Sunday, July 31, 2011

Twin Falls, ID and the Snake River.

Location, Twin Falls, ID

Today’s drive was only 109 miles, most of it in rain.

Our original plan was to go to the city park in Wells, NV for a pancake breakfast which was part of the car show. When we got up at 7 AM it started sprinkling and continued to rain as the morning wore on so no pancake breakfast in the park.

About 9:30 I decided to put on my raincoat and start getting ready for the road. We pulled out about 10 AM in rain and it rained all the way North through Jackpot, NV and stopped just south of Twin Falls, ID. I was surprised at how much traffic was on Hwy 93 for a Sunday. This has become a major road for traffic in both directions.

We are camped at Hwy 93 RV Park about 6 miles west of Twin Falls. After lunch we drove into town and checked out the Perrine Bridge over the Snake River and all the water falls which drop over the edge of the escarpment and into the river. To the left in the following photo is where Evil Kneivel attempted to jump the Snake River.
Looking west or down river.

Water fall next to a large house on the south wall as viewed from Centennial Park.

Perrine Bridge viewed from Centennial Park.


We had brief sunshine this afternoon but it later turned to grey overcast skies. There is the threat of thunderstorms tomorrow.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Hot day and hot cars in wells, NV

Location, Wells, NV

After a long hot drive of 350 miles today we arrived in Wells, NV. The first RV Park we planned to stay at was a Passport America park called Crossroads. The website calls it a “resort” which must be a euphemism for “dirt lot”. It was a pie shaped piece of land with a few power pedestals. None of the half dozen sites could accommodate a rig bigger than 20 feet in length. We decided to pass on this one.

The next park was full because of a car show this weekend so we took the third option which was friendly Angel RV Park. We were met in the driveway by a lady who welcomes us and asked us to come inside and register.

After parking and getting set we sat in the shade until dinner time as it was cooler than the inside of the trailer. After dinner we drove into town for fuel and then parked on a side street to watch the car parade. They said there were about 277 cars registered for the show tomorrow. Not all of these were in the parade tonight. I got pictures of many of them. I hoped some of them are good.



There is a street dance tonight and a pancake breakfast tomorrow in the park. We have an easy day tomorrow so may go to the pancake breakfast before we leave.

Friday, July 29, 2011

Location, Carson City, NV


We are at the Gold Dust West RV Park in Carson City, NV. We drove up Hwy 395 from Mammoth Lakes through Bridgeport and along the Walker River. This is a small RV park with good Wife and pull through sites. It is located on old Highway 50 at the East side of Carson City next to the new Hwy 395 by-pass.

Before I continue I should mention that we drove up to the Minaret overlook at the Mammoth Ski lodge. There was still snow in patches along side the road. Of course, this is at 9000 foot altitude. There is also lots of snow on Mammoth Mountain and even some right behind the lodge. This was a bumper year for snow in the Sierra’s. All creeks are running and the lakes are full. Even Topaz Lake south of Carson City is full.

This afternoon we toured the state capitol building. The tour didn’t last long as it is self guided and covers two floors. There are only a few rooms on each floor. The Governor and a few state officials occupy the building while the legislature and Supreme Court are in other buildings. The floors are Alaskan marble and are quite beautiful.




We are waiting out a thunder storm which is moving this way from the Sierra’s. So far we have only gotten a few sprinkles.

Tomorrow we move on to Wells, NV which is about 350 miles from here.

Quick update.

Location, Mammoth Lakes, CA


We left home on Wednesday with our route being through Santa Maria, Ca and then East on Hwy 166 to Maricopa and on to Tehachapi where we spent the night as guests of Budd and Brenda and Jessica who is 2 years old. The weather was beautiful with clear skies and warm.

Yesterdays drive through the Mohave was hot, about 96 deg average and smoky from a fire in the Golden Trout Wilderness West of Olancha. We did stop in Bishop for a sandwich at Shotts' Bakery and the temp was about 98. The sandwich line was out the door. Busy place. Can't imagine how much money they take in each day.

We couldn't get into Glass Creek as they limit it to 49 sites and all were full. Bummer! We drove back to Mammoth and stayed at Mammoth RV Park which is the pits but they do have good Wi-Fi and TV. They charge $47 for a blacktop parking lot.

Our plan was to stay 2 nights but we will move on today as this place is party central although it was quiet from midnight on.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Location, At Home, CA

Our company is all gone. Clyda had a good time at her reunion Saturday night. All of the ladies in her group went without their husbands which I am sure made for a nice time by them.

I washed the RV on Saturday, waxed half of it yesterday and finished it this morning. That is a BIG job. I use an 8 ft step ladder to reach the high stuff. I used Gel Gloss wax because the Gel Coat really needs it. I now have smooth feeling sides but they look blotchy. Best I can do right now.

We have much of the loading done but food items and last minute stuff will be done tomorrow.

Our weather has turned warm which means it must be time to leave. The good weather is always after we leave or just before we get home.

I aired the tires early this morning before they warmed up. I can tell the truck has been in for service as the tire pressures were all over the map. I don’t know what the shops use for a gauge but must they must do it by inspection. That looks about right … no… maybe a leettle more. That should do it!

Anyway, I checked the pressure with a digital gauge. It may not be right but it is consistent.

We have been invited out for dinner the last few nights which is really nice as we don’t need to stop what we are doing and fix dinner. Of course, there are still leftovers in the fridge from all the company but I am sure they will get eaten somehow.

Look for entries from down the road, or I should say up the road, as we are in fact headed North.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

The Road to Hell!

Location, At Home, CA


“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.”  My intention is to update this blog more often but it just doesn’t happen. So… I guess I am on the “Road to Hell.”

I have completed a few of my “to-do” items this week with only the major job of washing and waxing the RV left to do.

Yesterday we went down to Newberry Park to play with the babies for the day. What fun!!! They are so cute. They will be crawling soon.

Both vehicles have been in the shop this week. The car had a loose caliper on one wheel and the brake pads weren’t seated properly. I made a racket when you hit a bump. The brakes still worked but I don’t know why.

The truck had normal maintenance items to be done. It should be ready to roll in two weeks.

Speaking of rolling, I have been watching the temperatures in Las Vegas and have decided to bypass “sin city” for this trip. Just too hot!

Instead, we will take a back road through Tehachapi and then up Hwy 395 to Carson City, NV before heading east on I-80 to Wells, NV. That stretch will be hot also but there is no way to avoid it. From Wells we will head North to Twin Falls, ID, Salmon, ID, Missoula, MT and then to Glacier Nation Park. This will all be new country for us from Twin Falls on.

We are off to Walnut Creek on Sunday to lie in Cindy and Gary’s pool for a few days. Looking forward to that. The following weekend friends will stay with us while attending a wedding and at the same time Clyda has her 50th class reunion.

Fifty years! WOW. Fifty years ago Clyda and I had just met prior to her graduation. Doesn’t seem that long ago.

Here are a few flowers blooming in our backyard right now.




Saturday, July 9, 2011

Berry season report.

Location, At Home, CA

First, some unfinished business.
 
Berry picking season ended a few weeks ago. The last berries had a mushiness around the stem which effectively ended the picking. I did manage to pick 92 baskets this year. The baskets I use are the small strawberry baskets you get at the market or from fruit stands.

Most of the berries were juiced down immediately as we had little room in the freezer. Clyda then made both jelly and syrup which is really good on pancakes.

Today I cut off all the old canes which had fruit on them this year and put up the new canes which will bear fruit next year. Tomorrow I will water them good and that will be that until fall when they get fertilized with steer manure. Berries should not be over fertilized so no commercial fertilizer is used. I have been doing it this way for 40 plus years.
 
The learning of the new computer with Windows 7 continues. I now have the iTunes library moved over. I haven’t synced my iPod yet but have now reason to believe it won’t work.

There are starter versions of Word and Excel on my system and both seem to accept my old documents so that is a relief. I do need to install my copy of Family Tree Maker to keep up on family history and I need to get all my addresses moved over. I hope there is an easy way to do that.

We are being overrun with little bitty ants. They are everywhere. I sprayed around the house outside yesterday and today put out some bait in liquid form which they take back to the nest. In a few places the ants have found the bait and just covered the small pieces of cardboard I have the bait on. The remainder have nothing near them. It should take a few weeks for all the ants to disappear according to the instructions.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

A short note.

Location, At Home, CA
A short note tonight. Our company left after visiting for two weeks. I hope they had a good time. The two weeks really did fly by.

I did receive my new Dell computer and it has been a real learning experience for me. I managed to move my old data using the Windows Transfer Program that came with the new computer. There are still things I need to move like my iTunes library. The one thing that didn’t work was my Canon Scanner software. It wouldn’t even load in Windows 7. I have a second Canon Scanner and will try loading that later.

Today I installed Picasa to manage my photos. To help with the learning curve, I purchased an eBook from “Geeks on tour” which has embedded videos to walk you through the steps. So far, so good.

I have many things on my list that need to be done in the next few weeks before we leave for Montana.