A Beautiful Day - Let The Sun Shine!

What a difference a day makes.  Our first day on the road was all rain, rain and more rain.  Sunday was a different story as when we pulled into Canyonville and the Seven Feathers RV Resort at 2pm it was sunny with blue skies and just perfect!  Heck, we’re not even in California yet!

Parked in our site under sunny skies at Seven Feathers

It didn’t look too good when we left Centralia at 8am but what we thought were clouds just turned out to be fog.  The fog cleared up by the time we drove through Portland and from there to Canyonville it was clear skies and a nice, comfortable easy drive.

Taking a quick break at a rest stop near Eugene

Traffic was light on the I-5 so we elected to drive right through Portland rather than taking the bypass route.  That was a good decision as we cruised right through the city and over the bridges at the posted speeds.

Had to stop for diesel just 20 minutes from day’s end

We only made two stops along the way, one at a rest stop near Eugene, OR and another just north of the Seven Feathers Resort to fill up with diesel.  I’m not sure if you heard me Russ and Donna but I did honk the horn and we waved as we rolled through Eugene.

Rene, Jeanette, Paulette and me at the Casino

We knew from email exchanges that Rene and Jeanette (RV Voyageur) were booked into the Seven Feathers Sunday and just as we were pulling into our site there they were walking right by.  We said hello, talked for a bit and arranged to meet-up later to go for dinner over at the Casino.

We all ordered the Rib-Eye Special for dinner

The RV Resort Shuffle bus took us over to the Casino but the only money they got out of our group was the $8.95 we each paid for the Sunday Night Special – a Ribeye Steak dinner.  We had a wonderful evening with Rene and Jeanette mostly catching up with news about how are respective families are up to.  We’ll meet up for sure before we each head for home in a few months.

Time for a quick siesta with ‘one-eye-open’ Rylie

Back at the rig, tired from the day of driving and full after a great dinner, it was time for a quick siesta in my lazy boy.  Of course, the muttzo’s were quick to join me even though Rylie always has one eye open just in case something more interesting is going on.

Tomorrow – it’s California, Here We Come!!

Back In The U.S.A.– How Happy We Are

We arrived at the MIdway RV Park in Centralia, WA just before 3:30 yesterday afternoon.  It was drizzling a little which was better than the weather we had for most of our drive down – it rained pretty much all the way.  The forecast is for sunshine tomorrow so we’ll see.

Paulette’s photos – leaving Victoria on the MV Coho

The ferry ride to Port Angeles on the MV Coho was fairly uneventful.  In fact for me it was completely uneventful as I stayed in the 5’er with Molly and Rylie as dogs are not allowed above the car deck.  Paulette took all the photos in this post using my old Canon G10 – she did a great job. 

The light at the end of the Victoria breakwater

Driving off the ferry in Port Angeles we had to go through customs but it was one of the fastest ever for us.  Just two questions:  “Do you own the truck and 5’er?” (Yes). “Where are you going and for how long?”  (Palm Springs for 3 months).  With that he waved us on and we were on our way.  That was sure easy.

The breakwater is a popular walk for residents

The route we took is a familiar one for us and one we enjoy driving.  The highways took us alongside the Hood Canal and across its long floating bridge.  The next bridge was the Tacoma Narrows which is pretty big and with a $10 toll fee it was pretty expensive as well.  I’m sure glad I don’t have to drive over that too often.

Heading over the Hood Canal Floating Bridge

We drove all the way to Centralia without stopping as we never had to fill-up with diesel.  Pulling off the highway in Centralia I spotted a Les Schwab Tire store,  one of many in the Pacific Northwest, and pulled in to have our 5’er wheels re-torqued.  They did it right away and refused payment saying it was a courtesy.  That’s a sure fire way to gain future customers!

Next up was Tacoma Narrows with its $10 toll charge

Setting up at Midway RV Park was a snap as the concrete sites are dead level which meant I never had to unhitch the truck.  We have a 50amp full service site with free Wifi and Cable TV.  Last night we spent a relaxing night in our 5’er watching a bit of TV and catching up on all the blogs I missed reading Saturday morning.

My 1 photo – Paulette browsing the web on her iPad

Sunday, we’re looking forward to an easy drive down to the Seven Feathers RV Resort in Canyonville, OR where we plan to meet up with fellow bloggers Rene and Jeanette (RV Voyageur).  That will be fun as we’ll be able to catch up on news and find out what winter plans they have in store.

Have a great Sunday, and thanks again for visiting!

And….We’re Off On The MV Coho To Port Angeles

By the time many of you read this, Paulette and I will be driving down to Victoria to board the 10:30am sailing of the MV Coho for Port Angeles, WA.  We’ll arrive in the U.S.A. around noon and, subject to not being detained by U.S. Border Agents, we should be able to get to our first night’s destination, the Midway RV Park, in Centralia, WA sometime between 3 and 4 in the afternoon.

All I have to do is navigate our truck and 5’er through this door!

Driving on to the MV Coho towing a 5’er is always a fun experience.  In the photo above, the opening on the side is where we drive up a ramp and the make a big swooping left hand turn to the far side of the ferry and then drive down towards the stern (a little navy lingo).  Getting off is easy as we just drive right out the stern doors.  It may look a bit scary but it’s really pretty easy.

Packed, hitched and ready to roll first thing Saturday morning

Yesterday, we were busy, but not rushed, from early morning until after dinner taking care of last minute chores, packing and then double-checking everything.  I made a run to the garbage dump to get rid of the trash collected over Christmas and then stopped at Safeway to top-up the tank with diesel fuel.  After that it was back home, check all the tires, pull in the slides and hitch-up!!

I’ll miss our Cowichan River walks the most

Paulette and I are really looking forward to the next 4 months in the warm, dry air of the southwestern desert.  It’s a 100% change from the climate and the geography of Vancouver Island.  I’m going to miss our walks along the trails of the Cowichan River the most I think.  I never tire of those no matter how many times we’ve hiked the many different paths.

Next to the Cowichan River, being away from the ocean

We’ll also miss the ocean views although we will sneak in a trip or two to San Diego and Malibu.  In any event, the change is welcome and best of all when our vacation is over in April, we get to come back home to Vancouver Island without a regret in the world. 

Have a great Saturday, and thanks again for visiting!

A Nightmare About Driving Over ‘Fiscal Cliff’ On I-5

Last night I awoke in a cold sweat from a nightmare that saw us rolling down I-5 on January 1st happily heading for Redding, CA when suddenly there it was – the dreaded ‘Fiscal Cliff’!  All I could do to try and avoid the abyss was to slam on my brakes.  With tires squealing and skidding across the paved hi-way, the huge jaws of the Fiscal Cliff loomed directly ahead.  Panicked, I awoke screaming “noooo”!!

Thankfully, it was only a nightmare and after I assured Paulette that I wasn’t totally out of my mind, I managed to calm down and get back to sleep.  The real ‘Fiscal Cliff’ may or may not be resolved by the time we cross the Medicine Line this Saturday so we’re going to have to be on special lookout just in case.

Besides being a Quilter, Paulette is also into making Jewelry and all this is coming south with us

Packing picked up speed yesterday as we really swung into high gear.  While Paulette was busy sorting out the refrigerator and kitchen cupboards figuring out what to bring and what had to go, I was rounding up all of our gizmos, gadgets, cables, chargers and stuff.  Thankfully, I kept my list up-to-date so it was simply a matter of checking each item off and taking it out to the 5’er or the truck.

Yesterday morning, I was in the truck and off to take care of a few errands.  I hit our local cellphone provider, weekly newspaper, vet’s office and library all to take care of a few minor issues.  Friday morning I’ll be making my last trek to the garbage dump for this year then stopping at Safeway to top off with diesel for the truck.

Sometime Friday afternoon, we’ll bring in the slides on the 5’er and I’ll hitch-up so we’ll be all ready to roll out of here around 7:30am on Saturday morning.  We’ve got our house checklists to complete but I think we’re in pretty good shape to get out of here right on schedule.

We did manage to get out for a 2 mile hike on the Cowichan Estuary yesterday.  The skies cleared up for a while and we enjoyed a nice walk in the sunshine.  The weather forecast for this Saturday looks good with temperatures expected to be hovering around 40F.  If that’s the case, there should be no snow on the Malahat.

Have a great Friday, and thanks again for visiting!

With Christmas Over, Packing Begins In Earnest

The kids left for Victoria just before noon yesterday and finally it seemed we could stop eating.  I suppose it would have been fine to stop before that but everything was so good who could do that?  Not me that’s for sure.  The Wednesday morning breakfast sendoff was terrific – pancakes, scrambled eggs and bacon.

The day started off with food again – pancakes, bacon and eggs

Paulette and I along with the muttzo’s slept in the 5’er parked in our driveway on Christmas night.  It seemed a lot easier plan as the kids were staying up late to watch movies on TV.  I turned the furnace on a few hours before we went out to go to bed so it was toasty warm and heavenly quiet compared to the party in our family room!

A Google+ Hangout session with Hayley yesterday morning

Hayley is spending Christmas with her boyfriend Ryan and his family just outside of Toronto.  We talked to her on the phone Christmas Day and arranged for her to call back yesterday morning so I could set up a Google Hangout video chat.  It worked perfectly so we all crowded around my computer to talk to Hayley.  She said it was too early to put a light on at her end so even though her video was a bit dark it was still great to be able to see her and talk.

Toby, Maggie, Nick, Emma and Carrie

Maggie, Toby, Nick and Emma were all in for a real treat as they had reserved rooms to stay at the Empress Hotel in Victoria Wednesday night before heading back to Vancouver on Thursday.  They were able to get some kind of super deal on rooms at the Empress but said they’ll be skipping the $75 High Tea and plan on going somewhere else for dinner too.  Good plan!!

The ‘Blue Bullet’ heads off to Vancouver for the next 4 months

We waved goodbye to Maggie and Carrie as they drove away in the “Blue Bullet”.  Maggie doesn’t have a car but she does have secure underground parking in her condo building in downtown Vancouver.  So, we’d rather have her take the Civic and use it for running around on weekends.  Paulette, however, was still a bit sad to see her little Honda disappear down the hill. 

The weather forecast says we shouldn’t see this on Saturday

As soon as the kids were gone and the dust settled a bit, we swung into action at home by taking down the Christmas Tree and all the decorations.  I brought in the bins from the garage and Paulette carefully packed away all her treasured ornaments.  This is a job I don’t get to touch and that’s probably why many of her ornaments are well over 20 years old.  I did get to pack the empty bins back out to the garage though.  This was a big job to get done so quickly.

After that, we took Molly and Rylie for a walk, came home, put our feet up and just relaxed!  I’ve got a lot of running around to do Thursday morning then I’ll be back home to finish up packing.

A Great Christmas Day With A Bit Of Excitement

We had another great Christmas day topped off by a wonderful Turkey dinner courtesy of Paulette.  The excitement of the day was an unexpected noon snowfall on the Malahat highway which almost prevented our daughter Carrie from making it home.  After a quick look at the Malahat Webcam I figured I’d seen and driven in worse so I drove down to Victoria to get Carrie and bring her home.

A bit of excitement as I drove over a snowy Malahat to get Carrie

It was slow going towards the Malahat Summit as cars were backed up and going very slow in single file mode.  Luckily, no one tried anything stupid and even though the normal 30 minute drive took over an hour it was o.k.  I picked up Carrie and by the time we reached the Summit on the way home the snow had turned to rain and the road was bare and wet – all was good.  Carrie slept over so there was no concern about going back home at night.

Now how in the world did I end up peeling potatoes?

Work, work, work my fingers to the bone!  Early yesterday morning Paulette recruited me for a bit of K.P. duty in the form of peeling potatoes.  There was a big bag of spuds in front of me and when I asked how many potatoes to peel, Paulette said “the whole bag”!!  I managed to get the job done without cutting off any fingers.

The table was all set early in the day

Just before noon, Maggie and Toby arrived and brought along a couple of friends from Australia – Nick and Emma.  They live in Vancouver now after emigrating from Australia about 2 years ago.  We were thrilled to have them join us as we were down a few of our kids this year due to travel and work requirements.  We did manage to connect with Erin, Hayley and Jessica by phone though.  Kevin had to work Christmas Day but did come up for a visit on Christmas Eve.

Toby and Emma enjoying lunch

While I was peeling potatoes, Paulette was busy preparing lunch.  I’m glad we were having a late dinner because lunch was a pretty big meal including homemade chili, nachos and buns.  It wasn’t long after lunch that I had to make the trek down to Victoria to pick up Carrie so she wouldn’t miss out everything.

Left to right: Emma, Carrie, Nick, Toby

When Carrie and I got back home just after 3pm, it was time for us to relax in the living room and exchange a few gifts.  It was great fun as usual and everyone agreed that Santa Claus had done his best job in years and years!

What a meal!

Paulette’s Christmas dinner was simply amazing.  We had Turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, baked pecan sweet potatoes, broccoli bake, peas, carrots and an Icelandic tradition – fruit salad with whipped cream.  Paulette’s heritage is Icelandic and this fruit salad with whipped cream, although a dessert in my books, has been a regular staple of all our Christmas dinners.

Nick, Emma, Maggie, Toby, Carrie, Paueltte, Rylie!

Lunch was terrific but dinner was even better.  Somehow, we all managed to try a bit of everything.  After a bit of a break, Paulette brought out dessert – Pumpkin Pie and/or Napolean Slice.  It was a difficult choice so most of us opted for a bit of each.

Carrie trying to blow out the candles on her Birthday Cake

We had one more thing to celebrate yesterday.  Carrie’s Birthday is January 6th and since we’ll be leaving for Palm Springs this Saturday we celebrated Carrie’s birthday yesterday.  Paulette found some candles, put them in the Napolean Slice and lit them up like a small bonfire for Carrie to blow out.  It took a few tries but with some help Carrie did manage to douse the candle flames.

After that, it was off to the family room for the kids to watch a movie while Paulette and I found a quiet place to sit down, relax and reflect on just how lucky we are.

Have a great day after Christmas, and thanks again for visiting!

We Wish You A Merry Christmas …..

Here’s wishing you all a Very, Merry Christmas!

Getting A Few Basic Chores Done Before Christmas

Our 2 garbage bins were about full so it was time for a run to the dump to unload them prior to their being filled to the max in the aftermath of Christmas.  This job is one that Molly and Rylie always look forward to and as soon as I ask “who wants to go to the dump” they start running around, yapping and wagging tails.  Go figure!!

This crawl space is about 3’ high – not the easiest to get to

Our forced air electric furnace is located in a 3’ high crawl space under our living room/dining/kitchen floors.  One of my last to-do tasks before heading south each year is to change the filter in the furnace.  Luckily, the crawlspace has a cement floor, is dry, and is quite warm.  Unluckily, I have to crawl on my hands and knees for about 50’ to get to the furnace.

A new filter and we’re good to go for another year

For over 25 years now I’ve been threatening to put a light switch at the entrance to the crawlspace so I can see clearly.  But, once again I ended up flashlight in one hand and filter in the other trying to make my way to the furnace without banging my head on the floor joists.  And, once again, I told myself “I’ve got to put a light down here” – maybe next year will be the year – somehow, I doubt it.

This Canada Goose lives year round at the Cobble Hill Quarry Lake

Looking at the weather forecast for the coming week here in Cowichan Bay, the temperatures didn't seem to be in danger of getting anywhere near the freezing level so I thought I’d flush out the pink antifreeze in our 5’er.  I had by-passed the hot water tank when I put the pink stuff in so it was completely empty and I always like to have the water system all set-up and ready to go if possible.

Lot’s of low clouds and mist hanging over the water

With the handy by-pass valves on our 5’er, the job of changing over and filling up the hot water tank is quite simple.  The biggest job is hauling the garden hose over to the 5’er and connecting it to the intake.  Once that was done, I went inside, turned on the faucets and let them run until they were clear of pink stuff.  Next, I just opened the valve to the hot water heater and let it fill-up.  Done!

As you can tell from the drops in the water, it was raining a bit

Another reason I wanted to make the water system operational is because we’ll be putting the “5’er Bed and Breakfast Motel” into operation over Christmas.  Some of the kids will be sleeping over Christmas night and there’s always a big fight to see who get’s the deluxe sleeping accommodations the 5’er has to offer.  

There was still a bit of snow here as it’s a bit higher up

With my jobs done, I was able to sit down in our family room, put on the fireplace and TV, then watch an NFL game I’d recorded earlier in the day.  Before I got too comfortable though and settled in to watch another game it was time to take Molly and Rylie for an afternoon walk.  We decided to go for a hike around the Cobble Hill Quarry. 

How ‘bout them Seahawks?  The Seattle Seahawks routed the San Francisco 49’ers 42-13 in Seattle last night and clinched a spot in the NFL playoffs.

For most Canadian fans of the NFL who live in B.C. the Seahawks are pretty much the home team.  I watched last night’s game on TV as Paulette was busy with another Christmas movie.  It wasn’t much of a game unless you were a Seahawk’s fan as it was 21-0 it seemed before the game was barely out of the 1st quarter.  Good stuff!

Have a great Christmas Eve, and thanks again for visiting!

My Last Gizmo Of 2012 (???) Is an Apple TV Device

This little Apple TV device has to be my last gizmo of 2012, right?  I’m sure it is as I can’t honestly think of anything else I remotely need or want.  Did I just say remote?  Yes, this little Apple TV comes with its own tiny remote too – one more to add to the collection to baffle and frustrate Paulette who simply wants to turn the TV on!!Apple TV isn't a TV, it's a box that connects to your TV and makes it easy to play various content from your computer or from the Internet.

This incredible, powerful device fits in the palm of your hand

Until I got an iPad a few weeks ago, I’d never really checked into finding out much about Apple TV even though I’d seen ads and heard a lot about it.  We had a brief experience with Netflix a few months ago and I found downloading movies to a laptop computer and then connecting the laptop to the TV with cables etc. a bit cumbersome.  It was the same experience with ITunes movie downloads.  Enter Apple TV and it’s all simple, elegant and seamless for $109.

It comes with the smallest, simplest & most stylish remote around

Apple TV gives you anytime access to HD movies and TV shows from iTunes — many in stunning 1080p.  The entire Netflix catalogue, YouTube, live baseball and hockey games as well as many other media shows are available on Apple TV.  If that isn’t enough, then you can access any of your computers or mobile devices to stream movies, photos, videos or games right to your widescreen HDTV.

Setup couldn’t be easier – just a power plug and HDMI cable

Setting up Apple TV was a breeze. All I had to do was plug in the power cord and then connect an HDMI cable (not included) to one of the HDMI ports on the back of our TV.  After I selected the correct HDMI Input on my TV, the Apple Setup menu appeared and took me through a few steps to connect the device to our home Wifi.  The Wifi on the Apple TV searched for local networks, found ours, and simply asked me to sign in with my Apple ID and WiFi password.

The main Apple TV menu – Movies, TV Shows, Music, Netflix etc.

From there on, it’s simply a case of using the remote to point and click.  For example, in the image above if I clicked on Movies, I would connect to the iTunes Movie store where I could browse all the movies and either select one to rent or to buy.  Whatever I chose, after I paid, the movie would be streamed immediately to my device where I could choose to watch it right away or at a later time.

Last night, Paulette wanted to watch a movie called Hope Springs with Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones.  I just started up Apple TV and clicked on Movies then chose Hope Springs and opted to rent it.  In just a few minutes Paulette was sitting watching the movie and able to pause, rewind or fast forward using the remote.  I fast-forwarded to my computer because this looked to be a dreadful chick-flick about a long married couple wanting to “spice things up”.

Access all your photos stored on computers to show on TV

Since the Apple TV device is connected to my home WiFi, that also enables me to wirelessly access any of the computers on the network to play any music, movies or videos stored on my desktop or laptop computer.  Just clicking the photos icon allows me to show all of the photos on my computer(s) in individual or slideshow format.  This works really well and reminds me of the days when my Dad used to force us to watch his ‘slide show’ carousel of our vacation pics!

If you happen to be into games, then Apple TV is just the thing

Quiet and so small it fits in the palm of your hand, Apple TV sits neatly anywhere near the TV.  It is virtually unnoticeable alongside the widescreen TV and the satellite receiver.  This little gizmo is going to come in real handy in our 5’er when we want to watch a movie as we’ll no longer have to risk life or limb by stepping over cables stretched over the living room floor.

Paulette thinks this should be my only T-shirt

Just remember, there are only 2 shopping days left ‘till Christmas!