not our cup of tea so we all decided to join a lot of other people and left after about 3 songs. We went back to our place and played Mexican Train dominoes. Dolly had to go out and when I took her out I looked down the road by our rig. There were some hot air balloons doing a “night glow” where they tether the balloons and light up the “envelopes” with their burners. I called the others and we all walked the whole length of the park to watch the show. It was fascinating and I got some good pictures (which you will see when we slow down a bit!). Since we had a late lunch, we didn’t have dinner - just brownie sundaes while we were playing dominoes!
Apr 19th - Sun - RV Rally
T & J and we went out for breakfast this morning. After the GPS directed us to a restaurant that was no longer there, we ended up a Denny’s which always has a decent breakfast. Then we checked out a swap meet across the street from the Expo grounds - not great.
The sponsor special today was a casino event. The coliseum was filled with Black Jack, Craps, Let it Ride and Pai Gow poker tables. You could go to each table, receive $100 in chips and gamble. When you had enough to pay back your $100, you could then buy raffle tickets - 1 ticket for every $50. People quickly figured out that you bet the whole $100 on a hand and if you won, cash in and buy 2 tickets. Then move to the next table and do it again. Some dealers were “assisting the players” so I ended up with a lot of tickets but again did not win anything in the drawings. Good prizes - generators, GPS systems, lawn chairs, 2 week cruise, 1 week in a condo in Orlando, etc.
We stopped at a grocery store and I made seafood lasagna for us and T & J for dinner. The show tonight was the Osmond Brothers - 3 of the older brothers who have been performing for 45 years. Very enjoyable.
The weather was sunny & warm again today.
Apr 20th - Mon - RV Rally
Back to the Expo center this morning (again by truck, don’t trust the busses!). We lined up for a chance to open a “treasure” chest and found out when we got there that the prizes in the chest were pretty lame. Judy took part in decorating a sombrero, Terry M. went looking at rigs and Terry H and I went to a seminar on Picasa. It was well presented and informative. When we got back together we decided to go “offsite” for lunch and found a good buffet.
We still had some time before the sombrero judging so we went to the casino right there at the Expo center. Of course I finally had to win a bit of money and anything over $50 has to be paid by an attendant. Terry & Judy finally left for the judging while Terry & I waited for my $80.
There weren’t many people at the sombrero judging as all the vendors had closed and the rest of the stuff at the coliseum was being taken down.
No dinner tonight since we had such a large lunch - drinks & snacks sitting outside with the whole group.
We were entertained by Papa Do Run Run tonight. They did familiar songs from the 50’s & 60’s - think Beach Boys, Roy Orbison. Unfortunately the vocals were often drowned out by the instruments but the songs were well known so you knew the words anyway.
Apr 21st - Tues - to Bernalillo NM
This was one of our shortest moves ever - about 10 miles to Coronado Campground just north of Albuquerque.
Everyone figured there would be a huge traffic jam with all the RVs leaving today but some people evened out the rush by leaving at 5 am! Just after 9 we called the RV park where we were going and our spot was empty so we headed out. The city of Albuquerque did an excellent job of placing police officers to control traffic lights and keep the rigs moving onto the freeway. No sewer hookups here so we dumped our tanks at the dump station and set up. Very nice spot on the Rio Grande River (narrow, muddy stream) with a picnic table under a lovely shelter.
We went to the nearby Santa Ana Casino for a $2.99 breakfast and Terry spent the credits on his frequent player card. I had messed up printing my credits so they gave me another code to try again. When we returned, we met up with a couple from Illinois (David & Joanne) who we had spoken to a couple of times at the rally. They came over and we chatted for a couple of hours. Shortly after they left, Terry & Judy arrived. They had spent the day having some work done on their 5th wheel.
After Terry & Judy unwound with a drink, we invited Chuck to join us for leftovers for dinner.
Apr 22nd - Wed - Bernalillo
I helped Judy, Terry, Chuck & Rick get credits on their casino cards and then we all went for breakfast at the casino. I had to play my credits (and some more!) and Terry didn’t do well either. Next a trip to the laundromat (Judy also) and then a quick sandwich for lunch. T & J had brought back quite a bit of shrimp from Mexico so we all got together for deep fried shrimp for dinner. I had to introduce Judy to Big Lots so dinner ended up being a little late - but it was great. Enjoyed the buddy burner for a while and everyone headed home early.
Finally a chance to catch up on the blog while Terry naps on the couch!
Terry hooked up the truck last night so we could get an early start. We didn’t know how many others would be lining up at the dump station. Turned out just to be us so we were early to meet Terry & Judy (we traveled with them in Newfoundland and afterwards last fall). We were meeting at a casino near the rally park so we played a bit while we waited. Had breakfast with them and then all gambled a bit more waiting for their friends (2 rigs- Rick & Lorraine and Chuck) to arrive at noon.
We caravanned to the rally park (Balloon Fiesta Park) as you had to arrive together to park together. There was a solid line of rigs snaking into the parking area. We had to pull out of line to allow the owners of the one motor home in our group to unhook the tow car. The large grass parking area was marked off into rows & sites with little flags. Volunteers directed the parking procedure - rigs alternated parking from each side of the double row of sites so no one had to back in. Just pull all the way through and then the next rig pulled past before any slides were out. A little backing was required sometimes to straighten out and end up right on the flag markers. We are parked on the end of a row (right on the access road) so we ended up with a large area to park our truck and Terry & Judy’s truck.
Setting up did not take long as there is no electric & water to hook up. When we were done, we had to go to the Expo Center to register. The Balloon Fiesta Park is about 10 miles from the Expo Center. We got on a bus for the trip - about a 25 minute ride. Registration didn’t take long and we were on the bus heading back - a little slower with rush hour traffic.
It was quite cool and very windy in the afternoon so happy hour (and catching up with T & J) was inside.
Apr 16th - Thurs - RV Rally
Very cold this morning and Terry & Judy’s furnace is not working. Everyone in our group put in their 2 cents worth but nothing worked to get it going. They called a repair service that would be on site and were put on a waiting list.
Today is an early bird day with some seminars so we took the bus in again and went to a seminar on making money with your laptop while traveling - not too helpful. T & J waited for someone to repair their furnace and rode a later bus.
One of the sponsors has a number match “game” during the rally. Everyone is given a large circle with a number and you try to find someone with a matching number. There are actually 4 of the same number. When you find a match, you show up on Saturday with your matching partner(s), receive a small prize (bag or cap) and are entered into a drawing. So you are always looking for someone wearing your number.
I was just starting to make dinner when Judy came over to invite us for dinner.
Each evening there is entertainment - luckily in a tent here at the Balloon Fiesta park so we don’t have to go back to the Expo center. Tonight was a local group called La-La and the Hubcaps. A wacky group with Elvis pompadours and leather jackets. Fun but cold in the tent and very cold walking back.
Apr 17th - Fri - RV Rally
We were waiting for the park shuttle to take us to the bus this morning when it started to snow! We had a 3 bus wait (about 45 minutes) in the cold. Just as we were getting close to the Expo center, Terry H got a call from the repair guy and had to stay on the bus and return to the park. We & Judy shopped and stood in a long line for a not great hamburger for lunch. Terry returned in time to join us going through additional vendor booths. About 3 I suggested that we leave the rest of the vendors for tomorrow and join the line to catch the bus. Little did we know that the line was blocks long. We ended up waiting for 1 ½ hours. Of course it had to start raining so Judy & I found shelter while the guys held our place in line!
I cooked the pork chops that I was going to have yesterday and we got together with T & J for a combined dinner.
Tonight’s show was Neil Sedaka. Hard to believe that he has been performing for 50 years - he puts on a good show. He wrote a lot of songs for other singers and performed many that were well known. Before each show, there is a half hour of rally information and updates. We were supposed to be taking part in trying to set a record for the number of people wearing balloon hats but the hat tent blew away so that was canceled.
It is still cold but we all wore warmer parkas tonight amd weren’t so chilled when the show was over.
Apr 18th - Sat - RV Rally
Sunshine!! What a welcome difference!
We decided to drive to the Expo center today so we and Terry & Judy left just before 9. We looked for matching numbers, registered with number matches and shopped. T & J bought a bunch of stuff from Camping World and then Terry H. had to go with the delivery driver back to the RV park. Terry, Judy & I spent the time looking for a number match for me and playing bingo - free with little prizes.
When Terry returned, we got some lunch and then attended the prize drawings for the day - none of us won a thing. Stopped at an ATM and then filled up the generator gas cans on the way back.
The entertainment tonight was Rita Coolidge. Not our cup of tea so we all decided to join a lot of other people and left after about 3 songs. We went back to our place and played Mexican Train dominoes. Dolly had to go out and when I took her out I looked down the road by our rig. There were some hot air balloons doing a “night glow” where they tether the balloons and light up the “envelopes” with their burners. I called the others and we all walked the whole length of the park to watch the show. It was fascinating and I got some good pictures (which you will see when we slow down a bit!). Since we had a late lunch, we didn’t have dinner - just brownie sundaes while we were playing dominoes!
Apr 19th - Sun - RV Rally
T & J and we went out for breakfast this morning. After the GPS directed us to a restaurant that was no longer there, we ended up a Denny’s which always has a decent breakfast. Then we checked out a swap meet across the street from the Expo grounds - not great.
The sponsor special today was a casino event. The coliseum was filled with Black Jack, Craps, Let it Ride and Pai Gow poker tables. You could go to each table, receive $100 in chips and gamble. When you had enough to pay back your $100, you could then buy raffle tickets - 1 ticket for every $50. People quickly figured out that you bet the whole $100 on a hand and if you won, cash in and buy 2 tickets. Then move to the next table and do it again. Some dealers were “assisting the players” so I ended up with a lot of tickets but again did not win anything in the drawings. Good prizes - generators, GPS systems, lawn chairs, 2 week cruise, 1 week in a condo in Orlando, etc.
We stopped at a grocery store and I made seafood lasagna for us and T & J for dinner. The show tonight was the Osmond Brothers - 3 of the older brothers who have been performing for 45 years. Very enjoyable.
The weather was sunny & warm again today.
Apr 20th - Mon - RV Rally
Back to the Expo center this morning (again by truck, don’t trust the busses!). We lined up for a chance to open a “treasure” chest and found out when we got there that the prizes in the chest were pretty lame. Judy took part in decorating a sombrero, Terry M. went looking at rigs and Terry H and I went to a seminar on Picasa. It was well presented and informative. When we got back together we decided to go “offsite” for lunch and found a good buffet.
We still had some time before the sombrero judging so we went to the casino right there at the Expo center. Of course I finally had to win a bit of money and anything over $50 has to be paid by an attendant. Terry & Judy finally left for the judging while Terry & I waited for my $80.
There weren’t many people at the sombrero judging as all the vendors had closed and the rest of the stuff at the coliseum was being taken down.
No dinner tonight since we had such a large lunch - drinks & snacks sitting outside with the whole group.
We were entertained by Papa Do Run Run tonight. They did familiar songs from the 50’s & 60’s - think Beach Boys, Roy Orbison. Unfortunately the vocals were often drowned out by the instruments but the songs were well known so you knew the words anyway.
Apr 21st - Tues - to Bernalillo NM
This was one of our shortest moves ever - about 10 miles to Coronado Campground just north of Albuquerque.
Everyone figured there would be a huge traffic jam with all the RVs leaving today but some people evened out the rush by leaving at 5 am! Just after 9 we called the RV park where we were going and our spot was empty so we headed out. The city of Albuquerque did an excellent job of placing police officers to control traffic lights and keep the rigs moving onto the freeway. No sewer hookups here so we dumped our tanks at the dump station and set up. Very nice spot on the Rio Grande River (narrow, muddy stream) with a picnic table under a lovely shelter.
We went to the nearby Santa Ana Casino for a $2.99 breakfast and Terry spent the credits on his frequent player card. I had messed up printing my credits so they gave me another code to try again. When we returned, we met up with a couple from Illinois (David & Joanne) who we had spoken to a couple of times at the rally. They came over and we chatted for a couple of hours. Shortly after they left, Terry & Judy arrived. They had spent the day having some work done on their 5th wheel.
After Terry & Judy unwound with a drink, we invited Chuck to join us for leftovers for dinner.
Apr 22nd - Wed - Bernalillo
I helped Judy, Terry, Chuck & Rick get credits on their casino cards and then we all went for breakfast at the casino. I had to play my credits (and some more!) and Terry didn’t do well either. Next a trip to the laundromat (Judy also) and then a quick sandwich for lunch. T & J had brought back quite a bit of shrimp from Mexico so we all got together for deep fried shrimp for dinner. I had to introduce Judy to Big Lots so dinner ended up being a little late - but it was great. Enjoyed the buddy burner for a while and everyone headed home early.
Finally a chance to catch up on the blog while Terry naps on the couch!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Apr 14th - Grants NM
Apr 14th - Grants NM
We are going to be dry camping for the next 6 days at a huge RV rally in Albuquerque so we did some prep today - laundry, fill propane, fill water, call friends to arrange a meeting place. I will not be posting my blog until after the rally as I probably won’t be plugging in the computer when we are running the generator to charge the batteries.
Two pieces of not good news today. Terry’s Mom (Ella Mae) went into the hospital last night with pneumonia. Her husband Don says we are not to try to head to Spokane immediately.
The next ugly news concerns Terry’s cousin Theresa who we visited in Texas. Their farm was totally burned in the wild fires in north Texas last week. I was concerned about fires in Oklahoma as they have property there as well but the fires just missed them there.
There are lots of RVs heading for Albuquerque on Hwy 40 today. The park where we are staying has many units heading there as well. We are really looking forward to the rally and will report on it next week.
We are going to be dry camping for the next 6 days at a huge RV rally in Albuquerque so we did some prep today - laundry, fill propane, fill water, call friends to arrange a meeting place. I will not be posting my blog until after the rally as I probably won’t be plugging in the computer when we are running the generator to charge the batteries.
Two pieces of not good news today. Terry’s Mom (Ella Mae) went into the hospital last night with pneumonia. Her husband Don says we are not to try to head to Spokane immediately.
The next ugly news concerns Terry’s cousin Theresa who we visited in Texas. Their farm was totally burned in the wild fires in north Texas last week. I was concerned about fires in Oklahoma as they have property there as well but the fires just missed them there.
There are lots of RVs heading for Albuquerque on Hwy 40 today. The park where we are staying has many units heading there as well. We are really looking forward to the rally and will report on it next week.
Apr 9th to 13th - AZ to NM
Apr 9th - Thurs - Apache Junction
I made a nice, late breakfast while Terry was cleaning the truck a bit. There has been enough wind to coat everything with a fine layer of dust. I spent time figuring out how to reorganize a storage compartment under the oven. This required a trip to find racks for vertical baking pan storage and a stop for groceries on the way back.
Nice & hot so we went to the pool, came back for a lunch snack and then returned to the pool. What a wonderful, relaxing day.
Apr 10th - Fri - Apache Junction
Visited with Luke & Judy this morning. Soaked & pre-washed Terry’s micro fiber cloths and then took them and a load of towels to the laundry room. I exchanged books at the large park library on my trips to do the laundry.
We went to Hobby Lobby to buy 10 pounds of paraffin wax for our buddy burners. We want to compare paraffin to the candles that we have been using and that are hard to find for a reasonable price sometimes. Terry melted enough wax to fill the one burner that we had used while I did misc chores.
Very warm again so we spent some time at the pool.
Apr 11th - Sat - to Tucson AZ
Left at 8:30 for a 2 hour drive to Tucson to meet friends Claude & Val who are just returning from a winter in Mexico. Rained last night and one & off on our drive. We arrived at the RV park before them, paid and went to park as they were turning into the park so they just followed us to our site. The spots turned out to be too short for our rigs. Terry gave it his best shot but in order to miss the power box with our slide we were sticking out at least 4 feet onto the road. So we stood in the road & the rain and found another park. We got our money back (they were very nice about it) and found our way to the second park (Rincon Country West) which turned out to be beautiful. It cooled off enough that we moved inside after sitting outside only a short time after setting up.
We made dinner for Claude & Val and then introduced them to one of our favorite board games - Sequence. They both enjoyed it and caught on quickly.
Apr 12th - Sun - Tucson
C & V’s dog Tucker had a nasty cough so they decided they better find a vet to get him checked out. Their truck is going into the shop tomorrow so they will be without wheels and unable to wait for Monday and a “regular” vet as opposed to an “emergency“ vet. They also needed groceries and asked if we wanted to ride along with them. We didn’t have other plans so off we went.
On the way out of the park we saw some people using the park’s model train setup in front of the office so we stopped for a look. It was wonderful - buildings, flowers & small shrubs, figures, a circus and a farm complete with a scarecrow in a garden and someone using the outhouse. It had 4 rail lines and there were 3 trains chugging around puffing smoke.
When we got to the vet office, there were other people waiting and the staff was working on some major emergency. After a while we were told it would be an hour so we went to Camping World (closed for Easter!) and then stopped for something to eat. When we arrived back at the vet in 1 ½ hours, everyone was still waiting but their pets had been looked at. End result - we were there for probably another hour, the vet did not know what the problem was and wanted to do x-rays & tests which would be very expensive. He did say that Tucker’s lungs sounded OK so C&V decided to wait a couple of days and see how things went.
A stop at a grocery store for Val to stock up, back to the rig for happy hour and dinner prepared by Val. It was late by the time we finished dinner and looking at jokes & pictures on our computers so we didn’t get back to Sequence.
Apr 13th - Mon - to Grants NM
Long drive today so we were on the road at 7:15 after saying good-bye to Claude & Val. A sign informed us that there were daytime closures on Hwy 77 so we went, as advised, to Hwy 79 which was the same road that we took going to Tucson on Saturday. So we hit a “single lane” delay of 20 minutes on Hwy 60 between Superior & Globe instead. Then a “wait for pilot car” delay on Hwy 61.
The highlight of the trip was the Salt River Canyon between Globe & Show Low on Hwy 60. The road winds down one side of the canyon, crosses the Salt River and climbs out the other side. We stopped once for pictures when we reached the canyon and then I took lots of pictures as we drove. Very beautiful and worth a detour if you are near the area.
We finally arrived at the RV park (Blue Spruce) at 4:30 which was actually 5:30 in New Mexico as it is in the Mountain Time zone but does observe daylight savings time. It is a small park just off Hwy 40 - adequate for a couple of nights. They have a narrow strip of drive-through spots. Our length & the power box blocking our slide means that we are blocking the driveway to drive into sites past us. The guy who checked us in said that the people beside us are leaving in the morning and if someone else comes in there tomorrow they will have to back in - “if they can’t back in, they shouldn’t be driving” according to him!
I made a nice, late breakfast while Terry was cleaning the truck a bit. There has been enough wind to coat everything with a fine layer of dust. I spent time figuring out how to reorganize a storage compartment under the oven. This required a trip to find racks for vertical baking pan storage and a stop for groceries on the way back.
Nice & hot so we went to the pool, came back for a lunch snack and then returned to the pool. What a wonderful, relaxing day.
Apr 10th - Fri - Apache Junction
Visited with Luke & Judy this morning. Soaked & pre-washed Terry’s micro fiber cloths and then took them and a load of towels to the laundry room. I exchanged books at the large park library on my trips to do the laundry.
We went to Hobby Lobby to buy 10 pounds of paraffin wax for our buddy burners. We want to compare paraffin to the candles that we have been using and that are hard to find for a reasonable price sometimes. Terry melted enough wax to fill the one burner that we had used while I did misc chores.
Very warm again so we spent some time at the pool.
Apr 11th - Sat - to Tucson AZ
Left at 8:30 for a 2 hour drive to Tucson to meet friends Claude & Val who are just returning from a winter in Mexico. Rained last night and one & off on our drive. We arrived at the RV park before them, paid and went to park as they were turning into the park so they just followed us to our site. The spots turned out to be too short for our rigs. Terry gave it his best shot but in order to miss the power box with our slide we were sticking out at least 4 feet onto the road. So we stood in the road & the rain and found another park. We got our money back (they were very nice about it) and found our way to the second park (Rincon Country West) which turned out to be beautiful. It cooled off enough that we moved inside after sitting outside only a short time after setting up.
We made dinner for Claude & Val and then introduced them to one of our favorite board games - Sequence. They both enjoyed it and caught on quickly.
Apr 12th - Sun - Tucson
C & V’s dog Tucker had a nasty cough so they decided they better find a vet to get him checked out. Their truck is going into the shop tomorrow so they will be without wheels and unable to wait for Monday and a “regular” vet as opposed to an “emergency“ vet. They also needed groceries and asked if we wanted to ride along with them. We didn’t have other plans so off we went.
On the way out of the park we saw some people using the park’s model train setup in front of the office so we stopped for a look. It was wonderful - buildings, flowers & small shrubs, figures, a circus and a farm complete with a scarecrow in a garden and someone using the outhouse. It had 4 rail lines and there were 3 trains chugging around puffing smoke.
When we got to the vet office, there were other people waiting and the staff was working on some major emergency. After a while we were told it would be an hour so we went to Camping World (closed for Easter!) and then stopped for something to eat. When we arrived back at the vet in 1 ½ hours, everyone was still waiting but their pets had been looked at. End result - we were there for probably another hour, the vet did not know what the problem was and wanted to do x-rays & tests which would be very expensive. He did say that Tucker’s lungs sounded OK so C&V decided to wait a couple of days and see how things went.
A stop at a grocery store for Val to stock up, back to the rig for happy hour and dinner prepared by Val. It was late by the time we finished dinner and looking at jokes & pictures on our computers so we didn’t get back to Sequence.
Apr 13th - Mon - to Grants NM
Long drive today so we were on the road at 7:15 after saying good-bye to Claude & Val. A sign informed us that there were daytime closures on Hwy 77 so we went, as advised, to Hwy 79 which was the same road that we took going to Tucson on Saturday. So we hit a “single lane” delay of 20 minutes on Hwy 60 between Superior & Globe instead. Then a “wait for pilot car” delay on Hwy 61.
The highlight of the trip was the Salt River Canyon between Globe & Show Low on Hwy 60. The road winds down one side of the canyon, crosses the Salt River and climbs out the other side. We stopped once for pictures when we reached the canyon and then I took lots of pictures as we drove. Very beautiful and worth a detour if you are near the area.
We finally arrived at the RV park (Blue Spruce) at 4:30 which was actually 5:30 in New Mexico as it is in the Mountain Time zone but does observe daylight savings time. It is a small park just off Hwy 40 - adequate for a couple of nights. They have a narrow strip of drive-through spots. Our length & the power box blocking our slide means that we are blocking the driveway to drive into sites past us. The guy who checked us in said that the people beside us are leaving in the morning and if someone else comes in there tomorrow they will have to back in - “if they can’t back in, they shouldn’t be driving” according to him!
Thursday, April 09, 2009
Apr 6th to 8th - Apache Junction
Apr 6th - Mon - Apache Junction AZ
I corrected our current location on this entry. We are only a few minutes from the RV park in Mesa but we are actually in Apache Junction.
Rick & Diann left late this morning - heading for home (Boise, ID). We had a lazy day. Rode the bikes around the park which is not too far since this is a small park. Printed our copy & e-filed our federal income tax return and then went to the pool. The water is a little cool but feels great when you get in. We were kind of hungry so we came back and snacked a bit. Soon we were hot again so we returned to the pool and chatted with a guy from Illinois.
By the time we were sitting out again, we were in the shade of our rig and it was absolutely perfect. After dinner we went for a walk and did not get far before we stopped to talk with a guy (David) who is from Devon, Alberta - near Edmonton. Actually, his summer “home” is a spot in the Devon Lions Club campground where we stayed. It was nearly dark when we left him so our walk was short .
Apr 7th - Tues - Apache Junction
We went for a long drive today. We headed NE on Apache Trail Historic Road (Hwy 88) and stopped first at Goldfield which is a reconstructed gold mining town. It was a little before most of the stores opened so it didn’t take too long to walk through “town”. A lot of the drive was through the Superstition Mountains and very scenic.
We stopped at Tortilla Flats - it doesn’t seem to have changed much since we first saw it over 20 years ago. Stopped at several overlooks for short walks and pictures. Right past Tortilla Flats, a 22 mile stretch of dirt, wash board road began. Fish Creek Hill is a particularly narrow, windy, hilly portion of the dirt road. Apache Lake is a beautiful lake created by a dam on the Salt River.
At Roosevelt Dam, pavement was a welcome sight. We stopped for lunch in Globe and turned onto the
Gila-Pinal Scenic Road (Hwy 60) for the rest of the loop. There are huge tailing “mountains” from copper mining in the area with current mines visible from the highway at Superior.
Terry dusted the truck and washed the tires when we returned - not that it needed it much!
Our neighbor Luke came over for happy hour. When we pulled out a buddy burner he went and got his wife Judy to see it. She hadn’t joined us earlier as she had a sore throat & coughing spells. The weather was perfect and we sat out until 8:30 when we were all getting hungry.
Apr 8th - Wed - Apache Junction
Chores today but first a visit with Bob & Susan from Bellingham WA. Then we spent some time getting Luke’s laptop to talk to the park wifi which blocks Skype and Vonage. Vonage was starting automatically on Luke’s computer so he got an error when he tried to connect. He had taken the computer to the office but the lady there had not been able to figure out the solution which was to not let Vonage start up.
Next was laundry. The laundry room is close so we came back for lunch once the clothes were in the dryers. We did some rearranging of items in the main & front storage compartments with a view to sometime putting a small TV in the main compartment for outside viewing.
A trip for groceries and the evening spent inside as it cooled down a lot and a wind came up
I corrected our current location on this entry. We are only a few minutes from the RV park in Mesa but we are actually in Apache Junction.
Rick & Diann left late this morning - heading for home (Boise, ID). We had a lazy day. Rode the bikes around the park which is not too far since this is a small park. Printed our copy & e-filed our federal income tax return and then went to the pool. The water is a little cool but feels great when you get in. We were kind of hungry so we came back and snacked a bit. Soon we were hot again so we returned to the pool and chatted with a guy from Illinois.
By the time we were sitting out again, we were in the shade of our rig and it was absolutely perfect. After dinner we went for a walk and did not get far before we stopped to talk with a guy (David) who is from Devon, Alberta - near Edmonton. Actually, his summer “home” is a spot in the Devon Lions Club campground where we stayed. It was nearly dark when we left him so our walk was short .
Apr 7th - Tues - Apache Junction
We went for a long drive today. We headed NE on Apache Trail Historic Road (Hwy 88) and stopped first at Goldfield which is a reconstructed gold mining town. It was a little before most of the stores opened so it didn’t take too long to walk through “town”. A lot of the drive was through the Superstition Mountains and very scenic.
We stopped at Tortilla Flats - it doesn’t seem to have changed much since we first saw it over 20 years ago. Stopped at several overlooks for short walks and pictures. Right past Tortilla Flats, a 22 mile stretch of dirt, wash board road began. Fish Creek Hill is a particularly narrow, windy, hilly portion of the dirt road. Apache Lake is a beautiful lake created by a dam on the Salt River.
At Roosevelt Dam, pavement was a welcome sight. We stopped for lunch in Globe and turned onto the
Gila-Pinal Scenic Road (Hwy 60) for the rest of the loop. There are huge tailing “mountains” from copper mining in the area with current mines visible from the highway at Superior.
Terry dusted the truck and washed the tires when we returned - not that it needed it much!
Our neighbor Luke came over for happy hour. When we pulled out a buddy burner he went and got his wife Judy to see it. She hadn’t joined us earlier as she had a sore throat & coughing spells. The weather was perfect and we sat out until 8:30 when we were all getting hungry.
Apr 8th - Wed - Apache Junction
Chores today but first a visit with Bob & Susan from Bellingham WA. Then we spent some time getting Luke’s laptop to talk to the park wifi which blocks Skype and Vonage. Vonage was starting automatically on Luke’s computer so he got an error when he tried to connect. He had taken the computer to the office but the lady there had not been able to figure out the solution which was to not let Vonage start up.
Next was laundry. The laundry room is close so we came back for lunch once the clothes were in the dryers. We did some rearranging of items in the main & front storage compartments with a view to sometime putting a small TV in the main compartment for outside viewing.
A trip for groceries and the evening spent inside as it cooled down a lot and a wind came up
Monday, April 06, 2009
Apr 3rd to 5th - Mesa AZ
Apr 3rd - Fri - Mesa
Terry got plenty of exercise today - pacing back & forth inside and outside the rig while he worried about the truck and waited for a phone call. He also packed up stuff to move tomorrow.
I baked muffins for breakfast, gave Dolly a haircut and a bath, did a load of laundry, hand washed Dolly’s bed and vacuumed. Amazing what you can get done when you can’t go anywhere! Actually, Diann phoned and offered to come pick us up if we needed wheels. Also, a lady camped behind us came over and said that she noticed that our truck had been missing for a couple of days and said to let them know if we needed a ride anywhere. This is one of the wonderful things about this lifestyle - we had not spoken to these people before as they and we have been gone a lot .
The shuttle from the Chev dealer picked us up about 2:30 and we picked up the truck. Then we made a mad dash to the Mesa Marketplace so we could pick up a coupon to stay for a week for $75 at the park where Rick & Diann are staying. The lady in the booth was just leaving but we got our coupon.
Terry was not interested in eating lunch but once we had the truck back he was suddenly starving. So we stopped at WalMart and got some of their good General Tsao chicken for an early dinner.
Apr 4th - Sat - Mesa
Less than a 3 mile drive this morning to the Meridian RV Resort so we pulled in shortly after 10. We are a site away from Rick & Diann but the occupants of that spot left right after we parked. This park has only RVs, no park models.
After setting up, visiting with R&D and having lunch, we all went to a couple of flea markets in Phoenix. The first one was pretty small but R&D got a couple of items. The second one is at the greyhound park and is larger. But it was nearing closing time so we just took a quick walk around. Stopped at Costco on the way back.
We moved our chairs onto the patio of the site between us so we could enjoy the sun for a while with our happy hour(s). When the sun went behind R&D’s rig, we moved inside as it instantly cooled off with a slight breeze. We had planned to go out for dinner but after too many snacks & drinks we finally decided to each do our own thing for dinner.
Apr 5th - Sun - Mesa
Terry & I returned to the greyhound park swap meet this morning and did not find a thing to buy. Got a lot of exercise however - the first clue that it was a bad parking spot (far from the entrance) should have been that there were many spots available! Then we carried on to the Goodyear Marketplace which is west on Hwy 10. Almost identical to the Mesa Marketplace - we had some lunch while we listened to a lady singing and headed back.
Stopped at Camping World for a water pressure valve and at WalMart to check TV prices. Rick has a 26 inch LCD TV for sale and we are trying to decide (with our recent truck repair in mind!) if it is too good a deal to pass up.
Shorter happy hour today and then to a Chinese buffet for dinner. It was a wonderful buffet - very busy so the dishes were replenished often which kept them fresh & hot. I tried a few different types of sushi (including one with eel which I did not like), baked mussels & seaweed salad as well as several familiar items.
Got back at 8 and crashed as everyone was tired and full.
Terry got plenty of exercise today - pacing back & forth inside and outside the rig while he worried about the truck and waited for a phone call. He also packed up stuff to move tomorrow.
I baked muffins for breakfast, gave Dolly a haircut and a bath, did a load of laundry, hand washed Dolly’s bed and vacuumed. Amazing what you can get done when you can’t go anywhere! Actually, Diann phoned and offered to come pick us up if we needed wheels. Also, a lady camped behind us came over and said that she noticed that our truck had been missing for a couple of days and said to let them know if we needed a ride anywhere. This is one of the wonderful things about this lifestyle - we had not spoken to these people before as they and we have been gone a lot .
The shuttle from the Chev dealer picked us up about 2:30 and we picked up the truck. Then we made a mad dash to the Mesa Marketplace so we could pick up a coupon to stay for a week for $75 at the park where Rick & Diann are staying. The lady in the booth was just leaving but we got our coupon.
Terry was not interested in eating lunch but once we had the truck back he was suddenly starving. So we stopped at WalMart and got some of their good General Tsao chicken for an early dinner.
Apr 4th - Sat - Mesa
Less than a 3 mile drive this morning to the Meridian RV Resort so we pulled in shortly after 10. We are a site away from Rick & Diann but the occupants of that spot left right after we parked. This park has only RVs, no park models.
After setting up, visiting with R&D and having lunch, we all went to a couple of flea markets in Phoenix. The first one was pretty small but R&D got a couple of items. The second one is at the greyhound park and is larger. But it was nearing closing time so we just took a quick walk around. Stopped at Costco on the way back.
We moved our chairs onto the patio of the site between us so we could enjoy the sun for a while with our happy hour(s). When the sun went behind R&D’s rig, we moved inside as it instantly cooled off with a slight breeze. We had planned to go out for dinner but after too many snacks & drinks we finally decided to each do our own thing for dinner.
Apr 5th - Sun - Mesa
Terry & I returned to the greyhound park swap meet this morning and did not find a thing to buy. Got a lot of exercise however - the first clue that it was a bad parking spot (far from the entrance) should have been that there were many spots available! Then we carried on to the Goodyear Marketplace which is west on Hwy 10. Almost identical to the Mesa Marketplace - we had some lunch while we listened to a lady singing and headed back.
Stopped at Camping World for a water pressure valve and at WalMart to check TV prices. Rick has a 26 inch LCD TV for sale and we are trying to decide (with our recent truck repair in mind!) if it is too good a deal to pass up.
Shorter happy hour today and then to a Chinese buffet for dinner. It was a wonderful buffet - very busy so the dishes were replenished often which kept them fresh & hot. I tried a few different types of sushi (including one with eel which I did not like), baked mussels & seaweed salad as well as several familiar items.
Got back at 8 and crashed as everyone was tired and full.
Friday, April 03, 2009
Mar 31st to Apr 2nd - Mesa AZ
Mar 31st - Tues - Mesa
Terry wanted to wear a favorite shirt this morning and we couldn’t find it. He went back to the laundry room and found several shirts that I hadn’t removed from a dryer! Never did that before.
I finally caught up on entering expenses in the computer, dealt with emails and used TaxCut to prepare our tax return. We are using this stay to catch up on some chores so we continued today by going through some storage containers and tossing items that have not been used since we started our full time traveling in Nov 2006.
We went to the small post office here in the park to mail Theresa’s hand lotion and discovered lunch being served beside the pool. So we had a hamburger before looking for a place for me to get a haircut. I would have had to wait too long at a couple shops so we continued on to a casino. Should have waited for the haircut!
Back to the park to relax in the lovely sunshine and warm weather.
Apr 1st - Wed - Mesa
Finally got a haircut this morning - not so great! Picked up a couple of items at WalMart and then found a Costco. Forgot how inexpensive Scotch can be in Arizona. And then - no April Fool’s joke - the truck would not start. It cranked over just fine but would not catch. A bystander suggested a 10 minute wait to reset “something” but that did not work. Looked up a Chev dealer in the GPS and they recommended a tow service called Pinky Tow with a bright pink tow truck. The driver was wonderful. We pushed our truck out of the parking spot and he had it loaded on the flatbed in no time. Luckily, the Chev dealer was less than 3 miles from Costco and we got there about 2.
And then we sat & waited & waited. It didn’t take them too long to determine that it wasn’t getting fuel and move it to the diesel specialist. But then they could not find the “leak”. At 5:25 they gave us a ride back to the RV park. We can look on the bright side and be thankful that this didn’t happen when we were towing in the middle of nowhere. And that we had a small cooler in the truck with frozen chicken to keep a large pork loin cool!
Apr 2nd - Thurs - Mesa
Rick & Diann picked us up this morning to go golfing. On the way, we got a call from the Chev dealer - bad news. They have to replace the fuel pump (or the diesel equivalent) which is a big job on this truck. We will get the truck back tomorrow afternoon.
The golf course (The Links at Queen Creek) was beautiful and the weather was perfect - sunny, warm and a slight breeze to keep us cool. We had a great time and Terry almost managed to forget about the truck for a few minutes. We had lunch at the pro shop, stopped at a meat market and toured the RV park where Rick & Diann are staying before they brought us back.
Between salad & dinner, we went for a bike ride around the park. The weather at 7:00 pm is so perfect for riding - lots of others doing the same.
Terry wanted to wear a favorite shirt this morning and we couldn’t find it. He went back to the laundry room and found several shirts that I hadn’t removed from a dryer! Never did that before.
I finally caught up on entering expenses in the computer, dealt with emails and used TaxCut to prepare our tax return. We are using this stay to catch up on some chores so we continued today by going through some storage containers and tossing items that have not been used since we started our full time traveling in Nov 2006.
We went to the small post office here in the park to mail Theresa’s hand lotion and discovered lunch being served beside the pool. So we had a hamburger before looking for a place for me to get a haircut. I would have had to wait too long at a couple shops so we continued on to a casino. Should have waited for the haircut!
Back to the park to relax in the lovely sunshine and warm weather.
Apr 1st - Wed - Mesa
Finally got a haircut this morning - not so great! Picked up a couple of items at WalMart and then found a Costco. Forgot how inexpensive Scotch can be in Arizona. And then - no April Fool’s joke - the truck would not start. It cranked over just fine but would not catch. A bystander suggested a 10 minute wait to reset “something” but that did not work. Looked up a Chev dealer in the GPS and they recommended a tow service called Pinky Tow with a bright pink tow truck. The driver was wonderful. We pushed our truck out of the parking spot and he had it loaded on the flatbed in no time. Luckily, the Chev dealer was less than 3 miles from Costco and we got there about 2.
And then we sat & waited & waited. It didn’t take them too long to determine that it wasn’t getting fuel and move it to the diesel specialist. But then they could not find the “leak”. At 5:25 they gave us a ride back to the RV park. We can look on the bright side and be thankful that this didn’t happen when we were towing in the middle of nowhere. And that we had a small cooler in the truck with frozen chicken to keep a large pork loin cool!
Apr 2nd - Thurs - Mesa
Rick & Diann picked us up this morning to go golfing. On the way, we got a call from the Chev dealer - bad news. They have to replace the fuel pump (or the diesel equivalent) which is a big job on this truck. We will get the truck back tomorrow afternoon.
The golf course (The Links at Queen Creek) was beautiful and the weather was perfect - sunny, warm and a slight breeze to keep us cool. We had a great time and Terry almost managed to forget about the truck for a few minutes. We had lunch at the pro shop, stopped at a meat market and toured the RV park where Rick & Diann are staying before they brought us back.
Between salad & dinner, we went for a bike ride around the park. The weather at 7:00 pm is so perfect for riding - lots of others doing the same.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Mar 28th to 30th - Mesa AZ
Mar 28th - Sat - to Mesa AZ
Another long day - about 6 hours. Got an early start due to gaining an hour moving to Mountain Time Zone. We are in Valle Del Oro RV park where we stayed in Nov 07 before heading to Mexico. It is a PA park and they give you half off the weekly rate - unusual and appreciated. We had stopped for a big Subway sandwich for lunch and weren’t starving for dinner so we went for a bicycle ride after setting up, relaxing for a while and looking after emails. We passed a woman riding the other way and both of us immediately realized we should know her. Luckily, her name came right to me and I was able to call to her. It was Diann of “Diann & Rick” from San Carlos, Mexico. Small world phenomenon again!!
Diann & Rick came over for happy hour(s) and we enjoyed chatting and a buddy burner. It was late when they left so we just had a sandwich for dinner and shortly after headed for bed.
Mar 29th - Sun - Mesa AZ
Arizona does not go on daylight savings time so we gained another hour yesterday which meant Dolly & I were awake very early this morning. I moved to the couch to read and not disturb Terry. Of course he woke up as soon as I left the bed.
We headed for the “Mesa Marketplace”, an undercover market, fairly early and had breakfast there before spending a few hours wandering. There are 5 rows each ½ mile long so we got in some exercise. When we got back, Terry cleaned up the truck and I spent too much time trying to get rid of a stupid folder that opened every time we booted up the computer. Finally succeeded and then worked on emails again - everyone that I contacted yesterday got back to me!
After an early dinner, we went to a bulletin board and marked on a park map all the park models for sale. Then we rode our bikes to check them out - 24 in all - so we got some more much needed exercise.
The weather was beautiful - warm with a slight breeze.
Mar 30th - Mon - Mesa
After coffee this morning, we went to say goodbye to Rick & Diann. Turns out they are moving just a few miles away and staying for another week. They picked up a coupon at the marketplace for a week for $75. I think we will go back to the market on Friday and see if we can find the same coupon and take advantage of the good price and enjoy the warm weather a little longer.
After breakfast, I did several loads of laundry while Terry cleaned the 5th wheel. Found a water dispenser to fill our gallon water bottles for 25 cents each as the park water is a little blah.
I searched the internet to find a store to purchase some Working Hands hand cream as Terry’s heels are really dry, cracked and sore. Drove about 5 ½ miles to a store that said they sold it and had some in stock only to find just one jar. I wanted another to send to Theresa and was able to find more at a Lowe’s store less than a mile from the RV park. Also made a grocery stop so we could have a spinach salad with a nice steak for dinner.
Another long day - about 6 hours. Got an early start due to gaining an hour moving to Mountain Time Zone. We are in Valle Del Oro RV park where we stayed in Nov 07 before heading to Mexico. It is a PA park and they give you half off the weekly rate - unusual and appreciated. We had stopped for a big Subway sandwich for lunch and weren’t starving for dinner so we went for a bicycle ride after setting up, relaxing for a while and looking after emails. We passed a woman riding the other way and both of us immediately realized we should know her. Luckily, her name came right to me and I was able to call to her. It was Diann of “Diann & Rick” from San Carlos, Mexico. Small world phenomenon again!!
Diann & Rick came over for happy hour(s) and we enjoyed chatting and a buddy burner. It was late when they left so we just had a sandwich for dinner and shortly after headed for bed.
Mar 29th - Sun - Mesa AZ
Arizona does not go on daylight savings time so we gained another hour yesterday which meant Dolly & I were awake very early this morning. I moved to the couch to read and not disturb Terry. Of course he woke up as soon as I left the bed.
We headed for the “Mesa Marketplace”, an undercover market, fairly early and had breakfast there before spending a few hours wandering. There are 5 rows each ½ mile long so we got in some exercise. When we got back, Terry cleaned up the truck and I spent too much time trying to get rid of a stupid folder that opened every time we booted up the computer. Finally succeeded and then worked on emails again - everyone that I contacted yesterday got back to me!
After an early dinner, we went to a bulletin board and marked on a park map all the park models for sale. Then we rode our bikes to check them out - 24 in all - so we got some more much needed exercise.
The weather was beautiful - warm with a slight breeze.
Mar 30th - Mon - Mesa
After coffee this morning, we went to say goodbye to Rick & Diann. Turns out they are moving just a few miles away and staying for another week. They picked up a coupon at the marketplace for a week for $75. I think we will go back to the market on Friday and see if we can find the same coupon and take advantage of the good price and enjoy the warm weather a little longer.
After breakfast, I did several loads of laundry while Terry cleaned the 5th wheel. Found a water dispenser to fill our gallon water bottles for 25 cents each as the park water is a little blah.
I searched the internet to find a store to purchase some Working Hands hand cream as Terry’s heels are really dry, cracked and sore. Drove about 5 ½ miles to a store that said they sold it and had some in stock only to find just one jar. I wanted another to send to Theresa and was able to find more at a Lowe’s store less than a mile from the RV park. Also made a grocery stop so we could have a spinach salad with a nice steak for dinner.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Mar 25th to 27th - Big Bend to Deming NM
Mar 25th - Wed - to Big Bend Ntl Park
About a 4 hour drive today to Stillwell Ranch RV park just outside Big Bend park. Lots of desert, not as many cows as I expected, possibly because of the drought in Texas. We were told a couple of times about higher gas prices in Marathon but passed barely accessible service stations in Fort Stockton and didn’t stop there. Mistake! Diesel was $2.39 in Ft Stockton and $3.09 in Marathon!
A group of people were sitting on the front porch of the office when we drove up in Stillwell RV park. The owner suggested that since we were so close to the sites we might as well pick one, set up and come see her when we were done. We weren’t sure how long we would stay so she opened a “charge account” for us and told us to pay when we left. We could also put items from the small store and gift shop on our tab.
As well as our air card not working, now our phones are not working either. The store has “unofficial” wifi available if you sit on the front porch which I used to post my blog. Then I discovered that I could get the signal in our rig as we are near the office.
Terry set up our satellite and we tried to help a neighbor get his going by finding coordinates for him. At 7 there was a music program in the museum. Our immediate neighbors (a couple) sang and played guitars very well. The guy that we helped with his satellite also joined them in a few songs. It was his birthday and someone had baked a cake so we got to enjoy that as well.
Mar 26th - Thurs - Big Bend Ntl Park
Spent the day in the park today. Packed a lunch and headed out just after 9. It is 34 miles from the RV park to the main headquarters in the park - a lot more desert and some interesting mountains. From there we went to the Chisos Basin which is, as the name says, a basin in the midst of large mountains. There is a view through “The Window” to the flat land beyond the mountains. Next a drive to Santa Helena right on the Rio Grande River on the south side of the park. We stopped at several view points and took short walks but nothing very long or ambitious. The Santa Helena river joins the Rio Grande in a canyon with very high, sheer limestone walls. We were going to return by a different road but after driving about a mile of a 12 mile gravel road we decided to turn around and spare ourselves and the truck all the bumps and dust.
We stopped at a viewpoint to have our late lunch and returned to the park. Including the short lunch break, from Santa Helena to the RV park took nearly 2 hours - it is a very large park.
The only blooming plants that we saw were lots of yuccas and ocotillos and blue bonnets along the road.
Our wifi signal disappeared this evening as another large unit parked beside us and blocked it.
Mar 27th - Fri - to Deming NM
We decided last night that we would leave today rather than spend another day in the park as the weather is supposed to get quite cool. We also decided to head for the Phoenix area rather than explore more of New Mexico. Northern NM is expecting very cold weather and snow and we have been in the southern part of the state. We are in search of warm weather, preferably without wind. Deming is about half way so we are at the Low Hi RV park for the night.
We put in a long day of driving today. About 7 hours elapsed with only a few short stops. We spoke briefly at a rest area with a couple from New York and they were going to drive until they got out of Texas!
Hwy 90 from Marathon until it meets I10 east of El Paso is a very good road. Hit lots of traffic in El Paso.
We saw a huge (probably a couple of miles long) orchard of some kind - maybe pecans? - along the highway and then many more orchards of the same kind but not as large. Forgot to ask at the RV office what they were.
It did indeed cool down today. Quite a change from 80’s yesterday to 50’s today. Terry has been sneezing and has a constantly runny nose - I think it is some type of allergy rather than a cold. He has not had allergies in the past but may be developing some. I fed him some Claratin and made an early dinner as we did not stop for lunch. Spent quite a bit of time on emails, now the blog and will post it and then get to relax with a book for a while.
About a 4 hour drive today to Stillwell Ranch RV park just outside Big Bend park. Lots of desert, not as many cows as I expected, possibly because of the drought in Texas. We were told a couple of times about higher gas prices in Marathon but passed barely accessible service stations in Fort Stockton and didn’t stop there. Mistake! Diesel was $2.39 in Ft Stockton and $3.09 in Marathon!
A group of people were sitting on the front porch of the office when we drove up in Stillwell RV park. The owner suggested that since we were so close to the sites we might as well pick one, set up and come see her when we were done. We weren’t sure how long we would stay so she opened a “charge account” for us and told us to pay when we left. We could also put items from the small store and gift shop on our tab.
As well as our air card not working, now our phones are not working either. The store has “unofficial” wifi available if you sit on the front porch which I used to post my blog. Then I discovered that I could get the signal in our rig as we are near the office.
Terry set up our satellite and we tried to help a neighbor get his going by finding coordinates for him. At 7 there was a music program in the museum. Our immediate neighbors (a couple) sang and played guitars very well. The guy that we helped with his satellite also joined them in a few songs. It was his birthday and someone had baked a cake so we got to enjoy that as well.
Mar 26th - Thurs - Big Bend Ntl Park
Spent the day in the park today. Packed a lunch and headed out just after 9. It is 34 miles from the RV park to the main headquarters in the park - a lot more desert and some interesting mountains. From there we went to the Chisos Basin which is, as the name says, a basin in the midst of large mountains. There is a view through “The Window” to the flat land beyond the mountains. Next a drive to Santa Helena right on the Rio Grande River on the south side of the park. We stopped at several view points and took short walks but nothing very long or ambitious. The Santa Helena river joins the Rio Grande in a canyon with very high, sheer limestone walls. We were going to return by a different road but after driving about a mile of a 12 mile gravel road we decided to turn around and spare ourselves and the truck all the bumps and dust.
We stopped at a viewpoint to have our late lunch and returned to the park. Including the short lunch break, from Santa Helena to the RV park took nearly 2 hours - it is a very large park.
The only blooming plants that we saw were lots of yuccas and ocotillos and blue bonnets along the road.
Our wifi signal disappeared this evening as another large unit parked beside us and blocked it.
Mar 27th - Fri - to Deming NM
We decided last night that we would leave today rather than spend another day in the park as the weather is supposed to get quite cool. We also decided to head for the Phoenix area rather than explore more of New Mexico. Northern NM is expecting very cold weather and snow and we have been in the southern part of the state. We are in search of warm weather, preferably without wind. Deming is about half way so we are at the Low Hi RV park for the night.
We put in a long day of driving today. About 7 hours elapsed with only a few short stops. We spoke briefly at a rest area with a couple from New York and they were going to drive until they got out of Texas!
Hwy 90 from Marathon until it meets I10 east of El Paso is a very good road. Hit lots of traffic in El Paso.
We saw a huge (probably a couple of miles long) orchard of some kind - maybe pecans? - along the highway and then many more orchards of the same kind but not as large. Forgot to ask at the RV office what they were.
It did indeed cool down today. Quite a change from 80’s yesterday to 50’s today. Terry has been sneezing and has a constantly runny nose - I think it is some type of allergy rather than a cold. He has not had allergies in the past but may be developing some. I fed him some Claratin and made an early dinner as we did not stop for lunch. Spent quite a bit of time on emails, now the blog and will post it and then get to relax with a book for a while.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Mar 20th to 25th - Bowie to Big Bend Ntl Park TX
Mar 20th - Fri - Bowie
It takes a long time to catch up on 45 years but we continued trying to do so this morning while I did a couple more loads of laundry. Then Theresa took Terry & I to town to see her store (Heartland). It is wonderful with a great mix of candles, purses & wallets, house wares, greeting cards, decorative home items, soaps & lotions, etc. We went to a small Italian restaurant for a good lunch, picked up one grocery item and headed home. Leftovers for dinner so Theresa didn’t have to work so hard!!
Theresa’s brother Bob (and Terry’s cousin of course!) drove today with his daughter Renee from Denver, Colorado. They stopped in Wichita Falls TX to pick up Theresa & Bob’s mother Millie who is Ella Mae’s (Terry’s Mom) sister-in-law. Got that??
They didn’t arrive until after 8 and then there was another round of reminiscing.
Theresa & Tom have 2 cow dogs that do not like small animals such as cats and Dolly so I have to be really careful when I take her outside. I tell the dogs to go back to the house and Dolly really gives them heck.
Mar 21st - Sat - Bowie
I baked quick Danish biscuits for breakfast today and we chatted the morning away. After lunch, we got out the Skip Bo cards so Theresa could teach Terry, me and Renee how to play. It is a fun game that we will be adding to our game cabinet.
Even though we were all full from a good spaghetti dinner, I made Blackberry Dumplings for dessert which everyone enjoyed.
The wind continued today. I could not live where there is so much wind.
Mar 22nd - Sun - Bowie
The “girls” (me, Theresa, Millie & Renee) went shopping today. First we stopped by Theresa’s shop and each bought a few items. Then we went to WalMart to get some spring blouses for Millie. Of course, Renee & I found a couple of items also. Bob was having a problem with his car so Terry drove him to town for a water pump and Tom was working up some ground to plant more sprigs.
Spent the rest of the afternoon sitting at the side of the house out of the wind and enjoying the sun. Dinner, TV, pictures on the computer and watching a cow starting to have a calf filled the remainder of the evening.
Mar 23rd - Mon - to Big Spring TX
The wind was very strong & gusty all last night, rocking the 5th wheel and causing Terry & I to get very little sleep. We packed & hooked up and went for a last cup of coffee with the relatives. After hugs all around, we were on the road just before 9.
Our route took us south & west. The wind was mainly from the south so we bucked a head wind but that feels better than getting rocked by a broadside wind. We originally planned to stop in Abilene but Terry wanted to get a bit further west to get out of the front which was moving east and causing the wind.
We are at the Texas RV Park in a HUGE drive-thru site - must be 90 feet long. There are 4 foot solid wood fences between the drive-thru sites so they buffer the decreasing wind. In fact, I would call it a breeze now.
We angled SW to Hwy I20 when we left Bowie so we would miss Ft Worth traffic. Good roads. We passed quite a few large horse ranches with lovely (expensive!) fences and impressive entry gates. Also many herds of goats. Cheese? Meat? Lawn mowers? From Sweetwater to here are lots of wind turbines.
Mar 24th - Tues - Big Spring
Spent quite a bit of time on the computer last night trying to get connected to the internet until we finally realized that we must be in an area without broadband service which means phones but no internet.
Took our time getting going this morning and then went looking for a liquor store and a library. The county where Theresa lives is dry so we shared our alcohol store with everyone and needed to replenish. Reasonable prices at the liquor store and then on to the library where we found that the wifi connection is though the same company as here at the park for $9.95 for 24 hours - we passed on that offer. WalMart for some groceries, topped up on diesel ($2.11) and headed back to the park.
After lunch our neighbor came over to share some information about Big Bend National Park which is where we are going next. Spent a nice, lazy afternoon with a little exploring, cleaning up the truck and just relaxing.
Mar 25th - Wed - Big Bend National Park
Just a quick entry, will do the rest later. We have sit on the office porch to get wifi so will just post my blog and complete & post this later. Also do not have cell phone service so don't be worried if you try to call us in the next few days.
It takes a long time to catch up on 45 years but we continued trying to do so this morning while I did a couple more loads of laundry. Then Theresa took Terry & I to town to see her store (Heartland). It is wonderful with a great mix of candles, purses & wallets, house wares, greeting cards, decorative home items, soaps & lotions, etc. We went to a small Italian restaurant for a good lunch, picked up one grocery item and headed home. Leftovers for dinner so Theresa didn’t have to work so hard!!
Theresa’s brother Bob (and Terry’s cousin of course!) drove today with his daughter Renee from Denver, Colorado. They stopped in Wichita Falls TX to pick up Theresa & Bob’s mother Millie who is Ella Mae’s (Terry’s Mom) sister-in-law. Got that??
They didn’t arrive until after 8 and then there was another round of reminiscing.
Theresa & Tom have 2 cow dogs that do not like small animals such as cats and Dolly so I have to be really careful when I take her outside. I tell the dogs to go back to the house and Dolly really gives them heck.
Mar 21st - Sat - Bowie
I baked quick Danish biscuits for breakfast today and we chatted the morning away. After lunch, we got out the Skip Bo cards so Theresa could teach Terry, me and Renee how to play. It is a fun game that we will be adding to our game cabinet.
Even though we were all full from a good spaghetti dinner, I made Blackberry Dumplings for dessert which everyone enjoyed.
The wind continued today. I could not live where there is so much wind.
Mar 22nd - Sun - Bowie
The “girls” (me, Theresa, Millie & Renee) went shopping today. First we stopped by Theresa’s shop and each bought a few items. Then we went to WalMart to get some spring blouses for Millie. Of course, Renee & I found a couple of items also. Bob was having a problem with his car so Terry drove him to town for a water pump and Tom was working up some ground to plant more sprigs.
Spent the rest of the afternoon sitting at the side of the house out of the wind and enjoying the sun. Dinner, TV, pictures on the computer and watching a cow starting to have a calf filled the remainder of the evening.
Mar 23rd - Mon - to Big Spring TX
The wind was very strong & gusty all last night, rocking the 5th wheel and causing Terry & I to get very little sleep. We packed & hooked up and went for a last cup of coffee with the relatives. After hugs all around, we were on the road just before 9.
Our route took us south & west. The wind was mainly from the south so we bucked a head wind but that feels better than getting rocked by a broadside wind. We originally planned to stop in Abilene but Terry wanted to get a bit further west to get out of the front which was moving east and causing the wind.
We are at the Texas RV Park in a HUGE drive-thru site - must be 90 feet long. There are 4 foot solid wood fences between the drive-thru sites so they buffer the decreasing wind. In fact, I would call it a breeze now.
We angled SW to Hwy I20 when we left Bowie so we would miss Ft Worth traffic. Good roads. We passed quite a few large horse ranches with lovely (expensive!) fences and impressive entry gates. Also many herds of goats. Cheese? Meat? Lawn mowers? From Sweetwater to here are lots of wind turbines.
Mar 24th - Tues - Big Spring
Spent quite a bit of time on the computer last night trying to get connected to the internet until we finally realized that we must be in an area without broadband service which means phones but no internet.
Took our time getting going this morning and then went looking for a liquor store and a library. The county where Theresa lives is dry so we shared our alcohol store with everyone and needed to replenish. Reasonable prices at the liquor store and then on to the library where we found that the wifi connection is though the same company as here at the park for $9.95 for 24 hours - we passed on that offer. WalMart for some groceries, topped up on diesel ($2.11) and headed back to the park.
After lunch our neighbor came over to share some information about Big Bend National Park which is where we are going next. Spent a nice, lazy afternoon with a little exploring, cleaning up the truck and just relaxing.
Mar 25th - Wed - Big Bend National Park
Just a quick entry, will do the rest later. We have sit on the office porch to get wifi so will just post my blog and complete & post this later. Also do not have cell phone service so don't be worried if you try to call us in the next few days.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Mar 17th to 19th - Lake Whitney to Bowie TX
Mar 17th - Tues - Lake Whitney
A couple that parked next to us in San Antonio had told us about a bakery in West with “the best” cinnamon rolls. We had actually gone through West on the way to Whitney. So we had to take a drive to get breakfast at the bakery. They have many varieties of rolls - I stuck with cinnamon/raisin and Terry had raspberry/cream cheese. We should have just split one roll! They were large and DELICIOUS! Well worth the drive. Also had to try the kulachi (another type of dough with sweet or meat filling) so we got a ground sausage and a pecan/cream cheese to go.
Stopped at a car wash and got diesel before taking a different route on the way back to go around Lake Whitney - nice lake and scenery. At the service station, the guy filling up beside us was from Spokane. He said he was also staying at Lake Whitney and Terry assumed at the same park as us. He wasn’t there so we drove to the state park to see if we could find him. We could not get in to look for him without paying the $3 each entry fee. Since we weren’t even sure if he was there, we didn’t go in.
We checked to see if anyone was catching anything in the indoor fishing area - very slow. We were sitting outside and Terry decided that the 5th wheel needed some cleaning. So we took a bucket and some cloths and cleaned it as far up as we could reach which was fine as the top was not dirty.
Barbequed dinner and had a quiet evening.
Mar 18th - Wed - to Bowie TX
We tried not to leave too early this morning as we didn’t want to hit rush hour traffic going through Ft. Worth on our way to Bowie which is north west of Ft. Worth. (The pecan kulachi was great for my breakfast!) Terry has a cousin (Theresa & husband Tom) who lives there and whom he had not seen since they were kids. We have been exchanging infrequent emails for about a year and trying to figure out if a visit would work into our route - and here we are.
We arrived about 1:00 and immediately started catching up on the last 45 years with Theresa. Theresa & Tom live on a cattle ranch, have another ranch in Oklahoma, Tom works as a pipe fitter and Theresa has a gift & antique store in Bowie. We took a break from chatting to set up our 5th wheel on their front lawn.
Theresa had told us that she would be making us dinner so I could just kick back.
Before we knew it, it was 10 o’clock and time to let them get to bed as Tom heads to work at 5:30.
Mar 19th - Thurs - Bowie
We finally wandered over to Theresa’s house about 10 and took along some laundry to take advantage of her offer to use the laundry facilities. We drank coffee, chatted, did laundry, watched the “hours old” calf in a field right by the house and had lunch before Theresa took us on a tour of the ranch on her 4 wheeler. They grow Bermuda grass for pasture and hay. They recently bought equipment to harvest & plant “sprigs”. The “sprig digger” is pulled over an established Bermuda grass field, digs up grass roots and throws them into a wagon. The ‘sprigger” then plants the roots in a bare or partially bare field. With a little rain (much needed in a lot of Texas), the newly planted field can be used for pasture within a few months.
Terry & I made a quick trip into Bowie to WalMart for a few items and then spent a couple of hours on the computer showing Theresa photos and jokes. She uses dial up for the internet so I put some jokes & pictures on a CD and loaded them on her computer. When Tom got home from work and then got back from clearing some land, we had him in tears laughing at some of the jokes.
Theresa cooked a great dinner for us again and we “thanked“ her by showing Alaska pictures until their eyes crossed!
A couple that parked next to us in San Antonio had told us about a bakery in West with “the best” cinnamon rolls. We had actually gone through West on the way to Whitney. So we had to take a drive to get breakfast at the bakery. They have many varieties of rolls - I stuck with cinnamon/raisin and Terry had raspberry/cream cheese. We should have just split one roll! They were large and DELICIOUS! Well worth the drive. Also had to try the kulachi (another type of dough with sweet or meat filling) so we got a ground sausage and a pecan/cream cheese to go.
Stopped at a car wash and got diesel before taking a different route on the way back to go around Lake Whitney - nice lake and scenery. At the service station, the guy filling up beside us was from Spokane. He said he was also staying at Lake Whitney and Terry assumed at the same park as us. He wasn’t there so we drove to the state park to see if we could find him. We could not get in to look for him without paying the $3 each entry fee. Since we weren’t even sure if he was there, we didn’t go in.
We checked to see if anyone was catching anything in the indoor fishing area - very slow. We were sitting outside and Terry decided that the 5th wheel needed some cleaning. So we took a bucket and some cloths and cleaned it as far up as we could reach which was fine as the top was not dirty.
Barbequed dinner and had a quiet evening.
Mar 18th - Wed - to Bowie TX
We tried not to leave too early this morning as we didn’t want to hit rush hour traffic going through Ft. Worth on our way to Bowie which is north west of Ft. Worth. (The pecan kulachi was great for my breakfast!) Terry has a cousin (Theresa & husband Tom) who lives there and whom he had not seen since they were kids. We have been exchanging infrequent emails for about a year and trying to figure out if a visit would work into our route - and here we are.
We arrived about 1:00 and immediately started catching up on the last 45 years with Theresa. Theresa & Tom live on a cattle ranch, have another ranch in Oklahoma, Tom works as a pipe fitter and Theresa has a gift & antique store in Bowie. We took a break from chatting to set up our 5th wheel on their front lawn.
Theresa had told us that she would be making us dinner so I could just kick back.
Before we knew it, it was 10 o’clock and time to let them get to bed as Tom heads to work at 5:30.
Mar 19th - Thurs - Bowie
We finally wandered over to Theresa’s house about 10 and took along some laundry to take advantage of her offer to use the laundry facilities. We drank coffee, chatted, did laundry, watched the “hours old” calf in a field right by the house and had lunch before Theresa took us on a tour of the ranch on her 4 wheeler. They grow Bermuda grass for pasture and hay. They recently bought equipment to harvest & plant “sprigs”. The “sprig digger” is pulled over an established Bermuda grass field, digs up grass roots and throws them into a wagon. The ‘sprigger” then plants the roots in a bare or partially bare field. With a little rain (much needed in a lot of Texas), the newly planted field can be used for pasture within a few months.
Terry & I made a quick trip into Bowie to WalMart for a few items and then spent a couple of hours on the computer showing Theresa photos and jokes. She uses dial up for the internet so I put some jokes & pictures on a CD and loaded them on her computer. When Tom got home from work and then got back from clearing some land, we had him in tears laughing at some of the jokes.
Theresa cooked a great dinner for us again and we “thanked“ her by showing Alaska pictures until their eyes crossed!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Mar 14th to 16th - San Antonio to Whitney TX
Mar 14th - Sat - San Antonio
Still cool & drizzly but we figured we better go downtown anyhow. We found a parking garage and walked to the Buckhorn Restaurant and Museum which I had seen in a brochure. There is also a Texas Ranger Museum so we got a combo ticket and spent about 1 ½ hours going through them & the gift store. The Texas Ranger museum is a little dry with a lot of reading necessary. It included Bonnie & Clyde’s car with all the bullet holes from their final showdown with police & rangers. The Buckhorn museum is an amazing collection of all sorts of things - stuffed animals (American, African & others), stuffed bird & fish displays, saddles & other tack, spurs, chairs made from horns & hides, historical dioramas, bronze busts, “old West” rooms (jail, bar, etc), oddities (2 headed calf, antler anomalies) and other bits & pieces to numerous to mention.
We went next to the RiverWalk which is very nice. The city has built bulkheads along the river with pathways on both sides. A man-made canal was added to extend a sharp turn in the river into a complete loop. You go down steps from the street level to the RiverWalk and there are multiple foot bridges over the river as well as car bridges which are also accessible by stairs. We took a half hour boat tour for an overview and some history. It was drizzling a bit when we started but not enough to ruin the tour.
Headed back early as Louise had invited us and another couple over for dinner. We met Ron & Gail when we were in Sarasota for New Years.
Had a great dinner and then went to “Casino Night” in the park. They gave everyone a dish of 50 chips and 5 tickets which you could deposit in bags for your choice of 5 gifts in a drawing. You then gambled (21, poker, horse racing) and bought more tickets with your winnings. You could also buy these tickets and tickets for a $250 credit card. The first ticket drawn was for an MP3 player and Terry won it!! Guess who gets to figure out how to load music on it?!
Mar 15th - Sun - San Antonio
We went back to downtown San Antonio this morning. I tried to talk Terry into taking the bus that stops right in front of the park but when it was at least 15 minutes late we both said “to heck with it” and took the truck again. We parked near the Alamo historic site, saw a line again and went to the RiverWalk via a large shopping mall. We found a restaurant serving a buffet brunch and had a lovely meal sitting outside on the second floor balcony of the restaurant. Handy since the buffet was served on the second floor!
We were wandering along the RiverWalk when a small parade of boats/barges went by in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day. There was a band, a bagpipe group, 2 groups of young girls dancing Irish dances and a couple of rag-tag groups which were both dragging bags of green dye in the river. On the way back to the truck, we finally got into the Alamo grounds. I am not a huge history buff and was not impressed with this attraction. Might have been more interesting if we had waited in the line to enter a building that we never did know what was in there - possibly a film?We went for a bike ride on a biking/walking trail that follows the river for several miles. It goes to a mission not far from the park but we did not find it before we were ready to turn around and check the trail out the other way from the park. There were quite a few “ups & downs” that wore both of us out.
Mar 16th - Mon - to Lake Whitney TX
We said farewell to Doug & Louise this morning. Our just over 4 hour trip turned into 4 ½ hours as an accident on the freeway caused us to sit for ½ hour waiting for it to clear and then for the traffic to get moving. We listened to the CB and truckers were saying the back up was 7 miles long.
We are at the Lake Whitney Marina & RV Park - PA park northeast of Waco. Nice quiet park but Terry is out right now (8:15 pm) trying to figure out why we have no water. The only faucet that we found was on the side of a mobile home beside us and we did have water earlier. He just came back and we have water from another tap that he found somewhere.
The marina has an indoor fishing area where you can fish for free when you stay in the RV park. We walked down to watch for a while and chatted with a couple from a nearby town who leave a trailer here for weekend use. Only a couple of keeper perch were caught - we may try it out tomorrow.
We went for a walk around the rest of the park which is spread out over a large area. Lovely weather! Sunny and warm.
Still cool & drizzly but we figured we better go downtown anyhow. We found a parking garage and walked to the Buckhorn Restaurant and Museum which I had seen in a brochure. There is also a Texas Ranger Museum so we got a combo ticket and spent about 1 ½ hours going through them & the gift store. The Texas Ranger museum is a little dry with a lot of reading necessary. It included Bonnie & Clyde’s car with all the bullet holes from their final showdown with police & rangers. The Buckhorn museum is an amazing collection of all sorts of things - stuffed animals (American, African & others), stuffed bird & fish displays, saddles & other tack, spurs, chairs made from horns & hides, historical dioramas, bronze busts, “old West” rooms (jail, bar, etc), oddities (2 headed calf, antler anomalies) and other bits & pieces to numerous to mention.
We went next to the RiverWalk which is very nice. The city has built bulkheads along the river with pathways on both sides. A man-made canal was added to extend a sharp turn in the river into a complete loop. You go down steps from the street level to the RiverWalk and there are multiple foot bridges over the river as well as car bridges which are also accessible by stairs. We took a half hour boat tour for an overview and some history. It was drizzling a bit when we started but not enough to ruin the tour.
Headed back early as Louise had invited us and another couple over for dinner. We met Ron & Gail when we were in Sarasota for New Years.
Had a great dinner and then went to “Casino Night” in the park. They gave everyone a dish of 50 chips and 5 tickets which you could deposit in bags for your choice of 5 gifts in a drawing. You then gambled (21, poker, horse racing) and bought more tickets with your winnings. You could also buy these tickets and tickets for a $250 credit card. The first ticket drawn was for an MP3 player and Terry won it!! Guess who gets to figure out how to load music on it?!
Mar 15th - Sun - San Antonio
We went back to downtown San Antonio this morning. I tried to talk Terry into taking the bus that stops right in front of the park but when it was at least 15 minutes late we both said “to heck with it” and took the truck again. We parked near the Alamo historic site, saw a line again and went to the RiverWalk via a large shopping mall. We found a restaurant serving a buffet brunch and had a lovely meal sitting outside on the second floor balcony of the restaurant. Handy since the buffet was served on the second floor!
We were wandering along the RiverWalk when a small parade of boats/barges went by in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day. There was a band, a bagpipe group, 2 groups of young girls dancing Irish dances and a couple of rag-tag groups which were both dragging bags of green dye in the river. On the way back to the truck, we finally got into the Alamo grounds. I am not a huge history buff and was not impressed with this attraction. Might have been more interesting if we had waited in the line to enter a building that we never did know what was in there - possibly a film?We went for a bike ride on a biking/walking trail that follows the river for several miles. It goes to a mission not far from the park but we did not find it before we were ready to turn around and check the trail out the other way from the park. There were quite a few “ups & downs” that wore both of us out.
Mar 16th - Mon - to Lake Whitney TX
We said farewell to Doug & Louise this morning. Our just over 4 hour trip turned into 4 ½ hours as an accident on the freeway caused us to sit for ½ hour waiting for it to clear and then for the traffic to get moving. We listened to the CB and truckers were saying the back up was 7 miles long.
We are at the Lake Whitney Marina & RV Park - PA park northeast of Waco. Nice quiet park but Terry is out right now (8:15 pm) trying to figure out why we have no water. The only faucet that we found was on the side of a mobile home beside us and we did have water earlier. He just came back and we have water from another tap that he found somewhere.
The marina has an indoor fishing area where you can fish for free when you stay in the RV park. We walked down to watch for a while and chatted with a couple from a nearby town who leave a trailer here for weekend use. Only a couple of keeper perch were caught - we may try it out tomorrow.
We went for a walk around the rest of the park which is spread out over a large area. Lovely weather! Sunny and warm.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Mar 10th to 13th - San Benito to San Antonio
Mar 10th - Tues - San Benito
We went for a drive south and east today - through Brownsville to South Padre Island. We were warned that there might be lots of traffic because of kids on spring break but things were pretty quiet. We walked out to the beach - not many people there but it was very windy and not a great beach day.
We had lunch and headed back. We chatted with Glen & Bonnie while I was putting some bread pudding in the oven and I invited them over later for dessert. I also made a vanilla sauce (recipes from the internet) and I think it turned out great.
Mar 11th - Wed - San Benito
Glen & Bonnie headed for home (Louisiana) this morning - the park is really emptying out. I did a couple of loads of laundry while Terry washed the truck & the 5th wheel. I made breakfast for lunch and then we went to the pool for a while. The wind let up a bit today but there was enough to make you feel cool when you got out of the pool even though it was probably in the low 80’s.
Mar 12th - Thurs - to San Antonio TX
Lots of empty highway - empty of traffic and anything interesting to look at - on the 4 ½ hour trip to San Antonio today. We took a highway (281) that paralleled the one (77) that we took down. We found out from Glen when we in San Benito that the 60 mile stretch on Hwy 77 without a service station was one side of the famed King Ranch.
After setting up and having a late lunch, I dealt with too many emails and then we went out for diesel and groceries - story of our life! The people that we met in Sarasota for New Years (Doug & Louise) are in this park and went to the office before we arrived to arrange for us to have a spot near them. They were busy today so we will see them during the remaining 3 days that we are staying here.
A cold front came through and the temperature dropped a lot last night and stayed cool, rainy and breezy today. The River Walk is a huge “must see” in San Antonio so I hope the weather improves so we can enjoy it.
Mar 13th - Fri - San Antonio
Doug & Louise came over for coffee and banana bread that I baked yesterday. Since the weather was cold and rainy, they were doing laundry & cleaning so we headed for a flea market. It was a disappointment since more than half of the stalls are only open on Sat & Sun. Since we were north of town, we continued on to find a Costco, grazed our way through the food demos, had a hot dog and came back. Terry fixed the cord on our plug-in cooler while I worked on the computer.
We joined Doug & Louise for happy hour and “suddenly” it was 8 and we hadn’t had dinner. So we all walked across the road to a Mexican restaurant where we had fajitas for a very reasonable price. Back to Doug & Louise’s MH for a nightcap.
We went for a drive south and east today - through Brownsville to South Padre Island. We were warned that there might be lots of traffic because of kids on spring break but things were pretty quiet. We walked out to the beach - not many people there but it was very windy and not a great beach day.
We had lunch and headed back. We chatted with Glen & Bonnie while I was putting some bread pudding in the oven and I invited them over later for dessert. I also made a vanilla sauce (recipes from the internet) and I think it turned out great.
Mar 11th - Wed - San Benito
Glen & Bonnie headed for home (Louisiana) this morning - the park is really emptying out. I did a couple of loads of laundry while Terry washed the truck & the 5th wheel. I made breakfast for lunch and then we went to the pool for a while. The wind let up a bit today but there was enough to make you feel cool when you got out of the pool even though it was probably in the low 80’s.
Mar 12th - Thurs - to San Antonio TX
Lots of empty highway - empty of traffic and anything interesting to look at - on the 4 ½ hour trip to San Antonio today. We took a highway (281) that paralleled the one (77) that we took down. We found out from Glen when we in San Benito that the 60 mile stretch on Hwy 77 without a service station was one side of the famed King Ranch.
After setting up and having a late lunch, I dealt with too many emails and then we went out for diesel and groceries - story of our life! The people that we met in Sarasota for New Years (Doug & Louise) are in this park and went to the office before we arrived to arrange for us to have a spot near them. They were busy today so we will see them during the remaining 3 days that we are staying here.
A cold front came through and the temperature dropped a lot last night and stayed cool, rainy and breezy today. The River Walk is a huge “must see” in San Antonio so I hope the weather improves so we can enjoy it.
Mar 13th - Fri - San Antonio
Doug & Louise came over for coffee and banana bread that I baked yesterday. Since the weather was cold and rainy, they were doing laundry & cleaning so we headed for a flea market. It was a disappointment since more than half of the stalls are only open on Sat & Sun. Since we were north of town, we continued on to find a Costco, grazed our way through the food demos, had a hot dog and came back. Terry fixed the cord on our plug-in cooler while I worked on the computer.
We joined Doug & Louise for happy hour and “suddenly” it was 8 and we hadn’t had dinner. So we all walked across the road to a Mexican restaurant where we had fajitas for a very reasonable price. Back to Doug & Louise’s MH for a nightcap.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Mar 7th to 9th - San Benito TX
Mar 7th - Sat - San Benito
We headed out this morning to Mission to go to a lunch & comedy/music show. It actually didn’t start until 12:30 but we wanted to try to find Bob & Karen from Chewelah who had camped across from us in Foley. Karen had emailed us with the name of the park in Alamo where they were going to stay but we weren’t sure when they were arriving. When we drove into the park, a sign on the office said they were closed on the weekend so we just started driving up and down the roads and finally found them. We had a nice chat with them and carried on.
Our destination, The Chicken House Opry, was 6 miles off Hwy 83 and Terry was sure we were not on the right road as it got pretty trashy with graffiti on any paintable surface. But we found it and were parked behind a large, metal building. In front was another building with a semi-enclosed area serving lunch - BBQ beef sandwich, beans, pickles & a drink - for $5 for both of us. Tickets for the show were $20 per couple and included a CD (which we have not played) for the first 100 couples.
There were comfortable theater seats in the building, a rustic stage and a curtain made out of mismatched blankets. The show was very enjoyable. Apparently the “cast” was rehearsing and moves to Branson MO in April to start doing a show there. There were corny jokes, better jokes, skits, a comedian and many good singers. The drive was just over 40 miles each way but it was definitely worth it.
We stopped at a grocery store on the way home and by the time I put away groceries and meat, we had a late dinner.
Getting to places beside the freeway can be very frustrating. When you see a store and take the next exit, you are generally past the store and on a one-way frontage road which does not allow you to get back to the store. You have to go to the next exit, turn under the freeway, drive along the one-way frontage road on the other side until you are one exit past where you exited, turn under the freeway again and access the store from the frontage road. You basically have to know & take the exit before you see the store.
Mar 8th - Sun - San Benito
I looked after email and we chatted with our neighbors before leaving to check out a flea market. It was OK but smaller than we were used to in Ft Lauderdale & Naples. I wanted one food item so we tried without luck to find a smaller grocery store. Finally I said “forget it” and we came home for a late lunch.
We figured it was time to refill our buddy burners so I cut one of our large candles and started melting wax. Terry started to cut the remaining piece and I said “if you break my knife I’ll have to kill you and if you cut off a finger I’ll have to kill you”. The words were not all out of my mouth when the knife went right through the candle and, of course, he cut his finger. Actually, 2 fingers! One badly but didn’t require stitches. He kept pressure on until the bleeding finally stopped and a couple of tight bandaids fixed him up.
Glen & Bonnie came out so we had to tell them all about buddy burners - Bonnie figures she needs to make one. By the time we had all the burners filled, it was time to fix dinner and shut down for the evening.
Mar 9th - Mon - San Benito
Did some chores this morning and then joined Glen & Bonnie to go to Mexico. There are safety concerns in the border Mexican towns right now but Progreso is considered safe so that is where we went. There are lots of armed police right at the border crossing and in the streets.
We parked in a large lot and walked across. It costs 25 cents in a turnstile to get into Mexico and 30 cents to get out. We wandered along quite a long street of stores and sidewalk vendors, entering a few stores and heading for a restaurant & bar frequented by Glen’s cousin and her husband and friends who joined us. We enjoyed a few margaritas and snacks and then all headed back. Bought a few items on the way back so we didn’t have to carry them the whole time. There was a short line through customs, another line to pay duty on liquor and then we all stopped for an ice cream cone on the US side.
Still windy and hot so we watched TV and snoozed before making dinner. Glen & Bonnie came over and we had no problem visiting until 10. I have a hard time with the daylight savings time change and am not ready to sleep at night - will be happy when my body gets adjusted
We headed out this morning to Mission to go to a lunch & comedy/music show. It actually didn’t start until 12:30 but we wanted to try to find Bob & Karen from Chewelah who had camped across from us in Foley. Karen had emailed us with the name of the park in Alamo where they were going to stay but we weren’t sure when they were arriving. When we drove into the park, a sign on the office said they were closed on the weekend so we just started driving up and down the roads and finally found them. We had a nice chat with them and carried on.
Our destination, The Chicken House Opry, was 6 miles off Hwy 83 and Terry was sure we were not on the right road as it got pretty trashy with graffiti on any paintable surface. But we found it and were parked behind a large, metal building. In front was another building with a semi-enclosed area serving lunch - BBQ beef sandwich, beans, pickles & a drink - for $5 for both of us. Tickets for the show were $20 per couple and included a CD (which we have not played) for the first 100 couples.
There were comfortable theater seats in the building, a rustic stage and a curtain made out of mismatched blankets. The show was very enjoyable. Apparently the “cast” was rehearsing and moves to Branson MO in April to start doing a show there. There were corny jokes, better jokes, skits, a comedian and many good singers. The drive was just over 40 miles each way but it was definitely worth it.
We stopped at a grocery store on the way home and by the time I put away groceries and meat, we had a late dinner.
Getting to places beside the freeway can be very frustrating. When you see a store and take the next exit, you are generally past the store and on a one-way frontage road which does not allow you to get back to the store. You have to go to the next exit, turn under the freeway, drive along the one-way frontage road on the other side until you are one exit past where you exited, turn under the freeway again and access the store from the frontage road. You basically have to know & take the exit before you see the store.
Mar 8th - Sun - San Benito
I looked after email and we chatted with our neighbors before leaving to check out a flea market. It was OK but smaller than we were used to in Ft Lauderdale & Naples. I wanted one food item so we tried without luck to find a smaller grocery store. Finally I said “forget it” and we came home for a late lunch.
We figured it was time to refill our buddy burners so I cut one of our large candles and started melting wax. Terry started to cut the remaining piece and I said “if you break my knife I’ll have to kill you and if you cut off a finger I’ll have to kill you”. The words were not all out of my mouth when the knife went right through the candle and, of course, he cut his finger. Actually, 2 fingers! One badly but didn’t require stitches. He kept pressure on until the bleeding finally stopped and a couple of tight bandaids fixed him up.
Glen & Bonnie came out so we had to tell them all about buddy burners - Bonnie figures she needs to make one. By the time we had all the burners filled, it was time to fix dinner and shut down for the evening.
Mar 9th - Mon - San Benito
Did some chores this morning and then joined Glen & Bonnie to go to Mexico. There are safety concerns in the border Mexican towns right now but Progreso is considered safe so that is where we went. There are lots of armed police right at the border crossing and in the streets.
We parked in a large lot and walked across. It costs 25 cents in a turnstile to get into Mexico and 30 cents to get out. We wandered along quite a long street of stores and sidewalk vendors, entering a few stores and heading for a restaurant & bar frequented by Glen’s cousin and her husband and friends who joined us. We enjoyed a few margaritas and snacks and then all headed back. Bought a few items on the way back so we didn’t have to carry them the whole time. There was a short line through customs, another line to pay duty on liquor and then we all stopped for an ice cream cone on the US side.
Still windy and hot so we watched TV and snoozed before making dinner. Glen & Bonnie came over and we had no problem visiting until 10. I have a hard time with the daylight savings time change and am not ready to sleep at night - will be happy when my body gets adjusted
Friday, March 06, 2009
Mar 3rd to 6th - Rockport & San Benito TX
Mar 3rd - Tues - to Rockport TX
The RV park in Beaumont had a continental breakfast for campers so we joined Billy & Lauri before we all headed out. There were make-it-yourself waffles in the shape of Texas, bagels & cream cheese, cereal, fruit, orange juice & coffee. Nice way to start the day.
We didn’t have a definite destination in mind so I browsed through books and finally made a reservation for a couple of nights at a PA park (Circle W) in Rockport. It is not a great park with mostly long term residents but it will do for 2 nights. We unloaded the bikes and rode around the park before sitting and enjoying the sun for a while. It was windy and cooled down the minute the sun went behind trees so we moved inside, had dinner and relaxed with TV and a book for me.
The highway goes right through Houston which is a very large city. There were as many as 7 lanes of traffic so we were again very happy to have Wanda doing an excellent job of navigation. We later drove past many huge, flat, planted fields that we finally figured out were cotton.
Mar 4th - Wed - Rockport TX
Terry got in a cleaning and organizing mood this morning and attacked the storage box in his truck. He ended up with some space so he moved his heavy fishing tackle box from the front storage of the 5th wheel into the truck. Then we decided that we could move a few items and also move the heavy generator from the same storage compartment into the truck. Since fishing poles were going under the bed, I finally persuaded Terry to toss some slacks that we have been packing around the whole time and have never been worn. Now we have to find a Goodwill to get rid of the clothes.
I made a nice big breakfast (for lunch!) and then we took a drive. We made a loop down to Corpus Christi, drove past some lovely big homes on the water, went across to Padre Island, drove north on Mustang Island, drove on the beach, took a free 5 minute or less ferry ride back to Aransas Pass and then north back to the park.
We had seen a sign advertising T-bone steak for $3.99/lb so had to stop and get some for dinner. It was pretty windy to barbeque but Terry moved the barbeque around and cooked a nice dinner.
Mar 5th - Thurs - to San Benito TX
Another “just over 3 hour” drive today to the southern tip of Texas. There is one section with no service stations for 60 miles that is very “nothing”. Also lots more cotton fields, quite a few cattle and very flat.
The lady in the RV park office had just left for lunch when we arrived so I made a sandwich for us while we waited for her to return and check us in. Sunny & hot but lots of wind. We requested a parking spot that Terry thought might shelter the door side from the wind - helps only a bit. After setting up and visiting with the next door neighbors (Glen & Bonnie), we went for a drive in nearby Harlingen which is quite a large city. Happened upon a Big Lots store where Terry finally found a kettle to melt wax for our buddy burners. I have used my double boiler in the past but I am tired of cleaning it afterwards.
After dinner we went to the clubhouse to play Card Bingo which we had first played in Mexico Beach. Terry & I each started with 10 quarters (use 1 each game) and then he pulled out a dollar to buy more quarters. He was going to change more than a dollar but I suggested he wait since one of us was going to win and sure enough, after using the 4 quarters, Terry won a game and then won another one so we ended up with 2 more dollars than we started with. Good thing since the laundry is piling up!
Mar 6th - Fri - San Benito
Had to wait for washers to free up but got the laundry done this morning after visiting with Glen & Bonnie again. Very warm but still windy so we went driving again. Stopped at an info center to get a local map and other brochures, found a St Vincent de Paul to drop off the clothes and it turned out to be closed and drove a short way down the freeway to San Benito which was an uninspiring small town. We turned at a road to turn around to get back to the freeway and there just happened to be a clothing donation box on the corner of a service station. Got diesel at $1.94 and then discovered we could have paid $1.89.
We sat and chatted with Glen & Bonnie again. I was going to make hamburgers for an early dinner until I discovered that I didn’t have any hamburger in the freezer. Glen & Bonnie were going out for dinner so we joined them to go to a barbeque place.
Then they were very brave and accepted an invitation for coffee and pictures. They left about a half hour ago after their eyes crossed from all the pictures!! They are from northern Louisiana and have the lovely drawl to prove it.
The RV park in Beaumont had a continental breakfast for campers so we joined Billy & Lauri before we all headed out. There were make-it-yourself waffles in the shape of Texas, bagels & cream cheese, cereal, fruit, orange juice & coffee. Nice way to start the day.
We didn’t have a definite destination in mind so I browsed through books and finally made a reservation for a couple of nights at a PA park (Circle W) in Rockport. It is not a great park with mostly long term residents but it will do for 2 nights. We unloaded the bikes and rode around the park before sitting and enjoying the sun for a while. It was windy and cooled down the minute the sun went behind trees so we moved inside, had dinner and relaxed with TV and a book for me.
The highway goes right through Houston which is a very large city. There were as many as 7 lanes of traffic so we were again very happy to have Wanda doing an excellent job of navigation. We later drove past many huge, flat, planted fields that we finally figured out were cotton.
Mar 4th - Wed - Rockport TX
Terry got in a cleaning and organizing mood this morning and attacked the storage box in his truck. He ended up with some space so he moved his heavy fishing tackle box from the front storage of the 5th wheel into the truck. Then we decided that we could move a few items and also move the heavy generator from the same storage compartment into the truck. Since fishing poles were going under the bed, I finally persuaded Terry to toss some slacks that we have been packing around the whole time and have never been worn. Now we have to find a Goodwill to get rid of the clothes.
I made a nice big breakfast (for lunch!) and then we took a drive. We made a loop down to Corpus Christi, drove past some lovely big homes on the water, went across to Padre Island, drove north on Mustang Island, drove on the beach, took a free 5 minute or less ferry ride back to Aransas Pass and then north back to the park.
We had seen a sign advertising T-bone steak for $3.99/lb so had to stop and get some for dinner. It was pretty windy to barbeque but Terry moved the barbeque around and cooked a nice dinner.
Mar 5th - Thurs - to San Benito TX
Another “just over 3 hour” drive today to the southern tip of Texas. There is one section with no service stations for 60 miles that is very “nothing”. Also lots more cotton fields, quite a few cattle and very flat.
The lady in the RV park office had just left for lunch when we arrived so I made a sandwich for us while we waited for her to return and check us in. Sunny & hot but lots of wind. We requested a parking spot that Terry thought might shelter the door side from the wind - helps only a bit. After setting up and visiting with the next door neighbors (Glen & Bonnie), we went for a drive in nearby Harlingen which is quite a large city. Happened upon a Big Lots store where Terry finally found a kettle to melt wax for our buddy burners. I have used my double boiler in the past but I am tired of cleaning it afterwards.
After dinner we went to the clubhouse to play Card Bingo which we had first played in Mexico Beach. Terry & I each started with 10 quarters (use 1 each game) and then he pulled out a dollar to buy more quarters. He was going to change more than a dollar but I suggested he wait since one of us was going to win and sure enough, after using the 4 quarters, Terry won a game and then won another one so we ended up with 2 more dollars than we started with. Good thing since the laundry is piling up!
Mar 6th - Fri - San Benito
Had to wait for washers to free up but got the laundry done this morning after visiting with Glen & Bonnie again. Very warm but still windy so we went driving again. Stopped at an info center to get a local map and other brochures, found a St Vincent de Paul to drop off the clothes and it turned out to be closed and drove a short way down the freeway to San Benito which was an uninspiring small town. We turned at a road to turn around to get back to the freeway and there just happened to be a clothing donation box on the corner of a service station. Got diesel at $1.94 and then discovered we could have paid $1.89.
We sat and chatted with Glen & Bonnie again. I was going to make hamburgers for an early dinner until I discovered that I didn’t have any hamburger in the freezer. Glen & Bonnie were going out for dinner so we joined them to go to a barbeque place.
Then they were very brave and accepted an invitation for coffee and pictures. They left about a half hour ago after their eyes crossed from all the pictures!! They are from northern Louisiana and have the lovely drawl to prove it.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Feb 28th to Mar 2nd - MS, LA, TX
Feb 28th - Sat - Picayune
Some chores this morning including putting dinner in the crock pot and then Terry & I went back to the Hollywood casino in Bay St Louis (Terry was bored!). Not much change in our (bad) luck but Terry did get back $20 when we had to leave so he didn’t have a chance to lose it.
The reason that we had to leave was that we had invited the others to dinner since we are going separate ways tomorrow. I made a chicken/black bean/corn/salsa main dish, Carie brought hummus and rice and Lauri made salad with shrimp so we had a great dinner.
Mar 1st - Sun - to Kinder LA
We left this morning without a definite destination - we just had to stay in Louisiana for one night to get the last state on our map. While we were driving, I found an RV park beside a casino (Coushatta) just north of Kinder that advertised “pay for one night, get one night free”. Can’t turn down free so we got off I10 and stopped for diesel before getting to the park. Terry noticed that the tires on the right side of the 5th wheel were almost touching each other. When he had a look, he could see a bent bracket holding the rocker arm that holds the springs.
We checked into the very nice RV park and got a phone number from them for a welder in Kinder. Of course we didn’t expect to contact anyone since it was Sunday so we left a message and went to the large casino. I think our negative mental state because of the 5th wheel acted on the slot machines as we didn’t do well at all! Back in the rig we had a choice of 3 terrible programs on TV so I finally got my pictures sorted out, labeled and ready for the internet.
Across the lower part of Louisiana on I10 are many miles of elevated highways (“bridges”) over swampy areas. As we traveled west, more green in grass and trees started showing up along with lots of yellow flowers.
Mar 2nd - Mon - to Beaumont TX
It got very cold last night (heavy frost on the hood of the truck) and we ran out of propane in one tank so Terry had to go out and switch tanks so we could warm up the rig enough to get out of our nice warm bed. The welder called back just after 8 and said to come in at 10. I had time to finish posting pictures to the internet. It was about 10 miles away and even with careful driving we were there early but he was ready for us.
They had to remove the tires to work on the part and the lug nuts were difficult to remove - glad we didn’t have a flat on the road somewhere. I sat in the truck and read while the work was being done and kept seeing dollar signs as each half hour passed. They finished just after noon and Terry got a very pleasant surprise when he asked how much he owed - $80!!!! Terry gave him $100 and said thank you very much!
We decided not to go back to the casino for our free night and headed for Texas. Billy & Lauri were going to stay for 2 nights in Beaumont so we called the Gulf Coast RV park and joined them.
The weather is still cool and breezy. The forecasters keep promising that it is going to warm up - I guess it will sometime!
Some chores this morning including putting dinner in the crock pot and then Terry & I went back to the Hollywood casino in Bay St Louis (Terry was bored!). Not much change in our (bad) luck but Terry did get back $20 when we had to leave so he didn’t have a chance to lose it.
The reason that we had to leave was that we had invited the others to dinner since we are going separate ways tomorrow. I made a chicken/black bean/corn/salsa main dish, Carie brought hummus and rice and Lauri made salad with shrimp so we had a great dinner.
Mar 1st - Sun - to Kinder LA
We left this morning without a definite destination - we just had to stay in Louisiana for one night to get the last state on our map. While we were driving, I found an RV park beside a casino (Coushatta) just north of Kinder that advertised “pay for one night, get one night free”. Can’t turn down free so we got off I10 and stopped for diesel before getting to the park. Terry noticed that the tires on the right side of the 5th wheel were almost touching each other. When he had a look, he could see a bent bracket holding the rocker arm that holds the springs.
We checked into the very nice RV park and got a phone number from them for a welder in Kinder. Of course we didn’t expect to contact anyone since it was Sunday so we left a message and went to the large casino. I think our negative mental state because of the 5th wheel acted on the slot machines as we didn’t do well at all! Back in the rig we had a choice of 3 terrible programs on TV so I finally got my pictures sorted out, labeled and ready for the internet.
Across the lower part of Louisiana on I10 are many miles of elevated highways (“bridges”) over swampy areas. As we traveled west, more green in grass and trees started showing up along with lots of yellow flowers.
Mar 2nd - Mon - to Beaumont TX
It got very cold last night (heavy frost on the hood of the truck) and we ran out of propane in one tank so Terry had to go out and switch tanks so we could warm up the rig enough to get out of our nice warm bed. The welder called back just after 8 and said to come in at 10. I had time to finish posting pictures to the internet. It was about 10 miles away and even with careful driving we were there early but he was ready for us.
They had to remove the tires to work on the part and the lug nuts were difficult to remove - glad we didn’t have a flat on the road somewhere. I sat in the truck and read while the work was being done and kept seeing dollar signs as each half hour passed. They finished just after noon and Terry got a very pleasant surprise when he asked how much he owed - $80!!!! Terry gave him $100 and said thank you very much!
We decided not to go back to the casino for our free night and headed for Texas. Billy & Lauri were going to stay for 2 nights in Beaumont so we called the Gulf Coast RV park and joined them.
The weather is still cool and breezy. The forecasters keep promising that it is going to warm up - I guess it will sometime!
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