ANOTHER TRIP ENDED TOO SOON

Well, from the title you can tell something happen.  This time it's not any RV breakdowns but issues back home.  A little background.  Cathie's father has dementia and is cared for by in-home caregivers around the clock.  After leaving Canada, Cathie was in pretty regular contact with the caregivers, receiving updates on her father.  She was receiving some reports that things were not going smoothly, so we decided to cut the trip short and head home.  We figured with hard driving we could be home in 4 days.

As we headed southwest, we kept receiving more troubling reports.  Our son Randy was asked to go and check on the situation.  Then one of the night caregivers quit.  With Randy covering the nights, he has a full time job, we decided it was best for Cathie to get home pronto.  So we made a slight detour to Omaha. The next day, I put her on a flight home, and I began the much slower trip back with the RV.  Now that we are home, we have got control of the situation with her father.

On my drive home, I slowed way down and took a week to get home.  By going slower I was able to take in a few sights along the way.  I headed south to Amarillo to pick up I-40 for the drive westward.  Amarillo had been on our trip agenda as we had planned on paying a visit to PALO DURO CANYON STATE PARK. This a a deep canyon said to be second only to the Grand Canyon.  I hoped to spend a day there and get in some hiking.  Well, as my (our) luck continued to suck, there had been 7 inches of rain in the days before my arrival and all the hiking trails were closed.  So I took a few pictures, checked out the campgrounds for a future visit and went back to town. 

I did manage to check out Cadillac Ranch, a tourist attraction of sorts along Route 66.  People are able to bring their own spray paint had have at it.  Of course in the tradition of people who tag such things, they also leave a mess.

So after Amarillo, I pretty much headed straight home, taking three more days.  I had intended on taking more time, but approaching storms with high wind warnings encourage me to drive 550 miles on the last day to beat the winds. I did manage to make one stop to stand on the corner in Winslow, Arizona.

And there was a girl my lord in a flatbed Ford, slowing down to take a look at me!

A Nebraska Sunrise

A MEMORABLE VISIT

We’re in Winnipeg primarily to visit my Camino Brother, Len.  Having met in 2015 while walking the pilgrimage on Camino de Santiago in Spain, we have each paid visits to our respective homes.  The connection one has with other pilgrims while walking across Northern Spain is long lasting and a special relationship one can only understand by experiencing the Camino for themselves.  So, we visit Winnipeg and Len and his wife Janet are the best of hosts.

Our first day was spent dodging the rain which we did with a tour along the Red River.  We made a stop at the St Andrews Church Rectory Museum, which depicted the history of the area.  Of course any drive in the countryside wouldn’t be complete without a stop for ice cream at a roadside diner.  The following day, with clear skies, we took a look at downtown Winnipeg with it’s many old historic buildings.  For lunch a Canadian staple Poutine, which if you haven’t tried it, it’s a must at least once. But be carful, it sorta grows on you and the desire for more can be irresistible.  Consisting French fries, brown gravy and cheese curds in it’s simplest and original form, it can be taken up a notch or two with just about any other ingredients one desires.  With a calorie count up to a billion, depending on ingredients, a 500 mile bike ride would be required as a counter measure.

Winnipeg is home to the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League and as luck would have it they were playing a pre-season game later in the evening.  Len just happen to be a fan and a season ticket holder.  So while the girls stayed home to watch a chick flick, the boys headed to the game.  With an official Jets jersey provided by Len, I fit right in with the locals as long as I didn’t start chanting, “we want a touchdown”.  Anyway, a really fast paced game, interrupted about every 10 minutes or so, with the shovel crew skating around the arena scraping off the loose ice.  In the end, Jets win over the Calgary Flame 4 to 1.

Also in store was a trip up to Lake Winnipeg for fish and chips and later because it was my birthday, ice cream.  Made from the local fish pickerel it is on par with any good white fish.  The area around the lake that we visited is home to what seemed like thousands of “cabins” owned by local families.  On our visit, most are vacant as the beach season is over in Manitoba.

We were treated like royalty during our stay, with many home cooked meals prepared by Janet.  Before leaving, Len, who considers himself a vintner of fine wines, gifted me two bottles of his Pilgrim’s Merlot.  At the appropriate time, each will be opened for a toast to Len, Janet and to Pilgrims everywhere.

As I write this, we are now at Itasca Lake State Park, in Minnesota.  It is here where the mighty Mississippi begins in long and winding journey to the Gulf of Mexico.  You can walk across the river at it’s source, but with the wind blowing and the air temperature hovering around 45, we opted to stay dry.  After our visit here we will be heading south looking for warmer climes and more opportunities to take a hike, ride a bike or paddle a kayak.

THE PUSH NORTH

In the past it was our custom when leaving on a trip to leave early, like “oh dark thirty” early.  Our thought was to get through the desert, which you must past through to get just about anywhere from Southern California, before the heat.  So up and out the door at 4 was our mantra.  As we got older the departure time began to be later and since we’re retired, what’s the rush anyway.  So instead of trying to get 500 miles under our belts on the first day, we usually settled for a respectable 350.

But this trip is different.  We are headed to Winnipeg, Canada to visit my Camino Brother Len and his wife Janet.  It’s 2000 miles from home to Winnipeg and we want to get there and then back south before winter sets in.  Now, Len tells me the weather is fine and it won’t be winter for some time.  But in the next sentence he’s telling me about how they winterized their cabin at the lake on the 1st of September.  Why is this Len?  Then I find out he has winterized his RV.  I’m thinking it’s not called Winterpeg for no reason, so we’re gonna get there, stay about a week and get outta there before it’s time to go ice fishing.  This past winter Len sent me a message one day saying the it was colder in Winnipeg than at the North Pole!  I’m not taking any chances.

So, we’re out the door at 4 am heading north on I-15.  With a stop for breakfast in Victorville and fuel in Barstow we pretty much drove straight through to Beaver, Ut.  After an overnight there, we continued on to Laramie, WY for a quick visit to our grandson McKyle who is a student at the University of Wyoming. (Go Pokes).  He has only been there for two weeks, but Cathie was all ready missing him so we had to stop.  We got a tour of the campus, took a look at McKyle’s cramped living conditions in the dorm.  We shared a couple of meals, giving him a break from a collage student’s menu of Top Ramen, before continuing north.

As is our custom we try to stay of secondary roads on our travels which we did after leaving Laramie.  Years ago I read a book called Blue Highways by William Least-Heat Moon.  He wrote about his journey in a van around the US, traveling on highways the on road maps were in blue as opposed to the major routes that were depicted in red.  It is a better way to see America and it our preferred way of exploring our country.

So we continued north traveling through vast cattle ranches in Wyoming.  We overnighted in Spearfish, South Dakota then onward as the landscape leveled out in the Dakotas and the ranches gave way to vast fields of hay, corn and soybeans.  This is the American Heartland.  More recently called “fly over country”, to me this is the best of our country.  Friendly people who wave as they pass going the other directions.  The woman who was working in her garden who stands and waves to us as we pass.  Small towns where the gas station attendant still pumps the gas and washes your windows.  Where many communities offer campsites free or a small fee for an overnight stay.  My kind of travel.

A MUST STOP

FREE CAMPING

Our last day before arriving Len and Janets was spent dodging thunderstorms.  The weather report said it was a possibility later in the day, but a few arrived early.  So by watching the radar on the iPad we were able to pull over and seek shelter beside a building as the storm approached.  So, we waited out several storms in local coffee shops and what was to be a 4 hour drive turned into 8.  But eventually we arrived a Len and Janet’s and we are now safely ensconced in their driveway enjoying some fine Canadian hospitality.

UPDATE....UPDATE

Well, we have good news.  No, British Air didn't send a special flight just for us, but they did refund all of our airfare.  The car rental refunded everything we paid them as did our hotel in London.  Also the Mac's Adventures, with whom we booked our walk, refunded 50% of our fee.  And today, the trip insurance folks, Allianz Global Assistance, approved our claim in full and in 10 days!  The have already deposited the funds directly into our bank account.  So when all is said and done, we only lost the experience of going, we didn't loose any money.

WE'RE OFF TO ENGLAND.......OPPS, NO WE'RE NOT

After months of planning, reservations and deposits made, we were headed off to England for 5 weeks.  The plans included a 12 day walk on the Cleveland Way, then a rental car for the rest of the trip with stays in B&B's in various locations.  We're all set, Right?..............Not if British Air has anything to say about it.

Turns out the pilots decided to go on strike.  And for how long is this strike you ask?  It's only three days and those days are not consecutive.  Huh?  Yep, that how they strike in the UK, a day here, a day there.  As luck would have it one of the days they picked was September 9th.  Well we were leaving on the 8th, so we should be good to go.  Nope, not so fast.  You see, we leave on the 8th, but we would still be in the air on the 9th and rather than having the pilots just leave the cockpit mid-flight, our flight was cancelled.  Oh, British Air said that they would re-book us, but since they were on strike the 9th, we couldn't get re-booked until the 10th......maybe.  That would mean that we would arrive on the 11th, the day we were to check in to our first lodging at the start of our walk, in Northern England.  Well, that was impossible and with 12 nights of hotels and B&B's booked for each night of our walk, that just sucked.  So we decided to cancel.  There's always next year, right?

Anyway, British Air is refunding our tickets and because they couldn't get us there in time, they have to give us $700 each for the convenience.  We've got trip insurance, so we should be reimbursed for lost deposits.  The outfit that set up our walk refunded half their charges and trip insurance will pick up the rest.  So, on the bright side, we'll be $1400 ahead once everything gets paid back.

What to do now?  You guessed it, we'll hook up the RV and get out of town.  We leave in a week and figured we might make it to New Orleans, since we cancelled going there last year.  Since Winnipeg, Canada is on the way, if you take the long route, we will stop in there for a visit with my fellow pilgrim Len and his wife Janet.  Minnesota sounds interesting in the Fall, perhaps some kayaking in one of the 10,000 lakes.  Of course our Grandson left for collage last week, so we'll have to swing by the University of Wyoming on the way a pay him a visit.  And who knows where we'll end up.  That  folks, is why its called, Gassaway's Adventures.

Stay tuned.........................

2019 RV TRIP PART THREE

Well everyone, here is the third and final episode of this spring's RV trip.  Enjoy, and give it a thumb's up if you liked it.

2019 RV TRIP VIDEO PART 2

I've already written in an earlier blog post all about our stay in Moab, but here is the second installment in the RV Trip video series.  The reason for the videos to be in a series is to keep them short.  Hopefully then you'll actually watch them.  As for myself when watching YouTube videos, they have to be short to keep me interested.  Unless their really good, about 10 minutes is my max.  Anyway, enjoy!

THE LATEST VIDEO

Well, we've been home a week now, so I guess I should get caught up on the blog and edit all that video footage I took.  I have managed to make the first installment in the video department, so that will pretty much be this post.  I'm trying something new with my videos, narration.  The hardest part is to remember to actually do some narration with each segment, but I'm trying.  Someday I'll break down a get a good video editing program and quit using what comes with windows, which causes me all kinds of problems.  There is a big learning curve with these videos, especially with an old fart like me.  So, here it is, comments and suggestions appreciated.

JUST ANOTHER RV TRIP

If you follow us on Facebook, you know we are in the RV traveling around the West.  If you’re not into social media, this update is for you.

We headed out a couple of weeks ago with our eyes on Eastern Nevada and Utah and so far were on track with those plans with just a couple of hiccups.

After a overnight in Las Vegas we took the road less traveled and visited several state parks in Eastern Nevada.  We found a spot to settle in for a few days at Cathedral Gorge.  A great little campground with electrical hookups for the RV.  The park is great for exploring on foot as there are many narrow slots in the cliffs one can enter and follow to the end.

Cathedral Gorge

After several days, we pulled up stakes and continued north with the intent of exploring Great Basin National Park.  One of the least visited parks, it’s out in the middle of nowhere.  We had been there once before in the fall for just one night and we always wanted return.  Turns out the fall is the best time to visit as most of the park was closed due to the heavy snowfall this year.  We were really disappointed as the camping was limited so we overnighted in a gas station RV park and figured out where to go next.

I found a interesting looking campground on-line near Nephi, Utah, so we were off.  In researching the possibilities of hikes and things to do near our selected campground, the Mt. Nebo Loop road looked like a great place to explore.  With lots of trail heads and Forest Service campgrounds, we figured we could spend 4 or 5 days there.  After reading that the campground often fills up in the early afternoon we made our way there post haste.  Turned out there was no need to rush and there was only one other camper present.  Why is this?  Well, due to the winters heavy snowfall ours was the only campground open and the Loop road was closed.  Where have we heard this before.

A WALK IN PROVO CANYON

Next we spent a couple of nights near Provo where we picked up a few things at Costco.  We also met up with friends Jeff and Lynne, who both volunteer with me on the USS Midway.  We were then off to Moab, one of our favorite spots in the Southwest.  Moab is popular and at times you have to arrive early to score a prime camping spot.  Most of the public campgrounds are operated by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and reservations are not accepted.  There are 637 camping spots in the greater Moab are, so you can usually find a spot.  You can opt for a private RV park, but expect to pay $70 and up for a spot.  Since I refuse to pay that, we most always opt for the BLM camps.

One thing we noticed right away upon arriving in town was the it was way more crowded than usual.  We keep our fingers crossed and we lucked out with a site at Goose Island Campground, just a couple of miles from town and right on the river.  When I mentioned to the camp host about the crowds, he told me that on the weekend everyone of the 637 campsites was occupied.  Town was a zoo, and the line to get into Arches National Park stretched to about 300 yards.  That being said, we were still able to get away from the crowds.

Besides many marked hiking trails, like to Corona Arch, there are other choices if you just want to explore.  Many times we just find some canyon off the side of the road and start walking.  It’s one sure fire way to avoid the crowds and over the years we have found some really beautiful places.  We found two such canyons and walked them both.

First the hike to Corona Arch

Up the Moki Steps

Then the ladder

Colorado River

Jug Handle Arch

Unknown Canyon Hike

This One Didn’t Return

From Moab, we will head south to Bluff, but that will be in the next episode.