Home sweet home

Left Menominee around 9 AM.  More severe weather was predicted for the area, but the Lord spared us and we were out of the area before it moved in.  We had some periods of rain, but nothing severe.  I had mapped our route out to go around Chicago on the way home.  NOMA likes to take  us on the Dan Ryan, past the Chicago skyline and through about $30.00 worth of tolls.  Although the route she uses is shorter in miles, it is actually longer time wise, due to all the traffic the toll booths cause.  I missed the Indiana tollway turn,  and before we knew it we were in the land of Chicago traffic and tolls.  Of course that is when Button decided he needed to get out of his crate, plus we were both a bit cranky because we hadn't stopped for lunch yet.  It wasn't pretty, but we made it through, and came out of it all in Gary Indiana.  Not far to the MI border from there.  Stopped for a potty break, then drove onto a Burger King for supper.  Got into MI about 7 or 8 PM, made our customary stop at the rest stop that is just across the border, the one with the cool light house at it.  After 10 CD's, found that our last book from Cracker Barrel was scratched so bad that we couldn't listen to the ending, so we were bummed about that. Had some pretty heavy rain between the border and Grand Rapids.  Dropped our book off at the Cracker Barrel near Traceys' house around 10 PM.  It was tempting to stop, but we knew we would see Tracey and the kids the next day, and really wanted to sleep in our own bed for the night, so we kept going. We found a weekly recap of Prime Time America on Northern Christian Radio, and a nice country gospel station, so the 90 miles to our house passed quickly.  We thought it would be best if we parked at the bottom of the driveway so we could scope it out before driving up it with Firefly.  We were glad we did, lots of rain while we were gone, so many gullies in the back driveway, which is the one we use for Firefly.  As I write this, Tony is out repairing the driveway so I can pull pull Firefly up and put her in her usual spot.  

We have driven nearly 6000 miles in the last 31 days.  We've seen beautiful country and had wonderful visits with many of our loved ones.  It worked out great to take Firefly,  we had our own place to stay and it was sure easier for Tony to use the bathroom in Firefly instead of finding his way around another strange bathroom each time we stopped.  Firefly is just the right size for the 2 of us and tows very well.  We had a few cool nights and found that our heat pump works well to warm things up inside.  we were very grateful for our air conditioning.  (especially in WA during the heat wave.)  We are more convinced than ever that we made the right choice in selling our 23 foot motor home and going with something smaller and easier. Gas prices were reasonable, our MPG never fell below 18.5.  God had his hand of provision and protection on us.  He provided for us so we could take this trip.  The experiences were nice,  and it was good to reconnect with those we loved, but there really is no place like home.  (I'll have to remind myself of that later when I am sorting through a months worth of mail!)  Thanks for reading our blog and following us on our grand adventure.  We hope to do some fall camping before putting Firefly in winter storage.  More posts to follow. 

Menominee WI

Left Goodrich ND on Saturday August 8, 2009.  Had a nice visit with family while we were there, had a few days to crank some socks out on my antique cranking sock machine. (CSM) It is from 1937, although cranking sock machines have been around since at least the late 1800's.  Like the old time meat grinders, it has a round cylinder, a handle on the side, and fastens onto a table.    In the center is a round cylinder with slots for latch hook needles.  The cylinder has a hidden hill and valley in it,  as the cylinder goes around , it reaches the hill, the needles are pushed up, grabbing the yarn, then they go into the valley, as they do they close, making a stitch. The sock comes out of the bottom of the cylinder.  So it goes, but not always without stitches getting dropped or not knitting.  When that happens I have a little tool and a latch that I use to correct the mistake.  All this time I am supposed to be counting the rows, ( so both socks are the same size.)  If I lose count one can have a longer leg  or longer foot than the other one.  (just ask my nice Ariann about that, although she still put her socks on with a smile, a new pair will be in the mail as soon as I get a chance to make them.) That is the simplified version, there are many other things that factor into it, like weights, tension, a heel fork etc.  I'm still a beginner and the socks I make are far from perfect, but I have fun making them and giving them away.  I am still taking lessons and have much to learn.  It was fun to take my CSM along on the trip.  Since I am just learning, I didn't want to go a whole month without cranking.  I'm looking for a name for my CSM and I'm open to suggestions.  I'm think I want  a female name.

We were up until 3 AM the day we left Goodrich.  We were all having so much fun that we didn't want it to stop, but we knew we had a long day ahead of us so eventually we had to get some sleep.  We were on the road by 8AM.  At lunchtime we stopped at a rest area to eat and I took about an hour nap.  Sure was nice to be able to go in the Firefly and take a snooze on the bed rather than trying to rest in the car.  We got back on the road ,  had a few rain showers, and knew we had rain and storms from ND on our tail.  The radio kept telling us that severe weather was expected in Minnesota that night, so we wanted to make it to Wisconsin.  We pulled into  Motel 6 parking lot in Menominee at about 7:30 pM.  It was hot and humid, hard to get to sleep even though we were tired.  A little after midnight we were awakened by tornado sirens blowing.  They sounded like they were right next to the trailer.  We quickly got dressed, found a radio station, got out our map to see what county we were in so we could make sense of the weather updates.    We were quite a distance from the motel entrance and unsure what to do. Should we make a run for it, stay in the trailer, or go to the car?    There was no point in driving out of the area, as storms were in Eau Claire too. (about 30 miles ahead of us.) We prayed, asking God to keep us safe and decided to keep an eye on things.  Th radio cancelled the warning about 15 minutes later, but said severe thunderstorms that could spawn tornadoes could be expected through out the night.  At least things had cooled down, so we opened a few windows and went back to sleep.  Lesson learned, when parking in a motel parking lot for the night,  when bad weather is in the area,  park closer to the door if possible. We were glad the Lord kept us safe. 

Arrived in Goodrich

Arrived in Goodrich early evening.  It was about 250 miles from Medora to here.  We stopped in Bismark to replenish  our tiny fridge and get some things we know that we can't get in this area. (like rice milk and veggie bacon.)  Also found a place to get much needed haircuts.  Mine is a bit too short to suit me now, but it will grow.  It looks better than it did.  

This is the first time on the whole trip that we didn't hook up the trailer the night before we were going to leave.  So of course it was raining while we were breaking camp.  Not a pouring rain, just enough to get us and everything we were trying to stow away, wet.   We soon drove out of it.  It was in about the mid 60's today.  The first day we've worn jeans since we started our vacation.  It was nice to have a break from the warm weather.  It will be nice to stay in one place for a few days now and to have a good visit with everyone.  It's been nearly 2 and a half years since we last saw our family here.  We are grateful for Gods' provision for this trip.

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Another windy day here, the wind probably blows here more often than not, makes me wonder how the cowboys keep their hats on.  In my years of living in the plains states I've seen a few blow off, but not very often.  They must jam them on pretty good. We explored the park today.  Tony has the golden access pass, so we get in for free, and camp in national parks for half price, being blind has a few perks.  We asked at the gate where the best place to see Bison was.  The ranger told us the bison had been in the campground all morning, so we headed there.  Saw some across the river, then drove on. A bit further, there was a  road that went to the riding stables, it looked like it went towards the river as well.  In hopes that we would see some bison, we headed there, in just a little while I saw bison chips, ( don't know why they call them chips, they are bigger than a dinner plate. Big animals equal big droppings.)  figured we were in an area where they frequent.  We came around a curve and there one was, walking along the side of the road.  Stopped and took a few pictures from the car, then drove ahead a bit so I could get a pic from the front.  I was surprised at how quickly the Bison was actually walking.  When we first saw him he looked like he was plodding along, but he was moving along pretty good.  By the time I got the car pulled over and got out, he was within 20 feet of us.  I only got to take one picture because he started snorting.  I got the hint and got back into the car. He could do some serious damage to a car, (even a Volvo) if he put his mind to it.  

Drove past beautiful rock formations and nice scenic views from a ridge.  Saw some wild horses right by the road and got a picture of them.  Stopped and ate our lunch on a bench overlooking a  prairie dog town.  They sure are cute, popping in and out of their burrows like little squeaking jack in the boxes.  The closest one to us gave the alarm for the others.  We sat quietly, and finally more came out.  We saw 2 of them grooming each other and some gathered in groups of 3 or 4.  One stretched out to soak up a little sun, the one closest to us had stopped his squeaky barking, but he still kept his eye on us.  It was a delightful way to have our lunch.  Although Tony couldn't see them, he enjoyed listening to them.

Had a ranger talk and tour of Teddy Roosevelts' cabin from his first ranch, the Maltese Cross.  It was moved from it's original location to just behind the visitors center at the park.  We were surprised at how small it was.  Found out that the Medora Campground we are staying at was once a small town called Little Missouri.  It is where Teddy Roosevelt got off the train when he came to ND for the first time.  He got off the train about 2 or 3 am, ad a hard time finding a guide to take him buffalo hunting because of how he dressed.  He had on custom made cowboy clothes, which most likely didn't look much like what the cowboys of ND wore.   It was a vey interesting talk and tour.  

Trains come through here often, some times only 10 to 30 minutes apart.  The railroad track runs right next to the road, our campground is about a half mile from the road.  We are on the edge of Medora and can walk to the town from here.  The bridge over the little Missouri river has a nice pedestrian  walk way on it.  Flooding can be quite severe here in the spring.  Spring of 2009 was pretty bad, the water was nearly over the bridge, part of the campground we are in was under water.  We saw sandbags down by the river when we went for our walk this morning.  Today is our 39th wedding anniversary, it was nice to spend it here and with each other.  Don't know how 39 years went by so quickly, but we are sure blessed to have each other and such a nice family.  God is good.

Tomorrow we head to Goodrich ND to spend time with family there.  Goodrich is about 4 or 5 hours from here, a small prairie town of about 90 people, typical of many of the small towns throughout ND.  I can't help but wonder what will become of such towns, there is nothing there to hold the young people there, jobs are usually an hour or more away.  Kind of sad to see this rural way of life dying .  Not sure if I'll be able to get a cell phone signal to connect to the net, so this may be my last blog for awhile.

in beautiful Medora

Had a very long driving day yesterday, took highway 200 across Montana, and it is was all day drive of desolation, lots of hills, bluffs, sage, grass and scrubland.  A few mailboxes,  in clumps of 2 or 3 , so there must be houses  and people somewhere. There were times (most of the time) when we couldn't get a radio station.  (didn't bother to try the cell phone.)   We were trusting the Lord to keep us safe and to keep everything on the car running, there was seldom a shoulder to pull over on.  Not much traffic on the road.  There was one rest stop all day.  It wouldn't be a good place to have a flat tire.  Not a campground to be had, so we had no choice but to keep driving.  The area we were in is the area many dinosaur remains were found, most tyransaurus   (SP?) remains that are on display around the world were found in the area we were driving through.   There was a dinosaur and fossil museum in Glendive, but it is closed on S We saw one place to get gas, and made sure we filled up.  Noma, our GPS showed the nearest gas stations after that to be 65 miles to our right or left.  The nearest one east of us was over 100 miles away. I couldn't help but wonder if they close that highway completely in the winter.  It is even more desolate and less populated than eastern WA.   We drove for 13 hours yesterday and were really glad when we came to Glendive MT, which is where we connected with I 94.  We camped in a motel parking lot for the night.  were about 60 miles from Medora.

Before heading out this morning, we found a car/truck wash and washed the car and Firefly.  They were full of grasshopper parts and other bug splat.  Found a grocery store for supplies, waited for a very long train and finally headed for Medora.   The closer we got, the prettier the country got.  Beautiful buttes of all different colors and rolling grassy hills.  We are staying at Medora Campground, right by the entrance to Teddy Roosevelt National Park.  Once we got settled at our campsite, we spent our afternoon walking around Medora, did a bit of shopping.  After 2 solid days of driving,  it felt good to be walking around instead of riding in the car.  Button was glad for a break as well.  Lost count of the number of comments we had on Firefly since we've been here.  Several people poked there head for a look see.  Button doesn't even bother to bark at people who stop by to talk to us, guess he figures it's a waste of his energy.  He was happy to get out for a walk.  

Caught up on our laundry tonight.  Tomorrow we will go and explore the park.  Haven't decided if we will stay and additional night after that or not.  It's really nice to have some down time.  

Camping in Hogan Montana

We are camping in Hogan (pronounced "Hawgun") MT tonight, at a free campground behind a small Casino.  As far as we can tell, the town of Hogan consists of the casino, a restaurant, bar, and gift shop.  There is a gas station that has a small wooden building behind it,  on it and  a sign that says, "US post office, Hogan MT."   Some sites have electricity, and for those traveling with horses, there is a free horse corral with water.  Even with HWY 90 close by, it seems quiet and peaceful.  This is camping Montana style.

Very hot driving today.  Stopped at a rest stop on the Columbian plateau in Eastern WA, the temperature was 100 degrees.  Found a shady spot, ate our lunch, walked the dog, and were relieved to get back into our air conditioned car. 

Hard to say our goodbyes this morning.  

Sad goodbyes

Surviving the hot weather

If any of you have been watching the national weather you have probably heard about the heat wave here in WA.  It is hot.  103 in seattle today, about 98 here.  We have been planning our days around trying to keep cool.  Today we drove about 20 miles to the Canadian border, crossed and went to an  indoor Aquatic Center.  It was a relief to cool down, and be out of the sun.  They had a pool for the little one, a large pool that they intermittently turned into a wave pool.  Having never been to  an aquatic park with a wave pool before. I had no idea about a wave pool or how it worked.  No one told me that the loud whistle meant the waves were going to start, however I did  kind of wonder why so many kids were hurrying to the pool.  I can swim, and will go in the deep end and swim around a bit, but I'm more comfortable in the shallower end of the pool.  Since we were in Canada, the pool depth was not marked in feet, I looked around at some people getting in to see how deep it was on them, and finally decided it would probably be about up to my chin, I got in and then Tony got in.  Then the waves started.  Of course we were at the end of the pool where they were biggest.  Had I been up to my chest in the water I probably would have  taken the waves much better than I did while in water up to my chin.  One minute I could touch the bottom and the next a wave was washing over me, them another.  I looked around wondering who in the world would be so rude and  jump around and make such big waves, then 3 or 4 more came.  It seemed each one was bigger than the last,  After 2 or 3 more of those I was ready to get out.  After we got out Tony remarked, "I guess that must be a wave pool."  My reply, "I prefer to swim in calmer water," and I proceeded to the kiddie pool to watch Ginger splash around.  I did get brave enough to go down the lazy water, water slide.  It was fun, but once was enough for me.  I think we did the hot tub after that.  Later on, when the waves were "inactive" we went  back in the pool, but in a different spot.   We all had lots of fun.  We left around 5:30.  When we started the car up, the thermometer showed a reading of 109 degrees, it cooled down to 103 once we had been driving for a bit.  It was still at 100 when we pulled in Hollis' driveway.  We decided it was too hot to cook, so went out for supper.  Normal summer temps here are in the mid 70's with a nice ocean breeze, so this hot weather is very unusual.  After supper Willow, and Meadow knitted on the Mattel hand cranked knitting machine that I brought along.   Meadow cranked out a tube sock for ginger and Willow will do the mate for it tomorrow.  Earlier in the day I set up my antique sock cranking machine, and made Willow a pair of socks.  (I still have to close the toes on them.)  

It is  in the 80's and it is past 10PM.  More hot weather predicted tomorrow.  I think we have invitations to go and swim at Hollis' friends.  The next day we head back to MI.  Can't believe the time has passed so quickly.  

Here we are

Here is Firefly, being towed by our faithful Volvo XC70 wagon.  18.4 MPG in the mountains, 19.5 MPG otherwise.

Latest update and some catching up.

I am behind on my postings, things were very busy for us on Vancouver Island.  We were up each day shortly after 6 A.M. , (Holli had to leave for school at 7 A.M.)  Willow and Meadow were troopers about getting up early.  We usually had breakfast ( and our other meals) at the house, so that made things easier.  We spent one afternoon at a nearby lake,  I found it was too much for me to keep track of 3 kids in and near the water, so much to the kids dismay, we stuck to the playground  after that.  With 3 kids to care for and meals to prepare, our days were full.  By the time we got back to Firefly each night we were tired.  Usually a short walk around the park or to the ocean, (about a 10 minute walk through a field and through the woods) and we were ready to settle in for the night.  Willow and Meadow however, weren't, so we usually played a game of Yahtzee or something before going to bed. Ginger had a cold the last 2 days we were there and spent lots of time on my lap.  Grandpa finally befriended her by coaxing her over to hear his watch crow like a rooster.  She now wants to hear it anytime she sees him.  However, when she saw us come to her house, she wasn't very happy, figured it meant Mommy was going to go and she would be stuck with us.  Hopefully by the time we go she'll be glad to see us come and see her.

The weather on the island was quite hot and dry, like we are experiencing in WA right now.  

On Friday the girls and I worked hard to get  things done, so Holli would have less to do before 

leaving on Saturday.  When Holli got home from school she decided to take the late ferry that night.  After being gone for 3 weeks, she wanted to wake up in her own bed.

We took the 10 A.M. ferry the next day.  On our way back to Bellingham we heard the forecast for more hot and dry weather and decided to stop by the Cedars Campground and see if they had any open sites.  They had only 2 left,  we decided to stay here for 3 days, that way Holli and her family would have some time before we camped at their house and we could all use the pool here at the campground.  We set up camp and took a dip before heading to Hollis'.  

When we arrived without the Firefly she was surprised and asked us where the trailer was.  With a very straight face I told her it was seized at the border because we didn't have the right paper work.  She wondered what in the world we would do and how we would get it back, but not for long, we told her we had decided to stay at the campground for a few days so we could all enjoy the pool during the hot weather.  Later on we all came back and took a dip.  Got a rain storm right after we got back to her house.  We shared a yummy stir fry made from veggies from the garden and then headed back to the Firefly.  Found out that there had been quite a bit of wind here, a few people had awning issues, but things were fine at our site.  (kind of glad we couldn't afford to add our awning this year, but  in the future we'll try to  be mindful that wind and awnings don't mix.)

Today was our first day to be lazy in awhile so we did.  Had a second cup of coffee and took a leisurely shower, while the sheets were washing next door.  After lunch we went to the pool again, about an hour later Holli and the girls came.  They swam for a bit and had a snack, the girls had a birthday part to attend, so they left,  We went to the Trader Joes' to restock the cupboards.  Treated ourselves to a marion berry pie, I'll be cutting into that soon, Tony needs his bedtime snack, I'll indulge as well.  Can't tell you too much about the marion berry, other than it grows in WA and tastes tummy.  The pie is calling, so I'll say goodbye until my next update.  

Vancouver Island

Arrived on Vancouver Island on July 18, 2009.  The ferry boat ride went fine.  ( our thanks to those who prayed, and to the Lord for hearing and answering the prayers.)  It was really a different experience to drive onto such a big ferry boat, ( a ship actually, since you can put a boat on a ship, but not vice versa.) We were parked on deck 2, and had to walk by rows of other campers, buses and semi's to get to the passenger area.  Button seemed to look on it all as just another car ride, and settled down for a nap in his crate.  We were disappointed to not see any whales on our crossing, but I did see some seals swimming next to the ship when we went through the "narrows."  It was a pretty sailing, very smooth and lots of interesting things to look at.  When we docked at Tessawwassen we found our GPS wouldn't work, guess Canada doesn't have all it's maps loaded on yet.  Took us about an hour to drive over to where our campground was.  We were about  15 minute drive to the house Holli was renting.   It worked out well, I'll post more on it later.  Vancouver Island is very beautiful.

We are in Bellingham..but it seems odd.

Friday, July 17, 2009

Our Days Inn Campground was right next to a truck stop, so we went over to the restaurant and had breakfast before we got on the road.  The route we took through the mountains wasn't bad at all, (It was I 90)we got through much faster than we thought we would, we left around 9 AM and got to the campground in Lynden, (about 8 miles from Bellingham) around 1PM)  We are at Cedars RV Park.  Very nice, the entire front of the property along the road has cedar trees next to each other, forming a front "fence", in addition to that each campsite has a row of cedars on each side of it, so there is privacy.  All sites are set up to be pull through.  It was in the 80's by the time we arrived here, very unusual for Bellingham to get that warm.  As soon as we had camp set up, we went to the pool and that is where we spent the afternoon.  We both commented on how strange it seems to be in Bellingham and not have Holli and her family here, even though things are familiar, it all seems odd.  Went to Trader Joe's, a super market that carries a wide variety of natural and organic products at very reasonable prices.  I love to shop there.  Our nearest one in MI is in Ann Arbor.  I'm lucky if I get to go to it once a year.  I'll stock up on a few things before we head for home.

Tomorrow we head for Canada.  We will catch the ferry to Vancouver Island at Tewwassen.  I am a bit nervous about driving the Firefly onto the ferry, but I know I have many praying for me.   Thanks. We aren't sure how long the border crossing will take, we have passports, and all of Buttons papers are according to the USDA in Lansing.  Other t@da owners have told us there is a probability that we could get stopped because the custom agents may be  curious about our cute little trailer.  We're hoping we get an agent that could care less about it or has seen at least 50 of them.  We had several compliments on it when we checked in, and a few hints for a tour before we even had camp set up.  No dice on that today, it was too hot, we were tired and wanted to get to the pool for some much needed R & R, so we politely pretended like we didn't get the hints for a tour. 

If we made reservations for the Ferry and didn't get there on time, we lose our spot and our $$, plus we have to pay again to go across.  At  around $170.00  a pop, we decided it was best to take our chances.  Hopefully we won't have a long wait.  We prayed and left it in the Lord's hands.  We already have our campground reservations on Vancouver Island.  Just a simple campground,  although it is near the ocean, we chose it because it is close to where Holli will be, she will bring Ginger to us each day, early in the morning.  Willow and Meadow will be sleeping in the Firefly with us.  During the day we plan to be out and about, exploring the Island, or at least part of it.  We'll pack a picnic lunch and snacks each day and be on our way.  We are praying for clear weather the whole time we are there.  I think a rainy day with 3 kids in an 18 foot trailer could lead to insanity.  Driving back to MI insane could make the trip very entertaining.  ( for everyone but me.)  We are asking the Lord to give us an opportunity to connect with Willow and Meadow on a spiritual level.  Who knows perhaps He will open the doors for us to present the plan of salvation to them.  That would be great.  Please pray for that.  we  don't want to force the issue, but know that God can make it all flow naturally.  It would be a huge blessing to see them both accept Christ as their savior.

Not sure how often I will get to post on this after tonight.  I have a feeling that taking care of all 3 kids  for that many days will wear Grandma and Grandpa out, yet I am so glad the Lord provided for this trip so we could come and help Holli out.  We haven't seen the girls in nearly a year, so are looking forward to connecting with them and having fun.

As of today we have driven 2729 miles.  

I'm tired and must look up the ferry times for tomorrow yet, so I'll close.  Next time I post it will be from Canada.

Finally in Washington

After driving 563 miles today, much of it in the mountains, we are finally in Washington.  We are in near central WA.  Seems like once we crossed the border all we saw was sage brush, cattle, and scrub brush.  There was one section where potatoes were grown, and a few corn fields, but mostly dry brushy flat land, that eventually turned into hills. (still wearing brush and scrub trees.)  Each time we have driven through this area of the state, I am amazed at the contrast between Eastern WA and the coastal areas.  One is a desert, the other has many rain forests.  We have already been blessed by seeing the wonders of God's hands, tomorrow we will cross the Cascades.  We are taking a different route then we took on our last trip.  The route we are taking will have 2 passes, each around 5000 ft.  We are less than 300 miles from Bellingham, sounds close, but it will take us a long time to get through the Cascades.   We plan to find a campground in the area and reserve it before we start driving for the day tomorrow.  We want to replenish supplies and do some laundry before we head for Vancouver Island on Saturday.  

We are camped in Ellenburg,  at a campground that is in the parking lot of a Days Inn.  It was the only campground we could find.   My guess is that they had so many campers stop and ask if they could park in the lot at night that they decided to turn it into a campground.  We don't care, it was an answer to prayer for us.  we didn't even know it was here.  It was getting dark and we were really tired, we had been looking for a campground for over 2 hours, but there was nothing.  We prayed, asking the Lord to provide one for us that had easy access to the freeway,  We saw a Days Inn sign and decided to see if they would let us park in it for the night.  Pulled in the driveway and saw that it had a place with full hookups for each camper. As hot as it was we really wanted to use the air conditioning, so it is a blessing  to have a sire with electric hookups. It was very hot today, a few hours after we crossed into WA,  I stopped to get gas, the digital thermometer in the car read 100 degrees.  It dropped to 98 once I started driving.  At 8:30PM it was still 80 degrees.  Temps will most likely drop a lot once we cross the mountains.  Thanks to God for giving us a place to camp tonight.

Bozeman Montana

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Got an early start today, but after going about 50 miles, we had to back track 20 miles because the road we needed to take was closed for trucks and campers.  (road construction made the shoulders to steep to pull a trailer on, the construction worker with the stop sign said that several had almost rolled the day before, so they were "strongly advising us to seek an alternate route."  I think it ended up adding 100 miles to our driving today, but at least we are safe.

We started out driving through more of the black hills, and over time we were driving on the high plains of Wyoming, which soon gave way to the rolling grasslands  and buttes of Montana. Couldn't help but think of the history of this area as we drove through, how buffalo used to roam the hills and that many indians once mad this their home.  We wondered why there wasn't enough room for them and the white man in an area so vast and sparsely populated.  It was hard to drive past the exit for Yellowstone and not stop, even though we have been there before.  Perhaps on our next trip through we will be able to stop and spend some time there.   We drove nearly 600 miles today, that might not sound like much, (especially for anyone who has ever taken a  driving trip with me.) but it was slower going through the hills and mountains.  Tomorrow the really big mountains start, which is why we wanted to go as far as we could today. Our Volvo XC is doing a good job towing the Firefly.  Our gas mileage dropped to about 18.4  MPG.  Didn't give any tours of the Firefly today, but it seems we hear comments or get questions about it nearly every time we stop.  Stopped in Billings and got 4 more audio books , it's our last Cracker Barrel until our return trip home. We are at Bear Canyon Campground, surrounded by mountains, nice quiet place with  apool, that we are to tiredout to use.   Our camping neighbors are from Rockford MI.  We hiked up a ridge behind the campground and had a great view of the surrounding area.  

Button, (our little 8 lb toy poodle) is a good little traveler.  He likes to be tied out when we are at the campground and has finally learned to not bark at dogs and people walking by.  He rides well in his crate, and his happy to get out, stretch his legs and take a leak on any nearby bushes.  Life is better yet when he can growl and kick the dirt behind him when he is done.  

As for Tony and I, we are getting more efficient at setting up and breaking down camp.  We can set up camp and be settled in about 10 minutes now, 15 for breaking camp in the morning.  

Got some news that brought tears tonight  when I checked the email.  A dear friend of ours, a former neighbor when we lived down state,  went home to be with the Lord this morning,  Hugh will be missed by all who knew him.  Please keep his family in your prayers.  Thanks.

The Black Hills

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Today we went to Mt Rushmore, what a wonder to see.  The history of it is so intriguing, what an example of perseverance.  There was a wonderful guitarist playing at Mt Rushmore, we bought on eof his CD's to use as massage music.  we listened to it in the car as we drove on a winding mountain road to Custer State Park.  I left my camera in the Firefly, but bought a disposable one at the Mt Rushmore gift shop.  I was glad I did, later when we were driving through Custer State Park, the wild burros were coming right up to cars and eating out of peoples hands.  One came and stuck his head right in my window.  Tony got to pet one, but when they realized he had no food for them, they quickly moved on.  I was able to take some pictures.  We were hoping to see some of the Bison that roam freely in thsestate park, but no luck there.  Had lunch at a "bawdry eating establishment" in Keystone called "Ruby's."  We even heard a few "shots" from the saloon next door.  So much beauty all around us, it's easy to see the work of the Lord's hands here.  

Early to bed tonight, we already have the trailer hooked up to the Volvo, so it shouldn't take us long to get going in the morning.  No idea where we will park Firefly tomorrow night, we'll just have to see how far we end up going.  Our goal is to make it to the ferry to Vancouver Island by Saturday, so we will have some long driving days ahead of us.  Our last Cracker Barrel will be in Montana, so we'll have to stock up on audio books there.  

The journey continues

Monday, July 13, 2009

Had a wonderful visit with our niece Tammy and her family in SD.  (thanks Tammy,  and family)for your gracious hospitality.)  After church on Sunday we went to eat at the  Hu Hot.  It is a mongolian restaurant, where we each picked out the ingredients and sauces we wanted, loading our bowls up buffet style, then watched as our meals were cooked on a large donut shaped griddle.  The spatulas the chefs used to mix and move each individuals food on the griddle as it cooked made loud noises as they pushed pulled and scraped the food into individual piles. Each person followed their food to the end of the process by walking around a round counter that surrounded the griddle, and was rewarded by a yummy, hot steaming dish of veggies and whatever else they chose to put in it.   It was fun and tasted great.  It was great to see everyone and reconnect in person.  Thanks to neighbor Dave for doing a machine check on our check engine light and for some guidance on places to camp around Rapid City SD.  We made our 2 night reservation before we left.

In spite of our good intentions we got off to a bit of a late start.  Our check engine light was on again as we drove out of Canton, so we located a Volvo mechanic in Sioux Falls and stopped there.   Before we got there we stooped and prayed asking the Lord to help it be some very minor thing that was easily taken care of.  Thanks to out GPS (named NOMA, which stands for "no more getting lost.") we found the repair shop OK.  They got us in quickly, wheeling the machine out to our car so we wouldn't have to unhook the trailer.  Turns out the check engine light was on because when I got gas, I didn't get the gas tank on tight enough, so it triggered the light to come on.  The mechanic turned it off, didn't charge us anything and sent us on our way.  Praise the Lord.

Some boring scenery today, but as the miles went by the scenery changed from corn fields to grassy rolling hills,  (the kind that were in the movie "Dances with Wolves", I love that movie.) and then mountains in the distance.  There were some storms moving through the area, the skies were shaded with deep blue, and gray, with some rolling streaks of white.  many were pulled over to take pictures, of course my digital camera batteries needed to be recharged, so I didn't get any pics.)   Bad timing, but I do have them recharging now.

We are now on Mountain Time.  We pulled into the Happy Trails campground on the outskirts of Rapid City around 7 PM.  A storm was brewing in the sky, but we got our camp set up before it started.  After a long day of driving we decided to eat out.  By the time we left the restaurant, the wind was blowing so hard, that we could hardly get the door open, once we got it open, it took great effort to get it closed.  It rained on the way back to the campground, but the big stuff didn't start until we were safely in the Firefly.  We were as snug as 3 bugs in a rug (including Button) as the storm blew in .  We had paid $3.00 extra to have cable TV, but it was raining and storming so bad that we didn't want to go out in the rain to hook it up.  Oh well, we'll catch up on the news tomorrow night.  We are 20 miles from Mt. Rushmore and the weather tomorrow is supposed to be better than it was today.

The spaces in this campground are the smallest we've ever seen, this makes things a bit noisy at times.   It sounds like our neighbors have 5 kids or more, having a laughing giggling slumber party.  I'm glad to see them have fun, but it is well after midnight.  Hopefully they will tire out soon. Looking forward to a relaxing day of site seeing tomorrow.  

Camping in Wisconsin

July 10 2009

We left this morning at 6 AM, saw 5 deer within a mile of our house, no coincidence since we live on Deer Run Rd.  Still, it was a pretty sight, especially the fawns.  Stopped by Grand Rapids (Grandville, actually, ) to pick up a table our son in law made for us.  I think he made 2 sets of legs for it, one for extending the sleeping area for grand kids, and the other so we can use the table for outdoor use,  either he didn't get the taller set done, or we forgot them.  Oh well, we'll survive.  Thanks for your hard work Ryan.  We kept our speed around 55, lots of people passed us, lots of smiles at our cute little trailer. (never mind the irritated people, we're on vacation.) 

We stopped for gas at about 10:30  AM, still had half a tank, but wanted to avoid higher gas prices around Chicago.  There was a Cracker Barrel across the street, we remembered that a friend had told us we could rent audio books there for $3.50 per week, plus a refundable deposit.  We can drop them off at any Cracker Barrel.  We rented 2.  It sure made the miles fly by to listen to a book in the car.  We have another one for tomorrow.  When we stopped for lunch, a truck driver who had been driving behind us for awhile came and asked for a tour of the Firefly.  

We drove 500 miles today, we are camped in Tomah, near Castle Rock.  We stopped at the State Park first, but they were full.  There is an Ice Age  science area right there.  It made us wonder if there mammal or other remains had been found in the area   Tomah is also cranberry country.  In the fall they have 2 different cranberry festivals in the area.  Saw some pretty country today.  Hope to be in Canton SD by tomorrow afternoon.  Not sure if the route we are taking is shorter or longer than highway 80, we've driven highway 80 enough times to know it is pretty boring, unless your a farmer, or love seeing lots of corn fields. We aren't, and don't,  so we opted for a more scenic route.

correction on first post

The motor home we sold was 23 feet, not "2 feet."  

The entertainment is free!

Firefly gets spiffed up.

Friday, July 3, 2009

Today Firefly got a through washing and waxed with Auto Bond, a great acrylic finisher that only needs to be reapplied every 4 years, except for the roof, which needs to be done yearly.  The weather started out with a misty rain and kept up until about 11 AM.  Although the cloudy day that followed wasn't probably what most vacationers would want, it was perfect fro getting Firefly washed and waxed, even got the windows cleaned, and clean sheets for the trip put on the bed. A week from now we will be somewhere between MI and SD.  Lots to do before then.  I am planning on bringing my cranking sock machine along.  I bought a portable workbench to mount it on.  I have a few pairs of  socks made, and plan to make more as I enjoy some leisure time on this trip. People really like getting homemade socks as a gift. 

Had to go and get  28 "treasures" for  Willow and Meadow yesterday.  (Ginger doesn't get to pick treasures until she is 3)   We will be with the kids for 14 days, 2 kids, 14 days =28 treasures.   I'll pack those in a separate suitcase.  We haven't seen the kids for a year, so we are really looking forward to seeing them.  

Splurged and bought a set of organic sheets for the bed in Firefly.  We'll be putting in some long driving days and sleeping in there for 30 nights, sleep, is an important part of a vacation right?  (also wanted to feel a bit indulged) The sheets are very soft, combined with our memory foam topper we should get some restful nights.

I'm starting to make lists of what to bring.  I want to keep it to a minimum, kind of a necessity with such a small trailer.    I know..the sock machine isn't minimum, but hey, it's  a vacation, and it doesn't take up much room.  ( it will be in the car, I knew someone who took her sewing machine along on a trip to Alaska.)   

Tired arms tonight from working on the Firefly.  Don't think I could do a massage if I had to.  

Firefly gets spiffed up.

 In a wooded area of northern Michigan, on a hill, overlooking Rose Lake,  lives a couple by the names  Tony and Pam.  Sometimes they have more adventure in them then  sense, so even though Tony is blind, and Pam doesn't have much of a sense of direction, in July 2008 they sold the 2 foot motor home they had and bought a little 18 foot camping trailer called a "t@da."  They named it Firefly.  (yep, that's me) Did I mention that both of them are "mechanically challenged" and that Pam is still learning to back Firefly up?  

Here are a few things they have already learned;

It is good to have friends and relatives to help with the learning curve of hooking up Firefly.

It is good for Pam to have some (much needed) instruction on backing up Firefly.

The steep driveway that is perched on top of their hill is not an easy place to turn a trailer around and get it parked.

If Firefly is pinned against the car and left that way for a long time, the frame can bend.  This can mean a trip back to the factory to get a new frame.

Progressive Insurance is good, $500.00 deductible is not so good.

Not all camping spots are level.

Progressive Insurance premiums on Firefly did not increase when a claim was filed. 

It's easier to get Firefly lined up to the hitch for hook up when using a set of magnetic  trailer alignment kit (yellow balls on sticks.)  When the balls line up, so does the trailer tongue and the hitch.  (most of the time) 

An audience seems to gather quickly when a blind man is trying to direct someone into a camping site. 

Someone in the audience finally takes pity on Pam and offers to direct her in.  

It can take many tries to get into a camping site and to get Firefly level.

When taking Firefly out of storage, if the storage door slips down a little bit, the roof vent can easily be torn lose from the top of the trailer.

It is good to have the storage place for Firefly right down the road from the RV service

center where Pam and Tony do business.

It is better yet when the person who owns the center has also torn a roof vent off of trailer, it can make the bill a little less.  

It is good that the brand new door at the storage place could be bent back into shape and does not need to be replaced.

Camping with Grand Kids (2 at a time)  is fun and has become a tradition all involved look forward to.

A campground with a heated pool is great.

An 18 foot trailer is very tight quarters for 4 people, especially in the rain.  

It is not very restful to sleep in the Firefly when it is not level.

It can take Tony 2 days to figure out how to get it level.

Please join us as we start on a new chapter of adventures with Firefly.  We are leaving July 10, 2009 for a 4 week trip from Michigan to Bellingham WA.  Our trip will take us to South Dakota to visit our niece,  then onto the Black Hills, from there we will go to Vancouver Island and connect with our daughter Holli and her family for a week.  (I'm a bit nervous about getting Firefly on and off of the ferry.)  While on Vancouver Island we will be helping out with childcare while Holli is completing the last week of her Waldorf teacher training.  After our time on the  island we will spend a week with Hollis' family at their home and then start back to MI.  We hope to go to Yellowstone, then stop in North Dakota to visit family and head home from there.  We have a saying at our house, "the entertainment is free,"   and there is usually plenty of it to go around.   I am going to try and figure out how to post pictures on this blog as well.  (there could be lots of entertainment in that.)