JIM
As I sit here by a crackling fire in eastern Washington contemplating the meaning of Memorial Day I am humbled to think how lucky and blessed I am to live when & where I do. So many have fought and paid the ultimate price to allow me to be exactly where we are now. A couple of days ago I achieved a milestone I know only a few lucky people have accomplished. With the visit to South Dakota and Mount Rushmore I have now logged “quality” boots on the ground time (airport visits didn’t count for me) in all 50 U.S. states. It further humbles me to see the differences in topography, geography and climate that we have and which we can visit by simply driving. No border checks, no language barriers just nice, diverse people at every stop we make. Like me, all of us have different life experiences and different viewpoints which require respect but lest we not forget we are all Americans and should be thankful for what we have. No one person is better because of who they are, where they were born or how much education they have. We’re just “different” and that’s what makes it so special to live in this melting pot of the U.S. I will now step down off my soapbox and get on with our journey. Tomorrow the Grand Cooley Dam and then the greater Seattle area. Stay tuned – we can’t wait!
0 Comments
NESHAMA We are finishing up three glorious days on The Flathead River in Kalispell, Montana at Spruce Park on the River RV Resort (http://www.spruceparkrv.com/). We literally got the best spot in the park, right on the river. The views were truly spectacular and totally unobstructed. We spent the time here getting to know the town, chilling out, taking walks and finishing up the glamper organization. Jim did a little more repair to the siding that came off in the 70 MPH winds we went through from Billings to our unexpected stop in Shelby. The glamper should be able to stay put together until we get it repaired when we get back to Colorado in July. I was IMMENSELY excited to be back in a town with a plethora of health food stores. After so many days of eating on the road I was happy to be back in the land of abundant organic and gluten free food. Yummm. I was especially enamored with Mountain Valley Foods and went back twice (http://www.mountainvalleyfoods.com/). Additionally, I finally got some gym time and was able to take some fitness classes at a remarkable center called The Summit Medical Fitness Center (https://www.krh.org/summit/). It is a gigantic rec center that is attached to a center for rehab and physical and a wide array of therapies. I was very excited to see that they employ a team of wellness coaches. It is worth checking out their programs. I’m a little sad to leave this idyllic spot – but, on to more adventures and beautiful places. Most of our stops are either on rivers or will be along the ocean. Tomorrow we head to eastern Washington… JIM
We’ve made it as far as western Montana tonight but not quite as far as anticipated in the planning phase. We got “winded” out about thirty miles shy of Cut Bank and had to hole up in Shelby. Ironically I’ve stayed in Shelby once before while camping our way up to Alaska driving the Alcan in college but these were a little different circumstances. We intend to get back on schedule tomorrow weather permitting and drive to Kalispell where we will spend a few days finishing the camper set up and organization. Most everything is hung, placed or stashed in its now permanent home so time to actually start enjoying the experience. Speaking of which after one complete week aboard our glamper we now have established a sense of routine familiar to anyone who boats. We have a spot for everything and it’s the only place it will fit. Even Lassie has settled in. Since we were unable to actually open the door to the camper in the category I hurricane force winds at the camp site tonight we decided to rough it at the Comfort Inn so that we could actually get some sleep. A little “hippie chrome” applied to the side of the camper and a visit to a local auto body shop seems to be holding up fine until a more long term solution can be found. NESHAMA
Dear diary…er, this entry is about the next stop on our adventure: Rapid City, SD. We are staying at a lovely, large campground called Rushmore Shadows. I “won” a 3 night stay here when compulsively entering my name into every drawing box at the Colorado RV Show in January. Winning meant – 3 free nights in exchange for the 90-minute “pitch”. As veterans of timeshare presentations, we were in. We saved around $160 in nightly rent; received $25 in a Visa gift card and 2 free tickets to the Fort Hays Chuckwagon Supper & Show (where we also got to see the little “Dances with Wolves” museum). 1) I've just got to say that "Dances with Wolves" is a favorite movie of mine; and 2) I really like going to dorky things like the Chuckwagon Supper (excellent BBQ and the music was surprisingly good). Poor Jim. These past 3 days have been a really good break from the driving and an opportunity for us to get organized in the camper. It involved several trips to town and our coming back with all sorts of shelving and gadgets to make life easier. We even had some down time. The weather has been kind of cold and rainy (on and off). We had one day of sightseeing and went to Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse. Wow! These sculptures, built into the sides of mountains, are truly spectacular. That they are carved using explosives just makes it that much more amazing. Tomorrow – on to Montana for the next leg of our trip. NESHAMA
The last two days have been a whirlwind of newness and to do lists and miles to cover. We started yesterday morning in Mishawaka, Indiana. After breakfast we traveled to Coldwater Michigan to pick up our camper (and get oriented). Then we drove back to Niles, Michigan where we spent our first night unpacking and learning how to use it! The dealership we bought our camper from is called Haylett Auto and RV (www.haylettautoandrv.com) and we spent time with our broker Mike Snyder (who we have nicknamed “RV Mike”) and service tech Norm. Jim learned all of the ins and outs of owning and operating this thing while I tuned out and wondered how all of the stuff was going to fit in the small closets. Lassie was apparently fretting about the 3 metal steps she was reluctantly going to have to use to get in. Our first hours at the campground felt quite chaotic. The pickup was filled to the brim with stuff that needed to be sorted and initially it was hard to figure out where everything fit. Jim was busy learning about hookups and leveling, electricity and water - in a few hours we were good to go. Our first night was spent at a place called Riverfront Park Campground. It was nothing special but fine for a night. Today we headed out early for a 12 hour drive south through nw Indiana, west into Illinois, then north to Wisconsin. We took a circuitous route to avoid Chicago during rush hour. We ended up on farm roads through small, charming towns battling big cross-winds. It was an experience but we made it. Jim did great as our driver! Our second campground, Pettibone RV Resort, in La Cross, WI is a step up from last night’s stop. It is right on the Mississippi River and we were lucky to get a riverfront space. Jim efficiently backed our camper in and we got organized much more quickly. While he was taking care of things I took a walk with Lassie and made friends with our next door neighbor who had just arrived with his wife, 2 year old son and great dane – in a tiny house! The view from our glamper is absolutely gorgeous! I’m keeping a little notebook in the car and writing down random notes such as the times we cross state lines. Today we crossed into Indiana at 7:32AM; into Illinois at 8:40AM; into Wisconsin at 2:43PM; into Minnesota at 5:58PM; then back into Wisconsin at 6:05PM. The words/names for the day are Kankakee (IL) and Barnaboo (River in WI). Today we saw a caravan of Budweiser Clydesdales drive by in enormous trucks. Oh, and we bought 9 year aged cheddar cheese when we got to Wisconsin (I don’t even want to think about what that means!). Day 2 was all about getting from there (Omaha) to here (Mishawaka, Indiana*) so that we will be a short drive to pick up our new RV trailer tomorrow! We (that would be Jim) have now driven 1,124 miles in two days and mostly avoided traffic or construction until we skirted along south of Chicago. Highlights so far include: 42 of 50 states of license plates, including Hawaii and Alaska (tracked in an app); going over a bridge in Madison County (Iowa) as in the movie "The Bridges of Madison County"; and crossing the mighty and very brown Mississippi River. We had a surprisingly delicious dinner of farm to table food at Rocky River Tap and Table, just 5 minutes from our motel.
*we are really close to the Notre Dame campus. 552 miles from Genesee (Golden) CO to Omaha and the driving was easy. After two coaching sessions by Skype this morning we hit the road at 10:15 rolling in at 7:15 local time (including losing one hour). It has been so great getting to connect with Jim’s nephew (and godson) Tony. We took a lovely and much needed walk and dinner out at The Meatball in The Blackstone District.
|
Neshama & JimWe are newbies to the RV life! After a 4-day excursion in our friends' 18 ft travel trailer to Canyonlands in Utah (September, 2016) we researched, dreamed and finally (some say quickly) bought a 22 foot travel trailer of our own. This blog will follow us on our first trip - 7 weeks through the Pacific Northwest, beginning May 15, 2017! ArchivesCategories |