Good evening, folks......... It's 6:40pm here in Perham, which makes it something else everywhere else...
We've had a few days of marginal weather with a few thunderstorms passing us by, but we got an hour of biking in each day, so can't complain too much... And who'd listen anyway?
Yesterday was right down cruddy for most of the morning, then it cleared up for a couple of hours, but it didn't take long before things socked in again....
So what do you do in situations like this?
Well, you spend quite a bit of time inside, which is kind of neat, actually.... The rain pelting down on fiberglass can be quite exhilerating (if you set your mind to it), and you snuggle up to your favorite book, and hope the darn weather will soon change.
Ditto today (almost to the comma).... we did manage to spend a little more time outdoors, and we got our one hour bike ride in, but that's about it, and I must say, I do miss the pool.... Maybe tomorrow?
Other than that, we've become accustomed to our trailer life, and love every minute of it... I knew that would happen, because that's what happened in 2000 when we took off for four months.... It's an easy, and carefree living, filled with excitement and adventure only when you are ready for it, and the cost boils down to what you are willing to splurge on or skimp on.... It's your choice.... You're the boss!
With that, I'm quitting for today........ There's lightning and thunder all around us, and it's probably not good to be sitting here typing with that kind of things going on!!!
Take care, and check back......
Oh, here's the link to our pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/PERHAMMINNESOTAWEDNESDAYJULY30THURSDAYJULY312009
Friday, July 31, 2009
Thursday, July 30, 2009
PERHAM, MINNESOTA (WEDNESDAY, JULY 29, 2009)
Lu woke up in a foul mood (sure sign when she doesn‘t talk unless it‘s of great consequence)……
In order to explain why, let me take you on a time warp:
As you may know, we had a satellite TV (DirecTV) installed just before taking off on this trip, and we chose to have the “local” networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, and FOX) come out of Los Angeles, which, of course, is in the same time zone as Lummi Island…. Well, as you also may know, this country spans several time zones, and as we travel East, our NEWS shows, and Luanne’s “REALITY” shows came on later and later in the evening….
You’re getting the gist of what I’m getting at, aren’t you?
So… I’ve been on the phone with DirecTV for the better part of three weeks now, trying to get the “locals” changed from L.A. to New York, which would
enhance Lu’s viewing pleasure, since her shows would come on earlier rather than later, and she can go to bed earlier…. She likes going to bed early, what can I say?
Well, I’ve been getting nowhere with my inquiries … Matter of fact, at one time we lost the local channels altogether, and Lu was not pleased!
Last night, after spending almost an hour on the phone with DirecTV, I finally gave up…. My better half had a few chosen words (which I can’t divulge, since this is a family show) about the incompetence of said communications giant, and stalked off to bed without being able to watch anything.
And that brings us to this morning, and the story of the miracle worker….
Yep, that’d be me…
Lu was sitting outside reading when I got up… She barely had a few words of morning cheer for me, so I knew this was not a happy day, but…
During my restless night I evidently had an epiphany (other than the guilt feelings for not being adequate enough in the electronics department to satisfy her viewing needs), and promptly got to work….
Totally disconnected everything from the TV, and the satellite receiver… Waited a minute, and hooked everything back up.
Guess what…. It worked! Not only do we get L.A. stations, but we get ‘em from New York as well…. How bloody marvelous is that? What can I say? I’m the man! And Lu was so happy we had a most wonderful rest of the day, and we lived happily ever after.
The weather is not cooperating! It was windy again this morning, and the clouds hung around all day…. Didn’t stop us from biking (rode for over an hour), but it stopped us from swimming, and that’s sad, ‘cause we love dipping when it’s hot…. Oh, well…. We did the next best thing… Went to town and browsed through stores, then had some suds, just to break up the monotony, and then home to watch TV, now that we can see everything. What a wonderful life!
In order to explain why, let me take you on a time warp:
As you may know, we had a satellite TV (DirecTV) installed just before taking off on this trip, and we chose to have the “local” networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, and FOX) come out of Los Angeles, which, of course, is in the same time zone as Lummi Island…. Well, as you also may know, this country spans several time zones, and as we travel East, our NEWS shows, and Luanne’s “REALITY” shows came on later and later in the evening….
You’re getting the gist of what I’m getting at, aren’t you?
So… I’ve been on the phone with DirecTV for the better part of three weeks now, trying to get the “locals” changed from L.A. to New York, which would
enhance Lu’s viewing pleasure, since her shows would come on earlier rather than later, and she can go to bed earlier…. She likes going to bed early, what can I say?
Well, I’ve been getting nowhere with my inquiries … Matter of fact, at one time we lost the local channels altogether, and Lu was not pleased!
Last night, after spending almost an hour on the phone with DirecTV, I finally gave up…. My better half had a few chosen words (which I can’t divulge, since this is a family show) about the incompetence of said communications giant, and stalked off to bed without being able to watch anything.
And that brings us to this morning, and the story of the miracle worker….
Yep, that’d be me…
Lu was sitting outside reading when I got up… She barely had a few words of morning cheer for me, so I knew this was not a happy day, but…
During my restless night I evidently had an epiphany (other than the guilt feelings for not being adequate enough in the electronics department to satisfy her viewing needs), and promptly got to work….
Totally disconnected everything from the TV, and the satellite receiver… Waited a minute, and hooked everything back up.
Guess what…. It worked! Not only do we get L.A. stations, but we get ‘em from New York as well…. How bloody marvelous is that? What can I say? I’m the man! And Lu was so happy we had a most wonderful rest of the day, and we lived happily ever after.
The weather is not cooperating! It was windy again this morning, and the clouds hung around all day…. Didn’t stop us from biking (rode for over an hour), but it stopped us from swimming, and that’s sad, ‘cause we love dipping when it’s hot…. Oh, well…. We did the next best thing… Went to town and browsed through stores, then had some suds, just to break up the monotony, and then home to watch TV, now that we can see everything. What a wonderful life!
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
PERHAM, MINNESOTA (TUESDAY, JULY 28, 2009)
Slept in again!
There were days (long, long time ago) when I started work at 5:00, and here I’m snoozing past 8:00 two days out of three…
My, oh my, as my mom would say, what’s this world coming to?
I feel it’s almost regrettable to sleep in: Mornings fly by… Lunch is upon you before you’re really ready for it, and you’ve wasted a lot of good time….
(Hey! I’m trying to give myself a guilt feeling here, OK?
…..Don’t think it’s working!)
Over to reality…
The wind didn’t abate over night. Matter of fact, it’s been blowing briskly (sometimes very gusty), since Sunday… It’s still warm, in the upper 70s and into the 80s, during the day, so we’ve been walking, and biking, but not swimming, since (I believe, but not verified) the pool is warmed by the sun.
We’ve spent time getting acquainted with the town, driving around residential areas, as well as walking the down town core streets, sticking our heads into various boutiques and shops of all sorts…. Nice place, with a population of about 2,800 (I think I heard), mostly engaged in agriculture, but, talking to a native the other day, there’s evidently some manufacturing going on as well…
I can’t remember what, though …. Sorry! (look it up yourself)
Luanne and I have spent quite some time, over the last few days, going over maps, routes, and time schedules for our continued journey across this great land, and we have come to the conclusion that we don’t have enough time to really see and do what we had in mind when we first started out… That might seem a bit weird to you, especially since we set our time frame for this trip at one year…. But look…
Here we’re knocking on August already, and we have absolutely must visits to our sons, in Kansas (Aug. 9) and Indiana (Aug. 21) staked out, which gives us about a week (after we leave here) to check out Wisconsin, Iowa, and Nebraska…
Please note that our goal is to visit as many states as possible on this trip, but we also have specific interests to tend to; like seeing New England in Fall Colors, and meeting friends and relatives who would like to spend some time with us on the Atlantic Coast.
Also, please note that both Luanne and I are deadly afraid of tornados and hurricanes, and don’t want to be anywhere close to a location which might have a chance to be visited by one of them, so the timing is crucial, isn‘t it?
I understand tornado season is basically over at the end of July, so we’re willing to take the chance of going to Kansas first… We’ll probably spend a week, then have a week to roam through another few states before ending up in Indiana…
Do you see where this is going?
By the time we’re out of Indiana, it’s September, and we have how many states left to go before Father Winter blows cold stuff down our neckline?
A bunch!
Way too many, if you want to spend some quality time in each place, which I really do, but am afraid won’t happen before we‘re forced South by the weather.
We have reservations in Orchard Beach, Maine, for October 4 through 11... Hopefully, we’ll have decent weather after that, so our trip down the coast to Florida won’t be a soaker.
That‘s enough for tonight… Catch you tomorrow.
There were days (long, long time ago) when I started work at 5:00, and here I’m snoozing past 8:00 two days out of three…
My, oh my, as my mom would say, what’s this world coming to?
I feel it’s almost regrettable to sleep in: Mornings fly by… Lunch is upon you before you’re really ready for it, and you’ve wasted a lot of good time….
(Hey! I’m trying to give myself a guilt feeling here, OK?
…..Don’t think it’s working!)
Over to reality…
The wind didn’t abate over night. Matter of fact, it’s been blowing briskly (sometimes very gusty), since Sunday… It’s still warm, in the upper 70s and into the 80s, during the day, so we’ve been walking, and biking, but not swimming, since (I believe, but not verified) the pool is warmed by the sun.
We’ve spent time getting acquainted with the town, driving around residential areas, as well as walking the down town core streets, sticking our heads into various boutiques and shops of all sorts…. Nice place, with a population of about 2,800 (I think I heard), mostly engaged in agriculture, but, talking to a native the other day, there’s evidently some manufacturing going on as well…
I can’t remember what, though …. Sorry! (look it up yourself)
Luanne and I have spent quite some time, over the last few days, going over maps, routes, and time schedules for our continued journey across this great land, and we have come to the conclusion that we don’t have enough time to really see and do what we had in mind when we first started out… That might seem a bit weird to you, especially since we set our time frame for this trip at one year…. But look…
Here we’re knocking on August already, and we have absolutely must visits to our sons, in Kansas (Aug. 9) and Indiana (Aug. 21) staked out, which gives us about a week (after we leave here) to check out Wisconsin, Iowa, and Nebraska…
Please note that our goal is to visit as many states as possible on this trip, but we also have specific interests to tend to; like seeing New England in Fall Colors, and meeting friends and relatives who would like to spend some time with us on the Atlantic Coast.
Also, please note that both Luanne and I are deadly afraid of tornados and hurricanes, and don’t want to be anywhere close to a location which might have a chance to be visited by one of them, so the timing is crucial, isn‘t it?
I understand tornado season is basically over at the end of July, so we’re willing to take the chance of going to Kansas first… We’ll probably spend a week, then have a week to roam through another few states before ending up in Indiana…
Do you see where this is going?
By the time we’re out of Indiana, it’s September, and we have how many states left to go before Father Winter blows cold stuff down our neckline?
A bunch!
Way too many, if you want to spend some quality time in each place, which I really do, but am afraid won’t happen before we‘re forced South by the weather.
We have reservations in Orchard Beach, Maine, for October 4 through 11... Hopefully, we’ll have decent weather after that, so our trip down the coast to Florida won’t be a soaker.
That‘s enough for tonight… Catch you tomorrow.
PERHAM, MINNESOTA (MONDAY, JULY 27, 2009)
Not a good night for sleep… Had too much to eat last night, and had to battle Lu’s snoring, but what the hey…. We made it through, waking up still married, and in good humor…. I had a bit of a slow start, of course, but Lu got up with energy to spare, and was soon taking loads to the Laundromat, sweeping the huge 2½ft x 7 ft kitchen wood floor, and making our bed… I must’ve done something important, but I’ll be darn if I can remember what…
The wind was at it this morning…. Still very nice and warm, mind you, but strong enough not to gamble on putting up the awning, and strong enough to tie down the towels we use for our chase lounges…
Sorry, I regress…
All work was accomplished by about 11:00, and it was time to go shopping…. Our refrigerator is only big enough to hold a small amount of anything, so we have to restock quite often, unlike at home, where we can stock up for a month, or more, at a time….. The joys of Rving!
On Saturday, on the way here, we drove by a Walmart Superstore. It’s location (in Detroit Lakes) is about 25 miles back on Hwy 10, so it wasn’t what I’d call very fuel efficient, or cost effective, for us to go back there and shop, but, things like that has really never crossed my dear wife’s mind… As long as she can save a few bucks on groceries, that’s all that matters, and I like peace and quiet, so I drive… 1/2 hour there, 1/2 hour shopping, 1/2 hour back…. Worth every penny, for the fruit of my labor (driving) paid off in a fantastic steak dinner, which we embellished with a salad and a couple of artichokes…. What more could a guy want?
Like I hinted at earlier, the wind has been a pain in the butt all day. Enough so that we didn’t even go swimming, but we did get a bike ride in, so not all was lost…. And…. Maybe it was a good thing to let our bodies rest a bit from the sun? We’ll see what tomorrow brings…
The wind was at it this morning…. Still very nice and warm, mind you, but strong enough not to gamble on putting up the awning, and strong enough to tie down the towels we use for our chase lounges…
Sorry, I regress…
All work was accomplished by about 11:00, and it was time to go shopping…. Our refrigerator is only big enough to hold a small amount of anything, so we have to restock quite often, unlike at home, where we can stock up for a month, or more, at a time….. The joys of Rving!
On Saturday, on the way here, we drove by a Walmart Superstore. It’s location (in Detroit Lakes) is about 25 miles back on Hwy 10, so it wasn’t what I’d call very fuel efficient, or cost effective, for us to go back there and shop, but, things like that has really never crossed my dear wife’s mind… As long as she can save a few bucks on groceries, that’s all that matters, and I like peace and quiet, so I drive… 1/2 hour there, 1/2 hour shopping, 1/2 hour back…. Worth every penny, for the fruit of my labor (driving) paid off in a fantastic steak dinner, which we embellished with a salad and a couple of artichokes…. What more could a guy want?
Like I hinted at earlier, the wind has been a pain in the butt all day. Enough so that we didn’t even go swimming, but we did get a bike ride in, so not all was lost…. And…. Maybe it was a good thing to let our bodies rest a bit from the sun? We’ll see what tomorrow brings…
PERHAM, MINNESOTA (SUNDAY, JULY 26, 2009)
First full day at our Home Park, Golden Eagle Vacationland, in Perham, Minnesota.
(As an added note to yesterday’s Blog entry, I fixed Lu’s flat tire last night, of which I‘m very proud, of course… Being the total mechanical klutz that I am… Everybody who knows me say: AMEN!)
INFO:
I’ve decided that my Blog is going to have a rest…. I’ll write down a few words about daily life in “trailer town,” but I’ll do it on the Word Processor, and then, at the end of our stay here, plaster the whole thing on my Blog.
Today, we slept in until 8:00.… Something we rarely do any more, but sometimes it happens, and it really feels good… Actually, the reason for the late roll call was “partying types” next door… They kept the merriment going until 1:00am this morning…. OK if you’re part of it…. Not so much if you’re not…
Anyway, we woke to wonderful blue skies. Took our sweet time getting ourselves together; had a full and fortifying breakfast, after which we felt guilty and took off on a five mile bike ride (starting out easy). Of course, we forgot the camera (sorry, I forgot the camera), so we’ll have to take another ride…
Here I have to mention that the 1/4 mile stretch from Minnesota Avenue (the main road off Hwy 10) to the Park is probably on some farmer’s private land, and he has not felt the urge to do anything about it, so, it’s a washboard!
The road is flat, sloping gently down toward the Park, but driving the truck and trailer in here was an eye opener, to say the least… I was doing less than 5 mph, and we still shook like leaves in a storm… Which brings me back to our bike ride… Amazing as it must seem to you, our collective derrières didn’t stop shaking for enough time (after we got back to the trailer) that if you‘d stuck me in some ice cream, I would now be a milkshake…. Not kidding!
Upon our return (after a well deserved 1/2 hr nap), we did a few household things, then hit the pool, which was filled with kids of all ages… Had a grand time, but, you know, one has to be careful with delicate Scandinavian skin, so an hour was plenty as a start …. Don’t want to look like a burnt jalapeño pepper right off, if you know what I mean?
The rest of the day was spent in and around our trailer…
Had the awning fully extended for maximum shade; a slight evening breeze flowed in from the lake to help “cool” us down, and Luanne prepared a luscious dinner of Norwegian meatballs… life is truly good!
First full day at our Home Park, Golden Eagle Vacationland, in Perham, Minnesota.
(As an added note to yesterday’s Blog entry, I fixed Lu’s flat tire last night, of which I‘m very proud, of course… Being the total mechanical klutz that I am… Everybody who knows me say: AMEN!)
INFO:
I’ve decided that my Blog is going to have a rest…. I’ll write down a few words about daily life in “trailer town,” but I’ll do it on the Word Processor, and then, at the end of our stay here, plaster the whole thing on my Blog.
Today, we slept in until 8:00.… Something we rarely do any more, but sometimes it happens, and it really feels good… Actually, the reason for the late roll call was “partying types” next door… They kept the merriment going until 1:00am this morning…. OK if you’re part of it…. Not so much if you’re not…
Anyway, we woke to wonderful blue skies. Took our sweet time getting ourselves together; had a full and fortifying breakfast, after which we felt guilty and took off on a five mile bike ride (starting out easy). Of course, we forgot the camera (sorry, I forgot the camera), so we’ll have to take another ride…
Here I have to mention that the 1/4 mile stretch from Minnesota Avenue (the main road off Hwy 10) to the Park is probably on some farmer’s private land, and he has not felt the urge to do anything about it, so, it’s a washboard!
The road is flat, sloping gently down toward the Park, but driving the truck and trailer in here was an eye opener, to say the least… I was doing less than 5 mph, and we still shook like leaves in a storm… Which brings me back to our bike ride… Amazing as it must seem to you, our collective derrières didn’t stop shaking for enough time (after we got back to the trailer) that if you‘d stuck me in some ice cream, I would now be a milkshake…. Not kidding!
Upon our return (after a well deserved 1/2 hr nap), we did a few household things, then hit the pool, which was filled with kids of all ages… Had a grand time, but, you know, one has to be careful with delicate Scandinavian skin, so an hour was plenty as a start …. Don’t want to look like a burnt jalapeño pepper right off, if you know what I mean?
The rest of the day was spent in and around our trailer…
Had the awning fully extended for maximum shade; a slight evening breeze flowed in from the lake to help “cool” us down, and Luanne prepared a luscious dinner of Norwegian meatballs… life is truly good!
(As an added note to yesterday’s Blog entry, I fixed Lu’s flat tire last night, of which I‘m very proud, of course… Being the total mechanical klutz that I am… Everybody who knows me say: AMEN!)
INFO:
I’ve decided that my Blog is going to have a rest…. I’ll write down a few words about daily life in “trailer town,” but I’ll do it on the Word Processor, and then, at the end of our stay here, plaster the whole thing on my Blog.
Today, we slept in until 8:00.… Something we rarely do any more, but sometimes it happens, and it really feels good… Actually, the reason for the late roll call was “partying types” next door… They kept the merriment going until 1:00am this morning…. OK if you’re part of it…. Not so much if you’re not…
Anyway, we woke to wonderful blue skies. Took our sweet time getting ourselves together; had a full and fortifying breakfast, after which we felt guilty and took off on a five mile bike ride (starting out easy). Of course, we forgot the camera (sorry, I forgot the camera), so we’ll have to take another ride…
Here I have to mention that the 1/4 mile stretch from Minnesota Avenue (the main road off Hwy 10) to the Park is probably on some farmer’s private land, and he has not felt the urge to do anything about it, so, it’s a washboard!
The road is flat, sloping gently down toward the Park, but driving the truck and trailer in here was an eye opener, to say the least… I was doing less than 5 mph, and we still shook like leaves in a storm… Which brings me back to our bike ride… Amazing as it must seem to you, our collective derrières didn’t stop shaking for enough time (after we got back to the trailer) that if you‘d stuck me in some ice cream, I would now be a milkshake…. Not kidding!
Upon our return (after a well deserved 1/2 hr nap), we did a few household things, then hit the pool, which was filled with kids of all ages… Had a grand time, but, you know, one has to be careful with delicate Scandinavian skin, so an hour was plenty as a start …. Don’t want to look like a burnt jalapeño pepper right off, if you know what I mean?
The rest of the day was spent in and around our trailer…
Had the awning fully extended for maximum shade; a slight evening breeze flowed in from the lake to help “cool” us down, and Luanne prepared a luscious dinner of Norwegian meatballs… life is truly good!
First full day at our Home Park, Golden Eagle Vacationland, in Perham, Minnesota.
(As an added note to yesterday’s Blog entry, I fixed Lu’s flat tire last night, of which I‘m very proud, of course… Being the total mechanical klutz that I am… Everybody who knows me say: AMEN!)
INFO:
I’ve decided that my Blog is going to have a rest…. I’ll write down a few words about daily life in “trailer town,” but I’ll do it on the Word Processor, and then, at the end of our stay here, plaster the whole thing on my Blog.
Today, we slept in until 8:00.… Something we rarely do any more, but sometimes it happens, and it really feels good… Actually, the reason for the late roll call was “partying types” next door… They kept the merriment going until 1:00am this morning…. OK if you’re part of it…. Not so much if you’re not…
Anyway, we woke to wonderful blue skies. Took our sweet time getting ourselves together; had a full and fortifying breakfast, after which we felt guilty and took off on a five mile bike ride (starting out easy). Of course, we forgot the camera (sorry, I forgot the camera), so we’ll have to take another ride…
Here I have to mention that the 1/4 mile stretch from Minnesota Avenue (the main road off Hwy 10) to the Park is probably on some farmer’s private land, and he has not felt the urge to do anything about it, so, it’s a washboard!
The road is flat, sloping gently down toward the Park, but driving the truck and trailer in here was an eye opener, to say the least… I was doing less than 5 mph, and we still shook like leaves in a storm… Which brings me back to our bike ride… Amazing as it must seem to you, our collective derrières didn’t stop shaking for enough time (after we got back to the trailer) that if you‘d stuck me in some ice cream, I would now be a milkshake…. Not kidding!
Upon our return (after a well deserved 1/2 hr nap), we did a few household things, then hit the pool, which was filled with kids of all ages… Had a grand time, but, you know, one has to be careful with delicate Scandinavian skin, so an hour was plenty as a start …. Don’t want to look like a burnt jalapeño pepper right off, if you know what I mean?
The rest of the day was spent in and around our trailer…
Had the awning fully extended for maximum shade; a slight evening breeze flowed in from the lake to help “cool” us down, and Luanne prepared a luscious dinner of Norwegian meatballs… life is truly good!
Saturday, July 25, 2009
JAMESTOWN, NORTH DAKOTA to PERHAM, MINNESOTA
Good evening.... (or morning, in Norway...)
We made it to Perham, Minnesota, where we found our home park (Golden Eagle Vacationland) just outside the town.... Only took us about 3 1/2 hrs from Jamestown, but would've taken a lot less if we didn't encounter those construction zones.... Oh well....
It was amazing to me how dissimilar North Dakota and Minnesota is - in just a matter of a few miles.... The flatness of N.D. gives way to gently rolling terrain, and all of a sudden there are lakes everywhere... Small ones, big ones, and in-between ones.... Really gorgeous! And we also noticed the very real difference in homesteads.... We've become accustomed to looking at - if not "rickety," at least not very well kept - farms all the way from Washington, and, all of a sudden, as we enter Minnesota, every farmstead we see is neatly painted and well kept. Is that because of a Scandinavian heritage? Makes you wonder....
(I must be careful here not to offend anyone, 'cause we've seen some beautiful farms in all the states we've travelled, but the change we experienced as soon as we enter MN. is very noticable.)
Anyway, Golden Eagle is huge, with a mingling of homes, permanent Park Models. trailers, tents, and visitors who only use the premises for launching their boats....
Very busy, and very well laid out..... Lu and I took a long walk around the park, then drove back to town (about 5 miles) to check it out.... Got a patch for Luanne's bike tire, since it developed a flat along the way.... Also found a little tavern, The Suds Tavern, off main Street, where we dove in for some refreshments and an early dinner..... Very good, and very refreshing....
We're home now.... Got the news going, and are just relaxing after a nice and easy ride from Jamestown.... We have eight nights here, and the good thing about that is that it doesn't cost us a dime, since this is our Home park....
OK..... That' it for now.... Here's the photo link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/JAMESTOWNNORTHDAKOTAToPERHAMMINNESOTA
As we say in Norway, Ha det!
Take care and check us out again......
We made it to Perham, Minnesota, where we found our home park (Golden Eagle Vacationland) just outside the town.... Only took us about 3 1/2 hrs from Jamestown, but would've taken a lot less if we didn't encounter those construction zones.... Oh well....
It was amazing to me how dissimilar North Dakota and Minnesota is - in just a matter of a few miles.... The flatness of N.D. gives way to gently rolling terrain, and all of a sudden there are lakes everywhere... Small ones, big ones, and in-between ones.... Really gorgeous! And we also noticed the very real difference in homesteads.... We've become accustomed to looking at - if not "rickety," at least not very well kept - farms all the way from Washington, and, all of a sudden, as we enter Minnesota, every farmstead we see is neatly painted and well kept. Is that because of a Scandinavian heritage? Makes you wonder....
(I must be careful here not to offend anyone, 'cause we've seen some beautiful farms in all the states we've travelled, but the change we experienced as soon as we enter MN. is very noticable.)
Anyway, Golden Eagle is huge, with a mingling of homes, permanent Park Models. trailers, tents, and visitors who only use the premises for launching their boats....
Very busy, and very well laid out..... Lu and I took a long walk around the park, then drove back to town (about 5 miles) to check it out.... Got a patch for Luanne's bike tire, since it developed a flat along the way.... Also found a little tavern, The Suds Tavern, off main Street, where we dove in for some refreshments and an early dinner..... Very good, and very refreshing....
We're home now.... Got the news going, and are just relaxing after a nice and easy ride from Jamestown.... We have eight nights here, and the good thing about that is that it doesn't cost us a dime, since this is our Home park....
OK..... That' it for now.... Here's the photo link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/JAMESTOWNNORTHDAKOTAToPERHAMMINNESOTA
As we say in Norway, Ha det!
Take care and check us out again......
Friday, July 24, 2009
JAMESTOWN, NORTH DAKOTA
Good evening, good morning, or good whatever.... Wherever you are...
(I was going to say the world, but caught myself just in time, and I'll just limit myself to the U.S. and Norway).
Not much to report on today...
We spent the day in Jamestown, North Dakota, and (sorry to say North Dakotans, or Dakotians, or whatever you wanna call yourselves), there ain't too much going on here for people like us, who don't know where to go or what to see....
Be that as it may..... We had a lazy morning... Slept in 'till 6:50, and didn't get going until around 8:00... Drove down town and got the truck washed (Man, did it ever need it!), and - would you believe it - found another Walmart.... Oh, yeah, we're in big town now! Got some necessities (at least Lu thought so) and headed back home to our RV park, then walked over to the Frontier Village (about two hundred fourty eight steps away), where we spent about an hour going over the things we went over yesterday.... Although we did get some pictures, so look and be amused at: http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/JAMESTOWNNORTHDAKOTA
Gassed up the truck for the short haul to Perham, Minnesota, tomorrow, and took a nap.... Us old folks have to rest, you know....
Then we both were on the computer for a while, and finally walked over to Frontier Bar and Grill, where we had the most fantastic Prime Rib ever!
If you travel through here, and don't stop, well.... What can I say? Almost worth the time to travel from Seattle just for the taste, but what do I know?
That's it for today...... We're (like I said) going to our HOME RV PARK, Golden Eagle Vacationland, tomorrow, and will be staying there for 8 days.... So we'll have some "stay-in-one-place" time for a change.... Should be interesting!
I'll let you know what's going on......
A last piece of info: Welcome to my blog Bård Solem! Really happy to know you're following our crazy journey around the U.S.
Hasta la bye, bye, folks!
(I was going to say the world, but caught myself just in time, and I'll just limit myself to the U.S. and Norway).
Not much to report on today...
We spent the day in Jamestown, North Dakota, and (sorry to say North Dakotans, or Dakotians, or whatever you wanna call yourselves), there ain't too much going on here for people like us, who don't know where to go or what to see....
Be that as it may..... We had a lazy morning... Slept in 'till 6:50, and didn't get going until around 8:00... Drove down town and got the truck washed (Man, did it ever need it!), and - would you believe it - found another Walmart.... Oh, yeah, we're in big town now! Got some necessities (at least Lu thought so) and headed back home to our RV park, then walked over to the Frontier Village (about two hundred fourty eight steps away), where we spent about an hour going over the things we went over yesterday.... Although we did get some pictures, so look and be amused at: http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/JAMESTOWNNORTHDAKOTA
Gassed up the truck for the short haul to Perham, Minnesota, tomorrow, and took a nap.... Us old folks have to rest, you know....
Then we both were on the computer for a while, and finally walked over to Frontier Bar and Grill, where we had the most fantastic Prime Rib ever!
If you travel through here, and don't stop, well.... What can I say? Almost worth the time to travel from Seattle just for the taste, but what do I know?
That's it for today...... We're (like I said) going to our HOME RV PARK, Golden Eagle Vacationland, tomorrow, and will be staying there for 8 days.... So we'll have some "stay-in-one-place" time for a change.... Should be interesting!
I'll let you know what's going on......
A last piece of info: Welcome to my blog Bård Solem! Really happy to know you're following our crazy journey around the U.S.
Hasta la bye, bye, folks!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
MITCHELL, S.D. to JAMESTOWN, N.D.
Hi, everyone!
LONG TIME (one day), NO WRITE…..
Thought I’d take yesterday off (Jul. 22) from updating my Blog, since there really wasn’t much to talk about….
I mean, here we are in Mitchell, South Dakota, the corn Capitol of the World (or so they say in Mitchell), and it’s stinking hot….
We looked at everything (Well, maybe not everything) the town had to offer yesterday, which I wrote about, so there wasn’t much to add, if you know what I mean…
You’re right… That’s exactly what I thought: Take a day off!
And that’s what I did….
To keep you up to date, though, I’ll chatter on…
Wherever we’ve been lately, the mornings are very comfortable, so that’s the time to explore, which we do as often as we can.
We looked up where the local Walmart was located (for you who don’t know what Walmart is, it’s a chain of stores across the U.S. where you can buy almost everything, I mean ALMOST EVERYTHING, from food to tires, at a relatively lower price than anywhere else….. A lot of people don’t like Walmart because they think it puts small businesses out of business, but most of us travelers love it, and I’m going to leave it at that….
So…. We program Molly (our GPS), and head out… On the way there (and almost opposite of Walmart), we spot a huge Cabela’s (THE biggest outdoors outfitting store I know of), and, of course, we spend quite some time browsing through acres of floor space… Lots of fun!
Over to Walmart, where Luanne spots a salon inside the front door, and decides to get a haircut. I brows………. and brows……..
All done, and an inch, or so, shorter on top, Lu finds me, and we start looking for a swimsuit for her, but to no avail….. We head into town to find another department store…. End up getting lost, but found our way again after programming Molly.
Long story short, found a Mall, which I’m sure won’t be in existence six months from now (nobody around, and most stores were gone!), and Lu got her swimsuit at a tremendous discount….
The sun is doing its thing, and it’s getting pretty stinking hot by now, so we
head back to R & R RV Park….. Lo and behold, Lu spots another “Do Not Pass” establishment: “The Depot.” (a non-functional railroad depot, which has been transformed to a bar/tavern/restaurant….. Cute, and fairly cheap!).
We quench our thirst, then head home where we spend an hour, or so, cooling off at the swimming pool….. That’s it for yesterday…. Wasn’t that exciting?
And now, for today…. This one is really easy, and I’m sure I can describe everything we’ve seen and done in less than two minutes.
We’re in Jamestown, North Dakota.
From Mitchell, S.D. to here we backtracked on I-90 for about 20 miles; hooked a right, and took Hwy 281 the rest of the way. Straight as an arrow! The prairie is flat as a pancake, with an undulating hiccup once in a while, caused by some prehistoric sinking or heaving of the terrain, but it‘s basically flat.
All you see is hundred of thousands of acres of corn, potatoes, and grass….. (Oh, and a few cows and horses here and there……)
I’m talking from horizon to horizon!
I’m talking about the 250 miles of both South and North Dakota we drove through, and I’m talking about seeing farm houses so far away, and so far apart, that they looked like little LEGO blocks way off in the distance…. Talk about isolation! (Must’ve used smoke signals in the old days for communication, 'cause it would've taken days to go from one home to another!).
That’s it…. I’ve described the Eastern side of the Dakotas.
We pulled in here to the Frontier Fort RV Park just after lunch…. No swimming pool this time, so, after a short nap, we took a drive through town… Stopped at the local Dairy Queen for an ice cream, and then found that there is a “reenacted” (don’t know if that’s the right word, but it’ll have to do) Frontier Village right next to our Park.
(Duh… the name, huh?), which we explored for a while, but it was so hot that we headed back to the trailer, turned the air condition on full blast, and settled in for a quiet evening.
There you have it…..
We’ll do a bit more exploring in the morning, and if there’s anything worth telling, I’m sure I’ll find a way to help you waste some of your time reading.
Have a great evening, and an even better tomorrow!
Oh, and here are the pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/MITCHELLSDToJAMESTOWNND
ENJOY!
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
RAPID CITY to MITCHELL, SOUTH DAKOTA.
Greetings, fellow earthlings....
Well, we made it to Mitchell, S.D.... A mere 270 miles East of Rapid City (on mostly a flat-as-a-pancake interstate)... There were the odd hilltop and valley, but they were far between, so the ride was a bit on the boring side, especially after having to traverse the Rocky Mountains lately...
They made it interesting though (the highway guys), because there were at least two long stretches of more than 18 miles each) that were one lane in each direction..... Lots of construction during the summer season, and a long line driving behind me at 60 MPH.
Luanne took a bunch of pictures along the way, as you can see on our Picasa Web Album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/RAPIDCITYToMITCHELLSOUTHDAKOTA
We pulled into the R & R Campground around 2:30, but it was actually 3:30, since we crossed into the Central Time Zone somewhere along the road.... Took a short nap, then hit the pool.... Heated pool, mind you, and we had it all to ourselves! Ahhh, what luxury!
We basked in the sun and the water for a while, then headed into town to find the "Corn Palace" which was quite a sight.... And quite the tourist attraction..... I've read about this place many times in one or another of my travel magazines, so I knew about it, but it's something else to see things like this in person.... I was impressed.... No, really, I was..... Don't usually ohh and ahh over things like this, but this one was intriguing.....
After getting out of there with a minimum purchase, we walked the main street for a while, and, of course, Lu spotted an old tavern (well, it was made to look old), which we entered, and ended up getting some suds and a plate of deep fried vegies, which turned out to be really good!
The ol' waist line is growing!
That's it.... We're here for one full day (tomorrow), then on to North Dakota.... Take care, and keep an eye open for us.... Hasta la Bye Bye...
Well, we made it to Mitchell, S.D.... A mere 270 miles East of Rapid City (on mostly a flat-as-a-pancake interstate)... There were the odd hilltop and valley, but they were far between, so the ride was a bit on the boring side, especially after having to traverse the Rocky Mountains lately...
They made it interesting though (the highway guys), because there were at least two long stretches of more than 18 miles each) that were one lane in each direction..... Lots of construction during the summer season, and a long line driving behind me at 60 MPH.
Luanne took a bunch of pictures along the way, as you can see on our Picasa Web Album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/RAPIDCITYToMITCHELLSOUTHDAKOTA
We pulled into the R & R Campground around 2:30, but it was actually 3:30, since we crossed into the Central Time Zone somewhere along the road.... Took a short nap, then hit the pool.... Heated pool, mind you, and we had it all to ourselves! Ahhh, what luxury!
We basked in the sun and the water for a while, then headed into town to find the "Corn Palace" which was quite a sight.... And quite the tourist attraction..... I've read about this place many times in one or another of my travel magazines, so I knew about it, but it's something else to see things like this in person.... I was impressed.... No, really, I was..... Don't usually ohh and ahh over things like this, but this one was intriguing.....
After getting out of there with a minimum purchase, we walked the main street for a while, and, of course, Lu spotted an old tavern (well, it was made to look old), which we entered, and ended up getting some suds and a plate of deep fried vegies, which turned out to be really good!
The ol' waist line is growing!
That's it.... We're here for one full day (tomorrow), then on to North Dakota.... Take care, and keep an eye open for us.... Hasta la Bye Bye...
Monday, July 20, 2009
PIRATE'S COVE, RAPID CITY, SD
Got up early to do bookkeeping (me), and some clothes washing (Lu).
Then, around 9:30, or so, we headed off for Walmart to get some stuff for the refrigerator.... We've been by this store a few times now, and, each time we've looked at this beautiful mineature golf course, located at the entrance to Walmart, we've said it would be fun to go and play there one day.....
Well, today was the day....
We've done the Black Hills, and all we have left on our agenda is to take in the Old Down Town, and to play this course....
18 holes took us about an hour, and was well worth the $8 per person fee.... Take a look at my pictures at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/PIRATESCOVERAPIDCITYSD
After fun time comes shopping time, and, of course, we did some damage to the ol' cheking account in Walmart, but necessity is necessity.... Took off from there and headed a dozen blocks into down town, where we lucked out and got a parking spot right on Main Street.
Walked the whole street a couple of times, and stopped in to check out the "Prairie Edge" (Look it up : http://www.prairieedge.com/).... Fantastic store! All kinds of things, including a pound of Buffalo hamburger, which Luanne managed to make into KJØTTKAKER (meatballs for you who can't handle Norwegian), as soon as we got home.
We are now ready to eat those little critters, so I'm saying farewell, adios, and good bye for this time. Talk to you soon.
UPDATE!
So...... We decided to go and get gas for tomorrow's trip across the state before eating, and, sure enough, Luanne opinioned she'd like to check out the Historic Sawtooth Saloon, in the Piedmont Valley - a few miles back West.... And, as easily talked into things that I am, I scooted down the freeway, found the place, and parked in front.... Spent the next hour at a table for two, next to the old bar, built by a Swede in 1862..... Had a decent BLT sandwich and a few drinks, while Lu downed her quota of suds and ate eight hot chicken wings with celery..... She's a smokin' kind of gal that gal of mine!
Long story short.... Got the gas at a 4 cent discount ($2.48) per gallon, and hightailed it back to the trailer before the cops got us..... We're home.... We're good.... We're ready for some more adventure!
Then, around 9:30, or so, we headed off for Walmart to get some stuff for the refrigerator.... We've been by this store a few times now, and, each time we've looked at this beautiful mineature golf course, located at the entrance to Walmart, we've said it would be fun to go and play there one day.....
Well, today was the day....
We've done the Black Hills, and all we have left on our agenda is to take in the Old Down Town, and to play this course....
18 holes took us about an hour, and was well worth the $8 per person fee.... Take a look at my pictures at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/PIRATESCOVERAPIDCITYSD
After fun time comes shopping time, and, of course, we did some damage to the ol' cheking account in Walmart, but necessity is necessity.... Took off from there and headed a dozen blocks into down town, where we lucked out and got a parking spot right on Main Street.
Walked the whole street a couple of times, and stopped in to check out the "Prairie Edge" (Look it up : http://www.prairieedge.com/).... Fantastic store! All kinds of things, including a pound of Buffalo hamburger, which Luanne managed to make into KJØTTKAKER (meatballs for you who can't handle Norwegian), as soon as we got home.
We are now ready to eat those little critters, so I'm saying farewell, adios, and good bye for this time. Talk to you soon.
UPDATE!
So...... We decided to go and get gas for tomorrow's trip across the state before eating, and, sure enough, Luanne opinioned she'd like to check out the Historic Sawtooth Saloon, in the Piedmont Valley - a few miles back West.... And, as easily talked into things that I am, I scooted down the freeway, found the place, and parked in front.... Spent the next hour at a table for two, next to the old bar, built by a Swede in 1862..... Had a decent BLT sandwich and a few drinks, while Lu downed her quota of suds and ate eight hot chicken wings with celery..... She's a smokin' kind of gal that gal of mine!
Long story short.... Got the gas at a 4 cent discount ($2.48) per gallon, and hightailed it back to the trailer before the cops got us..... We're home.... We're good.... We're ready for some more adventure!
Sunday, July 19, 2009
CRAZY HORSE. BLACK HILLS, S.D.
Had a fantastic day today!
Got to spend some quality time with wife and Crazy Horse... What more can you ask?
In order to get to CrazyHorse we had to drive the same road (Hwy 244) we did yesterday up to Mt. Rushmore, where we stopped at the cutest little cafe/restaurant to have breakfast.... Big mistake! Waited over half an hour before getting a so-so plate of eggs and hashbrowns... People who were there before us actually walked out, and there was a lot of grumbling, but what the hey.... We're retired and had the whole day ahead of us.
After the "wonderful" meal, we continue about 11 miles, to Hwy. 385, where we hooked a left and drove a few more miles to the entrance of C.H. Memorial.... It's such beautiful country that you really don't mind driving here...
The place has changed drastically since we were here last..... There's a huge visitor's complex with galleries, museums, and restaurants, to name a few places to stick your head into, and most of the finished woodwork is done with bleached pine wood.... Very tastefully done.
Of course, the mountain is now in such a state that you can actually imagin it finished... Incredible dimensions (as you can see in the shot I took of the brochure) is the norm here... I mean, all the presidents' heads at Mt. Rushmore, can fit into Crazy Horse's hair!
We spent about 3 hours taking it all in.... Even took an old school bus tour (including a guide/driver) up to the foot of the mountain, where we had ten minutes to shoot all the pictures we could. Pretty awesome sight, which will be an incredible site when it gets done in about 40 years..... I'm glad I got to see it at this stage, and I highly recommend that everyone who travels these parts take the time to visit.
We took Hwys 385 and 44 back to Rapid City.... A drive as pretty as any of the ones we've travelled around here (or anywhere, for that matter)... Since this might be our last trip through here, I'm sad to say good bye, but there's another half continent to see, so I'm sure we'll survive the farewell.
And talking about farewells.... That's it for now.... Check out my pix at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/CRAZYHORSEBLACKHILLSSD#
and keep an eye open for more stuff from the Lummi Island Gypsies.
Got to spend some quality time with wife and Crazy Horse... What more can you ask?
In order to get to CrazyHorse we had to drive the same road (Hwy 244) we did yesterday up to Mt. Rushmore, where we stopped at the cutest little cafe/restaurant to have breakfast.... Big mistake! Waited over half an hour before getting a so-so plate of eggs and hashbrowns... People who were there before us actually walked out, and there was a lot of grumbling, but what the hey.... We're retired and had the whole day ahead of us.
After the "wonderful" meal, we continue about 11 miles, to Hwy. 385, where we hooked a left and drove a few more miles to the entrance of C.H. Memorial.... It's such beautiful country that you really don't mind driving here...
The place has changed drastically since we were here last..... There's a huge visitor's complex with galleries, museums, and restaurants, to name a few places to stick your head into, and most of the finished woodwork is done with bleached pine wood.... Very tastefully done.
Of course, the mountain is now in such a state that you can actually imagin it finished... Incredible dimensions (as you can see in the shot I took of the brochure) is the norm here... I mean, all the presidents' heads at Mt. Rushmore, can fit into Crazy Horse's hair!
We spent about 3 hours taking it all in.... Even took an old school bus tour (including a guide/driver) up to the foot of the mountain, where we had ten minutes to shoot all the pictures we could. Pretty awesome sight, which will be an incredible site when it gets done in about 40 years..... I'm glad I got to see it at this stage, and I highly recommend that everyone who travels these parts take the time to visit.
We took Hwys 385 and 44 back to Rapid City.... A drive as pretty as any of the ones we've travelled around here (or anywhere, for that matter)... Since this might be our last trip through here, I'm sad to say good bye, but there's another half continent to see, so I'm sure we'll survive the farewell.
And talking about farewells.... That's it for now.... Check out my pix at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/CRAZYHORSEBLACKHILLSSD#
and keep an eye open for more stuff from the Lummi Island Gypsies.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
MT. RUSHMORE and THE BLACK HILLS of SOUTH DAKOTA
Hey again........
We're back home (in the trailer) after a very nice day touring part of the Black Hills and Mt. Rushmore.
Had a late start, because uncle Olav, from Sandfjord, Norway, got on Skype, right after we got up this morning, and we had a lot to catch up on..... Haven't talked to him for ages, so it was nice to be able to talk and watch each other's faces at the same time.
Technology has come a long way since the old days when I made calls to Norway, and I had the long lagtime between speaking and hearing what the other person said.
Anyway, we drove the five or six miles down to Rapid City where we made a right hand turn, and headed up the hills.
As you can see from the pictures, this area is very pretty, with rolling hills covered with pine trees. We drove right by a place with all the Scandinavian flags flying high, before Luanne noticed it.... Of course, I immediately made a u-turn, and found a delightful older lady tending the most well stocked Scandinavian store I've seen outside Norway.
They even had Norwegian mayonnaise, goat cheese, "Idun" mustard, sauerkraut, and gravy-in-a-bag (all of which we bought several of for future gastronomical pleasures).
Of course there were the typical trolls, sweaters, puter ware, and souveniers.... Really cute place.... Take a look at the pictures on today's link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/MTRUSHMOREAndTHEBLACKHILLSOfSOUTHDAKOTA#
Drove through the little town of Keystone. Found a parking spot on the other side. Parked and hoofed it all the way down one side and and back on the other.... Pretty hot to do things like that, but well worth it.... Except, on the way back to the truck, I noticed my camera showed a low battery, and to top that off, we found a note on the windshield saying we owed $5.00 for parking.... Went and saw the attendant. Don't know how I did it, but I somehow talked him into forgetting the ticket.... Pretty good for a day's work, huh?
We debated whether to go and see Mt. Rushmore without a full battery, but decided to risk it, and lucky we did, because I shot well over 70 pictures, some of which (for one reason or another) I discarded after we got home... The end of the story is that you should be able to see fifty pix from our trip into the hills today....
We're heading back up tomorrow to take a close look at the monument to Cracy Horse.
I've seen it twice before, and each time it's more and more inspiring.... Can't wait to go!
More pictures coming tomorrow, so keep in touch.
We're back home (in the trailer) after a very nice day touring part of the Black Hills and Mt. Rushmore.
Had a late start, because uncle Olav, from Sandfjord, Norway, got on Skype, right after we got up this morning, and we had a lot to catch up on..... Haven't talked to him for ages, so it was nice to be able to talk and watch each other's faces at the same time.
Technology has come a long way since the old days when I made calls to Norway, and I had the long lagtime between speaking and hearing what the other person said.
Anyway, we drove the five or six miles down to Rapid City where we made a right hand turn, and headed up the hills.
As you can see from the pictures, this area is very pretty, with rolling hills covered with pine trees. We drove right by a place with all the Scandinavian flags flying high, before Luanne noticed it.... Of course, I immediately made a u-turn, and found a delightful older lady tending the most well stocked Scandinavian store I've seen outside Norway.
They even had Norwegian mayonnaise, goat cheese, "Idun" mustard, sauerkraut, and gravy-in-a-bag (all of which we bought several of for future gastronomical pleasures).
Of course there were the typical trolls, sweaters, puter ware, and souveniers.... Really cute place.... Take a look at the pictures on today's link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/MTRUSHMOREAndTHEBLACKHILLSOfSOUTHDAKOTA#
Drove through the little town of Keystone. Found a parking spot on the other side. Parked and hoofed it all the way down one side and and back on the other.... Pretty hot to do things like that, but well worth it.... Except, on the way back to the truck, I noticed my camera showed a low battery, and to top that off, we found a note on the windshield saying we owed $5.00 for parking.... Went and saw the attendant. Don't know how I did it, but I somehow talked him into forgetting the ticket.... Pretty good for a day's work, huh?
We debated whether to go and see Mt. Rushmore without a full battery, but decided to risk it, and lucky we did, because I shot well over 70 pictures, some of which (for one reason or another) I discarded after we got home... The end of the story is that you should be able to see fifty pix from our trip into the hills today....
We're heading back up tomorrow to take a close look at the monument to Cracy Horse.
I've seen it twice before, and each time it's more and more inspiring.... Can't wait to go!
More pictures coming tomorrow, so keep in touch.
Friday, July 17, 2009
STURGIS and DEADWOOD, SOUTH DAKOTA
Had a great day today, but it's getting late, and since I wrote comments on the pictures we took, I thought I'd skip a lengthy dissertation, and let you figure out what we did on your own....
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to send me a note, and I'll see if I feel like explaining whatever to you.
Enough said.... Enjoy the pictures at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/STURGISAndDEADWOODSOUTHDAKOTA#
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to send me a note, and I'll see if I feel like explaining whatever to you.
Enough said.... Enjoy the pictures at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/STURGISAndDEADWOODSOUTHDAKOTA#
Thursday, July 16, 2009
HARDIN, MT. to BLACK HAWK, S.D.
July 16, 2008.
Wow! What a night! I gave up counting after the seventh train blew through town, and I mean BLEW! Seems like there were an unending parade of them, and, needless to say, we didn't get much sleep in.
Anyway, we left our RV Park in Hardin at 8:00 this morning, and retraced our steps down I-90, to the Crow Agency (Little Bighorn), where we headed East on Hwy 212.
The road is two-lane, and pretty decent to drive, until you get to the Northern Cheyenne Reservation, where it's pretty bumpy, but nothing severe. The country side is beautiful the whole drive, with lots of pine trees and magnificent vistas where you can let your eyes and mind wander.....
Passed through Lame Deer at 9:00, and Broadus at 10:15, where we stopped for a break for a few minutes, and where Luanne decided to fix us a sandwich..... Nice break!
The undulating landscape covered with trees, soon gave way to just undulating landscape, and then to farmland.... We said adios to Montana, and hello to Wyoming, at 11:45. Hwy. 212 cuts a little triangular slice out of the NE corner of Wyoming, so we would've been in the State for only a few minutes hadn't it been for a half hour delay waiting for a pilot car to take us through a 9 mile stretch of construction. We made it through that all right, and hit I-90 at 1:15.... Scooted around Sturgis, where they're gearing up for the motorcycle ralley coming up in another week, or so.... Thousands of bikers are expected..... Should be noisy, I would think....
We arrived at Three Flags RV Park, in Black Hawk, at about 2:00..... Took a nice little nap for about an hour, then headed into Rapid City for a look-see, but found it (the city) huge, and decided to explore here another day.... We're staying put for five nights, so that should give us time to explore quite a bit of the surrounding country.... I'll write more as we go along, but I think we're going to be busy, so I might not be able (or want to) write every day.
We took a bunch of pictures on our way here today, but a bunch of them turned out blurry, so you get what you get...
The web address to the latest pix is:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/HARDINMTToBLACKHAWKSD#
Have a great day!
Wow! What a night! I gave up counting after the seventh train blew through town, and I mean BLEW! Seems like there were an unending parade of them, and, needless to say, we didn't get much sleep in.
Anyway, we left our RV Park in Hardin at 8:00 this morning, and retraced our steps down I-90, to the Crow Agency (Little Bighorn), where we headed East on Hwy 212.
The road is two-lane, and pretty decent to drive, until you get to the Northern Cheyenne Reservation, where it's pretty bumpy, but nothing severe. The country side is beautiful the whole drive, with lots of pine trees and magnificent vistas where you can let your eyes and mind wander.....
Passed through Lame Deer at 9:00, and Broadus at 10:15, where we stopped for a break for a few minutes, and where Luanne decided to fix us a sandwich..... Nice break!
The undulating landscape covered with trees, soon gave way to just undulating landscape, and then to farmland.... We said adios to Montana, and hello to Wyoming, at 11:45. Hwy. 212 cuts a little triangular slice out of the NE corner of Wyoming, so we would've been in the State for only a few minutes hadn't it been for a half hour delay waiting for a pilot car to take us through a 9 mile stretch of construction. We made it through that all right, and hit I-90 at 1:15.... Scooted around Sturgis, where they're gearing up for the motorcycle ralley coming up in another week, or so.... Thousands of bikers are expected..... Should be noisy, I would think....
We arrived at Three Flags RV Park, in Black Hawk, at about 2:00..... Took a nice little nap for about an hour, then headed into Rapid City for a look-see, but found it (the city) huge, and decided to explore here another day.... We're staying put for five nights, so that should give us time to explore quite a bit of the surrounding country.... I'll write more as we go along, but I think we're going to be busy, so I might not be able (or want to) write every day.
We took a bunch of pictures on our way here today, but a bunch of them turned out blurry, so you get what you get...
The web address to the latest pix is:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/HARDINMTToBLACKHAWKSD#
Have a great day!
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
CUSTER'S LAST STAND AT LITTLE BIG HORN, MT
OK, folks..... We've visited Little Bighorn Battlefield, and I, for one, absolutely enjoyed the experience.... I've actually been here twice before, but the first time was so long ago that I have hardly any recollection of it.... The second time (about nine years ago) it rained, and to top that off, wife and I were having a "tiff" at the time, so it wasn't all that memorable..... At least the skirmish thing, but I do remember the "tiff" so I guess I have my priorities in order, huh?
Anyhoo..... We trekked the battlefield from one end to the other.... About five miles, and both Luanne and I got a lot out of it this time.
Instead of paraphrasing history, I'm going to cheat and write what they said in the brochure:
"Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument memorializes one of the last armed efforts of the Northern Plaines Indians to preserve their ancestral way of life. Here in the valley of the Little Bighorn River on two hot June days in 1976, more than 260 soldiers and attached personnel of the U.S. Army met defeat and death at the hands of several thousand Lakota and Cheyenne warriors. Among the dead were Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and every member of his immediate command. Although the Indians won the battle, they subsequently lost the war against the military's efforts to end their independent nomadic life."
Now, with that all behind us, Luanne and I spent the better part of the day roaming around the "neighborhood," listening to Park Rangers' speaches, and totally emerging ourselves in what happened almost two hundred years ago.
That's it for today's history lesson, we'll be moving on to South Dakota tomorrow morning, to a place called Black Hawk, which isn't all that far from The Black Hills, where we will find the famous Mt. Rushmore monument of four presidents (can you name them?), and a few miles from there, we'll visit the "new" monument of a famous Indian (can you name him?)
Yep..... That'd be Crazy Horse.
So, until then, take care, and check back for more updates.
Here's the link to our latest pix.:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/CUSTERSLASTSTANDATLITTLEBIGHORNMT#
Anyhoo..... We trekked the battlefield from one end to the other.... About five miles, and both Luanne and I got a lot out of it this time.
Instead of paraphrasing history, I'm going to cheat and write what they said in the brochure:
"Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument memorializes one of the last armed efforts of the Northern Plaines Indians to preserve their ancestral way of life. Here in the valley of the Little Bighorn River on two hot June days in 1976, more than 260 soldiers and attached personnel of the U.S. Army met defeat and death at the hands of several thousand Lakota and Cheyenne warriors. Among the dead were Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and every member of his immediate command. Although the Indians won the battle, they subsequently lost the war against the military's efforts to end their independent nomadic life."
Now, with that all behind us, Luanne and I spent the better part of the day roaming around the "neighborhood," listening to Park Rangers' speaches, and totally emerging ourselves in what happened almost two hundred years ago.
That's it for today's history lesson, we'll be moving on to South Dakota tomorrow morning, to a place called Black Hawk, which isn't all that far from The Black Hills, where we will find the famous Mt. Rushmore monument of four presidents (can you name them?), and a few miles from there, we'll visit the "new" monument of a famous Indian (can you name him?)
Yep..... That'd be Crazy Horse.
So, until then, take care, and check back for more updates.
Here's the link to our latest pix.:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/CUSTERSLASTSTANDATLITTLEBIGHORNMT#
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
DEER LODGE TO HARDIN, MT.
We've been to this part of Montana quite a few times over the years, so we've seen and done most of the touristy things..... But, as you've seen on my Blog, and the pictures we've published so far, there are a ton of places left for that inavitable "next" time..... That's one of the reasons we're not dipping down into Wyoming to "catch" the Grand Canyon, or taking any side trips other than to revisit Custer's Last Stand, at Little Big Horn, which I didn't have a chance to enjoy the last time we were here, because of RAIN!
Anyway.....
What really gets you (when you travel at that comfortable 55 to 65 MPH) is the immenseness of this country, and, while sitting comfortably behind the wheel in your air-conditioned vehicle, your thoughts (at least mine) go to what Lewis and Clark actually had to endure on their trek to the Pacific.... It's almost unbelievable, to me.... Try to put yourself in their feet.... How would you like to "Hoof" it all the way from St. Louis, and back? I - personally - really doubt anybody living today could have equaled their feat, but I've been known to be wrong a time or two, so who am I to say?
Back to reality...
We knew we had some miles to tuck under our belt today, so we got up early, had the trailer "packed" away and left good ol' Indian Creek RV Park, in Deer Lodge, at 7:30.
Crossed the Continental Devide almost an hour later, and scooted through Bozeman at 9:45.
Stopped in Livingston to gas up, then followed the Yellowstone River to Billings, where we spent some time finding Costco, where we stocked up on some necessities.
Another 40 miles down I-90 got us to the small town of Hardin, where we had reservations at the Grand View RV Park.
We're only spending a couple of nights here, because, as I said, all I want to see is the Little Big Horn battlefield, and maybe "relive" Custer's Last Stand.
That's it for today folks....... Keep in touch, and check back for further developments...
Here's the Web links to my Web Albums:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/DEERLODGETOHARDINMT#
If you click on "My Photos" in front of the title DEER LODGE to HARDIN, MT. you should be able to see all my albums.
Anyway.....
What really gets you (when you travel at that comfortable 55 to 65 MPH) is the immenseness of this country, and, while sitting comfortably behind the wheel in your air-conditioned vehicle, your thoughts (at least mine) go to what Lewis and Clark actually had to endure on their trek to the Pacific.... It's almost unbelievable, to me.... Try to put yourself in their feet.... How would you like to "Hoof" it all the way from St. Louis, and back? I - personally - really doubt anybody living today could have equaled their feat, but I've been known to be wrong a time or two, so who am I to say?
Back to reality...
We knew we had some miles to tuck under our belt today, so we got up early, had the trailer "packed" away and left good ol' Indian Creek RV Park, in Deer Lodge, at 7:30.
Crossed the Continental Devide almost an hour later, and scooted through Bozeman at 9:45.
Stopped in Livingston to gas up, then followed the Yellowstone River to Billings, where we spent some time finding Costco, where we stocked up on some necessities.
Another 40 miles down I-90 got us to the small town of Hardin, where we had reservations at the Grand View RV Park.
We're only spending a couple of nights here, because, as I said, all I want to see is the Little Big Horn battlefield, and maybe "relive" Custer's Last Stand.
That's it for today folks....... Keep in touch, and check back for further developments...
Here's the Web links to my Web Albums:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/DEERLODGETOHARDINMT#
If you click on "My Photos" in front of the title DEER LODGE to HARDIN, MT. you should be able to see all my albums.
Monday, July 13, 2009
DEER LODGE, MONTANA
Hello to our Blog Followers:
Having said that, I wish you who haven't become followers yet would get on the ball and join "my crowd." There are four so far, so there is plenty of room for everyone.
So..... Here we are again from Deer Lodge, Montana, where I said earlier that I would take some time off from writing, but where the weather has been more in line with staying inside than roaming the country side.... Hence, I write.... And you get the benefit, or the burden (depending on your mood) of reading yet another installment....
I will make this short and sweet, because I've had so much time, during this rainy period, that I had time to comment on the pictures, which you can read on your own, and because we are leaving for a steak dinner at the Broken Arrow Grub and Brew.... So, enjoy.... Here's the link to our Picasa Web Album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/DEERLODGEMONTANA#
7:00pm: OK.... We just got back from the BROKEN ARROW STEAK HOUSE AND CASINO, and we've had the best drinks and the best steaks we've ever had! No kidding..... If you ever drive through here, stop and taste the fares! Highly recomended!
Having said that, I wish you who haven't become followers yet would get on the ball and join "my crowd." There are four so far, so there is plenty of room for everyone.
So..... Here we are again from Deer Lodge, Montana, where I said earlier that I would take some time off from writing, but where the weather has been more in line with staying inside than roaming the country side.... Hence, I write.... And you get the benefit, or the burden (depending on your mood) of reading yet another installment....
I will make this short and sweet, because I've had so much time, during this rainy period, that I had time to comment on the pictures, which you can read on your own, and because we are leaving for a steak dinner at the Broken Arrow Grub and Brew.... So, enjoy.... Here's the link to our Picasa Web Album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/DEERLODGEMONTANA#
7:00pm: OK.... We just got back from the BROKEN ARROW STEAK HOUSE AND CASINO, and we've had the best drinks and the best steaks we've ever had! No kidding..... If you ever drive through here, stop and taste the fares! Highly recomended!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
BUTTE, MONTANA
Just a few words to let you know that we took a short 40 mile trip (one way) from Deer Lodge to Butte today, just so we could take in the ambiance of the last day of the National Folk Festival..... It was worth the trip, and we lucked out and had nice weather the whole time we walked around the "Fairgrounds" (about half of Old Town that was blocked off from traffic).
We met the rain on our way out of town, so we were pretty lucky..... The clouds have gathered, and we have heavy rain from time to time, but I'm sure it'll turn nice over night.
I only took 22 pictures today, so Album 4 of our American Journey is pretty short.
Going to a working ranch right here in Deer Lodge tomorrow, and are planning to have a steak dinner at the local steak house after that.... I'll keep you up to date.
Here's the web address to the pictures:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/BUTTEMONTANA#
We met the rain on our way out of town, so we were pretty lucky..... The clouds have gathered, and we have heavy rain from time to time, but I'm sure it'll turn nice over night.
I only took 22 pictures today, so Album 4 of our American Journey is pretty short.
Going to a working ranch right here in Deer Lodge tomorrow, and are planning to have a steak dinner at the local steak house after that.... I'll keep you up to date.
Here's the web address to the pictures:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/BUTTEMONTANA#
Saturday, July 11, 2009
July 11, 2009 KALISPELL TO DEER LODGE
Had a very good night's sleep, and were in the process of closing down the computer when Gede and Terry (Lu's sis, etc.....Sorry, Ter.... you're the etc...) showed up on SKYPE....
Had a fun time chatting while looking at each other face to face...
That SKYPE is something else...... And it's free.....
So...... Enough advertisement already (as long as everyone got the point?)........
Here's for you who follow us on Google Earth:
We pulled out from Glacier Pines RV Park at 9:18, and headed East on Hwy 35 through Creston, then missed the turn-off at Bigfork, so we had to drive through town, which was no problem, since we got an up-close and personal look at the Northern side of Flathead Lake.
Of course, we missed the next two turn-offs as well, but finally ended up finding Hwy 209, which took us over to Hwy 83.
The highway took us along Swan Lake and through the town of the same name. The scenery is absolutely wonderful! (I'm uploading the pictures we took today onto my PICASA WEB ALBUMS, so have a peek)
Somewhere South of Condon (Lu made a little joke about the name, and, sure enough, a bit down the road, we saw a sign where someone had made the last N into an M.... Oh, what fun! She must be psychic?), we pulled off along the road for a pit stop (it's beyond words what it means to carry your own port-a-pottie?!), and a few bites of yogurt.....
OK.... We ride through the Swan River National Wildlife Refuge for a while, then follow the Swan River down between the Mission Mountains to the West, and the towering peaks of the Swan Rang mountains to the East, to the intersection of Montana Hwys 83 and 200.
Just as we approach the intersection, we get a call from my old buddy, Ben VanDeren, who's son owns a RV Park in Kalispell..... I tried to get hold of Ben a few days ago, to find out where that RV Park was located, but no answer, so I left a message, and, true to my luck (or lack thereof), he just got home to Washington, and hadn't had a chance to call me back... Short story long, he just left the place, and his son ownes the RV Park across from where we stayed! If we'd only known!
Anyway, we had a great "catch-up," and promised to keep in touch.
After our conversation, we headed East on Hwy 200 to Hwy 141, which we took to Avon, where we turned onto Hwy 12, at about 12:50.
Unfortunately, "Molly," (our GPS, whom I've had some minor problems with in the past), decided (a mere 4, or so, miles away from I-90) to take a short cut, and (having made up my mind to trust her this time) I hooked a sharp 180 degree left turn.....
As soon as I left asphalt for gravel, I knew something wasn't kosher, and it was confirmed by Lu yelling, "Oh, no! That bridge ain't wide enough!"
Following her gaze, I saw a sharp 90 degree turn, a small incline across a railroad track, and a tiny bridge across a tiny creek. "Oh, shucks, Hon, that's no problem!"
And it wasn't.... It gave us at least a foot of clearance on both sides, but the road........!!!!
No asphalt here! No, no.... It'd been newly gravelled, and not with the small stuff you see in most populated areas in Washington.... This stuff was heavy duty.... Probably got it from some river bottom somewhere.... And it was basically a one lane road, climbing up a pretty good hill, then down it, the whole time driving about 5 mph until we hit I-90, about 4.5 miles ahead!
The moral of this tale is: You should trust your instincts, and not rely entirely on modern marvles, such as Molly.
Arrived in Deer Lake at 1:25, and got the trailer situated, and then took a well deserved nap for about an hour, before heading out to explore the town.
Drove up and down Main Street (about a mile long). Decided to get a haircut, and looked for about half an hour before finding one of two barbers in town. She did a good job, and it cost only ten bucks......
After that we headed for the Broken Arrow Steak House, Bar and Casino, which, according to my new hair dresser, had the best steaks in all Montana.... We didn't quite make it to the restaurant, but we found the bar had fantastic hors d’oeuvre, great liquids, and we came away quite satisfied with a bill that resembled a tip in Washington!
That's it for tonight...... I might take a day or so off from my Blog to concentrate on exploring this area, but stay tuned, I'm almost certain there will be more updates.
Here's the link to my PICASA WEB ALBUM:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/KALISPELLToDEERLODGEMONTANA#
Had a fun time chatting while looking at each other face to face...
That SKYPE is something else...... And it's free.....
So...... Enough advertisement already (as long as everyone got the point?)........
Here's for you who follow us on Google Earth:
We pulled out from Glacier Pines RV Park at 9:18, and headed East on Hwy 35 through Creston, then missed the turn-off at Bigfork, so we had to drive through town, which was no problem, since we got an up-close and personal look at the Northern side of Flathead Lake.
Of course, we missed the next two turn-offs as well, but finally ended up finding Hwy 209, which took us over to Hwy 83.
The highway took us along Swan Lake and through the town of the same name. The scenery is absolutely wonderful! (I'm uploading the pictures we took today onto my PICASA WEB ALBUMS, so have a peek)
Somewhere South of Condon (Lu made a little joke about the name, and, sure enough, a bit down the road, we saw a sign where someone had made the last N into an M.... Oh, what fun! She must be psychic?), we pulled off along the road for a pit stop (it's beyond words what it means to carry your own port-a-pottie?!), and a few bites of yogurt.....
OK.... We ride through the Swan River National Wildlife Refuge for a while, then follow the Swan River down between the Mission Mountains to the West, and the towering peaks of the Swan Rang mountains to the East, to the intersection of Montana Hwys 83 and 200.
Just as we approach the intersection, we get a call from my old buddy, Ben VanDeren, who's son owns a RV Park in Kalispell..... I tried to get hold of Ben a few days ago, to find out where that RV Park was located, but no answer, so I left a message, and, true to my luck (or lack thereof), he just got home to Washington, and hadn't had a chance to call me back... Short story long, he just left the place, and his son ownes the RV Park across from where we stayed! If we'd only known!
Anyway, we had a great "catch-up," and promised to keep in touch.
After our conversation, we headed East on Hwy 200 to Hwy 141, which we took to Avon, where we turned onto Hwy 12, at about 12:50.
Unfortunately, "Molly," (our GPS, whom I've had some minor problems with in the past), decided (a mere 4, or so, miles away from I-90) to take a short cut, and (having made up my mind to trust her this time) I hooked a sharp 180 degree left turn.....
As soon as I left asphalt for gravel, I knew something wasn't kosher, and it was confirmed by Lu yelling, "Oh, no! That bridge ain't wide enough!"
Following her gaze, I saw a sharp 90 degree turn, a small incline across a railroad track, and a tiny bridge across a tiny creek. "Oh, shucks, Hon, that's no problem!"
And it wasn't.... It gave us at least a foot of clearance on both sides, but the road........!!!!
No asphalt here! No, no.... It'd been newly gravelled, and not with the small stuff you see in most populated areas in Washington.... This stuff was heavy duty.... Probably got it from some river bottom somewhere.... And it was basically a one lane road, climbing up a pretty good hill, then down it, the whole time driving about 5 mph until we hit I-90, about 4.5 miles ahead!
The moral of this tale is: You should trust your instincts, and not rely entirely on modern marvles, such as Molly.
Arrived in Deer Lake at 1:25, and got the trailer situated, and then took a well deserved nap for about an hour, before heading out to explore the town.
Drove up and down Main Street (about a mile long). Decided to get a haircut, and looked for about half an hour before finding one of two barbers in town. She did a good job, and it cost only ten bucks......
After that we headed for the Broken Arrow Steak House, Bar and Casino, which, according to my new hair dresser, had the best steaks in all Montana.... We didn't quite make it to the restaurant, but we found the bar had fantastic hors d’oeuvre, great liquids, and we came away quite satisfied with a bill that resembled a tip in Washington!
That's it for tonight...... I might take a day or so off from my Blog to concentrate on exploring this area, but stay tuned, I'm almost certain there will be more updates.
Here's the link to my PICASA WEB ALBUM:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/KALISPELLToDEERLODGEMONTANA#
Friday, July 10, 2009
GLACIER NATIONAL PARK
Sorry, but my vocabulary is horribly inadequate, and I'm pretty much bushed from a full day of sightseeing (yeah, yeah, yeah.... it's a tough job, but somebody's gotta do it), so, for this installment to my bolg I'm going to quote George Bird Grinnell, who said in 1901:
"No words can describe the grandeur and majesty of the mountains, and even photographs seem hoplessly to dwarf and belittle the most impressive peaks."
We are staying at the Glacier Pines RV Park, just outside Kalispell, Montana, and it's about a 35 mile ride up to Glacier National Park, where our journey really bagan today. From Lake McDonald Lodge we jumped on the Red Bus and spent about 6 1/2 hours riding the most scary roadway I've ever been on. It was most aptly named, GOING-TO-THE-SUN road, which peaked (pun intended) at Logan Pass, then snaked its way down the East side to Lake St. Mary, where we had lunch, and then returned to Lake McDonald the same way we came.
So that's it for today...... We're moving to Deer Lodge tomorrow, where we'll spend at least three nights..... Check us out when you have time.
Here is the Picasa Web site:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/GLACIERNATIONALPARK#
"No words can describe the grandeur and majesty of the mountains, and even photographs seem hoplessly to dwarf and belittle the most impressive peaks."
We are staying at the Glacier Pines RV Park, just outside Kalispell, Montana, and it's about a 35 mile ride up to Glacier National Park, where our journey really bagan today. From Lake McDonald Lodge we jumped on the Red Bus and spent about 6 1/2 hours riding the most scary roadway I've ever been on. It was most aptly named, GOING-TO-THE-SUN road, which peaked (pun intended) at Logan Pass, then snaked its way down the East side to Lake St. Mary, where we had lunch, and then returned to Lake McDonald the same way we came.
So that's it for today...... We're moving to Deer Lodge tomorrow, where we'll spend at least three nights..... Check us out when you have time.
Here is the Picasa Web site:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/GLACIERNATIONALPARK#
Thursday, July 9, 2009
PICASA
Don't know what I'm doing, so don't know if this'll work, but I've uploaded my pictures to a Picasa Web Album, and if you try this site: http://picasaweb.google.com/Kjell.and.Luanne/KjellAndLuanneSTravelBlog?authkey=Gv1sRgCJawgf_iw9LsHw
maybe you'll see the pictures... Let me know.
maybe you'll see the pictures... Let me know.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
MOVING ON (Jul 6, 7 and 8)
As I said earlier, my run on unfortunate coincidences (sounds better than bad luck) continued today, Jul. 6: I broke my eye glasses by sitting on them while trying to hook up our DVD/VCR player to the TV, and, needless to say, promptly got roasted by wife number one. OK, so it was a stupid thing to lay them on the chair, but accidents happen, right?
Thankfully, I didn’t break the lenses, but I did break the screws of both stems, right where they connect to the glass, leaving two nubs on each stem and the rest of the screws firmly imbedded in the glass.
Being that these particular glasses never were intended as monocles, you might say they weren’t of much use, but I comforted myself (and my first wife) that there surely must be an optometrist in town who could fix them the next morning.
So, yesterday morning, we (first wife and I) gathered the remnants of my eyewear, and headed into see if some miracle could be performed…. We got the name (Looking Glass) and address from the RV park, and drove the two minutes into town, parked on Main Street, right in front of a building that proudly stated, on a prominent sign high on the wall, that we had landed at the Looking Glass Building.
Gently pushed open the door, and found ourselves in a corridor of one of those small, long and narrow mini-malls….. Six or eight doors lead to different businesses, but as we headed into the abyss, we couldn’t find any that said “optometrist” on them, so we quietly retreated, and there, on the very first door we had passed (and missed in our excitement), it said ”Doctor so-and-so.,” We were greeted by a happy, “How may I help you?”
I took about a minute explaining how I had happened to reap the wrath of the woman I love, and, as proof of my innocence and dire situation, I laid the evidence on the counter for all to see…
“Oh, honey,” she said, “this here’s a dental office, and I’m sorry to say, but there’s not much we can do for you.”
Quick witted as I am, I retorted, “ How ‘bout some dental floss to bind them together?”
We got out of there with the right directions, and soon walked into a huge office with eye glasses occupying every surface that we could see…. Again, I laid out my predicament, only to be told that the lady optometrist was on vacation, and there was nothing they could do to help me…. She did tell us that there was a new optometrist in town, but didn’t know exactly where he was located, but gave us nonetheless a general direction…. We hopped into the truck, and soon found ourselves in that general area….. But no signs! Stopped at a gas station, where Luanne ran in to find out if anybody knew where we were headed….. She came back really flustered, muttering something I have to sensor about Mexicans and the American language.
We drove around in circles for a while, then hit a real estate office, where we finally hit pay dirt…. The new optometrist was on the back side of this very building!
We ran around and busted open the door, crying with glee, “We found you! We found you!” The lady present put down her shotgun and asked what we thought we were doing, scaring the heck out of her like that.
So, long story short (you‘re ahead of me on this one, aren‘t you?), the doctor’s main office was in the next town back West, Orofino, and he wouldn’t be in until 3:30pm.
We slinked out to the truck saying we’d be back, but then I had an epiphany:
We could drive the mere 22 miles (one way), and probably get these glasses fixed a lot earlier. We programmed our steady companion, Molly, (oh, yeah, our GPS has a name) the new address, and we were on our way. No problem!
I think I eluded to this before, but it bears repeating: The drive through Clearwater Canyon is one of the most scenic drives we’ve ever been on, but it so happened that when we arrived last Sunday, there were no roadwork and one lane construction going on, so, today took at least twice as long, but what the heck, we’re retired and enjoying all kinds of sightseeing.
You guessed it, the trip was a total waste (except for the sightseeing, which was definitely worth it, except for the blurry part). They wouldn’t touch my glasses with a ten foot pole; said it would probably take an optometric lab to get them back to normal, so that was it…
That could’ve been the end of my eyewear saga, but, fortunately, this thing has a happy ending.
We stopped at True Value hardware store, back in Kamiah, and purchased some high tech paraphernalia, then went to THE HUB (the local tavern/restaurant) for a drink and some grub before heading back to the trailer, where we unpacked the high tech, laid my glasses on the kitchen table, got a couple of Luanne’s domestic tools out, and proceeded to superglue the stems to their respective lenses, held in one spot with clothespins…. How cagy is that? This morning my glasses were as good as new, my world is once more clear and in focus, and the thing is, you would never even notice anything amiss unless you knew what had happened……
What did I tell you? Happy ending!
So that gets us to today…
Luanne smiled at me, all bright eyes and bushy-tailed, at 6:30 this morning, July 8. All rearing to go. Which we did at 7:30.
AT 8:15 we arrived at the confluence of the Clearwater and the Lochsa rivers, and said our fond farewells to the Clearwater, as we head East toward Lolo Pass.
The road we’ve traveled throughout this whole canyon, from Lewiston and almost to Lolo Pass, is so gradual (in it’s rise of elevation) that if you didn’t see the rapids on the rivers, you’d swear you were driving on flat terrain, and the scenery! The scenery is more and more breathtaking at every turn. I really don’t have the time or space to describe these places as they should be honored, so please go on line and look them up, it’s well worth it, and, maybe it will entice you to take this trip some day.
We stopped at an idyllic turnout called Fish Creek, at 9:00, where Luanne fixed us a fantastic breakfast, which enhanced everything our senses experienced by the surrounding country. We are so lucky to be able to do this!
At 10:30, we pulled up to the Lolo Pass Visitor’s Center, where we spent quite some time studying the journey of Lewis and Clark, as well as the history and traditions of the local Indian tribes…. Really fascinating stuff!
I’m getting a bit tired of all this writing, so let me finish, by saying that we arrived at Jellystone RV Park, just West of Missoula, Montana, at about 2:00pm.
We’re staying here for only one night, since I want to get up to Kalispell, and Glacier Park tomorrow…. Good night and check back soon…. I’ll try to keep it up!
Thankfully, I didn’t break the lenses, but I did break the screws of both stems, right where they connect to the glass, leaving two nubs on each stem and the rest of the screws firmly imbedded in the glass.
Being that these particular glasses never were intended as monocles, you might say they weren’t of much use, but I comforted myself (and my first wife) that there surely must be an optometrist in town who could fix them the next morning.
So, yesterday morning, we (first wife and I) gathered the remnants of my eyewear, and headed into see if some miracle could be performed…. We got the name (Looking Glass) and address from the RV park, and drove the two minutes into town, parked on Main Street, right in front of a building that proudly stated, on a prominent sign high on the wall, that we had landed at the Looking Glass Building.
Gently pushed open the door, and found ourselves in a corridor of one of those small, long and narrow mini-malls….. Six or eight doors lead to different businesses, but as we headed into the abyss, we couldn’t find any that said “optometrist” on them, so we quietly retreated, and there, on the very first door we had passed (and missed in our excitement), it said ”Doctor so-and-so.,” We were greeted by a happy, “How may I help you?”
I took about a minute explaining how I had happened to reap the wrath of the woman I love, and, as proof of my innocence and dire situation, I laid the evidence on the counter for all to see…
“Oh, honey,” she said, “this here’s a dental office, and I’m sorry to say, but there’s not much we can do for you.”
Quick witted as I am, I retorted, “ How ‘bout some dental floss to bind them together?”
We got out of there with the right directions, and soon walked into a huge office with eye glasses occupying every surface that we could see…. Again, I laid out my predicament, only to be told that the lady optometrist was on vacation, and there was nothing they could do to help me…. She did tell us that there was a new optometrist in town, but didn’t know exactly where he was located, but gave us nonetheless a general direction…. We hopped into the truck, and soon found ourselves in that general area….. But no signs! Stopped at a gas station, where Luanne ran in to find out if anybody knew where we were headed….. She came back really flustered, muttering something I have to sensor about Mexicans and the American language.
We drove around in circles for a while, then hit a real estate office, where we finally hit pay dirt…. The new optometrist was on the back side of this very building!
We ran around and busted open the door, crying with glee, “We found you! We found you!” The lady present put down her shotgun and asked what we thought we were doing, scaring the heck out of her like that.
So, long story short (you‘re ahead of me on this one, aren‘t you?), the doctor’s main office was in the next town back West, Orofino, and he wouldn’t be in until 3:30pm.
We slinked out to the truck saying we’d be back, but then I had an epiphany:
We could drive the mere 22 miles (one way), and probably get these glasses fixed a lot earlier. We programmed our steady companion, Molly, (oh, yeah, our GPS has a name) the new address, and we were on our way. No problem!
I think I eluded to this before, but it bears repeating: The drive through Clearwater Canyon is one of the most scenic drives we’ve ever been on, but it so happened that when we arrived last Sunday, there were no roadwork and one lane construction going on, so, today took at least twice as long, but what the heck, we’re retired and enjoying all kinds of sightseeing.
You guessed it, the trip was a total waste (except for the sightseeing, which was definitely worth it, except for the blurry part). They wouldn’t touch my glasses with a ten foot pole; said it would probably take an optometric lab to get them back to normal, so that was it…
That could’ve been the end of my eyewear saga, but, fortunately, this thing has a happy ending.
We stopped at True Value hardware store, back in Kamiah, and purchased some high tech paraphernalia, then went to THE HUB (the local tavern/restaurant) for a drink and some grub before heading back to the trailer, where we unpacked the high tech, laid my glasses on the kitchen table, got a couple of Luanne’s domestic tools out, and proceeded to superglue the stems to their respective lenses, held in one spot with clothespins…. How cagy is that? This morning my glasses were as good as new, my world is once more clear and in focus, and the thing is, you would never even notice anything amiss unless you knew what had happened……
What did I tell you? Happy ending!
So that gets us to today…
Luanne smiled at me, all bright eyes and bushy-tailed, at 6:30 this morning, July 8. All rearing to go. Which we did at 7:30.
AT 8:15 we arrived at the confluence of the Clearwater and the Lochsa rivers, and said our fond farewells to the Clearwater, as we head East toward Lolo Pass.
The road we’ve traveled throughout this whole canyon, from Lewiston and almost to Lolo Pass, is so gradual (in it’s rise of elevation) that if you didn’t see the rapids on the rivers, you’d swear you were driving on flat terrain, and the scenery! The scenery is more and more breathtaking at every turn. I really don’t have the time or space to describe these places as they should be honored, so please go on line and look them up, it’s well worth it, and, maybe it will entice you to take this trip some day.
We stopped at an idyllic turnout called Fish Creek, at 9:00, where Luanne fixed us a fantastic breakfast, which enhanced everything our senses experienced by the surrounding country. We are so lucky to be able to do this!
At 10:30, we pulled up to the Lolo Pass Visitor’s Center, where we spent quite some time studying the journey of Lewis and Clark, as well as the history and traditions of the local Indian tribes…. Really fascinating stuff!
I’m getting a bit tired of all this writing, so let me finish, by saying that we arrived at Jellystone RV Park, just West of Missoula, Montana, at about 2:00pm.
We’re staying here for only one night, since I want to get up to Kalispell, and Glacier Park tomorrow…. Good night and check back soon…. I’ll try to keep it up!
Monday, July 6, 2009
PICTURES
It must've been dumb luck the last time I uploaded pictures to this blog, 'cause I didn't have any problems, but I have now tried to upload three times in two days, and I can't seem to get things right....... Wow... wait! Lokkie there.... I spoke too soon...... Now let me see if I can add another....This here, by the way, is Cresent Bar RV Resort.... If you look hard, you can barely see Luanne sitting in the shade....
I've waited almost half an hour now, so I'm giving up for tonight.... Actually, what I'll do is install the PICASA Web Album, and maybe that'll help me???
By the way, we had a thunderstorm rage through here last night (first rain in a good while), but everything was basically dry when we piled out of bed this morning, and today we had a great day exploring the Kamiah Valley..... Very picturesque! It would have been a perfect day if I hadn't sat on my glasses when I was trying to figure out how to hook up the DVD to the TV...
Oh, well, they do have an optomerist here, so I'll be OK.
From the bad to the good...... I also have to mention that I was able to hook up with Stein and Tina on Skype today, so that was pretty great....
Sorry...... That's all for now, folks....... I can barely see what I'm writing, let alone what I'm thinking..... So, good night...... Catch you later.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
JULY 4 and 5, 2009
Hello Blog Followers, and a Happy Belated Fourth of July to you all!
We spent our last day at Crescent Bar (Fourth of July) going on an hour-long walk in the morning - up and down the dreaded hill I’ve been fretting ever since I got here. It’s pretty steep, and we could smell the breaks on our way down (when we first arrived), so, for some insecure reason, I had been wondering if my truck would have troubles getting back up… But more about that later…
It was a sizzling day right from the start: 100 degrees at 10:00, and who knows what fried after it got really hot…. Luanne and I spent quite a bit of it indoors… We did manage to squeeze in an Ice Cream Social at the Club House (which is located on a small cliff above the river), a walk down to the beach, and we took the truck into “town” (which basically consists of a couple of stores and a tavern).
The yearly 4th of July parade was finishing up as we arrived, and the mad dash of the participants to get away from the sun, left us with a wonderful parking spot very close to the loaf of bread we came to “town” to purchase…. Lucky us!
We went back to the Club House in the evening to find the surrounding lawn and open areas completely “booked” up… I’d be surprised if less than 90% of all the people in the RV Park were hanging out in lawn chairs and chaise lounges along the cliff, all of which faced the river and town….. Time for fire works, which, to no-one’s surprise, started late… Around 10:20.… To call it a blazing success would probably be going too far, but there were the occasional oohs and aahs from the toddler section, whom obviously were up way past their bedtime.
So that brings us to this morning…
As I said earlier, I had butterflies as we prepared the rig for take-off…. That hill is not only steep, but also very winding… To make matters worse, the sharpest turn also happens to be the steepest section, and, of course, my visions of us stalling in the middle somewhere, and not being able to either go forward or back, had me in a bit of a tizzy…..
Well, I have good tidings: My confidence returned half way up, and I boasted to Luanne that she shouldn’t have worried: “See that, Big Boy (truck) had no problem biting into that hill. Heck, he didn’t even breath hard!”
There never was any doubt in my mind!
We scooted through Quincy and headed straight down Highway 281 to George, where we filled up Big Boy’s trough. We then meandered through agricultural country second to none… Wow! The fields upon fields of wheat, Alfa Alfa, and what-have-you, stretched from horizon to horizon, only to be replaced here and there by vineyards, and fruit orchards of every kind… Truly magnificent farm country!
Passed through Othello just after 9am, and kept on Route 26 to the pretty little town of Washtucna, where we intercepted Hwy 261, which then took us through the metropolis of Starbuck (Mr. Coffee‘s cousin?) and on to Scenic Highway 12, which we then followed all the way to here: Lewis and Clark Resort, a mile East of Kamiah, or (if you can’t find Kamiah), about 70 miles East of Lewiston, Idaho. After the flat terrain of the Wheat Country (as I like to call it), Highway 12 is truly scenic, but also very hilly with a lot of turns, so it pays to be vigilant.
The town of Clarkston has a Main Street lined with shade trees along both sides, so it’s almost like driving through a tunnel… Very quaint, and, I’m pleased to say, well protected from the summer sun, as we crawl through at a steady 10 mph, just after High Noon.
Washington State is behind us as we cross the Snake River and head into Lewiston, Idaho, which is also left behind in short order, as we follow the Clearwater River up through the canyon bearing it’s name…. Another WOW! This stretch, between Lewiston and Kamiah, is breathtaking, and I would love to do some more exploring here. After all, this is the less known route Lewis and Clark took on their way home from the Coast… We’ll see what happens……
We pulled into the Lewis and Clark Resort at 1:56pm, and was in the pool shortly thereafter……
And that’s where this part of the saga ends….
So long from the Blog….
Fair weather and tail winds to all our friends and relatives.
We spent our last day at Crescent Bar (Fourth of July) going on an hour-long walk in the morning - up and down the dreaded hill I’ve been fretting ever since I got here. It’s pretty steep, and we could smell the breaks on our way down (when we first arrived), so, for some insecure reason, I had been wondering if my truck would have troubles getting back up… But more about that later…
It was a sizzling day right from the start: 100 degrees at 10:00, and who knows what fried after it got really hot…. Luanne and I spent quite a bit of it indoors… We did manage to squeeze in an Ice Cream Social at the Club House (which is located on a small cliff above the river), a walk down to the beach, and we took the truck into “town” (which basically consists of a couple of stores and a tavern).
The yearly 4th of July parade was finishing up as we arrived, and the mad dash of the participants to get away from the sun, left us with a wonderful parking spot very close to the loaf of bread we came to “town” to purchase…. Lucky us!
We went back to the Club House in the evening to find the surrounding lawn and open areas completely “booked” up… I’d be surprised if less than 90% of all the people in the RV Park were hanging out in lawn chairs and chaise lounges along the cliff, all of which faced the river and town….. Time for fire works, which, to no-one’s surprise, started late… Around 10:20.… To call it a blazing success would probably be going too far, but there were the occasional oohs and aahs from the toddler section, whom obviously were up way past their bedtime.
So that brings us to this morning…
As I said earlier, I had butterflies as we prepared the rig for take-off…. That hill is not only steep, but also very winding… To make matters worse, the sharpest turn also happens to be the steepest section, and, of course, my visions of us stalling in the middle somewhere, and not being able to either go forward or back, had me in a bit of a tizzy…..
Well, I have good tidings: My confidence returned half way up, and I boasted to Luanne that she shouldn’t have worried: “See that, Big Boy (truck) had no problem biting into that hill. Heck, he didn’t even breath hard!”
There never was any doubt in my mind!
We scooted through Quincy and headed straight down Highway 281 to George, where we filled up Big Boy’s trough. We then meandered through agricultural country second to none… Wow! The fields upon fields of wheat, Alfa Alfa, and what-have-you, stretched from horizon to horizon, only to be replaced here and there by vineyards, and fruit orchards of every kind… Truly magnificent farm country!
Passed through Othello just after 9am, and kept on Route 26 to the pretty little town of Washtucna, where we intercepted Hwy 261, which then took us through the metropolis of Starbuck (Mr. Coffee‘s cousin?) and on to Scenic Highway 12, which we then followed all the way to here: Lewis and Clark Resort, a mile East of Kamiah, or (if you can’t find Kamiah), about 70 miles East of Lewiston, Idaho. After the flat terrain of the Wheat Country (as I like to call it), Highway 12 is truly scenic, but also very hilly with a lot of turns, so it pays to be vigilant.
The town of Clarkston has a Main Street lined with shade trees along both sides, so it’s almost like driving through a tunnel… Very quaint, and, I’m pleased to say, well protected from the summer sun, as we crawl through at a steady 10 mph, just after High Noon.
Washington State is behind us as we cross the Snake River and head into Lewiston, Idaho, which is also left behind in short order, as we follow the Clearwater River up through the canyon bearing it’s name…. Another WOW! This stretch, between Lewiston and Kamiah, is breathtaking, and I would love to do some more exploring here. After all, this is the less known route Lewis and Clark took on their way home from the Coast… We’ll see what happens……
We pulled into the Lewis and Clark Resort at 1:56pm, and was in the pool shortly thereafter……
And that’s where this part of the saga ends….
So long from the Blog….
Fair weather and tail winds to all our friends and relatives.
Friday, July 3, 2009
LEAVING
Once again, Greetings from The travel Blog...
All hooked up and ready to go...
Mt. Baker was out to bid us Good Bye
Here are a few pictures from our departure from home...
All hooked up and ready to go...
Mt. Baker was out to bid us Good Bye
Easy sailing........
We have now spent aboout three days at Cresent Bar Resort, on the Columbia River, about ten miles West of Quincy, WA.
The weather has been sweltering (for us who aren't used to above 90 degree days), but thankfully, the nights cool down, and we've had no trouble sleeping.
My days (well, mornings, actually), so far, has been used to upgrade our plumbing system, or more precisely, replace some the old faucets for the bathroom sink and shower/tub, and, as usual, things have a way of taking twice as long as they should, only because the jobs has my name on them... Oh, well, I got things done, and Luanne and I actually had time to go for a long hike this morning before the sun got too high.
Also, after a long deliberation, we decided to buy another cell phone (since our T-Mobile doesn't seem to have any coverage down here by the water, and we really need to keep in touch with friends and relatives), so we trucked (literally) up to Wenatchee, about twenty some miles from here, and found our favorite stores: Costco, and Wallyworld (Walmart),
where we purchased the necessities....
It took me most of the evening to program the new cell phone, we had a super dinner, and now it's time to say good night........ Gotta rest up for tomorrow's Fourth of July Celebrations.
Auf Wiedersehn, etc...
Thursday, July 2, 2009
RECAP
OK……. For you who haven’t gotten my little missives, either by email or through some other kind of communication, I’d like to backtrack and get you up to speed…
First, about ten days before we were supposed to leave, we called Qwest to cancel our home phone and internet service, affective June 30.
We then contacted Verizon and order a new MiFi2200 router (or hub, if you will), so we could have internet service on the road.
Should be pretty easy, right? Wrong!
In a nut shell: I spent eight or nine hours on the phone with Qwest and Verizon (over a period of about three days) in order to straighten all this out.
Very frustrating, to say the least.
What happened? Well, Qwest gave our home phone number to Verizon (which they shouldn‘t have, since we should have had service through June 30); and because of that, Verizon couldn’t give us internet service (because the router and the MiFi couldn’t have the same number), and, to top it all off, our phone was cut off to all incoming calls… We could call out, but no-one could call us!
Nice, huh?
Are you with me so far? Good!
OK, it would’ve been cool if the trouble stopped there, but lo and behold, when I got my MiFi from Verizon, it didn’t work…. They sent me another (next day service, thank you! - which I had to pay for, of course!), which didn’t work either…. The Verizon tech finally gave up…. Told me to get hold of H.P. (my computer maker), to see if there was anything they could do…
Oh yeah, we’re having fun now!
Fortunately, Luanne happens to be acquainted with a computer tech, who also happens to live on the island, and, as a last effort, I contacted him last Saturday morning….. He spent about three hours not being able to do much of anything to remedy the MiFi problem, but we thought we had gotten to the point where Luanne and I could live with it, so we paid him 2/3 of his $90/hr rate, and went to town…….
Got home that evening, and booted the computer up….
Son-of-a-gun! Nothing worked!
Got Mr. Computer Wiz up, and back to the crime scene, the very next morning, where he spent a couple of hours (and another $75 of his valuable time) on the conundrum… Money well spent this time, because everything worked when he left!
Take a deep breath……..
So… Monday (June 29), with all the tech stuff behind us, we pack the last few items into the truck and trailer, turn off the lights and water at the house, say farewell to the neighbors, the caretaker, and the Rock, and set sail for the mainland on the 8 o’clock ferry.
We spend the night at The Skagit Casino, where RV parking is in the Back Forties… However, a shuttle comes on demand (just use the phone at the bus stop).
Luanne is not having a nice night…. She worries about whether she turned off the gas at the range, so, Tuesday, after dropping our rig off at Camping World (we have a 3:00pm appointment), we head back to the Rock where we make sure the gas is off (which it was), and pick up a couple of things we could have done without, but since we’re here, we might as well take them along.
Back to Camping World, where we use our waiting time to purchase things we surely could do without, but also have a nice surprise visit from daughter, Anne, and our three adorable grandkids, Hunter, Morgan, and little Holly…
What a treat!
Camping World tried to rip me off!
When I took the trailer in for major overhaul In April, I also had a DirecTV satellite installed…. Since we don’t have satellite coverage on The Rock, we asked to have the “hook up” demonstration done for us today….
The tech was very helpful, and spent about 15 minutes showing us the ins and outs of cyberspace.
At the end of it all, I was presented with a bill of about $60.
I’m usually quite mellow, but to me this was a rotten deal, and I blew some steam… I turned around to the next customer in line, and said as loud as I could, “How can they possibly sell me all this stuff and not have the instructions included?” He said that if it had been him, he would’ve had three guys lined up to yell at!
I asked to see the boss, but the “counter” man got on the phone, and within seconds, he presented me with a receipt that said I owed nothing. Good for Camping World!
Onward to Tulalip Casino Resort, where we were to meet up with Terry and Linda, more generally known as “Gede” (a toddler thing between sisters).
We got there about half an hour before they did, and found lots of room in their ample RV parking lot….
However, when I tried the slide-out, it wouldn’t budge more than a couple of inches at the bottom, and not at all at the top….. I tried every idea my lovely wife tossed at me, and some of my own… Even got the generator out, in case the “juice” from the car and batteries weren’t enough, but to no avail….
In the midst of all this, T and G came, and in between the hugs and kisses I managed to lock the car keys in the truck….
Oh yeah, this is a fun way to start your vacation of a lifetime.
But things finally turn out great…….
The guy next RV came over, and with him, Terry, and me doing our thing, we managed to get the slide-out freed (the new rubber molding somehow got stuck), and I remembered that I had a “hid-a-key” for the truck….
Time for drinks and food (in that order), which we totally emerged ourselves in at the casino’s fine restaurant…
July 1, 2009
Left the Tulalip Casino at 7:50am, and was at Snoqualmie Summit at 9:35.
Stopped at Cle Elum to fill up the tank at the local Safeway store, and get some coffee for ourselves.
At noon we approached the little farm town of Quincy and a half hour later we pulled into our first RV Resort of this trip, the Crescent Bar Resort, a stone’s throw from the Mighty Columbia River.
That’s it for now…… Fair weather and tail winds to all our friends and family, who follow us as we blunder our way across this great land.
First, about ten days before we were supposed to leave, we called Qwest to cancel our home phone and internet service, affective June 30.
We then contacted Verizon and order a new MiFi2200 router (or hub, if you will), so we could have internet service on the road.
Should be pretty easy, right? Wrong!
In a nut shell: I spent eight or nine hours on the phone with Qwest and Verizon (over a period of about three days) in order to straighten all this out.
Very frustrating, to say the least.
What happened? Well, Qwest gave our home phone number to Verizon (which they shouldn‘t have, since we should have had service through June 30); and because of that, Verizon couldn’t give us internet service (because the router and the MiFi couldn’t have the same number), and, to top it all off, our phone was cut off to all incoming calls… We could call out, but no-one could call us!
Nice, huh?
Are you with me so far? Good!
OK, it would’ve been cool if the trouble stopped there, but lo and behold, when I got my MiFi from Verizon, it didn’t work…. They sent me another (next day service, thank you! - which I had to pay for, of course!), which didn’t work either…. The Verizon tech finally gave up…. Told me to get hold of H.P. (my computer maker), to see if there was anything they could do…
Oh yeah, we’re having fun now!
Fortunately, Luanne happens to be acquainted with a computer tech, who also happens to live on the island, and, as a last effort, I contacted him last Saturday morning….. He spent about three hours not being able to do much of anything to remedy the MiFi problem, but we thought we had gotten to the point where Luanne and I could live with it, so we paid him 2/3 of his $90/hr rate, and went to town…….
Got home that evening, and booted the computer up….
Son-of-a-gun! Nothing worked!
Got Mr. Computer Wiz up, and back to the crime scene, the very next morning, where he spent a couple of hours (and another $75 of his valuable time) on the conundrum… Money well spent this time, because everything worked when he left!
Take a deep breath……..
So… Monday (June 29), with all the tech stuff behind us, we pack the last few items into the truck and trailer, turn off the lights and water at the house, say farewell to the neighbors, the caretaker, and the Rock, and set sail for the mainland on the 8 o’clock ferry.
We spend the night at The Skagit Casino, where RV parking is in the Back Forties… However, a shuttle comes on demand (just use the phone at the bus stop).
Luanne is not having a nice night…. She worries about whether she turned off the gas at the range, so, Tuesday, after dropping our rig off at Camping World (we have a 3:00pm appointment), we head back to the Rock where we make sure the gas is off (which it was), and pick up a couple of things we could have done without, but since we’re here, we might as well take them along.
Back to Camping World, where we use our waiting time to purchase things we surely could do without, but also have a nice surprise visit from daughter, Anne, and our three adorable grandkids, Hunter, Morgan, and little Holly…
What a treat!
Camping World tried to rip me off!
When I took the trailer in for major overhaul In April, I also had a DirecTV satellite installed…. Since we don’t have satellite coverage on The Rock, we asked to have the “hook up” demonstration done for us today….
The tech was very helpful, and spent about 15 minutes showing us the ins and outs of cyberspace.
At the end of it all, I was presented with a bill of about $60.
I’m usually quite mellow, but to me this was a rotten deal, and I blew some steam… I turned around to the next customer in line, and said as loud as I could, “How can they possibly sell me all this stuff and not have the instructions included?” He said that if it had been him, he would’ve had three guys lined up to yell at!
I asked to see the boss, but the “counter” man got on the phone, and within seconds, he presented me with a receipt that said I owed nothing. Good for Camping World!
Onward to Tulalip Casino Resort, where we were to meet up with Terry and Linda, more generally known as “Gede” (a toddler thing between sisters).
We got there about half an hour before they did, and found lots of room in their ample RV parking lot….
However, when I tried the slide-out, it wouldn’t budge more than a couple of inches at the bottom, and not at all at the top….. I tried every idea my lovely wife tossed at me, and some of my own… Even got the generator out, in case the “juice” from the car and batteries weren’t enough, but to no avail….
In the midst of all this, T and G came, and in between the hugs and kisses I managed to lock the car keys in the truck….
Oh yeah, this is a fun way to start your vacation of a lifetime.
But things finally turn out great…….
The guy next RV came over, and with him, Terry, and me doing our thing, we managed to get the slide-out freed (the new rubber molding somehow got stuck), and I remembered that I had a “hid-a-key” for the truck….
Time for drinks and food (in that order), which we totally emerged ourselves in at the casino’s fine restaurant…
July 1, 2009
Left the Tulalip Casino at 7:50am, and was at Snoqualmie Summit at 9:35.
Stopped at Cle Elum to fill up the tank at the local Safeway store, and get some coffee for ourselves.
At noon we approached the little farm town of Quincy and a half hour later we pulled into our first RV Resort of this trip, the Crescent Bar Resort, a stone’s throw from the Mighty Columbia River.
That’s it for now…… Fair weather and tail winds to all our friends and family, who follow us as we blunder our way across this great land.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Finally on the way...
Hey everyone,
We made it to Cresent Bar Resort, on the Columbia River, near Quincy, WA. Unfortunately, it's been a bit of a hazzle getting here, but I'll have to tell you more about that later......... Nothing serious, so don't worry....... I just wanted to let everyone know that we're here, and we're safe, and are looking forward to four hazy, lazy, crazy days of summer here in the heat...... I'm sure we hit 100 degrees Fahrenheit today, so life's a bit sticky.
Anyway, let me regroup and get my stuff together, and get back to you in a day or two....
Until then, have a great time, enjoy life, and check back on our progress.....
We made it to Cresent Bar Resort, on the Columbia River, near Quincy, WA. Unfortunately, it's been a bit of a hazzle getting here, but I'll have to tell you more about that later......... Nothing serious, so don't worry....... I just wanted to let everyone know that we're here, and we're safe, and are looking forward to four hazy, lazy, crazy days of summer here in the heat...... I'm sure we hit 100 degrees Fahrenheit today, so life's a bit sticky.
Anyway, let me regroup and get my stuff together, and get back to you in a day or two....
Until then, have a great time, enjoy life, and check back on our progress.....
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