New Orleans II

Day 24
We woke to another gorgeous day! We took the campground free shuttle in to New Orleans French Quarter for a day of shopping and boat ride. Our driver liked doubling as a tour guide, and took us down narrow streets to show us some beautiful homes, a mansion tucked away somewhere, and a tour around an old cemetery for the rich. It seems the very rich here compete for who has the biggest monument to themselves. Every plot had huge monuments, some shaped as churches, others with statutes of people or animals, and a number with stain-glassed windows inside. For health reasons, the caskets themselves have to be burned after a period of time. The family behind the Whitney Bank had what looked like the front of an old bank building. Some of these stones date back to the mid 1800's.
After coffee and beignets, a deep-fried pastry covered with heaping piles of icing sugar (much like the apple version of olliebollen, but without the apples), a N.O. tradition, we set out on our own. George marched straight to the waterfront. Joanie, Gerda and Tina headed for the souvenir stores. I was caught in the middle, not wanting to deprive this region of its economic growth, but also afraid that my enthusiasm for shopping may not match that of the others. I therefore took off on my own, exploring the French Quarter, checking out the stores and scenery. We all met again at 2:00PM to board one of the only authentic paddlewheelers still running for a tour of the harbour. A nice relaxing afternoon, followed by a mad dash to that last store Joanie and Gerda were not quite finished with, before catching our shuttle back. A good day but a little tiring. Retirement is sooo hard!
Driving around N.O. we saw many homes and businesses which were flooded by Katrina and never re-opened. One did have a note on the side by the SPCA informing rescuers of a cat upstairs. Personally, I find the old buildings with their rod iron balconies in the French Quarter very interesting, but outside of downtown, I find most of the streets and shops kind of seedy looking and not very appealing. We were also warned not to wander around the neighbourhood after dark (our campsite was secure) which adds to the sense of seediness. Of course, we also saw where the rich lived, and that was quite different. No sign of hurricane damage there. We also heard several times from locals that news reports about the BP spill were grossly exaggerated, with little evidence of damage in this area. The news focused on the few areas directly damaged and played that over and over to give the impression of total destruction.
The difference in the weather here vs Utah is that the evenings remain warm. We can sit out all night whereas in Utah, it could be 100 degrees in the day and be quite cool by 10PM.

Day 25
Another hot, lazy day. We went to a local plantation house that dated back to the late 1700's. We had a very interesting presentation by a retired black university professor of pharmaceuticals, who talked about all the remedies practiced by many of the senior blacks, even today. Many his mom used on him as a child. e.g. drinking male urine to cure a sore throat, the use of leeches, cow manure for athlete's foot, and sage tea for runny noses, fevers, etc. He and his students tested these things and most could not be shown scientifically to be effective, although some were. He is going to write a book about his findings, published by the U. of Michigan. FYI - if you get stung by a jelly fish, do not get someone to pee on it, this will aggravate the injury. So much for the Friends episode being accurate. For nettles, on the other hand, pee away!
We spent the afternoon in the pool after a visit to Winn Dixie. Tomorrow Walter and Marion leave us as they booked a cruise a few days ago, leaving from New Orleans and going to Mexico. After that they are off to do work for CRWRC in Galveston.

Day 26
Destination: Westlake, Louisiana

Today we left New Orleans. The one thing I will not miss is the trains. Even though the tracks do not cross any roads near here, they blow their whistles almost non-stop until they are far away. I don't know if people frequent the tracks or what the story is, but it is highly annoying.
We said goodbye to Walter and Marion today. The weather was warm, 32 degrees C. at 3PM. We crossed over the swamps and bayous (bayous have water that flows, swamps do not), across Louisiana. In Baton Rouge we got caught in a traffic jam at about 10:30. LSU was playing football against Tennessee at 2:30 and the highways were already plugged with a 10 km. backup on one side of town. Not that is a sign of good fan support.
Near Lafayette we saw our first sugar cane fields. The land is very flat here with areas of dry ground and other areas of swamps and bayous. After setting up camp at 2PM, we took a drive along an "All-American Highway" into the bayou to look for birds, gators, etc. We did see many egrets, lesser egrets, cattle egrets, white ibis, herons, millions of dragon flies, and other flies bent on driving me insane. Nothing all that new to see. Next time we look for an All-Canadian Highway.
PS Maria - there are no new signs of injury on George's head.

Day 27
Destination: Houston, Texas
We did a 4 hour drive to Houston. In Beaumont, Texas and the outskirts of Houston, it was incredible to see the number and size of the oil refineries wherever you looked. I was glad to leave the horrible highways of Louisiana behind. We continue to be amazed at the number and size of the churches we see in every city. We saw many mega-sized churches and World Centers of Prayer. One in Houston had a parking lot the size of a medium sized shopping mall, and it was full!
In the afternoon we, Ken and Alice, Al and Else, and Joanie and I, went to the NASA Space Center. We were not prepared for how long it would take to see all the things we wanted to, and we did run out of time. We enjoyed seeing the actual Mission Control Center, the simulators where astronauts train for flights, touching moon rocks, and sitting in a flight simulator where we had the controls and try to fly it and shoot down enemy forces. We had a great time and enjoyed a pizza before going back to camp. Gerda and George, and Tina drove a different route to Houston, passing through Galveston so arrived after we had left. The weather in Houston was a nice comfortable 25 degrees C.
In the evening we made several attempts to contact our children with Skype, but to no avail. Out of sight, out of mind?

Day 28
Destination: Corpus Christ
Another gorgeous day with temp. reaching about 91 F. Drive from Houston to Corpus Christi was uneventful and not too exciting. Mostly farmland, including cotton fields, and flat areas of trees with more swamps as we approached the Gulf of Mexico. Corpus Christi reminds me more of a tropical resort, despite its downtown office towers. We did a quick drive over to Padre Island and were excited about spending tomorrow on the beach. The water was as warm as the pools we swam in recently, and there are 180 species of birds on the island, plus rattlesnakes and nesting turtles. The beaches are bordered with white sand dunes and you can drive for 60 miles on the beach, although 4 wheel drive is recommended for most of this. It is very quiet with few people on the beach, and no one swimming. Most people are fishing. Deep sea fishing for marlin and tuna is very popular here. There is also a decommissioned aircraft carrier open for viewing.

Day 29
Another great day! Temp. in upper 80's. We spent the day on Padre Island, at the beach. The water was divine, over 80 degrees F. I could just walk right in. We played in the surf and had a great time. We also saw many birds, including flocks of pelicans soaring overhead and in the surf. Just a fantastic day.

Day 30
Decided to camp on Padre Island by the beach. No hookups, etc. but nice to be almost right on the beach. After setting up, we did a long loop drive, up the island, over Mustang Island, Aransas, over a short ferry ride and back through Corpus Christi. We saw dolphins briefly on our ferry crossing. Aransas looked like a fairly new community with fancy condos, RV parks, art galleries and souvenir shops and a DQ with deep fried jalapeno peppers. In the afternoon we swam in the Gulf and had a BBQ with Gerda and George and Tina. The burgers were ready just after sunset. The mosquitoes attacked on mass. Trying to eat in the dark, our hands and faces were covered with the little buggers and who knows if we were eating them or not. We quickly decided to move indoors for the rest of the night. Joanie and I spent a romantic evening by candle light hiding from the invaders.

Day 31
Another day at the Padre Island campground. First we drove to Bird Island basin to see if there were any birds like the white pelicans on the brochure. We saw sea gulls. Then we decided to take the nature trail. We lasted about 2.5 minutes before an army of skeeters drove us back into our vehicle. We spent the rest of the day on the beach, walking for miles, reading, and playing in the surf. The water had cooled to 78 degrees but we hardly noticed. Small fish, referred to locally as whities, jump around us in the surf. They were anywhere from 3 inches to about a foot long, and often landed within a few inches of us. Brown pelicans flew near by.
Padre Island is a ling narrow island running along the Texas coast in the Gulf of Mexico. After a few miles, the single road spills onto the beach, where you can drive for about 5 miles, and camp if you wish. After that there is 60 miles of beach driving that is reserved for four wheel drives only.
We decided to lock ourselves in our trailers after about 6:30PM because of the skeeters.

George's scabs are back. Apparently there was another head-bumping incident.

Day 32
Destination: South Padre Island
Today we drove another 200 miles south to South Padre Island, across from Port Isabel. This is near to the Mexican border and is the southernmost stop on our trip. Today I passed several trucks! This is a big deal. Pulling a trailer, most of us limit our speed to about 60 - 65 miles an hour, even though the speed limit is ofter 70-75 miles per hour. This means for 32 days I have been one of the slowest vehicles on the road. Today I encountered several trucks traveling slower than us, so it felt good to "speed" by them.

South Padre Island is just below Padre Island but is much smaller. It is much more developed with ocean front hotels and condos. The KOA where we are staying is like a Hawaii resort. The large pool is bordered with hibiscus and palm trees and there are palm trees everywhere. However, there is a motorcycle convention on the island this weekend. The campground is full of Harleys going in and out. a little noisy.
We sat outside all night without a mosquito in sight!!! There has been discussion of perhaps just staying here and never coming home. The weather forecast for the next few days is like it has been for weeks, sunny and highs in the upper 80's or low 90's.

Day 33
Its a hot one today. We were concerned about the campground being overrun with bikers and how loud it would be when they went to their convention or wherever bikers go on this weekend. However, the bikers were quiet and we woke up to the sound of children talking loudly at 6:30 AM and birds, crackles, squawking more loudly than crows. We spent the morning in Port Isabel, shopping. The place is overrun with motorcycles. Most cyclists are over 50 years old, and fat. In the afternoon we went on a snorkeling cruise. The water between South Padre Island and the mainland is not very deep. We anchored in water about 4 feet deep. We saw nothing! The water was not that clear and no matter where we looked, there was only sea weed and patches of sand. Very disappointing but we did have a nice ride. The water was very warm so that was good too. If you ever come to this area, forget snorkeling though. By the time we got back and took a dip in the pool, it was apparently too late to start making dinner, so we went to a local restaurant, Pier 19, which overlooked the water. While eating, we saw a pod of dolphins. We also saw few fireworks in honour of motorcycle week.
The beaches here are public, but most areas charge $4 for parking, and there is no shelter, so one frys to death. We therefore decided to stay an extra day but not two days as had been contemplated. However, it will be hard to leave the Gulf and its warm water.

Day 34
It rained today! I got several drops on me before the cloud moved on. It ended up being 92 degrees this afternoon. (low of about 75 degrees overnight). This morning we went to the Island Baptist Church. They had a contemporary service but we miss our own church. In the afternoon we went to the beach and had a great time playing in the surf. I thought the water could not get warmer than what we had on Padre Island but South Padre was perhaps a little warmer. Gerda and George joined us to go to the local bird sanctuary, which ended up being a one block lot with some trees on it. We did see a few different birds I need to look up in my bird book later. Before dinner I went to the pier near our campsite and spotted a number of dolphins. One surfaced only about 10 yards away.
After coffee we enjoyed our last drink together as a group outside under the palm trees. Tomorrow we begin our slow trek home, but Joanie and I are not ready to leave this paradise. It is like being in Hawaii without the Polynesian or Hawaiian cultural flavour.

Day 35
Destination: San Antonio
This morning we left South Padre Island and bid farewell to the warm Gulf of Mexico. It felt a little sad to thing we won't be swimming in the surf any more. The drive to San Antonio was uneventful and not that scenic. It was a 6 hour drive, one of our longer travel days. We saw an awful lot of Border Patrol police and we did go through one border checkpoint. The scenery changed from flat farm land to low rolling hills with trees, shrubs and various varieties of palm trees or yuccas. We did see vultures feeding on a dead cow and a few armadillos.
The resort RV park we are at is quite nice and we ended our afternoon with a rousing game of volleyball in the pool. Unfortunately there were no Olympic scouts here, because we did have some amazing play, including several times when the ball actually hit two people on the same team and still went over the net!
Today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada, Columbus Day in the U.S. We managed to connect with our girls by skype so that was good. We did not eat turkey, although I can not be certain that there were no turkey parts in the wieners we had. It is a little know fact (or theory) that the pilgrims in Texas ate hot dogs and potato salad on Thanksgiving. I did reflect on the day and feel so extremely grateful for family, friends, health, and this awesome trip we are on, which has gone so well so far. We have thoroughly enjoyed the new friends we made here and the things we have seen and done. God is so good. We did get some bad news about Joanie's mom in the last few days, but trust that God will provide and that family members will look after things.

Day 36
A hot, muggy day with temperatures expected to reach 90 degrees. We took to city bus from our campground to downtown San Antonio and visited the site of the Alamo. First we went to the IMAX theatre to watch the presentation on what happened at the Alamo. (about 197 people, including Davey Crockett, were under seige in the local mission from the Mexican army before being overtaken and killed at the battle of the Alamo, but this became the rallying cry for the rest of the Texas army that seven weeks later defeated the Mexicans and gained independence.) We then toured the mission. After lunch we did the River walk which was beautiful. A canal was created in a circle around downtown, with a walkway around it. It is below ground level and is lined with beautiful trees, bars and restaurants, hotel accesses, etc. A very nice feature. We visited a few very old churches, took a trolley bus ride around downtown and had dinner at a restaurant along the river walk. Most people ordered Texas steak, the main purpose for going out for dinner, and I enjoyed blackened chicken fettuccine. The margaritas were also excellent! All in all, a very nice day. We were home by 9:15PM.
The Internet here is extremely poor. I still have been unable to see the BC Lions football game from yesterday because it freezes up after a few seconds, as do other Internet applications. At the end of the day we review the email news from siblings about Joanie's mom, who appears to have suffered a heart attack. We feel somewhat helpless here and are grateful for other family members who have stepped up to look after things.
One local concern is my new camera. It dropped from my camera bag while I was trying on a sweatshirt, and now does not take pictures. Not sure if it will work again before we get home. On a lighter note, we are camped under some trees laden with little acorns. Gerda and George's trailer is right under a tree which regularly drops nuts on the roof, causing a loud bang and a rolling sound as it falls to the ground. We paid extra to camp under trees for shade, but next time Gerda wants to be a little more specific about the kind of trees we camp under.

New Orleans et al Camping

Camping Trip – New Orleans, Corpus Christi
September 6, 2010 to Oct, 29, 2010
Day 1
Destination: Home to West Richland, Washington
Departure time: 8:15AM
Day began fairly uneventfully, after a half hour wait at Aldergrove and a very grumpy border guard. We left Scott and Amy’s in Lynden at 9:45. Driving went very well. We turned off I-5 at I-405 through Bellevue and went through a torrential rain storm over the Snoqualmie Pass to Ellensburg. At Ellensburg we tanked up and I ended up leading. We therefore missed the turnoff to I-82 (my GPS told me to go straight.) As a result we ended up going to Vantage and then south on Hwy 243 and 240 to West Richland. As it turned out, a very scenic route through vineyards, orchards, dry rocky territory and over the Columbia River. We arrived in West Richland at 4PM.
Then things took a turn. The RV park we had planned to stay had only one spot left due to workers from the Hanson nuclear project staying there. We needed two spots, (Else and Al had arrived earlier and taken the only spot) so spent our first night in the Walmart parking lot. After dinner we filled our time trying to open the bathroom door which was locked with no one in it. We even took the handle apart but could not open the door. After a visit to the next door Home Depot, where the very helpful lock specialist took a lock apart to see what our problem was, we eventually got the door open.
George’s hand, which was extremely bruised from a bungee cord incident yesterday, managed to bump his head, resulting in a stream of blood. The first head bruise of the trip.

Day 2
Destination: Huntington, Oregon
Departure time: 9:30
The day began at 8:15 with breakfast at McDonalds. We took I-82 and I-84 to Oasis RV Park, a nice fishing camp along the Snake River just past Huntingon, arriving at about 2PM. We drove through showers off and on, but the sky became sunny at Happy Hour.
The drive was very scenic, with rolling hills and small mountain passes. The landscape was barren, with mostly yellow grass and sage not unlike the Cache Creek area of B.C.
We experienced our first live wildlife (road kill excluded). A coyote crossed our path just after we entered Oregon, and where we camped, there were white pelicans and egret on the river.
A very good day with no problems. It became very cold and windy in the evening.

Day 3
Destination: Delco, Idaho
Departure time: 10:15
Drove from the Oasis Campground near Huntington through Idaho to Delco, Id. Scenery consisted of rolling, bare hills and long straight highway which traversed the Snake River several times. Some areas had mountains with black lava outcrops as we were on the southern end of the Idaho lava beds. It was very windy, but most of the time the wind was at our back. Only wildlife was two dead skunks. In areas, tumbleweeds bounced across the road. We saw a lot of threatening clouds, and storms in the distance, but had dry weather. The campground was along the side of the highway with clean spots and nicely kept grass. We arrived at 3PM.
Have to stock up on wine. Tomorrow we enter Utah for the next 8 days, and there are no liquor sales in Utah. Elsie can simply wring out her towels to access their wine.
Another very cool night. First night with internet and TV so it is nice to reconnect with civilization as we know it.
No major mechanical problems so far. G & G had an issue with a propane alarm and an airlock in their propane lines which caused alarms of a different kind. George also acquired bandage #2 on his head and happy hour included discussions on the challenges of fitting different people's bodily functions schedule into our travel schedule.

Day 4
Destination: Springville, Utah (suburb of Provo, south of Salt Lake City)
Departure: 9:15
Another partly cloudy day, but better weather is ahead. Temp. about 68 degrees. Drove I-84 and took a scenic, longer route over I-86 and I-15. It was nice but not worth the extra driving. The city of Pocatella was very nice. It is the home of Idaho State University and the properties near the road were all well kept, with many large homes with manicured lawns and tree lined streets tucked against the barren mountainside. Most of the scenery was rolling hills and mountains covered in sage or small evergreens. I began to notice all the Mormon churches were almost identical, with large one story buildings and a white steeple.
We took a scenic route around Salt Lake City which took an extra hour, but was worth the effort. Near Hefener we passed through a narrow canyon sided by spectacular voodoos and red rock faces. We passed through Provo Canyon which had a beautiful waterfall, Bridal Veil Falls, were we spotted a mountain goat. Yes, I have a picture to prove it! The only other live wildlife we saw was two cranes.
Driving through Provo was interesting since we passed through the campus of Brigham Young University. There must be a lot of money there, judging by the beautiful, large buildings, football stadium. Things were going too well. I was following George because his spreadsheet said we were staying at the Ebay RV resort and my GPS did not recognize this. We traveled through Springville and into a residential area where he stopped. Apparently, Jill, his GPS guide, told him he was at the campsite, but there was nothing there. It turns out we were looking for East Bay RV, which is why I could not find it. I programmed it into my GPS and sure enough, it lead to the same location. George got instructions from a local, and we proceeded back to the highway to Springville, through another construction zone (we seem to find construction everywhere). I had to merge lanes, but the school bus beside me refused to let me in. Finally George signaled for me to merge in front of him, even though I had no idea where we were going. When we turned the corner, I pulled onto the shoulder to let George go by, and then tried to pull in behind him. However, the school bus was behind him and he sped up to make sure I could not get in. The shoulder was rapidly disappearing and I was heading for a ravine. The driver gave me a sneering look as he passed me. I guess not all Utahites are good Mormons. We did eventually find the campsite, but it was now 5PM, an hour passed our expected completion. The people at the desk said they get 4 to 5 people per day lost because the GPS and Google are wrong. Happy hour was late today. Ken and Alice were already there for 2 days waiting for us, as they had gone to Yellowstone first. There was slushy snow when they arrived in Yellowstone.

Day 5
Destination: Virgin, Utah (near Zion Canyon)
Departure: 9:30
A beautiful day. The drive to Virgin was uneventful and the scenery was nice but not spectacular, mostly vast valley floor surrounded by barren mountains. The valley consisted of dry grasses and sagebrush with large areas of black eyed susan flowers.
The last stretch to Virgin was spectacular, with red rock mountains, some with flat table tops and beautiful colours. The campground is beautiful, but we spent the first hour sorting out where to stay because every site they sent us to was occupied. There was a computer glitch which did not recognize many of the campers who decided to stay.
The temperature in Virgin was 97 degrees, and the forecast for the week called for similar weather. We enjoyed a nice swim before dinner, and I even got to catch the replay of the BC Lions game on TSN website while Joanie took in a concert.
Al and Elsie stayed in Springville so Al could have his truck looked at. It turns out it had transmission problems and they may not get it fixed for several days.

Day 6
Destination: Zion Canyon National Park
Its a beautiful sunny day. Temperature reached about 97 degrees. We took the shuttle bus 13 miles to the park entrance where park shuttle buses ferry people through the canyon. The canyon is stunning. The single road passes through the bottom of the narrow canyon. Colourful sheer canyon walls contrast with the trees and Virgin River which runs through it. As I gazed at the truly amazing scenery, I could not help but marvel at God's handiwork. Most mountain peaks contained Biblical references like the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Angel's landing, the Throne of God, and the table of Sacrifice. After our first walk at the end of the road, while waiting for the shuttle bus to take us back to the next stop, Joanie, gazing up at the beautiful rocky scene tumbled over the 4 inch curb. Zion may be founded on the mountain, but Joanie was founded on the valley floor! Sprained ankle. She will go to any length to get one of those souvenir walking sticks. She remained behind for the next walk and got out of making dinner. Hopefully there is no more serious damage and she heals quickly.
Wildlife spotted today included several mule deer, including a mother and fawn and a beautiful buck, flocks of wild turkeys, a small lizard and a turkey vulture, which spotted Joanie's bandaged ankle and starting hovering over our campground.
Our shuttle to the park included our group plus two other couples. Both turned out to be Dutch tourists (not together). One couple joined us for beverages in the evening.

Day 7
Destination: Cannonville, Utah
We are spending a lazy afternoon at the Cannonville KOA. Its a warm 80+ degrees. Drove three hours through Zion National Park and down scenic Highway 12 bi way. Drive began with a steep accent through a 1.1 mile tunnel and along a narrow road through a gorgeous red rock canyon where it appeared the rocks flowed down from the top and just froze in mid stream. We are now 12 miles from Bryce Canyon and Joanie is anxiously icing her foot in hopes of being able to do some walking. Her foot reminds me of the frozen panninis with fat toes at the end. Too hot for a swim right now but plans are for a dip before dinner.
The dip never happened. We decided to drive into Bryce to see the sunset but were too late. However, we did get pictures of a beautiful herd of pronghorn antelopes. I also got a nice picture of a western bluebird.

Day 8
Destination: Bryce Canyon
Went to Bryce Canyon for the day. Joanie's foot is still swollen but she was moving around a little better, and only missed one walk. It was another beautiful day. Entering the park, they were doing a controlled burn, and the entrance was thick with smoke. Very glad we did not camp right outside the park gates. At lunch Ken noted that Joanie and I brought the average age of the patrons in the restaurant down by quite a bit.
The canyon is breathtaking in its columns of orange, red and white. Its humbling to see. We also spotted wildlife including the near extinct Utah gopher, pronghorn, deer, bluebirds and tiny lizards.
Al and Elsie are still in Provo and may join up with us in a few days when the truck repairs are done.

Day 9
Destination: Green River, Utah
Woke up to another gorgeous blue sky. I could get used to that. We are planning a one night stopover before heading to Moab where we hope to join up with Al and Elsie again.
We had our first mechanical problems. Shortly after starting out, our battery light went on and never went off again. We had it checked out but, while the batteries had lost a little power, the dual battery system was strong enough so that we had no trouble starting. We carried on hoping that it would magically disappear or we could deal with it when we reach a larger centre like Moab. By mid afternoon the temperature reached 32 C and our air conditioning was blowing warm air. Joanie was not amused.
We traveled highway 24 on the way to Green River. All day long, we would ooh and ah about the scenery and think it could not get any better, and then we would turn a corner and our jaws would drop. Driving through Escalante State Park we drove this narrow road which felt like we were on top of the world because it dropped on both sides and we were surrounded by beautiful canyon vistas on all sides. We then passed through Capital Reef National Park, (who has ever heard of this place?) and the landscape became surreal. Red rock walls, red soil, red rock monuments, etc. It was difficult to drive because Joanie was everywhere, clicking pictures, out her window, through the front window, leaning on my lap to take shots out of the driver's window. Out 4 hour drive became 5 hours because of the many view points we couldn't resist. This place is worth going to on its own.
Spent the night at the KOA and had a swim as well as doing some laundry. Joanie's foot is making progress. Her limp is getting less and less.

Day10
Destination: Moab, Utah

Drove a Short 1:15 to Moab. Camp resort we had chosen was full so we were referred to the KOA. Plans to explore Arches National Park, 14 km. away melted away in the 95 degree sun and we spent time in the pool instead.
I decided to get the truck checked because of the air conditioning and the battery light, despite the truck starting well. I phoned and arranged to bring it to a local auto and RV repair place (yes, it was on the advice of Gerda so I better give her credit, because the car dealership only promised to "look at it" tomorrow). When I jumped in to drive away from our site, it wouldn't start and we had to jump start it. It turns out we need a new alternator and fluid in the air conditioner. It will be worked on first thing tomorrow and should be ready when we return from visiting Arches. We are so grateful that the batteries, despite not charging for the last day and a half, took us here, and we have two day planned, so getting repairs will not effect our plans. God is good!
Shortly after setting up camp, a truck pulled in two sites beside us. It was Elsie and Al. They had a new transmission and went to the other campground, only to be told that the Canadians were at the KOA. Later in the day, Walter and Sylvia, who said they may join up with us, arrived as well.
Yesterday we spotted the Dutch couple we met in Zion arriving at Capitol Reef campground as we went by and today we ran into them again. They were also at the KOA so we invited them over for drinks.

Day 11 : Moab
Another hot, hot day, with temp.'s reaching close to 100Degrees. We left at 7AM to do a 3 mile hike in Arches National Park. Joanie's ankle was still swollen but she was determined to do this hike and did make it! It was a continuous climb, walking on slabs of rock and along ridges with no railing to prevent you from falling to a certain death. We got to the main feature of the park, the Delicate Arch. It was as beautiful as many of the pictures you see of Utah. After this we did a 2.8 mile hike to see Landscape Arch, a fascinating arch which had a very narrow piece at one end. I felt all day like I was walking in a post card, the scenery was so nice. After exploring the park we at lunch in Moab, and George and I had a 26 oz. beer to quench our thirst. It was heavy! After a swim, shower and quick dinner (I ate salad, yogurt and a banana, which anyone who knows me would think could never happen!) we returned to see the Delicate Arch again from a view point before sunset, as was recommended to us. This involved another climb just to see it in the distance. There was nothing new to see except the shadows were a little different from the morning! We did visit a few sites we missed earlier so all was not lost.
This was a good news day! We picked up our truck and it is running well, and the A/C is working better than ever! Also, we found a liquor store in Utah and no longer face the threat of running out of wine before New Mexico. Utah allows beer sales everywhere but has very strict laws about wines and spirits, so alcohol other than beer is very hard to get. Of course, with this heat, even Joanie has turned into a beer drinker.

Day 12
Destination: Natural Bridge Monument and Bluff, Utah
We drove to Natural Bridges Monument in southern Utah and drove the 9 mile loop to see the rock formations which form bridges across the canyon. We have been so spoiled by the scenery these last days that we were not as impressed as we should have been. It was another scorching day. We haven't seen a cloud in the sky for days.
Tonight I am writing this while sitting under a starry sky in Bluff, Utah. It is a town with very little in it on the edge of the Navajo Reserve. In the background I hear loud native drums, singing, chants and whooping noises, as well as the neighing of horses. Tomorrow is the local Navajo rodeo and tonight is the big powwow. I feel like I am in the middle of a John Wayne movie and the natives are on the warpath. Al suggested we might want to circle our vehicles.
There were two ways to get here from the Bridges Monument, one involved retracing our route to Blanding, and then taking the highway here. Another was to turn down a scenic highway; both were approximately of equal length. Shellah told me to go 47 km before turning so I blew by the turnoff for the scenic highway George had just gone down. It turns out the scenic highway had hairpin turns and was not recommended for RVs or towing vehicles. It was apparently a very scary descent to the valley floor so I am so glad I did not do it. Elsie was so nervous when they did it that she was praying for all of us to get through safely. It worked, we did all make it but we were probably the most relaxed.

Day 13
Destination: Chama, New Mexico
We all woke up with our scalps in place so I guess that was not a war party last night. In fact, all of the Navaho we met were very nice people. We did some grocery shopping along the way and were the only non-native people in the store, but never once felt uncomfortable.
Today was a 4.5 hour drive which was not too special. The last stretch was through a higher valley where we actually saw green grass and trees of normal size. The weather was quite cool today, with highs of only about 85 degrees. Chama is at high elevation so the night will be cold. We also enjoyed our first Dairy Queen of the trip. Tonight I watch yesterday's Lions game.
For those keeping track, George's head has healed quite nicely, Joanie's ankle continues to improve though there is still some swelling, and Ken is also recovering from a twisted ankle.

Day 14
Destination: Taos, New Mexico
Today we did a short 2 hour drive to Taos. The temperature was very nice, in the high 70's with clouds. We travelled over a mountain pass where there were many trees dressed in their golden fall colours. Interestingly, when we reached the other side, the greenery turned to flat, dry, sage covered land. The first several miles, you could look over the sage brush and see many, many remnants of old cars, buses, etc. Sad to see such a vast junk yard.
Taos had an old shopping plaza as well as several very old Spanish looking churches made of mud and straw, and remains of a Pueblo town. They not only charged $10 to walk through it, but you had to pay for each camera you took, and extra if you also had a video camera. As good Dutchmen, we refused and snuck a few pictures out of the window as we left to start Happy Hour instead. We actually had a thunderstorm and walked together to a nearby Mexican restaurant in the rain.
Joanie and I are feeling very fortunate to be on this trip, and really appreciate how at home everyone has made us feel, especially our new friends.
We did have a problem finding our RV park. As Joanie and I drove down a busy street on the way to where we believed the pre-determined site to be, we passed Gerda and George going the other way. George signalled to go back, but I was in the wrong lane and had no way of making a quick turn or knowing why they were going the wrong way, until we passed where the campsite was and it did not look very good. I decided to go around the block to try and find George. Of course, the street I chose went on for several miles without a side street so our little loop around became quite a big loop. We found ourselves heading down the same road we had been on before when we met George. I had no idea where I should go or where our new destination should be. Then I saw Tina standing at a corner, waving maddly at us to turn in a street. I went to the next possible place to turn, and beside us was Walter, so we told him to follow us. As I turned into a parking lot to turn around, there came Ken and Al, (we had not been travelling together so this was a coincidence) so we all found the right turnoff together and arrived safely at the place George had found to stay. Was that just luck, or....?
PS For those on Facebook, I did post a few sample pictures of our trip so far.

Day 15
Destination: Amarillo, Texas

Today was an eventful day, sort of. We survived a strong storm overnight and woke up to an overcast sky. We drove about 4 hours into Texas on Ropute 66, Interstate 40. The Texas landscape included vast flat fields of yellow grass with a tree here or there. We passed one stockyard with more cows than I have ever seen together. There were thousands of Holsteins in large pens for about a km. along the highway. As we approached Amarillo, Shellah and I had a falling out. I had programmed the GPS with the exact address of our RV park. Shelah kept directing me to leave the interstate and drive along a light-filled road that parralelled the highway. Each time I went back on the interstate, she would direct me off again. This wasted a lot of time. Then, when we arrived at the correct street, she indicated that the park was on the right when it was on the left, so I missed it and had to make a u-turn.
Our concern with finding a park with a pool was not well founded, since it remained overcast, though warm all day.
We decided that we would go to the medical clinic to get Joanie-s ankle looked at, since the swelling was not going down much. This proved quite entertaining. We (Gerda, Joanie and I)settled on the West Texas Hospital emergency ward (could not find the clinic) and settled in for a wait. I could write a book about all of the people in the waiting room, but will focus on a few. Despite the cost of medical treatment in the US, this place must have catered to those who cannot pay. Many sat with 10 gallon cups of soda or slurpies, and the junk food vending machines were in constant use. One family in particular were a little disturbing. The daughter was there for a sore throat, and she was slumped in her seat, eating chocolate bars. (After the first bars, they bought more) The father was somewaht cross-eyer (no offense to anyone intended), was as scruffy as could be and spoke with a hillbilly drawl. When he stood up, I was amazed at this build. It appeared that under his filthy shirt and sweatpants (my favoutite look), he looked like he had a 10-pin bowling ball strapped to his stomach. His wife was gaunt, with thin scraggly hair, and chose not to wear a bra, thereby allowing her breasts to sway across her waist when she walkded. I was certain he looked like the kind of person who may have someone locked in his basement to abuse, and she was the battered wife who went along with it. Not that I like to judge on appearances or anything, but apart from Gerda, Joanie and I, there only seemed to one couple who also appeared normal, including the big woman with only one eye open wide who made snorting noises from time to time. Final diagnosis after x-rays was that Joanie had a sprained foot and ankle with a stress fracture, and she just needs to put her leg up, apply heat, and let it heal without mountain climbing. We consider that good news, at least until the bill arrives.
While Joanie waited for her results, Gerda and I went to a local mall. We were the only ones there in shorts and wearing cowboy boots and cowboy hat would not have made us stand out. When we left, the skies opened up, Texas style. Fine warm rain came down in waves.
Driving back to the campsite, Shelah was now mad at me. The road signs give little warning of where to turn or what lane to be in, so getting back to Interstate 40 proved to be a challenge, despite the fact that the hospital was only a few blocks away. I turned to Shelah for help. She sent me on a big circle route, through downtown Amarillo, before finally gettng us back to the interstate not far from where we started. A word of advice, which seened to be shared by someone Joanie spoke to: Do not move to Amarillo. And if you stay there, keep your doors locked, because there are stange people here and your GPS will not get you home any time soon.
We ended the day with a delicious salmon dinner courtesy of our nephew Richard.

Day 16
Destination: El Remo, Oklahoma
We managed to sleep through another windy night. As we crossed the eastern end of the Texas panhandle, the land lay flat as a pancake for miles, or at least as far as we could see under the heavy cloud cover. We were privileged to see the largest cross in the western hemisphere. Entering Oklahoma, the weather gave us all it could. We went through long downpours so hard that you could barely see ahead of you, and the centre of the lane was a river of water. It was white knuckle driving. Then it finally let up and we could actually see the countryside. Oklahoma was nicer than I had imagined. It had gentle rolling hills, red and orange soil, and lots of stands of beautiful trees sprinkled the landscape. Just when we took a breath, the winds picked up. I think that generally you can either go through the state very fast, or very slow, depending on if the wind is with you or not. Unfortunately, we were traveling east and the wind wanted us to go north. Very challenging!
After stopping at a few Indian (yes they use this word in the US) trading posts we drove through El Remo, and got lost. No one had ever heard of our campground, but eventually Shelah made up with me and when I checked what lodging was near by, I found a listing for the Best Western, with our campground attached. We arrived a little later than expected. The winds continue, interspersed with showers, but the temperature remains in the low 80's (25 - 26 C.)

Day 17
Destination: Van Buren, Arkansas
The day started with a free breakfast at the best Western. We continued our trek across Oklahoma. The eastern part of the state, east of Oklahoma City was very green with lots of trees, much like the Fraser Valley without the mountain backdrop. The weather was overcast but very warm (80 +) but it was nice not battling the wind.
We have been taking pictures of each "Welcome to..." sign for each state. Today, Tina drove shotgun with us and Joanie was in the back. I was nervous, because Tina's attempt at the New Mexico sign failed miserably. As we approached Arkansas, I had her get the camera ready, practice to make sure she knew where the shutter button was, etc. and open her window. We ended up with a picture of the handle on the front post of the door! She is now banned from the front seat on all future state crossings.
Our first impression of Arkansas was of a very religious state. We saw billboards of the 10 commandments and there was a copy in the lobby of our RV park. Biblical messages were everywhere. This must have been a real challenge for Al, who accidentally caught a roof vent on one of the trees as he was parking his trailer, sheering it off. I'm sure he must have had som non-biblical thoughts, but did manage to get it fixed before nightfall. The Van Buren county is also a dry county, which means there are no liquor stores or wine outlets, which is not a good thing when you finished your last wine last night.
We did a quick trip to old town Van Buren. Sad, very sad. Almost everything was deserted, boarded up or had for sale signs on it. There was two or three very nice old buildings which graced the cover of the pamphlet which led us here, but there was nothing to see.
We saw two dead armadillos along the road. That night, a couple walked past who had lived in Texas. We mentioned wanting to see an armadillo. He said they only have dead ones along the freeway. There is no such thing as a live armadillo. I did NOT know that!
We BBQ's together as a group. After dark, the sound of crickets and frogs was deafening. Our RV park was under a beautiful canopy of tall trees along the Arkansas River.

Day 18
Destination: Memphis
We left this morning, Saturday, to traverse Arkansas on Interstate 40, via Little Rock. Van Buren is the home of Arkansas University and the Razorbacks were playing football that afternoon. We saw literally hundreds and hundreds of cars on the Interstate with Razorback car flags and large razorback decals on their car and truck doors.
The trip was uneventful. We did stop at a liquor store to replenish our wine supply. It was a very shady looking place and Joanie did not dare stay in the truck by herself. There was a woman at the counter, and she asked if we could wait while she went to the washroom. She came back and explained that most of the time, she would not trust her customers alone, but we looked trustworthy. When she found out we were Canadian, she grilled us about our health care system. She also knew about Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka. Not the best representation of Canadians!
Up to Little Rock, there were rolling hills totally covered by a deciduous forest. No sign of Fall yet. After Little Rock, the land flattened out, with more pockets of cultivated land, including several cotton fields. The weather remained warm, in the low 80's, but cold weather is in the forcast. In a few days it could get down to the mid to upper 70's. Good thing we head south again soon.
We drove over 7 hours with stops, a long day. We are now camped a the gates to Graceland.
You probably want to know what a typical travel day looks like. Oh, yes you do!!! We are with 5 vehicles of assorted size. Everyone gets up and leaves on their own, usually between 9:15 and 10:00. We may see some of our party at a rest stop some days. When we arrive at our destination and set up, it is usually mid to late afternoon and Happy Hour begins. This may last for a few hours, but in actual fact, involves little acohol, usually only one drink. Then dinner preparations begin and everyone does their own thing. Most nights, if the weather is good, people may congregate again at the designated Happy Hour site for coffee and a glass of wine around 9 or 9:30. During this time, plans are confirmed for the next day.

Day 19
Today was an awesome day! The weather was nice but not too hot. We started with a tour of Graceland. Very enjoyable. They did a great job of organizing and I was surprised that despite how rich Elvis was, the mansion was not as opulent as I would expect. Everything was left as of 1970's when he did his last redecorating, so there was long green shag carpets and a jungle room with a waterfall on the wall. A good tour. Everything around here is Elvis related. Everywhere there are gift shops with Elvis pictures on almost any tacky gift you can imagine.

After lunch we then took a free shuttle bus to visit the Sun Studio, which is exactly as it was in the fifties. It was neat to see the room where Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, B.B. King, Roy Orbison, and many others recorded their first records. The actual microphone they sang into was still standing there. Very cool.

The shuttle then dropped us off on Beale Street near downtown Memphis. We walked around and had a drink at an outdoor Irish patio. Everywhere there was the sounds of blues bands. We found where Jerry Lee Lewis had his musical note and hand print in the sidewalk. We caught the shuttle in front of the FedEx Forum, home of the stollen Memphis Grizzlies.

For dinner, we got picked up at our campsite in a pink limo and driven to Marlowes, a Ribs restaurant. I had the biggest rack of pork ribs, that spilled off of the plate on both sides, and Joanie had Mississippi Delta Catfish, (many catfish restaurants here), baked beans and corn fritters. They were quite good. As we left the restaurant and waited for our limo, new clientele began to arrive for the music portion of the evening. They were mostly black women dressed in tight clothing and super high heels. Not sure what was going on.

We looked into the possibility or changing our route tomorrow to go to Nashville in the hopes of visiting the Grand Ole Opry, and maybe taking in a show. However, per their website, the Opry is having a grand re-opening on Tuesday, with a line-up of the best Country singers on the radio today. Nothing is scheduled for tomorrow, so we decided to forgo the extra travel and go to Jackson, Mississippi instead, just like Johnny Cash.

The nice thing about being here is that you can watch CFL football games the next day and not run the risk of finding out the score. Tonight, before watching yesterday's BC Lions game, we skyped with Leah. The first thing she says to me is, " Dad, did you know the Lions won yesterday!" Ah, not even safe in Memphis.

Day 20
Destination: Jackson, Mississippi
Left at 9:15 and arrived at Clinton, a suburb of Jackson at 3PM, where we had a swim before Happy Hour. The drive was uneventful. We did see a flock of white egrets and some vultures feeding on something, but apparently missed some wild pigs. The rolling land was covered in a mixture of evergreens and deciduous trees which were much taller than the trees we had seen lately, but also more narrow and less dense. Surprised at how green Mississippi is. We traveled the interstate for a while, then got on the Natchez Trace Trail, a very long parkway that traverses the state. It was a nice drive, a little like driving through Stanley Park, with trees covering the two lane road. The weather was nice and sunny, with some clouds, and temperatures in the upper 70's, quite pleasant. For dinner, we ate the leftover catfish from last night's outing.

Day 21
Destination: New Orleans

Drove 3.5 hrs to New Orleans on another beautiful, sunny warm day. People here are so happy with the weather, as it has been near or over 100 degrees for the past months. South Mississippi and Northern Louisiana had beautiful pine forests as well as the orange soil which seems to be throughout the midwest and south. We travelled on a stretch of about 60 miles of elevated highway going into New Orleans, with swamps and stands of dead trees on the side. I spotted several different birds, including egrets and some kind of heron, while others claimed to see an alligator as well. The approach to N.O. is interesting because you travel over a piece of the Pontchartrain Lake on which the city lies. The highway 55 in Lousiana was very rough, with rolling cement separated with grooves which reminded me of how it felt to ride those mechanical horses they used to have in the grocery store when I was young, the few times my parents actually put a dime into the machine.
We caught a shuttle from our KOA to the city and took in the French Quarter. We had a great meal, a sampling of gumbo, crayfish, and jambaliya. We walked down Bourbon Street at night. The streets are narrow and lined with rod iron balconies. Bourbon street was actually kind of seedy looking, and we were surprised by all the sex establishments, some with girls in scantily clad bikinis showing off their wares and enticing customers to come in. It almost reminded us of a Red Light District. We did hear lots of music coming out of the bars, but were surprised that few were actually playing jazz.

Day 22
Another beautiful sunny day wiht highs of around 90 degrees. This is a more relaxing day, so we started with a pre-breakfast stroll along the dike beside the Mississippi River. Later we went on a swamp tour and saw many,many alligators. We returned for a nice swim and of course, Happy Hour. This trip has cause me some stress as I have had to adjust to new dinner hours. The traditional Meyer dinner hour of 5:15 has now been moved to 6:30 or 7PM, whenever people are finished with Happy Hour.
Tomorrow, I will begin a new blog, New Orleans II, so you don't have to scroll so far down for the next portion. I see the crowd is growing outside out trailer for coffee and ??? so its time to go.