Arrrived in Sedro Woolley, WA

We followed the coast of Oregon through about half the state, then due to it being the beginning of Memorial Day weekend, we had to move inland to find an RV park with a vacancy. As we traveled east from the coast, we saw more versions of RVs than we have seen on the trip, all heading for the coast. It is too cool for swimming, but we saw people laying out in the sun. I guess that if you live in the north, you take what you can get and enjoy it. We came to Interstate 5 at Eugene, OR a bit before dark and found a Good Sam RV Park. The office was closed but they had some vacant, non reserved spots so we stayed. This was the first campground we visited that offered a Continental Breakfast the next morning. Then we took I-5 north to Washington. We drove through Seattle, and David was surprised to see that the Space Needle is not the tallest place in the city as several other buildings are now taller and much larger. We plan to go back to visit Seattle, maybe on Thursday, and have visited several places in the area that my cousin Janet has showed us, which were all fascinating and made great photos which I will put up. On one beach made of rocks, there were rock examples of most of the granite counter tops I have seen in showrooms. I was able to put a few small samples in my shirt pocket, but removing rocks was not allowed. I put some photos on the Net of the volcanic rocks there.
We visited a quaint little restaurant on the bay and they had a sign in the window that they had fresh mussels. We shared 2 pounds of them and a few grilled oysters. The bay view was a great backdrop for a tasty unusual meal. Then we drove a bit further and Janet pointed out the Mussel farms in the water in the bay, so they grow their own fresh mussels for the area.

We are now trying to decide how to proceed with the trip as there are ferry rides from various points in this country and in Canada to make the trip shorter and easier, however budgets will figure into the final decision also. My next entry will probably be as we proceed by whatever method we come up with in the next few days.

In The Middle of Oregon.

Tonight we reached Eugene Oregon, and may make Seattle tomorrow. This morning we took a two mile hike among the Redwoods in Redwood State Park which is part of the national park of the same name. I left my camera in the camper at the campground, so I will only have David's photos when I can get to them as he went to sleep shortly after we arrived. This is brief due to little new today but there was a seemingly brighter and deeper blue ocean in Oregan than in California, with more and bigger rocks in the ocean. The most notable thing I noticed about Oregon is that the state, being "progressive" with their laws, still reminds me of gas stations 40 years ago. They pump your gas for you, by state law. Therefore, most "gas stations" looked and felt like I knew 40 years ago. They had 7 Elevens, with no gas, and gas stations without a market inside, and the restroom was still on the side of the building. We did see a couple of places that had a bit of a store inside but not many. Also, the state has no sales tax, so David may get a new Netbook, as his battery is shot in his computer, and a Netbook, will give him a new battery with a place to write, if he goes to graduate school, while being able to transfer it to the laptop at home and connected to power.

San Franscisco to the Redwood Forests

We had a great evening with cousin Diane and her husband Casey. I visited them on their sailboat and it was really nice with all wood interior, likely a type of wood that I cannot spell. It was similar in some ways to the camper,but much more sophisticated, with radar, radios, and multiple ways to power it. I am a boat person having owned one all my adult life, but Casey is a BOAT PERSON, and I could never explain the difference due to lack of knowledge, and not knowing the ocean BOAT lingo. However we had dinner with them at the yacht club, and I do know good salmon when I eat it and a good Margarita too. They were excellent! Then we had desert at another great place. As we left the next day, we planned to visit them again on a camping trip they were taking in the same direction we were heading, but the campground was reserved to capacity, so we continued north on US 101, the coastal highway which has branches, CA highway 1. Casey had suggested a place in Napa Valley to go for a superb wine tasting, so we visited Kunde Estate Winery and it was a day when they didn't have tours scheduled for the cellar and wine making, but we did taste some really fantastic Sonoma County wine and cheese. We had to have a small bottle of the Zinfandel Port which we will save for a special occasion. Then unfortunately I let David convince me to take highway 1 to the coast to stay at a KOA on a beach on the Pacific Ocean. I enjoyed the destination, even though it had no Verizon cell availability or WiFi, however the trip there was awful, which is an inadequate word, but I try not to use those other adjectives. It was 33 miles of up to 10% grades, the worst so far by 3% and cutbacks constantly. The fastest we went in that distance was 25 mph, and the cutbacks were mostly 15 mph. It took forever to get there! I have photos of the campground in the Web photos, and we were on the beach even if it was cold again. The way back to 101 was the same type mountain highway, but with the addition of rain and giant Redwoods nearly in the road. As we reached US 101, we came to the site of the Redwood that you can drive a car through. Another photo-op we could not miss. David set the GPS to take us to the Redwood National Park to spend the night, but it turned out that the "park" is more of a forest than a park with no campgrounds found. However on the north edge of it, we came upon a really nice private campground on a river that has salmon fishing in the fall, but not in the spring. We detached the camper and tomorrow when the sun shines again, we will do some driving and hiking in the redwoods. Nearly half of two days was spent on winding roads, but we will move faster tomorrow into Oragon to see what is there.

Reno to San Francisco

I would have to say that of all the places I have been in this country, it is a toss up between crossing Wyoming or the trip from Salt Lake City to the Sierra Nevada Range in California for the most desolate unoccupied distances I have traveled. Reno is a city in the middle of nothing, at least traveling on I-80 East to West. I can't speak for north/south. We went through so many elevation and temperature changes in very dry desert air, on this trip, that I now have bronchitis and have lost my voice. David went through some sore throat problems too. As we reached the mountains in eastern California we reached a new high in elevation. We crossed 7300' above sea level and within an hour we were at 1000 ft. with 5% to 6% grades down much of the way. At times it was like descending on an airliner with ear pressure and all. On the way to the RV park in Larkspur, CA in Marin county, we reached levels of -40', below sea level.
Yesterday we had our first Burmese food ever at the recommendation of an employee of the RV park. It was a bit different than mainstream Asian food, but was quite good. Then we went to the Presidio which was a big deal when I was at Fort Ord near Monterey, CA in 1967 for Army basic training. During WWII it was a major west coast defensive fort after the attack on Pearl Harbor. However it is just a park and interesting place to visit today. The gun placements looked much like the ones I saw in Germany. After the Presidio, we spent much of the day hiking to and onto the Golden Gate bridge. I took way too many photos but will limit how many I put up on the Photo Site if I can. Today David took a ferry to San Franscisco, then another ferry out to Alcatraz in the rain, which I chose to pass on. I may visit another cousin, Diane while he does that, and we plan to have dinner with her and her husband at their yacht club. They live on a sail boat at the club. I seem to keep finding cousins as I cross the country, only one cousin visit was planned ahead of time. I found the other two by changing destinations, or by not knowing where they lived. I think I will be out of cousins after I visit Janet in Sedro Woolley, WA, so don't expect to see any in Canada or Alaska if we ever get there. This trip is going slow but it is very enjoyable so far, with a few mishaps here and there. Since leaving Collierville, the trip odometer shows 3700 miles. Some were local trips, but most were highway miles. We may be here another day, then we will move north through Redwood, and wine country...

Travel to Reno, NV from Salt Lake City

Leaving Salt Lake City west on I-80, you drive past the airport, around the south end of the Great Salt Lake, and then for miles on the former "Bonneville Lake" bed. It was the prehistoric precursor of the Great Salt Lake. The flat turned from tan to snow white and I thought it was snow as it turned abruptly as in a line of snow. We drove and it continued. We passed a Corvette out in it, sunk up to his axles. He must have thought he was at the Bonneville Salt Flats Speedway, which we passed about 40 miles further on. There was a Hummer trying to pull it out, but with little success. My truck may have had better results, but we had the fifth wheel attached and this was on an Interstate, not a good place to be trying to tow someone out from the highway. Just before the terrain changed we did pull off and see if it was snow, as by now we were not sure what it was, so I took a piece and tasted it and it was pure salt. It is amazing how much salt there was in places between Salt Lake City and the Nevada border. When we reached Nevada, there was the state line sign and a casino sitting right on it. The parking lot was in Utah, and the casino was built on the edge of the state line, no time wasted to get busy gambling. Every gas station we saw was also a miniature casino. Soon we saw billboards for the Mustang Ranch. David and I thought it would be a good experience to visit it, but then figured it would look strange for us to stop, look around and then leave, so we kept going.
We drove 9 hours today and arrived at Reno just as it got dark. The temperature was 28 degrees. While in Sandy, UT, we had temps of 80 in the day and near 55 at night to 45 in the day and 30 at night. David and I both have sore throats, probably due to the dry air and the wide temperature swings we have experienced on this trip. Some of the swings involve elevation as we have gone from Collierville at 400 foot above sea level to 7000 foot on the way to the Grand Canyon, then down to 3,000 feet, and back up to 6000, to 4500 at Salt Lake City, then back up to 6000 and tonight at 4000. Next we will go through Sacramento, CA and on to San Francisco which is near sea level. David wants to visit Yosemite National Park too on the way, but that too is off the planned path so we will have to reason on it, as at this rate we may not make it to Alaska till July, and have to turn around and come back. One has to set limits on the rabbits chased off the path...

The Salt Lake experience

We had to cross mountains again to get to Sandy, UT. We arrived at Julie's about 5 PM on Saturday. She fixed us a good dinner that could best described as "Chinese Hawaiian", but it was great, something I or Melissa will try when we get home. I did one of the tightest parking jobs I have ever had to do to fit the camper in Julie and Scott's driveway. I had about an inch and a half to play with on either side. I ended up with the back of the trailer up against the carport so I let some air out of the tires on the opposite side, and all was well. However in the morning I will have to get it back out of there! On Sunday after church, Scott took David snowboarding on a small ski slope up in the mountains while I worked on my Online photos and washed some clothes. The ski lift was not running as the place was closed, so Scott had to carry his skis and David the snowboard back up the hill with each run, so they got quite a workout. Since I was not there and David had all he could handle with the board, there are no photos. While at Julie's I fixed a huge pot of beef stew, and a pot of spaghetti sauce. Most of the stew got eaten in one sitting, and the rest went for Scott's lunches for a day or two.
David and I kept Shiloh, the grandbaby and niece for one day and that was an experience. All went well as she trained us very well. She has the best fake cry I have seen, but it took a while to realize it was fake, so now she knows she can get picked up whenever she wants if "Mom" is not around. Julie took her to the baby sitter after that so we would not spoil her any more than already done. She said it was bad after Melissa kept her for several days on her last visit and she didn't want to have that repeated. We took many photos and some will be put on the photo Site.
We picked the worst day of the year to visit Antelope Island in the Salt Lake. The gnats were swarming, there were some mosquitoes, and the lake had a strong sulfur odor caused by bacteria at the bottom, which periodically comes to the surface. There were actually a few folks in the water at the beach, and other visitors looking at the buffalo herd. There are also antelope and deer on the island but we did not see any. The lake has water running into it after rains, but none runs out, it just evaporates or soaks in over time which has left a large amount of salt in it. It is said that if one floats in it, their body will be half out of the water. I will leave that test for another time as the truck got covered with gnats, and we didn't get 0ut but once to go into the visitor center.
We don't know where we will get to tomorrow, but it will be in the direction of San Francisco...

On to Las Vegas

This leg of our trip was not in any original plan. When we got to the Grand Canyon, David did some figuring and found that it was only about a hundred miles further to include Las Vegas and he had a strong desire to see Sin City and its excesses. Once we arrived he had set aside the hefty sum of eighteen dollars to wager on Black Jack and the slots. I didn't plan to touch anything as I once my lost my entire military pay check during basic training in a poker game. (I was determined to win back my losses, so I kept playing until there was nothing left to play with.) That experience early in life was a valuable lesson on my nature, and gambling in general. We had made plans to meet my cousin for lunch the next day, so when we arrived at the campground on Lake Mead in the evening, David and I decided to go check out the Strip. We arrived just after dark and found a parking spot on a side street in front of a row of small stores. Parking garages and all parking we saw was free. I was blown away at the size of the casinos. Yes they look big on TV, however I never realized that most take up a whole city block or more, with the bottom floor filled with every conceivable method one could imagine to get you to turn over your money to them and feel almost good about it. Most casinos had an area the size of a gym or larger just for sports betting. Every kind of game and race is on its individual jumbo tron type screen on the wall. There were row after row of computer workstations for the gamers to study stats. and place bets. They don't allow "open" photography in the casinos, but I got a waist shot of one of he rooms which did not come out very well. I know a lot of folks that have been to Vegas, but no one had prepared me for how big it all is. Floor after floor of hotel rooms over each game floor. The first one we went to after parking was Bellagio which we remembered from the Oceans Eleven movie. David was ready to get gamblin'. I showed him a quarter slot, and he looked for a place to put a quarter in. I can remember when they accepted coins, but now all want bills. He slid a dollar in and looked for a lever. There was one but on this machine, it did nothing, so he pushed the button. On his third quarter push, I heard something happening. He had won eighty dollars! That got my interest so I sat down beside him and put a dollar in and lost it. Then I put in a second one and won ten dollars, this is starting to be fun! Then we sat there for thirty more minutes and we finally got bored and I left with nine dollars and David had seventy five. This would be silliness to anyone with money or a gambler's mentality, but we were quite happy. The next day I won seventy five cents and was happy and quit before going into the losing column. David ended his gaming the next day too, and I left with 9.75 and he with 70.00. Probably my worst experience was when a waitress walked up and offered us a complimentary drink and before I could open my mouth David said no, we are fine as he sipped a beer that I had paid for! It's all the same to him as he is on my tab as a graduation present.

We met Jim, my cousin the next day and that is where I saw the part of Las Vegas that I liked. It was the old version of a Las Vegas strip and things were a more manageable size and price. We had a good lunch with Jim at Main Street Station Casino, Brewery, and Resort. Then he showed us the old town highlights and it was still really nice with a lot of folks there, possibly more local than tourists. We went into a place that had a large pool in the center court with more rows of recliners for tanning than I have ever seen, and almost every chair was taken. (See the photos) There was a water slide that went in a tube through an aquarium. There is a brief video in my photos of someone passing through the fish aquarium. There was even a section of street devoted to archived signs that may have appeared in movies of the past but are no longer being used on a business. That evening Jim and his wife Alice met us at Boulder Station which is a Casino nearer to where we were staying on Lake Meade. (Jim bought lunch and I bought dinner but it turned out that Alice had a comp coupon which covered for over half of dinner.) Regular casino goers have perks but David sent away the only perk we had a chance at!
I enjoyed the visit to Las Vegas, but one theme kept coming to mind. At the Grand Canyon, they stressed water conservation, and all bathroom devices used recycled water. At the Hoover Dam, they stressed water and power conservation. Yet Las Vegas has fountains everywhere evaporating water, and far bigger bright lit up signs than would be needed. Jim mentioned that new housing could not be sodded and watered, yet the businesses could be as extravagant as they chose to be, probably due to the cash flow generated for the city. I assume that if a business pays the electric and water bill, they can do as they please. Somehow this does not seem right to an old Midwest guy, but that is the way it is, so far...
Next stop, Salt Lake City area, Julie, Scott, and Shiloh.

Hoover Dam & Las Vegas

About a mile before arriving at Hoover Dam we had to stop for a vehicle inspection to check for explosives. It would likely take an eighteen wheeler of high power explosives to put a dent in a dam the size and depth of the dam. I suppose that they want to prevent any "propaganda" successes, and exercise "due diligence". There is a large bridge being built downstream from the dam to bypass traffic around Hoover Dam. That will allow security to check only those wanting to visit the dam itself. The sheriff deputy who was to inspect our rig happened to have served in the Army, and he saw my Air National Guard plate and we got to talking politics and tea parties. He told of being at the demonstration at Harry Reid's home town that brought out 10,000 folks against Reid, and the counter demonstration that Harry arranged which only produced several hundred. The deputy looked inside my trailer and asked if that was my shotgun and I told him yes but it is not loaded. He asked me if I had a hand gun and I told him yes in the truck. He told me to take the clip out and all would be fine and sent me on without further inspection. Citizens with gun permits do have an advantage with law enforcement because we make their job a bit easier, or at least they think so.
We toured the power generating operation of the dam and it is quite impressive. The dam is seven hundred twenty six feet high, one thousand two hundred forty four feet across. Six hundred sixty feet thick at the base, and forty five feet thick at the top. Four point four million cubic yards of concrete in the structure. And forty five million pounds of reinforcing steel make this an impressive structure. It has 17 turbines inside the dam. It sends power to many states and provides water for the Imperial Valley which allows it to exist where there was once only desert. For anyone wanting more details of the era when it was built, Google: Hoover Dam. Wikipedia and Watersheds TV both have much information. The dam has served well over it's 75 years with seasons of much water, and of little water. Right now Lake Mead is at a level 100 feet below desired normal and just a bit above the record low. There are several reasons for this. In recent years there was less snowfall in the Colorado River Basin, which caused a drought. Also water usage has increased, and there is the normal draining of the rocky terrain where the lake is located. These team together to cause the drain on Lake Mead. There is some irony to all this... First, when the dam was built, several states fought over water and power share. This held up the dam for some time, until Hoover told them to get together and work out a "treaty" and the dam would be started with the agreement still in the works. Arizona worked hard to get a large share of the water to allow Phoenix and other areas to grow. At the time Phoenix was using mostly well water. When the dam was finished and Arizona got its share worked out, the water was piped to Phoenix and due to the mineral content of the water, it was hard on the infrastructure and the residents did not like the taste of the water, so today most of the water that Arizona gets is "dumped" in the desert. Why? Because the agreement reads that if any state needed less water, it would be diverted to other locations. Arizona knows that the time will come when they will have to have the water, so they waste it now to keep their "share". I have not researched this in depth, but my cousin has lived here for years and is a civil engineer who specializes in water and drainage, so I am taking his word for it. Also the Imperial Valley uses vast amounts of the water in ever growing locations, and lastly, what is left in the Colorado River flows into Mexico where it eventually runs dry. It no longer drains into any body of water, just runs dry. Mexico lays claim to a certain amount of water, which it is no longer getting, so that too is a matter of contention. The waste of water will be looked at again when we get to Las Vegas. There are photos of the Hoover Dam and the new bridge in the photos at the address in the previous edition.

The always Majestic Grand Canyon

From a KOA in Flagstaff, we called ahead to the Canyon camp grounds for reservations. Seems the RV Village in the park is booked from March through most of November at least a year in advance. We drove to the Canyon and found a circa 1970s Flintstone theme campground for dirt cheap about 25 miles from the canyon. It was run down, but there were some campers there so I paid for two nights since we would only be sleeping there. The next morning we went to the canyon and on the way passed a better but not great campground at twice the price of Flintstones. It got down to around freezing each night and as we arrived at the canyon, the temperature was only up to 40 degrees. We walked around some and then ate an early lunch and as we were sitting down, we noticed it snowing outside. Within a few minutes it was like a blizzard with heavy snow blowing almost parallel to the ground. By 1 PM it was clearing up some. It is not possible to drive to the canyon overlooks anymore, unless you have a special handicap pass which requires that one be totally unable to board a bus in any way. I only saw two cars doing this the entire time, and they were assisted elderly folks. The large buses rotate on a 15 minute basis, and one can get off whenever one wants and then catch the first bus by when one is ready to move on. There is also a rim trail one can hike or bike. David and I hiked between some of the shorter legs, and caught the bus for the ones over a half mile. David and I discussed the trail down into the canyon, but neither of us was confident that we could make it back up if we tried to walk down, and I doubt you can catch a mule down there for the ride up only. By mid afternoon, the sun was shining bright and we got some pretty good photos. There is always a haze in the canyon these days due to smog from Mexico and California. I used a UV haze filter which did not get rid of it totally, so I used Picasa to edit the photos some and eliminated most of the haze up close, but was unable to remove it from the longer distances. The Grand Canyon averages 10 miles across, and at one point you can see a landmark 35 miles down the canyon and it does not appear to be that far, however how many times can you see a measured distance of 35 miles? We hoped to get some great sunset photos but clouds started coming in and the shots were limited.
Now we head to Las Vegas to meet up with a cousin of mine who lives there and see the strip and any place else cousin Jim and his wife Alice have time to show us. We will cross the Hoover Dam and may try to take a tour if they have any.

Meteor Crator, Petrified Forest & Painted Desert

On the way to Flagstaff, we came across the Meteor Crater, Petrified Forest, and Painted Desert. The meteor crater is the best preserved crater on the planet, and is 2.4 miles in circumference, and over 550 feet deep. Some years ago, four airline pilots rented a plane and flew to the crater. They decided to circle inside it, and due to the heat, and elevation, they were unable to fly out of it. When they ran out of fuel, they made a controlled crash in the bottom and a wing has been left there to remind anyone else not to try it!
Since we had seen all three places on a trip made in 2002, we spent some time at the Petrified Forest, but skipped the Meteor Crater and the Painted Desert this time to get on with the trip. I did locate some photos of the crater and the Painted Desert from the last trip and included them with this trip's photos at: www.picasaweb.google.com/kenheise According to a Ranger, the Petrified Forest once had hundreds of acres of petrified trees in various forms, but before the area became protected, people carried them off in truck and even train car loads. They were a popular yard decoration in the early twentieth century, especially among the rich. There are still plenty to see if you ever get in the area. At one time the petrified forests were covered with dirt, or more likely with sea water which allowed silt and minerals to settle and replace the wood as it decomposed. (There are other petrified forests, but the one in Arizona is the largest.)

Days 4 - 6

As we continued our trip I noticed that my GPS shows that the elevation has climbed very gradually from about 500' above sea level to 7000' near the Petrified Forrest. Also we have noticed that the wind outside has gradually increased too. Day 4 we had winds in the 40 mph range, today we have winds around 40 gusting to 60 mph, velocities that I am used to only seeing in thunder storms at home. Surprisingly driving has been buffeting at times but without the control problems that other campers are reporting and I have experienced in the past. Now I am glad that we have a fifth wheel trailer and not a bumper pull or a motor home style. The hitch being over the rear axle limits or removes the sway effect very well. This evening we had planned to stay in Flagstaff but stayed longer at the Petrified Forrest than planned so we are staying near it. Turns out the Interstate is closed between here and Flagstaff due to the winds, so it worked out fine. The only notable stop during this period was the Petrified Forrest.
I now realize that this blog should be called the Road to Alaska, with a different one for Alaska itself. I may try to change it, but since everyone now realizes this, probably won't. Tomorrow we will go to Flagstaff and probably take the rest of the day off for cleaning and rest. Then on Tuesday we will spend most of the day in the Canyon.

Days 2 & 3

Day 2 was from Little Rock to Oklahoma City. We stayed in a State Park on Lake Thunderbird. It was a day of travel only and we stopped early to charcoal a rib eye, fresh corn on the cob, and baked potato. There were speedboats on the lake and in past years I would have been wanting to be out there too, and maybe even rent a boat, but not today. About the only real thoughts I had on this day is that it seems a bit arrogant to put up a blog as few if any would even want to see it. However if my parents or any member of my family look at it then that alone would make it worth the effort. If not, then I have always considered a "diary" or a journal. Therefore this can be my journal for myself or grand kids, which also make it worth the effort, therefore it now exists.
Day 3 was a trip to the Oklahoma City Bomb Memorial. It was interesting, but not overpowering. There will be more photos at Http://picasaweb.google.com/kenheise
Then we traveled to Amarillo, TX and stayed at a KOA to have a WiFi connection, and the highway to it was Historic Route 66. After we passed a highway marker it hit me that we should do a photo op with the rig and us by the sign. I told David that I was stopping at the next sign, but there wasn't another. Now we have to decide whether to backtrack for a photo op, or continue and hope to see another at some point. Tomorrow we will probably cover the most miles so far as there is little to see between here and points 500 miles west unless we find something unexpected.

Day One of the Great Alaska Adventure was interesting, and no way predictable. It took far longer to get on the road than planned, and that turned out to be a small miracle in itself. The trailer window that was supposed to be ordered to meet us in Salt Lake City was messed up by the parts man at the RV place where the camper was bought. He did not send it to Salt Lake City where we were to be, at the end of the four week allocated time to make the window. He sent it to our house instead.
While we were finishing up, a UPS truck stopped in front of the house. Melissa went out to it and got a box. I couldn't see it, and she said that we may have our window and I thought she was joking. While installing it took a bit over an hour, I am glad that its a done deal, and we don't have to wait for it to arrive. Had it arrived an hour or so later, we all would have been a bit unhappy with having to turn around or reship it. It was here two weeks early. So I will use the cliche, all is well that ends well! We drove for about three hours today and the sun in our eyes got so intense, that we decided to camp at a KOA near Little Rock. I took a photo or two of the campsite as we barbecued some chicken, but I will have to take time to learn to add photos to this to show them, however I will put them up on the Web at the same place as the DC photos at a later date. It is 9:30 and David is already going to sleep as he got up earlier than I did, so we will have to work on getting on the same schedule.

The day prior to departure

As I sit here at my desk I am feeling more apprehension than anticipation... Why would that be? Maybe because today I woke up to my first day as a 64 year old man. I am a year older than yesterday, or is it that the DC trip went well, but I overspent, and know I am going to have to learn a bit more about being frugal. Then I wonder if I packed all that we will need, or if I over packed and the the camper is over it's load limit?
My son was trapped in Nashville after going to visit friends and the floods came. He should be home this afternoon and we will leave in the morning. I assume that once we hit the road tomorrow, the anxiety will blow out the window with the dust.
And the biggest question? Am I really ready for a trip of this magnitude? The plan is to head West to the Grand Canyon, North to Sandy Utah where I will replace the window that blew out on the way home from DC and visit our daughter Julie, her husband Scott and mostly the new grand baby. Then on to the Golden Gate bridge and the bay area just to take a picture of the Bridge and to have experienced it. Then up through wine country with a few side steps to see the rocky beaches. Thru Oregon to Sedro Woolley, Washington where I will visit a cousin I rarely see. From there I will ship my hand gun home as Canada is not friendly to handguns. We will only carry a shotgun with slugs and shot into Canada. David has a friend in Vancouver we will visit, then it is North to Alaska with no further plans, it will be day by day decision making as we don't want to be locked into anything.