Friday, September 21, 2012

Sept. 21, 2012 Made it to Gallup, NM, in just 4 days

Yes, we drove from Tracy, CA, to Gallup in ONLY four days.  Must be a speed record…for a turtle!  We have decided to slow down and enjoy our days on the road.  Some how, over the past 10 years, we got into the zippy-travel mode.  You know, driving 300 miles or more a day just because we could.  It takes a toll on our bodies getting up and on the road by 8 am., and takes a toll on our monthly budget.

We travel at 55 m.p.h. to save fuel, and we stop at most rest stops for potty breaks and a quick walk around the rig.  And of course, we stop for lunch, so the day strings out to 7 or 8 hours on the road.

By dropping the daily mileage to a maximum of 200 miles, we have time at the end of the travel day to relax, play on the computer, do a load of laundry, or just sit outside and enjoy the scenery.  Today we did a long, long day of 138 miles.  Tomorrow will be about 150 miles.  This will get us back to Livingston, TX about the time the month ends.

I am going to throw in some photos of places we have been since we left Salem, OR.  First was our favorite rest area on I-5 in California at the Klamath River rest area:

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Isn’t it beautiful?  We try to dry camp here when it isn’t too hot.  It was actually so cool that morning in Salem, I had to get out the electric heater for Larry.  My big question was, now that the weather is finally nice, why are we leaving?

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The rest area fills up during the night, but we had our pick of “campsites” in the shade.

We stopped in Dunnigan, CA at an Escapees discount park.  The place is not set up for RVs towing vehicles.  The hook-ups are just as you enter the site—which places them at about the rear wheel of the tow car—too far from the RV.  In order to have full hook-ups, we would have to turn the car loose and park it in front.  We didn’t want to do that!  We found this site with electric and sewer in the middle—however, there was only a minor trickle of water from the faucet.  In 105 degree heat, it would be worth the $19 fee—but anything less would be questionable.  The restroom rated less than one star!

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The next morning we were treated to the green rice fields just north of Sacramento.  I have started buying Cal Rose rice from CA as it is good.

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Traveling though Sacramento, CA, on I-5 was a breeze.  However, Highway 12 going to Antioch was closed due to a bad wreck.  We took fuel at Flying J at the exit and headed down to Stockton, CA. Diesel was about $4.50 a gallon there and went as high as $4.65 in Barstow, CA.

We decided to just head to the Tracy Elks’ Club and drive the car the 30 miles back to Antioch for the lab work and see my dad and sister.  The Elks’ Club has a very nice RV park for $20 a night.

One of the questions often asked is how do you know when you have been in a spot too long.  This is one sign:

P1000159 This was the rig next too us.  Not only had the spider had time to spin an elaborate web, he had time to grow really big!  I saw his legs sticking out of the chrome.  Icky!!

We left Tuesday morning and drove to Mojave, CA to spend the night at Sierra Trails RV Park for just $13.25.  It was too hot to dry-camp at Barstow’s Flying J.  I often relate to the quality of an RV park by the rest rooms.  This one had outstanding restrooms; not fancy but very clean!  It deserves 4.5 stars!

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And a beautiful pool. 

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The pull-thru area is in the back.  Very quiet and peaceful; especially since the cell reception is very iffy.   We really enjoyed the electricity!

Next stop was Blake Ranch RV Park in Kingman, AZ.  It is a really splendid RV park.  For us short RVs, it was just $21 with the Escapees 15% discount for a full hook-up.  They have a large laundry room and a well-stocked store.

We spent last night at Meteor Crater RV Park about 20 miles east of Flagstaff, AZ.  While at the top of our park budget, the improvements made since our last visit made it worth $29.  I failed to take photos, darn.  We had visited the crater on our last visit.  It is worth the effort to see it at least once!  It was cool there this morning—again, we leave areas as the weather becomes more comfortable.  Something is seriously wrong with our reasoning!

Tonight we are at the USA RV Park in Gallup, NM.  Haven’t taken photos yet, but this is another “full-service” campground with first class facilities!  They even have an evening BBQ where you can buy your dinner.  It is at the top of our price range too, but we are staying at Enchanted Trails outside of Albuquerque, NM, tomorrow night with the Passport America discount to make it up.

Larry wanted to change our route, so instead of dropping down to El Paso, TX, he wants to travel to Santa Rosa, NM, and take the Clovis cut-off down to I-20.  We will make the final decision tomorrow at Albuquerque.  Stay tuned for the slow-moving Jennings trip to Livingston.  I figure we have at least five more nights to get 1,000 miles. Well, maybe 6 nights????

Monday, September 10, 2012

Sept. 9, 2012 -- Joining the migrating herd moving south….

It’s official; the annual migration south has started!  And we are joining in, not because we seek warmer weather, but because we have to check in with Larry’s doctor next week.  We have loved our time here in Salem, OR.
We have decided this Elks’ Club RV park is the best place to spend time—we are just down the street from Wal-Mart, Costco, the Post Office, Winco, a laundromat, Great Harvest Bread Company, and the wonderful Salem Saturday Market. 
I have taken lots of photos of things we enjoy.  This one made our days easier—close by, clean and no kids!!  A real winner!
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This is RV reality.  We visited this place almost every four days to keep up with the dirty clothes.  We are either the cleanest—or dirtiest RVers.  Our next RV, if there is one, will have a washer/dryer!  I am not budging on that requirement.  Some laundromats are just creepy!
Visiting the weekly Saturday Salem Farmers’ Market was a bright spot in our week.  Well-behaved dogs are welcome—and there was a mighty collection each week.  I loved this guy; do you think he would like living in the camper with us?
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This one was cute too.  He knew where the goodies were located.
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The food booths represented a quick trip around the world and a big hit with market goers.  Larry and I just drooled, but couldn’t enjoy because the sodium levels of the offerings were off the charts!
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My favorite booths are craft booths.  Does your hand itch to grab your wallet and come shopping?
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Pottery, of course, and I had to have one of these beautiful wind chimes—a gift to Carol, from Carol.  Besides being beautiful, the tinklely sounds will remind me of our lazy, fun days in Salem, OR.
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A close-up of the chimes.  Aren’t the colors inviting?P1000128
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So many choices, so little room in the camper!  Too many talented crafters in the Salem area.  Not fair!!
Now, could you walk past this booth and not buy some of the delicious Oregon berries?
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We ate our fill of berries!  Time to go before we start sprouting berry bushes and vines from our bodies!
I mean, could you pass this up?  It was as good as it looks!P1000104 
I have so many other photos to share…but will close with  one of the OR National Guard pilots practicing doing basket pick-ups across the street from the Elks’ Club.
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We plan to be in Antioch, CA, by Friday so Larry can do his labs and a chest X-ray before heading for Texas for October and November.  We have a bit more work to finish up working on the house for this year.  
This summer has been a real hot hoot!  Welcome Fall, we have been waiting for you!