Roadrunner Rally

We are at Emerald Cove Resort with friends from the Alfa, Roadrunners group that we met in Tucson 2 years ago - a mini rally - nice to see everyone again and hear about their travels. Like our Texas Boomer group it is an eating group that likes to RV!
We drove 5 miles out into the desert, through the Buckskin Mountains, yesterday to the Nellie E. Saloon-Desert Bar. What a unique place! It is built on land that was an old copper mining camp and is totally solar powered. The owners live nearby in their solar powered house. The bar is only open on week-ends from Labor Day through Memorial Day from "high noon to sunset." It started out as a small hut "oasis" with cold beer for the dirt bikers and ATV'ers but has gradually grown to multi-levels with all the add ons. There is even the facade of a church - they actually have weddings there! A fun place! Then we came home, had happy hour and went to the $6.99 steak dinner/Halloween dance at the clubhouse. Our waistlines and livers won't tolerate much more time with this group!
We are takng a pontoon boat ride on the Colorado River this afternoon - a final potluck this evening and then we are heading for San Antonio on Monday morning.
Our friends, Bill and Sheila from Canada, are similar to us - Bill just went back to work full time for a year. Only he is in Calgary in an apartment and she is in Palm Springs in their motorhome. She says they made him an offer SHE couldn't pass up!!!

Lake Havasu City, AZ

We got to Joshua Tree National Park and the road was closed for repairs! Would have been nice if they posted it on their web page! It was 100 miles around to another entrance to the park so we decided we didn't want to see cactus that bad!
We ended up in Blythe, CA right on the Colorado River - a nice RV park, even had grass - but the area is typical desert - dirt and sagebrush. It was in the 90's - can't imagine summer there. Or maybe I can, similar to Texas last July!
We drove through Quartzite, the mecca for RV'ers in the winter months because you can camp for free on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) property.  Everyone just "circles their wagons!" There are no services on this land but there are campgrounds "in town" that have hook ups. What dusty, barren land! After seeing it, I have no desire to go back - I told Roger it looks like Presidio, TX with RV's! I guess the experience is the big draw and because all sorts of after market RV vendors are there selling their wares.
We called Emerald Cove RV Resort, where we are meeting our Alfa Roadrunner group on Wednesday, to see if we could come in early and they said "no, our arrangement was for the rally time only." So, we are now in Lake Havasu City, AZ and will go to Parker, AZ tomorrow. A good chance for me to get my nails and hair done! A real city - they even have a Kirklands and a Hobby Lobby!!!
This is the location of the "London Bridge" - dismantled, brought here and reconstructed - why is a good question! We saw it at night so my pictures didn't turn out.

President Reagan's Library

We spent the night in Simi Valley after we toured President Reagan's Library. It is a really nice memorial to him. The location, high on a hill overlooking the valley on all  sides is gorgeous. In addition to displays about his life and presidency they have Air Force One in a huge room with an unbelievable window (Roger guessed 100 ft x 300 ft!) and view.
We are heading east now - toward Joshua Tree National Park. Fleeing the LA traffic on a Saturday morning!

I forgot to write about this earlier: When we stayed in Monterrey the campground was full of pup tents and kids. They had a "chuck wagon" and trailers with all their bikes. We talked with the cook to get the story. They are from a private middle school (6-9th grade) and it is part of their curriculum to go camping 3 times a year! They hike, mountain bike and kayak for a week each time. The whole school goes -all the teachers and even the headmaster. The last trip of the year is for the 9th graders and they are going to bike from the south rim of the Grand Canyon to Sedona! Oh, to be a kid again! Or, or to be a RICH kid again!

Samantha and Emily just called us on SKYPE - Kyle was cooking breakfast because Heather was sleeping in - and they were literally shoveling in pancakes! They have a calendar and are marking off the days until I get there - me too!!

Point Mugu

We travelled down to Pt. Mugu Naval Base yesterday. Roger scheduled meetings for today and tomorrow regarding the clean up of the crash site. All is going according to the schedule but the area is still a mess as they remove contaminated soil and prepare to replant and restore the wetland.
We are camped right on the Pacific Ocean. Loving our big windows as we watch the waves come crashing in! Unfortunately, the campground is between Hwy 101 and the water - the traffic noise overwhelms the calming ocean waves!
Roger had a meeting this morning so I stayed home and balanced our credit card statements. It was a trip down memory lane because they had all our northwest travels and our Ireland charges!
When Roger got home I went shopping. The GPS is so great - I don't have to know where I'm at - as long as it does! I just wish it had a mapping program - so when I need to go to several places it would plan the best route!! I'm trying to finish shopping for Christmas, in KL, and both the girls birthdays before I leave on November 7th. Poor Megan - she says her house looks like a warehouse - Heather and I have been ordering stuff online and having it shipped to her address. Will probably have to borrow her BIG suitcase to take it all to Malaysia. I will be charged about $164.00 for an extra suitcase but, believe it or not,  that is cheaper than shipping it!
No pictures lately because I'm having trouble importing pix from my camera to Picasa - seems as though I am always battling some kind of computer problem!

Hearst Castle

We spent the night in Monterrey, CA and drove down Hwy 1 along the Pacific coastline today - between Monterrey and San Luis Obispo. Unfortunately, clouds and fog; up and down hills; hairpin turns and steep cliffs made it more hair-raising than scenic! Of course, Roger drove us safely to our destination but I was white knuckled and nervous the whole way! Frequent signs saying "Rock slide area" didn't help matters!
We did see some beautiful, rugged coastline - reminded us of Ireland - except Ireland was a pretty emerald green! We were surprised to see farms and pastures and less homes than we expected. There were dozens of huge elephant seals resting on one of the beaches we passed.
We stopped and toured "Hearst Castle" - the former home of William Randolph Hearst - in San Simeon.
It is located on the top of a hill on 250,000 acres along the Pacific coastline - a gorgeous view in every direction. The castle has 165 rooms and is full of priceless antiques from all over the world. There are 3 guest houses; 3 swimming pools (one indoors) and gorgeous gardens. All in all a pretty decadent place. It is now owned and operated by the State Park system.
William Randolph Hearst was a newspaper tycoon but his "real" money was inherited from his father who earned his fortune in mining. Patty Hearst was his granddaughter, from one of his 5 sons.
On to Point Magu in the morning!
We talked with Heather & Samantha last night. They are excited about my visit but not as excited as I am!

Unwelcome Guests!

Ray and Cindy were invited guests but somewhere along the trail we picked up some hitchhikers!
We bought apples and pears at an orchard in Leavenworth and soon noticed the fruit flies that came with them. OMG...they are almost impossible to get rid of! Megan told me they would be attracted to wine in a bowl and would drown - it worked OK but, I swear they drank more wine than I do and not many died!! We washed the fruit, put it in a bin outside, got a pest strip and finally got rid of them. Pesky little creatures!
Unfortunately, they weren't the only extra riders! I was sitting on the couch waiting for Roger to come back with Ray and Cindy and a mouse ran across the kitchen floor into the bathroom! Bad enough under normal circumstances but when you're expecting company!! He even had the nerve to come peeking out while we were talking after dinner! Roger set a trap and the next morning the cheese was gone but the trap was empty! Cagey little creature! The battle was on......finally got him and 3 of his friends but, not before they nibbled on the apples we put in the bin! Still setting traps - not convinced we've got them all! Guess they want a ride to warmer climates!
How embarrassing to have company that are plagued with gnats and mice!!! Thank goodness Ray and Cindy are good sports and took it all in stride!

Yakima Valley and Mt. Rainier

We drove to Yakima, WA on Sunday and our friends, Ray and Cindy, joined us Monday evening to tour Mt. Rainer National Park. We read that fall is a great time to visit it but, unfortunately, we didn't read further to know that "fall" in this area is September - October begins winter! The advertised "best" viewpoint of the mountain is Sunrise and they closed the road on October 10th - we were there October 11th!! Roger had also planned to do a "loop" tour of the park but part of the loop road was closed for repairs so we had to go part way from the east and part way from the west.
We drove the motorhome over the Chinook Pass, on Tuesday, to a small town named Packwood, where we were able to find an RV park that was still open - all the national parks were closed. After all our time in the "boonies" not seeing any wild animals - there were elk roaming all around Packwood! We could hear the bulls "bugling" in the early morning! We spent the day touring the national park stopping at various scenic overlooks and hiking to waterfalls - but, still too many clouds to see Mt. Rainer.  We drove all the way to Paradise, at 5,500 feet, it is located at the base of the mountain. It was 35 degrees and snowing so hard we couldn't see much of anything! But, just as we were leaving, the clouds parted for about 30 seconds and gave us a brief glimpse of Mt. Rainer - glorious!
We ended up at the lodge at Longmire for a late lunch. When we finished Cindy and I wanted to walk over to the gift shop - the guys were having a fit but, we ignored them! - as we walked toward the shop, Ray looked up and said "look!" - the clouds had parted and directly in front of us stood Mt. Rainer in all it's glory! It is truly magnificent! It didn't take long for the clouds to roll back in and totally obscure it but, the view was breathtaking while it lasted! Of course, we had to point out that if we hadn't gone to the gift shop we would have missed it!!
Thursday was a better weather day so we decided to drive back up to Chinook Pass and try to see what we missed in the snowstorm of Tuesday. The weather gods were with us and we saw beautiful scenery and more stunning views of Mt. Rainer. Actually, seeing the mountain sides covered with a light dusting of fresh snow was lovely - it looked like a scene from a Christmas village! In the lower areas, where it wasn't snowing, the aspen trees were decorated in brilliant yellows and oranges.
We headed for Portland on Thursday afternoon and spent Friday in the Columbia River Gorge. We enjoyed a wonderful seafood dinner at "Jake's Grill" in Portland on Friday night - our nephew, Jay, recommended it and Ray had been there years ago - and Ray and Cindy flew home to San Antonio on Saturday. It was so nice to have company and someone to enjoy exploring with!
As you look at the pictures, notice the difference between the first pictures at Chinook Pass and the later ones!
PS - I just noticed I spelled "Rainier" wrong in my web album - how could I not remember that is it r-a-i-n not r-a-n with all the rain we endured!!!

Leavenworth, WA

We are in the Wenatchee Valley - the "Apple Capital of the World" - near Leavenworth, WA. It is an old logging and railroad town that re-invented itself in the 1960's into a Bavarian Village to capture the tourist dollar - and they've done a great job. There is a Swiss Alpine look to all the buildings and flowers everywhere - for you Michiganders, it reminds us of Frankenmuth. We just happened to be here for Oktoberfest and the Chamber of Commerce could not have ordered better weather! We decided to shop and see the town on Friday before all the crowds. It was fun - accordion music and yodeling in the gazebo and an art fair in the park. Roger was chatting with a lady selling pottery - when he asked her where to get good Mexican food she said "Texas!"
We went hiking today - a 3.6 mile loop trail along Icicle River and Gorge. It was a beautiful fall day and it felt good to be out walking.
How about them Tigers! Go Detroit!
We talked with the kids the other day and I told Emily that after "two long and one short airplane ride, I would be at her house soon" - she thought for a minute and said "no, taxi!" Two long and one short airplane ride and a taxi ride and I would be at her house!

Happy Anniversary, Carlos & Megan!

Today is Carlos and Megan's 4th wedding anniversary - seems like yesterday we were all dancing by the pool!
Happy Birthday to Carlos too - he's 36 on October 7th!

Major Decision

We have made a major decision that will change our current lifestyle - Roger is going back to work! Since the airplane crash in California, Omega has been planning to modify another replacement plane and they really need Roger to manage the project and the FAA certification process. He feels a duty to return and help them and they made him an offer he can't refuse. The good news is that it will only take a few months - the bad news is we will be in San Antonio during the summer! He will work November and December and then we will go to Florida for the winter (we did not want to give up our time there!)and we'll return to SA in April and stay until the project is completed. Omega and Seven Q Seven have leased the old Jaffe/Comtran hanger where Roger worked years ago - promised him his old office back!

The other major decision is that I am going to fly to Kuala Lumpur to see the kids in November. Roger wants to see them as much as I do but is not at all willing to fly overseas again so soon, so.....I'm going alone. I hate to leave him for a month but I am yearning to see the kids! I'll be gone November 7 through November 30th and be in SA for the Christmas holidays with Megan and Carlos. Didn't take me long to start spending his hard earned money did it??!!
We stayed two nights in Twisp, WA and are now near in Chelan, WA near Lake Chelan - a huge glacier lake, 55 miles long! This is a big summer recreation area - there are many campgrounds and resorts that are accessible only by boat or hiking trail. We are staying in a beautiful city park on the lake. This is apple orchard and vineyard country - will have to try products from both!!

Happy Birthday, Roger!

We celebrated Roger’s birthday by touring North Cascade National Park in the rain! Felt like we were back in Ireland! This is gorgeous country even with clouds and mist – can just imagine it’s beauty with sunshine!
Guess what Roger got for his birthday?? Right……a new GPS and a new internet router! Not to mention new jacks for the motorhome!
We spent the week recuperating from our flight from Ireland and waiting for parts for the motorhome.  The jack finally arrived Thursday afternoon so we took the motorhome back early Friday morning and crossed our fingers!
We had the day to “kill” so we went to Pike Place Market in Seattle in the morning and toured the Boeing Plant in the afternoon. We were ecstatic when they called and said the RV was fixed! We stayed one last night in Seattle and then headed for the mountains. Seattle is a lovely area and the harbor and Lake George are really beautiful but the traffic is horrible!
We had hoped to spend some time here in the western Cascades but with no phones, no internet, no TV and rain we’ve decided to travel east!
10/2/2011
We were surprised to see some blue sky and no rain this morning. It turned out to be a great day to drive over the mountains. We stopped at the same overlook as yesterday and got to see the tops of the mountains this morning! We did not expect the Cascades to be so beautiful but, the drive from west to east up and over ‘Rainy Pass” and “Washington Pass” (5,500 ft elevation) was spectacular!
The Cascades are called the “American Alps” - there are hundreds of glaciers and they are called the “Cascades” because of all the waterfalls. We passed by many “weeping” rocks and cascades of water along the road. The west side is rainy and the east side is dry.  It is pouring in Seattle today - glad to be on the dry side now!
When we got back into cell phone range Roger had a voicemail from Samantha and Emily singing him “Happy Birthday.” He’ll save it and listen when he’s lonesome! Heather posted a video in her blog of Samantha demonstrating how to tie her shoes – so cute!
Judy and Marilou got home from Scotland on Friday. They said it was in the 70’s and lovely there – what’s up with that? – we leave and the weather turns nice! We had a great time traveling with them – anxious for them to retire so we can enjoy other great adventures together!