5C's Que Pasa

Just at bedtime last night one of our two heaters packed it in.  Colin had to go back into Walmart to get another one.

The new heater is on the right. This morning just for the heck of it we checked the dead heater and it was working!!

I know that many of you have a Mr. Buddy heater but how do you make it work?  Have you run a line to your propane tank or ???  At the moment we run two small heaters off the generator or like tonight in an RV Park, off the 50AMP plug plus we run the furnace.

I must also confess to a dumb blonde moment first thing this morning, when I turned the electric kettle on at the same time that I was running the new heater.  I blew the power bar.  It should have had a shut off but it didn’t work.  This was a new power bar just installed after the renos ( which I still will tell you about , only so many hours in a day ).  So once again first thing this morning Colin was off yet again to Walmart to purchase a new black power bar.  They did well off of us for our ‘free’ stay.

It was 32F when we got up this morning but we did get sun coming thru the windows for a bit helping to heat things up.  Sadly we had a Carmeh moment when while we were bringing the slides in she tried to jump up onto a high stool to get to the dash.  Out of the corner of my eye I saw her twist in mid air and fall back on her back.  I screamed at her, upsetting her more than I should have…she seems fine but was most upset as I was.  It is a constant battle with her.  This time it was my fault for not putting the ramp up right away.  We are in such tight quarters that it is almost impossible to move.  I will show photos tomorrow.  Of course once we settle at the Isla, things will be better but still tight compared to how an RV should be.

Finally driving at 7:30AM which was pretty good considering how the day started.  We start out with hot drinks for us and about 90 miles later stop to feed the girls and I make us up a container of fresh fruit, a muffin for Colin and a yogurt for me and our second hot drink of the day to enjoy as we continue our journey.  That brought us into Twin Falls, Idaho about 9AM.

This is the famous Shoshone Falls  area but all I can see from the RV is this gorgeous gorge.  We have never seen the falls nor the full vista as their is no parking for RV’s never mind the size.  The visitor center only has rooms for cars.  One day we will be able to stop, find a place to park and get back to check it all out.

We were barely 20 minutes south of I 84 when we saw snow, more then we have ever seen in all the years heading south this way.  El Nino?

There was no snow at all the end of November last season.

The further south we traveled the more snow we saw.

A real winter wonderland.

As we left Idaho, the snow diminished somewhat.

We fueled up in Wells, Nevada at the highest we have paid for diesel @ 2.739.  It was very cold outside.

It was a cold stop for the girls to do their business.

The roads continued to be in excellent shape.  We only had the one 10 minute road repair delay and Colin did not want to stop for lunch.  So we each feasted on a piece of left over cold pizza which was all that we needed as we continued the drive.  We were anxious to head to our stop for the night because of the impending cold spell.  We had made reservations at an RV Park in Ely, Nevada as we do every year.  As the next 5 nights will be boondocking stops we needed to empty our tanks and to refill with water.  Also this park allows us to send our online orders here which makes for a perfect stop.  Tonight we also needed wanted to set up our dish so we could tape a few shows.  When we arrived at 2:10PM it was already bitterly cold.  However it all got done and already the satellite system has been put away.

By 4 PM we were even able to take a brief walk around the park.  Already 10 more RV’s have pulled in for the night.  Once dinner was over we brought in both of our slides.  We just don’t want to take any chances with frozen awnings.  In 2013 we had a major problem with freezing the morning we left.  The ice did break off the slide as we brought it in but the metal piece that curls around the awning would not curl around as it was frozen.  You can read here how we dealt with that incident and it was only 30F at that time.  As we don’t want a repeat, we are now very very snug inside our RV.  The forecast for tonight taken from a few sources puts us at  between 16F/-8.9C with a wind chill of 5F/-15C to 14F/-10C with a wind chill of 1F/-17C………basically cold 😯  Colin has also placed a heater in the sewer area.  Our basements are supposed to be heated but we don’t want to run the furnace all night.  We will keep the propane water heat on to protect the pipes as best we can.  Each RV is different and we are doing what we think is right for ours.

Today we drove 337 miles.

Be sure to check back tomorrow to see how we survive the cold tonight. This will be the coldest we have experienced.

We did manage a wee walk before we snuggled in for the night.  Our colorful RV certainly stands out from the pack.

Not sure how I got the quote and italics for an entire section but folks it is bedtime and it is cold in here….time to join the other C’s in bed and try and warm up.

We awoke to a chilly 26F/-3.3C.  Thank goodness for our generator which gives two heaters the power to warm us along with running the furnace.  Up at 6:10AM 🙁  and driving an hour later.

We crossed the mighty Columbia River twice before we entered Oregon.

It is a great river, many many years ago we did a repositioning cruise on a Holland America cruise ship as it traveled from Vancouver, BC to Portland, Oregon.  What a great voyage.  I remember sailing past so many private homes, large and small but a part of that river.  The ship was grand but I loved observing the river and all who lived on it as we passed.  I would love to have been a homeowner along the Columbia but at least I was privileged to be an observer.

But today we were traveling by land, not by water.  Next up was the Pendleton Pass through Oregon.  Some years the winds affect us and other years it could be anything.

Today it was a mix of cloud and gloom, drizzle and the odd snow flurry.

Saw this RV along the pass….a great older Wanderlodge. Their message reads “It’s not the destination…”

Several miles further we spied this on the back of a semi…..’Unless you are a hemorrhoid, GET OFF MY ASS! ‘

I would like to know what stories this  old home has to tell.

Lunch was a bowl of butternut squash soup. The girls were waiting for their treats and yes that is a heater in the foreground.

As we left the fueling station we saw this….hard to believe on the Oregon/Idaho border.

As we entered Idaho the sun and blue sky appeared.

Here we changed from PST to Mountain Standard Time but as were back to PST tomorrow when we enter Nevada we are sticking to PST. Just easier all around.

The setting sun as we approached our stop for the night in the Mountain Home, Idaho Walmart. We are always the only RV here. It makes for a good boondock site for us considering our size.

Today was our longest day heading south. It happens because of where to stop and timing, etc. but at 412 miles, once is enough in our journey south.

I’ll see you at the end of the road tomorrow.  Tonight promises to be as cold as last night.

We took our time getting organized and leaving this morning.  It was -3C and we certainly became aware of that fact when we brought the slides in.  Sheets of ice fell off the slideout awnings.  Yup, it was that cold.  Certainly time to turn the wheels toward the south.  We were on the road by 9:15AM.  Pretty good timing with no stress involved.

First stop was at Freightliner in West Kelowna.  We needed to pick up an air filter for the engine which Colin will need to change before we leave Mexico, as well as antifreeze and engine oil. The trip to Winnipeg last June threw us off our regular maintenance schedule.  A ‘posh’ couple were hooking up their hummer to their very expensive Newmar.  Talk about attitude.

It was spectacular to see all the colors of the vineyards. Fall is such a colorful time.

Carmeh was great with the ramps, Caeli not at all.  However Carmeh would not settle down and there was just the one area that she could jump up and down, about 10 inches and she did so repeatedly.  Within 4 hours we had that blocked off. ( I’ll do a photo tomorrow )  We really want her to make it the the beach. She just never stops moving.

Finally after 3 hours she took a nap in the sun on the dash.  So very sweet.

We had a quick stop to pee the girls and make a quick fruit snack for us.  Carmeh needs to stop more often.  Just before Summerland we were honked at and passed by our friends Pat and Gord.  We passed them once when they stopped for lunch and they latter passed us when we stopped for fuel but we never did meet up.  It was also neat to know that friends Janet and Grant were just a few hours ahead of us on the same route, also on the way to Mazatlan.  They are traveling in a car so will get there well before us.

Aha, the US border. Two lanes were open and both only had 2 vehicles ahead of us. It was obvious that the interrogation was serious. Everyone ahead of us was sent to secondary inspection.

The young blond and very handsome border agent asked a multitude of questions in such a fast tone that I missed half of what he said.  Somehow the ‘do you have any alcohol on board’ went over my head for two more questions.  Wait I said, I do have 2 bottles of wine on board.  That did not deter him, who owns this RV, have you ever been jailed, have you ever been convicted of a crime or pardoned for anything, do you have drugs or narcotics on board ( it wasn’t till several miles down the road that I realized that I did have morphine with us in case I need it for Carmeh ), do we have any firearms on board, do we own everything inside, do we have money over $10,00.00, where are we going, how long will we be in the USA…..so rapid fire that my head is still spinning.  Then we were to pull over so that the agriculture guy could come in and check us out.  He only looked at the fridge and freezer, was disappointed that we had nothing illegal.  As he left he asked if we had lamb in the dog food.  That was it.  Welcome to the USA.  Certainly better than last years crossing.

Not long on the road when we saw this. The driver must have fallen asleep at the wheel.  Fortunately by the time we arrived on scene a detour had been conceived so we were not delayed.

We did stop for fuel at one point and it was nice to see that it was a full $1.00 less than last year at this time.  It seemed to take forever to get to our destination for the evening.  We are in the Walmart in Moses Lake, WA and happy to be here.  It is currently 44F and going down to 29F so it will most likely be a cuddle night for the C’s 😉

Unfortunately I had a major issue with my ATT hot spot device. Long story short, I was on the phone with ATT for just under 55 minutes and was dealing with the 4th level of technical service.  Problem solved, not my fault but it did affect me.  Back on line now and as I type this, it is 10PM.  Dishes need to be done and showers taken.  Tomorrow is a long day for us and we need to be on the road at 7AM 🙁

Beautiful scenery just before Soap Lake.

Today we drove from home to Moses Lake, 257.3 miles.

Caught the sunset over the lake just before we landed.

A long day indeed but we are so happy to be on the road in our RV.  We love it.

We are off in the morning.  I had planned to do a post on the RV renovations tonight but the internet is very poor.  So instead I will do my Bon Voyage post which is shorter 😉

We moved into the RV about 3PM when the plumber we hired arrived to blow out the water lines in the house.  We will sleep here tonight and leave at our leisure in the morning.  I am using the free basic wifi provided by Holiday Park resort and it is beyond basic as in archaic.  Carmeh is  happy to be here but Caeli is upset.  She really dislikes the ramps and she is moping and crying a lot and wants me to hold her.

The laptop is on my lap ( sitting in my recliner ) as I type this, as we have put the desktop in a box until we get to the Isla.  I have always used the desktop as we travel so this is a new thing for me as well as learning how to use this new program on the MacAir.  I did use it while in Edmonton but am having a learning curve tonight.  I am tired so it may take a while.

Besides preparing to leave we have been putting the yard to bed including getting our annual hedge trim completed.

Thankfully the RV is ready to roll but even that took effort.  Our mobile RV Tech was here at least six times in the last eight days and yesterday I think he was tired 🙁   He had 3 things to complete and he blew 2 of them.  Oops, Caeli just came and squished in beside me.  Carmeh just keeps playing with her toys.  Back to yesterday….we needed a longer cord to plug in our new power bar under the kitchen counter.  Victor, our tech guy, who is teaching how to be an RV tech at the local college, brought in the piece he had completed at home.  It had two male ends 😯 that was sorted out by adding and extension cord.  Colin will rectify the situation once we are on the road in warmer a place.  Then he went up on the roof to fix our crank open ceiling vent as it would not open.  Turns out is was stuck and brittle from the sun and it broke.  Good thing we have an RV dealership just a mile away and they were open for another 30 minutes.  He picked up the last one that would fit 😀  Victor is a great tech but I think we have asked a lot of him of late and he came through with flying colors.

Sadly our Frankenstein tree did not make it. About 3 – 4 weeks ago we had an extremely strong wind off the lake.  I remember calling Colin at his job and saying how worried I was at how the windows were shaking.  I suspect that was what did our tree in.  I should be more specific, we lost the branch, not the entire tree.  However the tree does look sad on the one side.  I think that the bolt would have held had we not had that horrific wind storm.

Amazingly, today went very smoothly with little stress.  It is nice to have the time to sit and do a post and know that my to do list is done.  Ohh, ohh!!  Now Carmeh wants on my lap.  It is cool in the RV.  We will get down to freezing tonight.  Yesterday there was a snow flurry warning for last night as well as for this morning.  Most fortunately that did not appear.  We were blessed to have the rain fall mostly while we slept making it easier for us to load these past few days.  The last big to do re my Dad’s estate cleared this morning so I am free of that until we return mid April and deal with the taxes.  I am so looking forward to a wonderful winter.

The geese have been active and I think they are gearing up for their voyage south.  Saw a group of three different ducks on the lake yesterday, must be passing through.  Sad to leave and miss the changing of the seasons but so much to look forward to as we head south.  One day we will have to stay here and I will enjoy that time when it comes.  Meanwhile it appears that our first three nights on the road are going to be chilly with the last night in Nevada being downright freezing, as in -9c!

It is beautiful at this time of year but the time has come to move on.

At this time of my life I would rather be watching a sunset on a warm Mexican beach than snow on a mountain top.

The time has come to bid a fond adieu to my Canadian home.  Please feel free to check back and follow our adventures as we head south.

Adios amigos.

With all the packing and carrying things out of the house the girls are becoming increasingly upset.  Carmeh paces a lot and won’t settle down.  The minute one of us comes back in from the RV they want attention but we are constantly going back and forth.

Usually we keep them in the RV with us but first off it is not Carmeh proof yet.  Colin is in the process of constructing ramps.  However we need the dogs pens blocking the rest of the furniture in the house at the moment so it is not as easy to bring them back and forth as it used to be.  We are still in the process of figuring out how they can have freedom without jumping.  The other thing is that with the repair guy going in and out it just doesn’t work.  Enough for me to keep him from walking on the newly cleaned carpets ( which still aren’t 100% dry due to the humidity ) with his wet shoes.

The RV tech has come everyday this past week except Friday.  He was there for a longtime yesterday and will come for a final time ( I sure hope so ) Monday.  We now have electricity, a working generator and a working awning.  The broken basement latch has been fixed enough to get us by without the door flying open as we travel the highway.  A new one has been ordered as well as a few other RV parts and we will pick those up at the RV Park in Ely.

The food, other than transferring the fridge ingredients, is in and put away.  Today I’ll concentrate on clothes and bathroom items.  The heavy rain is over and we are at  30% possibility of showers today and Monday with sun on Tuesday which is perfect.  At this point it is all coming together.  Sadly my eyes start acting up for no reason at various times throughout the day and I have to stay away from the computer and walk around the house with sunglasses one.  Frustrating and painful.  No way can I edit photos at this time.

Back to work 😎