R&R in Ogdon 2013 Falltime

In our version of R&R it’s Repair and Refurbish, We picked a good time and place to do it, finding fair priced and high quality craftsman at every turn.

The Dodge has had a warning light on since Great Falls, about 7,000 miles!  At that time the local dealer changed the sensor ($200) and reset the light.  That lasted about 100 miles.  I had is looked at by several dealers, the consensus was that it would take time to get parts and no harm would come from ignoring it as harm would only come if we drove it easy (It would crap up the turbo).  Well, we never travel ‘easy’ with 12,000 pound behind us!  The dealer here replaced the sensor and fixed the root cause {Leaking EGR valve}, charged it all off to warrantee!  I had the transmission flushed with 2 new filters, that was $405+!

The camper got a well deserved wheel bearing service and a new ADH compatible toilet.  Thanks and praise to the folks at State Trailer.  They have a huge stock of supplies and a a small but efficient service department.

Than we had time to play.  25th street is a mile of eclectic eateries, saloons and antique shops.  We were impressed by the street art with included painted ponies, working Pianos and sculptures.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Thursday we went into Salt Lake City where we played tourist at The L.D.S. Temple compound.  I took this photo of their Temple from the dining room on the 10 floor of their hotel.  Be warned, no alcohol or coffee served here!

The 10 acre site is ‘patrolled’ by a great many 2 member teams of missionaries.  They are quick to answer questions regarding the site or their beliefs in a non confrontational manner.  Their name tags show them to be international in scope, most were mid-20’s young women or seniors doing service during their retirement years.

We attended a Tabernacle Organ Recital which was both relaxing to the ear and soothing to the soul.  After the recital I took these 4 pictures as the lights were displayed.

Utah for a Week 2013

On Saturday we ran 230 miles to Ogdon, Utah.  If you have been paying attention you will remember we spent time here last spring when we were northbound.  At that time we just scratched the surface of stuff to do, this time we will spend more time.  We are again staying at Wasatch View Campground, a Passport America affiliate.  Not fancy,  has all the amenities we need and at $110/wk. it’s a good deal.

We sat out last night with our neighbors, their cat was looking hard at Anne-Maries toe nails.

Our fuel stop featured Lamas as a side attraction.  I shouldn’t talk but they are funny looking critters.  Ever notice how some Jackass has to get into the picture?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’ll leave you with a few words of wisdom!

 

Pete

Idaho isn’t all Spuds 2013

 

Looks like we’re parked at a golf course, we’re not.  This is Three Island Crossing State Park in Glens Falls, Idaho.  There are about 200 W/E sites here and as you can see they are huge.  The rate of $11.60/nite for Seniors is an added benefit.  We are bordered by The Snake River, Glens Falls is best described as a farming village.

Check out the placards here that the town sold to finance the installation of new street lights.

 

Nice little Lodge also.

On Friday we took a 20 miles ride to Hagerston, ID to pickup our mail.  The highlight of the ride was a detour I took on a ‘Historical Route’ which bordered part of the Snake River Canyon system.  This is made more awesome as it’s surrounded by prairie flatlands planted in corn and various grains.  BTW: A local farmer told me that working farmers are doing well, he sells all the grain he can raise at over $150/ton.  He gets $150 for straw!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are pictures of a rarely seen ‘Secret Masonic Lodge’.  Secret because it has no name???

  Tomorrow we will get into Utah, not sure where at this time as we want to check out State Parks there.

 

Stay tuned….

Oregon on $9 per night 2013

OK, I admit it, I’m a cheap Yankee!  While I do like to Boondock (as in free camping) we will spring for a campground deal when presented.  We stayed at the Oregon State Park for $9, hard to beat.  No hook-up which is not a bother as our solar and holding tanks will serve foe a week if required.  Skirting the Columbia river on our way south-east, we were treated to fantastic vistas of the river and it’s surrounding hills. I believe that the stream behind our camper is the head waters of The Snake River.

 

 

 

 

 

These views are The Columbia River

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A short note to my over 50 friends, which include most of you.  We do lots of road hours and enjoy listening to our Sirius Radio.  Channel 71 is Siriusly Sinatra which plays not stop music from our era.  We spent a delightful couple of hours listening to a replay of a ‘roast’ of the Rat Pack, hosted by Jack Parr.  They were all there and did most of the greater hits from the 50’s & 60’s!

Cheap at $25 for 6 months….

Washington, The Dam State! 2013

Up and at ’um bright and early yesterday, ok I lied we were bums!  Took our time.  After fun shower (Beautiful showers at this C/G.  1 of 2 had no hot water, the floor drain didn’t work in the other!}, Anne-Marie made me a ham & cheese omelet for brunch.  Being suitably fortified, we went to the mall where Anne-Marie had the hair mystery redone and I succeeded in having the Verizon Store replace my smashed phone.

Central and western Washington claim to be the apple centers of The World.  You can’t disprove it by me, there are huge orchards in this area of apples, peaches and pears.  The tree shown is a pear, the lovely home sits on the edge of about 500 acres.  Note to the landscape that there is foliage, in the back round there are brown un-forested mountains. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is less than 10”/year of rainfall according to this most scientific of maps. All of the productive orchard area are irrigated.  Most the irrigation is being converted from conventional spraying system to individual tree drips which feed to roots and save 85% of the water.  Pie makers are at a disadvantage here, there are no Cortland or Baldwin apples!

We visited the Washington State Apple Growers welcome center where we learned more that would bore you to the extreme.

1) They grow 100,000,000 boxes per year.

2) The overseas market is big.  How big? YOU (should) ask?  Well, they own and operate a dedicated refrigerated transport ship the schleps apples all over the world.  OK, maybe not New York!

3) They have new strains the grow on vines, reducing the labor required.

Need more? Look Here.

So you ask, why is it The Dam State?  There are 10 dams on the Columbia River.  The Gran Coulee may be the most famous because it’s fun to pronounce.  My favorite is the Rock Island Dam as that one is within sight of our campground.  Although it is bland {common to things built in the ‘30s) in color it is large in size. Our visit was limited due to rain, 10” a year and it has to do it when we are here!  Because I knew you would be interested:  About 200 Salmon and Steel Heads per hour go up the ladder when they are running.  OK, they actually swim up!

It being Sunday tomorrow, I thought I’d give you this thought!

Busy? Not for the next 4 days! 2013

 

We’ve been running too hard and relaxing too little in the past 2 months.  It’s been fun but time for us to slow down and smell the apples.  

Apples?  Yes, we are camped for a few days at Lincoln Rock State Park in Washington.  During the drive here we passed about 80 miles of apple orchards that intermittently border the Columbia River.  At $30/night this is a very expensive state park.  The sites have water & electric, as you can see they are very large and well groomed.  Washington has joined the majority of the states and are using their parks as profit centers.  As a tax payer, I cannot fault them for that if they keep the services up to a high standard.

 

 

My I-phone didn’t survive being dropped yesterday.  The local Verizon store told me I had to go online to make a claim on my insurance.  Well, that didn’t work for me as they have to have an address to ship it to.  I asked them to o’nite it to the Verizon Store, they cannot do that for security reasons?

Wenachee is a good size town about 6 miles down river from us.  Good Size = They have Wal-Mart, Big Lots and all the other frills my bride likes when ‘camping’.  Me? I have satellite TV and HBO is free this week, time to relax!

Time to Retire 2013

WE stopped at this small transients campground intending on staying one evening to get my med supply replenished.  Cheap at $9.87/night, we have electric, apples in the backyard and a view of the lake in front.  Best news for me is that I can view the U.S,

Nationals on our satellite.

Concerning my Meds:  What I need is lopressor, a heart med which is not abused and has no street value. It appears that the bureaucracy needs more time.  Because CVS and Wal-Mart will not play in the same sandbox due to bureaucratic regulations, I have gone to the local owner owned pharmacy for help.   15 minutes later and $8.35 lighter I walked out with a 30 day supply.  The Pharmacist did not want to spend an hour on the phone but was happy to take my empty bottle at proof that I used the med. Up here in farm country, common sense is not hard to find.

Some times having ‘good luck’ means finding bad things.  I found a bad cut on the sidewall of my already worn tires.  I started to mount the spare, my back entered a vote of spasm that put me down for the count.  AAA came to our rescue and finished the job.

Tuesday (The next day) found us 70 miles south with the ‘new’ tire going soft.  I refilled with my tiny compressor and limped into Okama, WA.  They have a very nice campground on the river in their fairground.  WE took 2 days and promptly went down to local Les Schwab where we impressed with the service and bought 4 proper LT truck tires.  I was very happy with the Firestone Transport Tires {45,000} we bought in Keene New Hampshire, they are not distributed here ;-(

Dinner was a baked potato stuffed with chili and a side of left over ribs that Annie cooked yesterday, it was great!

Tomorrow: Laundry