Sunday, July 22, 2007

The final leg - July 15th through 20th

The night of July 14th, stayed in Boston Bar, 15th in Golden, and in between we drove... Western Canada in the Summer is hot - upper nineties and above in places. It is also heavily blighted by the pine bark beatles which have decimated the pine forests there. Long drives along a picturesque river, with little in between the sparse towns, and two train tracks winding the whole way along. Saw many trains with engines on both ends - push-me-pull-me style. Saw the famous figure 8 rail road tunnel which was interesting as well, which crosses over itself several times to give a less steep ascent up the hill.


The 16th was the day that the trip was all about - we went drove up to Lake Louise and another lake nearby to oggle at the beauty there, then on to Banff for a tour of the town, and a taste of Cow's Ice cream, which the Wiley family thinks is the best Ice Cream ever. That night, skirting Calgary, and stayed in High River area.

The 17th, we headed back across the boarder to the US, and skirted around the South side of Glacier (our RV is too large to fit through the Highway To The Sun), and then entered on the West side of the park, and met up with my brother Mark who had driven there from the cruise to take some time to write. After Delilah took a dip in the lake there, we got together with him, chatted for a while, ate some more ice cream (I've had more ice cream on this trip than I think any other time in my life), and then said good by, and headed out to our KOA just outside of Glacier. Was a nice campground, which would have been nicer if a) it weren't raining, and b) if Delilah hadn't left the water running in the sink in thebathroom, which of course flooded the carpet, and required several hours of lifting the plastic carpet cover, stomping on towels, drying the towels, and starting over. At least Delilah helped with the "Towel Dancing". When we put the towels in the drier, we found that they actually serve a dinner at this KOA - a nice BBQ'd chicken, with corn and beans, which Delilah and I gobbled up. Unfortunately the internet access was blinky, so the game night that I was hoping to play ended abruptly. C'est la vie...

On the 18th we started out to get to some of our other relatives in Idaho, but I didn't realize just how far it was (had originally estimated time on the assumption that we would have driven after seeing Glacier) so ended up being a full day of driving. We made it to about a hundred miles shy of our destination, when I gave up, and we did the Hotel thing for the night.

On the 19th, we drove into Jerome area to meet with Hank, Norma and Claudia (mom's brother and family), and had a nice chat, and lunch there, then hopped back in the RV, and we were off to Beaver, Utah for a late night camping episode (the last night).

Finally, on the 20th after a very long, short night (long on lack of sleep for various reasons, short in actual sleep hours), we got up about 6:30 AM and hit the road with both Delilah and Mom still in bed. Drove through Vegas, and stopped at The Mad Greek in Baker for a good lunch (some of the best road food that we had on the trip - they had Shwarma which is a favorite of mine). Turns out that "Bun Boy" is no longer, bought out by "Bob's Big Boy" which oddly, I had thought went away years ago, but appears to be making a revival. They still have the Bun Boy Hotel and teh Worlds Tallest Thermometer there. Driving on, through traffic in LA, and got in to Escondido to drop off the parents about 5:30. Called Kim on the way out of town about stopping off to pick up the keys, and she invited Delilah and I for dinner at their place which was fun. Then finally, home. Home.

Home. The house was empty, since Barbara was at a Bachelorette party for the night, and was funny sleeping alone, after having slept with Delilah or Barbara next to me for so long. In the morning, D and I cleaned up the RV some, started the "decompression" laundry, food removal, etc, did a Costco run, etc, trying to get back in to a "semi-normal" lifestyle again. I will start back to work on Monday.

So the total trip - 17,478 miles, almost 4 months, 3 tires, 5 provinces, 45 states. Cat survived, Delilah loved it, Barbara actually is traveled out, and I am satisfied and joyful to have had this possibility realized.

So, anyone want to buy an RV? :)

Sunday, July 15, 2007

On to the Cruise, and off again - July 7th through 15th


The cruise departed from Seattle, Washington. We were on the Golden Princess, took the 7 day cruise. As a very quick overview - it was a GREAT cruise, a nice ship (though admitedly large), fabulous food, and had some remarkable destinations. I would strongly recommend this cruise.

First day was at sea, cruising. Found out about their kid program, and enrolled D in it, which she really enjoyed. Got a little fetter, eating some excelent food, and did the "formal dinner" thing to Barbara's particular delight.

Second day - Juneau, Alaska. We did a tour of the Mendenhall Glacier, a Salmon Hatchery and ended at a Salmon Bake. The Glacier isn't accessible from the observation point - you have to take either a helicopter, dog sled or jet boat to get there - all of which were outside of our budget... So, we observed from a distance at the remarkable beauty of a really BIG chunk of really OLD ice, played with some of the floating ice bergs that used to be part of it, and moved on to the hatchery. Very interesting tour - they actually raise the fish from fry there to about 2 years of age, then put them in an open mesh net near their stream fed fish ladder, and the fish program for that particular chemical combination of that stream - unique in all the world. They are then released to the wild, and many of them after a few years return to river, smell the stream, and then climb up their ladder to the home of their birth - ready to spawn, and soon therafter get zapped, and canned or otherwise prepped for somebodies dinner. Speaking of dinner - the salmon bake was great, they baked it over a pit BBQ, with a nice sauce, and all the trimmings.
Third day - Skagway, Alaska. We went into the town for a few hours, and tried to avoid all the jewelry stores there. Were able to find a bookstore, and an internet connection for a few minutes. Then, back to the pier for a really frustrating running back and fourth between two trains - one of which we were told wasn't the right train, but ended up being the correct one after all, and met up with the rest of the family for a really fun train ride up into the hills overlooking Skagway called the "White Pass Scenic Rail". Some great views of the mountains, waterways and forests, and actually crossed momentarily into Canada at the top of the pass, prior to heading back down the hill. Along the way we saw a small bear.
Fourth day - Tracy Arm Fjord, Alaska (Scenic Cruising). During the night, the ship had been navigated into the Tracy Arm Fjord, and we awakened to the gentle thumping of icebergs against the hull... Truly beautiful, many different shades from silvery white, to a very deep blue. We were blessed with overcast skies, which cuts much of the IR, and lets the blue really shine through - the captain actually said that there were some colors that even he hadn't seen before (I bet he says that to all the cruisers :) ). We also saw some Orcas, including one jump out of the water, some seals, and a number of arctic turns.

Fifth day -Ketchikan, Alaska. We did the Rainforest Tour there, and remarkably didn't get rained on (I think this was the first day that it didn't rain on the cruise for at least a small part of the day). Had a nice walk through the forest with our guide, and saw some bald eagles and some slugs in the wild, and an owl and reindeer in the pens there. That evening, the second formal dinner, which we were able to convince some of our relatives to join us for. Cruising is truly an exhibit of excess, debauchery, etc. Where else can you get all you can eat lobster, also get a beef wellington, and the veggies off a third entre... Have I mentioned that the food was excellent?

Sixth day - Victoria, British Columbia. We got in in the evening, and took a city tour, followed by a tour of Butchart Gardens - which we decided that we will definitely need to return to, to spend more than the two hours there. Could be a full day thing. Very nice. Return trip was a little worisome, since the transmission on the bus sounded like it was about to fall out, but we made it back ok, on the ship for the last bit of packing.

Back to Seattle (on the 14th), Washington, and off the boat. Early dis-embarkation and a combination of requirements (including Barbara flying home, and my parents joining Delilah and I for the reminder of the trip) made for a bit of confusion, but was it was easier than getting on. Got all parties collected, and tried to find a brunch place to have a final meal with Barbara before she flew off, but found our selves in airport central with the only options being - Arriving flights, Departing flights and Parking... Ended up having to kick B off prematurely, but she did get home ok.

From there, Delilah, my Mom and Dad and I drove into Canada. Mom had picked up a bug that she has spent most of her time trying to recover from, and the rest of us spent the rest of the day watching the Canadian landscape - which has unfortunately been hugely blighted by the pine bark beetles, which have wiped out high percentages of entire forests. It is also surprisingly hot in British Columbia at this time of year - the thermostat at the RV part read 89 degrees which was a few degrees cooler than it had been. I spent a while reconfiguring the RV for the new passenger reality (mom sleeping in the third bed, sheets on the back bed, clothing in the bags for laundering soon, etc), and we had a simple dinner of sandwiches which was a joyfully simple repast as a break from cruising food. Barbara claims that she will be doing a cleanse - we'll have to check in and see.

On the 15th, just more driving, but slowly getting into the Canadian Rockies, so the temp has dropped a bit. Tonight was able to do the laundry, get an internet connection (thus), and play part of "Sound of Music" DVD for the parents and Delilah. Somehow ended up being late again, but hopefully Delilah will sleep amply.

Tomorrow in to the Yoho National Park, Lake Louise, Banf and area. Should be very nice. If all goes well, we will meet up with my Brother on Tuesday (two days hence) in Glacier on the US side for a while, as he will be in a cabin there for part of the week to contemplate and write. He actually spent time there as an 'intern' or whatever you call a preacher in training :), so it's got a lot of great memories for him.

More later.

Saturday, July 7, 2007

The Drive to the Cruise - July 3rd through 6th





In the interim time between the last trip, and departure, I was able to work a few days on a project at work which was interesting, and frustrating at the same time. I was basically doing consulting for another company, but between the short time that I had to work, and some missing something on their side, I ended up not even getting the hardware that I needed until Monday, and I had to leave by Noon on Tuesday - just didn't have enough time to finish. Oh well, at least got them some good leads to look at, and other things to look out for.

Tuesday the 3rd, headed home at a bit after noon to pack the RV for afternoon departure. During the prep phase, I quickly discovered that the refrigerator wasn't working when running from gas (LP). I ended up spending most of the time that I had intended for packing and organizing, on trying to diagnose the thing - and since I haven't ever actually worked on this type of fridge before, the idea of using a lighter as a diagnostic tool just seemed wrong, but ended up being exactly what I needed. I isolated the problem to either a thermocouple (I have know idea what metals they are using, but the 30mV output when held to a match seems low, and should the case really be grounded?) or the control board (which would be the BAD answer)... No time left to fix it now, and won't need the fridge while on the cruise, so for now, it's back to the ice chest, and eating out.

Barbara had similar complications, and our supposed 3PM departure (with plenty of time to swing by Kim's to pick up the spare set of keys that had hidden in her purse) worked its way to a 4PM departure on the day before the 4th of July - no time for a stop at Kims, and barely made it to my parents for their 5PM sitting for dinner. As was the way of the day, the service at their place was the slowest ever, and finally the dog sitter arrived later than expected, so it was a bit after 7 before we finally pulled out of town. From there, smooth sailing ensued. We made it up the 5 to about the level of Bakersfield and stayed in a little hotel that we had made the mistake of staying at once before, and somehow had forgotten.

The day of the 4th was spent driving up to Redding, a long and relatively unattractive stretch of the 5 that someone had the gall to call a "Scenic Highway". The only thought was that they must have driven the stretch in March (just after a rain, during the few weeks of the year that this stretch has any natural green), and further must have driven it MANY years ago, prior to the advent of mass cattle farming along the way. Getting in to Redding, we went to find just some Green Salads, and somehow ended up at "Cattlemens" which was easy walking distance, but ended up getting beef with our salads, which was more than a bit heavier than we were hoping for. Would have been good food if you were in the mood for meat, but ended up being an expensive salad and leftovers. We were able to see the fireworks show from our 3rd story room, and were delighted at the length and content of the Redding fireworks - I think it was the longest, and most impressive city show that I've ever seen. After that we ate a wattilermelon that we had been saving, and off to a late bed for D (particularly since the show didn't start until 10PM with the later darkening up here).

On the 5th, we continued towards Eugene, Or, driving along the beautiful mountain and lake views there, and stopping in Ashland for a little walk, and then meeting up with Ken and Ann in Medford area for lunch. Things with them are progressing apace, Ken having to have a hip injury looked at, but overall both were in good spirits, and fun to see again. Then continued up to Eugene, where we stayed for the night with Suzie, Brian, Kolbie and Lydia. They always make us feel so welcome - the kids make great drawings, and they decorate the room with chocolates, cookies and fruit, it' like staying at a B&B whenever we visit. Had a nice dinner, and a bit of chatting after a quick run in to town to replace B's ailing sandals, and a nice nights sleep, until the sun popped up at 6 something and flooded the room...

On the 6th, managed to get up to Seattle in preparation for boarding the ship tomorrow. Got in to the hotel after wrestling with traffic for too long, and then mom watched Delilah as Barbara and I visited with our friends Mike and Pam Wall up here. Went out to dinner (a great Thai place), and then B and Mike did another recording in his home studio of a self improvement audio, while Pam and I related our recent adventures. Finally pried B out and wandered home, and after a bit of being lost, were able to relieve mom from her sitting duties not too long after midnight (how did it get so late??)

Tomorrow, we will hang out in the morning, and eventually make it over to the Cruise terminal around noon. Not sure from there when I will be able to post again, but will certainly have some stuff afterwards.