Well hi. It’s been a while since we’ve written, a while since we’ve checked in… and a while since we’ve shared an adventure with you… High time, I’d say. WiFi on the road is very sketchy… thank goodness for the golden arches.
Now then, you remember Lucy? That svelt little 17 footer we dragged home from La Vegas last year. Well she’s all fixed up now… a few new parts and a few little repairs… and she was rarin’ to go. Then there was Chuck (the truck)… poor old fellow. He really is starting to feel his age, particularly in his transmissional parts. But a few repairs there and he too was willing to give it a try… ‘course he hadn’t seen the load we were going to shove into his cargo bay and the other “wee bits” we intended to cram into Lucy’s corridor. I’m pretty sure we’re challenging the ultimate maximum limits of Ford’s best little truck… the 1999 Ranger.
And so, after what wasn’t the funnest summer we’ve ever had (living in a little sailboat and alternating that with living in the 17 footer… and with our stuff spread out over at least 8 addresses.. well, let’s just say… it would have been a lot more fun in our twenty’s.. not so much now). We will be forever indebted to our friends who helped us pack and move and who held our hands through some of the stressful times… and who have put us up and put up with us over these past two months…. But it was time for us to move on and Tuesday morning, Sept. 16th, we hit the road at 0700 hrs., and headed on down the highway… bound for the MV Coho out of Victoria.
Most of you have had experience with Border guards, as have we; and you might expect to be more rigorously grilled once on USA ground (eg: Port Angeles) but “no”… we met our COFH (Customs officer from hell) right here in Victoria. A swarthy little” fellow, with a name spelled mostly with “w’s” and “z’s” and an attitude that was the rudest I have ever encountered. When greeted by a local police officer and asked how he was doing.. his response (loud enough for us all to hear) was “well I’m here, that’s about all they’ll get out of me today”. And then he approached our vehicle and proceeded to do his best to ruin our day. Thankfully he approached the passenger side (Kathy this day) and poured out his cheerful dialogue onto her shoulders. I’m not sure I would have remained as civil as she managed to. Finally finished with us, he moved on to cheer up the folks in the next vehicle. Lovely fellow.. really made us want to continue into the US :-(
But we did, and after a quick ride across Juan de Fuca we were waved through the checkpoint on the US side… nice officer, pleasant fellow, welcomed us and waved us on our way… and on we went. I think a couple confessions are in order at this point. First.. I am guilty of over-loading both Chuck and the trailer; and second, I have not thoroughly worked out our course and anchorages for this cruise south… something I always do, every time, without fail. The planning fell apart this year.. never even got started. I have a thousand excuses, none that hold water, all play a part in the reasons why we actually left home without a proper plan. “Tsk, tsk “you might say, “not at all in keeping with proper Capricornerisms”. And you’d be right. But that’s the truth.. we’re flying by the seat of our pants, driving with fingers crossed that Chuck doesn’t explode, and worried sick about our friends in La Paz and other parts of the Baja… recently demolished by Hurricane Odile.
Not sure if you’ve been following the news but Hurricane Odile hit Cabo San Lucas hard and then crashed its way up the Baja, trashing La Paz, Puerto Escondido, Loreto, Mulege. It’s still going. although reduced, and the effects of heavy rains and flooding are being felt on the mainland and as far north as Phoenix. This is the largest hurricane to hit the Baja, some say, in all recorded history. Check out Latitude 38 if you wish more details but the tragedy continues. Entire marinas, dozens of boats , and square miles of homes have been lost. In La Paz, we have lost one cruiser and two others are missing. We are all very upset and worried but only time and the collective support of community will ease these wounds. We’re looking forward to being able to join these efforts and will do so as soon as we can get Wild Goose/Shannon’s Spirit ready and on the water.
In the mean time we’re heading south, heavily loaded with materials for ‘Spirit’ and creating our journey as it unfolds. Some of you have been waiting to hear of our route and our stops, so here goes. First, let me thank Leona for sharing her ‘flatter than I 5” route with me. We’re using it as our base reference. After over-heating Chuck’s tranny a bit, we decided to limit our days to approx. 300 miles and our route so far is as follows:
- Tuesday, Sept. 16th: Coho ferry to Port Angeles, then south on Hwy.101 and the I 5 to Chehailis, WA
- We stayed at the Chehailis RV and Outdoor Resort, a Thousand Trails resort. It was farther off our route than we had realized but the drive was through beautiful, rural, horse country. The resort roads were ‘uphill’, but Chuck managed them and we found a beautiful and private site. Passport America Cost: $23.00.
- Wednesday, Sept. 17th: On this day we not only drove further than we should have, over-heating the transmission… but we also managed to run out of gas about 3 miles short of our intended gas stop. VERY embarrassing as not only did I fail to notice the emptying gas tank, I had also failed to fill the emergency jerry can I was carrying (more failing to plan). Thank goodness for AAA/BCAA and a quick delivery of $8 worth of petrol. Okay, enough with the confessions. On we went, no worse for wear, and only 45 minutes later than we’d been.
- We stayed at the Pioneer RV Park in Hermiston, OR. For us, this is suitable for a one-nighter. It’s clean, in-line parking, and has full services. Passport America Cost: $18.00.
- Thursday, Sept. 18th: Having learned our lesson about pushing Chuck too hard (this was the first day of our ‘new’ plan… shorter drives, more relaxed days), we drove for a whole hour, down the road to Pendleton where we visited Hamley & Co Saddelry and the Pendleton Woollen Mill. Then we took on the challenge of a long, slow hill from Pendleton to La Grande. From there we headed onwards toward Ontario, OR our intended destination. We didn’t make it… not for any other reason than as we crested yet another dry, flat bend in the road… we espied a lush green oasis. Turns out it was a State park located on the Snake River, at the location where settlers heading further west bid farewell to their companions and continued west.
- We stayed at the Farewell Bend State Park, in Site 72, with a great view of the river and a private site with electrical and water. Very nice. Park cost: $24.00.
Tomorrow we press on… following the Oregon Trail (aka Hwy. 84) east to Idaho and then south through Nevada to Arizona. We’ll keep you posted, but know we are well and gradually recovering from an exhausting summer. The Sea of Cortez beckons. We have yet to contact San Carlos to see if our boat will be ready for work to start on Oct. 1st. We want to give them time to assess the situation caused by Odile’s rain.
So dear friends… take good care of yourselves, pray for those in need, and thank you again for your support.
Adios amigos Y amigas….. CJ and Kathy, and of course… the one and only, Princess Sophie.
