Whew! It's Been A Few Weeks Hasn't It?

It’s been over a month since I last updated the blog so I’m going to try and get all caught up…

July 21^st, 2017

While still in Sioux Falls we went and saw the movie Dunkirk. Sometimes when we are camped for a few days in the same place we will all go see a current movie instead of sitting in the RV all day and when we haven’t anywhere else in mind to explore in the area. The movie was so-so. Lots of action but told from many different perspectives making it hard to follow.

July 22^nd, 2017

Just another down day spent in the RV doing laundry and getting ready to move on.

July 23^rd, 2017

Time to go! We traveled north to Fargo, ND and spent the night in a Wal-Mart parking lot. We needed to do some shopping and we decided to go thru North Dakota just because we had time and had never been here. We went in looking for a T shirt that had something to do with Fargo but there was nothing. It seemed every other Wal-Mart we ever visit always has shirts dealing with wherever we are but now that we want one there are none to be found.

July 24^th, 2017

Left Wal-Mart headed to the General Sibley National Park outside Bismarck, ND. The park is beautiful with many spaces and right next to the Missouri River. We saw lots of deer around the area.

General Sibley Park

General Sibley Park

General Sibley Park

July 25^th, 2017

We all went on a tour of Fort Abraham Lincoln which is situated on a hill overlooking the Missouri River. This is the location where Colonel George Custer was stationed before leaving and leading troops down to the battle of Big Horn. There is a very nice replication of the Mandan Indian tribe’s village also located here.

July 26^th , 2017

Today we stayed in camp and caught up on chores before walking around the campground to see the river and surrounding park.

July 27^th, 2017

Today was a travel day to Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. The park is divided into 2 parks. North and South. We camped in the North and hit a traffic jam going in. Sara says she counted in the neighborhood of 40 buffalo blocking our path into the campground until they decided to move off the road. We even had them in our camp early mornings or evenings a few days.

July 28^th, 2017

We spent the day traveling to Theodore Roosevelt National Park – South. There is a great tourist information center located outside the park with a fantastic view of the land. We all agreed the north end of the park was the place to camp after driving thru the southern half. Not as many trees and wildlife like back in the northern section. Well worth the extra fuel to drive there.

Carl dressed in buffalo hat at Slant Indian Village

Ft. Abraham Lincoln Outpost

July 29 – 30th , 2017

Today we traveled to Sleeping Buffalo Hot Springs, Montana. Out in the middle of nowhere lies a large building housing a pretty big swimming pool, 2 Jacuzzi’s and steam room. One of the Jacuzzis is hot at 106 degrees and the other feels freezing cold as you enter it but is not bad after coming out of the steam room. We spend our days in the pool and nights are spent inside the motor home as we all found out about mosquitoes. They were big enough to carry a small dog off and were relentless. In the time spent to dump my tanks before leaving I think I got at least 10 bites between my ankles and knees as big as dimes and bright red that didn’t heal for about 5 days. We loved the pool and spa but were mighty happy to be moving on.

July 31^st, 2017

We traveled to Chester, Montana today. We heard about this quaint little town with a park centered in the middle and the town actually advertised camping at the park. Camping was free but they asked for donations. Nice green grass, no connections and very quiet. Perfect for an overnight stay.

Chester, MT City Park

August 1^st, 2017

Headed to Helena, Montana to see our friends, Tom and Lydia. They have a beautiful home at the end of a quiet street with enough property for a small RV park. They had an area all picked out for us to camp for a few nights before heading out to Glacier National Park. With their place being close to town we were able to replenish groceries and supplies.

Montana State Capitol Building

A house built during the gold rush days in Helena

Downtown Helena

Saturday Farmer's Market in Helena

August 2^nd, 2017

When we spent last winter in Quartzsite, AZ where we first met Tom and Lydia they introduced us to Jim and Sue, another couple from Helena. Jim and Sue stopped by last night and Jim invited us to go on the “Gates Of The Mountains” tour given by himself. Today we all headed a few miles down to the boat dock where Jim had arranged for all of us to go on a personal tour led by himself on a tour boat that held about 100 people and we had it all to ourselves.

The “Gates Of The Mountains” refers to the location where Lewis & Clark first entered the mountains via the Missouri River into what is now the Helena, Montana valley. As they paddled their canoes along the river it appeared the straight cliff walls opened up like a gate to allow them passage. It’s very cool to see from a boat. Also in the immediate area is the location of the Mann Gulch Forest Fire that on August 5^th, 1949 overran and killed 13 Montana Smoke Jumpers. That event was the start of many changes made to the way we fight fires today.

Our cruise ship for the tour

Memorial for the 13 Montana Smoke Jumpers who perished in the Mann Gulch Forest Fire just around the bend

The opening Meriwether Lewis saw as he paddled up the river past the Gates To The Mountains

Hieroglyphics from Indians left along the river bank 

August 3^rd, 2017

Today was spent on a train tour of the city of Helena. We saw many old homes from the gold mining era as well as huge mansions the early settlers lived in. The tour is very informative and quite entertaining. It starts and ends right next to the state capitol building. After the tour we headed over to the Brew House for a quick lunch and that evening was spent across the street from Tom and Lydia’s at their neighbors, Ken and Terry. Ken had prepared a BBQ of Moose meat as well as many salads and desserts. It was quite the feast as we sat around consuming wine and tasting local foods. In the evenings we normally sit outside until dark (about 10pm) discussing whatever comes up.

August 4^th, 2017

The biggest excitement today was going to see the latest Spiderman movie. Did a little shopping at the local gun shop and relaxed.

August 5^th, 2017

When we took the train tour of the town of Helena we were told there were many shops in town who gave away little goodies with proof we had ridden the train so today was spent on a walking tour of downtown going from shop to shop to collect all our goodies. Most were little trinkets associated with whatever shop we were in but it was fun to see the main street and shopping area. The end of the walk just so happened to be right outside an ice cream shop. Bet you can’t figure out what we did before going back to the car!

August 6^th, 2017

Today was spent watching the Nascar race and then later that afternoon going with Tom up to a little town called York for burgers. After dinner Tom drove us back up in the mountains to see if we could spot any wildlife. We found many cows grazing the open land but never saw any deer, antelope or Big Horn Sheep. Sara did spot a bear alongside the road as we drove past but he disappeared before we could back up and watch him.

August 7^th, 2017

Stayed around the coach so Kathy could do laundry and I could do a little motor home maintenance.

August 8^th, 2017

Nothing new today. When we arrived in Helena our thought was to stay a few days and then head to Glacier National Park but that all changed after the first few days. After chatting with most of the locals we had come in contact with we quickly realized that a trip to Glacier was going to be a nightmare if we went. We were told the traffic on the roads we wanted to drive while in the park were bumper to bumper crowded and getting an RV site that would accommodate our large RV’s would be a problem. Based on this info we decided to wait till next year, make reservations and come during the off season. Thus the extended stay in Helena.

August 9^th, 2017

The day was spent touring the Lewis and Clark Caverns. A ¾ mile hike to the entrance, a ½ mile trek through the cavern and a ¾ mile hike back. I think we wore Kathy out today. Since her torn ligament adventure last year this was her first long hike. She did great and slept well that night. Tom took us down to Butte and Whitehall, MT where he grew up as a kid. The entire area is now depressed and the occupants barely get by on what they can earn since the mines have all been shut down. It used to be a huge copper mining area in it’s heyday!

Lewis & Clark Caverns

August 10^th, 2017

Just another day spent around the house and RV’s doing nothing but relaxing. Isn’t that what retirement is all about?

On Our Way Home To South Dakota

Tuesday, July 11^th, 2017

After arriving yesterday to the Southern Hills RV Park in Hermosa, SD we are having a down day today. Time to catch up on a few small maintenance issues and relax.

Sunset over the Black Hills of South Dakota

Left to right Sara, Michael & Kathy in front of Kennedy, Reagan & Bush

Wednesday, July 12^th, 2017

Spent the day in Hot Springs, SD at the Mammoth Site archeological dig where they found over 60 fossilized Wooly Mammoth remains. The story is a bull-dozer was being utilized to help prepare an area for a new housing project to be built when they happened across some bones. After realizing what they had found the whole project was sidelined in favor of preserving the bones and history of the area. It’s quite an impressive dig where you can go see and volunteer a few days or weeks helping dig. Everything is housed inside a building where they uncover so many bones that they spend just the month of July digging and the rest of the year removing and cataloging their treasures. After the tour of the site we headed next door to the Wooly’s Restaurant for lunch. Then off to the town of Hot Springs to talk to a realtor about property in the area for sale where we might make a summer travel location and home.

Panoramic of the Wooly Mammoth site

Wooly Mammoth teeth. They only have 4. 2 top and 2 bottom.

Complete Mammoth skeleton

Carl in front of Wooly Mammoth skeleton

Thursday, July 13^th, 2017

We didn’t have a lot of plans so we headed into Rapid City, SD (about a 20 minute drive) to go see the Wonder Woman movie. Not a top 10 flick but knowing the leading lady (Gal Gadot) was crowned Miss Israel at age 18 and was a combat trainer as a soldier in the Israel army made it more interesting and easy on the eyes! Later on we went shopping for groceries in Hermosa at Pop’s Grocery. (I know, huh? Pretty exciting stuff!)

Friday, July 14^th, 2017

Today I unloaded the bike off the lift and spent some time wiping it down to get it all shiny and ready to ride. Our friend, Shannon, who we was so hospitable when we stopped to visit her for a few days back in Pine Ridge, SD came to spend the weekend with all of us. She knew her way around downtown Rapid City so we went over in the evening for dinner and to browse the shops. Historic downtown Rapid City has many shops and something for everyone. Michael and I both found the gun shop and Army Surplus stores quite interesting. We all spent a lot of time in the art and antique shop browsing before returning home.

Beads inside the store in Rapid City arranged by color 

Took these just for our friend Bonnie who loves beading

Saturday, July 15^th, 2017

Today we headed out to Sturgis and Deadwood. Kathy & I on the bike with Michael, Sara and Shannon in the car. We rode into Sturgis and spent some time walking downtown and browsing shops. The actual Sturgis Biker Rally was a few weeks off which made it great in town. No crowds but some of the shops were opening for business. We went out to see what was left of the Full Throttle Saloon after the fire they had. Really nothing left but a little shack they were serving beer out of and the bridge remained. They sent us on down the road to the “new” Full Throttle. More spread out than the old one but a lot bigger and more camping cabins. Also a real stage! It didn’t look very close to being ready to open for the rally but they already have performers booked and seem to think they will make it in time. Kathy relinquished her seat behind me to allow Shannon to ride to Deadwood. Just as we were leaving Sturgis I lost my front shifter pedal. I walked back and found the pedal but the bolt holding it on was nowhere in site. On to plan B. Move the rear pedal up to the front and remember how to shift old style! We made it to Deadwood and back to Sturgis where we bought new parts and put everything back together the way it was supposed to be for the ride home. That night dinner was had at the Lazy R Bar & Grill just outside the RV park.

Full Throttle before

Iconic art from old Full Throttle moved to new Full Throttle

Kathy next to new Full Throttle mailbox

New Full Throttle

New Full Throttle. Stage is behind this building

Sunday, July 16^th, 2017

We spent the day tending to light duties. Kathy doing laundry and I working on tow lights and the car. Looking to add LED bulbs to tow system so they can be seen better. The lights that came with the tow system are original 1157 bulbs and not very bright at all.

Monday, July 17^th, 2017

Today was spent traveling from Hermosa, SD to a nice campground in Fort Thompson, SD. We stopped for a doughnut and to browse the shops in Wall, SD on our way. After leaving Wall we drove thru the Badlands National Park. Since we get in free we figured it was worth the short side trip to go see it. We couldn’t stop and park anywhere inside the park because we are so long but the view from sitting up high in a Class A motorhome is way better than having to be in a car down low. It was kinda nice not having to miss anything. Fort Thompson is situated on the Missouri River where the fishing for Walleye and boating are the way to go. We didn’t get to do either but we did get a heck of a thunderstorm. We were only spending one night so most of it was spent inside out of the weather.

Tuesday, July 18^th, 2017

Today was spent on the road headed towards the Grand Falls Casino & Resort in Larchwood, IA. They have about a dozen RV full hookup sites adjacent to the driving range and golf course. Across the street is a corn field in South Dakota and just down the road a few miles is Minnesota. Not a bad place and their dinner buffet was very nice. We are here for 5 nights.

Wednesday, July 19^th, 2017

We headed into Sioux Falls, SD today to go to the Costco for groceries and supplies. On the way we stopped at Michael and I’s favorite gun shop where I had to purchase something new. While there I get a text from our friend Tim from Rocky Ford, CO who we had just left a week before and his son Chris that states they are in our home town. When I tell him we are also in Sioux Falls he asks where and I tell him. By the time I am done making my purchase Tim & Chris are outside talking to Kathy & Sara and waiting on Michael & I. They follow us to Costco and sit with us while we have our customary Costco lunch. Chris’s truck was in the shop and they were killing time. What a great pleasure to run into Tim again. I really miss hanging out with him and Sylvia! I’m trying really hard to convince them they need to start traveling!

Thursday, July 20^th, 2017

Kathy leaves me this morning to go to town and get her manicure done. It’s a monthly ritual and she can only get it done if we’re in a large enough city to find a place. I have already worked on replacing the light fixture that houses the stop, turn and backup lights on the RV and am now finishing up my blog for the week. Nothing exciting planned for the near future but next week we will be headed to Fargo, Bismarck and beyond!

Tour La' Friends!

Sorry this is so long… We get busy or don’t have great Internet access so there are times I don’t get to update as often as I’d like!

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Camp Happy!

We have been removing huge cow patties, pulling weeds and tossing rocks all in preparation for our "Camp Happy" camping event just outside Williams, AZ this summer. We have found many camper friends like ourselves who travel and live in their RV's full-time and a few times a year we hold these events to gather all our friends who can make it. We get together for a weekend and share stories of where we've traveled, where we've stayed and it helps others to decide where they would like to travel next or decide on places to stay. Some travel fast, others slow but we all enjoy the nomadic lifestyle we have.

Cows along the road in Williams, AZ

Michael pulling weeds getting ready for Camp Happy

Wednesday, June 21st - Sunday, June 25th

Friends start arriving early for our event. We jokingly refer to the early birds as starting the pre-party for the event and we have some who stay later to enjoy the post-party so our 3 day weekend event usually ends up being more like a 5 or 6 day event but we all have fun and enjoy running into old friends again. The old friends sometimes bring new friends so it really does turn out to be one big party.

Monday, June 26th, 2017

Since we are spending a few more days in the Williams area we head out to Meteor Crater, AZ to explore and learn. Meteor Crater is privately owned with a very nice museum and display building. It's a meteorite impact crater approximately 37 miles (60 km) east of Flagstaff and 18 miles (29 km) west of Winslow in the northern Arizona desert. The resulting impact of the meteor blew earth and rocks out of the hole and spread the debris over an 8 mile radius. The largest piece of meteor is on display in the museum.

An old man and his hot lady at Meteor Crater

Tuesday, June 27th, 2017

We spent the day exploring the south rim of the Grand Canyon and Bedrock, AZ. Kathy had never been to either place and it was fun seeing the expression on her face as she viewed the beauty of the canyon. We walked the canyon rim and traveled to the canyon village where we had lunch in the El Tovar hotel before spending the rest of the afternoon in gift shops and standing on lookouts. 

A hottie and her old man at the Grand Canyon

Wednesday, June 28th, 2017

Today was spent at Bearizona in Williams, AZ. Bearizona is a drive thru different habitats filled with bears, mountain goats, deer and bison, to name a few. You stay in your car and as Kathy put it, it was like driving into Jurrasic Park. The animals are very used to the cars and can get quite close but they say to not stop and keep your windows rolled up. The wolves looked menacing as did some of the bears but we made it thru without losing any car parts.

Thursday, June 29th – Friday, June 30^th, 2017

Today was a travel day headed towards Durango, CO with a layover of 2 nights spent at the Ute Mountain Casino RV Park in Towaoc, CO. We ate in the casino, took Kathy out to see 4 corners and did some shopping at their local Wal-Mart. I even got to have lunch at my fave drive thru, Sonic!

Saturday, July 1^st, 2017

Today we arrived in Durango, CO at our friends place off Hwy 550. Totally beautiful with green grass and lots of trees. They even supplied us with a dump, water and electricity. Totally awesome!

Camping in Durango

Sunday, July 2^nd, 2017

Today was a catch-up day. Pay monthly bills, downloading pics to the computer, get the budget in order. We spent the evening in downtown Durango eating at a local micro-brewery and walking the streets taking in the sights.

Monday, July 3^rd, 2017

Spent the day performing some needed maintenance on the rigs and the rest of the evening sitting out back of the house in the shade of a big tree visiting with our friends and watching the horses graze. Very relaxing!

My favorite place to sit and relax

Tuesday, July 4^th, 2017

Our friends took us up behind their house into the mountains for a picnic lunch and to show us the backcountry. We were somewhere around 10-11,000 feet and the weather was phenomenal. We spent the day touring the local lake, streams and water falls. We even managed to spot a lone deer alongside the road. That night we were guests at a home BBQ of shish-ca-bobs of different meats and veggies.

 

Picnic in the mountains

Wednesday, July 5^th, 2017

Today is moving day. We are headed to Rocky Ford, CO for a night to visit some old friends of mine I haven’t seen in about a dozen years. As we prepare to leave Kathy starts to bring the last slide-out in. We hear a thump and then the slide stops moving. I found that the electric motor attached to the wall in the storage area under the coach was ripped away. It appears there was a repair made in the past and the repairman only replaced the 2 front bolts he could easily reach which worked for a while or at  story and I’m sticking to it. It couldn’t have been my lack of noticing it was missing 2 bolts. So Michael comes up with an ingenious plan to get us back on the road. We head to True Value for parts and in a few hours we are all repaired and it is still holding as I write this.

 

Reuniting with old friends Sylvia & Tim

Thursday, July 6^th, 2017

We arrive in Rocky Ford at my friend’s house. We pull up out front and work out the details of parking the rigs. Michael and Sara had asked us to stop at a fuel station as we approached town but I didn’t realize they needed fuel NOW….LOL! As we were sitting there on a camber he ran out of fuel. He still had about 10 gallons but the fuel pump must have been on the uphill side. We spent the next hour running to get fuel, dump it in the tank and hook up my air bottle to pressurize the tank to force fuel into the injectors all to get him started and then hurry down the road to fill up. We learned the pressurizing of the fuel tank when in Texas last year where I changed my fuel filter and neglected to get it full enough when screwing it back on. That evening we had a really great Mexican meal at Carmen’s Restaurant in the next town over.

Friday, July 7^th, 2017

We ride to birds chirping and get ready to move again. We plan on staying in a Wal-Mart in Sterling, CO tonight on our way to Pine Ridge, SD. The drive north was very boring, straight and uneventful. WE did our shopping at Wal-Mart and that evening experienced a huge and very heavy rain storm that turned into a hail storm. We managed to survive and even got on the roof the next morning expecting disaster but the solar panels were all intact.

Saturday, July 8^th – Sunday, July 9^th, 2017

We arrive at another friend’s house on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation where she has set us up to stay in the hospital parking lot where she works adjacent to her home. The weather was scorching so we spent most of our time in her house. She fixed us dinner and then breakfast the next morning before taking us on a tour of the town and surrounding area. We even saw where Red Cloud is buried. That evening we went about 30 miles down the road to a little bar and pizza place for dinner.

 

Red Cloud burial site in Pine Rdge, SD

Monday, July 10^th, 2017

Today was a travel day to a small campground outside Rapid City, SD. We are spending 7 days here to check out a few sites we missed last year and in 2013 when we came for the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. It’s beautifully green all over the rolling hills here. We have a few favorite places we’ve seen and this area around Sturgis and Rapid City has been one we keep coming back to. Stay tuned for more pictures and places!

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Squirrel!

Let me tell you my theory…

Back in February of 2017 we purchased a new to us motor home. We noticed a few things slightly out of the ordinary after living in it for a few weeks. One day while lying on the bed awaiting my turn in the shower I noticed something inside one of the A/C vents. I removed the vent to expose the shell of an acorn nut. Upon checking the other A/C vents throughout the RV I found other nut shells and assumed since the coach had low miles and one area of slight water damage that the coach had been kept outside in a wet region of the country before we purchased it. My suspicions were more viable after we found out the coach was from Utah when we were tracking down the original title to the coach. Shortly after that I went to dim the overhead lights one evening and found that the dimmer switch also controlled the overhead exhaust fan which I thought odd. I surmised that a squirrel had somehow made this coach home and was eating the wiring for dessert after having stored his acorns for winter and whomever rewired the bad wiring had just chosen a hot wire for the fan and it happened to be the dimmer switch. RV dealer shops are not known for being the most thorough or having the brightest employees so I figured my suspicions were right on the money. This, in the tradition of my daughter, Mallory, we named our coach Squirrel!

Now, on with the blog…

Draft of our intended route

Sunday, June 11, 2017

We left Yucaipa headed for Meadview, AZ by way of Primm, NV. We always stop at Primm the first night and boondocked in the Buffalo Bill Casino parking lot. This gives us a chance to have a dinner out and shopping. That night after leaving Yucaipa our local friends there in the park who always walk their dog, Molly, past our coach stopped on their usual rounds because I always met Molly out front with a dog treat. Thus the picture of Molly looking at our deserted spot wondering where her dog treat was.

Molly wondering where her treat is!

Monday, June 12, 2017

After a restful night outside the casino we rose and were told by our traveling companions (Michael & Sara) we had made a mistake. We thought we would be able to go across the new road at the Hoover Dam but were told by Sara she had heard we would have to sit thru an extensive vehicle inspection and because time was a bit of a factor we opted to back up and go across Nipton Rd which made our trip much further than expected. We actually had to go over thru Serachlight, NV and down to Laughlin, NV before heading across to Needles, AZ and back North again to Meadview. Meadview is situated about 10 minutes from Lake Mead and about 20 minutes from the Grand Canyon Skywalk. It has a population of only a few hundred by looking at the amount of dwellings in the area and is mostly vacation homes for those who want to be close to Lake Mead. We were invited to spend a few nights in Meadview by a friend who had property in the area and we could take the boat and other water toys out to play. We found our way to our friends house, got backed in and even had hookups. Good thing because we certainly needed the A/C. The last time Kathy and I were at the Skywalk was with my daughter, Mallory and we had to traverse a lot of dirt roads to get there. Now it is all beautifully paved.

Lake Mead

Lake Mead in the distance

Tuesday, June 13, 2017

I just realized by typing the date for today why our day went the way it did. Our friend John thought we should take his boat out on Lake Mead for the day. We got our ice chests and day bags all ready to go, hooked up to the boat and headed for the lake. The surrounding area around the lake is gorgeous rock strewn hills and spires. I am always amazed after having grown up and spent most of my adult life in the desert how beautiful it always looks to me every time I see a different part of it than I have before. I think that’s the biggest reason I got into the off-roading so I could explore all those areas I could see. John, Michael, Sara and Kathy jumped in the boat and launched while I took the trailer and truck up to the parking lot. Then I proceeded out to the end of the dock where I was picked up. No sooner did we make our way out past the 5mph zone John went to open up and go when the engine sputtered and tried to die. We found out later we could have putted all over the lake at 5-10mph but nothing faster. The boat had 2 fuel pumps and the one that supplied fuel at speeds was non-functional. A costly fix for John and the end to our boat ride so back to the dock where I retrieved the truck and trailer, we loaded up the boat and home we went.

Getting the boat ready to go in the water

Kathy, Sara & Michael on Lake Mead

Returning to the dock after our failed attempt

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Wednesday was a travel day. We left Meadview and headed towards Williams, AZ where we planned to stay for about 10 days exploring the area and holding our summer camping event. On our way we stopped just outside Kingman, AZ to top off fuel to hold us over until we were ready to leave for the next stage of our trip. As we get back on the freeway after getting fuel I notice my transmission temperature is very high. I slow down and downshift to bring the temp back down and notice my coolant temp for the engine is also high. At first, I attributed the high temps to traveling in the middle of the day and the steep mountains so I kept my transmission down in 5^th and 4^th gear to keep the temps around 210 but it soon became apparent we had other issues. We pulled to the side of the road and I went to the rear to check things out. There are 4 half-inch hoses going from various places within the engine compartment to the overflow canister and one of them was routed in such a manner it was lying on top of the A/C compressor which had melted a very small pinhole in the hose which over the miles had puked out all our antifreeze. Thank the heavenly stars we were in a motor home. We had 3 gallons of antifreeze and a full tank of water onboard. I also carry Rescue Tape. That stuff is gold! I’ve used it on many repairs and the only time it didn’t work was on one of my high pressure hydraulic hoses on my jeep. I wrapped the hose with the tape and Michael and I proceeded to add the 3 gallons of antifreeze as well as 10 more gallons of water from the outside shower to the radiator overflow until it was full. That got us all the way to Williams where we found an auto repair that had everything we needed to make our repairs.

Thursday, June 15, 2017

Thursday was a fairly uneventful day. We spent the day exploring the various campsites in our area looking to find something better than where we were located and a trip to the local Safeway market for supplies.

Friday, June 16, 2017

Friday was spent working around camp. We cleared tall grass from under the trees so we have a shady place to hang out and moving large rocks so others can get in and park their RV’s without too much trouble. One of our camping friends from Phoenix direction arrived early to hang out with us. She had a bad motor on her stabilizer under her trailer that needed work and we spent a few hours working on that. In the evening Michael BBQ’d chicken and bratwurst (for me because I really hate chicken) and we had a picnic outside with sides of salad and sweet potatoes. We ended up sitting around under the tree until it was almost too dark to see our RV’s before retiring to the coach to watch a little TV and go to bed.

Michael pulling weeds and grass around camp

Saturday, June 17, 2017

A sad awakening. Awoke to a voicemail from a past co-worker his wife had passed away that morning. I spent some time on the phone trying to console him long-distance and helping him cope with the ordeal. It was very apparent he was in quite a bit of shock. We talked off and on throughout the day. The afternoon was spent by Kathy trying to spend some time on a web site trying to make sure our insurance was correct for our vehicles. For those of you who don’t travel like we do it isn’t easy having decent Internet service. Since we have no stationary home we travel with a Verizon Mi-Fi and our phones. The Mi-Fi works but not nearly as well as your home Internet provider. We can have 4 bars and 4g service and still wait for pages to load. Sometimes and often more than not, the browser times out before the pages can get loaded. For the life of me I can’t figure out how we can be sitting with 2 and sometimes more cell towers all around us and still not have decent service.

Sunday, June 18, 2017 (Father’s Day!)

Today was a pretty darn good day. My daughters called me to wish me a Happy Father’s Day, my dad was home so I got to chat with him awhile and Kathy and Sara took Michael and I out to a very nice dinner at the Red Raven restaurant in Williams, AZ. The food was upscale and delicious however our waiter was a young man who was very inattentive and seemed more infatuated with himself rather than his job but we made it through dinner anyway. Michael was so incensed with the waiters indifference to us he wrote a bad review on his bill and on Yelp for whatever good it might do…lol!

 

Pics of my daughter Mallory with me on our Lake Powell trip years ago. Pics were included in her Father's Day message to me this year! I'll never forget how she fished her behind off to catch the most fish out of everybody. She never got to go swimming with that giant cast on her leg. I owe her a trip!

Monday, June 19, 2017

As I sit here writing this blog it is raining outside. We have a forest fire burning about 17 miles away over towards the Grand Canyon and the monsoon weather is making things cool right now but watch out for the humidity in another hour after it quits. We spend our time watching some TV or reading books. At 6800 feet in elevation it quite nice, very quiet, cool and relaxing.

Until next week!