Leaving the Range

 

Today is the day we left our Home on the Range.  We are excited for the new adventure, but sad to leave family and friends.

We have had a great time watching Kyler play football and Gary has been involved with picture taking.  The boys are a joy as they are so appreciative of us showing up to their events.  Wish we could see the end of the season, but the road calls

Everyone looks happy – first game and we Won!!!

We are so thankful for our time on the range.  What a great place to stay.  Our mantle of oak trees have started loosing their leaves and the acorns thunk regularly on the roof.  Walking thru the leaves trying to pop the little puff balls on the ground brought back many memories of childhood in our oak grove on the farm.

The silver greys are scampering up and down collecting  their winter food.  We started feeding the blue jays our hen scratch from the house to get rid of it and found the turkeys love it.

We have 10 of them every morning having breakfast with us.

Walking the archery trail yesterday were bunnies and a doe with her twin fawns.  The grass is green with many leaves along the way.  Will have a whole different look next Spring when we arrive back.

This being Sunday we went to our last church service here and had lunch with friends, came back packed it all up and headed out to Valley River in Eugene.  I pulled the trailer with the pickup as we are taking the motor home in for some work tomorrow and Tuesday.  Will be staying in the RV lot tomorrow night.

Hopefully we will be done and able to head out on Wednesday – hope to get to Burns the first night on our way to Utah.  Gary will pull the trailer behind the motor home then and I will follow in the pickup.  We will be quite the caravan.  I am glad he is used to the length of the tractor trailer as he is stretching out to 65 feet or so. 

Thank you in advance to those of you who will be praying for our safety.  We do so appreciate this.  Next post from Burns Lord willing.

Trip up the North Coast

 

We decided to head North Saturday as we haven’t been to Astoria in ages .  Got a late start but onward we went.

Nehalem Bay was our first stop as there were many boats out crabbing.  Got the scoop on boat launching etc.  They had big tubs full of live crab for $8.00 so really probably cheaper to buy them than haul the boat up and go out, but of course it is the experience of catching them. Also stopped at a winery just up the river a mile.  Very nice and free tasting.  A lot of fruity wines that reflected the fruit they came from.

Drove thru Cannon Beach, which is a lovely community.  Full of art and also people – was like driving thru Sisters in the summer.  All the condo and cabins were full.

Seeing the Columbia at its mouth is awesome.  There were quite a few small boats out, I assume salmon fishing.  We stop at a drive thru coffee shop to ask about a good chowder or fish and chips place.  She recommended a place farther up on 101 stating it was a “boat”  Hmmmm  I thought will maybe a restaurant inside a ship.  No she really meant a BOAT.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was quite a line so we jump in.  All they serve is fish and chips whole order or half.  This boat was used on the Columbia in the 30’s for fishing and the owner decided to put it in the service of selling the fish.  Very tight kitchen, but they were the best we have ever had . Halibut and it was so dense it was almost like a chicken strip.  Certainly our recommendations if anyone is in Astoria.

This was right off the wharf so a great view of the river.  Walked up the hill from there to take some pics of the historic home in that area.  You need several days to see all the sights. Will definitely need to come back with the motor home and stay .

We thought we would be here another week, but Tuesday they cut back on trucks and Gary was one of those cut.  So brought the truck back on Wednesday and motor home on Thursday.  Before we left the rv park a couple was camping from Vancouver BC on their way to Argentina on motorcycles!!   We had a good visit with them – probably in their late 40’s both riding and planning a 5 month trip.  They have a spot with them so said they would invite us into the site so we could follow their journey.

The RV park we stayed at was Camper Cove in Beaver, which is 11 mile south of Tillamook.  It is a lovely park and the owners went over and above board to accommodate everyone.  They are heading south this winter, so we hope to connect with them in Arizona

We are back at the archery range.  I wish we could have stayed a little longer in Tillamook, but nice  to have all the room and quiet of the range.

Right now our plans are to leave for Utah the end of September.

On The Move

 

We left our little spot (key word little) at Leone’s the end of July.  It lacked shade which made the motor home a pretty hot box during those high temp days. 

We moved out to the archery range in Lacomb, which is 8 miles North of Lebanon.  It is a glorious area all shaded with oak trees and completely private with tons of room for the trailer and quads.  We were range hosts which consisted of checking people to make sure they were members when they came out to shoot.

 

Gary had sold most of his archery equipment in all of our garage sales, so got a used bow from one of the guys.  There is no way we could stay here without being able to shoot.  The trails are groomed so it made it great for walking.

He is working for Knife River but hard to get 5 days in a row.  It is hard to believe the summer is going by so quickly.  We are hoping to head South the middle of September.  We want to go thru Utah to ride on our way.

Last week Oregon Mainline called with work in Tillamook for at least 2 weeks.  We decided it would be a good push to end the season as the job is 12 hours a day.  Brutal for Gary, but for a short period of time he was game to go.

One advantage of living full time in the motor home is there is no packing and unpacking when you need to move, however we had a lot of outside STUFF.  I indulged in several large flower pots and a hanger.  Sharon was kind enough to keep the large ones and we packed up the rest.  Had to load everything else in the trailer which we left at the range.

We took the truck over first to check out RV parks.  Gary really wanted to make one trip with me driving the motor home, but never having driven this one I balked.  Parked the truck at the site for the plant which is in the middle of a dairy field.  See cows in the field.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We took the motor home and pickup over the next day and I did drive for several miles to get the feel of this one.  Much harder to steer than the Dutch Star so I heard a lot of “Get off the fog line” which is usually what I hear when I drive.  The traffic was horrible so Gary took over for which I was grateful.

We found a great Rv spot 5 miles from the job.  Tucked in the trees just off 101.  A creek, lots of flowers – I am happy.  There is lots of opportunity to do yard work as quite a few weeds in the flower beds.  The owners are happy to let you dive in so worked on it yesterday.

We drove in so the front window is facing trees and the creek rather than the road.  It is very private.  We drove over to the coast on Sunday, a beautiful day and did some picture taking.  Has been very hot in the valley so we are enjoying the cool of the coast.

So the plan is to be here for 2 weeks, or until the job is done.  We never know what will happen with construction but that is what  makes it the adventure.

The Journey of House on Wheels Begins

 

WE DID IT!!!  The house sold, have a newer motor home which is now Home.  This has been an exciting, grueling, anxious filled 2 months.  We really had no expectation that the house would sell.  We did drop the price by $20,000 and 2 days later had an offer.  Pretty much all the Stuff is gone.  Several weekends of garage sales and word of mouth.  We have a 24 foot cargo trailer that is full of things we can’t live without soon to be gone through and more things eliminated.

We made the big move across the street to Leone’s as she has RV hook ups and a place for the trailer and the big truck.  We left the house at 3:30  and the new people were moving in at 4:00.  Odd to see all the changes going on but all for the best.  I have kept 4 flower pots, my bird feeders and one bird house stuffed in the back of the jeep.   Spent 4 nights here and then off to Fossil for the bluegrass festival.

Got to the fairgrounds early so found a good spot.  We are rather large now 40 feet in length so not every place works for us.

 

This is our third year now at the festival.  Weather was cool, but much better than the 100 degrees last year.  Had time to do a little exploring and picture taking.  We love the country East, just a slower pace.

 

We are now back in our little spot at Leone’s enduring this hot weather.  Motor home is definitely not as cool as our house.  Gary has worked the last 2 days and I am watering for friends that have gone to the coast for 10 days.  Enjoy the watering and getting in on a nice garden.  It is interesting to stand and look across at our house and yard.  They are doing a lot of work (all good) so fun to watch the progress.

Plans now are to leave in mid September and go with friends to Utah and ride the trails there and then continue South all subject to change of course.

Las Vegas and Home

 

We left Quartzsite around 9 on Sunday and had a nice leisurely drive to Vegas.  Our friends had given us the name of an RV park that was close to the freeway for easy off and on.  The GPS took us right to the spot without a hitch.  Was the typical park with the rigs slap dab together.  The positive was hook ups.  First time since we were in Quartzsite in December when Gary was sick.   

Whit and Rom (boyfriend) came over late that afternoon and took us out to dinner at the neighboring casino.  Had a great visit and we are impressed with Rom.  His parents were physicians in the Philippines,  but now that they are living in the United States are working as nurses in the hospital. 

• Monday Gary and I took off to get familiar with the city and hit a few hobby shops of course.  Also Rudy was out of dog food.  As we went a block down the road from the rv park, behold, another one more spacious and half the price.  Oh well next year we will be more savvy.  We were not too impressed with the city – just dry desert without much character.  Gorgeous buildings on the strip and then vacant lots next to them.

This was taken from Whit’s Moms condo.

Tuesday Whit came and we girls took off for the day to sight see and celebrate her birthday.  First off court house to take care of a ticket.  As we went thru the security area, I set the alarm off.  A rather  severe looking gentlemen asked me over to do the hand wan. Whit promptly said “What did you do Grandma, forget to take your belly button ring out”  He cracked up and sent us on our way.  She certainly takes after her Aunt Tawni in the sass department.

We took in several casinos on the strip, The Venetian and the Plazzio.  Very elegant and expensive shops.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Had a nice lunch here and then off to see where she works.  Rom is also employed there and is going to school to become and Physical Therapy Tech.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whit is doing Mary Kay with her Mom so back to her condo for a meeting that evening.  Whit was recognized for her sales for the quarter.

It was so nice to be with her and be able to have a picture in my mind when we talk about things she is doing.

Left the next morning for home.  We stayed just outside of Reno and woke up to snow on all the hills around.  Had not planned to drive more than 6 hours, but with the threat of snow we did the 12 hour drive home from Reno.  Had snow flurries, but the roads were not bad.

Very good to be home.  Things were fine and the yard looked great thanks to our neighbor.

We are so grateful for this 5 months of rest and relaxation.  God has truly blessed us big.

The Last Ride

Today is our last day so we took off on a 30 mile loop leaving and returning to the motor home.  Had a few geo cashes in the GPS to look for on the way.  Also more pictures of flowers and blooms on cactus.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  I am not sure what type of cactus the top one is, the bottom is a prickly pear.  In 2 more weeks I’m sure they will all be in bloom.

We were going thru a canyon that takes us to the Colorado River and thus the California line.  We got to the beginning and there were two ladies on quads stopped on the road.  They weren’t sure where this road would take them so we informed them of the loop and they decided to follow us.  Gary checked with them to make sure they had enough fuel.  The road was good but a little steep in some places so he advised them on how to put the quads in low range as they had no idea.  We decided that they probably were not too experienced.

Arrived at our geo cache, was fairly easy to find.  They were excited about the cache as had heard of them but didn’t realize what was involved in finding them  The ground was full of rocks and uneven of course.  One of the ladies was having difficulty walking and stated she wished she had her CANE. !! She is in need of double knee replacements.  Oh my goodness I thought, get her back on the quad.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They were really good sports about all this and commented once that “this was exhilarating”

On the return loop we followed the freeway but did have to wander thru the hills.  These little roads were worse than the canyon road.  Pretty steep and loose rocks.  We held our breath as they followed us along.  They did get a little scared they said on a couple of the hills, but just went for it.  When we returned to the motor home, we stopped and chatted with them.  One of the ladies is 77 and the other 72 aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.  We told them they did GREAT .  Complained a little of sore thumbs – both have arthritis in their hands.  We exchanged emails, the  older one lives here year round.  So we promised to look them up next year.

Had our last campfire tonight and are ready and packed  to leave in the morning.  We had some noise in the pickup that sounded like we had snow tires on.  I was concerned of course as I have to drive the thing home.  Gary took it in and sure enough is was a wheel bearing on the right front.  So glad to have that fixed before we start.

Heading for Las Vegas tomorrow and will stay until Wednesday.  Looking forward to our visit with Whit. Staying at a nice RV park with HOOK UPS no less.  Has been 3 months since we have had power and water.  Plan on taking some nice long showers.

Pray for God’s blessing on our traveling.

Dome Rock

We left the long term area and are up in the desert with a view. We needed propane and dump so decided not to spend another $40 and headed for the 14 day free area. We look down on the town and the freeway so is lovely at night.  Rudy is not as happy as we are back to the larger rocks so is harder for him to get around.  We weren’t going to put our little room up but after a day, Gary decided to just put up half of it.  So we have an 8 x 8 instead of the 8 x 16.  Works out great, nice wind break, although we are thankful for the wind now as it has warmed up.  Makes a great little hobby room for him. 

 

 

 

 

 

We took a ride yesterday to check out the flowers.  Still a little early but did get some shots.

The fragrance is fabulous – can’t describe it other than a sweet sage.  Taking many deep breaths as we are riding.  Poor Rudy is not inclined to be in the sun.  Left him in the seat while we were taking pictures and looked over - didn’t see him as he was on the ground under a bush.  Took a dive off the seat to get out of the sun.  Poor guy – back seems to be ok.

It took the humming birds 2 days to find us. Have seen several gold finch, but not going to buy thistle seed for these guys will save it for the birds at home.

The weather has warmed up into the 80’s this week.  Main reason we decided to stay down a little longer especially after looking at the weather at home.  There is always a nice breeze so the motor home stays cool.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Evening sunsets.

Will be enjoying the few days left we have in the desert.  Looking forward to being with family and friends again