A
BBtJ.Org
Site
Bring Back the Joy --- B B t J . O r g
|
WESTWARD HO TO OREGON TRIP DIARY (March 10- 15)
Hi, Folks. Mark and I are headed to Bend, Oregon. I write this journal to share with my readers what it is travel/live in a RV. Several of you have commented that you might like to try the RV lifestyle after retirement. Thursday, March 10, 2005 Leaving Tulsa This was a busy morning. We had decided to get up about normal time. It always takes me more time to get prepared that it does Mark. At least this time we didn't actually have to pack a suitcase. I had to finnish battening down the hatches in the kitchen. Which means putting away the dishes I washed yesterday, putting the plants in the sink, putting bread machine and the roaster oven on the floor and putting the skillet and griddle in the upside down stool. I've come up with this system on how to travel. It gets easier and more organized with every trip we take. We had nearly everything ready by 9:30. Yesterday we had located a steel company where we could buy some steel "plates" to use as blocks under the bus. When we park (for more than overnight), we need to level the RV. It makes for better quality of life when one is level. We needed to go by a bank and also pick up the steel. We got back to the park about 20 minutes before check out time. We let them know that we were leaving as soon as we got the suspension system aired up so we could pull out. Mark had aired it up yesterday and drove off the blocks (so we could put them away). Several of them are coming with us and others we left with the truck which is staying in Oklahoma for now at the home of friends. 12:40 pm We pulled out of the RV park. We went west on Hwy 412, deciding it would be easier to go on a "big" road to connect to I35 where we went north to Salina. We were pleasantly surprised that the tolls weren't any higher than they were. At least we are only 4 axles. Yes, Bussie is towing Tracker. Food is an interesting fact of traveling. I made sandwiches before we left. Then we munched on Cheerios and raisins during our drive. We don't cook while we are driving. While technically possible, it's not very safe to do. I can testify having a yellow stain our pale green carpet because last December, Mark made a sharp turn without warning me and I dropped a mustard covered slice of bread on the floor in the effort to keep myself from falling. Since that experience, I only get out of my passenger chair when I really want something or can't wait to use the bathroom. About 25 miles north of where we turned onto I35, Mark asked if I'd like to drive. That's something I've avoided doing. But I need to learn how so if there is a need, I would be able to drive it. I was sitting in the driver's seat listening to Mark explain the gauges when there was a knock on the window. A policeman had stopped to check on us. Mark replied that he was teaching me to drive while we were on straight roads. We were surprised that he didn't ask us for ID and stuff like they normally do. He didn't ask if I had a learning permit. To make a long story short, I drove about 35 miles to just north of McPherson, KS. Wished I'd had time to call my friend Elly that lives there. Sorry, Elly! I do love it that "nowadays" we can communicate by email and telephone so I didn't actually miss an opportunity to communicate. I can't tell you how many times I've waved as we pass exits to where friends live. 9:55 pm We pushed ourselves onward to Goodland for the night. Mark actually wanted to go to Burlington, CO but...I'd wanted to get to bed by 10:00 pm. I'd resigned myself to that not happening. After fueling, we discovered that the truck parking lot had only back in spots. We finally found a curb up front that technically wasn't a parking spot but we could pull alongside and make it work. We can't back up with the tow vehicle. Unhooking is not something we like to do if we don't have to. We will unhook in Denver as we have errands to do. Including that we have to do something about our water pump. When I went to perform my bedtime ablutions--no water. Mark had the last word for the evening. As we crossed into Mountain time zone just before Goodland, Mark was able to say he got me to bed by 10:00 pm since we turned out the light a few minutes before. Friday, March 11, 2005 Goodland to Denver 6:00 am Well, we almost had a full night's sleep. We didn't take much time getting ready. Since I'd forgotten to change the time on my clock, I actually got us up at 5:00 am. I can't say much about the drive to Denver. Except at one point, Mark discovered he had left the ignition of the Tracker locked. So we wore some of the tread off the tires. We can't tell that there was any other damage. 10:38 am We were able to find a temporary parking spot in the truck lot of the Denver Flying J on Airport Blvd in Aurora. That's the one we always used when we lived there. (We lived a few miles south.) Mark was most concerned about getting food before we started running around. We decided to eat the buffet rather than order from the menu. It saves time plus one chooses from a variety of food. I've found that truck stop food is generally pretty good. Our first errand was to go to IFM Grace Coach. We'd called ahead to see if they had everything we needed to do an oil change. Joe gave us a discounted price which was much appreciated. We were also able to get the air filters cleaned. Our time at Grace Coach was well spent. Pete Zanetti who has retired happened to be there so we were able to update his info for our mailing list. We also had a good chat with Robert Lopez who is the pastor of New Vision Christian Assembly in Thornton. This is a Spanish speaking congregation that split off from another church last year. I gave him the information for another "new" Spanish church in Aurora. He indicated that he would be interested in having us speak sometime when we are in the Denver area. We assured him that although we don't speak much Spanish, we have had worked with translators in the past. I made some phone calls while waiting on Mark. One friend asked me if my computer worked on the road. The answer is that I can work on it by plugging into the inverter. However, I can't connect to the world. The satellite dish only works when stationary and when the generator is on. The manager who handled credit card sales wasn't there when the work was finished. They agreed that we could leave Bussie in their lot for a few hours while we did errands. By our return time, he would be there. 3:00 pm We left Bussie and went to our banks at the intersection of Chambers and Hampden in south Aurora. We'd decided to close out our safety deposit box. They're great to have but not practical for full-time RVers because one is never "there." We've wished for something several times--fortunately nothing urgent. We plan to buy a fireproof safe. Granted, a thief might walk off with it but... Was nice to see the tellers at the banks; we have used World Savings for about 15 years and First United for 10. Right now we're banking by mail--it works. I was so intent on getting the banking done that I totally spaced out Vitamin Cottage at the same intersection. That would have been convenient. My brain figured we would have some time on Saturday morning and could stop before going to the cell group meeting (we used to attend regularly when we lived in Aurora). I had expressed that hot dogs at Costco would be tasty. We had received our key deposit back at the bank so blew it on 2 hot dogs and a Polish (sausage) plus a berry smoothie and a Churro. For 16 years I've been wondering if the Churros were any good so Mark decided this was as good a time as any to satisfy my curiosity. (When my sister took Spanish in high school, we tried making churros. They were greasy but good.) We made it back to Grace Coach about 5:00 pm. Talked a bunch more before driving back to the Flying J accompanied by a beautiful sunset. Mark found a spot to park while I took the Tracker over by the restaurant where cars normally park. Mark needed to park at the front of the space so the satellite dish could peek out over neighboring trucks. We weren't going to risk parking Tracker behind and getting hemmed in by trucks. I am constantly amazed at how well truck drivers do to park in small spaces (about 2 feet apart) and never seem to hit anyone. We celebrated the evening by watching Star Trek Enterprise. Then went to bed after that was over. It was a long but okay day. Saturday, March 12, 2005 Day in Aurora Decided to make boiled eggs for breakfast. No pan to clean. Mark suggested boil extra so we could have them later. I thought this was a good idea; presumably we will get to a grocery store in the next couple of days. I'd made homemade whole wheat bread on Wednesday as a last minute chore while I still had electricity. Bread came out okay in Hominy but it has been odd in Tulsa. Like I've used too much water or not enough flour. It tastes fine but is crumbly. The only thing I can think of is that I've been grinding my own flour so it's different. Obviously I'll have to experiment some more. A Testimony: Our morning was spent figuring out the problem with the water pump. Mark got out his voltage meter and found it did have power, When he took out the pressure switch and wired directly, the pump turned. Obviously, the pressure switch was bad. We started a hunt for that. Camping World didn't have them and sent us to Nolan's RV. They couldn't get one from their supplier on a weekend. They wanted to sell us a new pump--which was on sale at a very good price but it also wasn't as good a pump as ours. Mark decided to go back to the bus. The worry was that if we needed to leave water dripping because of low temperatures, it wouldn't work with this jury-rigged pumping procedure. Mark put the old pressure switch back on. Then decided we should go back to buy the Shurflow pump. We jumped into the car but before we were very far, Mark said "we never tested the switch after we put it back." I remember that I'd had the thought (before we got home) that we needed to turn it on after he put it back in. Anyway, we decided to return to the RV and try it. It worked! So whether there was something blocking the hole or if God performed a miracle, I don't know. But I do know that we both prayed about the situation and asked God for help. Because we hadn't had electricity or generator power, we went into the Flying J for showers. We were carrying so much stuff that Mark had to go back to get the bag in which we carry things like soap. We cut Mark's hair as long as we were in a place that we could easily clean up. We normally cut his hair outside so the wind can carry away the little hairs. I'd wanted to do that so he wouldn't look scraggly to see the Motosat people or when we arrive in Bend. 1:00 pm The cell group we used to attend was meeting at the Armstrong's house this afternoon. As we jumped into the car, we were accosted by a man who said he assumed we are Christian. We said yes. He said he'd woken up to a view of our bus with the words "Let the Four Winds Blow" on the front (we plan to change that one of these days); he'd been pondering it all morning. Apparently there is a scripture in the Bible about winds. He asked if we knew about the Bahai Faith. He belonged to an offshoot. They apparently believe that God is sending/has sent several representatives (in addition to Jesus) to earth. They believe in a man named Dr. Leland Jensen who was born in 1914 and I believe died in 1996. I looked it up on the web but didn't have time to read everything. Needless to say, it was an interesting conversation. We enjoyed the cell meeting. They are studying Kay Arthur's lessons on the book of Job. I have read Job many times but many of the things discussed have never been brought to mind. So I have to say that the time was well-spent since it has given me a new perspective for the next time I read it. That should come up in a few weeks/months. ( I'm doing the one-year Bible reading plan.) Our friend and former co-worker, Aldo Ramos, joined us for the last part of the meeting. We were honored that he was willing to drive down from Loveland to see us. One the after-meeting conversation wound down, we headed back to the bus to decide if we were leaving for Cheyenne or staying the night. A winter storm was headed to Wyoming and Colorado. We did pull out at 8:25 pm. I'm not sure where we were on the highway when it started snowing. It blew heavily; however the roads didn't get bad that night because it had been warm during the day. We reached the Flying J at Exit 7 just south of Cheyenne about 10:15 pm--along with every other traveler and trucker. There weren't any spaces in the parking lot that worked for us. We can't back into a spot with a tow vehicle. We noticed that a truck was parked against the curb on the road across from the Flying J. This was a long road with few businesses. We were able to pull up behind the truck (several others joined us before the night was over). As we got ready for bed, I noticed that Mark hadn't pulled one of the curtains. Then laughed that if there were any peeping Toms out in that weather, all he/she would see would be two middle-aged naked fat people. We set the alarm for 4:00 am. Sunday, March 13, 2005 Difficult day driving across Wyoming toward Salt Lake City Or so I thought. The alarm rang at 3:00 am because I hadn't changed the clock to Mountain Time. In resetting it while half awake, I goofed, setting the time to PM so of course the clock didn't ring at 4:00 am. I woke up at 4:23 am. We got ourselves started up the road as soon as we could throw on clothes and get the bus aired up. A few miles outside of Cheyenne (after turning onto Highway 80 from I25), the air pressure suddenly stopped. The low air pressure horn sounded. We did get it off the road as the emergency brakes came on. We didn't know what to do. We tried calling the Good Sam's towing service and were put on hold. Mark decided he should continue trying to figure out what was going on before waiting on hold. So we spent the next three hours getting it going again. I had to hold my foot on the accelerator to keep the motor on high idle. The engine doesn't turn off without air pressure. Mark pullout out the compressor and turned on the generator to add air to the suspension system. He discovered a moisture bleeder valve was frozen open. Once that again seemed to be cycling, we headed out again and got about 50 ft down the road when the air pressure dropped again. This time we got my hair drying out to use for melting the ice. At 8:25 we were on the road again. Went a few miles down the road in a canyon where it froze up again, just before the 5% grade east of Laramie. The temperature went down there. After that, made it to Laramie; fueled at the Shamrock. Got going again at 9:45 am. I opened a can of salmon to make sandwiches for lunch. Sticking to mayonnaise on this trip--last year at the intersection of I 80 and I25, Mark turned the sharp corner and as I went to catch myself, a mustard covered slice of bread fell face down on the carpet. There's still a remnant of stain. Mile 282--froze up again. At least we know what to do. had to stop on a hill as the transmission and motor were getting hot. Our speedometer has quit working. It does that periodically. Hopefully something has just come loose. We're calculating the fuel mileage by the mile markers. We do have our generator going so we can have AC power if we need to use the hair dryer again. We also lost/used extra fuel by having to idle this morning while we thawed out the valve. We've been getting about 5.5 mpg. Exit 282--Rock Springs. Warning to Big Rig RVs--poor planning at this Flying J. The propane facility was built on a carve so long vehicles cannot get close enough to the curb to fill with their short hose. The RV dump is at the beginning of the curb, then the propane and then the diesel tanks. Since the sewer tanks on the bus are on the left side (diesel and propane tanks are on the right side of the bus, one would have to turn around, go through the fueling area to get back to the dump. We decided we should just move on and hope for something better at the next stop. It started snowing again outside of Park City, Southeast of Salt Lake City. We couldn't get propane at Rock Springs, Evanston, or Silver Creek Junction (exit 146). 3-6% grade. As we dropped into the Salt Lake Bowl, the sun came out at 40 degrees. We sure were glad to see that. The Flying J had propane but non-potable water. We did have water but wanted to fill in case we needed to let it drip during the night to keep the pipes moving instead of freezing. We arrived at the Flying J at sundown. After fueling and propaning, we wandered around the neighborhood to find Motosat's address. Addresses in Salt Lake City are confusing because they use a lot of numbers. The streets often do have names but on the street signs they have large numbers and the street name is in small print that is hard to see in the dark. We have Yahoo map instructions to Motosat but we didn't find the street. Got onto a street that did go into the neighborhood and after wandering around a little, did spot the building. Mark fortunately was better at remembering what the complex looked like than I was. We pulled into a parking lot for the night and set the alarm for 6:00 am. Monday, March 14, 2005 Morning in Salt Lake City and travel to Boise, ID. 7:00 am We got up early this morning so we'd be dressed and ready when the Motosat people showed up. Also, we wanted to be prepared to move if anyone complained about where we were parked. Mark turned on the generator, then moved the bus from the front of the building to the side of the building where he could see Motosat's big door. Then he turned on the computers. Ben came to update the software for the modems and the computers. Ed Travis actually went up on the roof to check out the satellite dish. They set the compass and tweaked a few other perameters in addition to updating the software. I had a relaxing morning. Read my Bible. Then started making stuffing for lunch while thawing out turkey pieces. I organized my spice cupboard while looking for the poultry seasoning. After lunch, we left Salt lake. (Sorry I didn't check the time.) We had taken some time to get on the web to check email and print directions to where we plan to stop for the night in Boise and then from Boise to Bend. As I said earlier, the speedometer has quit. So I'm calculating mileage by the mile markers and exits. This section of our trip had distances on three different roads to figure out. 4:00 pm Snowville, UT Mark checked all the fluids again in Snowville while we were waiting for the water tank to fill. The good news is that Bussie has used very little fluid other than diesel--didn't have to fill anything (but the water tank and the diesel tank, ha ha). 7:30 pm Boise, ID I'm the navigator for our expedition. We had already planned to spend the night at Walmart. Good thing! I'd noted that the Flying J was at the same exit. We'd seen billboards claiming that it was at a different exit but didn't see it as we "flew" by so went ahead to exit 50. When we got there, it turned out to be a convenience store gas station. Fortunately, they had diesel and space in which to turn around. Walmart was less than a block to the west so we got there without incident. They even had a designated part of their parking lot for RVs. There were several in the lot. We made a visit to Walmart; didn't have much to buy but it is amazing how much bread, eggs, and lunch meat add up to. We're getting good at the scan it yourself machines. After a light dinner, we called it a night. Tuesday, March 15, 2005 Bend, Oregon--here we come! Our last day on the road. We had a leisurely start this morning. I had awakened about 4:00 am, read a little and then went finally went back to sleep. Didn't wake up again until after 8:00. Shows I was really tired; I'm normally an early riser. Mark had walked over to Lowe's which was in the same shopping center as Walmart. We decided again going out for breakfast. As time was marching on, we wanted to leave the parking lot before cars parked around us, making it hard to maneuver like we need to. I fixed us an egg salad sandwich using the eggs I'd boiled on Saturday. Mark surprised me by saying he thought egg salad was his favorite kind of sandwich. Guess you can still learn something new after 18 1/2 years of marriage. A Jehovah's Witness came by and talked to Mark. Apparently his ministry is talking to people in the Walmart parking lot. 10:15 am Leaving Boise We are now on Hwy 20 in Oregon. I'd never thought about Oregon having a lot of mountains. That was pretty ignorant of me considering all the reading I've done about wagon trains to Oregon. The mountains in the distance are pretty. It's small roads. They say the next gas is 68 miles. We should have enough fuel to make Bend but would like to fill on the road to be safe. Oregon sure looks different from Wyoming. Mountains with little tufts of bushes. There's a creek below where we are driving. It sure is easier going through these mountain passes with our modern covered wagon--I can't imagine how they did it in the "old days." Although the trees are still bare, the grass and weeds are greening up. Lots of bridge work where we have to stop. Drinkwater pass was 4,212 in elevation. 6% grade going down. The climb to Stinking Water Pass was very long. We kept worrying about the transmission and motor temperatures. There weren't any shoulders were we could pull over if we got hot. Fueled at Burns; we paid $2.67/gal. There's a law in Oregon that you cannot pump your own gas. It's been a long time since I've seen a full service gas station. We've noticed that the service isn't as thorough as we remember it being during our childhoods. 130 miles to Bend from Burns. There isn't much out there. The 3 towns we went through were ones where you'd miss it if you blink. One didn't have anything but a dilapidated building. There was an observatory in that area; it's possible that we didn't actually see the town if it was on a side road. We arrived at Bend, OR in mid-afternoon. Chris had assured us that the Walmart in Bend let RVs stay there for more than one day. We found Walmart with a minimal of problems. It wasn't easy without a map; we had directions but they said to turn sound on business 97. Which would have been okay except at the section of road where we intersected, there weren't any street signs. So we did have to drive around for a little bit to figure out we were on the right road. What a relief to be here!!! Back to Virginia's Journal |
> Click Here to find out about Partnering with BBtJ.Org > Click Here for links to supporters who asked to be listed Advertisements: BBtJ.Org does not control the content of the following ads, please use at your own discretion 
If you come back to click here first every time you shop Amazon, it would be much appreciated. It won't cost you any more, but BBtJ.org's finances would benefit. Thanks for your support
|