We began our trip knowing that it would be a long and stressful trip. We are traveling old highways and small towns. We made no arrangements for campgrounds but thought we would try our luck with Harvest Hosts, rest stops and other surprises.
We did ok for our first 30 hours and were surprised at how well we survived. I was even pleased at how the doggies are doing. We had great sunrises and even dinner on the road. I am getting used to our little galley and we are glad that we did some of the prep for meals.
Before the sun was up we were ready to go after a quiet and restful night. We are off again and hoping to gas up before we really get going. Goodbyes said and off we went. Breakfast coffee in hand and doggies walked and fed. Our route simply outlined and fueled up. Off we went.
We saw the last stand of the Nez Pierce and where they are now. The history is sad but brave. There is a large reservation and national park that preserves the land. It is beautiful, very thought provoking and I imagine, haunted. We got information to read on the road. The air was still very thick with smoke so we did not to eat there. We drove about an hour further and had a great lunch with a view.
It is amazing what sights we saw. It was almost like stepping back to a slower lifestyle and memories of when I was in my teens. The people waving at us, smiles and hellos made us feel more relaxed and smiling. NO traffic either. Our last leg to get to Spokane. It is a very long day and we hope a smooth day. Weather is cooperating and pleasant.
We make landfall in Spokane by the target hour and very pleasant weather greets us. The doggies also have a nice area for us to walk them and they can relax. Dinner is comfortable, the visit and on we go. Oops it is later than we expected and we need to find a place to spend the night.
We have luck at the Dusty Rose RV park and we do our quick set-up, walk the doggies and sleep. Hoping our next leg is less stressful on the days driving.
We are winding our way to Boise. We are way behind our planned time. We will be too late to stay in Boise. Onward to Glenn’s Ferry for a quick dinner and wonderful place for doggies to unwind. It is a Harvest Host that is both a golf course and winery with a very nice restaurant. Wow, we lucked out. Tomorrow is going to be a new road home.
The first steps in planning for our “epic journey”.
As always I see how many days we will actually be on the road and identify what challenges we may encounter. We have two, two year old Australian Shepards and they have traveled with us since they were 10 weeks old. They are still rambunctious but slowly learning our lifestyle. My husband looks at the roadways and weather. I look at food, medical and doggie needs. I also do a thorough cleaning.
We have planned not to use the big interstate highways where possible. We can travel faster from point A to point B using the fast interstate but that is not enjoyable. I also felt we needed to look for Harvest Hosts, Boondockers Welcome and other no cost places to overnight. We generally travel to see family and take care of annual medical exams. We haven’t traveled in our rig just for fun in years. We are looking to change that!
Our first leg of this journey was scheduled to leave exactly at 7:00 am. I ordered a breakfast order at our local Kneaders for a 7:15 am pickup. We made it by 7:30 am. Then we had to put fuel in our rig. My “pilot” did not fuel up the night before! We use diesel and oh well here we go again.
Hwy 93 from Las Vegas to Fallon Nevada is our first start. It is mostly a two lane highway through deserts, ranches and small towns. We stop to let our doggies do their business and we switch drivers and snack, stretch with the doggies for a small walk. So far so good.
While driving we realize we are not passing any truck stops. We get diesel fuel at up to 30 cents cheaper at the truck stops than the regular gas stations. Hmmmmm. We have passed many really inviting towns but we are on a timeline to Spokane, Washington. Notes for future stops. I was really surprised how different the countryside was the farther north we traveled. Loved the slower feeling of travel without a lot of heavy traffic. People actually waved at us and smiled. A great change.
I had made one strawberry cheesecake and Greek apple cake for the trip and to share with my son’s family on the last leg of the trip. Big mistake. We had slices of the apple cake for the first 3 days but kinda forgot about it. Left the frozen cheesecake until we got to the ranch. The cake was getting weird, kinda got wet because I secured it in the sink while we drove. By the time we reached the ranch it was slimy so thrown away. The cheesecake got watery while it thawed! It was a good idea but traveling in different climates and length of time on the road did not work in our favor. Oh and the new refrigerator was smaller than our Airstream’s. Well oh dear, on with the plan! Always learning.
We we did not make reservations for any RV park or BLM. So we stayed the night in the truck parking of a casino in Beatty, Nevada. It was after 9:30 pm. We had a late start from home. Again such plans. The truck parking lot was all dirt, no donkeys, lots of semis and a few trailers.
We were able to take the doggies for at least 2 thirty minute walks and let them stretch. No feeling of fear. Able to put the slide out and enjoy the bed and warmth, especially since the doggies think the bed is for them.
The next part of the journey is north toward Fernley, Nevada! Whew, they had a space without a reservation. Hopefully the trail will be relaxing and new and without problems.
We are planning a trip that will take us from Henderson, Nevada to Ft. Lupton, Colorado via Spokane, Washington through Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Colorado! All using old highways, limited exposure to major highways. Our 2 Australian Shepherds, are also new to this smaller rig. Wish us luck.
Our plan is to utilize as many Harvest Hosts, Cabella’s and mooch docking as much as possible. Our goal is no more than 4 hours on the road per day. Pre planned meals and at least 3 – 30 minute walks with the dogs per day. They are going to be so stressed not to have their regular trip hammock. Do any of you have safety ideas for dogs in a class B+ van? We are used to pulling a rig not driving it.
Many RVs use the same brand of refrigerators, Air Conditioners, Microwave/Conduction Ovens, wiring and plumbing. We have never had or utilized an onboard generator or slide out.
Previously I would pack our Airstream and not fill it with our equipment, clothing etc. This new rig is so much smaller it takes a lot of reorganization to prepare for the trip. This was really not that much of challenge but the murphy bed is daunting. It is really heavier than we realized and the living space is impacted. We really are like newbies in many ways, especially space use with our pups too.
I was proud of myself that I did do some minor decorating in our rig to make it feel more ours.
Galley, added peel and stick tile and command strip shelf. Oh yes and paper towel holder!
Packing the galley was easier than I thought it would be. It is small but the large window and burner cover make it look larger and comfy. It makes me smile to see it and use it. When the Murphy Bed is open. The doggies can easily place their paws on the counter. Another training moment. Goodies are to be placed as far away as possible after dinner.
I do like that we do not have to go outside in the in the cold dark, rain or snow to utilize the interior for our comfort. The automatic steps are a death trap for short people with knee problems. The doggies are small and the smallest one takes a minute to prepare to hop into the rig. Once the battery had dropped and the steps did not come out. My hubby did not notice, jammed his right knee and even the doggies were challenged to go out of the rig.
All new learning experiences. In my next blog I will review what we did as far as planning and you can shake your head and laugh.
We came back from a 12 day cruise, after the COVID shut down we can now move around the world, kinda. This cruise was planned 3 years ago. It was a beautiful itinerary that kept changing as time passed. Wow, how to be flexible. We did learn so much about history as well as how age does effect your travel-abilities. I know that my mind doesn’t know how old I am. My bones do. But, our minds can be healthy and still adapt and learn. That was the exciting part.
We had so many hoops to jump through. Vaccines, antigen testing, re-testing and passports, excursions were cancelled, new ones made and flexibility was a must. We did see so many wonderful places, learned unknown, to us, history and even the rain and cold did not slow us down.
This was a way for us to see a world we had not experienced before. Well we have sailed on 5 night cruises, Trafalgar Tours of Europe and of course driving and pulling our Airstream CC!
As our physical abilities have changed, we changed. Due to health issues we had to go from a towable to a small class C. For me the challenge is learning to love the new way as much as I had our Airstream. Our Leisure Travel Van Unity FX to be precise. The Unity is smaller than our 27 ft Airstream. The Leisure Travel Van is 25ft total. It really is a physical and emotional shift. Funny how we connect to our vehicles and how we feel while we are in them.
We had promised ourselves that we would not drive more than 4 hours a day during our travels. Well we drove 10-11 hours. The dogs were not comfortable. We did stop every couple of hours for them to relieve themselves. We even stopped for lunch and ate in our coach after walking the dogs. This was a family event trip. We had time frames to be in different cities to see family and be home for my hubby’s work schedule.
Hopefully, this will be the last time this happens to us. A challenge to work through. I have made a list of goals for our future travels. Not on a ship but our little motorhome. We still have not been able to agree on a name that would reflect her personality and our feelings about her.
Here are a few of my goals: 1) learn healthy meal planning that will take advantage of the plates we travel through and keep a budget. Good health and new flavors are a challenge; 2) Use the tools we have to plan how to take advantage of boon docking, Harvest Hosts and with some full hookups interspersed; 3) Develope a financial stream to help augment our goals and dreams while on the road.
Do you have travel dreams/goals? Please share your goals/dreams of how you are looking to solve the puzzles. Happy Travels.
Write a comment and let me know what you think about and would like to hear more about.
Its August and its hot! My husband is assigned to a military post in central California and needs medical treatment in Santa Maria. What a great reason to take a trip in our silver escape vehicle. Finding a place to stay is the question. We are 6-7 hours north of Santa Maria so we need at least an overnight midway. It is going to be hot and this is our first trip in the summertime with our coach. We are also taking our doggies – one little and one grumpy.
We look at military family camps (RV and tent facilities for military families) in the area and decide to try Camp Roberts! We also make reservations at Morro Bay Dunes for the convalescent period. Morro Bay Dunes is very close to the beach and it is close to town. We are set. As this is our first year traveling with our silver coach we pack like crazy nuts. Newbies never really know what to take or leave and we took it all. Always a learning experience. Remember it is also an adventure and as my spouse says “it’s the best marriage counseling there is”.
Camp Roberts is not going to make my “places to go ” list. The facility is mostly abandoned, dry, hot and poorly maintained. I can’t believe they still train personnel here. It was built to train troops during World War II and many hollywood celebrities were introduced to the military here. Its layout was a traditional Army Garrison set. One of the original chapels still stands and there is a beautiful organ still in place. It is falling apart and not cared for. The whole camp looks so sad and yet if it could talk I bet there would be lots of great stories. It is said that when soldiers were remodeling a few of the old barracks for new use they found newspapers and letters that were stuffed in the walls for insulation. What great insight into the daily lives of the 1940’s trainees. They also say ghosts are all around and sometimes can be seen and heard during the still warm nights! It’s just sad to see it falling apart and that a piece of our history is just crumbling away. It is actually a California National Guard training facility. It also has eagles flying above and around the creeks, giant oak trees, snakes, dry grasses, abandoned, falling down buildings and a glimpse at what it was almost a hundred years ago! So sad. We won’t stay there again as the facilities are very rough and the road to the camp is poorly maintained and very bumpy. It was a safe place to rest overnight.
Our next morning was bright and beautiful. Skies bright blue and the air still – it was going to be a very hot day. We are on our way to Morro Bay. We had stayed here before and were overwhelmed with lots of very noisy neighbors and felt cramped but our last outing here was an experience in over planning and an aggressive schedule.
This time we were able to get a great spot G-5 in the back of a cul-de-sac right next to the gate out to the beach! Wow we were so happy.
The Silver Suite
It was an easy drive from Camp Roberts to Morro Bay Dunes and the scenery went from an old California golden dry to the California coast. We are so lucky to live in an area where we are so close to everything so beautiful. The trick is to be able to find a time to enjoy it without a lot of people.
The set-up, as always, was easy, our doggies were happy to sit in the shade and they love running on the beach. We just relax and enjoy. The sound of the ocean waves is fantastic. The next morning we had to be in Santa Maria by zero dark thirty!
Brent convalesced well. Ocean waves crashing, sun, coastal winds and quiet. The doggies, well, Gunny the older one was so good and well-behaved. His little sister was the barky dog who still has not finished her training. She WILL learn. Good thing she is cute.
While in Morro Bay we met two great Airstreamers! Will and Jeff, they travel to California every year, specifically Morro Bay and work while here. One is a photographer the other an architect! We really enjoyed visiting with them. They gave us the name of a mobile home park in Cayucus California off Hwy 1 that has spaces for RV’s too. So we decided to travel home via Hwy 1 instead of Hwy 101 to see a coastline we rarely see. We did get a reservation too!
Our first family dinner in the beautiful Madison Campground was more than we could have imagined! The whole camp was so comfortable and lost in trees. The kids made the evening. We laughed at the fact the smoke from our wood campfire followed us all around the circle. The smoke even set off our smoke alarm in the coach.
Before dinner my daughter and grandson helped do meal prep on the outdoor table and set the tone for fun. Involving everyone in the dinner prep and being outside is the magic of camping. All ages get to contribute and enjoy the end product. Even our five-year old was running around helping with the cleanup chores. Of course doing dishes outside with two dish pans is something new for the kids!
We sat under the trees and watched their tops sway in the winds as we just felt a little chill as the sun set over the mountains. The glow of the fire made it seem magical. Of course the smores really finished the day with gooey grins.
As the next day dawned we headed for Old Faithful, of course after a great camp breakfast of bacon, eggs pancakes and coffee – thanks grandpa and grandson for their cooking skills! We did not see much traffic and thought we would make a quick trip to the geyser but guess what! Buffalo! A small herd meandering across the road and waylaid us for 20 minutes. Split the group but what great, magnificent animals all going 2 miles per hour! Well the babies are adorable so can’t get anxious. Afterall we do have 5 days to see the park!
We all meet up at Old Faithful, poop the doggies, settle them down and we just miss the geyser blowing. We go to the little hotel meander and ask for directions for the Old Faithful Inn and follow the suggestion of an old friend to view the geyser in style! We walked over to the hotel, bought some of the worlds best ice cream, found coffee and wonder seats to wait for and watch the next spouting of Old Faithful! Now that is a great way to see these natural wonders.
Yellowstone traffic jam!
After the event we hiked around the geysers and spent the day amazed at the miracles of nature. We are overwhelmed with the expanse of this park. We must have hiked FOREVER! The amazing colors of the blooming wild flowers was a true surprise. Again an old friend did say we were in time for the spring bloom of amazing color that only happens in the early part of the summer season. She was so right on about the landscape surprises. Tiny purples, roses, whites, yellows and oranges popping up in surprising places. They just added to the magic of Yellowstone.
Crazy Disney fans at the geyser!
By the end of the day we were excited and pooped! A hot, tasty campfire dinner of hot dogs and hamburgers, coldslaw, potatoes, beverages and a campbaked apple pie with home-made ice cream cannot be beat! Can’t thank Sunset Magazine enough for all the menu ideas! Kid and family approved!
Tomorrow we drive the northern section of the figure eight road! Good comfy warm sleep and coffee in the morning. What a life!
We have prepared for seven months for this moment. The Airstream is fully serviced, repaired, cleaned and carefully stocked! Yes, we have been planning this first, long trip with family and experimenting with more than seven days away. A bit scary.
It is 7:30 pm, I have left work and pre-listed everything for food, dogs and gifts. We packed all non-food items, records for dogs, all our clothing last night. During the day my hubby finished all the last-minute needs like gas and water needed. We do a last minute check, lock and secure house and off we go. Our goal is to arrive in Eagle, Idaho no later than 5:30 pm the next day!
The best preparation was a revelation of what we did not need and what really needed our attention. The Bay Area Airstream Dealership Service Department was our angel. Chris, is the service manager and he is the best. Every detail was attended to and reviewed with us. We learned to let go of items we really never used or needed. Thank heaven for the airstream storage and planned layout. We have learned how lucky we are to have our silver coach.
We leave with late day sunlight. Our hope is to get out of the bay area and Sacramento traffic before it gets too dark. We start to get a little sleepy about the base of the Sierra’s! The dogs let us know when we should stop. We packed snacks to get us through the night and have our rolling home with us for potty breaks and napping.
At about Truckee we try to nap at a large well-lit rest stop but it is FULL! Truckers and other travelers have already taken every inch. We trudge on and find a well lighted gas station with a few trucks parked and ask if we can park for a little while. They said yes! It was frigging cold and very dark. We walked the dogs arranged our stuff and napped for about 2 hours! Quiet, warm and cozy. Again doggies walked and watered and off we went.
The dawn is approaching and it is beautiful. We feel refreshed, wide awake and happy to be on the road again. We make it to Nevada and know we have to make it at least to Oregon before we nap again. We have traveled these highways before so we kinda know where we want to be.
Usually we travel in the winter. This is the first time traveling at the beginning of the vacation season. What we noticed was there was beautiful spring flowers everywhere, greenness and water!!! Yep streams and rivers and pools of wet stuff—water! We last until just after the beautiful Jordan Valley and nap for another 60-90 minutes. What a great and safe way to travel. We have no need to stop at truck stops, road chain places and possible stomach problems! We are so relaxed and seeing a new view of a familiar road. What fun.
We arrive at our destination, Hi Valley RV park and it is still light and very warm, 90 ish and no ocean breeze. We are guided to our spot, contact our family, prep for a two night stay and of course walk the dogs and have a great class of Six Sigma 2006 Tempranillo! Life is great and this is just the beginning of our adventure!
As we continue with the story of our Pinnicles National Park 3-day we are on a Sunday walk to the Caves. It is a beutiful day and we are enjoying new sites we had not seen before. More people are on the trail but all are courteous and appear happy to be out and about!
We make our way back to our site and note that many of the weekend travelers are gone and it is very quiet. Oh how wonderful the sounds of nature are. We do note that we see alot of small racoons and silly black birds looking to clean up the crumbs of the weekend campers. The signs all over the campsites quite clearly state DO NOT FEED THE WILDLIFE, ESPECIALLY RACOONS, they can be dangerous.
We take an afternoon nap and then begin to prepare for our dinner meal. Our table is set and the new camp stove heating the griddle and feed the dogs. Our appetizers, chips and salsa with lemonade make for an easy preparation for our dinner. We had purchased a couple of bottles of Cabernet from Pietro Santo winery to go with our meal and so we open and let it breathe.
Little racoons keep running at the edge of the creek and our table. My hubby puts his back pack at the door of our trailer and goes back to help prepare our goodies. A little racoon is quietly unzipping his backpack! We shoe him away and laugh. Our evening continues and don’t think anything about it and proceed with our evening.
As we finish our dinner I see a medium sized racoon approaching us quietly and quickly and almost gets to my sister-in-law! it frightened us and she jumped up and down screaming at the creature and it finally went away. We laughed and continued on with the evening! As the cleanup is complete and we settle in for desert racoons are not on our mind. We all go to bed and know tomorrow we return back to the rat race!
We had a solid sleep and awakened for our usual al fresco breakfast. We have our first cappuccino first and while I am dressing I hear a few choice words from outside. I hustle outside to find my husband shaking his head, waving his hands and saying wonderful expletives. There are tiny hand/feet prints all over the roof of the truck, the cargo over over the bed AND the entire interior of the truck windows etc. !!!! Luckily we had our H2O cleaning towels and it made it fun, easy and no smells.
The only way in was a two inch opening of the small back truck window! They broke it by pushing it down?! After the initial shock and awe we laughed and couldn’t believe how they took every little thing inside and examined it all. They found my lost bluetooth earpiece, ate all the doggie treats they found in a zipper pouch. Yes they carefully unzipped the pouch and then took out stuff. No tearing and no chewing any of material.
After our outside breakfast we began to clean the truck up for our ride home. This just goes to show you ALL the signs at the park are really, really, REALLY need to be followed cuz it’s true!
Yet another wonderful trip to put in our book! Oh yeah, this is a photo of my brothers rig and his stuff no ours! We followed the rules and we got attacked!
As I worked all day, my hubby had the responsibility to pack our silver comfort to go to Pinnacles. I have lived all my life within 2 hours from this jewel, ALL MY LIFE! Recently we had the epiphany of the beauty surrounding us. Everyone lives near beauty but thinks that over the hill on the other road is where beauty is. Living in the central California Montery Bay Area we take so much for granted.
After our adventure in the real winter of Nevada and Idaho we wondered if we couldn’t enjoy our Airstream closer to home and learn how to benifit more from our cozy comfort. We have survived our frozen poopscicle and many other challenges, as all travelers do. We have learned to laugh and cherish the lessons learned and the appreciation of the moment.
The weather has been warm and clear for too long. We planned on more of the same but of course mother nature had other plans. As I worked through the day watching the clouds gather, my man and doggies prepped for our journey. I had left a list of food stuffs and clothing to pack so we could enjoy an old new “jewel”.
My brother and wife were going to join us. What fun. Of course I worked an hour later than expected, the skies where getting dark with clouds and the wind was getting stronger. I could not wait to get in the truck. As we started out from my office we began our journey.
The skies were getting darker as the sun bagan to set and the storm began to gain momentum. Oh well, that just meant we could have a little adventure and expierence some weather. Of course our “weather” is nothing but a mild inconvenience. We love our climate we just need rain!
The road and emotions began to lift as we left the highway and city behind and drove through Hollister, California. Unfortunately for us the darkness cloaked the beauty we drove by. It is so fun to see our silver coach behind us. It signifies freedom from work, stress and pressure. When your think about it, we don’t need to travel days for beauty and regeneration of spirit. It surrounds us. We just need to see it.
As per usual we really don’t know where we are going, ok we have general directions and a road. It is dark and the signage for Pinnacles is minimum. We travel along wondering when the rain will drop. We keep going and arrive after dark at the park. We get a little confused on the road and finally find the campground. We find our spot and easily park. Wow it was too easy. We settled in and took our doggies for a walk as the rain started in earnest. We laughed and enjoyed the smell of rain and knowing our doggies were soaked! Luckily we had put up our awning which sheltered us as we toweled off our friends. It was an easy evening and the rain played music on our roof. The enjoyment of the sound of rain lulled us to sleep.
The morning was lazy and enjoyable. The park was less than half filled, no generators were allowed at all but we had electric hookup. Comfort, beauty and quiet. We did not have our Nesspresso Pixie nor the Frother! Someone who shall remain nameless forgot to pack our beauties. We pressed on and enjoyed our french press coffed instead. I do miss the frother though. hmmmm
Our Pixie and frother!
We had dinner outside, slow roasted lamb ribs, garlic mashed potatoes and blanched asparagus with goat cheese and bread. We ate outside under the stars as the rain passed over and the stars were out. Just before dinner the ranger held an little discussion on the California Condor! It sprinkled throughout the presentation but it was informational and fun. We walked back to our trailers and began to set out the picnic table for dinner. I drained the fat off the ribs and spread salsa over the garlic sea salt rub and we ate hungrily.
Of course we can not have a trip without fun. As I brought a beautiful toasted lemon cake with toasted coconut frosting it flew off the plate in my hands and landed on the ground! I had waited for a taste of this luscious cake for days. Sooooo we saved the top layer and followed the 5 second rule and all tasted the cake with a little extra seasoning. Nothing ever goes as planned! Flying Coconut Cake is the first evening star.
One happy Airstream
As we go back to our trailer and start to clean up I realize my hubby did not pack our H2O Home cleaning tools to pick up. But even worse my sink was not draining. We tried boiled water, at least three times and realized that the hot water only went so far down the pipes! I unwound the plumbing stuff and found a 2 inch by 1.5 inch fat plug! We had a fat-scicle!!! We went from poopscicle to fatscicle! wow so much laugher and fun.
Soooooo all systems clear, we rest as tomorrow we go a hiking to the caves!
We wake up to a sunnyish hazy day. We hope the frozen outlets are going to thaw and we will no longer be a “poopscicle”. The temperature is 13 going up to 23. So no thaw.
We went to Home Depot and purchased a warmer thingy that was attached to a propane tank, a little one, and my hubby spent three hours trying to encourage the goo to melt. The goo won! After freezing and chattering teeth he gave up and joined me and the family for a toasty, cozy day long visit. A quiet day, away from the cold, cold weather allowed for a family time without time restraints. The dogs loved being out of the truck, in a house, all the attention and scraps from some of the most delicious barbecue in Eagle Idaho.
After a wonderful quiet, restful visit, laughs and hugs we went back to our cozy cottage on wheels. Tomorrow we start back home to warm California. It is surprising how this little silver bullet is our quiet place at the end of the day and lazy breakfast mornings.
Sunshine greats us and again we are on California time not Idaho time. It evens out eventually. Our Nesspresso gives forth the comforting aroma of coffee and a new adventure. Yes, the poopscicle lives. It has had no relief from the freezing temps. We know the further west we go the warmer it will be!
Packing up and securing for the drive home is easy. Airstream designs storage in logical ways for ease of use and travel. Fold and stow, clean and go. This smooth process puts a smile on our faces. We both have allergies an bad snuffy colds so we use the “lady bug” lint remover from H2O at Home. It has a two-fold use. We take the doggie hairs off both furniture and doggies! Helps keep potential allergens down in small spaces. We use the Handbroom for the floor. It looks little but it calls all the dirt to gather and we have clean floors. Wiping the counters clean with the chiffonetes takes minutes, even the mirrors shine. Looks great! We feel great and ready for our travel home!
We stop by our daughter’s house to say another goodbye, the sun is shinning and it is 23 degrees outside! The roads should be clear no weather insight. We have reservations set for Frontier RV in Winnamucca, Nevada, book plugged in, doggies secure, kleenex, cough drops, snacks and water.
After leaving the city limits the highway opens with very few vehicles in sight. . . Humming along! How different the landscape looks with early daylight versus setting sun and darkness. Again no wildlife. Must mean they are smart enough to stay warm and not challenge Mother Nature. After a couple of hours we stop at the same vacant gas station, let the doggies run a bit, go to the coach for a wonderful lunch of left overs.
We are making great time, we are going mostly downhill! We reach Winnamucca before nightfall and guess what it is above freezing! We finally get rid of the poopscicle. We are feeling so good we park and start to reheat our New Years Eve dinner. We are now feeling better, our taste buds are working and the lamb is sooooo good, a little champagne, homemade cookies, Martini Radio and we are good!
The morning dawns and we do our “pre-flight”, doggies running and chasing, we are good to go. This morning we try coffee at a truck stop where we gas up. Coffee is hot, not Peet’s, but the morning is chilly. My special, double layered lap blanket, hand knit by my daughter keeping my legs toasty so the coffee is a little plus. The highway is still a bit quiet, few rigs, cars or trucks. We smile and listen to our second book, Killing Patton!
By Reno, it is still cool, 27 degrees, but not 7! We find an In-N-Out burger in Sparks, Nevada and we are in heaven. Never knew it was there, just near the Nugget. We again set the table in the coach, doggies have water and a stretch, onward we go. After getting gas near Cabella’s west of Reno we chug up to thru the Sierra’s and find a view we have probably driven past a zillion times in our travels. I don’t even know the name of the rest stop but it is gorgeous. When we get out of the truck and doggies are out we notice that at the edge of the fence has an even more breathtaking view of a little valley and different hills and mountains. This is where we realize that stopping just because has many special surprises.
All alone with beauty and a valley down below!
We are almost home. It is always bittersweet. No longer as cold nor windy as our road out, just traffic. Home is now only 3 hours away. We have finished two audio books and feel quite accomplished. I am writing notes about our trip, putting down our thoughts and memories. Of course of places we may want to revisit again or explore are written in large bold letters.
We arrive home, unload a few things, park our silver castle in the drive way and then lock the door. Doggies are happy to be out of the truck, we kinda are too. It is almost the enjoyment of less that makes the trip more, and home is our base camp to prepare for the next adventure. Oh the fun of picking and planning another untraveled road.
Canned Comfort 