Home to the Canadian Border

06/09/2017






Well, I told you that we were leaving home on  6/8/17, but things didn't go just as planned.  We packed everything except the cold food, and at 10:00 pm on 6/7/17, I noticed that the refrigerator had not gotten cold, even though it had been on all day.  Tom checked it out and found that the pipe from the propane tank to the refrigerator and stove had been hit by the flying debris from the broken drive shaft and we were leaking propane.  We couldn't go anywhere.  The next morning, we were so fortunate to have our favorite mechanic at the RV dealer across the freeway from us come in on his day off and work only on our coach.  He had to replace the broken pipe and he checked all other electrical and plumbing connections underneath the coach.  We got the motorhome out of the shop at 6:00 pm.   We called it a night.

Leaving Home 06/09/17

We left on our trip on 6/9/17 after loading all the food, and all seemed just fine.  The picture above is of Tom and I, and Penny (the copper lab), and Lucky (a mixed breed) in my arms.  The picture was taken at our friend's house in Las Vegas.  Dyanna and Andy have been friends for years, and we had a wonderful two day gab fest, and catching up.  They fed us well, and both Tom and I added a pound or so.

06/11/17

Arrived in Cedar City, UT on Sunday.  Joi and Michael greeted us and let us park on the front yard of their new house.  What a great time we had here.  Joi and I grew up together in Santa Monica.  After I moved away at age 10- to Crestline - Joi's family often came up to the mountains to visit with us.  She is one of three girls, as was I.  I have wonderful memories of camping with her family, as my parents were not much into camping.  Michael and Tom hit it off as they have a lot in common.  They both have backgrounds in mechanical engineering and both just LOVE CARS.  In fact, Michael is the proprietor of a large private car collection and museum for his boss. 

Joi and Michael and breakfast

Here we are, at their kitchen island, having a scrumptious breakfast before we left.  They promised to come and visit us in Palm Desert in September.  We left for North Salt Lake City.

6/13/17

Stayed in a really nice campground in North Salt Lake City, the Pony Express RV Resort.  Once we got here, we recognized that we actually stayed here back on our 'Big Trip' in August of 2015. It is just a one night stopover, and on to Montana.

The drive through Montana was beautiful.  All the mountains had snow and all of the streams and rivers were up to their capacity.  Since all of our dates are moved forward by one day, we are trying to make up the time on our way to the start of our tour group in Dawson Creek, BC.

Montana Landscape



6/14/17

Left the campground, bought gas, and hit the road again.  It was a long driving day - about 325 miles - to Clark Canyon Recreation Area, a state park near Dillon, MT. 

Clark Canyon Reservoir

What a  beautiful park---a fairly large lake (in California terms), lots of birds, squirrels, and trees.  Best of all it was free.  As soon as we parked and opened the door, Penny was out of the coach and headed for the water, with Lucky tagging behind.  No matter what I shouted at her, she was headed for the water no matter what.  The picture above is of the parking spot.  The dogs got into the water that night and again in the morning.  They loved it!

6/15/17

The birds woke us up early.  After their swim, the dogs settled down, and we left for our next destination.  We arrived in Dick's RV Park in Great Falls, MT in the afternoon, and sat outside with a good book.  Talked to the neighbors who were traveling with their 4 grandchildren (very nice kids).  Also, their were a lot of other motorhomes here - all on caravans.  One group was heading out on a different tour group to Alaska.  Another group had started in St. Louis and was following the Louis and Clark route.  We didn't find anybody here with our tour group but we were still a long way from Dawson Creek, BC.  Had a great dinner of pot roast and potatoes, played cards, and Tom increased his gambling debt.

6/16/17






We are staying a extra day here in Great Falls because we need a day off from driving.  Had a lovely slow morning.  I am already half way through my book, and Tom is working on his crossword book.  Today I get to catch up this blog, set our route for the next couple of days, and make reservations.   Tomorrow, we cross the border into Canada.