Day three in British Columbia – May 25th

Well, today we paid our dues. We decided to take the westerly route to the Yukon and had been told that six miles were unpaved. HA! Most of the way through the north BC is “sort” of paved but not really. The GPS kept calling it “unpaved road”, but some of it passed as paved but had no stripes down the middle, not to mention the sides of the roads. Ugly, spoiled Americans that we are. The really good thing about taking the route through the wilderness is that we saw some really good wildlife. We saw two rabbits, three ptarmigan (birds), one mouse, six mule deer, one caribou and NINE black bears. Hope to see a grizzly tomorrow or the next day. Today was not much fun for me because of my phobias of water, heights and Cliff’s driving too fast for conditions. My stomach muscles are probably improved over yesterday.

The picture of the bear shown here cannot be topped. I couldn’t believe my luck to find a bear actually doing its business in the woods! Do you think I laughed and bounced in my seat??? You would be correct if you guessed yes.  There was no Charmin handy or rabbits with Teflon fur.

We made our first sighting of another Great Alaskan Holiday RV this afternoon when we stopped in some really remote spot of 58 +/- residents to buy gas. BTY, that gas was $5.76 American dollars. Oh well, we can’t just abandon the RV on the side of the road, can we? Besides how would we get to Anchorage to catch the plane home???

We are in a Provincial park tonight by Boya Lake and it is beautiful!! The generator has decided to be persnickety so we had to deal with cold butter. Hope Cliff can find the solution in the morning. If not, we’ll cope. We had trouble with the generator last year too. This is why Great Alaskan Holidays lets us rent this vehicle for much less than regular – we call it a “shake-down” cruise. Working the bugs out before they rent it to people who pay full price and expect excellence.

Some of the areas that we passed through today were very depressed and showed signs of poverty. Sadly, I suspect most of them were inhabited by indigenous people. Not an expression of prejudice, just the facts.

Tonight, we had the third of our meals on the rainbow trout that I caught. It was augmented with fresh tomato and Vidalia onion over rice. Delicious, the leftovers will go into a bear-proof trash can tomorrow. New food tomorrow.

On the subject of bears: We could not believe our eyes when we sighted the second one and saw that a van was stopped by the bear which was very near the roadway. A woman was standing in front of the van taking pictures of the bear. She had a very long lens on her camera and I failed to see why she was standing within 15 feet of the bear and needed that sophisticated equipment. I was able to get a great shot with my plain camera (see right pic) and I did not put myself or the bear in peril. Let’s say the bear attacked her, who would be to blame??? What an idiot. Can’t imagine what was so important. Silly me.

Here is a picture of the typical road on which we travelled today. Does it remind you of a rollercoaster? Me, too. 

Northern Washington and British Columbia, Canada – Monday, May 23, 2011

We started our day at a KOA park south of Seattle, and so far, we’ve done absolutely nothing but move northward. Okay, we stopped for lunch at a turnout beside the Frasier River and Gorge. After seeing the churning waters of the river I decided that it would not be wise to either fall overboard or jump into that water. Made my skin crawl. We followed the gorge for what seemed like forever and on occasion it was beautiful. The Canadian Rockies impressed me – just like they were last year.

We bought a few supplies at a really nice Safeway (it was Publix-quality) in Bellingham and some Washington wine a lot cheaper than at home (yes, again). Wish we could have visited the vineyard for Chateau St. Michelle near Yakima but it was not on the schedule. The Safeway had a deli display of olives and other goodies which we availed ourselves of and they made up a large part of our lunch on the gorge. Greek olives, Greek olives with feta cheese, with pickled garlic – you’ve got the picture. It was all very delicious and we savored each and every bite.

We made it through the checkpoint at the Canadian border, probably because we look like old farts. Now, we have to sweat getting back into the good ole US of A. Passports are in order. But, unlike last year when we took the northern route and crossed into Canada at this same port of entry, we saw none of the other folks renting RVs for Great Alaskan Holidays. 

On the road north we saw the RV park were we stayed last year near Cache Creek but proceeded up the road to another park. We are backed up to Lac la Hache, a beautiful sight to see. It looks deep and probably has the coveted walleye in it. 

Canadian gas comes in liters and costs $5.00 a gallon and we have filled up once and still have at least three days before we are in Alaska. The good news, like last year, is that our gas mileage has improved and is now up to 8.2 miles to the gallon. Breaking in a Ford 350 is painful at the gas pump.

Although Cliff went in person to our Wachovia/Wells Fargo bank before we left and told them that we would be on the road and not to block our cards, we still encountered their rejecting of our card at this park tonight. After my call to the “Customer Service” person, I found out that they blocedk it after we bought gas after entering British Columbia. It seems that one must pay before pumping so the card has to be approved for a guessed-at prepaid amount (to avoid drive offs) that you think you might need. Well, that pre-approval process lead to the blocking. Thank you, Wells Fargo, for looking out for our best interests. Apparently, the computer has more power than the human Cliff talked too. It’s no surprise since it happened last year too. It’s true, it’s always something.

We have been amazed at the fields of dandelions along our route.  I noticed it last year, but the route we have taken this year has many, many more fields.  It appears that they grow in the crops that get harvested for wintering the livestock. 

Slow WiFi tonight.  Will catch up posts later with better speed.

The invisible mountains

The Internet connection tonight is too slow to post pictures so I will have another go at it tomorrow night, or the next, depending on where we stop.  Therefore, here you go with the narritive minus the pics. 

We left Bengin and drove west on the Washington side of the Gorge until we came to the Bridge of the Gods that is just as narrow as the Hood River Bridge but not nearly as long. Driving across the bridge put us on the Historic Columbia River Highway built through the Columbia River Gorge between 1913 and 1922, the first planned scenic roadway in the United States. It has some very scenic stops but is actually too narrow for this RV and we were both glad to abandon it for I-84. But while on it we stopped at the Bonneville Dam where the RV was inspected for weapons and probably explosives since the dam is an Army Corps of Engineers project and probably pretty important to the power grid in the Northwest. We encountered no resistance since we really don’t look much like criminals or madpeople. Backpacks and large purses are not allowed in the visitor center. We complied. Apparently, salmon are not allowed there either since we didn’t see a single one on the salmon bridge where they are allowed to circumvent the dam. 

We stopped at Multnomah Falls which is a waterfall on the Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge along the Historic Columbia River Highway. The falls drops in two major steps, split into an upper falls of 542 feet and a lower falls of 69 feet, with a gradual 9 foot drop in elevation between the two, so the total height of the waterfall is conventionally given as 620 feet. Multnomah Falls is the tallest waterfall in the State of Oregon. It is credited by a sign at the site of the falls as the second tallest year-round waterfall in the United States. I took some pictures but I’m using one that I found online so the entire falls is shown. The stone work on the bridge and the surrounding areas was done by President Roosevelt’s New Deal which employed millions of unskilled workers (the WPA and CCC) who constructed public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads and many other projects.

After we left the old 30, we headed toward Portland and north on I-5 then hoping to travel east between Mt. St. Helens on the south and Mt. Rainier on the north. Our plan worked and we got lucky when we took a road to the north that turned out to lead us to the entrance to Mt. Rainer National Park and was not one of those closed because of snow. The nasty weather however, proved to be our undoing and we ended up not seeing either of the summits. Oh, well. Stuff happens. 

The funniest thing that has happened to us on this trip was today as we were back-tracking from Mt. Rainier Park. We came up behind a pickup going very slowly down the curving road. I started laughing when I realized that the truck had a Florida license plate on it. Just like in the NC mountains. Get behind a “flat-lander” and you can bet it will try your patience. Look at the speed in the picture of the GPS. He got ever slower and at one point was going 13 miles an hour.

When we entered the Mt. Rainer park, we were amazed at the size of the trees that we saw. The large ones in the picture are Ponderosa pines. They are HUGH! The area must be a haven for woodpeckers since there were so many dead trees available for habitat.

Tomorrow we will enter Canada and be in Alaska by Saturday or Sunday and will turn in the unit on May 31.

Today, we have traveled only 85 miles and enjoyed all of them. We started the day in Welches, OR, and went through Portland then south to Mt. Hood (highest peak is 11,239 feet). The mountain had cloud cover but even so, is impressive. We had a gourmet lunch at the Timberline Lodge, at elevation of 6060, that was built in the mid-’30’s. The AAA tour book says that Mt. Hood is the country’s most climbed glacier peak. When I was here in 2007, the peak was clear but today it was making its own clouds. We were surrounded by skiers in the parking lot and the lodge. 

After spending the night at a beautiful campsite, we backtracked to a rainbow trout farm where we managed to persuade a couple of fish to bite a worm-on-a-hook. I caught a 13” and a 16” trout which we ate for supper with enough leftovers for supper tomorrow night. What a delicious treat – fresh mountain trout. Cliff, who cooked the trout, says that it was cooked to perfection. It fell off the bones and the skin peeled off – as if it would dare not. Cliff took pictures of me landing the big one. It was fun and I love catching a fish. 

We took our lives (and vehicle) in our hands and crossed the Hood River Bridge from Hood River, OR, to Bengin, WA. The worst moment came at the peak of the bridge when we met an 18-wheel truck that appeared to be much wider than we were, but both the truck driver and Cliff managed to stay between the lines and we made it across the bridge without incident -- unless you count my audible sigh of relief when we hit dry land. Not my favorite bridge in the world. I remember it from 2007.

The highlight of our trip to the Columbia River Gorge so far, was a visit to my very favorite glass artist, Peter McGrain, who lives in Bengin, WA. We sat in his shop for a few hours and talked about glass stuff. Peter has done wonders with his surrounds and is starting a class on Monday with glass painting enthusiasts. Wish I were one of the lucky folks taking the class. 

We’re in a park in Bengin and will be taking in the Columbia River Gorge tomorrow on both sides of OR and WA and then up north toward Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainer, although some of the roads, just like Crater Lake, will be closed because of snow. Guess this would be a better trip in August when it is insufferably hot in Florida.

Today, we have traveled only 85 miles and enjoyed all of them. We started the day in Welches OR, and went through Portland south to Mt. Hood. The mountain had cloud cover but even so, is impressive. We had a gourmet lunch at the Timberline Lodge, at elevation of 6060, that was built in the mid-’30’s. The AAA tour book says that Mt. Hood is the country’s most climbed glacier peak. When I was here in 2007, the peak was clear but today it was making its own clouds. We were surrounded by skiers in the parking lot and the lodge. 


After spending the night at a beautiful campsite, we backtracked to a rainbow trout farm where we managed to persuade a couple of fish to bite a worm-on-a hook. I caught a 13” and a 16” trout which we ate for supper with enough leftovers for supper tomorrow night. What a delicious treat – fresh mountain trout. Cliff, who cooked the trout, says that it was cooked to perfection. It fell off the bones and the skin peeled off – as if it would dare not. Cliff took pictures of me landing the big one. It was fun and I love catching a fish. 

We took our lives (and vehicle) in our hands and crossed the Hood River Bridge from Hood River, OR, to Bengin, WA. The worst moment came at the peak of the bridge when we met an 18-wheel truck that appeared to be much wider than we were, but both the truck driver and Cliff managed to stay between the lines and we made it across the bridge without incident -- unless you count my audible sigh of relief when we hit dry land. Not my favorite bridge in the world. I remember it from 2007.

The highlight of our trip to the Columbia River Gorge so far, was a visit to my very favorite glass artist, Peter McGrain, who lives in Bengin, WA. We sat in his shop for a few hours and talked about glass stuff. Peter has done wonders with his surrounds and is starting a class on Monday with glass painting enthusiasts. Wish I were one of the lucky folks taking the class.

We’re in a park in Bengin and will be taking in the Columbia River Gorge tomorrow on both sides of OR and WA and then up north toward Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainer, although some of the roads, just like Crater Lake, will be closed because of snow. Guess this would be a better trip in August when it is insufferably hot in Florida.

Thursday, we went from Eugene west to the coast at Roseburg and north along the coast. The Pacific should surely be one of the great wonders of the world. It takes my breath away whenever I see it for the first time. What a sight to behold. If you have not seen our pictures on Facebook, please check them out. It’s easier to upload many more on Facebook than this blog.
 

While driving through Cannon Beach, we saw a very interesting hot-glass studio. After speaking briefly with the owner, we decided to go back Friday morning to watch the guy in action. We spent the night in a beautiful park in Cannon Beach, caught up on email and Facebook and returned to the glass shop on Friday morning. We had a great time talking to the artists/owners and to the patrons (that would be Wallie, the glass nut talking to glass nuts) and enjoyed watching the glass action. 

After that we headed toward Portland and the “fruit loop” where allll kinds of things are grown. Nurseries, orchards, you name it, it’s all here. Tomorrow we are going to Mt. Hood and will have lunch in the Timberline Lodge. I have some structural questions for Cliff since there are some really interesting features to this old building. More to come on this subject.

When Becky Allen and I were here in 2007 we went on the ski lift and I can’t imagine what I was thinking when I agreed to do this form of madness, but it turned out to be a wonderful experience, even though Becky rocked the bench we were sitting on. I threatened to push her off if she didn’t quit. That had no effect. Good grief, I don’t like heights or anything even close to that kind of insane activity.

To add to my other phobias, we will come to a point where we have to cross over the Hood River on a mile-long bridge that is toooo narrow for an RV just to get to the Washington side of the gorge which has the most interesting sites to see. We are going back down the road in the morning to a fish hatchery. Becky and I found the hatchery very interesting.

There are so many wonderful and beautiful things to see on the Washington side of the Columbia gorge, but in a couple of days, we will get to Mt. St. Helens and maybe even Mr. Rainer. Of course, this time of year, many roads are closed because of the weather so we may have to see the mountains from a distance.

Forgot to mention that we had the second of our two Dungeness crabs for supper with a bottle of Washington Gewurztraminer. We bought this and a Riesling at a Wal-Mart a couple of days ago. It was under $6.00 a bottle and we buy it at home for over $10. Yeepee. The crab was great too.

A very late entry....

If you have been following our blog and wondered what happened to it, never fear, it’s not your computer. I just haven’t finished one in time to post it before we move on. We have been dry camping ever other night, so no WiFi. Internet withdrawal has definitely set in.

Our adventures yesterday (Monday, May 16) took us to Salt Lake City where, as I said, we hoped to see the Mormon Temple and the Great Salt Lake. I speak for myself when I say that I would have liked to park and walk around some of the numerous Mormon buildings (Cliff offered to drop me off and then he’d circle) and get some remarkable pictures of the Temple, but there were NO parking spaces to be found. After circling the block several times, I gave up and admitted that I really didn’t care all that much. It would have been nice to have a couple of weeks to spend in the genealogy building – but some other time maybe. The state capitol building looks a lot like the Notre Dame Cathedral but I couldn’t get a picture of it because of the trees surrounding it. The interstate skirts the GSLake but we were not able to see it. When I go back to visit the genealogy library, I’ll also visit the lake.  Right!  Upon seeing all of the buildings in downtown Salt Lake City owned and dedicated to the Latter Day Saints, I was reminded of the Scientologists and how they bought and took over downtown Clearwater. There were well dressed young men standing on the street corner near the temple who looked much like the Scientologists in downtown Clearwater.

Monday night (the 16th) we dry camped in the Wal-Mart RV campground, otherwise known as their parking lot, with several other RVers and truckers in the small, attractive town of Twin Falls, Idaho, population 35,000. The store was the fanciest Wal-Mart we have ever seen (and newest). However, the only thing important to us was a flat spot to park so the fridge would not crap out. The Snake River has made a dramatic impact on Twin Falls just as the Colorado made an impact on the Grand Canyon. We walked out onto the bridge crossing the gorge and I took LOTS of pictures. After seeing a golf course overlooking the river gorge, we both came to the same conclusion: What a water hazard! 

We had a day of surprises today (Tuesday, May 17) – we got misplaced twice (not lost, because I’m here on the Internet posting to our blog) and also took a side trip that netted us almost 100 miles that were outside our travel budget. But all was not lost since we managed to recover our route nicely.

Today’s mileage was 547 miles, for a grand total of 2,156. My butt hurts. Today we had some sunshine (not much), rain, sleet and snow. Oh, and some strong winds – again.

Tonight (Tuesday, the 17th) we are camped in the nicest campground that we have experienced. It is Crown Villa in Bend, OR, and I will be putting my comment on their website tomorrow. We washed and dried clothes, Cliff had Beanie Weenies for supper, and it rained. That sums it up. Since we entered Oregon, we have seen a lot of flooding. The guy who pumped our gas (no self-serve in Oregon) said they have had some of all forms of precipitation in the last few weeks. As he was telling us this, we could see his breath vapors.

We headed to Crater Lake Wednesday and after that we will seek excitement in and around Oregon and Washington. My shoes were inappropriate for the climb up the snow hill to see Crater Lake in person. As a matter of fact, because my shoes were terribly wrong for the job, I fell upon my butt-a-cuss and wet my pants. No, not that kind of wet. Cliff however got to the top of the snow hill and took some really nice photos. See insert and see more on Facebook. We had lunch (hot dogs) in a parking lot near the scene of the “accident” (my fall). No, I was not hurt – bruised but not hurt – unless you count my dignity. However, now my butt really hurts. I was not happy to get that close to Crater Lake and not be able to ford the snow to see it in person. Grrrrrr.

We did some backtracking around the park (it’s huge) and we are now in yet another Wal-Mart RV lot. It’s easy to find the flat spots in the parking lot. Look for other RVs. We think that Wal-Mart must be aware of this phenomenon and have planned their parking lots accordingly. After all, if you can afford a motor home like the one parked in front of us right now (towing a Honda Pilot) you are going to need supplies. It has worked out well for us for our stocking up and dry camping. Tomorrow night we will look for a place that charges and has WiFi.

We’re on our second audio book, both by the same author. It’s a great distracter, unless I get so distracted that I forget to pay attention to the GPS/map and we go astray. Well, it happens. Grrrrr, again. Maybe DUH.

The many miles that we traveled to get to Crater Lake proved to be filled with scenes of snow the likes of which I have never seen. The annual snow fall in this national park is over 40 feet. As we went toward the park, I took numerous pictures of snow drifts that were MUCH higher than the motor home. When we left the rim it had begun to snow. That’s two days in a row that we have been snowed on. Two Floridians – what’s wrong with this picture?

We have calculated that we have approximately five to six days to spend in Oregon and Washington. We want to go along the Pacific coast to see if we can get some Dungeness crabs, and then Mt. Hood and the “Fruit Loop”, and Mt. St. Helen. There is a big issue with road closures this time of the year. Once we enter Canada, it will take us most of six days to get to Anchorage. We don’t want to cut it too close on the Anchorage end of the trip. Well, mostly because we found a couple of very good restaurants on our trip last year and by that time we will be looking forward to a meal cooked by someone else. However, the fresh salmon last year was the very BEST food ever.