We made it! 4,943.6 miles in 21 days of travel since Gloucester, MA and burned up about 430 gallons of diesel. Now I can sit for a few months and give the truck a rest. I might even do some of that myself! There were only seven days that we weren't driving, one in Buffalo for the snow, one in Branson for a show, two in Phoenix with the family (it had to be cut short due to the Santa Ana winds in California) and three in Cucamonga, CA. Now we can enjoy Halloween with the G'Kids and take it easy. Bob and Bev are making plans to get to San Francisco and make the long trip back to Australia. It was great having them along for the trip back. They were a great help in setting up the trailer at every stop even though I couldn't get Bev to hook up the sewer!
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| Arrive Arcata |
We have covered 4,687.5 miles since leaving Gloucester on the 11th. About 240 left to go, whew. We negotiated the "Bay Area" today and found a campground in Petaluma for the night. We are all getting tired. Even Bob and Bev are getting more interested in home than another day in the truck! I am ready to give the truck a rest for awhile.
Back on the road again as we head up to Morro Bay to join up with cousin Tom before continuing to Arcata and redwood country.
I got up this morning and the news was that the Santa Anna winds were going to be blowing in California the next day and it would continue for four days. Discretion got the best of me so decided that we had to leave Phoenix a day early. The clan gathered for reluctant goodbyes and we hit the road again. We arrived in Alta Loma at Bill and Toni Mooneys house and set up camp in the cul-de-sac in front of the house. The first time we set up in the dark but it went well. Bill and Toni made us feel right at home and supplied hot showers, food and electricity for our stay.
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| Toni was inside cooking while we relaxed | Tonis cooking is better than Bills seranade! |
The next day we went to Carrows in Upland for breakfast. Lots of hugs from the gang there. Then out to Riverside National Cemetery to visit dads grave and then on to San Bernardino for lunch and a reunion with my golf buddies. Ken Rhoades managed to show up and we had a great time telling lies.
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There was a Patriot Guard mission for Spc. Jose Perez who was killed in Iraq. Ralph Hiller joined Bob and I as we dressed up the truck and joined the mission.
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Marilyn joined us on Saturday for a day at the races. Santa Anita race track provided the venue but was lacking in winners. We all had dinner at Victoria Gardens.
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A fun day at the races but we didn't win enough to cover the bar bill. |
We made it to Phoenix, well really Mesa, for the family reunion. Arrived with the flags flying and the lights flashing. Took the trailer to a park and the family went to dinner Roberta, Diane, Gordon and Colin, Bob, Bev and I. Three days without moving the trailer, yea!
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After the hellos and family pictures it was a tour of the "home". |
Made it to Meteor Crater and the Grand Canyon today. We stayed in the Park Service campground, nice spot but no hookups for the trailer. This was the first time I tried to "live" off of the trailer battery and it lasted almost 20 minutes! It seems that a new battery is in order. We could only run the generator for 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours at night. We got out the extra blankets and survived the 28 degree overnight lows. May use the commercial campground next time.
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| Meteor Crator |
We now have 2,974 miles of the trip west behind us and it is a good thing as I
am tired! We left Santa Rosa, NM this morning and ran for Arizona.
After a quick fuel stop in Grants we crossed into Arizona and made a stop at the
Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest National Park. I had picked up a
"Golden Age Passport" for $12 while in New Hampshire and it saved us $10 for
this park and will get us $9 off of a campsite at Grand Canyon tomorrow.
One of my better investments!
Bob and Bev had never seen the parks and were suitably impressed. We are all anxious to have a few days in Mesa and not have to hook up the trailer every morning and sit in the truck all day. Two days to Mesa.
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| Painted Desert |
We woke up to a misty day and went out for breakfast then back to hook up the trailer. We got out of the park about 9:00 and stopped by the Buffalo Pen so Bev could pose for a picture then back on I-40. We said goodbye to Oklahoma and stopped for fuel near Amarillo where Bob came back to the trailer with a dainty Sub-Way sandwich and no doughnut for the driver!!!
We pushed on out of Texas and into 40 miles of road repair in New Mexico. The landscape has changed from the tree covered hills of Arkansas yesterday to the New Mexico desert. We will make it to Arizona tomorrow and try to see the Painted Desert before setting up camp. Next the Petrified Forest, Meteor Crater and the Grand Canyon before heading to Mesa for the family reunion.
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| Leaning Tower of Texas | The landscape is changing. |
Left a foggy Branson this morning for the Oklahoma City area. The fog cleared and we traveled thru the beautiful north west corner of Arkansas. We crossed in to Oklahoma enjoying a warm and sunny 76 degree morning - within an hour the temp had dropped to a chilly 54. Then we stopped for fuel . Jim found what has now been declared the slowest diesel fuel pump in the entire northern hemisphere. Jim had to turn his engine off, the idling was eating the fuel faster then the pump was putting it in. So we had an unplanned lunch stop at the station. We made reservations for dinner as a back up plan as well. Fortunately the truck didn't require a full tank so we were able to get back on the road before darkness fell and cancelled our dinner booking.
We passed successfully thru Oklahoma peak hour traffic and after driving thru a golf course (come not really a RV/camp ground as advertised) we arrived at the Great Western Motel with RV facilities - full. We pressed onward and are now ensconced in a park come breeding farm for the last 3 buffaloes in Oklahoma - something that Bev will never forget I'm sure. Jim takes us to the neatest places.
Twenty two hundred miles down, 6,000 to go, the adventure continues.
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| Oklahoma City | Bev! It's not a moose. |
Another long day driving in the rain. We made it to Branson, MO and will spend two nights. Do some laundry and try to catch a show or two. I'm ready for a day of rest and Bev wants out of the back seat for awhile. We ran the fuel a little low but managed to find a truck stop after the "low fuel" light went off. I think that my rig is pretty big till I mix it up with the 'big rigs' at a truck stop.
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| Branson |
A long day on the road but no snow and only sprinkles on the windshield. We left Ohio, went through Indiana and arrived in Illinois and have to reset all the clocks! I introduced Bob & Bev to the Cracker Barrel restaurant and they loved it, couldn't get Bev out of the gift shop.
After two nights at Grand Island (Buffalo, NY) due to the 137 year record breaking 1 day snowfall for October we got back on the road. There was still plenty of snow on the ground around Buffalo but the streets were clear. We ended the day at "Allen's Market and Campground in Harmony Ohio where you can get sausage, cheese and a full hookup camp space for $20.
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| Crawford |
We spent the night at Grand Isle and woke up to snow everywhere. The 137 year record breaker for the most snow in a single day in October!
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| Buffalo Snow |
We found a campground that was willing to let us leave the trailer for a couple of hours and take in Niagara Falls before getting back on the road.
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| Bob enjoying the Falls |
We took a short ride to Lockport, had dinner and went to pick up the trailer and found that we would have to spend the night!
It's time to break camp and head west. First stop is Fish Creek Landing in NY so that Bob can see where mom was born.
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| Breakfast in Sylvan Beach, NY | Made it to NY |